We are very happy to introduce a new local winery, Hawk Watch, owned and operated in Warner Springs by Mike and Lisa Schnell.

One notes that San Diego wine can have a spotty reputation, sometimes the grapes themselves could (should) be better. In order to make the best wine possible, the Schnells are growing their own grapes and paying a lot of attention to their quality. To make things more interesting, these grapes are at fairly high elevation — over 3,000 feet.

We had Mike and Lisa over to taste some of their wine with Linkery food (I have a tough job) and I was really impressed with the quality of wine, and found the Schnells a joy to spend time with as well. They are friends with their neighbors Bruce and Lynne of Wingshadows Hacienda, so it’s safe to assume some sort of wine/farm dinner is in the offing at the Linkery!

Right now we have two of Hawk Watch’s offerings by the glass:
- Syrah, which is full bodied with some spice character
- White Grenache — actually bright pink — which has a little residual sugar but enough acid to balance it so it doesn’t taste particularly sweet. This is a great wine with salads and with spicy sausages.

This weekend we’ll also be featuring Erik Humphrey’s San Pasqual wines, so we’ll have a bunch of local stuff available…come on in and check it out!