Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Grape, grape, grape, grape....

September is California Wine Month.  So I thought I would honor this by drinking as much wine as possible in the month of September.  Just kidding. Sort of.

Actually, I think I'll do some exploring.  I'm ready to break out and try some new wine. First, I am going to visit new wine shops.  I haven't been to many in almost three years. I've pretty much shopped at one place - that starts with a B. I'm really excited to see what else is out there.  I think Don and I may go to some wineries too. After all it is harvest time and we haven't gone wine tasting in a while.  

We haven't driven up to Healdsburg in ages. I love that little town! And I love zinfandel, so we'll put that on the list. 

I've got my Wine Spectator Top 100 as a guide. And Wine Enthusiast list.  There are 10 on the Wine Spectator list that are from California. So I think that's where I'll start. Prices range from $19 to $135. And you should see some of the ratings.

Check it out! The first wine on the list is from Healdsburg. It's destiny.

#10 Seghesio - Zinfandel, Sonoma County, 2007 ($24) 93pts WS
#13 Mount Eden - Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains, 2004 ($42) 94pts WS
#24 Chappellet - Pritchard Hill Estate Vineyard, Napa Valley, 2005 ($125) 96 pts WS
#30 Byron - Chardonnay, Santa Maria Valley, 2005 ($25) 93pts WS
#35 Pride - Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma-Napa Counties, Reserve 2005 ($125) 96pts WS
#37 Merry Edwards - Sauvignon Blanc, Russian River Valley, 2006 ($27) 93pts WS
#35 Beringer - Chardonnay Napa Valley, Private Reserve, 2006 ($35) 92pts WS
#49 Dierberg - Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley, 2005 ($42) 92 pts WS
#62 Neyers - Syrah, Sonoma Coast Old Lakeville Road, 2006 ($30) 93pts WS
#95 Merus - Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, 2005 ($135) 96pts WS

After linking all these sites (twice, didn't hit SAVE NOW the first time.) I'm excited to try the Chappellet wine. I like the look of their website. It's very soooooothing to me. (kinda pricey, though.)

So, if I were to buy one bottle of each it would cost $610. Gulp. That comes out to $15.25 per glass (10 bottles divided by 4 glasses.) Not horrible. But not great either. I guess it could be worse. These are highly rated, top wines after all. We'll see what I'm able to find. 

This is going to be fun. When I'm done with this list I'm going to start on the Wine Enthusiast list of California Wineries. Testerossa is on that list. Looks like we'll be heading to Los Gatos.

Woo hoo! Better start shopping.

1 comment:

  1. Good morning! My goodness. You are taking on quite a challenge.....NOT! It should be fun.
    Let us know when you have too much wine and we will come and taste with you!
    Mom

    ReplyDelete

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~Kris