Within our portfolio of wines we offer a series of blends and a series of single vineyards. Is one really better than the other? Perhaps to some, but our goal is to make great wine and nothing else.
Cuvees allow us to use several vineyards to achieve a wine style that is within the diverse spectrum of wine flavors and to create blends like the Cuvee Moriah or Two Brothers that hearken back to our inspirations: Chateaunuf du Pape and Burgundy. The goal of any cuvee is to use all the parts and all the colors to create a blend that is greater than any of the individual parts.
Single vineyard wines will not go into a bottle if they cannot stand alone as complete wines. They must have a unique and intriguing aroma profile, a full and balanced mid-palate and complexity. We also expect single vineyards to bear unique and singular characters or markers that seem largely attributable to the location the grapes were grown in. In other words, we cannot make a Kobler Syrah from Obsidian, and vice versa. Richard's Family Vineyard is one of the most unique Syrahs we've discovered in Northern California and it is a complete wine worth sharing for its uniqueness. Currently we do not produce single vineyard Pinot Noir or Chardonnay.
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Both single vineyards and cuvees have their place in our family of wines and we hope you enjoy the qualities and purpose of each.
The Donelan Flavor Spectrum
The greatest asset of California wine growing is development of wonderful fruit character in any variety every year. But if ample fruit character is great, more is not necessarily better. We believe the best California wines utilize the wonderful offering of fruit and accent it with hints of spice. Whether peppery like Syrah, or earthy and cedary like Pinot, we work to understand the unique flavor profiles offered from each of our vineyards and then set out ensure its balance. It is spice laden fruit character that we enjoy most about our inspirations like Burgundy and Rhone wines, and encouraging spice with CaliforniaàŠČuit can result in ethereal balance.
Our Winemaking Process
2009 Robert Parker Reviews
Robert Parker Review of
2007 & 2008 Wines
The Concept of Terroir-Driven Wines
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