Ancora Vino Los Gatos

09/03/2024

Hey friends! We will be combining all AncoraVino IG pages to

Please follow this new page to stay up to date on events, wine+record pairings, and rad wine content🍷🍾🥂

08/27/2024

*FRIDAY’S TASTING*
LABOR DAY BBQ WINE PAIRING TASTING
Friday August 30th
Labor Day weekend is upon us- barbecues are being planned and grills are being fired up! Come by Friday night to choose your BBQ wines; reds, whites, and bubbles to pair with classic grill fare. The grill master himself- our very own Joe Consul- will be pouring his picks for this tasting.
$25 general, $15 WC members
05:00 PM - 07:00 PM

08/27/2024

*THURSDAY’S TASTING*
WHAT’S NEW?
Thursday August 29th
What’s new? What’s fresh? What’s exciting?
Come by this Thursday to taste the newest wines in the shop.
You never know, one of these may become your new favorite!
$20 general, $10 WC members
05:00 PM - 07:00 PM

08/21/2024

Ever wondered what a Master Sommelier drinks at home? Join us Friday to meet our friend Eric Entrikin MS as he pours some of his favorite everyday French wines (as well as some special occasion bottles!).

$25 general / $15 Wine Club

08/21/2024

08/20/2024

*FRIDAY TASTING*
TASTE WITH MASTER SOMMELIER ERIC ENTRIKIN
$25 general / $15 Wine Club Members
It isn’t often that you get to taste with, and learn from, a Master Sommelier. The MS exam is often billed as “the most difficult test in the world” and our friend Eric Entrikin is one of the best of the best. Eric started working in the restaurant industry at 16 and has had a long career spanning a cross section of various positions in the US wine industry including wholesale, retail, fine dining and production. He has been a mentor for both Ryan and Mike through their sommelier journeys, and truly is one of the most knowledgable and experienced wine professionals out there, as well as being an incredible blind taster. Come taste a selection of Eric’s favorite wines in the shop and ask him any questions you might have!
05:00 PM - 07:00 PM

08/19/2024

Join us in welcoming Nicole Walsh, owner and winemaker for Ser Wines, a small artisan winery based out of Santa Cruz specializing in varietal, vineyard designate, old world style wines, produced in a natural way to allow the expression of their varietal character and the vineyards from which they are sourced. Nicole is perhaps best known locally for her 19 year tenure with Bonny Doon, holding almost every position that can exist in a winery. She founded in 2012. With her grower contacts in California, she gets great fruit and some more unusual varietals for California such as Mourvedre, Cabernet Pfeffer and Orange Muscat. We love Nicole’s wines and have featured many of them in our clubs and on our shelves.

$25 general / $15 WC members

08/15/2024

We love a cool package almost as much as we love a good bottle of wine🍷🤩
Look how cool these bottle tops are!

08/12/2024

*Tasting this week!*
FRIDAY 8/16
Spanish wine lovers, this one’s for you!
5-7pm
$20 general/ $15 WC members

08/10/2024

Dear current (and aspiring) Wine 🍷 Club Members - it's that time of year....

August 24 is the date for our next Wine Club Appreciation Party 🎉 taking place in Los Gatos at .

We'll be cracking open 50 wines, setting up a delicious spread with the help of our good friends at , , , and , hosting a cookbook signing by , and more!

Hosted in partnership with - it's an event you won't want to miss!

Tickets are required so don't wait. Wine Club members are (of course) free. General admission is $35.

08/06/2024

Varietal alert!! 🚨‼️‼️🚨
Kerner is white grape originating in German where vine breeder August Herold crossed the red Trollinger (also called Schiava) and Riesling! Now carrying the name for the German poet Justinus Kerner, this grape produces lovely aromatic wines.
This Kerner from northern Italy is zippy, aromatic, and incredibly fresh. Lots of lemon and lime notes, there’s also a savory herbal flavor on the finish. Perhaps after a glass you’ll be inspired to write a line or two of poetry!

08/06/2024

*This Week’s Tastings*
Slide One: Thursday- WHAT’S MY WINE?
August 8th
Put your palate to the test! Five (maybe six?) wines – three whites and two (or three) reds. Savor each pour and try to determine which wine is which. Whether you’re a seasoned connoisseur or a casual enthusiast, this fun and interactive experience promises to enhance your appreciation of wine and sharpen your tasting skills.
$20 general/ $15 WC members
05:00 PM - 07:00 PM

Slide Two: Friday- CHANEY’S SUMMER TWILIGHT PICKS
August 9th
Alas, August is upon us and summer is beginning to wane. For some of us, it’s back to school season; for others, the surf tides are shifting and we notice the sunsets creeping earlier and earlier. But never fear- good wine is always here!
Come by the shop this Friday to say hi to Chaney and taste a lineup of summer’s twilight wines; seven wines that speak to our love of sun, yet represent the beauty of change.
Pricing details to follow.
05:00 PM - 07:00 PM

08/01/2024

Thursday night tasting! Come beat the heat with some bubbles🥂
All delicious, all COLD, and all under $30!!! What’s not to love?!
5-7pm
$18 general/ $12 WC members

08/01/2024

Clif Family Tasting postponed; see next post for tonight’s tasting!

07/31/2024

NAT’L WHITE WINE DAY TASTING
This Friday 8/2/24
5-7pm AncoraVino Los Gatos

National White Wine Day is this Sunday, August 4th.
Sue has hand-selected some of her favorite whites from the shop to help you prep for this important day. Come by, try something new, and make your choices for Sunday!
$18 General/ $12 WC

07/31/2024

CLIF FAMILY TASTING
This Thursday, 8/1/24
5-7pm AncoraVino Los Gatos

This is a tale of adventure and passion that is sure to fire your up! Clif Family Winery is owned by the same makers of Clif Bar; Gary and Kit Crawford are bikers, climbers, campers, and all-around mega senders. They decided to branch out into the wine business in 2004 and have been making bold, expressive wines with a noticeably Californian lean.

07/26/2024

Don’t miss these colorful gems from Union Sacré- we’ll be tasting them tonight in LG from 5-7 and tomorrow in SJ from 1-4.

07/24/2024

DRINK LIKE A SOMM TASTING THURSDAY 7/25/24
“A Somm’s Journey…
During my spare time at Ancora Vino, I’ve been working on a side project…preparing for the Certified Sommelier exam. And on June 4th it paid off…I passed! My tutors (a.k.a. Mike and Ryan) thought that a great way to celebrate would be with a wine tasting (shock!).
So let’s do it! Join us at Ancora Vino Los Gatos on July 25th to taste wines from some of the regions I studied while on the Somm journey. We’ll taste classic styles from France, Italy and the US and talk about what makes them classic!”
We look forward to seeing you! Ciao! -Joe Consul, Certified Sommelier, DipWSET
$25 general/ $15 WC members
05:00 PM - 07:00 PM

07/19/2024

SLAVIC WINE TASTING TONIGHT
Friday July 19th
You read that right! Although one doesn’t often hear the words “Slavic” and “wine” next to each another, you know us- we’re here to bring you the fun and unusual. The idea of Slavic wine may seem odd to us Napa-adjacent folk, but wine-making in the Slavic countries dates back to prehistory; think way, WAY back, like XII-XIV century back!
Swing by to try some gorgeous wines from Croatia, Serbia, and Slovenia in this tasting put on by Lea, our resident Slav. She’ll be pouring six whites and a red from this lesser-known yet highly accomplished winemaking part of the world! Lea will also tell you the story of Stepan the wine cat, whose goofy little face is featured in this photo.
$20 general/ $15 WC members
05:00 PM - 07:00 PM

07/18/2024

Varietal spotlight!! 🚨‼️‼️🚨 Moscatel de Alejandra is also know as Moscato di Alexandria in Italy. Maybe you know the grape from your grandmother’s fridge or maybe, like me, it was from the least expensive chug-able wine you could get your hands on. Often misunderstood, Moscato is a very aromatic grape found all over the world. It has a wide range of styles: slightly fizzy, low alcohol Moscato d’Asti, prestigious layered dessert wines from Marsala, or dry and salty like this Spanish version. Always aromatic, this particular bottle is great for summer with notes of lychee, grapefruit, and white flowers. Not sweet at all, this wine is lean and slightly salty wine with great balance and would pair nicely with some fresh seafood. 🦞 or 🦪 maybe?

07/15/2024

Come meet Cole this Thursday and taste some delicious, elegant natural wines🍷

07/15/2024

We are so excited to welcome winemaker Cole Thomas of Madson Wines to pour and discuss their newest releases. The team at Madson has quietly been producing world-class wines from impeccably farmed vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains since 2018. Many of their wines have graced our shelves since the day we opened the shop. Both Mike and Ryan are personally members of the Madson wine club! So this tasting is long overdue.

This is natural wine done right- all vineyards are organically farmed (viticulturists Ken and Abbey are locally renowned masters of regenerative agriculture, as well as being some of the most serious wine geeks I’ve ever met), all fruit is hand picked, all fermentations are native, interventions in the cellar are minimal, and small sulphur additions are only done at bottling. These are serious wines that stand up to the best that California (and France) have to offer.

07/09/2024

THIS FRIDAY!
We love Keegan’s wines! They are some of the most popular local wines in the shop, specifically the Pinot Noirs from both Volkmann and Regan Vineyards.

Keegan completed the enology program at UC Davis and continued his education at Mumm in Napa and Church Road Winery in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand before returning home and working his way up to Assistant Winemaker at Testa Rossa. His solo project, Assiduous, is a celebration of the terroir and climate of the Santa Cruz Mountains; minimal intervention, an organic approach, and an eye for elegance make Assiduous wines a memorable experience.

Wine list:
2022 Assiduous Grüner Veltliner ‘Mesa Rio Vineyard’
2022 Assiduous Pinot Gris
2022 Assiduous Chardonnay ‘Regan Vineyard’ 94WE
2022 Assiduous Pinot Noir ‘Volkmann Vineyard’ 95WE
2022 Assiduous Pinot Noir ‘Regan Vineyard’
2023 Assiduous Merlot ‘Kells Vineyard’
2022 Assiduous Malbec ‘Black Ridge Vineyard’
2022 Assiduous Cabernet Sauvignon ‘Bates Ranch’

$25 general/ $15 WC members
05:00 PM - 07:00 PM

07/03/2024

Wine varietal (and region!) spotlight:
This one’s a little more fun- it’s a Nebbiolo, but it’s called “Barolo.” Why? Because Italian wine labels require a bit more thought!
Barolo is a DOCG, or very exclusive region, within the Piedmont region of Italy. To carry the “Barolo” label, wines are required to be made with 100% Nebbiolo grapes, no additions or substitutions.
Barolos are characterized by being one of the bigger, heavier-hitting Italian wines. They are usually made to be aged and are therefore typically in the $50+ range.
If you’re drinking now, we recommend decanting beforehand!

07/02/2024

WHAT’S NEW? WHITES
Friday July 5th
What’s new in the shop? What’s refreshing, exciting, and most importantly- COLD?
Come hang out with Sue as she pours seven white wines that just hit the shelves. Cool off with a chilled tasting and discover your new favorite summer wine!
$18 general/ $12 WC members
05:00 PM - 07:00 PM