Cellar Notes

Notes about the wines we have tried recently.

Tanteun e Marietta Farouche Rouge, Vallée d’Aoste featured photo

Tanteun e Marietta Farouche Rouge

The minute I stuck my nose in the glass I knew I would love this wine. I had already noticed the translucent ruby color of this wine in the glass. Many red wines that are translucent enough to read through make me happy once I taste them. This lovely 2016 Tanteun e Marietta Farouche Rouge is no exception. 2016 Tanteun […]

Concannon Vineyard Clone 7 Cabernet Sauvignon

Concannon Vineyard Clone 7: History & Cabernet Sauvignon

There is a story behind just about every glass of wine. Some are more interesting than others, to be sure, and Concannon Vineyard is more interesting than most in terms of history and contributions made to the wine industry. Today we are sipping Clone 7 Cabernet Sauvignon from Concannon Vineyard that we received as a tasting sample. It is the […]

Champagne Bruno Paillard featured photo

Champagne Bruno Paillard: Make Any Occasion Grand

Champagne is the most luxurious and celebratory of libations and the standard against which all other sparkling wines are judged. This is the perfect time of year to luxuriate with a glass of Champagne and today we are sipping one of my favorites, Champagne Bruno Paillard, which we received as a tasting sample. Bruno Paillard Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru […]

Sparkling Wine for the Holidays featured photo

Bubbles for Your Holiday Celebrations

The holiday season is upon us and that means more gatherings with family and friends than usual, which also means more opportunities to enjoy sparkling wine. We have four sparklers to share with you today that we received as tasting samples. I hope you have your wine glass ready. Côte Mas Brut NV St. Hilaire, Crémant de Limoux — medium […]

Harney Lane wines featured photo

Harney Lane Wine for the Holidays and Everyday

I’m willing to bet that you closely associate Zinfandel with the Lodi wine region. Many wine drinkers do. But, you might not associate Chardonnay with Lodi. We’ve only tasted a few Lodi Chardonnays, but recently we had the opportunity to taste the new release Chardonnay from Harney Lane Winery & Vineyards along with their Old Vine Zinfandel sourced from the […]

Domaine Bousquet Premium Wines

Sipping Wines from Domaine Bousquet

Today’s tasting note takes us to Argentina’s Mendoza wine region and more specifically to Tupungato within the Uco Valley. We are sipping wines from Domaine Bousquet’s Premium Range of wines and all are made using organic grapes. We received these wines as tasting samples. I still remember my first taste of Domaine Bousquet wines. It was their Gaia range of […]

J Mc Clelland and 50 Harvests featured photo

J. McClelland & 50 Harvests: A Taste of Napa from Scotto Cellars

J. McClelland and 50 Harvests wines are the top tier of wines crafted by Scotto Cellars. Both are sourced from Napa Valley vineyards and made at the Scotto’s Napa Valley winery, Steel Canyon Cellars. Winemakers Mark Smith, Mitch Cosentino and Paul Scotto collaborate on these wines, which we received as tasting samples. The J. McClelland brand pays tribute to John […]

Fall Grilling featured photo

It’s Fall and We’re Still Grilling

Grilling in the fall takes on a very different feel than in summer, even in California. Gone are long, leisurely and warm evenings. This time of year sunset comes quickly and a sweater may be required when tending the grill. And a head lamp. No matter, we still occasionally pull out the grill and when we do we need wine […]

Chalk Hill Sonoma Coast Chardonnay featured photo

Chalk Hill Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

I’m a white wine drinker regardless of the season. This time of year I begin adding red wines into the rotation, but my preference is always for white wines. So, needless to say, I was happy to receive a tasting sample of Chalk Hill Sonoma Coast Chardonnay to share with you. Chalk Hill Estate Vineyards is a 1300-acre property that […]