Wine Wednesday | January 1st, 2025

Author

Pour Decisions Team
January 01, 2025

Happy New Year and welcome to the second issue of Pour Decisions! As we kick off 2025, we’ve curated a trio of standout wines to help you start the year on a high note.

First, we have Caraccioli Cellars NV Sparkling Wine from Santa Lucia Highlands—bright, bone-dry, and bursting with crisp green apple and lime zest, making it the perfect way to toast to new beginnings. Next, the 2020 Bloom’s Field Pinot Noir from Domaine de la Cote offers an elegant expression of California’s Sta. Rita Hills, with layers of fresh plums, peppercorn, and lavender that will pair beautifully with any celebratory meal. Lastly, the 2015 Quintessa Red Blend from Napa Valley, a biodynamic gem, continues to impress with its rich dark fruit and savory complexity, evolving beautifully with age—perfect for sipping solo or alongside a decadent Ribeye. Here’s to a year full of good wine and great company!

Selected by Jaton Gunter

Producer: Caraccioli Cellars
Year: NV
Varietal: Brut Cuvée (Chardonnay & Pinot Noir)
Price: $65

Color: White
Location: United States, Santa Lucia Highlands
Additional tags: Sparkling

Tasting notes: Bone dry, flavors of crisp green apple, a spritz of lime zest, and under-ripe fresh peach
Nose: Crisp green apple, a spritz of lime zest, and under-ripe fresh peach
Food pairing: Ceviche, grilled shrimp, oysters and/or tilapia

What makes this wine special?
Love the freshness of this wine. Its ripe upfront fruit along with its strong acidic back-bone gives me the balance I look for in sparkling wines I consume.

Selected by Raymond Brown

Producer: Domaine de la Cote, ‘Bloom’s Field’
Year: 2020
Varietal: Pinot Noir
Price: $265

Color: Ruby
Location: USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
Additional tags: Organic

Tasting notes: Fresh plums, peppercorn, and notes of eucalyptus.
Nose: Bright rose petals, notes of lavender, jammy blackberries, and raspberries.
Food pairing: Thanksgiving turkey, stuffing, and mashed sweet potatoes.

What makes this wine special?
It’s Raj Parr!

Selected by Richard McDaniel

Producer: Quintessa
Year: 2015
Varietal: Red Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Carmenere
Price: $199

Color: Red
Location: United States, CA, Napa Valley, Rutherford
Additional tags: Biodynamic

Tasting notes: Beautiful, Lush, Dark fruit notes, I can taste the underlying notes of savoriness.
Nose: Beautiful lush Bordeaux varietals nose with hints of that awesome Rutherford dust.
Food pairing: Savor it as a stand-alone drinker or drink it with a well-marbled Rib Eye with a rich bordelaise sauce.

What makes this wine special?
Quintessa year in and year out is my favorite wine. This vintage struck a chord with me when I first tasted it back in 2018 and then again it has just gotten better with bottle aging and has shown tremendous growth upon revisiting it the last 3 years. The benchmark of Napa red blends.

Meet the Experts

Jaton Gunter

Experience: Certified Sommelier with close to 20 years in Wine
Background: Jaton started off as a blogger before becoming a private buyer for clients. Later, he became a Certified Sommelier, worked in Union Square at Wine/Restaurant, wrote and published a wine book called "Fruit In Glass" (2017), was nominated for "Sommelier Of The Year" (Wine & Culture Fest - made it to the top 5 finalists), collaborated with Chef Armando Tam on the cookbook "It's A Vibe" (Wine-pairings for each recipe), and became Wine Director at Calabash Restaurant and part owner of in-house Wine Bar (2024). Currently, he owns a publishing company and is working on his next wine book.

Want to get in touch?
winestealoftheweek.blogspot.com
medium.com/@jatongunter
youtube.com/@jatongunter
x.com/JatonGunter
instagram.com/jatongunter

Raymond Brown

Experience: Certified Sommelier, CMS-A
Background: Raymond Brown is a Certified Sommelier through The Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas. Through his career which spans over a decade, he has honed his skills in some of the most prestigious restaurants and hotels across the globe, from his time in the vineyards of France to the bustling wine-centric restaurants of New York City and Miami. His international experience has endowed him with a profound appreciation for the cultural and historical contexts that shape each bottle of wine.

Want to get in touch?
linkedIn.com/in/PairedByRGB
instagram.com/raybrownstagram

Richard McDaniel

Experience: Certified Sommelier- Master Court Of Sommeliers
Background: Richard has been in the Restaurant Business for 30 years working mostly in fine dining. Many of his wine programs and lists have received awards and recognition.

Want to get in touch?
https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-mcdaniel-99a73741

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