1 | Wine | Red, Sonoma County

"Simi 2009 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon follows up on its deep, dark garnet color with lifted, pretty aromas of clove, cinnamon, hints of cedar, mint chocolate, and toasty oak notes that beautifully frame dark fruit. Compelling flavors of cassis, blackberry, and plum along with black pepper, cedar, and clove keep this dark and somewhat brooding wine from being too serious. This medium-to full-bodied Alexander Valley Cabernet will bring out the best in roasted mushroom and wild nettle pesto pizza, or charcoal-grilled beef carpaccio with asiago-onion salad."

"An excellent wine from a challenging vintage, with aromas of black cherry and spice opening to rich wild berry, mineral and toasty sage flavors that wrap around a concentrated core of acidity and tannins."

"The effect of the destemmer was significant on our 2011 Heritage Vines Zinfandel because it removed almost all of the stems. With this wine, our goal for the maceration was to aggressively extract during the first half of fermentation and then drain and press the wine off the skins prior to drying. This technique allowed us to coax out the depth of the ripe, racy fruit that lurks within Zinfandel grapes and also to avoid some of the roughness that can be leeched out of the skins at the end of fermentation. We employed the use of both French and American oak in the aging of this wine. Toast levels on these barrels were deep enough to impart chocolate and roasted coffee features into the finished wine."

"There are aromas of black cherry, plum, cassis, vanilla and a slight eucalyptus note. In the glass there are refined flavors of red cherry, cassis, blackberry, plum, spice and tobacco. Our 2011 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon has good structure and complexity along with an old world style balance."

"A deep, saturated color leads to lifted aromas of blackberry, cocoa, and herby black-currant, followed by a rich, layered mouthfeel, loaded with juicy black cherry, cedar, and crème de cassis, and structured with ripe, mature tannins. Enjoy this seductive Cabernet Sauvignon now and over the next several years."

"Our 2008 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is a dark, rich full-bodied wine with great tannic structure and mouth-feel. It has a garnet color and a nose of ripe boysenberries, cherry liqueur, dark chocolate, sandalwood and a hint of roasting meat. On the palate, it is mouth-coating and incredibly rich in umami. It has a very long, savory finish with the slight grip of fine-grained tannins. Given proper cellaring, this wine should give drinking pleasure through 2030."

"The 2010 includes a small amount of Petite Sirah to broaden the mouthfeel on the wine and add a little more dark fruit to the palate. There are aromas of raspberry, plum, black cherry, and citrus. In the glass there are flavors of plum, cranberry, black cherry, and classic spicy black pepper. The 2010 is a restrained vintage and will reward those with the patience to cellar a few bottles."

"Our 2011 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir opens with lovely, vibrant aromas of cherry pie and sassafras, supported by subtle earth tones and hints of rose petal and vanilla. Vibrant pomegranate and cranberry join in on the palate, with notes of black licorice, espresso bean, sweet pipe tobacco and cherry cola. With elegant structure, the juicy mid-palate leads to a lingering finish of sweet spice."

"This wine has well-integrated flavors, deep color and a full mouthfeel. It displays intriguing aromas of cassis, black cherry and dark chocolate, with undertones of sweet tobacco and cedar. Rich texture and a restrained oak framework support the opulent flavors of ripe blackberry, cherry and cassis."