California's Wine Regions, Terrior, Day Trips, Wine Tasting
Wines of California from Santa Barbara to Napa and beyond
California wine regions were pummeled by wild weather spouting atmospheric rivers drenching us in the winter of 2022-2023. The big question all year has been, ‘What affect will that water … Continue Reading Water Into California Wine: Is This 2023 Vintage the Best Of The Decade?
Where can you find California winemakers pouring their art? During the Garagiste Wine Festival there was more wine poured by wine makers than we could enjoy in the hours allowed. … Continue Reading California Winemakers Pour Their Art At The Garagiste Wine Festival
You’ve seen people’s ‘pour’ behavior in California winery tasting rooms. Don’t be this person. When you become the ‘ugly wine taster’ you’ll end up with short corporate pours and pointed … Continue Reading 10 ‘Pour’ Behaviors to Avoid While Tasting California Wine: Don’t be The Ugly Wine Taster
“None of these wines are ready for prime time.” “That’s why we blend them: Syrah, Grenache, Malbec and Cabernet.” “We think we should add Malbec to the Cabernet.” “We’re thinking … Continue Reading Blending California Wine: A Multitude of Ways to Create Savory Wine, Or Ruin It
When a porous cork enclosure is the only thing blocking oxygen from your California wine there’s plenty of room for failure. As one winemaker said to us several years back, … Continue Reading Screw Caps Vs Cork In California Wine Bottles: Which Works Best?
This California wine region tastes, looks, smells, sounds, drives and feels like Paso Robles. But it’s Amador County’s Highway 49, not Paso Robles’ Highway 46. They even grow similar oak … Continue Reading California Gold Rush Country is Home to the Wine Rush
Why is California and it’s Paso Robles & Temecula terroirs a great place to savor wine? a) The land, b) the temperatures, c) the winemakers, d) the hospitality people, e) … Continue Reading California Wine Regions Paso Robles & Temecula Awarded Top Destinations In US
Alcohol is such an important taste component of California Wine that you wonder what it could possibly taste like with out it. We took a test drive of an ‘Alcohol … Continue Reading Will Alcohol Removed Wine Satisfy an Oenophile’s Palate?
Drinking California wine doesn’t make you smarter, it just seems that way. That’s why we take notes on our wine tastings. Writing tasting notes on a wineries’ flight sheet seemed … Continue Reading Notes On California Wine: Keeping Your Head Straight While Tasting
Visiting wineries far away from the main highways is part of the exploration of California bottles of wine. So we did that just recently visiting Bianchi in Paso Robles. We’ve … Continue Reading Bianchi Wines on the East Side of Paso Robles
The cost of tasting an estate California bottle of wine has escalated since the pandemic altered our lives (just one more inflation hit.) There are a few ways to mitigate … Continue Reading Cutting the Cost of Estate Wine Tasting With Regional Winery Passports
You love the California wine you just tasted and your host is dangling this offer, ‘We’ll waive today’s tasting fee if you join our club, today.’ A friend of ours … Continue Reading Wine Club Pros & Cons: Do I Really Want You To Ship All That Wine To Me? Part 2
Pulitzer Award winning author Ernest Hemingway lived a vivid life on the outer edge and apparently the owner of Paso’s Hemingway Winery is following his path. We’re hard-pressed to put … Continue Reading California Closes Paso’s Hemingway Winery for Selling Wine Without Liquor License the Past 3 Years
Sitting in a winery reading a sign, “Let’s Make Pour Decisions,” I decided, why not. Pour me some Viognier, the white wine for red wine lovers. Dono del Cielo Vineyard … Continue Reading California Gold Country Zinfandels, Chardonnays & Petite Sirahs
Paso Robles locals have a love/hate relationship with Justin Vineyards & Winery. Some Paso locals swear at Justin while some locals swear by this vintner perched in the foothills west … Continue Reading A Central Coast Love/Hate Story With Justin Winery
Ten years ago we here at California Bottle of Wine reported the most popular wine by sales volume in America was Pinot Noir. This makes sense because it’s a softer … Continue Reading What Wine is Favorite Now? You May be Surprised by the Answer.