Wine Geek Video

Ok, I will not say that this post will be the most interesting thing ever, but it is still kind of fun to see. For those people who have read the blog for a while, you have possibly seen a video of me opening a bottle of sparkling wine under water. The video of the Movia opening wasn't the easiest to see, so hopefully this one will be.

On a recent trip to Sonoma, I visited Donkey and Goat winery. The owners, Jared and Tracey were extremely welcoming and they had one of the coolest tasting rooms I've seen in some time, with graffiti art from a local artist adorning the wall above the bocce ball court. As we tasted through their wines, they mentioned a bottle that they made to be opened under water and I couldn't help but ask to do it. Below is the video of me doing it. Hope you enjoy and please visit their website that will be linked at the bottom of this page.

Once again, please visit the website for the winery and learn more about this husband and wife team: Donkey and Goat

A Flashback to Childhood with Some Duckhorn

So, now is the time for a bit of a blast from the past. I have been sick for the las few days, and have not done much other than lounge around, search the web, catch up on all my shows (that Glee finally...WOW), and sleep. However, I got a call to go to lunch with a rep from Duckhorn, and this is on thing I can't often turn down.

A little history: Duckhorn was really the first wine I knew about. My father would travel to Chicago and almost every week would talk about these Duckhorn wines especially Paraduxx. To me, these meant nothing, but then I started working with wine and I starting to get it. These wines are both well made and playful. They were such a part of me growing up that my dad was given a bottle of the merlot for the year I was born, which we enjoyed a few Thanksgivings ago.

Today, I was able to taste down the line of Duckhorn's wines, but I really wanted to highlight 3 of them. The reason I point these out is because these are the three wines that really made Duckhorn that special thing for me.

We start with Goldeneye, their higher end pinot noir. This wine is gritty and earthy, with lush fruits and subtile spices that drive the finish into a wonderful place. It is a great great wine for special occasions or just a killer wine to drink every day.

The second in the merlot. I will tout merlot here as much as possible in an effort to break the stigma set by Sideways. While they might not like "f*cking merlot", I DO. This '09 merlot is brighter and more vibrant than the pinot. The fruits are lush and sweet, the tannins are smooth, and the finish is lush and lingering. This was their flagship wine for a good reason.

And now on to Paraduxx. This blend was something that Duckhorn became famous not because of the wine, but because of the labels that were designed by different artists each year, always featuring two ducks. They have now changed the label to a more consistent label, which it ok (I will miss the new labels). This vintage is 69% Zin and the remainder is Cab. This is a playful wine, bright with fruits, big tannins, and baking spices that make this wine dance on your tongue. It's a great every day wine, or one that will help warm you up as winter comes to a close.

Go grab one of these and hopefully you'll see why they were a big part of my development as a somm. Happy sipping!

My blind tasting....1/28

Alison was not kind with this one.... Although the 2004 brunello was a treat.

Bond "Vecina"

Crazy wine from 05. This Napa wine (Oakville more specifically) starts with a sweet nose of casis, berries, and a little smoke. The palate is complex and lingers with a tart liquorish flavor for a long time. Pretty cool wine though.

Here is a link to their site Bond Vecina