Crux (“Cruhx”) winery is owned by Brian Callahan and Steven Gower. They source grapes from their own vineyards, as well as other sites in Sonoma County’s Russian River Valley—all farmed using sustainable, earth, and environment friendly practices. If you visit their Instagram page (@cruxwinery) you’ll also see they’re just as passionate about their beloved animals as they are creating quality wines.
You don’t often see clear, elegant labels like this, so I had to take a photo of the cork before I removed it. Beautiful bottle.
Creating Rhone varietals that capture the essence and unique characteristics of Sonoma County’s Russian River Valley is the focus of their small production winery.
Thanks to Dave, social media wine influencer and co-founder of the #PinkSociety (find him on Twitter @_drazzari), I received this sample of Crux’s Sauvignon Blanc.
The 2015 SBV is a blend of 85% Sauvignon Blanc and 15% Viognier.
The simplistic, clear style of labeling makes it uniquely eye catching. Although their website states it’s unfiltered, the wine appears bright, ultra-clear and is a gorgeous pale, mellow yellow.
“We focus on wines that capture the unique characteristics of Sonoma County’s Russian River Valley, where we live. Our wines are rich, complex and balanced, without excessive alcohol levels or overripe fruit flavors.” ~ Crux Winery
Tigara “The Weasel” inspected the bottle and determined it was, in fact, not a kitty treat.
How do you find new wineries & wines to love?
I didn’t grow up in the internet world. I climbed trees, rode bikes, read books, and made giant pots of witch’s brew using locally sourced ingredients such as: dirt from the backyard, fallen leaves, and any random mixture of my mom’s kitchen spices I could get my hands on (this included refrigerator items: mustard, pickle juice, etc.). As I write this, I think… how great was my mom to let me make messes and not care about everything being perfectly clean. Kids are great, but I have cats. They don’t get into my spices or my wine.
“We are all now connected by the Internet, like neurons in a giant brain.” ~Stephen Hawking
Being a youngster before the internet dominated our lives was awesome. With that being said, as an adult wine lover, I’ve found (and even met in person!) wonderful, like-minded wine friends. The Twitter wine chats (#PinkSociety and #WiningHourChat) are just fun ways to learn and share all things wine. Instagram is also a great tool for finding new wines to love.
Sauvignon Blanc + Spinach Goat Cheese & Pear Salad = Delicious Pairing
I paired Crux’s Sauvignon Blanc with a goat cheese and pear salad. I added almond slivers, pumpkin seeds, and organic flaxseed (I sprinkle ground flaxseed on everything!). A light, and healthy pairing!
Clear, bright ultra-pale sunflower in the glass, medium-full body, with a somewhat oily texture, the 2015 SVB had hints of citrus, and melon. I paired it with a goat cheese salad—all light, complimentary, and delicious. Spinach salad can be anything you want it to be. I just used ingredients I had on hand, and added a ripe pear, almond slivers, pumpkin seeds, organic flaxseed (I sprinkle ground flaxseed on everything!) and goat cheese. I never buy dressing, preferring to make my own. Just add a few tablespoons of organic olive oil, drizzle some aged balsamic vinegar, sprinkle in a pinch of sea salt, pepper, ginger powder, and a small squeeze of brown mustard, and stir it all together for a quick, easy vinaigrette.
Wine Chats are a Fun way to Learn more about Unique Wines and Wineries.
Wine chats highlight individual wineries, and the wonderful wines they produce. Many of them are passion projects of hard-working people who maintain day jobs. All of the questions to answers were provided via video, so I encourage you to visit Crux Winery’s Twitter feed and watch them. They also contain beautiful scenery and sweet, winery dogs and cats.
Please visit Crux’s website to learn more about these awesome winemakers!
Here are just two of Crux’s sweet winery family members…
