Category Archives: Varietals

8 Years in the Desert : A New Wine from Dave Phinney and Orin Swift

8 years in the desert with car background

Wine lovers across the country may not know him by name, but they have seen and drank his wines. They are everywhere, from grocery stores to high-end wine shops. Even the wine-curious, that know his many brands, such as the Prisoner and Orin Swift, know little about the mind behind some of the most successful […]

Winemaker of the Year Phillip Titus

Winemaker of the Year just announced! There are only a handful of California winemakers with a strong point of view, whom many would call legendary or iconic. These winemakers stay true to their own visions and the results taste incredible.  Philip Titus is now etched permanently onto that list as he joins the ranks of  other great […]

#4 Wine of the Year- 2015 Northern Gale Cabernet

Northern Gale Cabernet Top 100

Wine Spectrum Top 100  #4 Wine of 2018 2015 Northern Gale Cabernet Cabernet Sauvignon |  Napa |  Wine Advocate 95 | Buy Here When your brother is Jayson Woodbridge, owner of legendary cult winery Hundred Acre, it requires digging deep in the barrel of wine ideas to live up to the family legacy of winemaking genius. Vintage […]

#6 Wine of the Year – 2016 Schrader Double Diamond

Wine Spectrum Top 100  #6 Wine of 2018 2016 Schrader Double Diamond Cabernet Cabernet Sauvignon |  Oakville |   Buy Here Back and Better than Ever! Back by popular demand following an unfathomable three year pause, Fred Schrader’s Double Diamond project returns with a new wine and Wine Spectrum was one of the first to spread the […]

#7 Wine of 2018 – 2015 Orrin-Sage Chardonnay

Orrin-Sage Chardonnay Top 100

Wine Spectrum Top 100  #7 Wine of 2018 2015 Orrin-Sage Chardonnay Chardonnay |  Sonoma |  Wine Spectrum 94 | Buy Here There’s something mystical about a wine so under-the-radar that all of the information available is written on the bottle… But, etched in your mind are the flavors which write a story of its origins, and the […]

#8 Wine of the Year – 2016 Chateau Leroy-Beauval Bordeaux

#8 Wine of 2018 Top 100

Wine SpectrumTop 100  #8 Wine of 2018 2016 Chateau Leroy-Beauval Bordeaux Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc  |  France |  Wine Spectrum 95 | Buy Here Think great bordeaux is beyond your reach? Think again. The 2016 Chateau Leroy-Beauval proves there’s more to this classic French wine region than bragging rights and super-expensive bottles. Much more. Bordeaux is […]

#10 Wine of the Year – 2013 Valdez Zinfandel

Valdez Zinfandel Top 100 #10 wine

Wine SpectrumTop 100  #10 Wine of 2018 2013 Valdez Zinfandel Zinfandel  |  Sonoma |  Wine Spectrum 93+ | Buy Here Robert Parker has dubbed Ulises Valdez “one of the finest vineyard managers in Sonoma” and he has worked with some of California’s best winemakers like Mark Aubert (Colgin, Aubert), Paul Hobbs and Rosenblum.  His impeccable wines […]

All About Zinfandel, California’s Favorite Wine

california and wine opener

Let’s Learn About Zinfandel!  Zinfandel is a wine truly made famous by California although it has it’s roots in Croatia. Planted in over 10 percent of all Californian vineyards, the Zinfandel grape is an important player in the California red wine industry. The big, ripe red wine that comes from these grapes  has some of […]