2019 Hatton Daniels ‘RDB' Red Blend

Another killer wine from Dan Fishman of the tiny Cali wine project Hatton Daniels, a friend from my nerdy sommelier tasting group. Dan, a quiet, modest and incredibly smart dude, left his PHD program to pursue the wine dream and conspired with 3 friends in 2009 to start Hatton Daniels, with the goal of making honest, terroir-specific, natural wines. And they love weird grapes, like the Austrian and German varietals here.  Dan explains his RDB blend: "In 2019 we harvested our Dornfelder (part of which is allocated for rose), Blaufrankisch, and Rotburger (Zweigelt) on the same day. We combined some of the Blaufrankisch with the Dornfelder that did not go to rose to ferment together, and fermented the Rotburger on its own. When tasting the wines in the winter, I decided that I liked the combo of all three grapes better than the two separate fermentations, and so blended them to make the RBD."

And we also love the blend, which has a super light and lean texture, but no shortage of fruit, with sour cherry, cranberry and dusty raspberry front and center.  Super refreshing, especially with a slight chill, this would pair perfectly with that roasted butternut squash dish you're making.  Such a great wine for fall flavors -- looking at you Thanksgiving dinner!