King Valley%2c North East

Dal Zotto

King Valley Arneis 2020

Jodi M
9.6

Light bodied, high acid, pears and lemons, a little minerality. — 3 months ago

Pizzini

King Valley Arneis 2021

Jodi M
9.9

Just a gorgeous wine. Perfect Saturday afternoon drinking. — 2 years ago

Dal Zotto

Sangiovese Cabernet 2018

🍷✔✔ nice smooth red — 3 years ago

Mayford Wines

Shiraz 2009

Big and bold. Delicious! — 5 years ago

Politini Wines

Amoroso Red Blend 2021

Jodi M
9.5

Sweet red, light body, high acid, cherries and chocolate, drink chilled. — 4 months ago

Junius Lindsay Vineyard

Reserve Syrah 2016

In our binary world- this is a feminine format. Pinot weight and body with East Coast fruit expression. Nice aromatics couple with punchy acidic flow. The type of plummy acid that make the mouthfeel “float” with a grace more impactful than the actual fruit. Compelling, especially with the right cuisine ;) 1 bottle remains - target 2026? 91 pt because it’s NC and relatively weighted — 3 years ago

Nugan Estate

Frasca's Lane Pinot Grigio 2018

Bowen Home - clean, full of minerals and fruity apple and pear balance — 5 years ago

Calabria Family Wines

Long Live The King King Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2016

The Barrossa Valley and Coonawarra fruit in the King family produced wine was surprisingly soft and very drinkable. — 5 months ago

Dal Zotto

Insieme King Valley White Blend 2015

🥂✔✔ a favourite from Dal Zotto — 3 years ago

Clendenen Family Vineyards

The Pip Santa Maria Valley Nebbiolo 2014

#Nebbiolo is a surprisingly rare grape. Even in its native Piedmont, it accounts for only 8% of vineyard land. There are fewer than 100 hectares planted in the United States. 🕵️‍♂️🍇
Over 80% of prewar Italian immigrants came from Sicily and Southern Italy. Piedmont was the wealthiest and most politically dominant region. But if fortunes were reversed, could Nebbiolo have taken Primitivo/Zinfandel’s place as a grape relatively uncommon on the boot but dominant in California? 🤔🇮🇹🇺🇸
Probably not. The Nebbiolo vine is *not* for beginners. It flowers early and ripens late, making it susceptible to both spring and autumn frosts. It loves the occasional fog bath (some say the name is derived from ‘nebbia’, Italian for fog ☁️☁️☁️) but is prone to the mildew that may result from such humid conditions. Its fussiness would make Pinot Noir blush: it demands southwesterly exposure, a proper gradient, constant sun above, and fog licking at its toes.
#diva
Sound anything like California’s Central Coast? 🌅
In the Santa Maria Valley, where the East-West Transverse Range bends back into the North-South Coastal Range, it’s possible. Vineyard selection still requires extreme discretion - an eye like @JimClendenen’s, perhaps.
Jim began the Nebbiolo program at the legendary
#BienNacido vineyard in 1994. Production is small, but if you track down his “The Pip” Nebbiolo, it will only run you about $30. You’ll believe anything is possible when you have real California Nebbiolo of this quality come wafting out of the glass at you! 🙌🙌
🏞.“The Pip” is named after Jim’s old cellar dog Pip, a border collie. So it only seemed right to include one of our own pips! 🐈
— 5 years ago