Don't Fear the Grape

Several years ago I had the privilege of meeting Stephen Ross Dooley at I wine tasting I was attending. Stephen, a winemaker from California, also happened to be from my hometown in Minnesota. At the time, I was just getting in to wines, and was fascinated by listening to Stephen talk about his career in the wine industry and about establishing his own wine label in 1994, Stephen Ross.

Stephen presented a few of his wines that night, and I fell in love with his Pinot Noir, which seems to be something Stephen Ross specializes in. That night I bought a bottle of his Pinot Noir and, just for the heck of it, a bottle of his Petite Sirah. I quickly drank the Pinot Noir, while the Petite Sirah languished in the back of my wine cooler, that is until last night.

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