Comments on: 2007 Overlake Cabernet Sauvignon

By: Overlake Cabernet Sauvignon

Overlake Cabernet Sauvignon — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:07:16 +0000

[...] Trader Joe’s to give another of their budget Cabernets a try. Like the Fetzer, this comes recommended by Jason, and it set me back [...]

By: jason

jason — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 19:19:53 +0000

@Ryan Ripken Thanks for the invite. I am going to pick a weekend in the next month or two to make it out that way. Once I get that squared away I will certainly be in touch…

By: Ryan Ripken

Ryan Ripken — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 00:42:49 +0000

Definitely do come to Ripken. We're small and fun. Very hands-on. Most of the time its either the grower or the winemaker behind the counter. We make a large number of wines in limited quantities. Sometimes as little as a single barrel. All our wines are released to the wineclub first so some things sell out quickly. The El Matidor Tempranillo is great. Alicante Bouschet is uncommon but delicious. If you like sweet wines the Late Harvest Viognier is amazing. We sold out of our 04 Vintage Port and recently released the 05 - also great. If you know what you want to try email us before you come and we'll be sure to pour it that weekend. Here's the Ripken Winery in 3D. I'll second the Michael David recommendation. Its great for kids because they've got farm animals out back, beautiful gardens and a delicious cafe. Usually there is fresh produce for sale too, but lately they've been renovating the tasting area and the produce hasn't been out. I think they just finished the renovation so now would be a great time to visit again. Lucas is a great stop, they have a reputation for fantastic zin. The Lodi-Woodbridge Wine and Visitor's Center is a good stop too b/c they pour wines from a number of different Lodi Wineries.

By: jason

jason — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 21:36:09 +0000

@hdfixer Thanks for the tips. Ripken sounds great, what I love about the area is all of the random Spanish/Italian varietals that come out of the region. Given I’ll have two kids in tow perhaps Michael David would be worthwhile.

@Josh Borra with three stars, sold. Another vote for Ripken.

Thanks both for the list. I’ll have to get this on the calendar. First I am off to Greece for a long vacation!

By: josh

josh — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:54:47 +0000

Hi Jason. Here are some Lodi recommendations from 2 recent trips: 1) Borra***— excellent blends, Barbera, and old vine Zin 2) Heritage Oak— newish winery with sophisticated Zins and Syrahs 3) Jessie’s Grove— nice range of very old vine Zins 4) Ripken— experimental, playful wines 5) Macchia— some excellent power-wines (Zin, Barb), but kind of cheesy (silly wine names and tacky gift shop tasting room). Also, everyone kept steering us toward Michael David which makes cheaper, widely marketed wines like 7 Deadly Zins and Earthquake Cab. I didn’t care for ANY of their wines, but they did have several brands and a wide price range, so they might interest you. Have fun.

By: hdfixer

hdfixer — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:32:30 +0000

Lodi: Make sure to check out Ripken Vineyards. They grow grapes for a lot of well known wineries and make small quantities of their own terrific wines. Famous for their Viognier, and a nice line of Spanish style reds, their current Under the Sea Syrah (2003 I think) was the best Syrah I have tasted in the past year. I don’t think any of their wines are filtered/fined. Nice folks too!

Michael David is also a must-stop. Good restaurant and fruit stand share the tasting room, and my young son loved feeding the animals out back (sounds cheesy, but fun when the family is bored with you being a cork-dork)!

The guys at m2 are doing good things – lots of high QPR vino there.

Finally, St. Amant makes awesome Tempranillo. Never been able to drop in when they are open, but make an appointment – you won’t be disappointed.