California's Wine Regions, Terrior, Day Trips, Wine Tasting
Wines of California from Santa Barbara to Napa and beyond
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.
Wine clubs are curious things. You might love a particular wine so they give you a 20% discount, they’ll ship wine to you and offer complementary tastings while visiting (including … Continue Reading Wine Club Pros & Cons: Do I Really Want You To Ship All That Wine To Me? Part 1
Would you go to Christmas dinner without a bottle of wine to share? If you are a reader of these columns, of course you would bring a bottle! Bringing a … Continue Reading This Holiday Sample Wines Your Family Brings In a Blind Tasting
Pour a young tannic Cabernet through Haley’s Corker and you’ll strip out all the harsh tannins. Pour a buttery Chardonnay through Haley’s Corker and you’ll strip out the butter. So … Continue Reading Haley’s Corker & the Aeration of California Wine
Full disclosure here, we’re not big fans of dry Italian varietals. But if you like dry Italian wine you’ll love Bella Luna Estate Winery in Templeton (South of Paso Robles.) … Continue Reading Italian Wine on the Dry Side Cooled by the Templeton Gap
Once upon a time the Wall Street Journal published a weekly column by Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher regaling us in the joys of quality wine with an eye toward … Continue Reading Napa Too Expensive? Others Begin To Agree With Us.
“Do you smoke, use drugs or drink alcohol?” Classic questions from a doctor but the next question surprised me after I shared my wine proclivities. “Do you like Napa wine?” … Continue Reading With California Wine, ‘Love The One You’re With’
Visiting Stillwaters Winery in Paso Robles over a 3-day President’s holiday weekend the place is hopping with brides-to-be along with the out-of-towners looking for a breath of fresh air after … Continue Reading California Wineries Open Up After C19 Public Masking Requirements Softened
Here we go again. 75,000 new Covid 19 infections one California day. It’s worse than the last peak but thankfully less virulent. None the less, it’s impacting everything from seeing … Continue Reading Hurdles C-19 Poses For California Wine Tasting