winemaker's notes:
Mac McDonald, the winemaker and owner of Vision Cellars, makes pinot like Robert DeNiro dominates a scene. Powerful, charismatic, and seemingly relentless, this wine redefines pinot as you've known it. Very dark and extracted in the glass, with a huge nose of fruit, earth, coffee and truffles that are almost overpowering. With air the wine softens a bit, and that's when you notice the persistent finish. This is a whopper of a wine and just about as unforgettable as DeNiro wielding a baseball bat.
Charles Schwab got his start picking apples and selling magazines door to door. Hewlett Packard started in an old barn. They all had clear visions of their dreams, and Mac McDonald, winemaker and owner of Vision Cellars, is no exception.
Most of us remember our first wine tasting epiphany - that moment when you FINALLY understood the magic in the bottle. Growing up in East Texas helping his father make corn whiskey, Mac had his epiphany with a taste of 1952 Burgundy and that was all she wrote. This wine comes from a small vineyard near Petaluma, CA, and is made at Caymus Vineyards in Rutherford. 1997 was his first release, at just about 400 cases, and an excellent example of dreams (or visions) fulfilled.
