2012 Montoya Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

2011 Elyse Zinfandel Morisoli Vineyard

NV Austin Hope Troublemaker Blend 9

André Delorme Crémant de Bourgogne Terroir D’ Exception

2011 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée

2012 Louis Chavy Pinot Noir Bourgogne

 

 

 

2012 Montoya Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley – $17.99

I don’t know much about the winery.  How many wineries have a total lack of any online presence?  I was able to figure out the winery is on the Silverado Trail in St Helena, but not much more than that.  What I do know is this wine is a $20 Napa Cab at Total Wine.  Using one of their frequent 20% off e-mail coupons means this is an $18 Napa Cab.  I’ve had this wine in the past and it (as well as their Pinot Noir) are perfect wines for a week night dinner without requiring breaking the kids’ piggy bank.

 

This has 13.5% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork.

 

The wine is a medium ruby red color.  The inviting nose has cherries, dusty minerals, cedar, licorice, baking spices and wild flowers.  This has medium body with moderate tannins and nice acidity.  On the palate cherries, minerals and cedar hit on the front end with baking spices coming in later.  The finish adds a floral note to go with the cherries, spices and minerals.  Even though this wine doesn’t offer much complexity it is an easy drinking, food friendly Cab for a casual week night dinner.  (87 pts)

 

 

2011 Elyse Zinfandel Morisoli Vineyard – $16.01

This was another “steal” from Last Bottle wines, my favorite “flash” wine site.  If you use the provided link and sign up, we both get a credit to our accounts after your first purchase.  Check them out, they have awesome deals and their Marathons are always something special.

 

This wine has 14.4% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork.

 

The wine is a deep maroon color.  The captivating nose has brambly berries, black peppercorns, dusty minerals, scorched earth, baking spices, dark chocolate, cherries, violets and just a hint of roasted leafy herbs.  This has medium body with moderate tannins and very nice acidity.  On the palate brambly berries, baking spices and dusty minerals immediately jump out with spicy oak, black pepper and cherries coming in later.  The finish has nice length with some subtle earthiness joining a floral note and dark chocolate to add solid depth.  This is a well balanced, food friendly Zinfandel to enjoy over the remainder of the decade.  (91 pts)

 

 

NV Austin Hope Troublemaker Blend 9 – $8.50

I grabbed a couple bottles of this one when the Fresh Market had it for buy one, get one free sale.  I had an

 

The wine is a deep maroon color.  The easy-going nose has blackberries, cherries, roasted herbs, underbrush, licorice, black pepper and wild flowers.  This has medium to full body soft tannins and decent acidity.  On the palate waves of berries and cherries roll through with roasted herbs and black pepper coming through on the back end.  The finish had nice length with some earthiness and a nice floral note.  This doesn’t off much in the way of complexity and isn’t meant to be stashed away in the cellar.  Open a bottle with friends with a nice platter of finger food and enjoy.  (87 pts)

 

 

André Delorme Crémant de Bourgogne Terroir D’ Exception – $14.99

I added a couple bottles of this sparkling wine to fill up a case from the web based Invino site.

 

This has 12% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a standard sparkling wine cork.

 

The wine is a light golden straw color with pinpoint sized bubbles.  The refreshing nose has apples, lemon zest, orange blossoms and fresh bread.  This shows just a touch of sweetness but has plenty of citrusy acidity to keep it in check.  On the palate tart apples, lemon zest a yeasty bread grab your attention with a hint of orange blossom coming in on the lingering finish.  Not a ton of complexity but this was easy to enjoy on a warm January afternoon with a light lunch on the deck.  (87 pts)

 

 

 

2011 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée – $35.50

This has 14% alcohol by volume and is sealed with a natural cork.

 

The wine is a deep maroon color.  The hypnotic nose is full of crushed berries, tobacco, crushed stones, black pepper, violets, dried leafy herbs, violets and licorice.  This has medium body with moderate tannins and good acidity.  On the palate berries, crushed stones, tobacco and black pepper take control early with dried herbs and flowers coming in later.  The finish has great length with melted licorice joining the party.  This is drinking very nicely already with some air.  (93 pts)

 

 

2012 Louis Chavy Pinot Noir Bourgogne – $15.99

The wine is a bright garnet color.  The inviting nose has cherries, baking spices, damp underbrush, roasted leafy herbs and strawberry.  This is barely medium body with soft, silky tannins and nice acidity.  On the palate tart cherries and baking spices quickly take control slowly allowing damp earth and underbrush to slip in on the back end.  The finish has good length with roasted herbs and strawberries joining the tart cherries and spice.  This doesn’t offer much complexity but for the price this is a great value especially with a midweek meal.  (89 pts)

 

 

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Notes – I use the “official” Cellar Tracker name for the wines.  I use Cellar Tracker to help manage and organize my cellar.  I highly recommend checking it out at www.cellartracker.com.  Loading you existing cellar is a lot less intimidating than it would first appear.  There is a good chance 99% of your wine is already in the system, so you generally only need to enter part of the wine’s name and the system will find it for you.

 

 

Prices noted are the prices I paid at the time of purchase.  I don’t shop around to find the best prices, but always check out the sale and close out items when in a store.  Wines purchased direct from a winery do not include any shipping charges.  None of the prices include the sales tax.

 

 

All wines that were sent to me free of charge to sample will be noted and I will show suggested prices when available.

 

 

 

Cheers!