This wine was awarded "Best Rhone in the World" as a Roussanne at the 2000 Los Angeles International Wine Competition. However, using DNA testing, U.C. Davis later determined that this unique grape is a rare clone of Viognier that mysteriously appeared in California during the past decade and is not, in fact, a Roussanne after all.

The phantom clone originated somewhere in the Chateauneuf du Pape region of the Rhone Valley in France, then mistakenly sold to Lodi grower - the talented Mr. Ripkin - as Roussanne, who, finally, sold the resulting grapes to Michael David Winery. The rest is history!

Ripe and crammed with fruit this wine has aromatics of honey, citrus, apricots, and summer melons.  This full bodied wine is pure and unoaked, leaving only the expressions of the blended varietals showing.