California Wine Tasting at Engelmann Cellars, June 2021. 

The Experience -

While I had the opportunity to taste couple more that listed here during my last visit here are some quick notes on 3 of the wines. Kylie the wine club manager was pouring on this hot Saturday afternoon. While I tend to lean a lot towards the red wines, a couple of white blends were very welcome in the heat of the afternoon.  The first was Summer Quartet, a dry white blend of Chardonnay, Viognier, White Cab and Dry Muscat. Next was RS, another white blend of Chardonnay, Viognier, White Cabernet, and Sweet Muscat. Both wines were enjoyable and welcome considering how warm it was that day and the fact that tastings were all taking place outside. Summer Quartet, a dry white-blend that would pair well with fish and summer salads. RS being a sweet white would be great for a glass before or after a meal.

Old 44 Cellars 2018 Aglianico Estate Grown – Estate Grown – 80% Aglianico – 20% Grenache

Don’t you just love it when you find a delightful gem of a wine that is kind of hidden away? I visited with the Nick winemaker at Old 44 Cellars at a wine event that took place in Redding, CA just before the Pandemic broke out. I enjoyed the visit and his invite to come visit him. Well, we did an outdoor private tasting together not that long ago, about a year and a half from our first meeting. One of the wines, actually several bottles, that I brought home with me was Nick’s estate Aglianico blend. This is a wine is a blend of Estate Aglianico and Grenache that provides a delightful glass of wine to those that have obtained it.

Grenache in this blend provides some white pepper aroma followed with red fruit flavors. Grenache is known for its flavors of strawberry and raspberry with spicy notes. Some Grenache wines can develop complex flavors of blackcurrants, black olives, coffee, leather and tar. The grape produces wines that are medium to full-bodied. Tannin and acidity are low and makes it a great fit as a blend. Although Grenache is a high-quality grape, often you will find it blended with other varieties, such as Syrah, Mourvèdre, Carignan and Cinsault. This is because it is very complimentary within a blend, as it adds body and fruitiness without adding tannin or acidity, which are both naturally low in Grenache.

Ficklin Vineyards wine review.

The clarity is lustrous and shimmering. As you take in the aromas from your glass of this ROSÉ PORT immediately comes to mind juicy red pear along with delightful hints of sweet floral. As you continue to enjoy those first few sips on your palate are flavors of mango and honeydew, ripe strawberry, and green apple. With all of this going on with the delightful bouquet and luscious flavors in between sips you detect a spark of banana. Incredibly pleasant, and enjoyable this wine. Light, refreshing, and yes, slightly tropical. Exceptionally easy to sip, but also complex enough to linger between sips. This is a delightfully well-balanced wine from Ficklin Vineyards.

Ficklin produces some wonderful California Port Style wines. Ficklin’s 1988 Vintage Port is grown-up, mature with spicy flavors and wonderful layers of leather, hints of tobacco all wrapped around dark cherry flavors. Right in the heart of California’s Central Valley wineries you will find that all of Ficklin’s Ports are among a handful of California wineries that consistently produce vintage port style wines.

The Winemaker

With 41 years of award-winning winemaking, third generation partner winemaker Peter Ficklin still guides the daily winemaking and oversees each step in crafting Ficklin's Ports. 

Treasure Island Wines 2016 Pinot Noir, Bennett Valley

I really love the versatility of this wine grape. While all wines take on the terroir and just about everything in the winemaking process, Pinot Noir seems to provide a wide spectrum of flavors. From bright red cherry, and cherry pie filling to earthy forest floor are very characteristic experiences on the palate and at the nose. This makes a Pinot Noir one of my go to wines when dinning out with friends that are not big red wine drinkers but want to enjoy a glass with their meal but are not sure what to order. Treasure Island Wines is at the forefront of San Francisco's urban winery movement; a home for wineries and tasting rooms offering something for almost every wine aficionados' interest. This wide variety makes the Island a perfect place for Bay Area residents to take daytime wine tours at a location much closer to home than Sonoma or Napa. Among those pouring their wines for visitors is Treasure Island Winery.

Treasure Island Wines was founded in 2007 and is the first operational urban winery and tasting room on the former US Naval Base right in the middle of San Francisco Bay. Jim Mirowski winemaker and owner has fulfilled his goal to create a place where skilled winemakers craft small-batch artisan wines. 2016 Bennett Valley Pinot Noir is a wonderful Burgundian style Pinot with cherry, some vanilla, and smooth finish. Good now or for aging.

Toca Madera Winery - 2016 Malbec review

Originally from the Bordeaux region of France, Malbec has most of its planting in Argentina, in the Mendoza region in 2011 represented 86% of all the Malbec plantings in Argentina.  In the United States, the majority of Malbec is planted in California, which in 2011 accounted for 84% of the Malbec plantings in the entire country, even though 84% of the Malbec plantings are in California, only 0.5% of all red grape plantings in California are Malbec.  In order words, while California has most of the Malbec in the United States, they have extraordinarily little compared to more “traditional” red varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel.

If Malbec is one of those wines people hear about, but often don’t take the opportunity to try… now is the time! This grape used to be mainly blended into Bordeaux blends, but now wine lovers are enjoying Malbec as its own varietal. If you’re just now becoming familiar with Malbec, it is good to know the difference between a North America Malbec and a South American Malbec. As Malbec is not widely planted in the United States, and again you will find the majority of the plantings in California. 

One of the most well-known and largest wine regions in South America is Argentina, specifically the Mendoza region, which produces mainly Malbec grapes. While both California and Argentina have regions with the perfect climate for growing these dark-skinned grapes, which love warm days and cool nights, there are distinct differences between the wines from each region. For example:

California Malbec Wines