Recommending 2007 O’Shaughnessy “Howell Mountain” Cabernet Sauvignon

September 10, 2010 was a bright sunny day in Napa Valley, warm but still not hot enough for growers dealing with tensions around the slower grape maturation associated with this year’s uncharacteristically cool west coast summer.   While row after row of sun bathed thinned canopies yearned for a few more degrees of heat exposure, [...]

Napa Valley Wine Visit: Making It Small

I have not enjoyed my visits to Napa Valley in the same way I did in the early 1980′s.  So, I have been asking myself if I am excited to be heading back to the Napa wine scene today after a purposely extended hiatus and so many years of waning interest in another visit to [...]

Loomis Vineyards Achieves Early Statement of Style

I like discovering young wineries working their own infant vineyards as wine makers unveil unique styling and a reliance on their own maturing vines that are not yet naturally producing lower yields with more intense and concentrated fruit.  While it can take years to release the untold treasures embodied in newly planted land, it is [...]