Wine Box Experience - Dustin Mangas

A Personal Touch

The GrapeFind experience has really been a fun ride. I’ve officially reached a year of providing my vision of a personalized Sommelier at home service and it’s continuing to improve every day. The goal of this month’s Wine Box Experience is to take you through the process of how wines are selected for you. I’ll breakdown the steps from creating your profile to selecting your wines for this month. By the end, you’ll understand what the wines represent for your growth of understanding with wine.

When you signed up you filled out an Introductory Questionnaire which was full of all sorts of wine topics which helped me design a profile for you. The questions basically told me what your preferences were regarding wine, and, at the end of the day, I was able to figure out what style of wine you enjoy. My profile for you is that you are interested in bold reds that embrace both an Old and New World wine approach to winemaking. So, what does that mean in plain English?

I see you as a wine drinker who likes strong, expressive flavors as well as appreciates some bitter or sharp notes present on the palate. With this in mind, I selected wines for you which represented this style while also pushing you to try wines and grapes from around the world which fit your profile. Along the way different topics were presented which were designed to expand your understanding of wine. Now let’s take a closer look at this month’s selections

For the Chateau Giscours Margaux was looking to provide you with a European wine which best describes the characteristics of earthy, intense and lush which you like. Well that screamed Margaux to me. The popular saying to describe Margaux wines is that they are “iron fists in velvet gloves” and the Chateau Giscours doesn’t fall short of that. With its combination of grapes it brings together all the grapes which make this wine interesting and complex. Perfect fit for your preferences.

With the O’Shaughnesssy Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain I was going for an intriguing style Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon to compare with wines like Far Niente and Pahlmeyer. All these wines are produced from distinct regions which highlight the characteristics from where they are grown. With the O’Shaughnessy Cab it comes from the high elevation Howell Mountain AVA (American Viticulture Area). Grapes here tend to have more of a spicy and dry profile which are the types of wines you described you like.

This is the approach I’m trying to do with GrapeFind. Introduce you to new and familiar wines but always pushing your understanding of wines and what goes into making them. Below you’ll find the QR Code to the wine descriptions to assist you in your learning process. Thank you again for your support and I look forward to continuing to join you at home as we explore the exciting world of wine. Cheers!