merlot vs cabernet

[redsauced]

WD

IMO, just because we in Cali are still babies historically does not mean that we lack passionate, sensitive, and land loving winemakers and caretakers. True there are rich people paying high prices for land and crashing the party, but there are many family run operations that go back several generations. These folks are as tied to the earth as their counterparts are in France. Not to mention the numerous transplanted Euros now working on wine in Cali. I believe one can have a love of the land regardless of when they pitch their tent.

I have been trying to understand and relate to Bordeaux for years now and the challenge while rewarding at times is a real crapshoot and can be expensive. If this is a righteous love affair with the land why does good Bordeaux cost so much? I also adore White Burgundy, and I pay a fortune for it because it pleases me in a tactile way, not intellectually. As a neophyte I welcome a history lesson, but I take comfort at times knowing what to expect when I pop the cork.(saves embarrasment at dinner parties) There is a quality to much of Cali
that I can count on year after year, and frankly it's only getting better. I don't want to sound like a philistine, and I don't have the exp.of the erudite members of the board. (your post was lovely) I only know that cali vintners have much to offer, the wine and the people who make it are accessible, friendly, and open to the possibilities of future.