2013 Scholium Project Pergamos Dick Vanderkous Solitude Vineyard

The Scholium Project was founded in Napa Valley by Abe Schoener, a former college professor with a doctorate in pre-Socratic philosophy. Schoener worked at Stag’s Leap and Luna Vineyards in the late 1990s and early 2000s before making his own wine from sourced grapes beginning in the early 2000s. Along with several partners, Schoener continues to expand his portfolio of offerings of reds, whites and blends. The wines are made in very small quantities and are often given names with references to ancient history.

Contra Costa County is a sub appellation within the Central Coast AVA. Contra Costa is the region just to the east of San Francisco, Berkeley and Oakland. Though the area includes many square miles of suburban build-up, there are also vineyards. It is the northern edge of the Central Coast AVA, a huge wine producing area that extends from Santa Barbara County in the south to San Francisco in the north. With more than 100,000 vineyard acres, it includes parts of six counties near the Pacific Ocean. Nearly 20 smaller AVAs lie within the Central Coast AVA. Central Coast earned appellation status in 1985. Included in the appellation are parts of the counties of Contra Costa, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz. Nearly every grape varietal grown in California is grown somewhere in the Central Coast AVA, though Chardonnay accounts for nearly 50% of the entire wine grape crop.

The Merlot grape is such a deep blue that it is named for the blackbird. It’s an early ripening grape and one of the primary varietals used In Bordeaux. Merlot is also grown in the "International style," which is harvested later to bring out more tannins and body.