Sangiovese

Sangiovese

Gianni Buonomo Vintners

label of winery's Sangiovese

Recently named **Top Urban Winery by San Diego Magazine**, Gianni Buonomo Vintners continues to gain attention by earning gold and double-gold medals in competitions from coast-to-coast. Located on Point Loma in the coastal community of Ocean Beach, the winery and tasting room is located just two blocks from the beach.It’s an exciting destination for both locals and tourists alike.Grapes are sourced from some of Washington’s top vineyards (Rattlesnake Hills AVA) for the **Gianni Buonomo label**.Grapes for the **Gianni California label** are sourced from California’s Sierra Foothills AVA both from El Dorado and Amador Counties.

Deerfield Ranch Winery

corks and wine glass - Pixabay

Deerfield is a winery where you're encouraged to sit and enjoy your wine. You're not crowded around a tasting bar, fighting for space and attention in order to sip your wine. Instead, the tasting takes place in a cave, with tables and chairs everywhere - encouraging everyone to have a seat, enjoy their wine and the sommeliers will be around to pour the wine.

Luna Vineyards

small bites and wine tasting - Pixabay

Gorgeous building, three stories including a tower overlooking the vineyard. Comfortable couches, both inside and out. Nicely decorated. Definitely a winery kind of feel. Since it was stop one, I split the classic tasting with two others. Our server was friendly and super informative, pulling out a map every so often to tell us where the grapes of each wine came from.

Andretti Winery

Bottle of winery's Cabernet Sauvignon

This is a reallly pretty winery and lovely italian castle/mansion looking architecture, and really friendly staff and of course lots of cool racing pics all around and other art also.

Bovino Vineyards

Painting by Agata Zaborowski

Dan Souza is the winery owner and an entrepreneur of many businesses who has found new passion in the fine art of viticulture and winemaking. He comes from a long line of farmers and cattle ranchers, and cultivating the land with extraordinary results is nothing new to him. Besides successful efforts in many of his ventures, he also greatly enjoys donating his time and resources to those who need it.

Bovino Vineyards is an 83.5-acre property with about 45 acres planted to grapes. There are 16 different grape varieties grown on the ranch. Some, like the sauvignon blanc, cabernet sauvignon. The different clones were selected for the characteristics each brings to the finished wine. There are 27 separate blocks with different rootstock/clone combinations in each. Add this complexity to the fact that there are three primary soil types on the property loam, silt loam, clay loam, the elevation ranges from 1,020 and 1,125 feet above sea level, and the blocks have multiple exposures and sun tracks, and it makes the winemaker glad he does not also manage the vineyard.

Terra Valentine

glass of wine - Pixabay

Just ten minutes up from Highway 29 and you have the view - of Napa Valley. Then, if you book a tasting tour, instead of standing at a bar, or a cold cellar, you will be seated in a room streaming with sunshine. From there a generous sampling of their current releases will be poured, alongside a nice place of cheese, nuts and chocolate. Time to consider the tasting...and what you will buy to have at home. I know that one of my Cabernet favorites.

Abiouness Wines

bottle of Abiouness wine

The name I chose, you might have figured out, is my beloved last name (compliments of a Lebanese father). Since it is not one of those easily pronounced names, like Smith, I decided it would be best to have something else on the label to catch the eye. I decided on the lotus flower. A variety of waterlily, the lotus rises in the morning from the muddy waters to open its perfectly symmetrical petals symbolizing the creation of life; purity, resurrection and perfect beauty; the union of bliss and emptiness, night and day, male and female. The closed lotus bud signifies potential.

Amador Cellars

two women at table with wine Amador Cellars: A Family Tradition in Winemaking Amador Cellars is a small, quality-driven, family-oriented winery owned and operated by the Long Family. In 2000, the Longs acquired a 22-acre parcel that included a 20-acre Zinfandel vineyard in Amador County, an area they had previously sourced grapes from for their home winemaking endeavors. The family began constructing winery facilities, and by 2004, Amador Cellars was officially established. Today, this family-run winery thr

Amador Cellars: A Family Tradition in Winemaking

Amador Cellars is a small, quality-driven, family-oriented winery owned and operated by the Long Family. In 2000, the Longs acquired a 22-acre parcel that included a 20-acre Zinfandel vineyard in Amador County, an area they had previously sourced grapes from for their home winemaking endeavors. The family began constructing winery facilities, and by 2004, Amador Cellars was officially established. Today, this family-run winery thrives in the picturesque Shenandoah Valley.

Larry Long, Founder and General Manager
Though winemaking was not his first passion, Larry Long eventually found his calling in the craft, a decision that transformed the course of his life. After earning a bachelor's degree in biological science with a minor in chemistry from UC Davis, he pursued two master's degrees—one in biochemistry from Ohio State University and another in healthcare administration from George Washington University. Larry spent 20 years as a hospital administrator, including 13 years as CEO of Tahoe Forest Hospital in Truckee, California. After settling in Truckee with his wife, Linda, Larry discovered the joy of home winemaking. “I loved the idea of taking grapes and making wine, then enjoying the fruits of our labor. It was a great adventure for the whole family.” His enthusiasm for the hobby led him to take viticulture and winemaking classes through the UC Davis Extension, ultimately inspiring him to retire early from healthcare to pursue his passion.

Linda Long, Co-founder
Linda Long met her future husband, Larry, while attending UC Davis. She raised their three children in Truckee while running her private clinical social practice. For nearly a decade, Linda balanced her work in Truckee with the establishment of the winery, finally retiring in 2012. At Amador Cellars, she plays a vital role in various aspects of the business, managing the tasting room, organizing club events, and coordinating private gatherings in the newly established barn.

Michael Long, Head Winemaker & Viticulturist
Michael Long, the son of Larry and Linda, discovered his passion for grape growing and winemaking while working alongside his father. After gaining hands-on experience, he attended Fresno State University, graduating Magna Cum Laude in 2012 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Enology. Michael values every stage of the grape growing and winemaking process, dedicating his efforts to ensuring that the vineyards and fruit meet the highest standards. He prides himself on being a minimalist winemaker, intervening only when necessary to enhance the intrinsic qualities of the grapes, resulting in sensual, charismatic wines. Michael currently resides in Cameron Park, California, with his wife and college sweetheart, Michelle, their son James, and Oscar, the winery dog.

Amador Cellars offers a welcoming environment for wine lovers seeking quality and a personal touch, reflecting the Long Family's dedication to their craft and the land.

Morse Wines

clusters of wine grapes

Unconventional by Nature - Winemaker Robert Morse

Terroir is everything, but so as they say is location, and sometimes those aren’t the same place. We have chosen to stay at our vineyard, winery and estate tasting room to allow our customers to experience our unigue terroir. Opposed to what might seem apparent by the concentration of valley wineries, the best vineyard sites are not necessarily alongside the pre-existing major thoroughfares.

In the Foothills, we can grow any warm climate varietals but focus on those that perform at their best in granitic soils. Italian and Rhone varietals benefit from our consistently ideal climate. Our vineyard and winery’s location straddles ridgelines above an elevation of 2000 ft, benefitting from cooling afternoon breezes, abundant sunshine and low yielding rocky soils resulting in our unique terroir.

The Il Gioiello, “the jewel,” name comes from the final home of famed astronomer and scientist Galileo Galilei. Our 2 Roads brand name was inspired by my favorite Robert Frost poem and Morse is my name and most importantly the name of my parents. All three have inspired a slightly different approach to my choices and my respect for integrity, honesty and hard work.

Our wines and winery reflect these values; unpretentious, no concentrates or additives, just wine grapes and great value wines. In my life, the right wine has always been the wingman of a good meal, not the star of the meal. I recall great meals far better than other pleasures and that is why we make “food wines”.

As the French proverb says, “to have a great meal, one requires great hunger”. Having 17 unique estate varietals and clones allow us to create complexity and balance in our wines difficult to achieve with single varietals.

When asked about my favorite wine, the answer is always the same, “what are we eating”. If I’m having a glass of wine without the benefit of food, our 2 Roads blends Crossroad and La Strada are soft, fruity and complex.

photo - courtesy photographer Randy Caparoso

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