Keenan is a nice, friendly, down to earth tasting. Interesting to taste and informative about the vineyards and region, which was particularly useful to put their wines in perspective of the valley. Also a friendly wine dog came to greet us. Apparently he was more than happy to get some scratches and laid at our feet for whole tasting. A solid tasting all around.
Buccella, under the guidance of well-known winemaking consultant Celia Masyczek has fashioned brilliant Cabernet Sauvignons in both 2006 and 2007 and the 2008 continues their success. The 2008s are slightly more powerful, backward wines but they have enough structure as well as sensational concentration and depth to support the tannins.
ROBERT PARKER RATING: 95
Crane Brothers as the name of the winery suggests, is owned and operated by two brothers Michael and Rob Crane who are third generation natives to the Napa Valley. Both have many years experience of being home winemakers and in the mid 90's purchased land in the Oak Knoll district and planted several varietals including Syrah, Merlot and Caberrnet Sauvignon. As they will tell you, they took the "long road" to becoming commercial winemakers and managing their own vineyards! Michael works in real estate and the Rob is a hospitality manager at Sterling Vineyards. Rob has grown up in and around the wine industry with his first winery job in the cellar at the old Christian Brothers Winery in 1970.
The building is beautiful, with an open kitchen where they make their light bites from scratch. I've tasted here three times and have really fun and knowledgeable hosts. Bonus points for the vineyard being 100% certified COOF Organic and Biodynamic.
This is also one of the wineries that allows you to bring your own picnic to enjoy on the sun-drenched patio. I love to make this a mid-point stop and enjoy some cured meats, cheeses, and baguette and share a bottle of my favorite Sinskey wine, the lovely Abraxas. Such a great idea! $15 of the $25 tasting fee is refundable with the purchase of two bottles of their reasonably priced wines. Definitely not to be missed during your Napa super happy fun time!
We were given the opportunity to check this place out through the wine tour we scheduled. Their operation is also one of the most intimate experiences you will have in terms of a winery visit. You literally taste their wine on some super comfy patio furniture in the middle of a field/clearing right next to their vineyard! The owner, Donny, is very knowledgable and guides you through his wines.
Igneous Winery is the teamwork of the Huckfeldt family who own Huckfeldt Ranch Vineyard and legendary vineyard consultant David Abreu, arguably one of the most important figures in the Napa cult wine movement. Working with famous properties such as Harlan Estate, Colgin, Bryant Family, Sloan Estate and Spottswoode, David has helped to create some of the most sought after wines in world. Don and Ann Huckfeldt, longtime Napa Valley residents, created Igneous Wines in 2002.
Like many of the smaller Napa vineyards, this one had a distinct personality. From the beautifully appointed tasting and event rooms to the hip staff and owner to the funny little chihuahua statue (I'll let you find him) the message was clear: we're serious and knowlegable about good wine but we also know how to laugh. Very different from some of the huge vineyards which can be awfully serious. Definitely make this stop when checking out Calistoga. The 2010 Calistoga Estate Cabernet Sauvignon at $48. This is 100% Cab. An appealing bright purplish in color, it had a very nice aroma of black cherry, smoke and vanilla. Smooth and fresh on the palate, it was mostly black cherry with some vanilla. The finish was quite long with cherry, lingering tannins and spice.
They have a simple tasting room with seats and tables outside facing the vineyards. If the weather is lovely definitely opt for sitting outside! I came here for a girl's wine tasting day. Our wine guide was nice and friendly, he was nice enough to give us two extra tastings.
We sat outside and admired the pretty vineyards wine sipping our wine. We got three tastings and just split among the five of us. My favorite was the chardonnay, nice and light and as our wine guide said "can go with anything."
Great winery with nice staff. If you're around this area, definitely stop by.
Most wineries can take great estate grapes from Napa and make wonderfully expensive Cabernet Sauvignon. Very few will offer you the same quality of estate grapes for less than half the price. Stratton Lummis makes only two wines. Its Cabernet Sauvignon comes from the heart of the Napa Valley's best grape estates. Its un-oaked Chardonnay comes from the heart of Carneros where it captures flavors and depth missing in other non-oaked wines. It has been a long time since you tasted California Chardonnay like this.
Definitely worth the foresight it takes to reserve your tasting time. The guy there Jeff is very personable, not at all like so many of the other wineries where you can tell they are either sort of annoyed that you're there or just trying to get you to buy as much as possible. He remembers us from visit to visit, we have nice chats, he has a talent for getting the group (never more than 12 at a time) to open up as everyone sits around a small coffee table in their living room/tasting room. Most of what they produce is Pinot Noir, and it's all excellent. Doesn't taste like most pinots out there, very unique flavors, well attenuated and dry but not harsh. They have a complex fruit character without being overpowering in the bouquet. Overall, spectacular wines that really stand out.
