In an effort to dine
at all 3000 San Francisco restaurants(800 and counting) and visit all 600 Napa
wineries (300 and counting),my wife Linda and I recently had the pleasure of
visiting Italics Winery. Our wine and food associate from Michigan Karen Halip
joined us for this special Napa wine experience.,
The winery is currently
under construction proving "Dreams Do Come True." Our hosts managing
partner Andy Wilcox and his wife Paige are involved in every detail of this
project and exhibit an abundance of joy and passionate energy.
Located on 73 acres of
pristine beauty in Coombsville, this labor of love will officially open Spring
of 2016. It will have an elaborate tasting room, 17,000 square of caves and a
large house overlooking the pastoral and peaceful property. The 7000
square foot house proudly sits on the top of the property and features
360 degree heavenly like views, 5 bedrooms, a state of the art
kitchen and high tech meeting room. It is perfect place to entertain wine club
guests or corporate executives looking for a special place to escape from the
rigors of business and recharge their batteries.
Our tasting began with
Andy showing us a movie about their wine "dream" with the main
characters being long time friend and winemaker Steve Reynolds, Andy and Texas
investor and partner Mike Martin.
While watching this
movie we enjoyed a 2013 White Blend of 60%
Sauvignon Blanc and 40% Chardonnay that was brilliantly blended.
From the tasting notes, " the wines rich mouth-feel vibrates with tart
green apple, caramel and smoked almonds finishing with wet stones and
flint." It sells for $55.00.
We then sampled the
2011 Fifteen Appellations. It is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12%
Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 6% Petite Verdot. It is their proprietary blend
of vino from 15 of the most famous vineyards in Napa. It retails for 95.00 and
per the tasting notes "silky and
inviting entry introduces cocoa and dark red fruit that keeps the wine open for
youthful pleasure from start to finish. "
After enjoying these
wines, we went to do some barrel tasting with winemaker Steve Reynolds.
We enjoyed some Rose
and Cabernet Franc from their French Oak barrels that were both very unique and
very fun to explore in their pure and young state.
We then drove to their
massive wine caves, under construction but nearly completed. that will store
the Italics great wines and also have a tasting area that will be elegantly
appointed.
The grand finale was a
taste of the 2012 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon that is 99% cab and 1% Cabernet Franc.
We loved this wine and we took
some home with us along with a bottle of their white blend. It retails for $125
and per the tasting notes" the first vintage of our Estate Cabernet offers
aromas of plum, black currant and pomegranate which giveaway to black licorice
and cocoa powder. It can stand alone but will stand up to the most robust
meals."
When officially
opened, this winery is sure to be a "must do" for people who enjoy
great juice, pure beauty and excellent attention to detail. We enjoyed the
wines so much that we also joined their wine club so we could be a part of
their "Dream Come True."
http://www.italicswine.com/
http://www.italicswine.com/
