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Great Italian Red for Pizza Night

This wine is an excellent choice for pizza night, and represents a good value in a juicy Italian red.

Wine: 2020 Famiglie Montepulciano d’Abruzzo

Winery Location: Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC, Italy

Tasted By: Neil & Cheri Date: January 2023

Tasting Notes: this region is located almost directly across the Italian peninsula from Rome, on the Adriatic

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Excellent 2018 Bordeaux Value Around $20

Here’s another excellent value from a great Bordeaux vintage, which seem to happen more and more frequently as the years go by and global warming effects grow. Whatever the reason, this is a wine to enjoy at a great price.

Wine: Chateau Puygueraud

Winery Location: Francs – Côtes de Bordeaux, Right Bank

Tasted By: Neil

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A Little Piece of Wine Heaven at Paradigm Winery in Napa Valley

The last winery stop on our recent trip to Sonoma and Napa Valleys was one of our best. We were heading back to San Francisco later in the afternoon for an early flight the next morning, but had time to visit Paradigm Winery in Oakville. On the west side of highway 29, the vineyards at

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Top 25 Wines of 2022!

Another crazy year has ended, however hopefully the world continues to get less crazy in the next. As in 2021, it was very different than a normal year, as the large wine tastings and festivals are really just starting to come back, and instead of sampling 600-800 wines, our field of view was once again

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Un-oaked Wines from Ron Rubin Brands

Over the past few years we’ve reviewed several vintages of Ron Rubin Brands’ wine. Ron makes wine in Sonoma County under several labels, including Ron Rubin, Pam’s Un-oaked and River Road. The wines are consistently rated for high value, showing crisp fruit and a smooth palate. Last year the 2020 River Road un-oaked Chardonnay took

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Superior Red Wines from Turnbull in Napa Valley

Our journey through Napa Valley would continue as we worked our way south, in this case to the AVA of Oakville. Oakville is roughly in the middle of the valley, and home to some pretty iconic wineries. Names like Opus One, Heitz Martha’s Vineyard, Groth, Harlan, and Robert Mondavi’s To Kalon Vineyard dot the

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Recommended Lodging in Napa Valley – Rancho Caymus Inn

Our Napa home base on the recent trip to the Sonoma and Napa Valleys was chosen for a few reasons. First was location, as it was conveniently placed in Rutherford, close to many wineries and restaurants. It was also more central in the valley, which supported our winery visits as we would be bouncing between

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Wine and Food at Clif Family Winery in Napa Valley

Our journey through Napa Valley continued at a winery we are quite familiar with but have never visited, Clif Family Winery. Winemaker Laura Barrett crafts the wines at Clif Family, from organically grown grapes in the estate vineyards, and with selected grapes from other growers. The Clif Family estate vineyards have been expanding, and she

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Superior Value Rioja Reserva

Here is a great option for a complex and delicious red wine, from an area that produces some of the greatest values on the planet. This wine garnered multiple 93 point scores from the major wine publications.

Wine: 2016 Bodegas Manzanos Voché Rioja Reserva

Winery Location: Rioja, Spain

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The Sonoma/Napa Trip – Into Napa and Canard Vineyard

After three days in Sonoma Valley, Cheri and I took the mountain road through the Mayacamas Mountains and emerged in Calistoga, in the fabled Napa Valley. Home to some of the world’s most iconic wines, the history here, as in Sonoma, is long and rich. There is a rivalry between the two, jokingly alluded to

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