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We have been making small amounts of cabernet sauvignon for the last 15 years to blend with our merlot vintages. We always liked the quality of the cabernet but never made enough to bottle on its own. In 2000 we decided to change that and produced our first cabernet vintage. The grapes are grown in the Dry Creek Valley. Some of the cabernet is grown in front of our home and the rest is from the Larrick Ranch Vineyard, right next door.

The 2001 cabernet is dark ruby in color and has varietal cabernet aromas of black fruit and herbs with integrated smoky oak aromas. It is also full bodied, forward and rich with medium and full tannins with a long finish. The wine was aged in 100% French oak barrels of which 60% were new and thin staved, and 40% 1-2 year old barrels. This wine shows a lot of promise for long term aging.

The 2002 cabernet is dark ruby in color and has varietal cabernet aromas of black fruit with integrated smoky oak aromas. It is also full bodied, forward and rich with medium and full tannins with a long finish. The wine was aged in 100% French oak barrels of which 60% were new and thin staved, and 40% 1-2 year old barrels. This wine shows a lot of promise for long term aging.

The claret is very dark ruby in color. The aromas are cedar and black fruits. The wine in its taste delivers the flavors of cassis and vanilla with a richness of texture that is mouth filling, round and persistent. The drinkability of this wine is from the present to at least 10 years.

This merlot vintage comes from two vineyards in the Russian River Valley, and in the winery¹s neighborhood of Limerick Lane. The Azavedo Ranch and the Alta Donna Vineyard each provided 45% each of the merlot. 10% cabernet sauvignon was blended in from the Larrick Ranch in Dry Creek Valley.

This wine was released just after it received great press. In March 2003 it won the Double Gold Medal in the San Francisco Chronicle Tasting and also received a 90 point rating in the California Grapevine. To the buyer it is reasonably priced at $20 a bottle.

This merlot vintage comes from two vineyards in the Russian River Valley, and in the winery¹s neighborhood of Limerick Lane. The Azavedo Ranch and the Alta Donna Vineyard each provided 40% of the merlot. 10% cabernet sauvignon came from the Larrick Ranch and 10% cabernet franc from Teldeschi in Dry Creek Valley were blended in.

This wine is medium dark ruby in color with an aroma of cedar, black fruits and toasty oak. The big payoff, however, is the mouthful which is rich and viscous, the trademark of petit verdot. The wine is still very youthful but should calm down and expand its textures and flavors with future aging. The expected life span is in the range of 15 years.

This wine is dark ruby in color with aromas of dark cherry and smoked meats. The wine is full bodied and well extracted, which results in a rich middle body, followed by a long and somewhat acidic finish. The flavors duplicate the aromas of dark fruits and smoke. The wine is unfined and unfiltered.

This is the first time we have produced a reserve wine. This particular vintage had exceptional fruit. The same fruit was used in the the regular 2004 sauvignon blanc. At a certain point we bottled the sauvignon blanc but saved 360 gallons and aged it in neutral barrels, for an additional 5 months. This impact of the barrel aging influenced the texture of the wine and created a seamless mouth feel but, still shares a lot of the characteristics of the original wine that spent time only in stainless.

The wine is medium bodied and medium ruby in color with a pleasing roundness to it. It tastes of dark cherry and is well balanced with a long finish. It is a great wine with food and it will age extremely well.

The 2004 Sonoma County Sauvignon Blanc is our fourth vintage of this varietal. My sense is that this wine possesses the style and quality that I have been striving for from the start. Stylistically, I have been seeking the clean, refreshing acidity of New Zealand sauvignon blanc but, with richer flavors and textures which are in keeping with California wines. This wine has captured those characteristics. This wine is 100% stainless steel fermented. It did not receive a malolactic treatment but was in contact with the lees for four months.

The 2003 Mietz Zinfandel is estate grown at our home vineyard on West Dry Creek Road, in Healdsburg. The 18 year old vines are planted on a south facing hillside and they are dry farmed. The grapes were picked at moderate sugar levels compared to other zinfandels on the market. This crop was picked at 23.0 brix which then soaked up to 24.5 brix, in the tank with a pH of 3.40. This process yielded a wine that is balanced and not excessive in ripeness and showcases typical berry fruit of a classic Dry Creek zin.