Posts belonging to Category Malibu Coast

the man the legend

The season has turned. tBoW has suffered the first schnüpfen in his nélson. [ed. he caught a cold]. The A/C bill will drop only to be replaced by the heater bill. And we are loading up on, and pulling corks of, red wines once again. This is a good time to discuss something every “collector” must consider. (more…)

In between watching Millionaire Matchmaker and Meteorite Men tBoW visited Malibu Sanity winemaker Charles Schetter on a rainy day to find out what Malibu’s most obsessive winemaker has been up to. Schetter is generous with his time and willing to share his prescient views on the local wine industry, as it is.

We break out Malibu winemakers into three groups: the Obsessed – one member, Mr. Schetter of Malibu Sanity; the Committed – Carol Hoyt of Hoyt Family Vineyards, Bob Hagstrom of Church Estate Vineyards, the Cielo/Woodstock team [ed. aka Malibu Estate Vineyard], Michael McCarty’s Rambla Pacifico Vineyard, Casa Dumetz bleinding 20% Grenache with their Pinot Noir, and Ron and Lisa Semmler of Semmler and Saddle Rock aka Malibu Family Wines; and the Lifestyle Crew which includes everyone else. (more…)

Santa Rita Hills fog

The Wine Bored continues to search for more satisfying wine reviews. Flowery notes that reference obscure exotic fruit make us squirm or giggle. Even worse are reviews that elevate elevator music. Makes us want to drink vodka. But we love wine, still find it pretty fascinating. We love the new ‘Bu winemaking crew. If only we could come up with a new language for discussing wine. We float a couple ideas below. (more…)

Talk about living on the edge… “I wanted to do something creative” said Barbara Rotter, vintner and co-owner of Chateau Soleil where you can see right down to Leo Carrillo State Beach from her Chardonnay vineyard at 2000 feet elevation. So in 2003 she began planting 5 acres of vines on her 26 acre ranch just up the road from Neptunes Nest off PCH. Here in the late summer/early fall of 2010 she produces 500 cases of wine including Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
The Chardonnay is on the south slope below the tennis court and is in Los Angeles County. The other vines are above the house and in Ventura County. Like quite a few – OK, every single one – of the Bu vintners we have visited and reported, the geographic and architectural site is truly special. (more…)