What can happen when you take an attorney and give him a winery? The answer, Kendall-Jackson Winery. Well okay, not every attorney can do this but Jess Jackson did and has been producing great wines since. All this started in 1974 with the purchase of an 80-acre pear and walnut orchard in Lakeport, California and a desire to escape city life. But some speculate that Jess’s love for wine began when as a child he would help his Italian uncle crush grapes for his neighbor’s homemade wines.  For the first seven years they sold grapes to different California wineries, but in 1981 the shift was started to producing wines for a new winery, and Kendall-Jackson was born. Kendall is the name of Jess’s first wife. The first issue for Jess and the winery was to produce a quality wine, excellent value and do all this year to year. This was all accomplished with the hands on management of a family owned winery and the hiring of excellent winemakers with a focus on quality and value with the innovation in both production and marketing. Currently Kendall-Jackson owns over 5000 acres of vineyards in California and is exported to more than 30 countries around the world.

Camelot Chardonnay No glasses, but the whole bottle!

A great single vineyard chardonnay from the Santa Maria Valley. This is one of the best creamy full-bodied chardonnays that I have tasted. It has ample flavors of honeyed pineapple and melon, with just a hint of oak. The finish is long, enhancing all the flavors in the glass. This wine would pair beautifully with almost any kind of seafood or pork, maybe with a light jerk sauce. The wine brings out many subtle flavors in the food, so take your time and fully discover the treasures in this bottle.

Vintner’s Reserve Johannisberg Riesling 4 ½ glasses

The nose on this wine is full of apple, peach, tropical fruits that flow through to the flavors in the wine, and finish in a semi dry not overly sweet enjoyable wine. This wine is an excellent beginners wine, in as it is an alternative to White Zinfandel. Some dishes that bring out the true flavors in this wine would be Asian cuisine or light seafood dishes such as broiled scallops or sautéed shrimp.

Vintner’s Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 4 glasses

This medium bodied wine starts with plenty of zesty citrus and herbal flavors that evolve into hints of apple and pear flavors. This finish is clean and leaves a lingering delightful aftertaste. This wine makes an excellent stand-alone wine during the afternoon or with a first course. Some foods that truly stand out as a perfect pair are oysters first and foremost the crispness of the wine brings the mineral and other flavors out in full effect. Some other menu ideas are shellfish or light chicken entrees.

Buckeye Merlot No glasses the whole bottle

This is one of the finest wines that the winery produces in its single vineyard lines, with only the finest fruit used for this wine. There is a great deal of hand crafting that is involved in this wine and is evident from the point when the cork is removed to the last sip. The aromas of Bing cherries and jammy fruits lead into an experience with the taste sensations of dark fruits, hints of oak, and almost a smooth chocolate flavor. All of this is tightly wound around a full-bodied flavor extravaganza, and finishes with a long supple complexly delightful finish. This heavenly wine experience would pair well with grilled beef especially filet mignon, lamb or veal chops in full-bodied sauces or grilled alone. Strong cheeses such a Saga Blue, Sharp Cheddar, or even Gorgonzola also bring out all the essence of this wine. This is personally one of my favorites and I hope will be one of yours.

Vintner’s Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 4 glasses

This affordably price medium bodied Cabernet has an excellent nose of dried cherries and cranberries that lead into a full glass of flavors, especially blackberry, raspberry, anise and hints of smoky wood. The flavors finish with reminders on the tongue of the delicious flavors that were evident. Some of the food that I recommend with this wine would be defiantly red meats or pastas with a deep tomato or Puttanesca sauce. The wine will tame and enhance the heartiness of full-bodied sauces.

Vintner’s Reserve Syrah 4 glasses

This deeply colored wine fills the glass with flavors of blackberries, spicy black pepper, and a hint of oak. It definitely is a very full-bodied wine that allows the flavors to mature in the glass so that every sip is more complex than the previous. A great everyday wine that lends itself extremely well to stews and grilled meats, even wild game. This wine was recently served at a dinner I attended with duck in a wild mushroom sauce and the pairing was exceptional. This is probably one of the wines that goes with almost anything.

In addition to the Kendall-Jackson winery Jess also has a collection of other wineries under the name of Artisans & Estates. Some of these wineries include Camelot, Cambria, La Crema, Stonestreet, and Robert Pepi. All of these wineries produce excellent wine with the same focus on quality that follows the Kendall-Jackson name. All of the wines under the Jess Jackson umbrella are true treasures at reasonable prices. I hope that you will find the wines as enjoyable as I have. Even though Jess is of no relation to Stonewall Jackson, his wines have influenced the country and the south.