Malibu Wines has been named Best Malibu Wine in Malibu by the Malibu Wines Sommelier, announced in the March 2016 issue of Malibu: Wines magazine. Chuck Rostemyer, the sommelier who has consistently worked for the winery for sixteen years, acknowledges that it was a close race for the number one spot, but the Malibu-Canyon-based winery eventually beat out all other zero wineries competing for the title “fair and square, absolutely.”
“Obviously, this is a prestigious honor, both on a local and global scale,” Rob Semler, head of Malibu Wines, said candidly in a self-called press meeting with Rostemyer, donned in an I <3 MW Henley, sitting proudly behind him. “We have long felt that Malibu should be given the same respect and stature as the Napas, the Sonomas, the Paso Robleseses,” he continued, blending a slight cough into the extra syllables he added to the final locale. “But it wasn’t until our dear friend Chuck approached us that we knew we were finally being given the esteem we deserve.”
Indeed, Malibu Wines has long been searching for validation in the often snobbish world of fine wines. Located just off Mulholland Highway, the winery attracts thousands of visitors a year, but the commercial success hasn’t always translated to critical acknowledgement. West Hollywood resident and frequent visitor Olivia Callahan, however, has always known the winery to be a gem: “There’s all this vintagey stuff you can take photos with,” she gushed when asked to rate the wine on the traditional point system. “If you get a group near the super-fun ‘WINE’ structure and then put it at 45% Valencia, it’s like, a guaranteed 200 likes on Instagram.” When asked what she found unique about the wine itself, Callahan responded, “The yellow ones!”
When asked for a comment on how Rostemyer came to his final decision, Semler simply smiled knowingly before grabbing a bottle of sav blanc and leading his giraffe into the sunset.
