May 8th our owner Joe Anderson will join Jean-Charles Boisset to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of Victory Day that will include stories about Joe’s flight in the Spirit of Benovia DC-3 to Normandy last year to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of D-Day and our 2018 “Liberation” Pinot Noir — watch the show!
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Today, dry rosé is an all-gender, warm-weather favorite the world over. That said, we can’t help but suggest that rosé would make the perfect wine for Mother’s Day this year. It’s not a matter of color (although there might be some lovely overlap with a few of the flowers on the table) so much as the palette (spelling intentional) of flavors and textures the wine paints with. Generally bright with red fruit, stone fruit, and citrus, and taut with vibrant acidity, rosé is the perfect foil for brunch (who doesn’t love a breakfast wine?). And we’re guessing that more Mother’s Day brunches than ever will be produced in home kitchens this year than in recent memory.
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Did you miss our virtual tasting on the Art of the Blend with Joe Anderson and Mike Sullivan discussing the Bella Una Pinot Noir and Liberation Pinot Noir? Rewatch now on our YouTube channel.
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With virtual wine tastings, great deals on shipping, fundraising, and online cooking classes, wineries are providing a grape escape while we shelter in place. Here’s to sipping safe—the new normal, at least for a little while longer!
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On a mission to identify the best rosés around that you’ve probably never heard of, I organized a socially distanced tasting with a few winemaker friends. We sipped through roughly 30 carefully selected rosés (a tough job, I know), narrowing them down to 10 favorites.
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Can’t visit the tasting room? Watch Mike Sullivan, our co-owner & winemaker offer his tasting notes for this Spring’s Release wines
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As restaurants close and in-person tastings have been greatly diminished, this is a good time to support your favorite wineries by stocking up on their bottles. The pandemic is impacting businesses across the entire swath of the economy, and wine producers are no different.
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Silicon Valley Bank’s annual wine report is noted for giving an accurate picture of current trends, so when its State of the Wine Industry Report 2019 was unveiled in January last year, it included some unsettling news for vintners. After more than two decades of steady growth, sales had slowed significantly.
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Sonoma is home to many old-vine Zinfandel vineyards, with an impressive collection of century-old vineyards still producing superb wine. This week’s collection highlights several of the region’s Zinfandels, including a few old vine bottlings, and all scored at least 90 points on Wine Spectator’s 100-point scale.
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Benovia has always been about family. When my wife, Mary, and I co-founded Benovia we created an extension of our family, along with our partner and winemaker, Mike Sullivan. Over the years we have genuinely enjoyed expanding our family to include the Benovians – our affectionate nickname for our devoted customers who join us often More
Additional names to look for include Ramey Wine Cellars, Kistler Vineyards, Gary Farrell Vineyards & Winery, J. Rochioli Vineyards & Winery, Hanzell Vineyards, Donum, Wayfarer, Hartford Court, Benovia, LaRue and Arista. Single-vineyard designates from Hyde Estate Winery, Hudson Ranch or Ritchie Vineyard are also well worth seeking…
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If you’re looking for a relaxing break, we welcome you to visit Benovia Winery. We recognize the impact and uncertainty that the coronavirus (COVID-19) is creating in our communities, and we want to reassure you that our number one priority at Benovia Winery is the health and safety of our employees, customers, and families. While More
Let Central Market Do the Cooking This Holiday Season — By Robin Barr Sussman
Congratulations to Central Market, an “amusement park for food lovers” that celebrated its 25th anniversary this fall… It’s that time of year when Central Market may become an essential part of your holiday shopping.
We are grateful for the outpouring of concern for Benovia Winery during the Kincade fire, as well as throughout the extended power outages throughout California. The calls and messages mean a great deal to all of us and our team here at the winery. There is good news to report, in that the firefighters are More
Mike Sullivan Co-owner and Winemaker and Ed Thralls, General Manager of Benovia Winery were LIVE on KSRO 1350/103.5 Sonoma County’s News Talk with Karissa Kruse and Sonoma County Winegrowers
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July 25 was National Wine and Cheese day and our good friend Hayley Hamilton recommend Benovia with Gruyere cheese… what is your favorite cheese pairing?
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Fantastic recipe by our good friend, Chef Dustin Valette in Healdsburg. It pairs beautifully with our Tilton Hill Pinot Noir!
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…California’s Benovia Winery is honoring the anniversary of D-Day with its own landing—and a commemorative beverage. Winery co-owner Joe Anderson, whose uncle flew B-29 bombers, is flying his 1942 C-53 troop carrier, The Spirit of Benovia, to Normandy…
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Benovia’s Joe Anderson took to the skies in his 1942 C-53 Skytrooper to commemorate the 75th anniversary
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It’s easy to get choked up imagining how Russian River vintner Joe Anderson felt to fly a World War II-vintage airplane over Normandy on Thursday, while everyone back home in Sonoma County slept.
It was still the wee hours in California when Anderson was scheduled to fly in formation with other modified Douglas DC-3 airliners only about 1,000 feet above the American cemetery overlooking Omaha Beach. The occasion: the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion.
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Benovia isn’t exactly a newbie with the bubbles, having made a Blanc de Blancs from the same vineyard in 2012. And as a producer, it’s far from alone on this front. Benovia winemaker and co-owner Mike Sullivan, who admits to being a lover of sparkling wine and Champagne, describes the trend: “I think there is a flourishing interest among small artisan producers in making a traditional méthode champenoise sparkling wine in Sonoma County…”
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Taking part in the commemorative D-Day Squadron is an airplane owned by the Russian River’s Benovia Winery. Benovia co-founder Joe Anderson and chief pilot Jeff Coffman are bound for Europe in The Spirit of Benovia, a DC-3 that did not participate in the D-Day invasion but aided the fight against Japan by flying treacherous supply missions over the Himalayas.
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Long lines formed when five DC-3 aircraft were on display at Reykjavík Airport last night. Guests were invited to view two of them from the inside. The planes, part of a mission called D-Day Squadron, are some of the 15 DC-3 aircraft flying from Oxford, Connecticut, to Normandy, France, where they will take part in a ceremony June 6th, commemorating the Allied invasion of Normandy 75 years ago.
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“Local bubbly inspires California chefs to create lavish seafood-centric dishes… We asked three of Sonoma County’s most talented chefs to share a dish alongside one of their favorite sparkling selections from the region.”
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“We think that wines from Sonoma County are world class because of our diverse climate and unique soils, said Mike Sullivan, Benovia Winery Co-owner and Winemaker. “We can grow almost any grape varietal in Sonoma County and make world-class wine from them.
Read MoreThe 2016 Pinot Noir Martaella Vineyard is medium to deep ruby-purple in the glass, giving aromas of warm red and black cherries, red licorice, peppery spice, savory accents and a vein of sweet spice. Medium to full-bodied, silky, layered and concentrated, it has wonderfully grainy tannins and juicy acidity, finishing very long and packed with flavor. 449 cases produced.
Buy NowMedium to deep ruby-purple, the 2016 Pinot Noir Tilton Hill has an intense, savory nose with aromas of cracked black pepper, smoked meats, baked black cherries and berries with herbs suggestions. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated and dense in the mouth, it has fine, grainy supporting tannins and lovely refreshing acidity to lift up the flavor on the very long finish. 300 cases produced.
Buy NowThe deep ruby-purple colored 2016 Pinot Noir La Pommeraie has a concentrated nose of warm blackberry and black cherry with blue fruit preserves and notes of wet earth, cassis, sweet spice and savory hints. Medium to full-bodied, it offers dense fruit in the mouth with grainy supporting tannins and mouthwatering acidity, finishing very long. 392 cases produced.
Buy NowThe 2016 Chardonnay La Pommeraie opens with notes of hazelnut, toast, sweet spice and smoke over a core of baked yellow apples, croissant, lemon cream and stone. Medium to full-bodied with a creamy texture, it offers good concentration of ripe fruits with savory, toasty and creamy layers, lingering long on the finish. 304 cases produced.
Buy NowDry and quietly fruity, this new offering from the producer combines half estate-grown Chardonnay and half estate-grown Pinot Noir into a rich, creamy whole that’s brimming in red apple, tangerine and brioche. Velvety in texture, it offers plenty of robust body around a structure of balanced acidity and lasting mousse. —V.B.
Buy NowPolished and precise, with an elegantly briary core showing raspberry, roasted sage and bold black pepper notes. Drink now through 2024. T.F.
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The battle in Washington is inflicting headaches and possible financial pain on wineries and importers…
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An exclusive 2015 Ford Petty’s Garage Stage 2 Mustang GT will be auctioned off during the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale auction, with 100 percent of the hammer price benefiting patient care and research at Barrow Neurological Institute. The custom Mustang GT has been signed and designed by Richard Petty. The car was donated to Barrow Neurological Foundation by Joe Anderson, chairman of Benovia Winery.
Read MoreIntroduction To Winemaking with appearances by our own Mike Sullivan and Chris Kangas from GuildSomm.
On the central coast of California, north of Santa Barbara, lies the city of Santa Maria. While residents are accustomed to the occasional rocket launches from neighboring Vandenberg Air Force Base, they were clearly pleased for the launch of a new local airshow.
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Simple, right? Yet that’s so much easier said than done, particularly when the highest margin opportunities in your industry are also hidden behind barriers of rigid and complex regulatory systems.
Read MoreA creamy and plush white, with well-structured flavors of apple pastry, pear and ripe melon that are lathered in plenty of spice. The buttery finish is broad and rich-tasting. Drink now through 2021.
Read MoreGenerously rich and layered, this wine is also lovely in aromas of rose petal and lavender, its texture soft and supple. Dark cherry and red licorice give it fruity savory flavor around a full-bodied ripeness that will please a broad array of palates.
Read MoreFrom the producer’s Martaella Estate vineyard, planted to heirloom clones, this is a lovely white, buttery in texture with a crisp backbone that balances the lushness on the palate with freshness. Green apple, blood orange and toasted oak mingle effortlessly and with a touch of spice.
Read MoreFrom several of the producer’s estate sites, as well as the Zio Tony Ranch farmed by the Martinelli family, this wine exudes rich, velvety blue and black fruit flavors within a context of firm tannins and integrated oak. Dots of white pepper and cardamom complete the complex experience.
Read MoreThis is made from the spectacular coastal vineyard farmed by the Martinelli family, showing the cool-climate grip of tart, tangy acidity. Flavors of apple blossom and Meyer lemon custard give it an unctuous quality that’s hard to resist.
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SANTA ROSA, Calif. (November 21, 2018) – Benovia Winery, a small production, family-owned winery in the heart of the Russian River Valley, is pleased to announce the North Bay Business Journal, which covers the wine industry extensively, named Mike Sullivan Co-Owner & Winemaker of the Year as part of the publication’s 6th Annual Wine Industry More
Wine as a peacekeeper? If you have some interesting choices on the table, it can make a great way to steer the conversation into less heated, but engaging territory.
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Thanksgiving is days away, and as you plan your Thursday feast, you should also consider these wine pairing tips. Red, white, and rosé are all appropriate with the meal, keeping these points in mind…
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This is the question NorthBay biz posed to some notable winemakers in Sonoma and Napa counties. Here, they candidly share the intimate details of that first glass of wine that captivated them, revealing their passions and personalities.
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Benovia’s tasting room, housed on a working ranch, was recently refreshed with floor-to-ceiling windows, rustic wood floors, and a refinished fireplace…
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Sonoma’s Benovia Winery will join airborne forces to commemorate the invasion’s anniversary next year.
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Anderson, chairman of the Russian River Valley’s Benovia Winery, will hopscotch from the U.S. to France in his storied, two-engine, World War II-era C-53 Skytrooper transport plane.
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What to sip as you listen to the symphony from the lawn outside the Benedict Music Tent? For input, we turned to wine expert Mark Oldman, one of the most entertaining presenters at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen going on 13 years… What to drink while you’re listening to Beethoven, Strauss, Tchaikovsky, and more.
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A slow, quiet evolution has transformed Sonoma’s wineries into the best places to taste this summer.
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“The combination of climate, elevation and soil type-there’s lots of shale at Three Sisters-is distinctive in Sonoma County. It produces Chardonnay fruit with high natural acidity…”
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97 points – 2015 La Pommeraie Chardonnay
95 points – 2015 Tilton Hill Estate Pinot Noir
95 points – 2015 La Pommeraie Pinot Noir
93 points – 2015 Martaella Estate Pinot Noir
95+ points – 2015 Three Sisters Chardonnay (sold out)
93+ points – 2015 Tilton Hill Estate Pinot Noir
93 points – 2015 La Pommeraie Chardonnay
91+ points – 2015 Cohn Estate Pinot Noir
91 points – 2015 Martaella Estate Pinot Noir
91 points – 2015 La Pommeraie Pinot Noir
91 points – 2015 Russian River Valley Chardonnay
90 points – 2015 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir
…the highest bid went to one of the special fire-relief lots, a pinot noir collaboration called “Resilience” from AldenAlli, Arista Winery, Benovia Winery and Williams Selyem. The 20-case lot featured grapes picked from the Sonoma Coast and the Russian River Valley and sold for $70,000, equaling $291 per bottle.
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The Outdoor Adventurer
Mary Dewane, 66, co-founder of Benovia Winery, avid skier, diver, triathlete, and cyclist.
“I would encourage all women to find their passion, pursue it, and stick with it. For me, physical activity and outdoor sports have been important. It is who I am and how I feel about myself, and it has helped me with confidence and control in other aspects of my life. I love that at this age, I can introduce skiing, kayaking, and diving to my grandchildren!”
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92 Points – 2015 Martaella Estate Pinot Noir
92 Points – 2015 Tilton Hill Estate Pinot Noir
92 Points – 2015 Sonoma County Zinfandel
91 Points – 2015 La Pommeraie Pinot Noir
91 Points – 2015 La Pommeraie Chardonnay
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We are excited to announce Benovia’s 2018 Spring Release! We welcome back a few of our summertime favorites that were of extremely limited supply in the previous vintage along with the exceptional and very ageable 2015 Cohn Estate Pinot Noir.
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…sense of home comes through in every morsel and slurp of Sullivan’s warm and homey cassoulet recipe pairing perfectly with a nice pinot noir.
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Wine barrels are usually made of oak but what kind of oak? Did you know that wine barrels are often toasted? Leslie Sbrocco, host of Taste This, visits winemaker & co-owner Mike Sullivan of Benovia Winery in Santa Rosa, to get to the bottom of…the barrel.
To deeply appreciate the wine, understanding what it takes to get the juice into the glass is integral. That’s why last weekend’s vine pruning seminar at Benovia Winery was both fascinating and educational.
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Sonoma county may be known for its wineries, rugged Pacific coastline and redwood forests, but in March, film buffs have four more reasons to visit
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At Benovia Winery, Matt drove down a gravely lane that cut through the vineyard like a middle hair part. On an outdoor terrace, a quartet of women sipped wine, clearly relishing their time away from their dependents. Mike Sullivan, co-owner and winemaker at Benovia, joined us inside a baronial room that, if it could talk, would sound like Ian McKellen.
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SANTA ROSA, Calif. (February 15, 2018) – Benovia Winery, a small production, family-owned winery in the heart of the Russian River Valley, is pleased to announce new leadership with Ed Thralls promoted to general manager and Co-Founder Mary Dewane stepping into the new role of vice chairman. “I am excited about Benovia’s leadership team and More
Wine connoisseurs will want to take note that Benovia Winery Proprietors Joe Anderson and Mary Dewane and Wine Educator Peg Melnik will be hosting an AmaWaterways river cruise.
Read MoreHere’s a toast to the Southwest Florida Wine & Food Fest’s 10th anniversary. Nine years and $18.7 million later, the largest fundraising event for the nonprofit SWFL Children’s Charities has consistently ranked as one of the top-grossing wine fests in the country.
Read MoreOffers lots of rich fig, melon, apple and citrus flavors without being weighty. Gains complexity and depth, becoming more charming and elegant.
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Hundreds came out to the Naples Winter Wine Festival to raise money for the Naples Children & Education Foundation on Saturday, Jan. 27, 2018. Since the auction and festival began in 2001, the festival has raised more than $161 million for children.
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Benovia Winery and Kutch Wines are this year’s California “Wineries of the Year.” The two wineries present quite a contrast. Benovia has a more glamorous winemaking facility and hospitality center in Santa Rosa…
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#35 Benovia 2014 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir
You’ll quickly fall in love with this featherweight, transparent ruby-hued wine. It is incredibly floral and delicate, with bright red cherry and barely-there tannins.
Highly nuanced perfume… focused and adroit with a dreamy velvety texture… proverbial iron fist in a velvet glove.
Read MoreDeep, dark garnet color in the glass. The nose opens beautifully over time in the glass, revealing hi-tone aromas of black raspberry, spice box, underbrush and warm brioche. Lush and concentrated, with vigorous fruit flavors of blackberry, black raspberry and ollaliberry.
Read MoreModerately dark garnet color in the glass. More forward drinking, with lifted aromas of black cherry, black raspberry, cola, spice and wilted rose. Delicious core of black fruits framed by discreet tannins. Very polished and fresh in character, with an extremely long and fruited finish.
Read MoreModerately dark garnet color in the glass. Those nose opens in stages over time in the glass to a wondrous perfume of dark cherry and berry and spice. Quite dark fruited on the palate in a mid weight plus style of great concentration accented with a note of Asian 5-spice.
Read MoreAfter the Northern California wildfires, one Sonoma local spotlights the wineries and businesses in her county that are giving back to the community.
Read MoreWith a persistence of lightly-toasted oak, this youthful wine offers intense luxury. A gritty, stony texture complements its delicious aspects of lemon rind and anise. Green apple, ocean spray and an underlying streak of dried herb provide additional complexity and length. –Virginie Boone
Read MoreThickly concentrated at first, this wine settles in the glass to share a wealth of juicy black-cherry flavor that’s impressively accented in black tea and cola spice. Medium bodied, it feels sublime on the palate and holds its ripeness in check, allowing a simmering acidity to speak. –Virginie Boone
Read MoreFloral, with a beautiful oak imprint, this wine is deep gold in color and sharply satisfying in complex layers of tangerine and grapefruit. Medium bodied and well integrated, it impresses from start to finish, ending in a bite of crunchy green apple dipped in honey. –Virginie Boone
Read MoreVibrant on the nose and expertly put together, this is a well-made appellation wine, expansive in dark cherry, pomegranate and plum. Generous in oak and tannin in its youth, it shows a full-bodied finish that settles smoothly into velvety waves of cardamom and rose. –Virginie Boone
Read MoreMade entirely from Chardonnay, this is a bright sparkling wine, bubbling in acidity and dry, leavened layers of apple and pear. A creaminess of vanilla balances the crispness, making for a successful small-production sparkler. –Virginie Boone
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Located right in Sonoma’s Santa Rosa, which took much of the hit from the fires, Benovia is waiving tasting fees and donating $50 per tasting appointment to three funds.
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More than 600 attended the event at Sonoma Country Day School, which featured 60 of San Francisco and Sonoma County’s finest chefs and restaurants, and 40 local wineries.
Read MoreThese California wineries are donating tasting room sales to fire relief.
Read MoreDespite these terrifying figures, most of Northern California’s wine country was unscathed. Only a few businesses suffered significant damage and most vineyards were untouched—in fact, the vines actually stopped the flames.
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What many people may not know, however, is that the fires are effectively extinguished, and now is actually a great time to visit the region.
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The fall harvest season is traditionally a busy time of year for Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino counties, whose economies depend on visitors tasting their wine, booking their hotels and dining in their restaurants.
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Elegance and harmony shine in each of the Pinot Noir wines produced by Benovia, particularly their raspberry and cherry filled Martaella Vineyard Pinot Noir…
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Dazzle guests with this inviting, warming entrée from Valette restaurant and Mary Dewane’s Cohn Estate Vineyard Blackberry Jam.
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Like wine tasting? Of course you do. But admit it: The experience is so much better when the tasting room offers really good food to soak up all those tannins. Here are three we’re loving in Napa and Sonoma:
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Some stories have mini stories that need to be mentioned while the main one is told, the story of the Benovia Vineyard is one of those stories.
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…for Texans who want to try out an auction full of wine, beautiful scenery (and weather) and not a drop of pretentiousness, the Sonoma County Wine Auction is a great start.
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Joe Anderson, Benovia Winery CEO and former CEO of Schaller Anderson, weighs in on the future of health care and how he’s transitioned into the business of wine.
Sauvignon blancs in profusion, some well-priced Chablis, a rosé, and a few good reds
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When you live in Wine Country, the idiom “Keeping up with the Joneses” takes on new meaning. Impressive wines are the rage.
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Benovia Pinot Noir Tilton Hill Vineyard Sonoma Coast 2014 —Perched on a ridge just a few miles from the ocean, this is Benovia’s coolest vineyard. Delicious, wild strawberry and raspberry flavors.
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And then, pointing to his left on the dais, eliciting admiring pants from the hundreds in attendance, he indicated an example of the rarest: an 18-liter bottle, a 2014 pinot noir from Benovia Winery in California. A Melchior, it contained $1,920 worth of wine.
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Here are some of the better new ones, along with a few other white wines worth considering and eight recently released reds.
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During his Wines for Zillionaires Seminar at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, Mark Oldman let us in on what can make a bottle so pricey.
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Not one to shy away from a wine-soaked soirée, Alec Baldwin was a model master of ceremonies, keeping the crowd laughing, but also talking about his personal experience with the disease.
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Our tasters gave it a unanimous recommendation with a high score of 9.4. “Well-balanced with soft tannins.” My score: 9.1. “Complex, layered wine. Elegant.”
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Benovia Winery, is pleased to announce that winery co-founder and owner Mary Dewane has been appointed general manager. Dewane co-founded the small production, family-owned winery in the heart of the Russian River Valley with her husband, Joe Anderson, in 2005. Benovia is best-known for its expressive, estate-produced Pinot Noir and bright, complex Chardonnay.
Benovia Winery owners Joe Anderson and Mary Dewane were power players in health care before diving into wine in 2002. The couple talked with the Business Journal about how a harvest peddle through Wine Country has led to a decade so far of peddling prized pinot noir and chardonnay wine and building a bounty of contributions to Sonoma County charities.
