I am a little late reporting to you an exquisite wine dinner we held on Friday, October 23, 2020. We were very fortunate to have Roy D. Chapin IV and his fiancé Maura Clark of 4 Winds Winery fly in from Napa Valley to present their 4 Winds Cabernet Sauvignon…
California Wines: Napa and Sonoma Counties

Napa and Sonoma County in California long ago established themselves as the premier wine-making regions in the United States. The winemaking history goes back to the early 1700s when missionaries from Spain planted vines in the region which they had brought with them to create vineyards so they could make wine. They needed a source of wine to make sure they had …
California wines, Napa, Napa Valley, places to visit, SonomaThe Wine Industry is Changing

In the last 24 months there have been some major changes in the wine industry. If you are a wine drinker some of these changes might affect you and me in the coming year. In 2018 wine sales in the U.S. peaked after 25 years of annual growth. Sales figures are being released now for 2019 which show wine sales were down 0.9% over 2018 sales…
California wines, changes, Kelly Peterson, wine distribution, wine industry2001 Etude Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

On my very first trip to Napa Valley back in 2008, one of the first wineries I visited was Etude. Over the years I have purchased some of their Cabernets. For the most part I have enjoyed them with the exception of…
2001 Etude Cabernet, Cabernet Sauvignon, California wines, Etude, Napa Valley winesMerlot Comeback

When did you last drink a glass of Merlot wine? For most wine drinkers it was most likely some time ago, if at all. The popularity of Merlot wine started to fall off in the late 1990s into the mid 2000s. This decline took place as Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir grew in popularity and surpassed Merlot. Sales of the wine drove to much lower levels than any other time in the history of the wine…
California wines, Merlot, red wine