Cellar Notes

Notes about the wines we have tried recently.

Kenwood Vineyards: Wines for a Change of Seasons

I usually spend September in denial about the end of summertime. By the time October rolls around I’ve come to terms with fall and actually look forward to a change of seasons. Thanks to Kenwood Vineyards that transition has been especially easy, and delicious, this year. We received a group of wines as tasting samples that perfectly bridged the change […]

Flora Springs All Hollows’ Eve Cabernet Franc

Flora Springs in Napa Valley’s St. Helena goes all out for Halloween and with good reason. Their beautiful stone winery is considered one of Napa’s ghost wineries, which means it was built between 1860 and 1900, was abandoned for a time and then rescued and renovated to become part of the modern winery at Flora Springs. Today we’re getting in […]

Sipping Flora Springs Soliloquy

The story of Soliloquy, a Sauvignon Blanc clone unique to Flora Springs and a wine of the same name made using those grapes, is a story of family and perseverance. California Wine Month is the perfect time to tell it’s tale. We received this wine as a tasting sample. Flora Springs Winery is a family-owned winery that sits at the […]

Sipping Vermouth

Today we are sipping something a bit different for us – vermouth. We recently tasted a vermouth crafted in California and two made in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. Both are infused with botanicals and fortified, but they taste very different. We received both as tasting samples. I used to think of vermouth as exclusively an ingredient in cocktails, I […]

doqi Kisi, Kakheti

Today’s cellar note takes us to the country of Georgia on the eastern shore of the Black Sea. Georgia lies south of Russia and north of Turkey and Armenia. Azerbaijan lies to the east. This is a region with an ancient history of winemaking dating back at least 8,000 years. Along with that history comes the qvevri, a large, oval […]

Tinto Figuero Tempranillo

We took advantage of a cool spell, relatively speaking, to sip some Tinto Fino, aka Tempranillo. These three lovelies offer a comparison of vine age, winemaking and aging from Spain’s Ribera del Duero. We received these wines as tasting samples. Ribera del Duero is a rugged wine region north of Madrid that takes its name from the Duero River, which […]

Mix Up Your Summer Sipping

I don’t know about you, but hot summer temperatures can make me lazy. I prefer to keep food preparation simple and the same applies to summer sipping. Pouring a glass of chilled wine is about as simple as it gets, but it’s also fun to mix things up a bit on occasion. I have a couple of suggestions for refreshing, […]

Chillin’ With Rosé of Pinot Noir

Our celebration of rosé continues with three rosés of Pinot Noir. Two are made in California and the third in Oregon. All were provided to us as tasting samples and all are part of Jackson Family Wines. How did they know my first love is Pinot Noir? Hot weather has descended upon us this year without much transition from cool, […]

Sipping Kenwood Vineyards Six Ridges

After a long, wet winter and spring it appears summer may finally have arrived. I hope. That means we’re ready to slip more white wines and lighter red wines into our wine rotation. Kenwood Vineyards sent us two such wines as tasting samples that will be delicious dining companions in the months to come. The Six Ridges line of wines […]

A Taste of Abruzzo from Codice Citra

Today’s cellar note brings you a taste of Abruzzo, an Italian wine region located in the central part of the country along the Adriatic Sea. If you think of Italy as shaped like a boot, Abruzzo is located just below the calf of the boot. Marche lies to the north, Lazio to the west and Molise to the south. We […]