When Karen and I plan trips to Paso Robles Wine Country, I tend to wax nostalgic. Having been visiting wineries there for almost 20 years, I often look at the past through rose colored glasses [or is that rosé?]. Admittedly, I do kind of miss the days when Paso was our little secret to introduce…
Even though I’ve only been writing for Eve Wine 101 since 2009, I’ve been a wine lover for a lot longer than that – well over 30 years. Not being much of a traveler, I’ve always focused mainly on California wines. For me, the wine experience isn’t just about the wine but about the land,…
Last week I gave you information about the seminar at the latest Garagiste Festival as well as the list of wineries pouring. I couldn’t taste everything, but of the wines I tasted, these were the standouts for me: Alta Colina Vineyards – Rhones from this Paso producer continue to impress. Especially liked the 2012 Grenache…
The SCV Custom Crush Services, where grapes from Paso Robles are turned into wine for Pulchella Winery, and now with three 90+ award-winning wines from Wine Enthusiast Magazine, will play wine tasting host and wine educator for a fundraiser on Sunday, July 17 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. A large portion of the event’s…
Hard to believe that this is already the 5th vintage of the Garagiste Festival held in Paso Robles every year since 2011. We reported on it back then and have continued to keep Eve’s Wine 101 readers updated on the Paso event as well as sister events in Solvang and Los Angeles. As the years…
Fun and More at Tobin James Cellars What do you think of when you think about Tobin James Cellars? For me, it’s three things – quality, consistency, and yes, that F-word – fun. In Part 1, I wrote about Denner Vineyards. To me, Denner is one of the newer wineries in the area, although it…
The first time Doug Minnick, co-founder with Stewart McLennan of the Garagiste Festivals, told me the Wiltern was going to host the latest version of the event, I was a little concerned. Were they just going to use the stage? If not, what about all the seats? Well, it turned out the seats are removable…
Last week, I wrote about my own history with Family Winemakers of California. This week’s article is about my favorite wines at this year’s tasting. I did my best to visit some of my old favorites as well as try to find some new ones. With almost 100 wineries pouring hundreds of wines, I barely…
In wanting to find the oldest wine grapes grown in the Santa Clarita Valley, I remembered that Juan Alonso, owner of Le Chene French restaurant in Agua Dulce, had his own wines on his extensive 34-page wine list. I e-mailed Juan thinking starting with him was the best. Yes, he had been making wine since…