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Recommended Wines

Stark Sips
2007 Jackson Estate Shelter Belt Chardonnay, Marlborough, New Zealand (91 pts, $22)
by Clinton Stark | 12.14.09 | Comment
2007 Jackson Estate Shelter Belt Chardonnay, Marlborough, New Zealand (91 pts, $22)

Think New Zealand. Marlborough. Wine. Likely, images of Kim Crawford come to mind, and their ever popular, fruit forward Sauvignon Blanc.

However, that’s changing. More New Zealand wines are making their way into the hands of eager North American ...

Stark Sips
2006 Artesa Pinot Noir, Carneros (92 pts, $25)
by Clinton Stark | 11.05.09 | Comment
2006 Artesa Pinot Noir, Carneros (92 pts, $25)

A few months back I wrote about the ‘07 Artesa Chardonnay (91 pts, $20) which is a nice white, great bang for the buck. At the time, while enjoying a tasting flight in Artesa’s scenic, glassy ...

Stark Sips
2008 Rombauer Vineyards Chardonnay, Carneros (91 pts, $32)
by Clinton Stark | 10.30.09 | Comments (2)
2008 Rombauer Vineyards Chardonnay, Carneros (91 pts, $32)

I’m really liking the “unoaked” Chardonnay trend. There is almost nothing worse than a buttery, almost oily, creamy Chard, especially served too warm. The main reason is another of the wine words: structure. Less oak, to me at ...

Stark Sips
Weekend wine pick: 2006 Santa Ema 60/40 Reserve (87 pts, $10)
by Clinton Stark | 08.27.09 | Comment
Weekend wine pick: 2006 Santa Ema 60/40 Reserve (87 pts, $10)

Here’s a good value wine you can most likely buy right now at your local Costco for about $10. But it delivers at least twice that in laid back flavor. This Chilean wine from Santa Ema, as the ...

Stark Sips
2007 Artesa Chardonnay Carneros (91 pts, $20)
by Clinton Stark | 08.15.09 | Comments (1)
2007 Artesa Chardonnay Carneros (91 pts, $20)

This Chardonnay is one of my two favorites Artesa wines. The other is their Pinot, just the regular non-reserve one (classic tier). At a recent tasting Loni and I both agreed that these were the standouts, especially at ...

Stark Sips
Weekend wine pick: 2006 Santa Rita Cabernet Sauvignon, Maipo Valley Chile (89 pts, $8.99)
by Clinton Stark | 06.06.09 | Comment
Weekend wine pick: 2006 Santa Rita Cabernet Sauvignon, Maipo Valley Chile (89 pts, $8.99)

Chile is all about hidden value. While Argentina, Portugal and others are getting recent glory and headlines, look to Chile for some wine deals.

Case in point: this ...

Stark Sips
2006 St. Francis Chardonnay, Sonoma County ($12, 89 pts.)
by Clinton Stark | 05.29.09 | Comment
2006 St. Francis Chardonnay, Sonoma County ($12, 89 pts.)

I was pleasantly surprised to: (a) find this wine sitting on a Safeway store shelf in San Jose, and (b) get it on sale for about $12. St. Francis Winery & Vineyards is a top tier Sonoma producer ...

Stark Sips
2006 Benziger Chardonnay, Sonoma County wine review (88 pts, $16)
by Clinton Stark | 05.11.09 | Comment
2006 Benziger Chardonnay, Sonoma County wine review (88 pts, $16)

Slightly off the beaten path in Sonoma County, Benziger is a scenic, wooded winery worth the visit. We visited a few years back and came back with plenty of good memories, not the least of which was the ...

StarkSilverCreek
2007 Ehlers Estate Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley — Different, in a good way (91 pts, $25)
by Clinton Stark | 04.30.09 | Comment
2007 Ehlers Estate Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley — Different, in a good way (91 pts, $25)

If you’ve read my past reviews or wine articles, you’ll probably know I loathe the proverbial glass of herbaceous, flower water. That would be most Sauvignon Blancs. Just my humble opinion. But for me, there is just too ...

StarkSilverCreek
2006 Wirra Wirra Church Block – wine pick of the week
by Clinton Stark | 04.14.09 | Comment
2006 Wirra Wirra Church Block – wine pick of the week

The label on this Australian wine states, “The 2006 selection of Cabernet Sauvignon (50%), Shiraz (30%) and Merlot (20%) is another masterful blend”. And I would agree. This is a nice twist on the typically excellent Shiraz we ...

StarkSilverCreek
2006 Tenuta Vineyards Chardonnay, Livermore Valley $18 (88 pts.)
by Clinton Stark | 03.28.09 | Comment
2006 Tenuta Vineyards Chardonnay, Livermore Valley $18 (88 pts.)

88 Tenuta Vineyards Chardonnay, Livermore Valley 2006. A great wine. Clean, refreshing Chardonnay with a nice balance of lemon and just enough oak to give it that classic California taste. Some citrus such as lemon keeps things fresh ...

StarkSilverCreek
Tenuta Vineyards 2006 Chardonnay, Livermore Valley: A great wine from a unique winery
by Clinton Stark | 03.14.09 | Comments (2)
Tenuta Vineyards 2006 Chardonnay, Livermore Valley: A great wine from a unique winery

We weren’t completely surprised by this Chardonnay from Tenuta. Just weeks earlier we had enjoyed some of it, along with several other wines and some barrel tasting, up at the vineyard in Livermore Valley. The winery is run ...

StarkSilverCreek
La Rochelle Winery in Livermore: Pinots in paradise
by Clinton Stark | 01.31.09 | Comments (2)
La Rochelle Winery in Livermore: Pinots in paradise

It’s perhaps a little odd that you can find such great Pinots in Livermore wine country, given its inland location compared to bigger name neighbors such as Napa and Sonoma to the west.

Part of the trick is the ...