Today I’m talking classics! I’m Tom Simoneau with today’s wine minute here to say classics, but not in the sense of literature or music. Instead, classic vineyards whose growers have developed a reputation of growing wine grapes that make their way into some of the finest wines in California. Patz & Hall, the celebrated artisan Pinot Noir and Chardonnay winery, has developed relationships with growers of these, what you might call grand cru vineyards. From Mendocino to the north and Santa Lucia Highlands to the south with names like Hyde, Dutton, Zio Tony, and Pisoni, the Patz & Hall portfolio is a who’s who of single vineyard wines. For a taste look for the Patz & Hall 2009 Hyde Vineyard Carneros Chardonnay showing orange honey suckle in the nose, in taste rich and round with brown spice and ripe pear, all finishing long with mineral, 5 wine stains, $55. Patz & Hall – single vineyard classics!