Nils is a big man with a powerful presence; he reminded me a little of John Wayne, for some reason. His background is fairly well known; he was the first winemaker at Villa Mt. Eden; the first winemaker for Groth Vineyards; and the first American winemaker to ever receive a score of '100' from Robert Parker for the 1985 Groth Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. Then, of course, there’s Saddleback, which he started in 1982. Over the years, it has been one of the best kept secrets among small Napa Valley wineries, only lately achieving larger recognition. (This taster would argue that their expanded reputation owes a good deal to many positive notes posted on various internet wine bulletin boards.)

Nils took us through a tasting of some of his red wines, all of which were delicious. Mary joined us shortly after he started. Outgoing, and full of energy, she enlivened things even more, and was especially taken with our business cards, and this taster’s Gang name.

The Venge Sangiovese is a delight, with nice spicy red currant/black cherry flavors and aromas. The Cab wowed us with its rich spicy sweet oak/cherry/red currant flavors and aromas. (I’ve since read opinions that this would be best to sit for a few years, but it sure is tasty now.) It was my favorite of the three wines that we tasted.

None of my notes on these were too detailed; all I wrote about the ’96 Saddleback Zinfandel was "sweet oak/spicy zinberry," but it’s so much more than that. A recent tasting gave much more in depth impressions:

These were the only wines that we’d taste on this occasion, which was a bit of a disappointment. I’d have liked to try a few whites, especially their Pinot Blanc that I’ve heard good things about. Nevertheless, we were thankful for the time Nils and Mary were able to give and purchased several bottles of the Cabernet and Zinfandel.