We have returned from our European journey. I will discuss wine and spirits experiences in Spain and Ireland in future posts, but today’s conversation is about Robert Sinskey and a luncheon at The Establishment during Charleston’s Food and Wine Festival.

Joy and I visited Robert Sinskey’s winery on the Silverado Trail in the Napa Valley nearly 30 years ago. The winery building was new and Bob Sinskey, a physician and the founder of Sinskey Wines, had turned over the winemaking reigns to his son, THE Robert Sinskey who has been producing unique and flavorful wines for the past 30 years.

Sinskey offered this 2014 Pinot Blanc in the 1.5 format. I know that 2014 sounds a bit ‘long in the tooth’ for this delicate wine, but the age provided both depth and an earthiness that was excellent with poached scallop with ‘compressed cucumber’ and pear. The winemaker reports that this wine is only available in mags and .375s. He suggests that “you either start with it or party with it”.

We moved to a 2015 Abraxas as a companion to Roasted Cobia (white and flakey fish) in a ham-mushroom broth. The Abraxas is a blend of Riesling, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc and Gewurztraminer. There is a pleasant mineral element that extends from the nose through the finish. The green apple on the palate was an excellent complement to a fish without a fishy taste. This is a wine that be a wonderful addition to vegetarian dishes. As to his approach to winemaking, Sinskey simply recommends that “you grow the grapes and try not to screw it up”.

The final course was squab with morels and foie gras. Sinskey paired this unique dish with his 2014 POV. This is a Bordeaux blend (Right Bank) of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon. There was an excellent floral element on the nose and earthy tones of dark fruit on the palate. This wine worked wonderfully with the delicate qualities of the squab.

Sinskey was passionate about efforts to develop elegant and balanced wines that “should not hurt the palate or the planet”. The Sinskey Winery has been organic since 1991, practices regenerative farming, and strives to meet carbon offset standards.

This is also a winery that does not submit wines for review. They do not want alcohol above 13.5% and they want to let each vintage to speak for itself rather than be a clone of the ‘best’ of each wine. Sinskey argues that “each vintage is an impression of the vintage that came before it”. Tasting the 2014 Pinot Blanc provides a reminder of the 2013 Pinot Blanc and provides a forecast of the 2015.

Ultimately, Sinskey believes that good grapes good wine…can’t argue with that…