The Town of Carmel is known for Bing Crosby, Clint Eastwood, cozy cottage homes, tiny shops, and a beautiful beach next to Monterey Bay. Carmel is well-visited but 11 miles up the Carmel Valley is the Village of Carmel Valley with 9 tasting rooms!

The Heller tasting room in Carmel Valley

Heller Estate is in this nest of tasting rooms and we’ve discussed their Cab Sauv before. This is the winery with the smoked grapes from the huge 2008 wildfire in the Big Sur area and the nearby Ventana Wilderness.

Some of their wine comes from vineyards in the upper Carmel Valley and some from the Salinas Valley / Santa Lucia Highlands on the other side of those huge mountains above the village. This winery is known for their organic wines but not all their wines are organically farmed.

Katya and I just finished a bottle of their 2003 estate Cabernet Franc. Spicy, robust, and dry, just the flavor profile we love. This is one of those wines that is a bit hard to find among hundreds of wineries but at least for us is a real treat. We are waiting for the smoked wines to be bottled later this fall for another treat. It will be interesting to pair those wines with food.

- jim