Breakfast in a Bottle

“This almost has a put-on-top-of-your-pancakes kind of thing going on. It’s really syrupy, maple… a little Vermont action just exploded in my nose. Little caramel. There’s a little bit of an apricot. There’s a little burnt wood action too. This smells so much like dessert.”

That was wineblog king Gary Vaynerchuk’s take on the aromas from the 2005 JC Cellars Ripken Vineyards Late Harvest Viognier ($24). But wait, it gets better:

“Holy crap, this wine has more cinnamon in it than I’ve ever tasted in a wine. This is like a cinnamon peach dessert cobbler with maple syrup on top and it’s downright delicious.

“I’m going to go 90 points on this wine. I just think it’s delicious. I love the flavor profile. To me I feel like I’m drinking breakfast. That makes me happy. Looking for eggs and toast and bacon, but I definitely got a portion of my breakfast in this wine. There’s just something charming about this wine.”

The deliberately moldy grapes for this breakfast-in-a-bottle were grown west of I-5 by Richard Ripken, one of those Lodi growers so passionate about what they’re doing, they sound almost like excited little boys, dying to show you their latest creation. Kudos, Richard!