I recently tasted this wine at a big portfolio tasting (Prestige Wine Cellars — thanks, Mo!) and had to kind of laugh. It’s such a ringer at one of these things… You taste and spit glass after glass of Malbec, Cabernet, etc. and then you get to something this nectary and soothing and sweet — [...]

Here’s a wine that’s not only delicious, sophisticated and relatively affordable — it’s also widely available!
Matanzas Creek 2007 Chardonnay Sonoma Valley ($29). A sleek, lemony throughline stays crisp and elegant from beginning to end, and supports ripe pear, tropical citrus and fig flavors. With touches of toast, butter and cream through the long, rich finish. [...]

Here’s a wine built for aging– like all Mayacamas wines, it will continue to evolve and improve in the bottle for years to come:
Mayacamas 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley ($65). Intense and tightly wound — just a baby at this stage. With black currant, wild blackberry, sage, allspice and big, dusty tannins. Needs loads of [...]

I recently brought this wine to a dinner party and then just sat back and watched as it worked its magic on everyone at the table. Delicate but flavorful, and oh so pretty.
Sokol Blosser 2007 Pinot Noir Dundee Hills ($36). Supple and pretty, delicate but with body and complex flavors — raspberry and cherry laced [...]

Oh, this is dangerous stuff — goes down way too easily, especially on one of these cold, grey winter nights. The slight headache I was sporting this morning was thanks to some entirely unprofessional overindulgence in this wine last night. But I couldn’t help myself… Paired with dollops of a double-cream Brie de Paris and [...]

I’m kicking off a Weekly Wine Pick feature — just a short ‘n sweet shout out to a single wine that really got my attention this week. No rules, no particular price range or even availability — hopefully some will be more available than others, but some may require a bit of searching…
Talmage 2006 Syrah [...]