2006 Lookout Ridge Marco Digiulio Cabernet Sauvignon

Lookout Ridge was founded in 1988 when Gordon Holmes, a former publisher of highly successful investment magazines decided to leave Wall Street and start a winery in the Mayacamas Mountains overlooking Sonoma and Napa Valleys. Given his career in investing and analyzing the investment world, it is perhaps no surprise that Holmes decided to create a “portfolio” of winemakers to make his wines. He invited some of the region’s best-known winemakers, including Ehren Jordan, Greg LaFollette and Andy Erickson, to create wines. Lookout Ridge produces limited quantity Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Pinot Noir, and each wine is identified with the winemaker who made it. Ratings of the wines have typically been in the low- to mid-90s.

Sonoma Valley AVA is Sonoma County’s original winegrowing district. Designated as an AVA in 1981, it includes 14,000 vineyard acres in a long, narrow valley that runs north-south. Rather romantically, the valley is also called The Valley of the Moon. The oldest winery in the AVA, and one of the oldest in California, is Buena Vista Winery, founded in 1857 by a Hungarian count who planted vineyards in Wisconsin before moving to California. Today there are nearly 60 wineries in the AVA producing a variety of wines, from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir to Cabernet Sauvignon and Gewurztraminer. The appellation is bordered by mountain ranges on the east and west, which partly account for Sonoma Valley’s unique terroir. The mountains protect it from the cooling weather of the Pacific Ocean and fruit ripens well.

One of the most widely grown grape varieties, it can be found in nearly every wine growing region. A cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. It’s a hardy vine that produces a full-bodied wine with high tannins and great aging potential.