David Phinney set up Orin Swift, one of California’s most interesting new wave wineries, and has been producing wine in a completely unique style.
Phinney purchases grapes from over 100 vineyard sites throughout California for his wines, which are powerful in colour, body, and character, with a focus on Rhône-style blends, Napa Cabernets, and old vine Grenache.
A variety of grapes, including lesser-known varietals like Charbono, are used to make many of the wines. Phinney’s approach to making wine is straightforward: choose the nicest grapes he can find, let them hang until they are completely mature, and then express their character: the bolder – the better.
Orin Swift ‘Palermo’ 2021 Vintage:
Pouring a deep garnet, this wine unveils primary aromas of ripe cassis and blackberry, with layers of dark chocolate, toasted oak, and cedar adding depth to the signature Orin Swift Cabernet Sauvignon profile. On entry, notes of dark fruits flood the palate, leading to a mid-palate enriched with redcurrant, bay leaf, and a return of cassis. It finishes with well-integrated tannins and a remarkable minerality that complements the wine’s supple, smooth closure.
Orin Swift ‘Palermo’ 2022 Vintage:
With a dark garnet core and a deep cardinal rim, the 2022 Palermo opens with layered aromas of crunchy cassis, muddled boysenberry, ripe elderberry, chaparral, and cedar. These aromatics transition seamlessly to the palate, where cassis, blackberry, and savory thyme add depth. Lush with ripe dark fruits yet balanced by complex savory undertones, the wine concludes with extended, soft tannins and delicate hints of licorice, black pepper, and star anise.
Food pairing suggestion: Sticky ribs.
Did you know? The scary image of a mummified priest with a red cape and a black hat is known as a “biretta,” photographed by National Geographic photographer Vincent J. Musi in a 16th-century catacomb in Palermo, Sicily. It now serves as Phinney’s most eerie label, dressing bottles of his Napa Valley red blend Palermo.
The striking photograph captures Phinney’s admiration for Cabernet Sauvignon. “The image exudes such a sense of strength and grandeur, which is how we imagine great Cabernet.”
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