Nikitas Magel's Blog (28)
Taking Pride
An Interview with the Lead Winemaker of Pride Mountain Vineyards.
One striking fact with which visitors to Pride Mountain Vineyards are immediately met is that the 235-acre estate actually straddles the line between the two otherwise distinct appellations of Napa and Sonoma. But while having grapevines and production facilities located on either side of that… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on October 20, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments
Mountain Majesty
An Interview with the Talent Behind Spring Mountain Vineyard.
Grace and Complexity. Power and Intensity. These are the discrete expressions of Cabernet Sauvignon that we tend to associate respectively with the Old and New World. Yet one Napa Valley winery, in tapping the fullest potential of its mountainside grapevines, seems to have succeeded in… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on September 29, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments
Peak Performer
An Interview with the Winemaker of Atlas Peak Winery.
Throughout the 1990s, Atlas Peak Winery built and enjoyed renown in the marketplace for the Sangiovese varietal wine it produced from the elevation after which it was named. But with the new Millennium came broad changes to Napa's wine industry, not the least of which was an upsurge in the production of… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on September 22, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments
An Uncommon Consultant
An Interview with Wine Consultant Philippe Armenier.
Biodynamic viticulture was something with which I'd been vaguely familiar when I first learned about the work of wine consultant Philippe Armenier. It was during an interview I conducted some time ago with one of his clients that I began to suspect that this once-obscure approach to winegrowing was… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on September 15, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments
Budbreak of a Brand
An Interview with the Winemaker of Benovia Winery.
The business of wine production is frought with considerable challenges. Beyond these, launching a premium brand is a monumental undertaking requiring a tremendous amount of resources, talent, experience, planning, and above all, a clear vision for how that brand will position itself among the seemingly… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on September 8, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments
The Kenefick Effect
An Interview with Tom Kenefick of Napa's Kenefick Ranch.
When Tom Kenefick first got into the business of raising vines over three decades ago, he had no idea he would eventually be growing grapes for some of Napa Valley's finest wine brands. In fact, tending vineyard land had only been a weekend endeavor for many years, which he balanced with a full time schedule as a… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on August 26, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments
Words with Winemakers
An Interview with Five Northern California Winemakers.
Any enthusiast will agree that wine has the potential to inspire our minds, fulfill our hearts, and arouse our souls like few other things in life do. But in experiencing the magic of wine at its best, it's not very often that we stop to think about the very people whose talent and skill are essential in making it… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on August 18, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments
Tiers for Fears
A Provocative Viewpoint by an Online Wine Retailer
The climate is altering. The landscape is shifting. Momentous change is unfolding in the wine world around us. And it's being induced by something subtle yet powerful in its capacity to affect the way we think about wine in the marketplace: the internet. Traditional distribution under the three-tier model, which has… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on August 11, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments
Chalking It Up
An Interview with the Winemaker of Chalk Hill Estate.
Very few premium wineries in Northern California can boast of vineyards that lie on a single estate of nearly 1,400 contiguous acres. Even fewer enjoy the advantage to their wine production afforded by an expansive landholding that features widely diverse vineyard soils and sharply varying topography. Chalk Hill… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on August 4, 2009 at 8:00am — 1 Comment
Seven, Eight, Vine
An Interview with the General Manager and Winemaker of Vineyard 7 & 8.
Vineyard 7 & 8 is a Napa Valley winery with a mission as straightforward as its name: to produce wines of exquisite quality that accurately reflect the small vineyards from which they hail at the top of Spring Mountain. But the simplicity ends there. For as any quality-driven producer… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on July 28, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments
Elevating Elegance
An Interview with the Proprietor & Winemaker of Robert Craig Winery.
Expression. Location. Distinction. These, we might argue, are the core elements of a finely made wine — one that conveys a message from a particular place with a unique identity. With its wide variation of climate, soil, and topography, the north coast of California affords vintners a… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on July 21, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments
Merrymaking with Merryvale
An Interview with the Senior Winemaker of Merryvale Vineyards.
A visit to the grounds of Merryvale Vineyards reveals everything we've come to expect of a Napa Valley winery: graceful design, serene landscaping, warm hospitality, and, of course, quality-driven wines. On scratching the surface, though, we discover something that doesn't seem quite as common anymore among… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on July 13, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments
A Diamond is Forever
An Interview with the Heirs of Diamond Creek Vineyards.
In the epic tale behind California's wine industry, Diamond Creek Vineyards is a legend in itself. Yet little did its founder, the late Al Brounstein, know at the time he bought his land in 1968 that he would later be making lasting history with the methods he chose to craft his quality driven Cabernet… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on July 8, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments
Vertical Vineyard
An Interview with the Owners and Winemaker of Hidden Ridge Vineyard.
With vine rows reaching gradiant slopes as steep as 55%, Hidden Ridge Vineyard is, without a doubt, an anomaly among grapegrowing properties in the United States. The creative scheme and audacious endeavor of owners Lynn Hofacket and Casidy Ward, it also boasts some of the densest… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on July 6, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments
Soil of Serpentine
An Interview with Kenneth Kahn of Blue Rock Vineyard.
The surface of Alexander Valley's utmost potential as a wine region has barely been scratched. At least that's the belief of a small cadre of local producers dedicated to crafting premium Bordeaux varietal wines — of whom one is particularly adamant in his determination to help realize that promise.… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on June 15, 2009 at 9:30pm — No Comments
Keen on Keenan
An Interview with Michael Keenan of Robert Keenan Winery.
It was by virtue of his hillside Napa Merlot that Robert Keenan planted his eponymous winery squarely on the world's wine map twenty years ago. Since then, a new generation of ownership under his son has resulted in significant changes in vineyard practices, varietal choices, and overall business philosophy that have… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on June 10, 2009 at 9:30pm — No Comments
Super in Sonoma
Many in Sonoma County would take issue with being told that their winemaking region suffers from what might be called a bit of a varietal void. But arguably, much of its reputation has been built on the quality-driven production of Zinfandel, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Syrah. Can the same thing be said of Cabernet Sauvignon? In asserting the negative to that… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on May 27, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments
Vested Interest
The face of the Napa Valley has changed dramatically over the last generation. During that time, scores of new wineries have been established and the resulting growth in commerce and tourism has been staggering. But in the midst of all this bustle and boom, there persists a number of small, family owned and operated vineyards whose history stretches long before Napa… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on May 22, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments
Eastern Exposure
The American consumer is one who heavily identifies with brands. And while super-premium wine is an agricultural product whose quality is heavily predicated on the geographical origin of its grapes, branding is nevertheless front and center in the sales strategies of most produced in this country. Yet where does the concept of terroir, or place, fit into this? Very often,… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on May 20, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments
Altitude Adjustment
Altitude. It's what distinguishes "hillside" or "mountain" fruit from grapes that are grown on flatter, lower lying areas. In the Napa Valley, the Mayacamas mountain range is home for the vines bearing such fruit, residing specifically in any one of its three AVAs (American Viticultural Areas), as they're officially called: Spring Mountain, Diamond Mountain, and Mount Veeder. It was… Continue
Added by Nikitas Magel on May 2, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments
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