Blog
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Mother Nature's whiplash | Library wines to get you through the rest of winter
February 28, 2022 15:21
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From record highs to record lows,
the 2022 season is off to a quirky startWe all got excited after harvest last year when the skies opened and we had record rainfall. Finally, a great start to our rainy season! We clocked around 30 inches in our neighborhood by the time 2021 ended, putting us at or above seasonal averages.
After that, we gave new meaning to "dry January" and have continued that into February, with only a tiny 1½ inches coming down since the beginning of the year. Unseasonably warm temperatures added to the party, with a full week of days reaching into the upper 70s and low 80s. Mother Nature decided to send us the polar (pun intended) opposite of that this week, plunging our morning temperatures into the 20s, as you can see from the frosty vineyard picture above.
So, what does all this mean for our vineyards and the grapes that will be made into our favorite beverage? Fortunately, no bad news so far, and even some good, as many ponds were filled with the big rains, so we're looking pretty solid for water here in our neighborhood, where the rainfall was some of the heaviest. Also, while the vines looked like they might start waking up early with the warm weather, it turned cold before that happened, so it's looking like we'll be back on track for our typical mid-March budbreak. As long as we don't have this sub-30s weather come back after the buds start unfurling their little leaves, we should be in good shape and not see any negative effects on the upcoming crop. We're also forecast to possibly get a bit more rain in this coming week, and our state really needs that to keep us out of a drought situation, so get out your raindance shoes to help that turn into a reality!
Library wines to get you through the rest of winterWhile we're all enjoying our cozy nights by the fireplace and cooking at home, we've found ourselves hitting our cellars for some older wines to accompany these meals. Wines with a few years of age on them have additional breadth and gorgeous secondary notes that provide the wine with an extra dose of depth, along with savory characters that make them even better matches for these dishes.
We have a limited number of magnums available on some of our library wines as well. Email us for more information.
Orders of four or more bottles of library wines receive shipping included.
2012 Walker Hill Vineyard Chardonnay
2012 Angel Camp Vineyard Pinot Noir
2012 Azaya Ranch Vineyard Pinot Noir
2013 Walker Hill Vineyard Chardonnay
2013 Chileno Valley Vineyard Riesling
2013 Morelli Lane Vineyard Zinfandel
2014 Angel Camp Vineyard Pinot Noir
2014 Azaya Ranch Vineyard Pinot Noir
2014 Emerald Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir
2014 Fox Den Vineyard Pinot Noir
2014 McDougall Vineyard Pinot Noir
Wow, check out these upcoming scores!
We've just received early word from Wine Enthusiast about these stellar scores coming up in their May issue, and couldn't be more thrilled! Most of these wines are currently wine club-only selections, so you must be a member to purchase. As if you needed another reason, doesn't that make this the perfect time to join? We'd be delighted to discuss club options with you if you're not sure which club level is right for you—just give us a call or send an email.
2019 Azaya Ranch Vineyard Pinot Noir
97 points & Cellar Selection2019 Docker Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir
96 points & Cellar Selection2019 Angel Camp Vineyard Pinot Noir
95 points2019 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Pinot Noir
95 points2019 Walker Hill Vineyard Chardonnay
94 points
Check out our member-only wines here:Ready to join the club? Yes, that is a fantastic idea!
Yes, if you need some big bottles to get you through, we've got that covered as well! You can find our current release magnums here; email us for availability on library magnums.
Your friends at DG
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The other Devil's Gulch wine...only 12 cases left!
February 10, 2022 15:21
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The other Devil's Gulch wine
It seems the secret is out about our other slightly stealth wine from Mark Pasternak's Devil's Gulch Vineyard in Marin. While we've been making pinot from his vines since the beginning of DG (and Dan even longer than that!), we started getting the chardonnay grapes just the last few years. We originally intended to make only some bubbly from the fruit—ask Dan how that's coming along next time you see him—but decided to carve a bit out for still wine starting in 2017.
With the 2019 vintage, we just wrapped up the wine club allocations, and have only 12 cases remaining to share with you. Our 2019 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Chardonnay is laser-focused, super fresh and bright, just what we want to showcase from this cold coastal site. Citrus radiates from start to finish, beginning with the aromas of Meyer lemon, lemon peel and a beautiful floral note of lemon blossom on the nose. More lively lemon, along with a touch of kiwi and a bit of mango creaminess from the ML and stirred lees, follow in the mouth, before ending in an energizing finish of lemon sourball. Read all about it and secure your supply here:
2019 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Chardonnay
$55
Low Inventory Alert Reminder - with 3 sold outThree of the wines we told you about last time are sold out now, but we still have some cases remaining of these low inventory items. Wine Spectator had this to say about the 2018 vintage in Sonoma: "Nearly perfect conditions; full-flavored wines backed by crisp acidity, especially from coastal vineyards."
2018 Azaya Ranch Vineyard Pinot Noir
93 points & Cellar Selection, Wine Enthusiast
25 cases left
2018 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Pinot Noir
95 points, Wine Enthusiast
23 cases left
2018 Docker Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir
94 points, Wine Review Online
40 cases left
2018 Emerald Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir
93 points, Wine Spectator
38 cases left
Shop our other current release wines
Winter in the vineyards: PruningWhile it may not feel like winter this week in Russian River Valley (today is forecast to hit 80 degrees!), the vines haven't quite awakened from their winter slumber yet. The Dutton Ranch crew is busy getting everything pruned and ready for budbreak and the growing season to begin. We typically see budbreak in mid-March, but if our dry and warm conditions persist, the vines might start unfurling earlier this year.
Pruning focuses the growth of the vine where you want it, and determines how much fruit a vine will have. Each vineyard is different, with the variety of grape, location, fertility of the soil and climate all playing a role in the decision on how best to prune.
For most of our vineyards, Dutton Ranch aims for 2.5 to 4 tons per acre, depending on the vineyard. For 4 tons, the math is 2 bunches per bud and 20 buds per vine for a total of 40 bunches. It takes about 5 bunches to equal a pound, so that gives you 8 pounds per vine. Multiply that by 1,089 vines per acre and you come up with 4 tons per acre.
This assumes all goes according to plan, and each bud does its job of producing 2 bunches, and each of those bunches is full of beautiful, juicy grapes. Of course, this almost never happens, as weather during bloom in May and June affects the set and the ultimate harvest. Not only does it have a direct impact on that year's harvest, it also dictates the following year's crop, since the buds are actually deciding how many bunches and shoots they'll put out the following year at this time as well.
The main types of pruning done in our vineyards are cane, cordon, and head pruning. Cane pruning is used in the cooler areas, as it helps set a better crop in these sites. At pruning time, up to 4 new canes from the previous year are trained onto the wires out to each side of the trunk (2 per side, ideally), to a point midway to the next vine. Each of these canes will have 8 to 10 buds. This is a much more time-consuming pruning process, as you need to make a decision vine by vine on the best canes to keep to create the right shape and fruitfulness.
Pruning before and after: top is cane, bottom is cordon
With cordon pruning, the old wood remains trained on the wires, and the spurs on the arms of the vine are the fruiting wood. The previous year's spur will have produced 2 canes: typically, the lowest of these 2 canes will be used, and pruned down to the lowest 2 buds on it; the higher cane will be cut down below its lowest bud. In this way, a new spur (with 2 buds and 2 bunches per bud) is created each year. Head pruning is basically the same as cordon, but rather than being trained on wires out to the side of the trunk, the canes grow straight up in a more casual form. Our old zinfandel vines at Morelli Lane are head trained.
Whatever method is used, with all pruning, it's all about balance: deciding just the right amount of fruit each vine and vineyard can perfectly ripen.
We hope you have BOTH a Valentine and delicious wine this weekend!
Your friends at DG
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Low inventory alert, luscious reds for your Valentine
January 28, 2022 15:21
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Get them while they last!
Have you been loving the 2018s like we have? We are already sold out of a few and are getting down to the last available cases on many others, so if you've been meaning to get more for your stash, now is the time.
2018 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Chardonnay
95 points, Wine Enthusiast
10 cases left
2018 Chileno Valley Vineyard Riesling
93 points & Editors' Choice, Wine Enthusiast
12 cases left
2018 Azaya Ranch Vineyard Pinot Noir
93 points & Cellar Selection, Wine Enthusiast
30 cases left
2018 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Pinot Noir
95 points, Wine Enthusiast
35 cases left
2018 Docker Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir
94 points, Wine Review Online
50 cases left
2018 Emerald Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir
93 points, Wine Spectator
46 cases left
Plus, we're down to the last of our vivacious Pinot Blanc as well:
2020 Shop Block Pinot Blanc
92 points, Wine Enthusiast
15 cases leftShop our other current release wines
Say "I Love You" with these delicious red pairingsWe've put together two decadent pairings just for Valentine's Day, showcasing our juicy and rich reds. To make it super each, shipping is included in the package price*.
A bottle each of our 2018 Deviate Pinot Noir and 2018 Redwood Ridge Pinot Noir
$139
A bottle each of our 2016 Cherry Ridge Vineyard Syrah
and 2018 Morelli Lane Vineyard Zinfandel$99
* UPS Ground shipping included in package price
Happy Valentine's Day!
Your friends at DG
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What were you doing in 1969?
January 13, 2022 15:21
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Dan (NOT in 1969) with a perfect old Rued vine just before harvest
What were you doing in 1969?
Do you remember what you were doing in 1969 (if you were born yet)? If you were Warren Dutton, you were planting this chardonnay vineyard on the Rued family's beautiful slope across from the main Dutton Ranch shop. It was a perfect east-facing hillside, with the fluffy goldridge sandy loam Green Valley is known for, so seemed like an excellent spot to expand their new foray into grapegrowing. He got budwood that he thought was classic Wente clone, but about a third of it turned out to be an exotic variation that provided pink-tinged berries that carried tropical flavors of lychee and orange blossom. Everything came together to create healthy dry-farmed vines that continue to this day to produce thick-skinned, tiny berries with deep, concentrated flavors, solid acidity, unusual minerality, and tremendous ageabilty.
Rued was one of the first vineyards we contracted for Dutton-Goldfield when the winery began. It was intended to only be a component in our Dutton Ranch Chardonnay, but the 1999 vintage was such a standout in barrel, we produced 7 barrels on their own that year (with a back-up plan, of course, to drink it among the owners if it didn't sell). Fortunately, chardonnay fans flocked to the wine, and we've been producing it every vintage since.
This 2019 vintage represents the 50th birthday of Rued Vineyard, and like all the great loves in life, our adoration just grows stronger every year. It's always a favorite among the media as well, with our most recent accolade coming out just this week in Robb Report's "13 New California Chardonnays Perfect for Sipping in Winter". We think they nailed their notes on the wine, so will leave you with Sara Schneider's description:High-toned aromas of spicy jasmine and citrus blossom give way to creamy lemon, bruised apple and tropical notes, with layers of earth and minerality. Rich but not heavy, the palate dances with Meyer lemon, puckery citrus zest, crisp pear and hints of exotic spice and pleasant salinity.
$55
How about a cozy pairing for that cellar wine?
If you're like us, your mantra for the past year-plus is "why wait? Let's drink those "special" wines in the cellar, and make any night an occasion and reason to celebrate life.
Looking for some new inspiration to pair with that DG bottle you're pulling out? Choices are just a click away! We pair every wine we release to our wine club with a recipe we think makes an excellent companion. To find the recipe, just click on the Recipes link under the Wine Club section of our website. Or, when you're shopping for wines, you can locate our recipe pairing at the bottom of the facts about each wine on the shopping page for that wine, as you can see in the image here, highlighted by the gold arrow.Here are some of our recent favorites, especially for these chilly winter nights:
• 2018 Deviate Pinot Noir with Braised and Roasted Pork Shanks with Prosciutto and Porcini Mushrooms
• 2018 McDougall Pinot Noir with Balsamic and Rosemary-Marinated Florentine Steak
• 2018 van der Kamp Pinot Noir with Crispy Chicken Thighs with Bacon and Wilted Escarole
Need to restock? No problem, we've got you covered with that, too!
On a winter travel break? You can still taste with us virtuallyAre you missing visiting your favorite winery and kicking back for a tasting with us? We are open by appointment, and the weather is perfect for enjoying our patio. But if you're keeping it local after the busy holidays, or don't want to travel with all the craziness going on, you can do the next best thing and let us host your group for a virtual tasting!
Just choose your wines, and contact us to coordinate the date and time for your virtual tasting. Here are some flight ideas to get your thoughts simmering:
- Red Wine Exploration - Redwood Ridge Pinot Noir, Cherry Ridge Vineyard Syrah, and Morelli Lane Zinfandel
- Chardonnay Three Ways - Devil's Gulch, Rued, and Walker Hill Chardonnay
- THE Dutton Ranch wines - Shop Block Pinot Blanc, Walker Hill Chardonnay, and Emerald Ridge Pinot Noir
- Pinot along the Coast - Devil's Gulch, Fox Den, and McDougall Pinots
We're happy to discuss other ideas with you as well, so just email us or give us a call at 707.823.3887.
New Artist in our Tasting Room!
We're excited to announce our newest artist showing in our tasting room: Katie Kruzic.
"I grew up in Northern California and truly love the area. I am an avid hiker and find an abundance of ideas for paintings on every hike. I try to capture the sense of place, both big and small. I look at each piece as a puzzle and enjoy the challenge of putting it together to match the image in my head. My paintings are thick, bold, and colorful, with a lot of texture and brushstrokes."
You can come by and check our Katie's art between now and March 1. We'll be holding a reception on Friday, January 14, from 4-5:30 to toast her art addition to our tasting room walls.
If you are traveling, winter is a great time to visit, with fewer guests and often breathtakingly beautiful weather. Please make an appointment to visit us soon—we've missed seeing you!
Your friends at DG
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Now that you've given the gifts, It's time for a gift for you!
December 29, 2021 15:21
Dear Friends,
We send you all our warmest wishes for a New Year full of love, hope, peace, and joy. As you celebrate this holiday week, we hope you are able to gather with your family, friends, and loved ones to share the spirit of the season.
As we look towards 2022, we are eagerly planning a year full of tasting room events and wine club soirees. We look forward to seeing your smiling faces at one of our events, while visiting our tasting room, or on a virtual tasting. In the meantime, if there's ever anything we can do for you, we're just a phone call or click away and are always thrilled to hear from you.
As always, we are so appreciative of your friendship and support of our winery. With all good wishes to you and your family for health and happiness throughout the coming year.
Cheers to you and 2022!
Dan, Steve and the whole DG team
In the tasting room and wine club: Alex, Barbara, Brad, Brittany, Greg, and Lisa
In the office and warehouse: Lorie, Marianne, Nico, and Valerie
In production: Adam, Chad, Lara, and Michael
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Now that you've given the gifts,
it's time to get a gift for you!Choose your own case with shipping included
Stock up on your chosen wines from our remaining inventory of wines released earlier this year, and have your shipping included on your order. Select all one wine or mix and match!
PLUS, Club Members receive an additional 5% off beyond their club pricing on case orders of these wines.UPS Ground shipping included; orders placed by January 2, 2022.
Didn't quite get it together before now?
Everyone loves a New Year's gift!Our gift packages are still available. There is still time to send that thank you, warm wishes for the New Year, or I'm thinking of you present. It's always perfectly fine to send greetings after the New Year, and this year more than ever, you definitely get a pass! We promise they'll love your gift whenever it arrives.
Choose from some of our most popular gift packages:
Bright Whites Twosome Coastal Extremes Pairing Wine Spectator Selections 
Our fresh stainless steel fermented whites are highlighted in this package focusing on the brighter side of wine.
2018 Chileno Valley Vineyard Riesling
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2020 Shop Block Pinot Blanc$59
We produce vineyard designated pinot noirs along the Northern California coastline from Marin to Mendocino. These two wines are the most southern and northern sites.
2018 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Pinot Noir,
Marin County
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2018 Docker Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir,
Mendocino County$135
Our top-rated wines from Wine Spectator magazine.
2018 Deviate Pinot Noir,
93 points
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2018 Emerald Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir,
93 points
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2018 Redwood Ridge Pinot Noir,
93 points
$198
You can also choose one of our other options, or select whichever wines you prefer!
Your friends at DG
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Really, they'll love your gift, whenever it arrives
December 20, 2021 15:21
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It's wine—they'll love it whenever they receive it!
While the deadline has passed for regular ground shipping to most states, we promise that your gift will be loved no matter when it arrives—it's wine after all! Or, if it's really important to have it arrive before the big day, we do have expedited shipping available. Just choose 2-day (for orders placed before December 21) or Overnight shipping at checkout.
Looking for a great gift that will impress with both amazing wines and scores to back it up? Look no further than this package, featuring wines that received 95 points or more!
Our top-rated wines from Wine Enthusiast magazine.
2018 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Chardonnay, 95 points
2018 Emerald Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir, 95 points
2018 McDougall Vineyard Pinot Noir, 96 pointsIncludes gift box, wine notes, and tasting certificate.
Shipping is 75% off on all gift packages: $6 to California, $7.50 to other Continental US.
Or, choose one of our other fab gift packagesWith our largest assortment ever of gift packages, you're sure to find the perfect one for everyone on your list. Plus, all gift packages include:
- Presentation in a handsome gift box.
- Your special gift message.
- A certificate for a complimentary tasting for 4 people at our tasting room—an added $120 value.
- UPS Ground shipping at 75% off—that's just $6 to $7.50 for our 2- and 3-bottle packages
Shop Holiday 2021 Gift Packages
Go big or go retro...
with shipping included
Want to make a big impression? Yes, we have magnums for that. Choose 2 or more bottles from our selection of ultra-limited 2017 single-vineyard magnums, and your shipping is included!*
If something with a little cellar time that's at its prime for drinking now is more up your alley, we have a very nice assortment of wines from the 2013 and 2014 vintage available. When you order 4 or more bottles of these library wines, your shipping is included.*
*UPS Ground shipping.
Important Holiday Shipping Deadlines
The deadline for ground shipping for delivery before Christmas has passed, but you can still get it there with either 2-day or overnight shipping. Or, send it ground for a New Year's present!
Christmas 2-day December 21 Overnight December 22
Have a very happy holiday, everyone!
Your friends at DG
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Order TODAY to have your gift received before Christmas!
December 13, 2021 15:21
OUR STORY | VISIT | WINE CLUB | SHOP
Order today to have your gift received by Christmas
for shipments beyond California
Today is the last day to order to have your gift (traveling beyond California) received by Christmas. We're running low on some gift packages, but have all available as of now, so don't delay!
Great duos sure to please
Know a big Dutton Ranch fan? Dig deeper with our exclusive package which features two of our favorite small-lot bottlings from the famed Dutton Ranch.
For all the Pinot geeks on your list, explore our farthest reaching cool pinot sites in this package, which takes a walk on the wilder side.
All gift packages deliver in a gift box and include wine notes and a tasting certificate.
Dutton Ranch Single-Vineyard Duo Coastal Extremes Pairing 
Love Dutton Ranch and want to bump it up a notch? Choose these single-vineyard bottlings from two of their luscious Green Valley sites.
2018 Walker Hill Vineyard
Chardonnay
2018 Emerald Ridge Vineyard
Pinot Noir$115
We produce vineyard-designated pinot noirs along the Northern California coastline from Marin to Mendocino. Check out the extreme sites in this package.
2018 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Pinot Noir,
Marin County
2018 Docker Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir,
Mendocino County$135
Let us make your gift giving easy! We've put together our largest assortment of gift packages this year. But if you're not finding exactly what you want, we're also happy to customize your gift packages for you. In addition to the delicious wine, all gift packages include:- Presentation in a handsome gift box.
- Your special gift message.
- A certificate for a complimentary tasting for 4 people at our tasting room—an added $120 value.
- UPS Ground shipping at 75% off—that's just $6 to $7.50 for our 2- and 3-bottle packages
Shop Holiday 2021 Gift Packages
They'll remember you all year
with a gift membership from DG!Want to keep that holiday feeling going all year long for a great friend, family member, or associate? Gift a wine club membership and you're guaranteed to be remembered with a smile all year long.
Just choose the type of membership you want to give, how long you want it to last, and provide the lucky recipient's shipping information, and you're all set! All membership perks are extended to both you and the gifted member, including VIP visits and complimentary tastings in our tasting room, club pricing on all your wine purchases, and invitations to fun members-only events.
Important Holiday Shipping Deadlines
As we're sure you've heard, shipping companies are inundated even more this season, so we recommend ordering before these dates to ensure your packages arrive before the holidays. But even if your gift arrives after that, we promise they'll still love it!
Christmas Ground December 13 2-day December 21 Overnight December 22
Our warmest holiday wishes to you and yours!
Your friends at DG
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For the Pinot or Chardonnay lover on your list | Schedule a virtual tasting for the season!
December 7, 2021 15:21
OUR STORY | VISIT | WINE CLUB | SHOP
Happy H0-Ho-Holidays!
The holiday season is officially here, whether you were ready or not. Don't fret, we are here to make your gift giving as easy as a click of the button or dial of the phone. With our bigger-than-ever assortment of gift packages for 2021, there's sure to be one that's perfect for everyone on your list.
Need to give a lot of gifts? We have a simple spreadsheet you fill in with the names and addresses, and we take it from there. Want to include your own special card? Yes, we can do that, too. Have something else in mind? We are always flexible and happy to work with you so you get exactly what you and your recipients love.
For the Pinot Noir or Chardonnay lover on your listHave someone on your list who drinks only one type of wine? We've gathered three of our favorite bottlings from our two most popular varietals into gift packages that they're sure to love.
Pinot Noir Exploration Chardonnay Three Ways 
Explore the varying nuances among these three single-vineyard expressions, each from a different Northern California appellation.
2018 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Pinot Noir
2018 Fox Den Vineyard Pinot Noir
2018 van der Kamp Vineyard Pinot Noir$198
Includes gift box, wine notes, and tasting certificate.
The quintessential Queen of grapes, we bottle three different single-vineyards of Chardonnay to showcase its many-sided nature.
2019 Rued Vineyard Chardonnay
2018 Walker Hill Vineyard Chardonnay
2018 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Chardonnay$155
Includes gift box, wine notes, and tasting certificate.
Need to get started on your holiday gifts? We're here to help! We've put together our largest assortment of gift packages this year. But if you're not finding exactly what you want, we're also happy to customize your gift packages for you. In addition to the delicious wine, all gift packages include:- Presentation in a handsome gift box.
- Your special gift message.
- A certificate for a complimentary tasting for 4 people at our tasting room—an added $120 value.
- UPS Ground shipping at 75% off—that's just $6 to $7.50 for our 2- and 3-bottle packages
Shop Holiday 2021 Gift Packages
Gather Virtually with some DG wine
If you can't get together in person with everyone you'd like to this season, we'd love to help make your virtual gatherings fun. Just choose your wines (or we can help you select a great flight), and contact us to coordinate the date and time for your virtual tasting, where we'll share stories about the vineyards, the area they're from, and what makes them special for us.
Important Holiday Shipping Deadlines
As we're sure you've heard, shipping companies are inundated even more this season, so we recommend ordering before these dates to ensure your packages arrive before the holidays. But even if your gift arrives after that, we promise they'll still love it!
Christmas Ground December 13 2-day December 21 Overnight December 22
We hope your holiday season is off to a warm and wonderful start! May your month be filled with family and friends, and happy memories in the making. Thank you for letting us be part of that and bringing DG into your home!Your friends at DG
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Harvest memories and feelings | Library gift package for the discerning wine lover on your list
December 1, 2021 15:21
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Steve and Dan, 2000 (with our original wine label)
Harvest Memories and Feelings
One of the many things that makes this craft I get to ply so absorbing is that each vintage is not merely about the wine, and the hedonic qualities of that year. All that has happened for both a wine and the humans who touched it, from budbreak until it is enjoyed in your glass, is condensed into each bottle from that year’s offerings, and morphed by your state of mind while consuming it. Each vintage I drink brings me to memories and feelings. Just a few below:1993 for me will always be the vintage Jamie was born, June 11 (2 weeks late, because he always loves and lingers wherever he happens to be, and has ever since); also making La Crema at huge Vinwood that year; a long, cold vintage; big crop, chardonnay rot, La Crema “Grand Cuvee”; Loie bringing our baby boy to the winery so he could see his daddy at midnight (when she finally got off work herself!).
1994- Jess buying the bankrupt Laurier facility for La Crema – cool, perfect ripening season (clueless but determined winemaker); rain in September – special fruit in October; insanely busy Steve Dutton driving trucks for the ranch, using my sweet office or my car while waiting for his fruit to be processed; tasting the ‘94s with Jess and Tom Selfridge during incessant January (1995) rains; creating “Hartford Court” from some of those (still) great wines; fleeing floods while doing blends with dear Tom Milligan; our brilliant daughter Emily being born the only day it didn’t rain that month, 1/11/95 (and like the ’95 vintage, concentrated and mighty).
1998 – the first (stealth) year of Dutton-Goldfield; Rod Berglund crushed our Pinots as a favor, Steve brought the fermenters up our driveway on his loader; the kids complained that we paid too much attention to the fermenters, not enough to them; Steve and I proudly sweeping up under our (perfectly straight of course) few rows of barrels at Windsor Oaks at 2 a.m.; Loie’s Dad Marnie falling down the concrete steps right on his head there, before he knew he had Parkinson’s.
2010 – crazy cold/ hot / cold / hot year, lots of fruit lost; sorting Freestone at 102 degrees in late September and getting yelled at by winemaker at custom facility for going too slowly and wasting dry ice (no change occurred in speed or dry ice usage by still determined, but not so clueless winemaker) – still one of my favorite wines to show off. Sorting to the Giants first World Series win that year.
Every vintage since my first in 1985 at Mondavi brings its memory flood of friends, weather, challenges, fears, lessons, bike rides, post-harvest mountain climbs, mentors.
2021 has been an intense harvest. The fruit was truly wonderful, producing wines of plush opulence, great phenolic ripeness, and a great sense of place. It was a great blessing after the fire blowout for pinot in 2020. It was also a year of stress with the drought, and difficulty in production with the travel restrictions of Covid eliminating foreign interns.
But for me 2021 will be Johnny’s harvest. Our dear friend Johnny Gonnella left us on November 20. He moved on with the love, courage, dignity and support with which he lived. He brought out the best in each of us.
Johnny and his family—the Gonnellas, Negris, Rossinis (our dear Marianne and Barbara at DG), Calvis—are at the core of our special town of Occidental. To partake of their love, support, acceptance, great times, and great nature has been a huge blessing in my life and I think part of the soul of our little winery: Valerie making sure we were part of the firefighter fundraiser every year, for which Johnny cooked about a million chickens a year, or Steve checking out Johnny’s pot operation in the hills a few years back—both of them multigenerational locals who so care about this place.
This sharing is not a sad one, though Johnny will be deeply missed and always loved. It is about the independence of spirit, hospitality, community caring, and love of fun that I so cherish in this place I get to live. For as long as I’m able to drink the truly exceptional 2021 vintage I will think of the challenges of the Covid year, the vagaries of my personal life, the pleasures of Jamie and Emily’s lives, the weather patterns; but mostly I will toast to Johnny, who so embodied our community.
Wines can be like Hogwarts memory potions to concentrate and recreate the feelings of life experience (remember the pensieve?). And just because as a consumer you weren’t part of a given wine’s early evolution doesn’t preclude reflecting on the sweep of time in which this simple drink has been crafted and aged alongside you. For me I remember the spring of the 1969 Burgundies; the hail, but amazing wines from there in 1971; or my life when I bought my first amazing 1978 Napa Cab; that 1969 DRC Richebourg, bought in Jersey in 1977 and drank by a fire, melting with my brother in Vermont that fall—that bottle has seen a lot!
All of us have our stories in our lives. Stories that come back to the people who were there, and the excitement, anticipation, absorption, beauty and love we shared.
I am grateful for the freedom I am given to pursue this craft, and the deeply caring community that makes it possible, both my professional colleagues and our family of DG customers. I am so struck by the number of humans who have an essential part in bringing each and every bottle of wine to whomever gets to drink it.
Craft, at its best, is a human interplay, continuation, perpetuation of nature. It is like the Greek allegory of Zeus and Prometheus creating humans from clay, and Athena breathing life into them; but once created they are their own beings with their individual, self-guided trajectories. Wine is so like that—it is certainly not yours once it’s in the bottle. And more importantly for me, it is not the wine itself, but the feeling that wine helps elicit in people sharing it together that makes it special. The more evocative the wine, the greater it may help to enhance your experience, but it has no value in and of itself. The possibilities for sharing are infinite. May they be beautiful and bring people together.
True art only really exists in the (universal) mind. The physical execution of a vision is what I think of as craft. The best executed craft, whether in writing, poetry, music, cabinetry, painting, inspires the creative inspiration that is art in the mind of another. It would be an honor for us at Dutton-Goldfield to be any small part of enhancing your artistry, love, togetherness and feeling of connection in this world we share.
Love,
Dan
Another look to the past...
2014 Trio Gift PackageWe really loved the 2014 Pinots when we tasted them just before harvest. They are at that perfect place where they've gained depth, breadth, and some savory notes from a few years in the bottle, while still retaining their core of vivid fruit. We've selected three of our favorites from the vintage for this gift package.
Raiding the Library: 2014 Trio Gift Package
2014 Angel Camp Vineyard Pinot Noir
2014 Freestone Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir
2014 McDougall Vineyard Pinot Noir$225
Includes gift box, wine notes, and a tasting certificate.
Plus 75% off UPS ground shipping: $6 to California, $7.50 to other continental US states
Need to get started on your holiday gifts? We're here to help! We've put together our largest assortment of gift packages this year. But if you're not finding exactly what you want, we're also happy to customize your gift packages for you. In addition to the delicious wine, all gift packages include:- Presentation in a handsome gift box.
- Your special gift message.
- A certificate for a complimentary tasting for 4 people at our tasting room—an added $120 value.
- UPS Ground shipping at 75% off—that's just $6 to $7.50 for our 2- and 3-bottle packages
Shop Holiday 2021 Gift Packages
Important Holiday Shipping DeadlinesAs we're sure you've heard, shipping companies are inundated even more this season, so we recommend ordering before these dates to ensure your packages arrive before the holidays. But even if your gift arrives after that, we promise they'll still love it!
Christmas Ground December 13 2-day December 21 Overnight December 22
Yes, it is December already!We're not sure how it happened either, but we've got what you need to help stop time and capture it in a memory.
Your friends at DG
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Our Thank You to you: Restaurant pricing on our Dutton Ranch wines extended for 1 week!
November 23, 2021 15:21
OUR STORY | VISIT | WINE CLUB | SHOP
We are thankful for you!As we head into Thanksgiving, we're pausing to reflect on all that we're grateful for this past year. Certainly having a fire-free harvest and fall rains to top off our reservoirs is nice, but on the top of our list is all of YOU! Many of you have been supporting our family winery since we started selling wine about 20 years ago—we are honored and humbled by your unceasing loyalty. It makes us smile to know that our wines have helped create some of your happy memories. We love where we live, and to be able to create and build something that shares a little piece of that in a tangible way.
It always comes back to the people, and every bottle of wine we craft has the fingerprints of everyone here at DG, from Steve growing the grapes and Dan heading up the transformation into our favorite magical liquid, to the harvest interns and winery production team, to everyone in our tasting room and office who assist our fabulous end consumers (plus, we are all big parts of that fan group!). We are a small but mighty team and are thankful that your support allows us to be part of doing something that we love.
When we pondered the best way to show our appreciation, we thought of the amazingly positive feedback we received to our Restaurant Pricing special. So, we're opening it back up for one week, as our gift to you. Thank you!
Restaurant Pricing on our
Dutton Ranch Chardonnay & Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir
through November 30!2018 Dutton Ranch Chardonnay - The nose is lively with Meyer lemon, green apple, tangerine, with a lovely gardenia floral accent. In the mouth, the lively/creamy dance continues in a beautifully balanced way, with vivid citrus notes leading the way, rounded out with Fuji apple, pear, and a little mango at the end. The finish is long and bright, lingering with a fresh yet rich key lime pie note.
2018 Dutton Ranch Chardonnay
12-bottle case
Wine Club: $264 ($22/bottle) Mailing List: $348 ($29/bottle) 6-bottle case Wine Club: $162 ($27/bottle) Mailing List: $186 ($31/bottle)
2018 Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir - Succulent mixed berry pie laced with baking spices leads the nose. The blueberry, raspberry, and boysenberry are interlaced with pretty lilac and violet notes, along with a little redwood duff. There’s a plush feeling to the wine, even from the aromas, which is confirmed in the mouth. It has that wonderful quality of richness without heaviness, with the sweet berry pie flavors rolling out on a layer of silk.
2018 Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir
12-bottle case
Wine Club: $300 ($25/bottle) Mailing List: $408 ($34/bottle) 6-bottle case Wine Club: $180 ($30/bottle) Mailing List: $216 ($36/bottle)
Plus, $10 flat rate UPS ground shipping per case!
No other promotions or discounts may be combined.
We hope you have a love-filled weekend and have much to be thankful for as well.
Happy Thanksgiving!Your friends at DG:
Steve, Dan, Valerie, Marianne, Brittany, Greg, Brad, Barbara, Alex, Lisa, Lorie, Nico, Lara and Michael
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