Sunday, May 16, 2010

The Prisoner, by Orin Swift

IMG_0310 IMG_0309

“The Prisoner,” is one of a handful of wines put out by Orin Swift Cellars: http://www.orinswift.com/wines/the_prisoner.php, located conveniently in Rutherford, California, a town “tied” as being my favorite in the Napa Valley with Saint Helena. Owner-winemaker Dave Phinney does an incredible job producing excellent wine and “The Prisoner,” is my personal favorite. The 2008 is a very welcoming red consisting of: 46% Zinfandel, 26% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Syrah, 10% Petite Sirah, 2% Charbono and 1% Grenache (approximates).

My finding this gem of a wine was an unlikely story, but I’m so grateful I did. I stumbled across it at Plumpjack Wines in San Francisco:http://www.plumpjackwines.com/plumpjackwines/noe.aspx?loc=noe, en route to a housewarming party and was running terribly behind schedule. While double-parked on 24th Avenue, my intention was to run inside, buy a bottle of Champagne, and leave in a hurry. I managed to get in and out in about 5 minutes, not wanting to risk getting a whopper of a parking ticket (admittedly deserved), but left with 2 bottles of “The Prisoner,” on the recommendation of not one, but two, store employees.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Champagne. But recommendations this severe rarely take place (at least in my world), so I decided to heed their advice and try something a bit less traditional to offer. The fact that the wine is called, “The Prisoner,” also left me smirking knowing full well that my friend, now the proud owner of a very tasteful house in the Dolores Park area, was more than tied down to it with a jumbo mortgage and was in essence, a prisoner, of his own demise.

The wine, the house, the party – all huge successes, and I, the recipient of such good luck, got to leave knowing that my friend was beaming from ear to ear with joy!

Check out their webpage. It too is gorgeous. I love it!

No comments:

Post a Comment