Cliff's Wine Picks

 

2003 Chateau Pontet-Canet

2007 Diebolt-Vallois Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut

2013 Westerhold Family Vineyards Pinot Noir Westerhold Vineyard

2012 Carlisle Zinfandel Sonoma County

2012 Miner Family Grenache Hudson Vineyard

2010 Tenuta Carretta Roero Bric Paradiso

 

 

It has been a while since I have been able to post a blog.  There was an extended medical issue for a family member that required 24/7 support.  This issue consumed almost all my free time from early January through the end of July.  It took another month to get everything ironed out and try to settle back into the old routine.  Hopefully I will be able to get back on a posting schedule.  I have a couple blogs just about ready to go and have tasting notes from a couple of online tastings I have to enter.

 

 

 

2003 Chateau Pontet-Canet – $59.99

I attended a tasting of 2003 Bordeaux wines at a local wine store several years ago.  Even though I liked Bordeaux wines, I wasn’t all that experienced tasting these wines soon after release when they are generally still very tight and unyielding.  A few of the wines poured were so tight it was hard to get them to reveal very much with the usual small pours at this type of event.  That said, this wine was very tight but you could easily taste the power and depth on the palate.  It was a very easy decision to grab several bottles to stash in the cellar.

 

Winery history

Jean-François de Pontet, royal governor of the Médoc, combined several vineyard plots in Pauillac in the early 18th century.  Years later, his descendants added neighbouring vines in a place named Canet.  This was the beginning of one of the largest estates in the Médoc, which quite naturally added the name of its founder to that of the land registry reference.

 

A century later, Pontet-Canet was included in the famous 1855 classification, thereby confirming its membership among the elite of the Médoc.  This privileged position did not go unnoticed by one of the most important Bordeaux shippers of the time, Herman Cruse, who bought the estate in 1865.  He built new cellars, modernised the winemaking facilities, and established the wine’s reputation around the world.  The Cruse family owned Pontet-Canet for 110 years, until another shipper (from Cognac this time), Guy Tesseron, acquired it in 1975.

 

Over two centuries Pontet-Canet has been owned by three different families.  Today it is run by Alfred Tesseron with his niece Melanie (daughter of Gerard Tesseron) who is the descendant of Guy Tesseron.  Thirty years after their arrival in Pauillac the Tesseron have the satisfaction of knowing that they have gradually replanted some of the vineyard and renovated the buildings and the wine making facilities.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a deep ruby color.  The spellbinding nose has cassis, cigar box, mint, dried herbs, minerals, warm baking spices, vanilla, well worn leather and a bit of earthiness.  This is a wine you can sit and smell for hours and “almost” be satisfied.  This has medium body, fairly solid tannins and very nice acidity.  The palate features spicy fruit with touches of oak, dried herbs and some subtle earthiness.  The finish is extremely long and full of fruit, spice and some oak, which is still noticeable but not obtrusive.  This still seems very young but with some air, it rounded into shape very nicely.  This is very drinkable and enjoyable right now but there is absolutely no hurry with this one, it will last and improve for a few decades.  This has 13% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork.  (96 pts)

 

 

2007 Diebolt-Vallois Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut – $45.45

This was another “steal” from Last Bottle wines, my favorite “flash” wine site.  If you use the provided link and sign up, you get an immediate $10 credit and I get a credit if/when you make a purchase.  Check them out, they have awesome deals and their Marathons are always something special.

 

This 100% Chardonnay is only produced when the quality of the grapes is good enough.  It looks like that happened only 6 times since 1999.

 

The wine is a light straw yellow color with a very persistent, steady stream of pinpoint sized bubbles.  The very appealing nose has pears, lemon curd, yeasty bread, white peach, minerals, shaved almonds and orange blossoms.  This has light body with great effervescence and tart acidity.  On the palate tart pears, lemon curd and minerals quickly take control eventually allowing yeasty bread, white peach and shaved almonds to enter the picture on the back end.  The finish has great length with zippy lemon zest leaving your mouth watering for another sip.  This tastes great now but I don’t plan on opening another bottle for a few years.  I think some cellar time will allow the acidity to integrate and additional nuances to develop.  This has 12.5% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a standard Champagne cork.  (94 pts)

 

 

2013 Westerhold Family Vineyards Pinot Noir Westerhold Vineyard – $30

I have been a big fan of the winery’s Syrah for several years but I hadn’t had the opportunity to try their Pinot Noir.  Last year the winery had a “holiday sale” so I was able to grab several bottles to try.  The winemaker is the renowned Russell Bevan.

 

The wine is a deep garnet color.  The expressive nose has black cherries, forest floor, spicy oak, crushed stone minerals, baking spices, charred wood, white pepper and dried wild flowers.  This has a full body with moderate tannins and nice acidity.  On the palate black cherries, spicy oak and baking spices come through on the front end with forest floor and charred wood coming in on the back end.  The finish has nice length with a dried floral note providing depth.  This comes across as a bit oaky at this time but some additional cellar time may help it integrate since this has good “stuffing”.  As is, this is a tasty, bigger boned Pinot Noir that may not appeal to anyone looking for a Burgundian styled wine but if you want a big, rich Pinot, look no further.  This has 14.8% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork.  (90 pts)

 

 

2012 Carlisle Zinfandel Sonoma County – $19.50

This wine is a Zinfandel based blend from several regions and vineyards in Sonoma County.

This is a bit confusing, but here is a breakdown of the grape sources:

28% Zinfandel from the Rossi Ranch

28% of the grapes are from Rowe Vineyard, Zinfandel (74%), Petite Sirah (16%), Syrah (8%), and Other (2%)

19% Zinfandel from Banfield Ranch in the Russian River Valley

10% are from Montafi Ranch in the Russian River Valley ( 89% Zinfandel and 11% Mixed Blacks)

8% Sonoma Valley Petite Sirah from Rossi Ranch

5% are from Sodini Vineyard in the Russian River Valley (95% Zinfandel and 5% Mixed Blacks)

2% Russian River Valley Mixed Blacks (Alicante Bouschet, Grand Noir, Petit Bouschet) from Saitone Ranch

 

There were 986 cases produced

 

The wine is a deep ruby to purple color.  The elegant nose has brambly berries, black cherries, black peppercorns, warm baking spices, dry underbrush and dried wildflowers.  This has medium to full body with moderate tannins and very nice acidity.  On the palate tart berries, black cherries, black peppercorns and baking spices come through on the front end with dry underbrush coming through on the back end.  The finish has good length with a nice dried floral note providing depth.  This is a very civilized and balanced Zinfandel that doesn’t push the ripeness.  How can this wine be under $20?  Very impressive wine that still has years of life.  This has 14.8% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork.  (92 pts)

 

 

2012 Miner Family Grenache Hudson Vineyard – $17.91

This was another “steal” from Last Bottle wines, my favorite “flash” wine site.  If you use the provided link and sign up, you get an immediate $10 credit and I get a credit if/when you make a purchase.  Check them out, they have awesome deals and their Marathons are always something special.  This wine had a suggested price of $34 so the Last Bottle price was about 50% off.

 

This wine was produced as a “wine club exclusive” by the winery.

 

This is 100% Grenache from the Hudson Vineyard in Carneros, Napa Valley.  The wine was aged for 6 Months in Neutral French Oak.  480 cases were produced.

 

The wine is a light to medium ruby red color.  The slightly shy nose has cherries, dusty minerals, white pepper, dried flowers, plums and baking spices.  This is barely medium body with moderate tannins and good acidity.  This is much more open on the palate than it was on the nose with spicy, tart cherries, white pepper and dusty minerals with dried flowers and plums coming in on the back end.  The finish has nice length with cherries and white pepper holding down the fort.  Not your typical, push the ripeness limit, California Grenache.  This has nice balance and finesse.  This has 14.3% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork.  (89 pts)

 

 

2010 Tenuta Carretta Roero Bric Paradiso – $19.13

This was another “steal” from Last Bottle wines, my favorite “flash” wine site.  If you use the provided link and sign up, you get an immediate $10 credit and I get a credit if/when you make a purchase.  Check them out, they have awesome deals and their Marathons are always something special.

 

This wine is 100% Nebbiolo that was aged 18 months in small oak casks before bottling and another 3 months of bottle age before release.

 

The wine is a deep garnet color.  The enticing nose has black cherries, tobacco, wild flowers, dusty minerals, dry underbrush, dark chocolate and baking spices.  This has medium body with moderate to solid tannins and very good acidity.  On the palate tart cherries, minerals and underbrush lead off with wild flowers and baking spices coming in later.  The finish has good length with dark chocolate and more wild flowers providing great depth.  This is on the young side but is already very tasty.  This has 14.0% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork.  (92 pts)

 

 

 

I am a big fan of the “Flash Wine Sale” site Last Bottle.  You probably noticed some of the wines in this post were purchased from the site.  All of these wines were purchased at a big discount.  I highly recommend getting on their e-mail list.  Like most of the flash sale sites, they offer one wine per day until it sells out.  They also have a couple two-day marathons during the year.  Last Bottle is a great site to buy special wines at prices low enough to open any day of the week.

 

If you sign up using this link you will get a $10 credit that can be used on your first purchase.  I will also get a credit if you make a purchase.

 

Other than getting a credit as explained above, I have no financial interest in the site.  After you are on the list, you can also get the same credit by introducing friends to Last Bottle.

 

 

 

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You can follow me on Twitter for more wine info, potential food pairings, and an occasional recipe or two.  Be warned, I’m also a sports fan and there are occasional Pittsburgh Penguins, Steelers, and Pirates tweets.  I attended the University of South Carolina, so during football season, there will also be some Gamecock posts.

 

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Cheers!

 

 

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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!