Posts Tagged ‘wine’
Monday, September 14th, 2009
The Tiera 2008 Dry Creek Valley Estate Grown Sauvignon Blanc, and Tiera 2006 Sonoma County Zinfandel are two excellent wines that have been named ‘best value’ by several wine publications. Gold Medal Wine Club is pleased to offer Tiera wines as this month’s wine of the month club selection.
 Tiera Winery, located in the Dry Creek Valley area of Sonoma County, was started in 2001 by husband and wife team Dan Donahoe and Alexis Woods. Alexis is the daughter of Frank Woods, founder of Clos du Bois Winery. Woods saved one 120 acre parcel of land upon selling Clos du Bois which now produces the fruit for Tiera wines. Their intention is to remain small, with a goal of producing just 10,000 cases per year. This year they will probably peak at about 6000. They produce all the wine themselves.
Dan fell in love with wine and food as a freshman in college after having dinner with his grandmother’s closest childhood friend-non other than Julia Child. They were of course, treated like royalty and offered the best dishes with exquisite wines. He had an epiphany at that meal and vowed never to take food or wine for granted again! After a successful career in business, with the help of Alexis, he finally became part of the wine producing business. He and Alexis love raising their girls on the vineyard and turning people on to wines. Their mission is to produce really good wines at an accessible price point. Given that previous vintages have received 90 points and the 2007 Sauvignon Blanc earned the distinction of ‘The Top Ten Values of the Year’ , they seem to have achieved their goal.
The 2008 Sauvigon Blanc comes from Woods Vineyards grapes that are farmed sustainably and organically and was named “A Top Sonoma Sauvignon Blanc by the San Francisco Chronicle. The 2006 Zinfandel has been nominated in the American Wine Awards for Food and Wine Magazine for it’s balance and elegance.
We hope you enjoy this month’s wine club selections. Remember, you can always reorder the Tiera Sauvignon Blanc, Tiera Zinfandel, or many of our previous wine club selections from our wine store.
As always, let us know what you think. Leave a comment here, or go to ‘Judge the Wines’ and let us know what you though of this wine of the month club selection.
Tags: sauvigon blanc, tiera, wine, wine club, wine of the month, wine of the month club, wines, zinfandel
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Friday, August 28th, 2009
Both Pinot Noir selections this month have roots overseas and a commitment to sustainability. For the Pey’s of Scenic Root Wine Growers (of which Pey-Lucia Vineyards is one of five entities) their initial bond was forged at the University of Arizona where they both connected over stories of living abroad and their love of the European cultures surrounded by fine wines. Laetitia Vineyards was started in 1982 by French enologists and viticulturalists from Champagne Deutz who wanted to expand their production of sparkling wines into the United States. The property was then purchased by Jean-Claude Tardivat, who shifted the winery’s focus to Burgundian-style varietals. Laetitia is now owned by Selim Zilkha, who was born in Baghdadm and raised in Egypt, Lebanon and New York.
 Jonathan Pey of Pey-Lucia began his career working for a number of wine industry giants: Lousi Jadot, Pomerol’s Chateau Petrus, Penfolds and Robert Mondavi. Susan was raised in wine country and caught the wine bug at an early age. Her first job was as a Wine Director for Spectrum Foods and Il Fornaio restaurant groups where she would taste, evaluate and purchase hundreds of wines from around the world. She continues to buy wine as a career, professionally evaluating hundreds of wines each week. The Pey’s settled in Marin County, California. Inspired by the area’s wine growing history, they produced their first vintage in 1999- a Pey-Marin Merlot. Together, Jonathan and Susan share all of the work that goes on at the winery, he in the vineyard, she in the cellar. Their wines are beginning to earn some serious recognition due to their location in the ultra-cool Santa Lucia Highlands (perfect for Pinot Noir), their self-proclaimed ‘pickiness’ about the grapes they choose, and their sustainable, organic winegrowing practices.
The Pey-Lucia 2006 ‘Frisquet’ Pinot Noir has earned 94 points and an ‘outstanding’ distinction from Pinot Report and 90 points from Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar.
Selim Zilkha is nearly 70 years old and has enjoyed several highly successful business ventures in his lifetime. His love for agriculture, food and fine wines brought him into the wine business and ultimately to Laetitia Vineyard and Winery. At the winery, he is joined by his son, daughter and an all-star viticultural team including father-son team Dave and Eric Hickey. The vineyard is located in Arroyo Grande, one of California’s coolest grape growing regions well suited for Pinot Noir and the sparkling wines they continue to produce in honor of the first owner.
 All farming on the Laetitia vineyard is done with the goal of long-term sustainability and overall vine health and was recently awarded certification by the Sustainability in Practice (SIP) program.
The Laetitia 2006 Reserve Pinot Noir is a premier blend of hand selected old and new Pinot Noir vines from Arroyo Grande. Awarded 95 points by Wine Enthusiast, this Pinot is described as “Laetitia’s best reserve ever”.
Gold Medal Wine Club has selected these two exceptional Pinot Noir’s for the Pinot Series Wine Club. We are very pleased to be able to present these highly-acclaimed wines to our members. As you taste the wines, please let us know what you think. Leave a comment here or go to “Judge the Wines“. All wine reviewers are automatically entered for a chance to win the quarterly drawing for 1/2 case of wine. Additionally, if we publish your comments about an individual wine, we will send you a complimentary gift.
Remember that Gold Medal Wine Club makes a great gift. Consider ordering a wine club membership for birthdays, anniversaries, or any other important events. Consider ordering a memberships for those on your holiday shopping list. It’s easy- and it makes a fabulous, exciting gift that keeps on giving month after month.
Tags: Laetitia Vineyards, Pey-Lucia Vineyards, pinot noir, wine, wine club, wine of the month club
Posted in Pinot Noir Series | 1 Comment »
Monday, August 17th, 2009
The 2006 ‘J&S Reserve’ Barbera from Scott Harvey is this month’s selection for the ‘Plus Bottle’ to accompany the Gold Medal Wine Club Gold Series. This wine was recently awarded the Platinum Medal at the New World International Wine Competition.
The Plus! Program is a special add-on option to your regular scheduled wine deliveries. It’s a great way to discover more outstanding hard-to-find selections from California’s best small wineries. Throughout the year, we have the opportunity to buy superb wines worthy of your attention but with availability too scarce to share with all members.
Scott Harvey Winery is located in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains of California in Amador county. The people of Amador began producing wines in the mid to late 1800′s when the area was well populated with gold prospectors. Within a few decades, there were over 100 wineries in the region. The eventual decline of gold mining and the Prohibition devastated the region and by the 1930′s virtually all the wineries were abandoned. In the late 1960′s it was re-discovered for its perfect grape-growing climate and soil. The region now boasts about 40 wineries.
Scott Harvey Wines began in 2003 when Scott Harvey saw an opportunity to pursue a dream of owning his own namesake winery. He had previously been a partner in the successful Folie a Deux Winery which was about to be sold. He decided to branch out on his own with his wife Jana as his business partner. Scott was born in the Sierra Foothills. From experience he knew about all the best Northern California grape sources and his intention was to make a number of small lot wines from these sources. The initial release in 2004 instantly gave the small winery critical acclaim and helped to establish Amador county as a world-class wine growing appellation.
The 2006 ‘J & S’ Reserve (named for Jana and Scott) is a fruit forward wine made from the Barbera grape variety. Look for notes of cherry, tobacco, blackberry and vanilla. Please let us know what you think of this month’s Plus! selection.
Don’t forget to ‘Judge the Wine‘.
Not a member of Gold Medal Wine Club? Consider a membership for yourself or as a gift for a friend. The Gold Series is just $34/month for two award-winning bottles of wine.
Tags: 2006, Amador county, Barbera, Scott Harvey, wine, wine club, wine of the month club, winery
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Friday, July 17th, 2009
 One of Gold Medal Wine Club’s Platinum selections for this month is the 2005 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon from Amicus Cellars.
This wine was selected for the “50 Great Wines of 2008” by award-winning wine blogger Frederic Koeppel. Mr. Koeppel has been writing about wine since 1984- way before the internet or email. He now publishes at www.biggerthanyourhead.com. He is among the most respected wine and food critics in the world.
Amicus/X Winery was started just six years ago by owner/winemaker Reed Renaudin, 34. He began drinking wine at age 12 during family gatherings and became hooked on wine as a business while at UC Davis. Over subsequent years, he worked at several brand-name wineries, and eventually earned an MBA and an MS in enology. His academic work involved a business plan for a start-up winery that subsequently became the framework for Amicus Cellars/X Winery. Amicus Cellars was designed to be the winery’s reserve designator for its upper class wines. Renaudin offers these limited production wines on a first-come, first-serve basis. Following a procession of 90+ scores and rave reviews, the Amicus 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon is celebrated as one of their most promising and highly rated vintages to date. Gold Medal Wine Club is pleased to have secured this exceptional wine to offer to its Platinum members.
In addition to the accolades from Mr. Koeppel, the Amicus 2005 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon was awarded 91 Points by Robert Parker: “Another superb value is the 2005 Amicus Cabernet Sauvignon Spring Mountain…”
We hope you enjoy this exceptional selection. Please tell us what you thought about the wine.
Tags: 50 best wines, amicus, wine, wine club, wine of the month club, wines, x winery
Posted in Platinum Series | 1 Comment »
Friday, July 17th, 2009
 Mission Trails Vineyards was started by husband and wife team Ken and Robyn Rauh, both long time veterans of California’s wine industry. Having done practically every concievable job related to wine making throughout their lives, they decided to take the best of what they had learned and apply it to their own venture in Monterey county. Monterey has a rich history in winemaking dating back to the Franciscan friars. For the Rauh’s, the eventual plan is to have a whole line of wines from throughout California that depict the various Spanish Missions on the label where the grapes are sourced. “What I can tell you is that my wines represent a compilation of everyone else’s winemaking techniques, or at least the best ones that have made the greatest impression on me.” says Ken Rauh, winemaker.
Monterey grows over 40 different varietals of wine grapes and a large portion of these varietals are blended or sent elsewhere for processing. Rarely are wines produced and available on their own as a stand-alone varietal, and for years, only vintners had the pleasure to sample these fine Monterey varietal wines in an individual form. Each variety grown in Monterey County has something special to express with its color, aroma and flavor, and it is in the spirit of exploration and promotion of the area’s quality that proprietors Ken and Robyn Rauh created Mission Trail Vineyards.
This month, the Gold Series features the Mission Trail Vineyards’ 2007 Sauvignon Blanc and Mission Trail Vineyards’ 2006 Syrah. For the Sauvignon Blanc, the grapes were hand selected according to flavor. Awarded a Silver Medal from the Beverage Tasting Institute’s World Wine Championships and a Silver Medal from the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, this wine is a pleasing and refreshing summer wine with a true sense of origin.
The Syrah grapes matured on the vine for longer than usual, leading to darker fruit aromas and flavors, more depth overall and great length on the finish. The recipient of a Gold Medal from the Beverage Tasting Institute’s World Wine Championships and a Gold Medal from the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition, this Syrah is an excellent portrayal of the big and robust Syrahs from Bianco Bench Vineyard of Monterey.
Enjoy these excellent selections and please tell us what you think. Comment here or rate the wine on our Judge the Wines page.
Tags: monterey county, wine, wine club, wine of the month, wine of the month club, wines
Posted in Gold Series | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, July 7th, 2009
Anglim (the name is Irish) Winery’s first commercial crush occurred in 2002, a total of 800 cases of Syrah. Anglim’s early efforts were all Rhône-oriented but have recently expanded to include Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon and other varietals. Production now stands at around 3,500 and will eventually expand to the 5,000 case level.
Numerous awards and reviews later, Anglim Winery is secure in the ranks of ultra premiere boutique wineries. “We are very determined people,” says Steffanie. “In the beginning, Steve had his cell phone number on the corks so people could reach him with comments. That speaks of his willingness to listen and improve our quality. We are both committed to doing our very best.”
Our Platinum selection this month is the Anglim Winery 2003 ‘Best Barrel Blend’ Reserve Syrah. The wine was awarded 90 Points by International Wine Review, Critics Platinum by the Critics Challenge, and a Double Gold Medal at the West Coast Wine Competition. Medium to full bodied with aromas and flavors of jammy, cherry, blackberry, currant and fig, this Syrah’s ripe fruit and silky texture create a balanced style with enough character to be cellared but enough elegance to be enjoyed now.
We hope you enjoy this month’s Platinum selection. As always, this wine is available for purchase in our wine store to our wine club members and non-members alike. Members enjoy special discounts. If you are not currently a wine club member, consider joining. You will receive regular shipments of award-winning wines and the ability to re-order these fine wines from our online wine store. For us, it’s all about quality. Gold Medal Wine Club has been selecting only the finest highly-rated, boutique wines since 1992.
Tags: anglim winery, paso robles, syrah, wine, wine club, wine of the month club
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Wednesday, June 17th, 2009
One of this month’s Gold Series selections comes to us from Paso Robles Winery, a venture owned and operated by two Swiss expatriates Hans Nef and Hans Michel (pronounced Mikel) that developed as a result of the pair’s long-term association in agricultural-related business endeavors. Both grew up in Swiss farming families. “I learned at an early age to appreciate the role of agr iculture in our family’s lives, and of its importance to everyone’s existence.” says Michel. Upon meeting, they immediately formed Paso Robles as a grape producing company. Over the course of several years, they planted more vineyards and decided to develop Paso Robles into a major winery entity. “I want Vina Robels to express a unique blend of European heritage and American opportunity,” remarked Nef. “As individuals, the principles of Vina Robles are rooted in the Old World. As winemakers, we are inspired by the New World. But both worlds bring value to what we do, and we endeavor to capture this distinction in our wines.”
The growth rate for Vina Robles started slowly, and has remained steady in recent years. The new 14,000 square foot state-of-the-art tasting room and hospitality center recently opened on Highway 46 East in Paso Robles. It sits nearby Vina Robles’ three existing vineyards and boasts a unique balance of modern luxury and old world charm. Nef and Michel both credit their success to a number of key factors, including their Swiss winemaker, Matthias Gubler, who has carefully orchestrated all of the growth associated with Vina Robles. Brought aboard in 1999, Gubler brought an incredible winemaking resume that included stints in Switzerland, France and Italy, as well as an earlier role as harvest worker with Brutocao Cellars in Northern California’s Mendocino County.
Vina Robles 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon was produced from Paso Robles’ Huerhuero Vineyard on the east side of the expansive Central Coast appellation. Awarded 4 Stars by Restaurant Wine Online and named a Best Buy with 88 Points by Robert Whitely of Wine Talk at San Diego Union Tribune, this Cabernet Sauvignon is very characteristic of Paso Robles, showing lovely soft red fruit and an alluring floral characteristic with impressive potential to age well. Vina Robles’ 2005 Cabernet is also Recommended with 3 Stars from Decanter magazine.
Please enjoy this month’s Gold Series shipment and let us know what you think of the Vina Robles 2005 Cabernet.
Tags: cabernet sauvignon, vina robles, wine, wine club, wine clubs
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Tuesday, June 16th, 2009
Although it would be too late for Dad to receive his Gold Medal Wine Club shipment by this Sunday without implementing expedited shipping, you can still give him the gift of incredible, award-winning wines. Simply order a wine club membership, print out the gift card, and Dad will receive his first shipment next week! You won’t show up empty handed, and he won’t be at all disappointed. One of our five great wine clubs always makes a great gift for Dad or anyone. This year for Father’s Day, each wine club membership comes with a free gift.
So if you’re running late, don’t fret. Gold Medal Wine Club makes it easy to give a beautiful, thoughtful gift at the click of a mouse. The wines featured in our wine of the month club are among the best in the world. There are no wine club sign up fees, no monthly dues, no minimum obligation.
Click here to shop for Dad now!
Tags: father's day gift idea, gift for Dad, last minute gift, last minute gift idea, wine, wine club, wine of the month club
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Wednesday, June 10th, 2009
When you order a wine club membership for Father’s Day, Gold Medal Wine Club is giving Dad’s a little something extra in their first wine club shipment. Special complimentary gifts like quality wooden corkscrews, tote bags, leather carriers or wine aerators add a little something special to the already great gift of award-winning wines.
Gold Medal Wine Club memberships make a great gift. Because we select only award-winning wines, each bottle is sure to be something unique and special to enhance Dad’s life. Each shipment includes two bottles, beautifully packaged and complete with an informative newsletter on the wines, the winery and tasting notes on the individual wines. When you choose to give a gift of Gold Medal Wine Club membership, you are giving your father an experience to savor and enjoy. What gift could be better than that?
Gold Medal Wine Club has been selecting medal-winning wines since 1992. To win a medal, an award, or high marks from the most trusted wine publications, in almost all cases, a wine must pass muster by a committee of wine experts. Although the people at Gold Medal Wine Club are wine experts themselves, they rely on the palates of other experts as the first criteria they use when selecting a wine. Over 15 years they have gained a reputation for selecting the only finest most coveted wines to present to their members at a great value.
When considering a Father’s Day gift this year, give him a gift of the world’s best wines from America’s leading wine club- Gold Medal Wine Club.
Tags: father's day gift, father's day gift idea, gift idea, wine, wine club
Posted in gifts, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Monday, June 1st, 2009
![]() We welcome you to try one of our new, exciting features. Gold Medal is now creating Tasting Notes videos to accompany some of our wine selections. The videos feature pictures of the individual wineries, and information about the individual wines. In each video the narrator describes the wines using vocabulary typical of a wine connosisseur. If you are a beginner, watching these videos while tasting the wines will give you a sense of how to describe what you are tasting, and give you hints about flavors to ‘look’ for. For the wine aficianado, test your palate against wine judges while learning more about the individual wineries and wines. Enjoy!
Tags: wine, wine tasting, wine tasting videos, wine video, wine videos
Posted in about the wines | No Comments »
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