Founded back in 1981 by the wife and daughter of cartoon pioneer Walt Disney, Napa Valley-based Silverado Vineyards is today run by the third and fourth generation of the family, who farm 360 acres across six estate vineyards in the Stag’s Leap region. Best known for its Cabernet Sauvignon, the winery recently won Best in Show by Country at the London Wine Competition, a real feather in the cap of an estate not widely known outside Napa ...

This year I’ve gotten to dive deep with so many winemakers – mostly virtually – and taste some amazing wines... 2017 Silverado Vineyards Estate Grown Cabernet Sauvignon – this is a blend of 85 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 14 percent Merlot and 1 percent Cabernet Franc. I tasted dark chocolate, mocha, dark cherry, herbs, spice, and tobacco ...

California’s Napa Valley is most famous, of course, for its Cabernet Sauvignons, which vaulted the region onto the world wine stage decades ago. But Napa also has its intriguing outliers, and among them is this striking Sangiovese that tips its hat to Tuscany yet is Californian through and through. The Borreo Ranch Vineyard is owned by Silverado Vineyards, a storied Napa producer, and is named after Felix Borreo, who owned and farmed it in the late 19th century. While Silverado is well known for its Cabernets, the Borreo Ranch Vineyard instead grows Sangiovese, the signature red grape of Tuscany, as well as Zinfandel and Kerner, a white variety developed in Germany that’s also grown in Sudtirol in northern Italy ...

My red Wine of the Week is less likely to be familiar, but every bit as notable: The Borreo Single Vineyard Sangiovese 2018 from Napa Valley. Sangiovese, of course, is arguably the most famous red grape variety in Italy—and certainly in Tuscany—responsible for everything from Chianti to Brunello di Montalcino and beyond. Yet it’s also possible to find it elsewhere around the world, and while Napa Valley isn’t one of its most common—land prices are generally so high in Napa that it makes sense to plant the grapes that will command the most money, which is definitely not Sangiovese—there are some delicious examples. I count this one from Borreo among that group ...

I've written before about how merlot has gotten short shrift when it comes to public perception, but I'd be remiss if I let October pass without mentioning that it's Merlot Month. There are many national days dedicated to different wines. Still, Merlot Month is undoubtedly my favorite, both because it's an actual month and October is exactly the time of the year I'm ready for heavier reds. ...

Merlot has suffered a lot of abuse over the years, but talk to Frank “P.J.” Alviso and it’s one of his favorites – albeit most challenging – grape varieties ...