I found myself on an unexpected trip to San Francisco two weeks ago. It wasn't a trip of pleasure as one of my best friends husband had succumbed to brain cancer. I stayed a week with her to help her what she needed and was not expecting to visit wine country. One thing she need to do was go to Napa to keep her mind off things and to remember the things they enjoyed together. Emotional, yes, enjoyable yes as it was a week full of emotions.
We paid a visit to Reynolds Family Winery, a winery I had actually never heard of, tucked away on the Silverado Trail. The winery is only available by appointment come to find out, but since my friend was a wine club member and there to pick up her wine club shipment we went to the nice lounge area for a tasting.
A little background history on the family...Wine has always been a part of Steve Reynolds life. In 1994 he and his wife Suzie traded in his dental practice for a life as a wine grower. In 1996 they planted 10 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon and produced their first vintage in 1999. The rest is history.
Our tasting began with the 2010 Reserve Chardonnay which is steel fermented. I am so liking these more and more. Great expression of the grape! A little caramel on the nose with flavors of lemon curd, tangerine and citrus with a slightly creamy texture. SRP $29
The 2010 Los Caneros Pinot Noir I found very fruit forward. David said it was a Pinot Noir with balls. A cran -raspberry nose leads to a palate that is very fruity with raspberry, pomegranate and a hint of spice on the finish. This wine was fermented three ways, in steel, in 20% new oak barrels and in half ton micro bins. SRP $45
The 2009 Merlot is 95% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. A very complex nose and a palate full of cherry, chocolate, berry and dried fruit. SRP $48
Layered aromas of pomegranate and plum are found on the 2010 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. Beautiful mouth feel with flavors of black fruit, hint of dark chocolate and with pepper throughout. SRP $48
The label on the 2009 Reserve Cabernet is an actual pressed mustard flower. The wine is 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc and comes from Annapurna Vineyard. Honeycomb and black currant aromas lead to a palate full of boysenberry and black fruit. A full bodied wine with lots of tannins. SRP $98
The last wine tasted in our flight was their 2009 Persistance. This is a blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot, 11% Syrah, 10% Cabernet Franc and 8% Petit Verdot. Aged for 20 months in 25% new French oak, 25% barrels with inserts and 50% neutral French oak. Aromas of cherry, blueberry and vanilla. A nice silky feeling on your palate with flavors of black fruit, prune with a hint of oak..
They also have a cute label called Naughty Cellars. This line was created because they didn't want to take themselves to seriously. They wanted to have some fun. Although I didn't taste this line, the label was cute and after all we are all a little naughty at times.
