Winery Reflections

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Winery Reflections

Reviewing the unique wineries of the world and their remarkable wines

09/09/2026

Since 1998 the Dierberg family has been proudly committed to growing and crafting world class wine in Santa Barbara County.

The family's two picturesque properties sit at opposite ends of the Santa Ynez Valley, with their Drum Canyon vineyards located in the cool Santa Rita Hills while their Star Lane vineyards sit in the heart of the warm Happy Canyon. Using the diversity of these world-class terroirs this familt-led team has been able to shape a truly incredible lineup of wine!

We had the recent pleasure of visiting Dierberg's Drum Canyon tasting room, a longtime favorite of ours, and absolutely adored getting to sample their latest while soaking up the late summer sunshine!

Highlights from the tasting included a pure and mineral Chardonnay, an expressive and ethereal Pinot Noir, and a delightful selection of Bordeaux-varietal wines led by a mesmerizingly complex Cabernet Franc.

We loved both the wines and the family-friendly tasting room setup and look forward to visiting again soon!

Dierberg & Star Lane Vineyards Tasting Room Star Lane Vineyard & Winery
cabernetsauvignon

09/04/2026

Its been a hot summer here in Southern California, and while cold and crisp whites and rosés have gotten most of our attention we've also been enjoying our fair share of fresh and delicious reds!

Here are two spectacular reds by Dutcher Crossing perfect for end of summer sipping:

2025 Lady Noir Blanc - Crafted using an unconventional blend of 50% Chardonnay/25% Mourvèdre/25% Grenache, this gushes with gobs fresh and crunchy red berry fruits backed by streaks of clean herbal character. Light tannin and bright acidity make this perfect to serve chilled!

2022 Placida Vineyard Pinot Noir - This textbook Russian River Valley Pinot combines expressive cherry and cola notes with clean forest tones and enticing saline minerality. It has enough density and depth to pair with grilled red meat, yet maintains the freshness and balance perfect for a warm summer night.

What are your go-to red wines for summer?

Dutcher Crossing Winery

08/28/2026

Selecting the right wine to sip on a beach vacation can be a bit tricky, but this one was definitely a winner!

We adored popping this 2024 Maypop Willamette Valley White Blend alongside dinner overlooking the ocean while visiting Catalina Island. A blend of Chardonnay, Riesling, Gewurtztraminer, and Albariño, this wine combines surprising depth alongside terrific approachability and refreshment. It also happened to pair perfectly with freshly-caught local swordfish!

08/24/2026

Great wine can be enjoyed anywhere!

We brought quite a few fantastic bottles with us on our family vacation to Catalina Island, including this incredible Blanc de Cabernet Franc by Luna Hart. We popped the cork during the boat ride and absolutely adored the combination of depth, complexity, and energy this wine presented.

This experience wasn't about tasting notes or highly structured analysis, we just sat back and enjoyed delicious wine paired with smiles, sunshine, and salty ocean air! 🌊

Luna Hart Wines

08/21/2026

Family update:

Life with three kids is keeping us very busy, but we're having a blast!

As our family has grown we've been forced to slow down a bit on the pursuit of our personal passion projects in favor of things like coaching little league and attending school performances. We might be posting a little less wine content, but be rest assured we're still here seeking out the most unique and delicious wine we can find. We'll continue to do our best to share what we can when we can!

Enjoy this fresh shot of the fam from our end of summer break Catalina vacation!

07/31/2026

Great wine can be made in many different types of terroir, but some of the most unique and captivating wines on the planet come from vineyards planted at high elevations.

Factors such as more intense sunlight, significant diurnal shifts, and demanding growing conditions push vines planted at high elevations to their limits. This aids in producing wines that possess a unique combination of freshness, concentration, and balance.

For those interested in exploring what is so special and unique about high elevation wines, here are some bottlings we highly recommend!

2023 Miguel Torres "Cordillera" Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 - Grown at 4,000 to 5,000 feet elevation in Maipo Valley, Chile

2024 Peregrine Sauvignon Blanc 2024 - Grown at 720 to 1,150 feet of elevation in Bendigo, Central Otago, New Zealand

2020 Marqués de Cáceres "Reserva Vendimia Seleccionada" 2020 – Grown in vineyards as high as 2,430 feet in Rioja, Spain

2022 Sattlerhof "Gamlitz" Sauvignon Blanc – Grown at 1148 to 1,476 feet of elevation in Südsteiermark, Austria

2024 Umani Ronchi CaSal di Serra Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore 2024– Grown at 656 to 1,148 feet of elevation in Marche, Italy

2024 MAAL "Biutiful" Malbec – Grown at 3,840 feet of elevation in Vista Flores, Mendoza, Argentina

What high elevation wines do you enjoy?

Vineyard Brands Viña Miguel Torres Chile Peregrine Wines Bodegas Marqués de Cáceres Sattlerhof Umani Ronchi MAAL WINES

07/22/2026

Charmingly bright and crisp bursts of fresh peach, young strawberry, lemon zest and passionfruit lead an attractively tart and zippy attack brimming with pleasant earthiness and minerality in the form of sea spray and crushed rock. Hints of mint leaf and rosemary subtly impart clean herbal character as wafts of citrus blossom, lavender, and wildflowers gleefully enhance aromatics. A subtle note of candied ginger rounds out the display with a pleasant pinch of spice that fades into waves of attractive salinity. Tremendously unique and characterful on the palate with outstanding freshness and lift balanced against surprising complexity; exhibiting a tart and thirst-quenching yet thoroughly intriguing presentation that is simultaneously fun yet serious. Medium bodied and packed with pronounced acidity. This 2025 Estate Bella Vista Vineyard Grenache Gris by Piazza Family Wines is an expressive and delicious rosé from Santa Barbara's Ballard Canyon.

Though it shapes its fair share of complex and age-worthy red wines, Grenache is also one of the world's marquee rosé grapes thanks to its ability to express both attractive fruitiness and captivating minerality. This bottling, crafted by Piazza Family Wines using Grenache grown at their estate vineyard in the Santa Ynez Valley, is an exciting example of the merits of rosé wine shaped from this noble grape. This playfully radiates fresh stone, berry, citrus, and even tropical fruits complicated by clean saline minerality, pleasant herbal character, dainty floral tones, and a hint of spice. It is already drinking at its peak and is ready to pop and pour immediately. Yum.

Do you enjoy Grenache rosé?

Piazza Family Wines

07/15/2026

What does it mean when a wine is a "Reserve" bottling?

Turns out that in the US there is no formal definition of what the word "Reserve" means on a wine bottle!

However, Reserve typically implies the wine is among the very best made by that producer, and that it might have been crafted from particularly special grapes and/or aged longer or in a more quality-oriented method.

We recently had the chance to try these three wonderful Reserve bottlings from Dutcher Crossing and were super impressed! These are some of the most delicious offerings made by this famed Sonoma County producer, and show that even though "Reserve" has no formal definition it is still a word worth paying attention to.

Dutcher Crossing Winery

07/09/2026

Beguilingly bold yet balanced eruptions of wild blueberry, juicy mulberry, crème de cassis, and dark cherry compote lead a rich yet remarkably elegant display delicately overlaid with complex herbal impressions of eucalyptus, menthol, and cigar to***co. Hints of cinnamon, clove, and black pepper subtly impart well integrated bits of spice overlaid by pretty floral tones of iris, rose, and violet. Notes of iron, crushed rock, and leather provide attractively rugged underpinnings while suggestions of pie crust, dark roast coffee, and baking chocolate proudly assert opulence. Impressively dense and layered yet still restrained on the palate with outstanding nuance and complexity present despite ample power; exhibiting a multidimensional and completely authentic representation of that well-loved old school California Cab style. Medium-plus bodied with elevated yet approachable tannin backed by bright acidity. This 2021 Estate "Reserve" Cabernet Sauvignon by Koehler Winery is a serious and sophisticated red from Santa Barbara's Santa Ynez Valley.

Located just outside the town of Los Olivos on the warm end of the famed Foxen Canyon Road, Koehler Winery possesses some of Santa Barbara's oldest vines that still produce outstanding wine to this day. This bottling, crafted using old vine Cabernet Sauvignon planted in 1971, showcases the combination of depth, complexity, and balance that old vine wines can uniquely possess. This effortlessly radiates a range of gorgeous dark berry fruits complicated by clean herbal character, pretty spices, lifted floral tones, iron-led earthiness, and the perfect kiss of chocolaty richness. While delicious today, this classically-structured wine has potentially decades of positive development ahead of it. Outstanding.

Do you enjoy classically-styled Cabernet?

Koehler Winery

07/01/2026

Did you know Idaho is home to a burgeoning winery scene?

Located just east of the iconic winegrowing states of Oregon and Washington, Idaho possesses some truly intriguing terroir for producing wine grapes. This has led to a number of new and exciting wineries popping up all over the state!

We recently had the chance to try a few offerings from Pend d'Oreille Winery based out of Sandpoint, Idaho and are happy to report that we were extremely impressed.

We tasted through an Albariño, a Cabernet Franc, and a Merlot all sourced from vineyards in nearby Eastern Washington. These wines all showed an attractive combination of depth, complexity, and freshness that we've come to expect from the wines of the Pacific Northwest.

We look forward to trying more Idaho wineries soon and highly recommend these delicious creations!

Pend d'Oreille Winery

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Palm Springs, CA
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