Casey O’Brien’s new project is a label called Idle Chatter with a relatively straightforward goal: awesome wine meant to be drunk young and fresh at an everyday price point. But underneath a pair of great everyday wines is a remarkable project. Casey recently launched an initiative to give a percentage of his profits to LGBTQ charities. And underneath the friendly exterior, there’s a fascinating backstory to Casey.
Read MoreRecently, K&L domestic wine buyer Ryan Woodhouse took some of the K&L NorCal team up to Sonoma. We wanted to speak to some of the amazing wine producers located right in K&L’s backyard, so to speak. It’s always a good thing to get out of the shop to see where and how the wines we love are made. You can talk endlessly about terroir staring at shelves of bottles, but it doesn’t take on substance until you walk the vineyard grounds, touch the soil, smell the plants, and see everything that goes into producing those bottles you enjoy so much. Everyone in the wine industry knows this, of course, but there are times that understanding fades and it’s time to get back to Wine Country and refresh your mind as well as your palate.
Read MoreA few of us buyers recently embarked on an overnight trip through Napa and Sonoma Valley to check the pulse on wineries as spring dawns on North Coast wine country. We walked sacred vineyards in the heart of Napa Valley, and we heard amazing tales of heroism saving wines during the horrific fires of 2017 in both counties. While everyone we visited had their share in the history of American winemaking, the outstanding highlight of the trip for me was our last visit, to the legendary Hanzell Vineyards in Sonoma.
Read MoreWhether you love it or hate it (and generally you fall on one spectrum or the other), Chardonnay is undeniably one of the most popular wine grapes in the world. In fact, it is the most planted white wine grape on the planet. So, when International Chardonnay Day rolls around, love it or hate it, you should celebrate it. Grab a bottle and grab some friends, and use it as an excuse to raise a glass. We’ve provided a list of five fun facts below to whet your palate and impress your guests.
Read MoreIt’s hard to talk about women winemakers without talking about Cathy Corison. A fixture in Napa Valley for almost forty years, Cathy has broken barriers and busted through ceilings her whole winemaking carrier. With singular focus, determination, grit and confidence, she is unapologetically herself and it comes through in everything she does. Her wines, like her career, are about the pursuit of that passion, displaying a distinctive style that has never wavered based on other people’s opinions or thoughts. When I asked her for her secret, she replied, “Confidence, and not taking ‘no’ for an answer.”
Read MoreMarch is Women’s History Month, and we’re excited to spend it here on the blog with a spotlight on some of the women who are kicking ass in today’s wine industry. We’re going to start our series in California with Alison Thomson, whose L.A. Lepiane label is an ode to her Italian heritage as well as her deep roots as a Californian. Esther Mobley, the SF Chronicle’s fantastic wine writer, called her a winemaker to watch in 2018 because she’s making “a convincing case for Italian varietals in California’s Central Coast.”
Read MoreA lot has changed in Napa Valley over the last forty years. Today, if you’re looking to start a winery, you better have a few million dollars in your pocket. But back in 1974, when John Williams arrived on a Greyhound bus from New York, all you needed was little determination, a lot of hard work, some good friends and a motorcycle to sell.
Read MoreIan Brand is one of the hottest rising talents coming out the Central Coast right now. Recently named Winemaker of the Year by the San Francisco Chronicle, he is an incredibly passionate winemaker with a vision, not only for his own wines, but for the region as a whole. Wine Enthusiast described him as “innovative, experimental and eager to push the envelope in Salinas Valley and beyond.” He currently has three wine brands, La P’tit Paysan, La Marea, and I. Brand & Family, each crafted to capture the unique beauty of the vineyards, the grapes and the distinctive region. Ian will be pouring his wines this Thursday in our San Francisco store, so I took the chance to catch up with him this week.
Read MoreYesterday we had a showdown in our Hollywood tasting bar. Domestic Buyer Kaj Stromer pitted Oregon Pinot vs. Santa Barbara Pinot for a Battle Royale. Who was the winner? We all were! The wines were awesome.
Read MoreThis weekend, we have our first Saturday wine tasting of the year. Aptly, for this belt-tightening time of year, we are sampling domestic value wines under $20. These are wines that deliver the best bang for the buck. Not surprisingly, I noticed many of these wines are second labels to high-end producers. Although they do not share the same name as their illustrious parent wine, these wines often share a similar philosophy, winemaker, and sometimes vineyards or winemaking techniques. Because of this, second labels can be a pretty reliable bet when trying to find a good deal.
Read MoreHappy New Year! I can’t think of a better way to kick off 2019 than to write about what’s going on over at Tablas Creek. They’re still making graceful, seductive Rhône Blends out of Paso Robles, but the way they are thinking about their land strikes me as an essential model for sustainability in California winemaking. They’re going above and beyond organic farming. They are building a complex, self-sustainable world on their 300+ acres, and they’re leaving the land even better than they found it. They’re putting carbon back into the soil to hold more water. They’re adding new species of grasses. They’re minimizing potential risks for fire. And they’re doing it all with sheep.
Read MoreIf you’re looking for something fun and totally different this New Years Eve, you might think about trying sparkling mead. Yes, you heard me correctly, mead. Possibly the oldest alcoholic drink in history, this ancient libation is making a fashionable comeback. It is a drink that was enjoyed by almost every ancient culture from the Greeks, Romans, Vikings, Mayans and Ethiopians. But drinking mead today? It isn’t in our modern conscience. Until recently.
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