Instagram Live Tasting: 2017 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon

Nov 19, 2020 at 12:00 PM Permalink

Virtual Tastings!

Watch our two most recent Virtual Experience below. Enjoy our next virtual on December 10th featuring our 2016 Silken and our Winemaking Team! Tickets Here

Virtual Tasting with Petite Sirah
September 24th, 2020

Learn more about our 2016 Petite Sirah as well as other facts about the variety.
Also, a fun sensory experience of pairing spices with wine. 

Hosts:
Erin Foley - Wine Club & Event Coordinator 
Samantha Eitel - Estate Chef 
Cecily Parrish Ray - General Manager

Virtual Tasting with Chardonnay
October 29th, 2020
Featuring our 2018 Chardonnay, learn about the variety as well as some wine nerd facts like ML.
The team also shares a paired cheese with the tasting group and how we pair with the wine. 

Hosts:
Erin Foley - Wine Club & Event Coordinator 
Lupita Sotelo - Tasting Room Manager
Samantha Eitel - Estate Chef 
Cecily Parrish Ray - General Manager

Nov 5, 2020 at 1:35 PM Permalink

Opening Thursday, May 28th - New Hours!

We are excited to share we are opening our doors on Thursday, May 28th for service! We have our current hours listed below in this email. 

We have new wines and an entirely new food menu to share with you! You can review the food menu here. Our team has been working tirelessly the last few weeks in preparation for this moment. A huge thank you to them!

Regarding visiting, things are going to look a little different as we have guidelines set forth by our County in this 2nd Phase of re-opening. Things will change possibly in the future, so we appreciate your patience as we head into these uncharted waters together. Our top priority above all is your safety and the safety of our staff. We are following sanitizing and cleaning guidelines that have been set forth. 

The following are important notes regarding your visit as these are inline with the County guidelines:

• Reservations are required for visits at this time. Reservations can be made here. 
• Masks will be required while entering the tasting room and we can provide one if needed.
• All wine purchases must accompany a food order. We ask that there only be one check per table and that group sizes are limited to 10 people. 
• Most seating will be outdoors. All tables are set at six feet apart to maintain proper social distancing, this includes our limited indoor seating.

We know that this will be an adjustment and again we appreciate your patience. We are beyond thrilled to have you visit and finally be able to enjoy our beautiful location, wines, and food! 

Hours

Thursday-Sunday

11am-6pm 

Reservations Required, but it's easy to make here!

May 23, 2020 at 1:00 PM Permalink

White Flight Virtual Tasting with David and Vanessa

Ok, it's hot! Join Winemaker and owner David Parrish and Certified Sommelier Vanessa Igel as they taste through our white wines and chat pairings and movies.

Grab a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Rose to join along. 

Click here for the video and here for more details about the wines they are tasting. 

Apr 28, 2020 at 10:18 AM Permalink

Why are the barrels topped off?

While we wait for budbreak in the vineyard, the winery team has been working on our wines to be sure they are ready to go as soon as we can welcome you back to the tasting room!

Today, Cellar Master Ethan Ray takes us through a process called Topping Off which is done frequently in the barrel room.

The Topping Off process is crucial to the winemaking process because without it we would be making very expensive vinegar! The wines are stored in wood barrels and those barrels breathe in and out. Through that process, some of the wine is lost to evaporation creating space for oxygen inside the barrel. This same process happens in whisky barrels and is often referred to as the angel’s share.

But, in winemaking, the presence of oxygen can ruin the wine turning it sour and bitter. So, Ethan and Assistant Winemaker Cody Alt have to regularly take down each barrel from where it’s stored, move it to the floor and refill each barrel to ensure there is no space left for oxygen after evaporation has taken place.

Our winery also has two huge humidifiers which help control the temperature and humidity in the barrel room, but there is still work that needs to be done.

Here is Ethan explaining more about the process and the role it plays in creating our delicious estate wines.

Apr 1, 2020 at 10:06 AM Permalink

Tasting of our White Flight

Winemaker David Parrish and Certified Sommelier Vanessa Igel wanted to take a sneak peek at the Sauvignon Blanc and the newly released Rosé and Chardonnay. These white wines are great to have on hand now that the weather is getting warmer. They help to create a little escape from reality and take a little vacation in your backyard. 

The Sauvignon Blanc continues to be a wonderful wine capable of a wide range of pairings from a bowl of fresh raspberries to Thai or even Indian food. At $16 a bottle, we're seeing a lot of people stocking up on it before summer is in full swing. 

The Rosé is one of our team favorites. We had a double blind tasting before the shutdown with our wine and other Paso rosés. Ours was a unanimous winner, though they were all delicious! The nose is full of bubblegum, strawberry and cherry Jolly Rancher notes. The wine can be paired with just about anything. Some of our team favorite pairings are potato chips, spinach salad and salmon. 

The Chardonnay has a great balanced style with 40% new French oak and 60% stainless steel. This breakdown gives the wine those classic markers of butter and roundness while maintaining crispness and acidity from the stainless steel. It can be paired with anything from scallops to brunch faire. 

We hope you enjoy the video of this virtual tasting and that you'll join us for another one this Friday, April 3 on our favorite reds. 

Click here to watch!

Mar 31, 2020 at 10:38 AM Permalink

Team Tasting of Our 2017 Estate Zinfandel

We wanted to take a moment to enjoy a new wine and a little time with each other (at a safe distance!).

Our 2017 Estate Zinfandel is now released and we love where it's at in its development. 

Grown here on our Adelaida Road property, the head-trained Zinfandel vines are almost seven years old and have become a cult favorite for our tasting room guests and club members. 

Done in a restrained style, Winemaker David Parrish picks the fruit from the cool side of the vine so that the fruit doesn't get overripe. This style also keeps the wine more medium bodied and a little lower in alcohol. If you like lighter-style, less jammy Zins, then this is one you have to try! 

The nose on this Zinfandel is so unique almost coming across as a Pinot Noir because of its spice notes. It is loaded with dried cranberry, rose petals, white pepper and cedar. 

On the palate, it has a bright acidity with a lot of roundness as it waves from the front of the mouth to the back. 

The acidity and profile make it a great candidate for all kinds of pairings ranging from charcuterie boards, to lentil and sweet potato fritters, all the way to shepherd’s pie and brisket. It's definitely a wine to experiment with and enjoy soon! 

Click here to watch our live tasting, and here to order! Pickups at the tasting room are also available by appointment. Email here to schedule one. 

Mar 26, 2020 at 10:02 AM Permalink

What is Racking?

From the vineyard to the winery, Assistant Winemaker Cody Alt is starting the racking process for our 2019 wines this week.

Racking is important for the quality of our wines. It’s when some of the spent lees (dead yeast) falls out of the solution (wine) and no longer contributes to the finished product. Our wines are typically racked three times before they are bottled as part of our winemaking process. First the wine is racked as part of the initial fermentation process, then several months after fermentation has finished and then finally right before bottling.

Today, Cody is racking the 2019 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon moving the wine from one barrel to another to “rack off the lees.” Using a pump, a wand and a flashlight (super technical, right?), he watches the wine come up through the pump to see when it changes from clear to wine with sediment. It’s easy to see because it becomes cloudy instead of clear. Once he sees the sediment, he stops the pump and then leaves the rest of that wine in that barrel.  All of the clear wine is what will be kept and ultimately finished into our final wine.

The wines will be racked one more time right before bottling to ensure they are clear and perfect for you to enjoy for years to come!

Click here to watch Cody explain racking and demonstrate. Have any questions? Just ask on our Facebook or Instagram. We love talking wine with you!

Mar 25, 2020 at 10:04 AM Permalink

Winemaker David Parrish talks about our head-trained Zinfandel vines

We needed a break and ventured outside to catch up with Winemaker David Parrish on what's happening in the vineyard.

Right now, crews are going through the vineyard manually hand cutting each vine to remove last year’s growth and make way for this year’s new buds. It’s an exciting time as we say goodbye to last year’s harvest and prepare for what’s to come in the 2020 vintage.

Hand pruning takes a lot of time, but like most things, the effort is worth it.

For all other varieties, like Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Petite Sirah, etc. the crew hand selects two of last year’s arms to stay into this new harvest. Everything else is cut away. The two arms are then tied down onto the wire to establish a grounding for new growth.

But, our dear Zinfandel, is a little different. Like you can see in the video, everything is cut back and creates a circular form around the trunk of the vine. Nothing is left on it. This is to keep all of the growth as close to the vine as possible for water and also to leave room for where the new growth will take place. Ideally, the crew is creating an outline for where they want this year’s growth to set based on how close each vine is to each other and where the sun will eventually hit the fruit on the vine.

If you’ve had our Parrish Zinfandel, you know that it is a much lighter style and body than a traditional Paso Zin. Winemaker David Parrish likes this style because it’s easier to drink and pairs well with a wide range of foods. The way it gets there is based on where the crews are selecting next year’s vines to grow and that happens right now.

We hope you enjoy this short video on Zinfandel pruning!

milyvineyard/videos/2618176184976835/

Mar 23, 2020 at 10:11 AM Permalink

Wine Deals!

Friends, please know we have been thinking about you constantly as our world suddenly looks and feels so different. We hope you are well and are safe. 

As you've heard us say many times, we believe that wine has the power to create connection and to make memories. And, I think we all need a little of that right now. 

With that in mind, we are asking for your support of our small business. We have created a few promos to share our wine with you and to keep our team employed. Literally every bottle helps and we're humbled by your support. Here's the easiest way to head to our wine page.

• Enter SHIP at checkout for 50% shipping on any size order
• The 2017 Sauvingon Blanc is now a flat $16 
• New releases of Chardonnay and Zinfandel are an additional 10% with code TEN 

Our current hours for our team to field calls and emails is M-F 9am to 5pm. 

Mar 19, 2020 at 10:34 AM Permalink