Friends and Recommended Wines

Wine is no fun without friends, and here are some of ours...

Heart O' The Mountain
I owe a debt of gratitude to the Brassfields for showing me that it would be OK to let my homebrewing habit run amok. I was lucky enough to get to spend a couple of years with them learning about wine, experimenting, making my own (non-commercial) wine, and helping out at their beautiful estate winery and vineyard. The vineyard on their property, Mt Roberta Vineyard, produces some of the most distinctive Pinot Noir fruit in the Santa Cruz Mountains appellation. I can't sell it, but I'm always happy to share a bottle of the wine I produced from this unique vineyard with friends. Heart O' The Mountain consistently produces small lots of world-class pinot from their estate-grown fruit. If you haven't tried it yet, you're missing out on a rare treat.

Beauregard Vineyards
Our wine is made at the Beauregard's winery in Bonny Doon, formerly the home of Bonny Doon Vineyards. Winemaker Ryan Beauregard produces a wide range of bold, expressive wines from the family's estate vineyards. It was Ryan who first turned me on to Pinot Noir back in 2001 with his first vintage of Hirsch Vineyard Pinot Noir. Now, almost 10 years later, I'm excited to get to produce a Pinot from Hirsch's neighbor on the Sonoma Coast. Full circle.

MacPhail Family Wines
This one falls under the category of "recommended wines". MacPhail consistently produces some of the most mind-boggling Pinots in the world. 'Nuff said.

Downhill Winery
Winemaker Frank Ashton is attracted to lesser-known (in America) varietals and does a wonderful job with them. His 2008 Torrontes, for example, is pretty much the perfect summer wine. He also produces quality, affordable wines from better-known varietals-- Pinot Noir, Zin and Chardonnay.