We would like to share what wines we’ve enjoyed over the last few weeks…
2021 Bedrock Wine Co. Sonoma Valley Sauvignon Blanc – While you might think of red wines when you think of Bedrock – after all, founder Morgan Twain-Peterson is the son of Godfather of Zinfandel Joel Peterson – their whites [and their Rosé] are some of our favorites anywhere. This Sauvignon Blanc is made mostly from the Uboldi vineyard near the town of Sonoma blended with some SB from the home Bedrock vineyard, both in the Sonoma Valley AVA. We always say if you’re not a fan of Sauvignon Blanc, you just haven’t had the ones from Bedrock. No high acidity, just beautiful strawberry and melon notes and a lingering finish.
2022 Desire Lines Wine Co. Wiley Vineyard Riesling – In addition to Sauvignon Blanc, the Rieslings from Bedrock are also outstanding. You might ask – Why mention Bedrock in a post about Desire Lines? Well, Desire Lines is owned by Cody and Emily Rasmussen. Cody also just happens to be Director of Winemaking Operations at Bedrock. [Emily is also Executive Director of the Historic Vineyard Society, an organization we try to mention as often as possible!] This Riesling is from the Wiley Vineyard in Mendocino County’s Anderson Valley AVA. Fresh Clementine notes, nice acidity and a touch of residual sugar round this out nicely.
Desire Lines Wines – Desire Lines Wine Co.
Home – Historic Vineyard Society
2022 Carlisle “The Derivative” White Wine – the name is a playful reference to the winery owners’ background in mathematics. A blend of 81% Semillon from the Rossi Ranch Vineyard [originally planted in 1910] and 19% Muscadelle from the Pagani Ranch Vineyard [planted in 1895] both in the Sonoma Valley AVA. Please note that both vineyards are listed on the Historic Vineyard Society website. Delicious honey melon notes and a dry, long finish. While the finish is dry, every bottle of Carlisle we have now is somewhat bittersweet to us. 2024 will mark the final vintage from this winery that has been a major influence on our love of Zinfandel and Rhones. And owners Kendall and Mike Officer are two of the nicest people we know, in or out of the wine industry.
2016 Scholium Project “Pergamos” – an interesting field blend of Sangiovese and Merlot from the Dick Vanderkous Paradise Vineyard near Martinez in Contra Costa County. Rich plum notes and a medium finish and mouthfeel. Abe Schoener is always coming up with intriguiing wines and is now based in Los Angeles under the Los Angeles River Wine Company moniker.
2016 Idlewild Barbera – Sam Bilbro’s focus on Italian varietals really shines with this Barbera from the Fox Hill Vineyard in the Anderson Valley AVA. Ripe cranberry notes with a blueberry nose, and a medium to long finish. Idlewild is now part of the Overshine Collective, so when you visit the Idlewild tasting room you can also taste the Comunita wines, which Sam also makes. We tasted at the Overshine winery on our last visit to Sonoma and had a delightful time. We are looking forward to visiting the other wineries of the collective in the near future.
Idlewild Italian Grape Varieties Grown In Northern California
Karen and Michael Perlis have been pursuing their passion for wine for more than 30 years. They have had the good fortune of having numerous mentors to show them the way and after a couple of decades of learning about wine, attending events, visiting wineries and vineyards, and tasting as much wine as they possibly could, they had the amazing luck to meet Eve Bushman. Michael and Karen do their best to bring as much information as possible about wine to Eve’s Wine 101 faithful readers.
