“Grandma was a bootlegger.” Not something you hear every day, but this is what Jane Portalupi told Karen and me when we visited. The tag hanging on the one-liter milk bottles of their Vaso di Marina red and white wines tells the story like this: “This wine is inspired by my grandmother, Marina Portalupi, who…
Did you know that a thriving wine country exists in Silicon Valley’s backyard? Santa Clara Valley is home to over two-dozen wineries, of every size and shape, from long established (since the 18th century) family operations to relatively small newcomers working out of their garages…Each of the wineries has a fascinating story. What makes the wines…
PLYMOUTH, CA – Jeff Runquist Wines has been awarded 2019 “Winery of the Year” at Dan Berger’s International Wine Competition, the California State Fair, Critics Challenge International Wine & Spirits Competition and by Robert Whitley’s “Wine Talk.” This was Runquist’s third year in a row winning “Winery of the Year” at Berger’s competition and the fourth time in…
Not knowing what I was going to write about this week for Beaconeers I pondered…over a bottle of 2002 Summers Napa Valley Zinfandel from the Villa Adriana Vineyard, the last bottle from a case we brought home after tasting and picnicking there. Then, after being greeted by a blast of flavor, I had my column. …
Over a year ago, I wrote an article about some of my pet peeves. While I’m not sure how much our readers got out of it, it was a great catharsis for me. Once again, I feel the need to get a few things off my chest, I’ll try not to repeat myself,…
When I think of Summers Estate Wines (www.summerswinery.com), I immediately think of the red wine Charbono. The origins of Charbono are a little unclear. It is often thought of as an Italian varietal. The name Charbono certainly sounds Italian. But testing by famed grape geneticist Carole Meredith proved that the grape known as Charbono in…
Four Brix Winery www.fourbrixwine.com We were ready for our final stop of the day. Gary Stewart, one of the owners of Four Brix Winery in Ventura, had actually set up our itinerary for the day. We had originally planned on visiting four wineries that day, but the amount of quality time we spent at the…
The winter (or lack thereof) and spring have been great for us at JoLe! The kitchen has been pumping out great new dishes to go along with some of our classics. Now with the bounty of new produce coming with the great weather it should only continue to improve. With the changing of the seasons…