Welcome to the Wine Buying Guide

As a wine enthusiast living in the San Francisco Bay area, I have the luxury of being able to head off to local wineries at a moments notice to taste or buy wines. As a result, my wine collection is a mixture of wine club offerings and limited release wines that I've picked up at the wineries and are usually available only at those wineries. I realize, however, that not everyone has that opportunity. Their source of wines is typically the local grocery or package store where they either buy an old standard, look for a recommended wine, or employ a hit or miss strategy for trying new wines. With the growth of the internet, online wine purchasing opportunities are now plentiful. The question, though, is what to buy. Yes, just about all of the wineries now offer their products through internet sales, but which of those wines are worth the effort and shipping costs? This blog is dedicated to providing information for wine lovers to assist them in their online buying decisions. As I visit local wineries, I will relate my findings through the blog to give readers an idea of what wines I find that I'd recommend to others. These are usually wines that I buy myself, or wish I could buy if I had an unlimited budget for wine purchases. Each entry will provide information about the location of the winery, varietals with which the winery specializes, the costs of the wines, website links, and my own recommendations. If they have had their wines rated by some of the better known reviewers, such as Robert Parker, I will mention that also, as well as the winery's own tasting notes, if they are particularly helpful or entertaining. To give you a sense of my tastes, I tend toward Pinot Noirs and Zinfandels. I've run across numerous other varietals that I enjoy, but I'm always particularly interested in Pinots and Zins. A good Cabernet Sauvigon or Chardonnay hits the spot, too. Favorites include Kunde Century Vines Zinfandel, Sonoma-Cutrer The Cutrer Chardonnay, La Crema Anderson Valley Pinot Noir, and Valley of the Moon Old Vine Zin. The trouble here is, unless you've visited the winery, you've probably not tasted these wines. There are many wonderful, small production wines out there and I hope to pass on my favorites through this forum.

Monday, December 12, 2011

Landmark Vineyards

Landmark Vineyards has a wonderfully situated tasting room in Kenwood at the turn-off from Hwy. 12 to Sugarloaf Ridge State Park (101 Adobe Canyon Road).  There are two wonderful hikes down Adobe Canyon Road, Sugarloaf Ridge and Gunsight Rock/Hood Mountain.  Either one is a delightful way to begin the day before winetasting. 

I write this review a couple of days after sharing a bottle ot their Grand Detour Pinot Noir with my sweetie at the Los Altos Grill, a great place for a meal, not the least of which is because of their no corkage policy.  The food and atmosphere are both top notch.  We bought the bottle of Grand Detour back in November after exhausting ourselves on Sugarloaf Ridge. Along with the Grand Detour, we also tasted their other offerings, some of which boast gaudy ratings by Robert Parker and the Pinot Report.

Both of their Pinots are wonderful, but the Grand Detour is a bit more affordable at $40.00 compared to Kanzler's $65.  Pinot Report gave Grand Detour a rating of 94 points.  Kanzler garnered 95 points from the same publication.  Of the Pinots, Landmark's website says: 

Grand Detour - "The wine exhibits a deep garnet color and aromas of gingerbread spice and blood orange are underpinned by forest floor and earthy cherry. On the palate hints of mushroom and plum unfold. Supple ripe tannins and balancing acidity give the wine a long lasting finish."

Kanzler - "Rich plum and red raspberry with hints of rose petal and spice on the nose. A silky entry with crushed herbs and forest floor lead to good acidity, structure and palate weight ending with fine-grained tannins and a long finish."

Either wine would be a wonderful online purchase.

Of their Chardonnays, we opted for a bottle of the Damaris Reserve ($40), which earned 92 points from Robert Parker.  It matched the buttery/creamy style my sweetie prefers.  Their website says,"Tangerine and apricot combine with marzipan, honey and vanilla spice on the nose. Seamless and round on the palate, the aromas are amplified adding toasty oak, and a pleasing minerality on the finish."

The tasting room is open 10:00 AM to 4:30 PM seven days a week.  This winery is well worth a visit and their wines would be a nice addition to any cellar.  IPhone users, look for an app called "Wine Finder".  Landmark has a 2 for 1 tasting coupon.  But since they refund tasting fees with purchase, it probably won't matter...it's hard to leave without at least a couple of bottles.

Their website is   http://www.landmarkwine.com/.  The Heritage Wine Society, their wine club, offers four, six, or 12 bottle shipments quarterly.
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Location: Sonoma, CA, USA

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