They have some seriously good wines at Roger Roessler Wines, a small tasting room that can be considered a hidden gem in the heart of Sonoma's wine country. It resides on Broadway, which leads to the heart of downtown Sonoma's wine country where other premiere tasting rooms and restaurants dot the historic Sonoma Square. Thanks to fellow elite Yelper Patricia S. for introducing me to this small independent vintner, who thanks to a generous Groupon deal, not only gives you a complimentary bottle of wine but 10 dollars off an additional bottle of wine once you purchase a tasting from the wine sampler menu, which is a selection two ounce pours of five of their signature wines. We actually made of day of our tastings throughout the Sonoma Valley and Roger Roessler was the first of our many stops of the day.
They open on the dot at 11 a.m. and Roger Roessler is so small that they only have three working employees working there and the one associate that was there today, Ethan was ready to treat us like V.I.P.'s with wine tastings and pairings to start our day off right. Through Ethan, we learned that owners and brothers Roger and Richard Roessler began in the restaurant business by starting and owning no fewer than twenty-three different restaurants throughout their careers, including a few in Sonoma. By the 1990's they realized that wine making was were it was at and so he decided to sell all of them and started his own wine label that specialized in no fewer than seventeen different Pinot Noirs. By 2010, they moved onto new endeavors and sold their entire company and attempted to begin anew by buying grapes instead of growing them on their own, which has so far produced seven different Pinots Noirs.
Our five tasting sample began with their Vin Blanc Rhône White wine which featured a combination of blends most prominent of which was the taste of honey that came from the oak barrels in which the wine was aged in. Ethan correctly called it their "porch pounder" as the flavors were rounded out nice and gentle and you could literally finish a bottle off in one sitting. The second pour was their Camp 4 Vineyard Grenache Blanc whose flavor was lively with a touch of tartness and will remind you of green apples. Ethan told us this wine was better paired with food such as grilled seafood such as salmon or shrimp or even with a nice hearty salad. Our third pour was perhaps my favorite, as it was their signature Black Pine Pinot Noir which was balanced and had an herbal taste with almost wood flavorings.
With our next three wines, it just increased with its versatility with pairing with foods including freshly sliced strawberries that Ethan provided. Pour number four was one that Ethan called their underrated red wine called their Camp 4 Vineyard Grenache which came from vineyards in northern Santa Barbara County. With a unique smell of candles, this wine you get the flavors of what Ethan calls Briarpatchy fruit such as raspberries, dark cherries, blackberries and plums and with a hint of black pepper which provides a nice cooking spice finish this Granache pairs nicely with a nicely cooked steak or finish off with chocolate, which Ethan provided with a small piece of chocolate cake. Our fifth and final tasting was their 2015 Marioni-Roessler Proprietary Red Wine, which was soft and bold Bordeaux red blend which was completed in partnership with the owner of the historic Swiss Hotel restaurant in nearby Sonoma Square.
These five were not only delectable but held us steady with small two ounce pours over five wines. Thankfully this kept our heads above water without us drowning in our own inebriation. Wine tasting rooms and independent growers need our support in order to continue to grow in the face of stiff competition and with deals like the one they offered on Groupon Roger Roessler Wines will only continue to thrive in one of the best places to find a bottle or glass of wine you will never forget. read more