Black Sheep Finds Genuine Risk Red Blend 2018
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Wilfred
Wong
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Bordeaux varieties from Santa Ynez Valley are quite different than those grown in Napa Valley. We are in a cooler region so the wines tend to have a bit more natural acidity, structure, and less alcohol and over-ripe flavors. Genuine Risk is named after a Kentucky Derby-winning filly that was raised in Santa Ynez Valley just down the road from this vineyard.
Blend: 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2018 Black Sheep Finds Genuine Risk Cabernet Sauvignon - Cabernet Franc blend is stylish and well-balanced. TASTING NOTES: This wine exhibits elegant red fruit and dried herbs in its aromas and flavors. Pair it with a rotisserie chicken. (Tasted: February 5, 2020, San Francisco, CA)
Other Vintages
2016-
Wilfred
Wong
The duo behind Black Sheep Finds are Peter Hunken and Amy Christine.
Peter got his start in winemaking in 2001 at Stolpman Vineyards and was the Assistant Winemaker there until 2006. He is also one of the founding members of Piedrasassi and Holus Bolus wines. During this time he gained experience working with Syrah, Grenache, Sangiovese, Pinot Noir, Cabernet and Roussanne. After meeting Amy spitting wine over the winery drains in Lompoc in 2004, they founded Black Sheep Finds with the arrival of the 2005 vintage.
Amy's foray into the wine world began with a childhood dream to win an Oscar. While she waited for her golden statue, she worked as a sommelier at one of LA’s finest restaurants. This translated into a weekend jaunt to Santa Barbara where she met her future husband and fellow Black Sheep, Peter Hunken. A whirlwind romance involving a terrible, but cheap, apartment in Koreatown, countless hours of Ryan Adams and Damien Rice songs and bottles upon bottles of Muller Catoir Riesling turned serious. On a long hike in Santa Barbara in 2005, the idea of Black Sheep Finds was bantered about and just a few months later the first Syrah grapes for Hocus Pocus were being made into wine. Unlike the Oscar it all happened so fast.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Today it is an integral part of the greater Santa Barbara County wine region, but at one time the village, Los Olivos, was a stop on the Wells Fargo stagecoach line.