Sapphire Hill

This is a winery we've regularly purchased futures at. In fact, we had to stop this year just to pick up last year's futures. If you find yourself milling about Healdsburg, wander down to Front Street and stop into the tiny little winery that is Sapphire Hill. You'll be amazed at how enjoyable their selection is; Chardonnay, Winberrie Zinfandel, Porky's Patch Zinfandel, Syrah, to name a few.

This year, the wines weren't tasting well. In the past, I've had to negotiate with Lisa over which futures we commit to, but this year, none of their offerings were compelling. That did not, however, deter us from filling out the rest of the case to include one of their 2006 Chardonnays (stainless and oak fermented), the 2004 Bastoni Ranch Zinfandel, and 2008 Porky's Patch Zinfandel.

In fairness, barrel tasting here has been a temperamental experience. One year, we rolled in on a Friday and the Syrah was tasting poorly. We dropped back in on Sunday and it was compelling enough to buy futures. They seem to be dramatically affected by the weather, as in this case, the temperature had dropped Thursday night and the barrels were a little below their optimal aging temp. Moreover, they hadn't warmed up for tasting yet, as they had by late Sunday afternoon. Another opportunity to continue to collect empirical data! Cheers!