Have you ever visited a winery that is the by product of bicycling? How about one that is known for it’s food truck? We had so much fun visiting Clif Family Winery and tasting their awesome lineup of wines. You get great vibes just walking into the cycling themed tasting room which is more like a wine bar just off busy Highway 29 in St Helena.
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For us the star of the lineup was not only the food from the Bruschetteria Food Truck (to die for), but the 2013 Cold Springs Cabernet Sauvignon. This is a Howell Mountain vineyard that is well known for producing the grapes that go into great Cabernets. This is a vineyard to keep your eyes on.
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Hillary, our wine ambassador, led us through the different reds that Gary Erickson and Kit Crawford produce. Hillary advised us to have a Bruschetta from their well known Green Food Truck. Since my wife and I are big mushroom fans, we chose the “Funghi” bruschetta. It was so delicious, we had to stop by the next day for lunch!! Let me tell you, the Cold Springs Cab from Howell Mountain was the perfect pairing for @MyRedWineGuys!
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A bouquet of mountain fruits and black cherries with a hint of vanilla. The tannins were medium to high which gives one to think a few more years in the cellar and this wine will only get better. This Cabernet just flowed across the palate with a nice and long finish!
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Have you tried a Cliff Family wine?
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About myredwineguys
My red wine guys, Jim and Rich, have been drinking and comparing red wines together for the last 10 years. We drink reds exclusively (except for champagne during New Year’s Eve celebration's or special occasions). In our search to find the best red wine for the buck, we are constantly buying and drinking a variety of reds. Frequently, we see many of our favorite reds increase in price (making them impractical to buy and consume with the dismal economy). This motivates us to try and compare lesser known reds from a variety of wineries. We are constantly telling our friends where to buy and save on these great reds. One weekend over a bottle of red wine (of course), we decided to share our recommendations with the world via a blog (with the support of our wives who really think this is another way for us to drink more red wine). We are going to be making road trips up the coast and sharing our opinions on some great California Reds.
Jim is a retired Navy Senior Chief now working as a Navy Technical Rep. His world travels have given him the opportunity to taste wines on different continents. He finds himself often comparing them to his favorite region – Napa Valley’s Oakville/Rutherford districts that produce some of the world’s best Cabernet Sauvignon's.
Richard is a musician who grew up in Santa Maria with a family rich with red wine tradition. According to the family legends, his grandfather used to make wine out of grapefruit when grapes were not available. He grew up drinking and making wine with his father and other Italian families in the central coast, long before there were grape vines in the area. In fact, the reason his family located to California was to make wine!
Thank you for visiting our site! We hope you enjoy a glass of exceptional red wine soon!
