When I was a little boy, I often liked the idea of expoloration. My cousin and I would explore in our grandparents basement finding all kinds of fun and interesting discoveries from past decades. I even recall surfacing with a photo of my grandparents with a man, and it was autographed. When I inquired who the man was, I was told it was a night they had dinner with Johhny Cash in the early '60's. It might have been the first time I had heard that name, and it was a very cool discovery.

I don't think I ...

Another celebrity wine? Yes, but maybe not what many might think. 

I was recently invited to participate in a twitter tasting of Jeff Gordon's wine, "joie de vivre." The red blend is Cabernet, Merlot, and Syrah from Napa Valley. Throughout the twitter conversations I was amongst other participants and famous race car driver Jeff Gordon (@jeffgordonweb and @jeffgordonwine), most kept focus on the wine, but some were a bit star struck even in twitter-land.

Matthew (@mmWine) asked how the well known August (AKA Joe) Briggs was selected as the initial winemaker. Jeff said, 

 Jeff Gordon ‏@JeffGordonWeb .@mmWine @JeffGordonWine ...

This 2010 Pinot Noir from the Stepping Stone label was produced by Cornerstone Oregon. This sample was sent amongst others recently and I must say there were a few fun and interesting surprises. 

First off, this wine is designed to be a front line every-day type of wine but it could have fooled me. This could easily land in the weekend wine category over what many call -- "Tuesday wine." This very nice Pinot Noir was a generous, but deceptive sipper.

I say deceptive and will confess on myself by stating my experience drinking this wine.......well, if I were ...

When it comes to wine-tasting, many wine drinkers' knee-jerk reactions are to visit Napa Valley, Sonoma, or somewhere on the Central Coast. While these are highly worthy spots, some southern California residents might not be aware of closer options. A bit of a newcomer on the block is Malibu. Yes, that's right, as in PCH, the beach, Bay Watch, locations of many of Hollywood's films and TV -- yes, that Malibu.

The first vineyard planted post-prohibition was from George Rosenthal in 1987. Rosenthal later went on to be the first to establish an AVA within Malibu called Newton Canyon ...

Cornerstone winery is offering a new line of everyday drinking wines at affordable prices. This anything but typical wine sample is a blend of Chardonnay and Gewurtztraminer produced at just under 1,000 cases. 

This fun wine offers up pear, apricot, lemon, a bit of American oak with a crisp acidity. At 13.5% alcohol this is a wine that can bring in some weight or grip from the Chardonnay and great acidity from the Gewurtztraminer. I'd suggest this would be a ideal pairing with Tai seafood, or maybe scallops with a little heat. SRP $18.00

Some of you may be "in the know" that Cimarone just opened the doors of their new tasting room just last month in Los Olivos (Santa Barbara County). As Happy Canyon is the newest AVA to Santa Barbara County, and their are no tasting rooms there, this is a very welcome site. 

Many of the very best Bordeaux varietals that are grown in Santa Barbara come from Happy Canyon. After recieving a recent Sauvignon Blanc sample during the summers last hurrah of heat, I could not wait to taste such a refreshing wine.

I do believe in eating and drinking ...

When it comes to food and wine, there is a chemistry that simply comes together in such a wonderful way that so many people appreciate. There are many wine festivals throughout the State, but when it comes to bringing together really great food with special wines, Sunset Savor Central Coast is tough to beat.

Every September a culmination of some of the very best local farmers, fisherman, chefs, restaurants, wineries, and winemakers join together to celebrate everything that is amazing about the California Central Coast.

The event kicked-off Friday evening with Sunset Wine Editor  Sara Schneider  and Sunset President ...

There are many wine festivals and events, but none quite like the Paso Robles Garagiste Festival It is a wine festival dedicated to undiscovered and under the radar artisan winemakers who are making top notch, handcrafted small-lot production wines. The Garagiste Festival was named one of the Top Nine Incredible Epicurean Vacations by ABC News. 

The Garagiste Festival is committed to fostering the spirit of free exchange of ideas and encouragement that has made Paso Robles one of the friendliest, most successful and innovative wine-making communities. The festival is produced by Garagiste Events, a non-profit dedicated to furthering the education ...

Lilght up the BBQ and open the wine! This new value based wine is a new line from Cornerstone based out of Napa Valley. It is a red blend of Zinfandel, Syrah, and Merlot and just around 1,000 cases produced with an SRP of $18. 

The Zinfandel fruit is from Lake County, the Syrah is from Sonoma, and Napa Valley is where the Merlot was grown. 

The nose: black pepper, juicy black fruit, and eucliptous. 

The taste: big lush blackberry, anise, pepper, with a touch of spice. Once this wine had time to open up, soft tannins and very ...

After driving through what appeared to be fairly rural country of Carlton Oregon on a two lane highway, two police squad cars were stopped in the middle of the road. The police were waving cars one by one to pass, until bus #8 ...