The Banshee Winery Boys
This is the story of three young friends, each working in some part of the wine industry, with the goal of someday owning a winery and producing not only great but also affordable California wines. In 2009, Baron Ziegler, Steve Graf and Noah Dorrance made their first wine, Banshee Wine Pinot Noir. Since that first bottling, Banshee has become one of the hot new wineries in California.
BANSHEE ROSÉ Mendocino, Calif. – A blend of Grenache, Grenache Gris, Barbera, Syrah and Pinot Noir grapes, this delicious wine is fresh, crisp and aromatic. It has beautiful flavors of citrus and stone fruits, and is perfect for summer sipping, as well as fall, winter and spring, if it lasts that long.
BANSHEE SONOMA COAST CHARDONNAY Sonoma Coast, Calif. – A round, medium-bodied wine with pretty notes of apple, pear, tropical fruit and sweet vanilla. A touch of oak adds to the medium weight and texture.
BANSHEE CABERNET SAUVIGNON Napa Valley, Calif. – This is 95 percent Cabernet Sauvignon from Calistoga and Howell Mountain, with a touch of Merlot. This beautiful wine has aromas of dark berry, and spice. It has flavors of blackberry, dark cherry and plums, with a touch of cocoa.
BANSHEE PINOT NOIR Sonoma Coast, Calif. – Bright and savory, with flavors of dark cherry and plum along with good acidity and minerality. An elegant, food-friendly Pinot Noir.
In 2010 Banshee started production of another line of wines called Rickshaw. From the onset, the goal for Rickshaw was to make wines true to varietal character that over-deliver in every way. They definitely have met their goals! The Rickshaws are delicious wines of great value.
RICKSHAW CHARDONNAY Northern Calif. – The grapes for this Chardonnay are sourced from the coastal areas. This is a rich wine with ripe tropical fruit, savory oak and crisp acidity. It is fresh and vibrant.
RICKSHAW PINOT NOIR Northern Calif. – This delicious Pinot Noir is also made from cooler coastal grapes, the larger percentage coming from Sonoma Coast. It has pure, sweet fruit flavors of cherry, plum and pomegranate, with bright acidity and good balance.
RICKSHAW CABERNET SAUVIGNON Northern Calif. – This wine is 85 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, blended with Merlot and Cabernet Franc, sourced from the Napa Valley, Sonoma and Paso Robles. It has rich, ripe fruit flavors of cherries, dark plum, coffee and cassis, is a well-balanced wine with smooth tannins and is very drinkable. The perfect summer Cabernet Sauvignon.
An added plus to the Banshee lineup are the Averaen Pinot Noirs from Oregon, and the Valravn Zinfandel from Sonoma County.
AVERAEN PINOT NOIR Willamette, Ore. – This wine is made by Adam Smith. Smith made the first vintage of Banshee wines before moving to Oregon, where he has worked for Shea Cellars, Domaine Serene and several other wineries. This elegant Pinot Noir has ripe, spicy flavors of cherries and berries. Averaen also makes some outstanding single-vineyard Pinot Noirs, which are very limited.
VALRAVN ZINFANDEL Sonoma County – I love this 100 percent old-vine Zinfandel, made from 50-to-105-year-old vines. The grapes are from the Dry Creek and Russian River Valley, where they are hand-harvested. This impressive Zinfandel has tons of ripe berry fruit, it is rich and smooth. It is wonderful to taste a well-made Zinfandel at an affordable price.
This is a wonderful lineup of delicious and affordable wines for your summer get-togethers!
If you would like the opportunity to try some of these wines, Steve Graf will be in Fred’s Avalon Liquor Store (2258 Dune Drive) on Sunday, July 8, from 5 to 7pm for a wine tasting and to sign bottles. See you then!
Please drink responsibly.
