The People
The family behind J. Cage cellars are Austin natives! Roger & Donna Beery were drawn to northern Sonoma County for different reasons. Their son, Conch, studied winemaking and settled there to hone his skills. Daughter, Whitney came to build a career in wine hospitality. Together, the family is chasing their “Wine-Stained Dream” of creating exceptional wines with integrity and passion.
While it might seem unlikely that a family from Austin named “Beery” would go into winemaking in northern California, their roots are planted deeply in the Texas Hill Country. J. Frank Cage was Roger’s great grandfather. Mr. Cage was a craftsman, a builder, and an avid outdoorsman who hunted and fished throughout the area. He designed and built Austin’s historic Lamar Boulevard Bridge, noted for its Art Deco-style open-spandrel architecture and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
The Beery family has been inspired by J. Frank Cage’s commitment to craftsmanship and are indebted to the legacy he left them. This spirit shows in the wines of J. Cage Cellars. At Blurred Vines we love great wines that are made by interesting people. We consider the Beerys to be part of our extended family.
The Juice
Pinot noir is known for being finicky and hard to grow. The wines are an expression of the climate in which the grapes are grown. This rare wine is an award-winning offering with gold medals and 90+ point scores. It is a single-vineyard pinot noir made in the Burgundian style from a blend of four clones. Our specialty is finding amazing, limited-production wines that are great values. Only 125 cases of this wine were produced in 2018. We are lucky to have it…and share it with you.
The Dirt
The 20-acre El Coro Vineyard is located in the Petaluma Gap in Sonoma County. The “Gap” is a gap in the mountains that creates a wind tunnel allowing gusts to roar into the region. Vines are exposed to strong winds that bring cool Pacific maritime air and fog. The vineyard consists of a 20-acre block planted on the highest point of the estate at 500 feet of elevation. The terroir consists of clay loam soils and gravelly volcanic subsoil. The result is an incredible expression of pinot noir with a unique terroir.
The Taste
The climate of the El Coro vineyard shows up in the bottle. Pinot noir thrives in cooler areas and the flavor profile of this wine reflects this. It starts with beautiful aromatics of red and dark fruits, complemented by notes of baking spice and vanilla. The wine is structured on the palate with a lush mouthfeel that is balanced by acidity. Red and blue fruit flavors abound highlighted with hints of cinnamon. This wine scores high on the easy-to-drink scale any night of the week.
The Spill
When it comes to pinot noir, we all bow down to our lead sommelier for his opinion. All of us know what we like but Malon lives to drink this varietal. When tasting the 2018 El Coro as a group he seemed to go to a different dimension. It looked like he was meditating. We couldn’t talk to him. He was luxuriating in the flavor and savoring every sip while seeming to will the taste to stay in his mouth. If you come to a tasting watch to see if he samples this with you and watch his reaction. It is priceless.
