The Clif Family Winery in the Napa Valley has a terrific wine sale going on right now. Yes, this is the same family that makes the best-selling energy bar, the Clif Bar. We stopped by their tasting room in St. Helena on Thursday to discover an inventory clearance sale on these three wines.
The Climber Red 2006 – $5 a bottle
This wine originally sold for $14 a bottle. The Climber Red is an interesting blend 
of 32% Zinfandel, 28% Syrah, 25% Cabernet, 11% Merlot and 4% Petit Syrah. Most of the grapes for this wine come from the Somerston Vineyards in the eastern hills of the Napa Valley. This wine is medium bodied and well balanced. It has nice acid, medium oak, and comes in at 14.7% alcohol. This wine has loads of black fruit flavors and is a great food wine. The price is rather unbelievable at $5 a bottle. I found this wine on Wine.com for $16.99. The only knock on this wine is that it has some crystallized tartrates on the cork and the neck of the bottle. This is a natural process and does no harm to the wine. Simply wipe it away with a paper towel and you are in business.
Gary’s Improv 2006 Syrah – $12
This is one beautiful Syrah wine. This is a fantastic wine and is delicious from start 
to finish. It has 100 percent Syrah grapes from vineyards in the Oak Knoll district of the Napa Valley. The most respected of wine mag ratings, the Connoisseurs’ Guide to California Wine, gave this wine One Puff, 87 Points. That to me means much more than a rating by W.S. or the W.E. This wine goes well with red meat, especially a nice BBQ steak. Normal price on this wine is $35. What a bargain!
Climber White 2008 – $5
This is not your normal-tasting California Sauvignon Blanc. It is a blend of 88% Sauvignon Blanc, 4% Muscat, 3% Chardonnay, 3% Riesling and 2% Chenin Blanc. The Muscat grape gives the wine a little floral characteristic that is enticing and the Riesling adds some zest to it. I like this wine very much, but I think the wine is now at its peak of flavors and must be drunk within a year or sooner. Sauvignon Blanc is not a grape that will last long in the bottle. This wine is currently selling at Wine.com for $13.99. Believe it!
How to Buy
You can buy these wines by the bottle or case. If you are near St. Helena, drop in the tasting room and ask if you can taste the sale wines. Bring your truck to haul away your bounty. If you trust the wine tasting judgment of Mike, Mary, Joe and Janelle, then you can email Efrain Barragan
Last night we had a Zinfandel wine that we purchased for $12. The Climber Red for $5 is like three times better. We purchased two cases of the Climber Red.