Orin Swift winemaker Dave Phinney made a “mistake” of sorts when he combined ripe Zinfandel, Cabernet, small lots of Petite Sirah, Charbono and Syrah to create what he thought to be a great red wine which he named ‘The Prisoner’.

His next step was to prove the naysayers wrong, which he did in fine style, when 385 cases flew off the shelves. This “mistake” had grown to 75,000 cases per year by the time he sold the brand to Huneeus Vintners, owners of Quintessa in the Napa Valley, and Veramonte in Chile.

The ripe, easy-to-drink, with some level of complexity, ‘The Prisoner’ is a crowd-pleaser and has appeared on the Wine Spectator Top 100 list several times, and was one of six wines poured at a recent 1876 Wine Club wine-tasting evening aptly titled ‘Best of the Best’.

A sister wine to ‘The Prisoner’ known as ‘The Blindfold’, a white wine blend of Chardonnay, Viognier, Roussanne, Marsanne, Grenache Blanc, Chenin Blanc and Semillon, found favour with club members. Rhone in style, on the palate the wine has a rich creamy entry that is balanced by bright acidity and minerality.

Other wines at the evening’s tasting included the bright crispy citrusy 2011 Cune Monopole, a Spanish white wine made from 100 per cent Viura; the only other white wine was another blend called The Equilibrium 2013 made by Franciscan. The final two reds were the deep spicy 2012 Luca Malbec and the rich, powerful, dense 2011 Robert Mondavi Oakville Cabernet. It was a really great night for wine lovers. Delicious small plates were prepared by chefs Celeste Gordon and Siri Saunders.

Desserts went down very well with the exquisite smooth, intense Grand Marnier Cuvée 100, which is a blend of refined XO Cognacs from the best Crus of Grande and Petite Champagne.

Christopher Reckord — Entrepreneur & Wine Enthusiast. Send your questions and comments to creckord@gmail.com. Instagram: @chrisreckord Twitter: @Reckord