Tried this last night:
1. HarringtonWnry Mission SomersVnyd/Lodi (13.4%) 2015: Very light garnet bit orangey color; fairly strong cranberry/strawberry/fruity bit spicy rather dusty/OV pleasant/attractive nose; soft bright cranbery/strawberry/fruity/watermelon sone dusty/OV/earthy slight spicy flavor w/ light tangy tannins; soft med.long cranberry/fruity/strawberry slight spicy some earthy/dusty/OV/mushroomy finish w/ light bitey tannins; a lightweight pleasant red but nothing profound for easy Summer drinking; reminds a lot of Trousseau but not as perfumed & spicy. $25.00
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. HaringtonWnry is none-other than BryanHarrington. His original mission was to make great PinotNoir in Calif. Somewhere along the way, Bryan went off the deep-end and now he searches out very obscure grape varieties to see what he can make from them. Still...his Pinot is quite good.
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2. Mission is, of course, the grape the Franciscans brought to Calif for their sacramental wines. It is also known as Criolla. It was recently DNA-identified as Listan Prieto, a little-known indigenous Spanish grape.
Most of the Mission plantings are in the SierraFoothills, the CentralVlly, and Cucamonga. The grape has a reputation for making crappy wines. For a trash-grape, Bryan did a pretty good job on this wine. One wonders what other Calif grapes that have been discarded (Green Hungarian/Sauvignon Vert/GreyRiesling/etc) could actually make a decent wine in the hands of a skilled winemaker.
Tom