California Wine Country

Dan and Matt Matt Duffy from Vaughn Duffy Wines is back on California Wine Country. Matt has been on the show before, on this episode last summer. Dan Berger is back after taking last week off to attend the Anderson Valley White Wine festival, which we previewed on a few recent CWC episodes. He was in charge of the Riesling table with 12 different ones. They will hold a Pinot Noir festival in about five weeks, which we will hear about too. Matt Duffy was on CWC once before, last summer. Vaughn Duffy Wines specializes in single vineyard Pinot Noir. Their wines have captured many awards. Today Matt has brought four Pinot Noirs, all from different vineyards in the Petaluma Gap AVA. They are all from 2024. There are 3 vineyard designates, and one called Petaluma Gap which is a blend of Pinot Noir all from within the AVA. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  This wine has characteristics of a Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir. A Russian River Valley Pinot Noir has a little more raspberry and strawberry flavors. This one has a little more rustic character that reminds Dan a little more of Burgundy than one from RRV. Matt notices that the wines from Petaluma Gap makes purple, darker fruit compared to the bright reds from the Russian River Valley. The wind keeps things cooler in the growing season which lengthens the ripening season and limits the yields. Pinot Noir: a delicate balance Dan describes Pinot Noir as being on the edge between being too light or too heavy. A winemaker has to be careful through harvest and production, “…because if you try to get too much or too little (from it), it either lacks something or has too much of something.” Daedalus finds Pinot Noir sometimes too dark or too light but this one is “just right.”  Dan says you can run the risk of making an overripe wine anywhere with any varietal, but there is more forgiveness in some varieties and in some regions. If you harvest Cabernet a little too late, you can get away with it. If you harvest Pinot Noir a little bit too late in some regions, “…you’re going to get an odd configuration of characteristics.” And those aren’t necessarily a benefit to anyone. The first wine they taste is the blend, of Sangiacomo’s Roberts Road vineyard and Uberroth vineyard, both in the Petaluma Gap. Later in the show they will taste single vineyard Pinot Noir bottlings from each of those vineyards, plus one from Secret Hill vineyard. 🍷

Miro Tcholakov is back on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell, and Melissa Galliani is also in the studio today.  He operates Miro Cellars and is also winemaker for Trentadue Wines. Miro has been on CWC before, on this episode back on September 9, 2020. and his last appearance was this episode on April 5, 2024. Miro has brought a Chardonnay, the only Chardonnay he makes now. The vineyard belongs to the De Loach family. It was given “incomplete” malolactic fermentation, so it doesn’t have too much “popcorny” flavor. This wine won a gold medal at the SF Chronicle competition. Miro grew up in Bulgaria. Sometimes he refers to it as “way back east.” After college in Bulgaria, he came to the US on a student visa. He had good grades in biology and, also needed to do two years of military service. His degree was agronomy engineering, specialized in viticulture. Then in 1990 he won access to an exchange program to the US. He chose viticulture and he was the only one of the six who went to the west coast. He worked a standard harvest internship at Dry Creek Vineyards. The night before he was supposed to leave, they asked him to stay, to cover for an injured colleague. He rose through the ranks and nine years later he took a full time winemaker job at Trentadue. When he was growing up in Bulgaria, his grandfather made wine. They made about 1000 bottles of wine per year. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  Pinot Noir too Next they taste the Pinot Noir. Miro doesn’t usually make Pinot Noir. He was known for making Petite Syrah and Zinfandel, but he wanted to try it just to say he can do that too. He gives credit to the work in the vineyard. “I am in opportunistic buyer…” of Pinot Noir grapes. It won a double gold medal from the SF Chronicle competition. Daedalus tastes dry cherry, old books, dustiness. Miro thinks maybe it’s from the oak or the terroir. It’s supple and round. It might handle about five or six years of aging. Daedalus’ judgement: “Super drinkable, dangerously drinkable.” Later the discussion turns to the wine market and everyone’s opinion of how this downturn looks from their point of view. Aurelio Aguilar who is twenty-six, speaks for his generation. He suggests that winemakers have an important opportunity to get young people familiar with experiences like wine tasting. Then Miro tells his story of how the cave woman invented wine. Next they taste the Grenache named after his daughter, Cuvée Sasha. He started making it when she was born, 23 years ago, and for the last 10 years the grapes have come from the same vineyard on the shore of Lake Mendocino. Grenache is a good wine for any occasion, sort of like Pinot but spicier, and can have a hidden bite of tannin when younger. It’s fruity but can also be earthy. It is easy to pair with anything, Miro suggests grilled salmon or tuna. It can benefit from chilling, too. Melissa suggests bringing Grenache as a hostess gift, for it novelty and quality. Affordable Luxury “You can make high quality wines at a reasonable price. It’s possible. I’ve been doing it for twenty-three years.”

Dan Berger, Chris O’Gorman and Daedalus Howell. Chris O’Gorman and Chris Sawyer are our guests on California Wine Country, to present Pour and Explore at Rodney Strong Vineyards on Feb. 12. Chris O’Gorman is in the studio and Chris Sawyer joins us on the phone. Chris O’Gorman has been on CWC before, his last appearance was this episode last August. It was actually Daedalus Howell’s first CWC episode as full time host of the Drive. Dan has brought one of the wines he will be pouring at the Riesling table next week at the Anderson Valley White Wine Festival on February 14th. The 2021 Smith-Madrone Riesling is a dry wine but not as dry as some of the really bone dry types. Dan likes it with Thai food. The winery is releasing their 2022 Riesling now. This is the same hillside where Stony Hill winery also makes Riesling on an adjacent property. Chris Sawyer is with us on the phone from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. He is there to judge the American Fine Wine Competition. It is one of the largest invitational wine competitions in the US. It is taking place at Florida International University. Pour and Explore at Rodney Strong Vineyards Chris O’Gorman describes Pour and Explore which is taking place next Thursday night, February 12, from 5:30 to 7:30 PM at Rodney Strong Vineyards. Pour and Explore will feature Bordeaux varietals, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot, by themselves or blended. Dan enjoys the company, since there are winemakers pouring the wine, so they can answer his questions. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  The first tasting today is a Rodney Strong Bordeaux blend named Symmetry. Rodney Strong has been producing Symmetry since 1996. Single varietal wines are not as common in France as they are here. They realized that Chateau St. Jean provided a model of a successful blended red. This Symmetry wine is a 2021 vintage. The label shows it is 88% Cabernet Sauvignon. With other wines being released at 2 and 3 years old, this wine is different. Cabernet Sauvignon can’t be too young. Chris O’Gorman describes the qualities that each of the five grapes bring to the blend. Next they taste a wine from Alexander’s Crown, one of the most historic red wines in Sonoma County. The first Alexander’s Crown vintage was 1974. This is the first single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon from Sonoma County.  

Chris Puppione from Puppione Family Wines is back on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. The last time Chris was on the show was this episode last summer, on June 6, when he spoke to Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger. Chris has brought four wines that Dan describes as “fabulous” and they are low-alcohol wines. Dan says Chris has had an opportunity to explore the lower-alcohol market. Chris says that people are just looking for flavor and “what’s old is new” and Dan notes that higher alcohol takes flavor away from the variety. Low alcohol is not less wine but just less noise. It takes away from nuances that they prefer to bring forward in their wines. There is a white and three reds. First, Dan’s cellar wine is the 2024 Bahl Fratty Riesling, which he will pour at the VIP event at the Anderson Valley White Wine Festival. “It’s coming out of its shell,” but in three or four years it will be really ready. They will also pour Vermentino and other whites. Dan’s table is all Riesling. It’s at the Mendocino County Fairgrounds, February 14. Tickets are $160 and are all-inclusive, with beverages and food. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  Friulano The Puppione label is blue, which is supposed to discourage spontaneous sales. Well, not always, says Daedalus, tell that to Blue Nun. Chris wants to make “Tuesday night wines” not Friday night wines. Festa was his grandmother’s name, so he makes a Festa Bianca and Festa Rossa. The white is Friulano, which means “from Friuli” which is in north-eastern Italy. He got the vines from a high mountain vineyard in California. He uses a combination of stainless steel and barrels. His children press the grapes with their feet. The alcohol is just 12.4%. Compared to those othe heavy wines that come in around 15% or 16%, this is refreshingly light. It is just a 2023 and it will still evolve. “This is something I do with my wife and kids for fun,” says Chris. Chris made his first wine to honor the birth of his daughter. He made it in secret. He is grateful to have help from many friends in the business. Everyone agrees that this camaraderie and willingness to help other is typical of Sonoma County people. Juventus Cuvée Next they taste a red wine. It is their Juventus Cuvée. His family is from a village outside of Torino in Italy, and one of the home teams is Juventus, but also Juventus is the goddess of youth. This is a blend of Syrah and Cab. He used stainless steel and captured a little effervescence. It’s in a clear bottle and he suggests chilling it. It reminds Dan of the simple wines you find in the back roads in France. He smells “fruit, not adorned…” This is a young wine that doesn’t need any maturation. After 2 years it is still lively and fruity. Dan says that Syrah and Cab are compatible varieties and compliment each other.

Dan, Daedalus and Julie Julie Pedroncelli from Pedroncelli Winery is back on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. She has been on the show before, the last time was this episode of last January. Dan describes the current slowdown in the wine business. The other times that the wine market went soft, there were one or two causes, but today there are several causes. But the benefit to the consumer is, the longer it takes to sell the wine, the more the wine improves. The Pedroncelli family has owned the property for almost 100 years. The vineyards are very carefully farmed and they take great care making their portfolio of wines. “Four generations and still going strong,” says Julie. Her grandparents put down roots in Dry Creek Valley outside of Geyserville. They bought a property in 1927 that had a vineyard and a shuttered winery. The previous owners were making wine as far back as the early 1900s. Their winemaker Montse Reese just completed her 18th harvest at Pedroncelli. They produce mostly Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc and a few red wine blends. Her father is 94 and retired just a few years ago. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  Sauvignon Blanc and Zinfandel Julie has brought the “block party” today, with single-vineyard wines that represent certain blocks in the Pedroncelli vineyards. She has brought a Sauvignon Blanc, which they will start with, before moving on to the Zinfandel and others. “White wine is always good to start with.” This Block 11 reserve Sauvignon Blanc, vintage 2024, is not their regular production. It is a special designation reserve. Block 11 showcases the grassier, herbaceous side of SV and Montse Reese thought the neutral oak would bring out that side of SV without overdoing it. Daedalus detects a bit of Pez candy flavor, which Dan thinks is like green mint. Next is a Block 13 Zinfandel from 2023 which was a cool year. This is a little spicy, with a bit of black pepper flavors, and a raspberry note that Dan says is a characteristic of Dry Creek Valley Zins. Block 13 has had Zinfandel grown on it for over 100 years. It is the third generation of Zinfandel vines on the property. Some of the vines are 100 years old but they have replanted twice. It was Zinfandel, then Petit Syrah, then back to Zin. Montse found that this block stands out and merits a single-vineyard bottling. They used bud wood from the Rockpile vineyard for the planting and Montse also uses a yeast that was developed at Rockpile. Julie describes its character as feminine, not high in alcohol, very delicate in its fruit, “…it doesn’t hit you over the head, it’s not a fruit bomb, it’s more like a light spice bomb,” says Julie. Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah The Cabernet Sauvignon needs to breathe, decanted it would be a little more open. The long finish is not oak, though, it’s all the flavors you want in Cab without the other flavors like too much Oak. Dan Berger will be opening a 1966 Louis Martini Barbera next week for a special occasion. There are two Masters of Wine candidates from Taiwan who are taking a course at the Flamingo. Dan has met them and they expressed interest in an old California wine. Dan has one of two remaining bottles. He will open one for the students at Ca’ Bianca in Santa Rosa, along with two or three other wines from the era. The fourth wine they taste today is the Pedroncelli Syrah. Dan says he has never heard of anything like this before. It is a lower-alcohol Syrah, about 12%. This one was earlier harvested, to make a lighter style of red with lower alcohol. They picked two or three weeks before they otherwise would have.

The book that Dan and Don agree is the best one on this subject. Don Chigazola has brought Colle Ciocco wines to taste and review with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell on California Wine Country. Don’s company Chigazola Merchants imports selected small lots of Italian wines made by small family-owned wineries. He travels to Italy regularly to find wines and to meet everyone involved. Don Chigazola has been on California Wine Country several times, the last time was this episode on June 13, 2025, with wines from the Alto Adige region. They begin by tasting a very dry Trebbiano. It’s a white wine popular in Italy but not widely known in this country. This Trebbiano is one of the wines Don has brought today, all from the same producer, which is one of his favorites, the Spacchetti family in Montefalco, Umbria. Their label is Colle Ciocco, which translates to “Choko Hill” in English. Don Chigazola founded Chigazola Merchants to travel in Italy looking for wines to import. They started importing from the Spacchetti family after he got to know them about four years ago. They only make about 5000 bottles per year. The wines that Don chooses for Chigazola Merchants are combinations of a variety and a region that are common in Italy but not well-known here. Don looks for those varieties that will surprise and delight his customers. Dan Berger remarks on a wine that was a 2022 Sancerre which is made with Sauvignon Blanc and it was sweet, not dry as he expected. Sweetness sells, apparently, according to Dan. Trebbiano Spoletino There are different clones of Trebbiano in this wine which make it unique. Trebbiano Spoletino is grown around the village of Spoleto in Umbria. Don describes it as very clean and dry, flavors of apricots, peaches, stone fruit. Dan notices good minerality that makes it go well with food. The only way to get a California Chardonnay to have any acidity at all is to chill it down. We all agree that’s a cheap trick and beneath us. Don Chigazola has run Chigazola Merchants for about 13 years now. He has seen the shift in demand from Italian reds to white wines. So he began to favor white wines about six years ago. Now his portfolio of Italian white wines is very strong and unique among American retailers. Some of Chigazola Merchants’ wine club members are local wine producers. They are eager to taste a wide range of production. A lot of his members have joined after they got to know the wines from their friends. Grechetto The next wine is a Grechetto, another Italian white grape grown around Orvieto and near the town of Todi. The Spacchetti family has blended a couple of clones of Grechetto with about 15% Viogner, which gives it a soft finish on the palette and “rounds the edges.” The third wine tasted today is a red blend, called Montefalco, which is 70% Sangiovese, 15% Sagrantino and 15% Merlot. Dan notices this difference: in California, we make wines that are big and rich and bold, for reasons “I don’t wanna talk about,” ok fine. But he finds them tiresome. Contrast that with what these Italian wines accomplish. “It is not very ripe, only just ripe.” Sagrantino Then they have a Sagrantino from Montefalco. This is a 2019. Sagrantino was first a sacramental wine, and was made to be sweet. But it is now a dry wine because tastes have changed. Don explains that the Spacchetti family ages it for two years in barrels and then a minimum of five years in the bottle. With all that it still feels young. There are over 400 varieties of Italian wine, so Don says that nobody can claim to be an expert, there is too much to know.  But Dan Berger begs to differ and cites Ian D’Agata and his book, Native Wine Grapes of Italy. Dan admires the author as an expert because of his book. Don actually knows Ian and agrees about his level of knowledge. Don describes himself as a student of wine.

Dan, Daedalus & Courtney Courtney De Graff, from the Anderson Valley International White Wine Festival joins Dan Berger & Daedalus Howell on California Wine Country. She is the executive director of the Anderson Valley Winegrowers Association. The International White Wine Festival is coming this February 14th through 16th. Courtney was on California Wine Country at this same time last year, for the previous annual festival. Courtney De Graff, of the Anderson Valley Winegrowers Association talks to Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell about Anderson Valley White Wine Festival. It is happening on February 14-16, with the 14th being the big tasting day. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  Dan remembers when this was called the Alsatian Festival, but they changed the name to include more wines from other places. Dan Berger will be there this year at a special Riesling table. There will also be Gewürtztraminer, Chardonnay, Grüner Veltliner, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris. Dan likes the festival because white wines are easier to identify by their scent. The 17th Annual Festival This is the seventeenth annual festival. It has had a few different names and rebrandings.There are 64 members in the Association and not all of them produce Alsatian varietals. Dan notices a worldwide evolution in white wine tastes. There are grape varieties showing up today that were not produced in great volumes, because we lacked the technology to make the wine. Anderson Valley is eager to do a white wine festival because white wine is at the forefront of the current evolving trends in wine popularity. The Anderson Valley is an hour north of Healdsburg, on the way to the town of Mendocino. festival is on Hwy 128. Visitors either say overnight or make a day trip. Saturday is the grand tasting from 11 to 3, then on Sunday is winery open houses. They will open their doors for food, wine and entertainment. There are 44 wineries booked this year, the largest contingent ever. They also have wineries from all over the world, including Swiss, German, Italian, French and Mexican wines. It is held at the Booneville Fairgrounds.

Dan, Daedalus and Casey Graybehl. Casey Graybehl from Grenachista Wines joins Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell on California Wine Country today. This is Casey’s first time on the show, although we mentioned Grenache as recently as last September on this episode with Oded Shakked of Longboard Vineyards. Grenachista Wines specializes in Grenache, and makes several types and styles of this one varietal. Before getting to Casey Graybehl’s Grenache wines, Dan Berger has brought another cellar dweller this week. It is a 2004 Rkatsiteli from Dr. Konstantin Frank, in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York. It is a French grape that has been grown in Eastern Europe for decades. Asked why he chose Grenache, Casey explains that he needs guardrails, to constrain himself. By focussing on his favorites, he can run a small operation and produce a high quality product. Dan explains that Grenache is also an important blending wine. The same is true of Syrah. You need some Grenache to make a Rioja from Tempranillo grapes. There is also the GSM blend, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre. Instead of making wines for other people’s tastes, he makes wine for his own palette. The Holy Trinity of Grenache Casey describes the holy trinity of Grenache as Grenache Gris, Grenache Noir and Grenache Blanc. They taste a Grenache Gris and then a Grenache Rosé. Dan and Casey agree that their favorite varietal for Rosé is Grenache. “It’s a fruit salad in a glass,” says Daedalus. Dan says the tropical notes are fermentation flavors called terpenes that will be gone in six more months. “This is not one to age,” says Dan. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  If you’re going to limit yourself to one grape, Grenache is the one to do, says Casey, because of its versatility. Next they open the North Coast Grenache Noir. The grapes come from Sonoma Valley, Napa Carneros and Mendocino, which qualifies it for the North Coast AVA. Dan notices pomegranate and cranberry flavors. Casey says some nice licorice and leather flavors will come on with aging. Dan finds that Grenache is more sensitive to its soil and vintage than many other red wine grapes. Pinot Noir can be a headache but Grenache can be more consistent. They call it a blender but it is really a base, making up 60% of blends, such as Gigondas.

Barry Herbst is here to talk about sparkling wines for the holidays on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. Barry has been on CWC many times before. For the comparison, here is a show where he brought sparkling wines, recorded on Dec. 29, 2023. He is the wine buyer at Bottle Barn. First, Dan recaps part one, which is here on its own podcast episode page, a detailed talk about Gamay Beaujolais. Then, right here, Dan and Barry conduct a tasting and discussion of four very fine sparkling wines that Barry has brought, all of which are at Bottle Barn. Late December is one of the peaks of wine purchasing season. The first peak usually comes at Harvest Fair, that and the Press Democrat Competition before that, “gets things going.” From the end of September it starts, then pops again for the holidays. Also people stock up for June events. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  Bottle Barn also does flash sales and rare wine sales on their website. Online sales account for about a third of their business now. They didn’t even have a website until 2019 but now their website is first class. Dan says it’s maybe the best wine sales site in the country. It was good that they did it just before Covid. The bottle barn site is well built and works great. Barry remembers six weeks when four people did nothing but data entry, to get the site started. They had 6000 SKUs. Cremant d’Alsace Rosé Sparkling wines are the order of the day. So they pop a cork and taste Bottle Barn’s best-selling sparkling wine of all time. Cremant d’Alsace made 100% with Pinot Noir, so it’s Rosé. Bottle Barn sells 600 cases per year of it. It sells for $17.99. Dan says it tastes drier than it did before. You can really taste the Rosé character and the aftertaste is “clean as a whistle,” says Dan. Cremant means sparkling in French. Sparkling wines can only be called “Champagne” if they come from the province of that name. So there are Cremant wines named for their region, such as Cremant d’Alsace. That naming rule pertains to sparkling wines from Italy, which are called Vini Spumanti or Prosecco, depending on the region and the varietals. Cava are Spanish sparklers. The new British sparkling wines might earn a new name. Seppi The next tasting is Seppi, a California product. Mostly Pinot Noir, beautiful balance, says Dan. Intense pink wine flavors with more acidity than he expected, and rounded and more full bodied. Dan also mentions a grower champagne and Barry actually has one to taste,  Lalarge Peugeot. They grow everything biodynamically. Barry notes that they have kept their prices reasonable compared to their neighbors there, in the heart of Champagne. There is more Pinot Meunier planted in Champagne than Pinot Noir or Champagne grapes. Pinot Meunier is a red wine grape but lighter than Pinot Noir.

Melissa Galliani and Dan Berger. Dan Berger takes some time to explain Gamay Beaujolais today on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. Later in the show, Barry Herbst from Bottle Barn will be in, to talk about sparkling wines they have in the store for the holidays. That portion of the show has its own podcast episode, right here. Dan has brought a Beaujolais from 2023 from a California winemaker who moved to France. He got tired of trying to make European style wines in California. Johnathan Pey made Pinot Noir in Marin County and made a Cabernet in Napa called Textbook. He decided to make a break from California and move to France. This wine is his French production, Domaine Johnathan Pey. Beaujolais ain’t no “Boo-jo-lay” Johnathan Pey bought two cru vineyards in Beaujolais. Gamay Noir au jus blanc is the full French name of the grape. Beaujolais is generally an unpretentions wine, easy to drink and not expensive. Pey wanted to apply modern winemaking techniques to grapes from the old plantation. He bought the vineyard about five or six years ago and has been tending the vines personally. Dan says this vintage is starting to show depth and intensity above the average for Beaujolais. 13% alcohol. The color is intense and suggests a highter ABV but that’s not Beaujolais. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  Usually, Beaujolais is just to open and drink. But some of the Cru Beaujolais will benefit from a couple of years in the bottle. John found that the other producers in France were young, and he is teaching them California techniques that are ahead of the game. This wine is full of fruit, but also an intensity, a Syrah-like aftertaste. Dan thinks maybe this wine will age in two days once opened. “Way more interesting than a typical Beaujolais.” It doesn’t have any oak, there was no barrel aging.

Garry Brooks from Brooks Note Winery in the Petaluma Gap is back on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. He has been on the show before, the last time was this episode in February of this year. They begin by tasting the 2023 Chardonnay. It started five weeks late and they didn’t think anything was going to ripen. These grapes are usually picked mid to late September but this time, it was mid October. “This is a brilliant wine, it has so much personality. It’s crisp and delightful with food, light and only 13% alcohol,” says Dan. There is a chicken truck that parks near the winery that cooks chicken with this wine and herbs. “This is a Chardonnay that doesn’t have that big rich buttery soft center.” It’s a wine made for food. It comes from 3 different vineyards, one in Sebastopol Hills, one in the Santa Rosa plain and one in Petaluma Gap. Dan says it is round and crisp. There is only one eighth done in oak barrels. That small amount is just a kiss of spice and sweetness. Garry says Chardonnay is risky when it goes through a crazy transformation when being made. If you try to bottle it too soon, it’s bland, says Dan. Bung and Roll If you stir Chardonnay you can gain and lose different flavors. There is no stirring involved here, they are just waiting. Dan says this was Jim Clendenon’s technique that he called “bung and roll.” He would fill the barrels with Chardonnay, seal it with a bung, roll the barrel away and never touch it. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sip the difference!  Next he has brought a couple of their single vineyard wines. There is one vineyard in southern Petaluma Gap, in Marin County, near Marin French Cheese. It’s cold and windy there. You can’t do barbeque in Petaluma Gap because the wind blows hard at 4:00 every day. As the wind speed goes up it slows down photosynthesis so you get a longer growing season. The coastal influence keeps it cool, so there are more floral notes and a lighter style to the wine. Dan describes the Azaya vineyard that grew this Pinot Noir. A really good wine has personality and if you use the word great, it has to have many good things about it, such as this one. They just did their first ever Wine Stroll in Petaluma. All the folks in Petaluma who sell wine, retailers, they sold 400 tickets. Petaluma has a great food scene and the wine scene is growing with the whole city, as an attractive district. They have live music tonight and live comedy tomorrow night. There is Trivia Night on Saturday, this weekend too. Panther Ridge Pinot Noir The next wine is the Panther Ridge Pinot Noir, also from the Petaluma Gap, but up on Sonoma Mountain. The vineyard is all volcanic soil, pumice and basalt, that gives dark flavors and good structure to the wine. Garry majored in Political Science at Duke and was in the Navy, in San Diego, France, Spain and northern California. By the time he was 23 he had tasted wine from all over the world. He was working in Hawaii, for a while selling advertising for the Honolulu Weekly. While going to go to the University of San Diego for an MBA and he met someone who said she was going to UC Davis for Viticulture and Enology. The very existence of such a degree was a surprise. Well, the passion became a job in 2004. He left a well-paying job as an IT project manager in the city and started the winery. All of his business skills carry over to winemaking in ways that help him ensure quality. The Wier Vineyard Pinot retails for $60. A 2018 is for sale now, already aged for you. This is already aged enough to be in the ‘right spot.’ Brooks Note is open daily from 11-6. Brooks Note is open daily from 11-6. Every Friday they have music from 5-7. Tomorrow (Sat. Dec. 13, 2025) the comedy show is at 8pm, there are tickets available on the website. They have Trivia next Saturday, Dec. 20. They only send ONE email per week. Weir Vineyards has a waiting list. He gets the fruit because his daughter went to school with the owner’s granddaughter and he pulled family friendship strings to get the fruit. Garry understands that he has to do things to attract attention for his wines. It all came together for him in Petaluma when he found his location. They bought the place in 2019 and it was their covid project to fix it up. Their capacity is  up to 150 people for private events. They have a couple of events, coming up. Dan Durkin the lead singer of Petty Theft, is performing. Bring a can of food to pass on to the homeless center, Friday Dec. 19, 2025. On Feb. 12, 2026 it’s a bigger event, stay tuned to California Wine Country and watch Brooks Notes Wines for more about that.

Bettina Sichel, the owner of Laurel Glen Vineyard is back in the studio as our guest on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. She was on the show once before, on this episode last May. Bettina has brought a new wine that Dan is tasting for the first time. This is a 2025 Gruner Veltliner from a historic vineyard on Sonoma Mountain, an unusual grape from a historic vineyard. It is most associated with Austria, usually made dry and has a natural richness. It is not as austere as a Riesling can be. Dan suggests a little bit of green tea component in the grape, and some mineral flavors like slate. It is dry and rich at the same time. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. The Steiner Vineyard on Sonoma Mountain has two acres of Gruner Veltliner. Dan remembers the Galen Glen Vineyard in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania also makes a great Gruner Veltliner. Dan appreciates that Laurel Glen Vineyard uses a screw cap. Bettina says that all their white wines are bottled with screw caps. Dan explains that screw caps work great but with red wines of a certain price, people just expect a cork. Recently some screw cap producers have developed different screw caps that completely seal or that allow a little bit of air. You can choose the cap that matches your intentions as a winemaker. If a wine has to sit on the shelf for a long time, the cap protects the wine better than a cork might do. They are tasting the Laurel Glen Cabernet, which is blended with about 20% Merlot, to soften it.

Bibiana Ravé Bibiana Ravé, winemaker and co-owner of Shared Notes, joins Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell on California Wine Country. Bibana has been on CWC twice, first on this episode of August 29, 2019, to talk about her own wine brand Alma de Cattleya. Then, on April 5, 2023, Bibiana and her husband Jeff Pisoni were on this episode, to talk about Shared Notes. Bibiana grew up in Medellin, Colombia and studied enology in France. They are tasting a wine from Shared Notes, a winemaking project that she shares with her husband Jeff Pisoni. It is a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. The blend is a bit different from year to year, depending on how the Semillon tastes. French Winemaking in California Bibiana practices French winemaking techniques in California. She describes winemaking as a personal experience. During her time in France, she stayed there and focussed on French wines only. She didn’t even study Italian or Spanish wines. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling.  Her wines are “bone dry” with no residual sugar. They are on the low-to-middle alcohol level. She believes that it is truly all in the vineyard. They work with great vineyard sites. Their Sauvignon Blanc comes from the Ridge Vineyard, which Dan says is one of the best. The vines are 60 years old and have a low yield per acre. She ways that she could not make the wine that she does, if the growers were not as committed as she is. Dan Berger says this wine shows the ancient style with all the dry flavors that it requires. “Very few people in this world make wine that you want to open when your child is 21.” These wines will support 20 years in the bottle. [12:38] Dan Berger: “Most people don’t realize, in the olden days, they would make a wine that was one of the greatest wines in the history of mankind and the next vintage they would make something that was undrinkable. Because they didn’t have the science behind them to tell them what they needed to do! Now we have science, so we can do what we need to do to make great wine every single year.” https://calwinecountry.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/CWC-Promo-EG-Science.mp3 Every choice is a force on the vector There is a limit to letting the land and the vineyard speak for themselves. There are choices such as what to plant and where, how many vines per acre? For example, the difference between 848 vines per acre and 2420 vines per acre can completely determine the concentration, the phenolic ripeness and the quality of the fruit. Bibiana describes how she and Jeff wanted to produce wines in California in a way that many people thought could not be done. Dan says that this kind of project takes vision because there is no guarantee that anyone in this country will even understand these wines. [min. 20] Bibiana describes her arrival in Sonoma County in 2005 and she was making wine at the same facility as Jeff, for different labels. They became friends and then got married. Shared Notes Colombian Coffee [min. 23] Bibiana has also brought some special Colombian coffee. It is 100% hand grown single origin. The roast is done properly so the smell of coffee is permeating the room. Her two sons are 8 and 10 and she wanted something to connect her family to something positive from her home country. Coffee fits that perfectly. She thought they should start importing green coffee beans and roasting in California. That started in 2019, then in 2022 they started roasting coffee at the winery in Rhonert Park. Acidity is important for both coffee and wine. Also, both depend on fermentation, since even coffee beans have to be fermented to get the husks off. “I’ve never smelled a light roast with this kind of character,” says Dan Berger.

Peg Champion and Brad Whitworth from the Sonoma County Wine Library join Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell on California Wine Country. The Sonoma County Wine Library is reopening and the wine community is celebrating the rebirth of this great resource. They even have an Instagram page, here. The library holdings document the history of wine in Sonoma County, as well as all over. The renovation of the Healdsburg regional library has been a benefit to the wine library too. There is more space for meetings and for study. The Wine Library Association has just opened The Millie Howie Memorial Garden. She was the founder of the association. They also have several transcriptions of oral history interviews done with wine pioneers starting in the 1950s and ’60s. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Peg, who is president of the Association, talks about their upcoming community events, starting with the Holiday Gathering on December 4. The library is in the center of Healdsburg. There is a photo exhibit of George Rose, the wine country photographer. and on December 16 he will be there for a “meet the photographer” event. The Atlantic Seaboard Wine Association on Feb. 1 They also collaborate with other wine organizations. The Atlantic Seaboard Wine Association will come in on Saturday, February 1, from 4-6 pm for a tasting of the Atlantic Seaboard’s 2024 wine competition award winners. [@ 12:16] Peg describes the culture in wine country as being open to collaboration and sharing of information. That feels like the opposite of the business culture where NDAs are enforced. The Sonoma County Wine Library is a part of fostering and favoring that open information culture. Dan Berger says that the library is important so that 100 years from now there will be a story to be told. The wineries are too busy trying to stay in business. They don’t have time to document their own history. There are treasures that are the last of their kind, that don’t exist anywhere else. It’s not just for the wineries, it’s for any interested researchers. Peg Champion mentions Megan Jones, the Sonoma County Library research librarian dedicated to this subject.

James MacPhail James MacPhail is our in-studio guest today on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. This is his first time on the show. James MacPhail tells about how he was able to buy back the rights to his brand in July of 2024, so his business is undergoing a rebirth. He has just finished his thirtieth harvest. He and his wife started a brand in 2012 called Tongue Dancer Wines and he has four other collaborations where he is the winemaker. He works with some of the best vineyards in both Napa and Sonoma counties. Over several years he built his company MacPhail Family Wines, then sold it to Hess, then bought it back. Dan mentions that he will have to reassert his style over the brand’s production. With the tagline, “Crafted by nature, nurtured by hand,” the prospects are very good. CWC is brought to you by Deodora Estate Vineyards. Visit Deodora to discover 72 acres in the Petaluma Gap that are producing exceptional Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling. “After 30 years, I’m still a kid in a candy store. I still love what I do. I still get up at 4AM. You know? And it has not yet… put me down.” He and his wife collaborate on their company. He just makes the wine and she does everything else. “Sometime she is a lot busier than I am.” Their tasting room is open by appointment. San Giacomo Family Vineyards Dan asks about the connection to San Giacomo Family Vineyards. The name is well known in the wine business but not so much outside. James says the San Giacomo family represents Sonoma County to him. San Giacomo sends grapes to many wineries, but James MacPhail is the only winemaker who lists their name on the label. Dan credits MacPhail with being predicting of what Pinot Noir would become, starting in the early ‘80s. The San Giacomo fruit is “precise” says Dan. The San Giacomo vineyard had early success planting Chardonnay en masse, providing fruit to all the up and coming producers. At that time, UC Davis was really figuring out how to grow Chardonnay. At first, James made a lot of reds, but he needed to add a white to his production. Dan describes Chardonnay as red wine with no color, and Pinot Noir is like white wine but with color. Pinot Noir is seductive and Chardonnay can be powerful and intense. Dan says they should be served at the same temperature. James and his wife have been traveling to Italy recently so his knowledge of wine is extending to Italian wines. Vermentino, Arneis and Cortese are Italian white wines that were hardly ever exported until the last 25 years. That is because they have only recently improved production technology, using stainless steel that is temperature controlled. There are more varieties in Italy than anywhere, more than 200 white varieties and 400 reds.

Winemaker Adam Lee is our in-studio guest today on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. He has enjoyed a distinguished career as a winemaker and winery owner and now he runs Clarice Wine Co. The last time Adam was on the show was this episode of July 14, 2021. “If Adam Lee’s in the room, it’s gotta be Pinot Noir,” says Dan Berger, right at first. They are tasting a wine called Dial Tone, which has a picture of an old telephone dial on the label. For Adam Lee, Clarice should be, “…a very good honest Pinot at a reasonable price point.” It is 100% Pinot Noir with no alterations or additions. It uses the less expensive barrels which work well enough and are cheaper. This helps keep the retail price down. Adam remembers that the first wine he ever fell in love with was a 1989 Rocchioli Pinot Noir. It was great and cost about $13. Now he bottles this Pinot Noir and it retails for $19, so he achieved his goal. “Adam Lee is one of the greatest winemakers in America, period,” says Dan Berger. Adam founded Siduri Wines and also made wine in Oregon and Santa Barbara. He has also started a project in France. Clarice was Adam’s grandmother, born in 1896. She was his best friend growing up and taught him how to cook. There are QR codes on the labels with extensive information about what went into the wine. There is a lot of relevant information that does not fit on a 3×5 index card. Some wineries don’t publish this kind of information. Some people care to know the pH of a wine.

Jake Lachowitzer from Banshee Wines is our guest on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. Banshee Wines was last on this show on this episode of June 1, 2022 which featured their winemaker at the time, Alicia Sylvester. Banshee wines stand out because they “…are so good and so reasonably priced…” says Dan Berger. They have broad distribution and are available “everywhere.” They begin tasting their Sauvignon Blanc. SV has become an important grape in Sonoma County, especially because winemakers are making it from places like Chalk Hill and Russian River Valley. This one comes from Dry Creek Valley, Chalk Hill and Russian River Valley AVAs. Dan Berger explains that this variety is capable of holding up against warmer weather later in the year. 2024 will be Jake’s first vintage at Banshee Wines. Their tasting room has moved to Geyserville, from Healdsburg. This wine has good enough acidity that it is made to go with food. Dan likes to serve it with goat cheese. Daedalus suggests gorgonzola with a little bit of honey. Dan suggests to go light on the honey so as not to overpower the wine flavors. He detects some flavors of preserved lemon and  Chamomile tea. Most people don’t age their wines, but the most interesting aspects of wine come out, in whites as well as reds, with a few years in the bottle. Jake Lachowitzer Jake Lachowitzer had a long journey to winemaking. He was born in Fargo, ND and had several careers before this. He first studied Sustainability and Environmental Science at Minnesota State University, then he got a graduate degree in winemaking and moved to Sonoma County. His first job was at Sonoma Cutrer in 2019. Then, he was assistant winemaker at Chalk Hill Estate.  There isn’t much wine made in the midwest, but there are some varieties that are made to withstand the Minnesota winter. Dan Berger says that the farmers have adapted a cold-hearty variety of grapes to their soil types and weather. Next they taste the 2024 Banshee Chardonnay. It is sourced from the Sonoma County Banshee estate. There are flavors of creme brulée, lemon curd, banana and nice barrel spice to finish it. It’s 30% new French oak, 9 months aging. Dan mentions the citrus flavors that characterize Sonoma County Chards. Most restaurants will serve it too cold, and the wine will have different flavors. This is because the health departments require refrigerators to be below 40 degrees and they can’t afford a separate refrigerator that is less cold. Today they are drinking it at about 65 or 66 degrees, which is warm enough for the flavors to express themselves. Next up is a Pinot Noir. Dan Berger says that up to about 20 years ago, it was hard to find the right locations for Pinot Noir. Jake is working with a wide variety of clones and locations. They also taste a 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon, which Dan likes because he remembers it was a cool year. This wine has green herbal flavors and beautiful aromatics, structure and herbal notes. The fruit is mostly from Alexander Valley.

Elaine, the owner of Elaine Wines is our guest today on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Daedalus Howell. She started her winery after a career as an biotech intellectual property attorney. Dan Berger discovered these wines just by tasting them at an event. He was excited to find a Chardonnay that was not overdone and that smelled and tasted like Chardonnay. It is an older style of making Chardonnay that appeals to people like Dan who remember when that style was prevalent. Elaine Wines is a small winery but has already earned a bunch of awards. This first one for tasting is the 2023 Chardonnay, the youngest one that Elaine brought. All of the Chardonnays are made with fruit from her vineyard. She has three acres with one acre of Chard and two of Pinot Noir. Dan detects a little bit of dried pineapple character and the oak is very subtle. The vineyard is at high elevation and Dan says the wine matches the smell of the vineyard. There are fir trees and oaks nearby which influence the vineyard. Dan also appreciates the good acidity. The vines are 25 feet from their house. Before Elaine moved to California, she was a biotech patent attorney, with a background in molecular and micro-biology. She got an online certificate in winemaking from UC Davis, before she moved from North Carolina. Elaine found a custom crush where she was not obligated to meet a tonnage minimum, which allowed her to start making wine with a small production. She found a community of helpful people in California, who work in wine. That is uniform throughout most wine regions in the world, says Dan Berger. Dan says that Prohibition may have ended in 1933 but it was the 1960s before winemaking woke up in the US, in California mostly. Chardonnays The second Chardonnay they taste came from the same grapes, but the first had newer barrels and the 2022 was made in one single barrel that had been used once before. That is generally considered 50% new. She only made 23 cases of this, because they had a very low yield and she had promised some grapes to another winemaker. This wine won a Double Gold at the San Francisco Chronicle wine tasting. Dan says that the problem with a lot of Chardonnay today is that it has to be big and rich. This is the other side of the spectrum of types of Chard. A lot of people making Chardonnay are trying to make a wine that they think will sell. Elaine, on the other hand, came into this without that notion at all. She just lets the vineyard do what it can do, and then handle it in a way to bring that out. Don’t serve it too cold, because the flavors won’t come out. What’s more, this wine is a 2022 and it has had enough time to reach full maturity. She likes to do “as little as I can” and treat it gently. Pinot Noir The next tasting is a Pinot Noir that earned 99 points and a Double Gold from the American Fine Wine Competition, and Gold Medals all over the place. Dan says that the judges like it when the dominant flavor is fruit not oak. Dan describes the flavor of beets that is hiding in the wine.

Dan and Kevin Kevin Bersofsky, owner of Montagne Russe wines, is back on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Harry Duke sitting in for Daedalus Howell today. He has been on CWC before, the last time was this episode of July 19, 2024. Dan Berger begins with a compliment for Kevin’s Pinot Noir. He replies, “Syrah is my spirit animal,” so he has brought some Syrah too. His cellar is 50% Syrah. Most collectors don’t keep as much as Kevin does. Dan explains that Syrah has to be grown in a cold climate, and warmer climates are risky. 2024 was “strange” and 2023 was cold. So the cold years give nicer aromatics. The San Giacomo Family vineyards The Pinot Noir says “Roberts Road” on the label, and Kevin explains. The San Giacomo family owns the vineyard. Kevin gives credit to the San Giacomo family for setting the conditions for making such a great wine. Angelo San Giacomo founded their company in the Carneros region. It wasn’t until about 1988-1990 when they started planting in what became known as the Petaluma Gap. The combination of the soils and the weather have made Petaluma Gap one of the most interesting AVAs in the country. There are volcanic soils on one side, and a mix of clay and loam in other areas. Gap’s Crown falls in the middle layer halfway up the hill, where the sediment has settled in the lower region. Every region of Gap’s Crown can produce different flavors, even just by crossing the street. Dan compares this to Burgundy. Montagne Russe means Russian Mountain literally, and is the French word for roller coaster. He was making 13 barrels of wine in his garage, which his neighbor objected to. He called ATF federal police and he had to destroy 4 barrels and promise to stop making wine at home. So then he and his friends started Montagne Russe. Their first wines got high scores, 93 and 94. About 3 months ago they opened a tasting room in Petaluma and they love it there.

Ken Wilson and Katie Ambrosi from Wilson Artisan Wines are here on California Wine Country with Dan Berger and Harry Duke sitting in for the vacationing Daedalus Howell. This is their first time on the show, although some award-winning Wilson wines were mentioned on Dan Berger’s report from the 2023 Harvest Fair competition, on this episde. Dan says that Wilson Artisan Wines is one of the most successful brands in Sonoma County and wine country, with many award winning wines in their portfolio. Their first wins go back to 1991. They produce a lot of different varieties from several leading vineyards. The early ’90s were tough times for the wine industry. They were lucky that the first wine they made, a 1993 or 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon won Best of Class at Harvest Fair a couple of years after that. The business expanded as opportunities opened up, especially during wine market downturns. Most of their fruit comes from northern Sonoma County. The furthest south they go is probably a Bacigaluppi and some from St. Anne’s Crossing and a few others. But it’s mostly northern county and mostly mountain fruit. Mazzocco and Antoine Favera In the early 2000s there was another glut and nobody could sell wine to the East Coast, after 9-11. That’s when Ken had a lot of fruit that the wineries didn’t want that year. That’s when he acquired Mazzocco and that is when Antoine Favera became their winemaker. There are lots of other brands in the Wilson Artisan Wines portfolio, and each one has a view on the Wilson Artisan Wines website. One after another, Ken had the opportunity to acquire various vineyards. Some were in need of restoration but every one produces great wine. Some of them are specialized in one varietal, like Honey Hill is mostly Zinfandel. Ken tells the story of each one that Harry asks about. They also blend brandies. You get one gallon of distillate out of ten gallons of wine. They have been tasting the 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon labeled Pocket Highlands. That is the name of their ranch at the top of Mayacama Mountains. It is about 2000 feet altitude. Pocket Highlands Ranch is located east of Asti. Ken loves his mountain vineyards. A picture of the vineyard is used as the Apple computer OS update Sonoma.