Sojourn to Great Falls

I usually go to wine events alone, which is kinda cool because I meet some of the most amazing people. I took a 3-day seminar with the Spanish Wine Academy last year I met firecracker of a woman in Karen! We've since kept in touch, met up for wine events, wine drinking, etc. Today she hosted a a wine tasting at her brand new, custom built home. I promise I was only seconds away from just hiding in a nook under the stairs and just coming out after dark so I could live there myself! But I was there to taste wines, so I went about my business.

The wine tasting featured wines from Sojourn Cellars, a small artisanal winery out of Sonoma, CA. They're a partnership between Craig Haserot (who guided us through our tasting) and Erich Bradley, 2 guys that met on a tennis court. Their wines are described as having 'New World style with Old World sensibilities' and are handcrafted in small lots to maintain and ensure a superior quality. Sojourn Cellars produces only Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir. When asked why, Craig answered "Because that's what we like to drink!"

We tasted 7 wines, and I re-tasted 5 more ;-). I fell in love with them all, but not only do people want to read about each one, that's an awful lot of typing! So I'll pick 3 favs, 2 of the Pinots and 1 Cabernet:
2008 Gap's Crown Vineyard Pinot Noir
A spicy aroma followed by hints of cinnamon on the palate. A very fruity mouthfeel and finish with soft tannins to round out the wine.
$48

2008 Rodgers Creek Vineyard Pinot Noir
Such a Burgundian flavor with this one! Very earthy and mushroomy giving way to flavors of dark cherries and blackberries. Super smooth finish
$48

2007 Home Ranch Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon
Displayed a rich blueberry character and hints of mint on the nose. This drank pretty well right now and I know it will only get better in the next 2-3 yrs.
$39

All the wines were amazing and they offer FREE SHIPPING! If you'd like any additional information or would like to purchase wines from Sojourn Cellars, please visit them at www.sojourncellars.com or you can follow them on Facebook.

Wine Wednesday - Holiday Tasting Edition

So, I'm back in town, back in the swing of thing, back to tasting wine! For tonight's Wine Wednesday, I went to Bell Wine & Spirits in DC. It's time to start thinking about wine for the holidays so Bell had a Holiday Wine Tasting with over 30 wines available to pair with your Thanksgiving or other holiday meals. After so much time off, was I up for the challenge of tasting so many wines...well let's see.

When reading wine articles, posts, wine blogs, etc for Thanksgiving wine ideas, most offer up the Pinot Noir suggestion. So I expected quite a bit of that at this tasting because that is what people are used to buying, drinking, pairing, which is great for me because I'm quite fond of Pinot Noir. This tasting didn't disappoint with 14 different Pinots. Among my favorites were of course the Rene Bovier Fixin and Nicolas Rossignol Volnay 1er Chevret from Burgundy. My trip to Burgundy this summer has me still in love with everything Burgundy! Also loved the Redtree Pinot Noir from CA with its strawberry and red cherry flavors and the Forefront Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley for its smoky complexity and red fruit flavors.

Zinfandel is another popular choice and I think is a great match for the smoked Thanksgiving turkey. My favorite Zinfandel of the night was the 2007 Edmeades Zinfandel, it gave such a fruity raspberry bouquet with a touch of oak and hint of earthiness.

But my absolute hands down favorite wine of the evening was the 2006 Crivelli Ruche. OMG!! I've never smelled anything like this before. In the glass was lavender and herbs, and then the fruit explosion of black cherry, blueberry, clove, sweet spice....this list could go on and on. And funny that the gentleman pouring the wine said that this is a great alternative to Pinot Noir. Guess I have my red wine bases covered for the holidays. Maybe I should taste some whites later this week...