St. Francis

As we walked through the door, we were each greeted with a glass of 2018 Sonoma Sauvignon Blanc. Honeydew nose, melon and green apple with crisp minerality to it. Get this at home. A very good white, especially for the price. 

The first wine we had at the tasting bar was the 2016 Wild Oak Chardonnay. Nose of apple and pear, a rich creaminess on the finish. Aged 7mo in French Oak. Very nice, although not my favorite chardonnay, even of the day. That would go to:

2016 Extended Age Chardonnay from Knights Valley. Toffee and vanilla nose, it was obvious this was aged for much longer. I'm usually not a huge fan of the heavily oaked white wines, but this one had a nice creaminess to it. and a very smooth finish.

Then was the 2018 Sonoma Rose. Citrus and strawberry on the nose, followed by a hint of vanilla, and not too sweet. Blend of Mouvedre, Zin, Sangiovese, and Chardonnay.

Next we moved on to the reds, starting with the 2015 Moon Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged 17 months in oak. Blackberry and kitchen spices on the nose, and a long cherry finish. Big and Bold. Very nice, although a tough sell at that price.

Then we tried two different Zins, a 2015 old Vine Zin from Bacchi Vineyard on the russian river. A light toasty nose, mostly smelled of of black berry (of course). Licorice and a bit peppery on the finish. The second zin was the 2015 Monticello Vineyard. More smoky and licorice on the nose, with still quite a bit of berry, and a more fruity and spicy finish than the previous. I prefered the second one. Both were good, but we had better zins earlier on our trip for cheaper.

This was the last winery for us. We sat and enjoyed the mountains for a while, but eventually had to go. We took home the rose and the Knight valley Chardonnay. By this point in our trip, we'd had so many dark red zins and syrahs that we had to take a break and go for something lighter.