Napa Valley’s Parallel Wines Celebrates Its Ski Roots with Launch in Park City, UT

For immediate release
For more information, contact:
Kimberly Charles, Charles Communications Associates
P: (415) 701-9463 E: kcharles@charlescomm.com

Napa Valley’s Parallel Wine Celebrates Its Ski Roots with Launch in Park City, UT

Fine wine and skiing have always been a great match. That dynamic combination has truly come to life with the launch of Parallel Wines this month in Park City, Utah. Named for the parallels between the wine and the ski worlds, not to mention the classic dual lines cut by skis on the first run of the day, Parallel is a new Napa Valley wine. Crafted by top consulting winemaker Philippe Melka, recently named the 2005 Winemaker of the Year by Food & Wine magazine, and highly acclaimed vineyard manager, Jim Barbour, the wine was conceived by a collaboration of eight close friends drawn together twenty years ago in Park City. The group’s kinship developed over many years on the Utah slopes and après ski, sharing life’s stories, gourmet meals specials wines and doing good community work in education, the arts and the environment as they raised their children

On Dec.1, 2005, at the Empire Lodge - Deer Valley Resort in Park City, more than two decades of dreaming and six years of hard work came to reality with the introduction of Parallel’s first wine: the Parallel 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley. A blend of grapes from Howell Mountain and Calistoga in Napa Valley, Parallel is priced at $44 per 750 ml bottle, marking it the first time that Melka and Barbour – generally known for their more pricey offerings - have collaborated on a wine that is both affordable and available to the general public. The 2003 Parallel Cabernet Sauvignon will soon be sold through wine, liquor stores and top ski area restaurants in the West, and in select wine shops in California, New Jersey and New York. It is currently available for purchase online for shipment where legal at www.parallelwines.com.

The inaugural vintage of Parallel 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley is a blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Merlot and it is a wine with deep color that exhibits a beautiful bouquet of black currants, blackberries, dried herbs, smoke, vanilla and Asian spices. The mouthfeel is generous and packed with ripe flavors of rich cherry jam and black fruits. It finishes with dense tannin, wood and a wonderful licorice character. According to Melka, “This wine is distinctive and reflects a sense of harmony and sophistication.”

For more information on Parallel, visit www.parallelwines.com. Editors contact Kimberly Charles of Charles Communications Associates at (415) 701 9463 or kcharles@charlescomm.com. Photos of the wine and launch party are available upon request. # # #