2003 Georges Dubœuf Moulin-à-Vent Prestige – $12.74

 

My comments

Conventional wisdom says this wine should be dead.  I keep my cellar pretty cold, generally 50 to 52 degrees, which usually adds some time to a wine’s life.  I bought and drank a ton of the 2003 Beaujolais wines but purposely saved a few bottles to experiment with how they would age.  This wine was aged in 100% new oak, so I felt it would have the best shot at outlasting the normal life span.

 

Winery history (courtesy of wine.com)

For over 40 years Georges Duboeuf has been the Beaujolais region’s most renowned négociant and is today regarded in the wine world as the “King of Beaujolais.” Born in 1933 in Pouilly-Fuissé, the son of a winegrower, Georges began selling his family’s wines from the back of his bicycle to now-legendary local chefs such as Paul Bocuse and Paul Blanc. In 1964, Georges realized his dream and founded his own company: Les Vins Georges Duboeuf.

Over the years, Georges has developed long-standing relationships with the region’s top growers and winemakers. Georges is involved in every aspect of his enterprise and is known for his passion and his legendary palate. In 2003, the Duboeuf family opened a new, modern winery in Romanéche-Thorins. The following year, the Duboeuf and Deutsch families jointly purchased Château des Capitans in Juliénas. With annual sales of 30 million bottles, Georges Duboeuf is one of the world’s best-known French brands.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine was a dull, light to medium ruby color with a fair amount of brick.  The exotic nose had raspberries, black cherries, sandalwood, warm baking spices, dried flowers, and just a touch of underbrush.  This is barely medium body with fully integrated tannins and good acidity.  On the palate the wine gives a quick burst of red to black fruit then slowly transforms to the more savory elements.  The finish is the opposite of the palate, the savory elements slowly fade leaving some nice black cherry and spice.  Have to say this is the first time I’ve had a 9 year old Beaujolais, but based on this bottle, I have no fear letting a few bottle lay for a couple extra years.  (91 pts)

 

 

2007 Nine Stones Shiraz Hilltops – $12.34

 

My comments

We generally like a nice, civilized Australian Shiraz.  We generally avoid the ones that are off dry,  have raisiny notes, or very soft acidity.  I grabbed a couple bottles of this wine since, based on some notes I had ready, it didn’t fall into any of the categories to avoid.

 

Winery history

Both the winery principals are of Celtic origin and deeply interested in their heritage. When the opportunity to create a wine brand based on this common ancestry presented itself, they named it “Nine Stones”. The Celts left many groups of standing stones including Stonehenge. These standing stones or Druids Circles are believed to have been tribal meeting places. They are circular in aspect for amongst all the Celtic tribes the wheel is the symbol of the Sky-God. Nine is the number of planets thus nine and its derivatives are “lucky” numbers. The stones were also thought to shimmer or dance in the heat on noon and hence “noon” or nine stones. Groups of nine standing stones exist in Devon, Derbyshire, Dorset and Cornwall, as well as at Aberdeenshire in Scotland and Count Carlow in Ireland.

 

This regional range of wines is made from grapes grown in the highest quality regions of South Eastern Australia. Since Colonial Times most grapes were used to make fortified wine, such plantings being principally in hot climates. A renewed interest in table wines began in the 1980’s and has accelerated since, resulting in increased planting in cooler climate areas. Provided careful site selection is practiced, wines from cool climate wines have more interesting flavours and are better structured than those made from grapes grown in hot regions.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a medium to dark maroon color.  The inviting nose has cherries, baking spices, blackberries, licorice, with lesser amounts of vanilla and dried herbs and a touch of earthiness.  This is medium bodied with soft, ripe tannins and good acidity.  The palate has nice jammy fruit with spices and a touch of black pepper.  The finish had nice length and again is fruit driven with spices, pepper, and just a touch of earthiness.  Not the most complex Shiraz out there but it is a tasty week night Shiraz.  (88 pts)

 

 

 

2009 Copain Pinot Noir Tous Ensemble – $25.00

 

My comments

I’ve slowed down my Copain purchases over the last couple of years, but I’m still a big fan of their “Tous Ensemble” wines.  To me, the Pinot Noir, Syrah, and Rosé all have quality that greatly exceeds their price points.  This has been a consistently good $25 Anderson Valley Pinot that is comparable to $40 or higher wines from the area.

 

Winery history

Wells Guthrie discovered early on that his taste in wine gravitated toward Europe in general and France’s RhôneValley in particular. So much so, he picked up and moved with his new bride to the region to learn from the best. For two years, Wells apprenticed for esteemed winemaker and living legend Michel Chapoutier in France’s RhoneValley. During that time, Wells was deeply inspired by the traditions and practices of French winemaking, not to mention the European attitude that wine is an essential part of life. At Copain, he creates wines that are firmly rooted in California, yet with the sensibilities of the European wines that so moved him. He is as committed to crafting these elegant, nuanced wines as he is to building a legacy that will be passed down to his daughters in the great tradition of European winemakers whose estates have been in the same family for generations.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a light to medium ruby color.  The sexy nose has cherries, baking spices, raspberry, with a touch or earthiness and a slight herbal note.  This is medium body with soft, ripe tannins and good acidity.  The palate has nice, sweet, juicy cherries complimented by spices, earthiness, and the herbal elements.  The finish has decent length and shows a touch of spicy oak.  A very nice everyday Pinot that could use a bit more complexity to reach the next level.  (90 pts)

 

 

 

2010 Novy Family Wines Zinfandel Russian River Valley – $18.99

 

My comments

I think Novy is greatly under rated as a source of great, value priced Zinfandels.  I love all their wines, but the zins always seem to have that little something extra that is usually found in much more expensive bottles from other producers.  I was able to grab a six pack of this wine for about $19 a bottle.  I had one bottle not long after receiving the wine and though it was good, as expected, it needed some cellar time.  Time to check in again since it has been 8 months.

 

Winery history

We met Dianna Lee at an in store wine tasting here in the Milwaukee area a couple years ago.  While we talked she mentioned going to college in East Texas.  After talking a bit more, it turned out she was in college about a mile from our house while we were living in Nacogdoches, TX.  We were able to talk about having Margaritas in a local Mexican Restaurant.  There’s a good chance we were all enjoying happy hour together, a few tables apart.  Who knows, maybe La Hacienda closed down because they lost all our business when we moved to Milwaukee and Dianna met Adam and moved to wine country.  Truly a small world.

 

For us, the beauty of making our own wine is the total freedom to do it our way, without compromise. Although it is necessary to be able to adapt to new circumstances with each and every vintage, we have found that these principles hold true year after year.

 

We believe that great wine is made in the vineyard. Only with great grapes can we produce great wines. To this end, we purchase the majority of our fruit by the acre rather than by the ton.

We believe in minimal intervention winemaking that promotes, rather than overshadows the work we do in the vineyard.

Most importantly, we believe that wine should be a pleasure to drink. If you don’t like the way a wine tastes, what’s the point? Novy Family wines are made to be enjoyed with good friends and good food.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a medium ruby color.  The classic zinfandel nose has brambly berries, black pepper, licorice, baking spices, and a touch of dark chocolate.  This is medium to full bodied with fairly solid, ripe tannins and great acidity.  On the palate the wine shows nice, juicy, peppery berries and spice with a touch of chocolaty oak in the background.  Nice length on the finish with the pepper and berries slowly giving way to a touch of spicy oak.  Not the most complex zinfandel out there, but this is not a fruit forward, easy drinker.  With the great acidity and tannins, this may age for a few years, but it is delicious today.  (91 pts)

 

 

Mailing Lists

 

Nothing new hit my inbox this week, other than a few tracking notices and reminder of upcoming shipping dates.

 

 

 

Wines bought or received this week

I had to grab three of the WineWoot 4 bottle packs from Core Winery earlier in the week.

 

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

 

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!

 

 

 

 

2004 Elyse Petite Sirah Rutherford – $26.99

 

My comments

Elyse is one of my favorite wineries when it comes to reasonably priced, larger framed, red wines.  Elyse is usually our first stop when we visit wine Napa, and we have been known to stop again before we head home.  We love all their red wines and their Petite Sirahs have always been top notch.  I highly recommend stopping by if you ever find yourself in Napa and want to avoid the usual high traffic areas.  The winery is not far off of Highway 29 just north of the city of Napa before you get to Yountville.   You’ll thank me later.

 

Winery history

NapaValley’s Elyse Winery has two causes for celebration this harvest. In addition to a stellar looking 2012 vintage in NapaValley, it is the 25th harvest for the winery.

 

It was back in 1987 that Ray and Nancy Coursen crushed 4.5 tons of Zinfandel from the Morisoli Vineyard in Rutherford to craft 286 cases of their first wine. While the portfolio has grown over the last 25 years, the focus remains on creating vineyard driven wines that pair well with food. Total production is currently 10,000 cases and the wines are nationally and internationally distributed.

 

My Tasting Note

This was decanted for about an hour.  The wine is a deep, dark, inky purple color.  The big and bold nose has blackberries, fresh ground black pepper, dying embers, licorice, dark chocolate, violets, and a touch of vanilla.  This is full bodied with solid, slightly rustic, mouth coating tannins and good acidity.  The berries, dark chocolate, and pepper grab the palate almost immediately and then the slightly drying tannins kick in, clipping the finish fairly severely.  This still needs some time in the cellar for the tannins to integrate.  If you open a bottle now, give it plenty of air, probably a few hours.  My remaining bottles will sleep for at least another two years, probably longer.  (90 pts, this wine is hard to rate at this point, but I feel it will be 92-94 pts in a couple years)

 

 

 

A quick stop at the local UPS Depot netted me a couple wine samples from Mondavi, a book, salami, recipes and other swag.  These bottles will be featured in a future blog posting, but I don’t think the salami will make it through the weekend, it looks good!

 

 

 

1996 Klein aux Vieux Remparts Riesling Burgreben Alsace – $18.93

 

My comments

Another bottle from my stash of aged Rieslings.  This one is from the Alsace region in France.  I had a bottle several months ago and with a touch of air and warming up a bit, it was outstanding.  I may give it a quick decant to help it shake off the cobwebs and warm it up a touch since that helped last bottle.  We love older Rieslings, but I have far more experience with ones from Germany.

 

Winery history

I couldn’t find too much information on the winery to do with their history.

 

For your reading pleasure, here is a write up from Jon Rimmerman of Garagiste on this wine:

 

When we get a chance to acquire a wine with this age and this level of provenance we jump in head first.

 

It’s not often you get the opportunity to acquire cellar stock from a decade ago, nearing its peak drinking window – especially from Alsace. This wine is going to blow people out of their socks (well, not literally but you know what I mean)…

 

I originally inquired about this wine after tasting it at a dinner last winter in Strasbourg where a local collector was trying to showcase the best unknown producers in Alsace. I couldn’t find any at the winery but I found a few bottles at a local retailer and was told he had access to three more cases that were lying in the winery cellar as a library release. I inquired again at the winery and due to persistence was told there were “a few cases” but no more. I visited, tasted the wine again and walked through the cellar where I found a stash of this, unlabeled and full of the typical dust and mold one finds in decade-old bottles resting in a cave. I asked if indeed there were more than “a few” cases available and indeed there were (remember, this started as “nothing available”, “a few” and now “more than a few” – such is the nature of my job, gentle prodding that can seem determined to many Europeans but the results are in your cellar).

 

Hand-picked and hand made, this is an esoteric bottle of wine that contains a mystery of flavor and stony but honeyed Riesling fruit that is strong but medium in weight and beautifully balanced. It is just starting to mature and open and its best days are well ahead of it. Klein is known to have some of the longest-lived examples in Alsace (even the Trimbachs are fans) and 1980s examples are still going strong (even an early 1990s Muscat tasted was magical). The Klein Burgreben reminds me of a junior version of Boxler’s Riesling “Brand” from the 1996 vintage (or even Tempe’s 1998 Burgreben which is quite close) and I liken this offer to one of the Schloss Schonborn deals we had over the winter – cellar stock that is in absolutely pristine condition.

 

While we have the opportunity, I urge you to partake of this shimmering, lightly golden elixir – it’s just a great bottle of terroir-focussed Riesling (this time dry), directly from the winery cellar and never moved since bottling. The wine was just labeled on your behalf a week ago and sent on its way to us. For this price it makes a mockery of many of the world’s current Riesling release offers.

 

My Tasting Note

This is much better at a slightly warmer temperature.  This is a light golden yellow color.  The fresh smelling nose has apples, lime zest, pears, petrol, minerals, and orange blossoms.  This is dry with light body and tart, citrusy acidity.  The wine’s finish has very good length with loads of minerals and citrus zest.  Drinking very nicely today, but no real hurry on this one, it should hold a few more years in the cellar.  (89 pts)

 

 

 

2007 Keplinger Grenache Red Slope Knights Valley – $50.00

 

My comments

This is another mailing list only wine that I was fortunate to join before they started getting high scores from the wine publications.  The “rock star” winemaker, Helen Keplinger is now the winemaker for the “cult” winery, Bryant Family, which appeared to be a bit outside of her normal “comfort zone” since she made her name and honed her talents working mainly with the Rhone varietals.  I bought several bottles of this wine, but have been patient long enough, one gets popped tonight.

 

Winery history (actually Winemaker background)

I always had an intense curiosity for science, a huge appreciation of art, and a gravitation toward and revitalization in nature – all which dynamically come together in winemaking. In 1998, I moved to California to attend the MS program in Enology at UCDavis.

 

After Davis, I worked with Heidi Barrett, Kathy Joseph, consultant Claude Gros, and David Abreu. Since 2004, I have been the winemaker for some exciting projects, including Cellers Melis (Priorat), Kenzo Estate, FortRoss, Sarocka, Scully, and Arrow & Branch. I am currently focused solely on Keplinger Wines and Bryant Family Vineyards.

 

My Tasting Note

This is a medium to dark violet color.  The wine has an enticing nose with raspberry, strawberry, olives, minerals, wild flowers, roasted meat, fresh brewed tea, dried herbs and spices.  This is fairly full bodied with solid, slightly drying tannins and very nice acidity.  The palate features nice, savory tinged fruit in the front with dried herbs and a touch of spicy oak in the background.  Very nice length on the finish which leans very heavily on the dried herbs and spices.  Don’t open this looking for an easy drinking, fruit forward wine.  This is very serious and in need of a couple more years in the cellar.  (93 pts)

 

About a half bottle was recorked and left on the counter.  The next day the tannins had integrated and lost the dryness.  The fruit has also come to the forefront and has pushed the still present savory notes into the background.  The wine is now much smoother and polished.  Leave these in the cellar of give them a ton of air.

 

 

 

2003 Les Hauts de Pontet-Canet – $29.99

 

My comments

I’m in the mood for a nice Bordeaux.  I saw my stack of 2003 Pontet-Canet but decided it was WAY too early to open one of them.  Then I remembered I grabbed a few of this, their second wine.  This should be at least getting close to a nice drinking window, so one get opened later today.  I’ll probably open the bottle later and decide if it needs decanted or if it’s ready to rock.

 

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

This was decanted for about an hour and a half.  The wine is a medium ruby color, much lighter at the edge.  The very nice nose has cassis, spice box, minerals, dried herbs, graphite, leather, some earthy underbrush, and a touch of cherry.  This is medium bodied with fairly solid, ripe tannins and very nice acidity.  Nice length on the finish which features the dried herbs, and spices, with the fruit leaning more towards cherry than cassis.  Still a bit young, but outstanding for a second label.  (91 pts)

 

 

 Mailing Lists

 

The mailing list season is just about over.  There may be a few stragglers or lists that are looking to move a few less popular bottles, but for most of us, it’s “Shipping Season”.  Shipping Season is that glorious time of the year where generic cardboard boxes arrive, and like kids at Christmas, we rip into the boxes.

 

 

 

Wines bought or received this week

 

 

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

 

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!

 

 

 

 

2005 Lyrique Syrah Watch Hill Vineyard Santa Barbara County – $17.25

 

My comments

This was a find via Garagiste a few years ago.  Unfortunately the couple bottles I had disappeared fairly fast.  It looks like the winery is no longer around, since I can’t find any bottles from them on Cellar Tracker later than 2007.  Based on this wine, the winery seemed to have a bright future.  Luckily, I was able to find a few more bottles a year ago via Wine Bid.

 

Winery history

Adding to my presumption that the winery is no longer in business, their website no longer exists.

 

Here’s a bit of Jon Rimmerman’s spiel from his Garagiste Offering:

The winery’s motto pretty much says it all: “Lyrique is a family owned company dedicated to fine wine, great music, and good friends”. Lyrique is the result of a vision to make the finest Syrah in the United States – to take what the climate provides (impact with high sugar and extract ratios) and to allow the wine to express itself without over-doing any one element (in a similar way to 2004/2005 Mount Langi Blue Label). They only make one wine at Lyrique (this one) and the fruit is from a superb little source in the Watch Hill vineyard. The result of this first release was so successful they’ve gone to the trouble of commissioning Susan Dysinger to produce a one-off print for the label (entitled “Speckled Red”) to make it extra-special.

 

The 2005 Lyrique is full of electricity, excitement, and eurhythmic structure (not Annie Lenox, the actual word) and it intrigues from the first sniff. Believe me, I was skeptical about this as my snobby anti-California reputation was at stake but I just couldn’t help being seduced by its cashmere charms. The above referenced spice-toned aromatics grab the taster with a pure, bright red varietal nature that is not the norm in Syrah from this area. While certainly extracted and large-scaled, it is also refined, promising and discreet as only the best wines are. Charles Atlas meets Twiggy? In the best sense of course.

 

From the Winery: “Lyrique has a wonderful, velvety mouthfeel. It has the blackberry and cassis fruitiness characteristic of Syrah, with a hint of dark chocolate, espresso and a long white pepper finish. This is a smooth, concentrated wine that has the chops to balance out the oak and alcohol” – I couldn’t have said it better.

 

My Tasting Note

This is a deep, dark maroon color.  The wine has an intense nose with crushed berries, smoked meat, dark chocolate, dying charcoal embers, pepper, melted licorice, with some scorched earth and a floral in the background.  This is fairly full bodied with ripe, integrated tannins and nice acidity.  This is big, ripe, and rich on the palate with the spicy, smoked meat and juicy berries melding into a delicious and satisfying mouthful of pleasure.  The wine has a fairly long finish leaning heavily on the berries and dark chocolate.  This is delicious stuff.  Absolutely no rough edges.  This won’t improve with additional cellar time, but should hold for another year or two.  (93 pts)

 

 

 

2007 Calistoga Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon – $14.99

 

My comments

I don’t remember buying this bottle, but it some how found its way into my wine cellar.  We’re enjoying one of the last few nice days before our weather takes a turn for the worse. We’ll be firing up the grill and having juicy cheeseburgers for dinner, sounds like a perfect time to give this one a shot.

 

Winery history

In July 1996, Roger Louer and several of his best friends bought 11 acres of vineyards in NapaValley, near Calistoga, along with the Blossom Creek Cottage. Originally, there was no plan to create a winery. But after a few years of selling grapes to some of Napa’s top wineries, they decided to take the plunge into the winemaking world.

 

Roger writes: “Friends from around the Country would come visit my wife and me, stay in the Blossom Creek cottage, and begin to become emotionally invested in what we were doing. So I thought, why not invite our friends to become part of the winemaking process, and make them partial owners?

 

Sharing that process with our friends has been the key to our success. With partners all over the country, we have ambassadors in many major US markets. They help gain recognition for the brand by introducing it to their favorite retailers, restaurants, and distributors in their own backyards. This grass roots approach has been crucial to our growth, since national marketing on this level is often too exhausting or expensive for young wineries.”

 

In 1995, the Blossom Creek Cottage was featured in the Hollywood romantic comedy “Nine Months” with Hugh Grant and Julianne Moore. The Blossom Creek Cottage has become the soul of Calistoga Cellars, where the partners gather several times a year to share ideas, wine, and meals while overlooking their vineyard.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a shade or two darker than ruby in color.  This has cassis, tobacco, dried herbs, leather, plum, and a bit of cherry on the very nice nose.  The wine has medium body with ripe, integrated tannins and nice acidity.  On the palate the wine has nice cassis and dried herbs with a touch of spicy oak adding depth.  Decent length on the finish with again shows the cassis and spicy oak.  A pretty nice week night cab with grilled burgers, but not one to pull out with a great steak.  Drink over the next year or two.  (88 pts)

 

 

 

2009 Loring Wine Company Pinot Noir Santa Rita Hills – $24.00

 

My comments

In my opinion, the Loring appellation wines are some of the best bargains out there when it comes to quality California Pinot Noir.  The Loring appellation wines are, at least to me, dialed down a notch compared to their single vineyard siblings.  This and the lower prices, under $25 make them a nice way to kick up a week night dinner several notches without breaking the bank.

 

Winery history

My philosophy on making wine is that the fruit is EVERYTHING. What happens in the vineyard determines the quality of the wine – I can’t make it better – I can only screw it up! That’s why I’m extremely picky when choosing vineyards to buy grapes from. Not only am I looking for the right soil, micro-climate, and clones, I’m also looking for a grower with the same passion and dedication to producing great wine that I have. In other words, a total Pinot Freak! My part in the vineyard equation is to throw heaping piles of money at the vineyard owners (so that they can limit yields and still make a profit) and then stay out of the way! Since most, if not all of the growers keep some fruit to make their own wine, I tell them to farm my acre(s) the same way they do theirs – since they’ll obviously be doing whatever is necessary to get the best possible fruit. One of the most important decisions made in the vineyard is when to pick. Some people go by the numbers (brix, pH, TA, etc) and some go by taste. Once again, I trust the decision to the vineyard people. The day they pick the fruit for their wine is the day I’m there with a truck to pick mine. Given this approach, the wine that I produce is as much a reflection of the vineyard owner as it is of my winemaking skills. I figure that I’m extending the concept of terroir a bit to include the vineyard owner/manager… but it seems to make sense to me. The added benefit is that I’ll be producing a wide variety of Pinots. It’d be boring if everything I made tasted the same.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a deep ruby color, but not so saturated that it is opaque.  The very sexy and open nose has raspberries, black cherries, cola, baking spices, vanilla, smoke, wild flowers, and a bit of white pepper, earthiness, and an herbal note.  This has a medium body and very nice acidity.  On the palate the wine shows juicy, spicy berries, and just a hint of an herbal element that adds to the taste in a positive way.  On the fairly long finish the juicy berries pick up a touch of white pepper.  This is an very good wine and a great value for under $25.  (91 pts)

 

 

 

2002 Graeser Cabernet Franc Estate Grown Diamond Mountain – $27.00

 

My comments

This winery used to be one of our favorite stops when we made it to wine country.  The winery was a small complex just off of Petrified Forest Road just west of Calistoga.  Unfortunately, the winery went through some financial troubles a few years back and went out of business.  To me, they made some of the best Cabernet Franc in the valley.

 

Winery history

Like I stated above, the winery went out of business a couple of years ago.  Now that some of the dust and fallout has settled, I’ve heard from the owner that he’s going to attempt to get back into the business, at least in a small way.  I paid for a case of his 2007 Cabernet Franc in 2009 and have not received it yet, so he doesn’t have my support.  I should add that supposedly, he pulled a case of the wine from his personal stash and it should ship to me in a little over a week.  If I do in fact receive the wine, my harsh judgment of the winery may soften, but I will not be placing any case orders.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a deep ruby color.  The wine has cassis, dried herbs, violets, minerals, tobacco, licorice, and a touch of cedar on the very elegant nose.  This is medium body with a nice tannic backbone and very good acidity.  On the palate the wine has berries with a real nice overlay of dried herbs and just a touch of spicy oak.  Fairly long finish with the berries and dried herbs lingering nicely.  This still tastes like a youngster so I’m in no hurry to open my remaining bottles.  (92 pts)

 

 

 

Mailing Lists

 

 

Rudius

I’ve been on the Rudius mailing list since the beginning.  Rudius is Jeff and Brittany Ames.  Jeff’s name may not ring a bell, but here’s a bit of his bio:

In 2001 Jeff became Thomas Brown’s assistant winemaker at brands including Schrader, Maybach, Outpost, and Tor.  Two years later, Jeff was named the head winemaker at Tor, a position he still commands.   Rudius is the culmination of Jeff’s goal of owning his own wine brand.

 

I have purchased a fair amount of Jeff’s wines and every one that I have opened has been outstanding.  I have had several of his cabernets and wines made by the Rhone varietals.  I highly recommend the Rudius mailing list.  More information about Jeff and Brittany, Rudius, and most importantly a link to join the mailing list is available on their site.  Visit http://www.rudiuswines.com/

 

 

Loring Wine Company

I’ve been on the Loring mailing list for several years.  This is one of the lists that I always buy from without hesitation.  The best part of the Loring list is that they offer a few of their wines each release in 375ml, “half bottles”.  These are perfect for us, allowing my wife to have a “tasty Pinot” when I am traveling.  These are also perfect for us to have just one glass each in the evening when the urge hits us.

 

 

Herman Story

I’m not on the Herman Story mailing list, but a friend who is on the list shares some of his allocation with me.  These are big, ripe, bold wines and every once in a while that’s what I get in the mood for.  These wines aren’t for Francophiles.  If my friend wasn’t on the list, I’d join.  If you like that style of wine as much as I do, I highly recommend checking them out, perhaps you can get something from the just released offerings.  Visit http://hermanstorywines.com/ for more information.

 

 

Wines bought or received this week

(3) 2011 Loring Pinot Noir Rosella’s Vineyard for $48 a bottle from the winery

(6) 2011 Loring Pinot Noir Garys’ Vineyard(375ml) for $25 a bottle from the winery

(3) 2011 Loring Pinot Noir Keefer Ranch Vineyard(375ml) for $25 a bottle from the winery

 

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

 

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!

 

 

 

 

2005 Austin Hope Syrah Hope Family Vineyard – $18.99

 

My comments

This has been a “house favorite” since I snagged several bottles at the local store at an end of vintage blow out.  Not a lot of subtlety here, but like I’ve said in the past, some time I like a big, in your face wine, especially on a Friday.  It’s a nice way to help kick into “weekend mode”.

 

Winery history

The Hope family has been farming in Paso Robles for more than 30 years. When they arrived in this barely discovered region, they planted apples and grapes. Little did they know that the rolling, oak-studded terrain of Paso Robles would one day become viticultural terroir of significance and one of the top winegrowing regions for quality red wine within the CentralCoast.

 

Gone are the apple orchards. Today, the Hopes cultivate mature vineyards of the varieties best suited to their area including Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot, Mourvedre and Grenache. Vine density has increased and each vine is asked to produce very little fruit. The terroir of this domain expresses itself in its unique regional character. Regardless of the varieties planted, the expression of Paso Robles is displayed in the glass with spice, licorice and berry in the nose, soft textures and silky tannins on the palate.

 

Hope Family Wines consists of five individual brands: LibertySchool, Treana, Candor, Austin Hope, Troublemaker.

 

 

A fantastic parody of The Office made by the winery is here http://www.youtube.com/v/0_zr4J75_Kk&rel=0&autoplay=1

 

My Tasting Note

This is a deep, dark, ruby to maroon color.  The intoxicating nose has blackberries, cedar, licorice, minerals, black pepper, blueberries, violets, with hints of smoked meat and dark chocolate.  The wine if full bodied with fairly solid, velvety tannins and nice acidity.  There are rich, peppery berries on the palate with some black cherry and dark chocolate adding depth.  The finish is fairly long with the dark chocolate and berries carrying the load.  Not a lot of subtlety but very tasty.  (92 pts)

 

 

 

2006 Alma Rosa Pinot Blanc Santa Rita Hills – $5.00

 

My comments

This was on a super blow out sale at the local store.  Supposedly, this were lost in a warehouse somewhere and recently found.  I didn’t have high expectations in a six year old, appellation Pinot Blanc, but had to try it out.

 

Winery history

Richard Sanford came to the Santa Ynez Valley 40 years ago with the desire to create wines that would rival the best of France. First to recognize the potential of the Santa Rita Hills (now an officially accredited American Viticultural Area as Sta. Rita Hills), and first to plant Pinot Noir vines there, Richard is a pioneer with a well established reputation for excellence in winemaking.

 

Working in partnership for more than 30 years, Thekla and Richard Sanford founded multiple, successful winegrowing enterprises. Their latest venture, Alma Rosa Winery & Vineyards, represents the culmination of a lifetime’s experience – an enterprise dedicated to creating high quality wines and setting a benchmark for organic farming, sustainable agriculture methods, and environment-friendly commerce.

 

The winery, owned by Richard Sanford, dubbed the father of Santa Barbara Pinot Noir and the first to plant the vine there, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on July 27.

 

After nearly a half-century of ups and downs in the wine business, Sanford admitted that he’d rather be riding off into the sunset than trying to save the family farm. “It is true that I have been doing this for 44 years, and Thekla and I were looking forward to having some quiet time,” said Sanford. “But that’s just not possible yet.”

 

My Tasting Note

We sampled the wine at room temperature.  The wine is a light yellow to straw color.  The crisp and fresh smelling nose had lemon curd, apples, orange blossoms, minerals, and with some air a pineapple note came through.  This is light to medium body, dry, and has tart, citrusy, acidity.  This is crisp and clean on the palate with nice fruit and minerals leading the way before lemony acidity kicks in.  Decent length on the finish which again highlights the tart lemons and minerals.  This tastes young, fresh, and vibrant.  I grabbed 6 bottles for $5 each and plan on drinking over the next year.

 

 

 

2010 Villa Creek “White” – $20.80

 

My comments

This is one of our Summer white wines.  I generally split a case between this and the Villa Creek “Pink”.  I feel the wine is good not long after release, but a year in the cellar really gives it the time to open up and taste even better.  I wanted to share a bottle of this with a friend who loves white wines based on the Rhone varietals almost as much as I do.

 

Winery history

In the spirit of the great wine producers of the southern Rhone and the bodegas of Rioja and Priorat, blending is what Villa Creek does best. The area’s finest Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre and Tempranillo Vineyards are just a stone’s throw from the west Paso Robles winery where these blends are lovingly produced by winemaker Cris Cherry and his wife JoAnn.

 

The grapes of the area’s most progressive vineyards, James Berry, Denner, Ohana and Booker, currently grace the wines of Villa Creek Cellars. Per acre contracts insure that the fruit comes off the same blocks each vintage. The Cherry’s own 70 acre estate on the west side of Paso Robles boasts elevations of 1400-1800 feet, calcareous soils, south facing slopes and ample water. In the spring of 2012, the Cherry’s finished planting their first grape vines, 3.5 acres of Grenache. They look forward to planting Mourvèdre and Carignan in the months to come.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a pale golden yellow color. This has hot slate like minerals, white peach, pineapple, apple, lemon zest, and a nice floral note on the fresh, like Summer nose. The wine has medium body with nice crisp acidity. Initially rich and smooth on the palate with luscious, juicy fruit and minerals then the citrusy acidity kicks in leading a fairly long, mouthwatering finish. An excellent, California version of a Rhone white from France. This can be enjoyed over the next few years.  (92 pts)

(This note copied from a bottle I had last month)

 

 

 

2008 Field Stone Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley – $18.99

 

My comments

This was sampled from a nearly full bottle that had been opened about 20 hours earlier for a tasting, but was not needed.  Only a couple of small tastes had been poured before it was recorked and saved at room temperature.

 

Winery history

Field Stone Winery was founded in 1977 with its own celebrated estate vineyards dating back to 1894.  It is owned and operated by John & Katrina Staten and their family.

 

Praised by visitors for its hospitality and unique rustic beauty, the winery is a fascinating, small, underground facility carved into a picturesque oak knoll in the midst of its rolling vineyards in SonomaCounty’s beautiful AlexanderValley.

 

My Tasting Note

From a bottle that had been opened, sampled, and recorked about 20 hours earlier.  The wine is a medium to dark ruby color.  The slightly subdued nose has cassis, tobacco, cherries, dried herbs, and a touch of spicy oak.  This is medium bodied with fairly solid tannins and good acidity.  Nice spicy fruit and dried herbs on the palate carry through on the medium length finish.  Not the most complex cabernet out there, but a good value for well under $20.  (89 pts)

 

 

Here’s a picture of Field Stone Winery and a one of the wine country view from the winery taken during a visit there a couple years ago.

 

 

 

 

2006 Carlisle Two Acres

 

My comments

This is another bottle I opened to share with a friend.  I also wanted to try a newer vintage after thoroughly enjoying a 2003 earlier in the week.

 

Normally this is where I’d tell you to go to their website and sign up for the mailing list, but not this time.  Unfortunately the Carlisle mailing list is full, the best you could do is get on the waiting list.  The problem with that one is big, the wines are so good and fairly priced, very few people drop off the list.  My best advice is to find someone on the list and beg them to share a bottle or two of their allocation with you.

 

Winery history

Carlisle is a winery that started as a classic “garage winery” for Owner/Winemaker Mike Officer.  His first foray into wine making was making 5 gallons of Zinfandel in his kitchen.  Over the next several years, with the help of his wife Kendall (Carlisle), and some friends, he produced a barrel of wine each vintage.  During this period, he also has a “real job” as a software developer.  To make a long story short, eventually the software developer title was left in the rear view mirror and Owner/Winemaker became his new title.  I highly recommend checking out the complete story at http://www.carlislewinery.com/about.html

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a deep, dark maroon color.  The ever changing and evolving nose had crushed berries, dark chocolate, fresh ground espresso, roasted meat, tree bark, leather, cherries, and some dried herbs.  This is a medium to full body wine with ripe tannins and good acidity.  There are loads of spicy berries on the palate with nice earthy elements and dried herbs adding complexity.  This has a nice, lingering, long finish which highlights the more savory elements.  Still young but a very nice wine to follow over an evening.  Outstanding.  (94 pts)

 

 

2008 Allegrini Palazzo della Torre Veronese IGT

 

My comments

This is our current go to wine when we are having a pizza loaded with chunky meat.  The richness and body stands up nicely to the meat and this has just enough acidity to help cut through the cheese.

 

Winery history

Allegrini is the leading producer in the Valpolicella Classico area and one of the most highly acclaimed wineries in Italy and throughout the world. The family’s roots in Valpolicella date back to the 16th century. Today the winery consists of more than 100 hectares (247 acres) set amongst the rolling hills of the “Classico” appellation. All wines made under the Allegrini label are produced exclusively from these estate vineyards. Through research and experimentation over the years, Allegrini has introduced radical innovations in the vineyards, in the grape drying process and in the cellar, with the objective of enhancing the intrinsic quality of Valpolicella.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a deep maroon color.  The elegant nose has blackberries, plums, smoke, dried herbs, vanilla, black cherries, wild flowers and minerals.  This is medium body with silky, ripe tannins and decent acidity.  There is nice layered fruit, spice, and dried herbs on the palate with just a touch of earthiness in the background.  This has nice length on the finish which shows spicy berries.  Very nice.  (92 pts)

 

 

 

Mailing Lists

 

 

Rudius

I’ve been on the Rudius mailing list since the beginning.  Rudius is Jeff and Brittany Ames.  Jeff’s name may not ring a bell, but here’s a bit of his bio:

In 2001 Jeff became Thomas Brown’s assistant winemaker at brands including Schrader, Maybach, Outpost, and Tor.  Two years later, Jeff was named the head winemaker at Tor, a position he still commands.   Rudius is the culmination of Jeff’s goal of owning his own wine brand.

 

I have purchased a fair amount of Jeff’s wines and every one that I have opened has been outstanding.  I have had several of his cabernets and wines made by the Rhone varietals.  I highly recommend the Rudius mailing list.  More information about Jeff and Brittany, Rudius, and most importantly a link to join the mailing list is available on their site.  Visit http://www.rudiuswines.com/

 

 

McPrice Myers

The newest offer from McPrice Myers hit the inbox today.  I am part of their 6 bottle Wine Club.  This means I will automatically receive two bottles of each 2010 Altas Vinas, 2010 Larner Syrah and 2010 Les Galets Syrah.  Now I have a week and almost 2 weeks to decide if I want to add any more of these or a few library wines the still have in stock.

 

 

Herman Story

I’m not on the Herman Story mailing list, but a friend who is on the list shares some of his allocation with me.  These are big, ripe, bold wines and every once in a while that’s what I get in the mood for.  These wines aren’t for Francophiles.  If my friend wasn’t on the list, I’d join.  If you like that style of wine as much as I do, I highly recommend checking them out, perhaps you can get something from the just released offerings.  Visit http://hermanstorywines.com/ for more information.

 

 

Wines bought or received this week

(4) 2007 Jacob Franklin Mon Chou #50 NapaValley for $30 a bottle from Elyse Winery

(1) 2009 Trentadue Winery La Storia “Cuvee 32” for $16.90 from local wine store

(1) 2010 Isole e Olena Chianti Classico for $18.59 from local wine store

(2) 2009 Calera Pinot Noir de Villiers Vineyard for $37.99 from local wine store

(2) 2009 Calera Pinot Noir Mills Vineyard for $46.54 from local wine store

 

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

 

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!

 

 

 

 

2003 Carlisle Two Acres – $29.50

 

My comments

I’ve been buying wine from Mike Officer’s Carlisle winery for several years.  His Red Rhone Blend, known as Two Acres has been a long time favorite.  I thought about saving this and having a party around the 8 year vertical I have in the cellar.  After opening this bottle, it will be down to a 7 year vertical.  This vintage is a blend of 75% Mourvèdre, 18% Petite Sirah, 5% Carignane, and 2% Alicante Bouschet.

 

Normally this is where I’d tell you to go to their website and sign up for the mailing list, but not this time.  Unfortunately the Carlisle mailing list is full, the best you could do is get on the waiting list.  The problem with that one is big, the wines are so good and fairly priced, very few people drop off the list.  My best advice is to find someone on the list and beg them to share a bottle or two of their allocation with you.

 

Winery history

Carlisle is a winery that started as a classic “garage winery” for Owner/Winemaker Mike Officer.  His first foray into wine making was making 5 gallons of Zinfandel in his kitchen.  Over the next several years, with the help of his wife Kendall (Carlisle), and some friends, he produced a barrel of wine each vintage.  During this period, he also has a “real job” as a software developer.  To make a long story short, eventually the software developer title was left in the rear view mirror and Owner/Winemaker became his new title.  I highly recommend checking out the complete story at http://www.carlislewinery.com/about.html

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a deep, saturated maroon color with a touch of bricking at the edge.  The very pleasing and inviting nose features blackberries, licorice, tree bark, leather, meat juices, dried herbs, violets, and a touch of Asian spices.  The wine is fairly full bodied with nice, ripe tannins and good acidity.  On the palate there are nice, spicy berries with just a touch of earthiness and a hit of dark chocolate.  Even though the nose and palate are top notch, the finish is probably the best part of the wine.  The finish is very long and loaded with berries, chocolate, dried herbs, and earthiness with just a bit of a meaty element.  The length is incredible!  There are absolutely no rough edges or any overly dominant tastes or aromas in this wine.  This wine is in a perfect drinking window, if I had more, I’d recommend drinking over the next year or two.  (95 pts)

 

 

 

2006 Buehler Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon – $18.99

 

My comments

Buehler Vineyards was a winery we really liked before we paid them a visit.  After the visit we liked them even more.  We were met by John P. Buehler in his SUV.  He proceeded to drive us all around their vineyards including all the fantastic views of the area.  Next stop was the wine making facilities and barrel storage.  After the tour, John took us back to the tasting room and poured us several of their wines.  It was a marvelous couple of hours.  I highly recommend paying them a visit, but call first, their tours and tastings are by appointment only.  The one caveat is watch out for the fairly long one lane road.

 

Winery history

The winery is located six winding miles east of St. Helena and nestled in the mountains below HowellMountain, Buehler Vineyards encompasses three hundred acres of NapaValley hillside terrain.

 

In 1971, John Buehler, Sr., a 1934 West Point graduate who served twenty years in the Army Corps of Engineers and another twenty years as a Bechtel Corporation executive, was ready to retire.

 

Along with his wife, Helen, he bought a remote NapaValley hillside property that  had been the site of a “ghost winery” before prohibition.  As John Sr., built his retirement home, his son, John Jr., began to fulfill his life-long ambition to become a wine grower.

 

Dabbling as a home winemaker during the early years, John Jr. was satisfied selling grapes to other wineries. Only after years of constant praise for the quality and complexity of his hillside fruit did John decide to make the first vintage of Buehler Vineyards wine.

 

In 1978, John hand-crushed 700 cases of wine. Pleased by the results, he gradually increased production until 1982, when he hired a talented young winemaker, Heidi Peterson  Barrett. By the time she left in 1988, Heidi had become a rising star, and Buehler Vineyards was building a worldwide reputation.

 

John reassumed the winemaking role at Buehler until 1993, when he found another talented young winemaker, David Cronin.  Under David’s direction, Buehler has proven itself to critics and consumers alike as a winery that can be relied upon for excellent wines, vintage after vintage, at prices real wine-lovers can afford.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a fairly deep maroon color.  This has cassis, licorice, dried herbs, tobacco, and a touch of cedar and violets on the elegant nose.  The wine is medium body with fairly solid, ripe tannins and has very nice acidity.  On the palate the wine shows nice fruit and spice with just a touch of toasty oak and some nice dried herbs adding depth.  The finish is fairly long with the berries and dried herbs slowly dissipating.   One of the better values out there for a Napa Cabernet and in a very nice drinking window.  (90 pts)

 

 

 

Here’s a picture of my wife and John P. Buehler from a visit to the winery a few years ago.

 

 

 

2001 Aminea Taurasi Baiardo – $12.99

 

My comments

I’ve been looking forward to trying this wine since I grabbed a few bottles in 2008 from Garagiste.  I held off when I realized some of the professionals had drinking windows from 2009 to beyond 2020.

 

This is from the Campania region in Italy and made with the Aglianico grape.  Taurasi is the first southern Italian wine to obtain DOCG status, and is widely considered the most noble red wine from Campania.

 

Winery history

I couldn’t get too much of the winery’s history since the English portion of their site appears to be broken and since I’m American, I don’t really speak any other language fluently.

 

A little of Jon Rimmerman’s colorful prose from his Garagiste offering:

From grapes grown at high elevation (almost 2000 ft above the sea), the cool-toned nature of the vineyard is the cerebral key to the wine’s success. From an area known for sun-baked and overripe wine, the Aminea combines the best of all worlds, almost like a mini version of Galardi with a similar influence of moderation from the climate (you know how well received the 2001 Galardi was). The result is a sophisticated but still wild red fruited wine with all the nuances of a top Tuarasi. All in all, this is just a terrific example with the ability to age for at least 10-15 years

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a medium ruby color with some bricking.  This has a fantastic wine with blackberries, loads of minerals, dried herbs, tobacco, plums, and a very nice dusty element.  The wine is medium body with fairly solid tannins and very nice acidity.  On the palate the wine seems very young, not 11 years old.  Nice plums and berries are in the forefront of the palate with dried herbs and minerals providing nice depth and “seasoning”.  The finish is fairly long with the dried herbs and dusty element in front and the fruit in the background.  A very nice wine that may show additional improvement with some more time in the cellar.  I will hold off at least a couple of years before opening another.  (92 pts)

 

 

 

2008 Treasure Hunter Wines Helen’s Helm – $18.04

 

My comments

My local wine store has to be one of the bigger sellers of the Treasure Hunter wines in the country.  It seems like they get just about everything they release.  Treasure Hunter isn’t really a winery, more of a wine business.  They buy excess grapes/juice/wine and sell it as is or blend different lots to create their wines.  These are generally very good to outstanding wines that sell for prices well below their level or quality.

 

In this case, this is a blend of 59% Syrah, 18% Grenache, 18% Mourvedre, and 5% Tempranillo from Paso Robles.  I don’t know exactly where the grapes came from, but you can taste the quality of the grapes in the wine.  This wine could easily pass for one of the $40 or more blends coming from the region, and this cost me under $20.

 

Winery history

Treasure Hunter is a label under the 3 Finger Wine Company family of wines.

 

Each Treasure Hunter wine goes through a pain-staking process of examination from our panel of nine called The De-Vine Nine. Made up of top sommeliers, winemakers and restaurateurs, they are the best of the best and they pour through hundreds of wines before they are deemed worthy.

Each wine is a small one-time offering and represents an extraordinary opportunity to drink seminal wines of great importance.

 

My Tasting Note

This is a deep maroon color.  The wine has blackberries, grilled meat, vanilla, blueberries, baking spices, minerals, dark chocolate, licorice, cherries, and a bit of earthiness on the very open and exuberant nose.  This is full bodied with fairly solid, ripe tannins and good acidity.  Big, ripe, juicy berries and spice hit the palate with meat, earthiness, and dark chocolate in the background.  The wine has a long, lingering finish featuring the berries, dark chocolate, and a touch of spicy oak.  Very impressive wine that drinks well above the price point.  (93 pts)

 

 

 

Mailing Lists

 

 

Rudius

I’ve been on the Rudius mailing list since the beginning.  Rudius is Jeff and Brittany Ames.  Jeff’s name may not ring a bell, but here’s a bit of his bio:

In 2001 Jeff became Thomas Brown’s assistant winemaker at brands including Schrader, Maybach, Outpost, and Tor.  Two years later, Jeff was named the head winemaker at Tor, a position he still commands.   Rudius is the culmination of Jeff’s goal of owning his own wine brand.

 

I have purchased a fair amount of Jeff’s wines and every one that I have opened has been outstanding.  I have had several of his cabernets and wines made by the Rhone varietals.  I highly recommend the Rudius mailing list.  More information about Jeff and Brittany, Rudius, and most importantly a link to join the mailing list is available on their site.  Visit http://www.rudiuswines.com/

 

 

McPrice Myers

The newest offer from McPrice Myers hit the inbox today.  I am part of their 6 bottle Wine Club.  This means I will automatically receive two bottles of each 2010 Altas Vinas, 2010 Larner Syrah and 2010 Les Galets Syrah.  Now I have a week and almost 2 weeks to decide if I want to add any more of these or a few library wines the still have in stock.

 

 

Ledge Vineyards

This is one of my latest “finds”.  Mark Adams is the owner/winemaker for this family owned winery.  He releases one wine, and the grapes all come from the family owned vineyard.  The vineyard is about 7 acres currently and is located in Paso Robles not far from Denner and the James Berry Vineyards.  Mark is also been the assistant winemaker at Saxum where he has worked since 2004.  I highly recommend getting in on the ground floor of this exciting list.  Visit http://www.ledgevineyards.com/index.php for more information or to join the list.

 

 

Herman Story

I’m not on the Herman Story mailing list, but a friend who is on the list shares some of his allocation with me.  These are big, ripe, bold wines and every once in a while that’s what I get in the mood for.  These wines aren’t for Francophiles.  If my friend wasn’t on the list, I’d join.  If you like that style of wine as much as I do, I highly recommend checking them out, perhaps you can get something from the just released offerings.  Visit http://hermanstorywines.com/ for more information.

 

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

 

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!

 

 

 

 

 

1994 Schloss Schönborn Rüdesheimer Berg Rottland Riesling Spätlese – $16.99

 

My comments

I returned home from a business trip today.  It was 80 and sunny in North Carolina, it is currently a cold and damp 52 here in Wisconsin.  It sounds like a perfect day for some Seafood Gumbo.  We make ours a touch spicy so a nice, off dry Riesling usually is a perfect match.  We drank through just about all of the cases of older Riesling I bought from Garagiste Wine a few years ago, but this is from that stash.  Luckily I have 3 more cases of older German Rieslings that will be shipping in the next few weeks so I’ll be able to restock the cellar.

 

Winery history

Located in the heart of the Rheingau valley, the Domänenweingut Schloss Schönborn has long stood for premium wine culture.  Many of the vineyards along the slopes bordering the Rhine river have been part of the Schönborn family estate since 1349, which has been added to continuously since then. Several top sites were acquired in the 17th and 18th centuries, giving the estate a real boost. The estate now covers 50 ha, of which 90% are planted with Riesling. The remaining vineyards feature Pinot Noir and Pinot Blanc. The Schloss Schönborn wine estate is one of the founder members of the Association of German Prädikat Wine Estates (VDP) and has for many years been managing its valuable vineyards in tune with nature.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a very nice looking golden yellow color.  There is petrol, apples, stony minerality, white peaches, white pepper, and orange zest on the enticing nose.   This is light to medium body with zippy acidity.  Luscious, juicy fruit and minerals on the palate with nice citrus notes adding depth.  The finish is full of fruit and citrus but only decent length.  The sweetness is fully integrated so this is not longer a sugary sweet wine, it seemed more off dry.  Not as rich and powerful as some of the older German Rieslings I’ve had, but still very enjoyable.  (90 pts)

 

 

 

We had some Seafood Gumbo to pair with the Riesling.  The Gumbo was fairly spicy with bay scallops, salad shrimp, lump crabmeat, and a ton of fresh okra from my father in law’s garden in South Carolina.  I absolutely love an aged Riesling and a spicy gumbo, to me it’s a perfect pairing.  Definitely opposites attract with hot versus cold and spicy versus sweet.  It was a delicious meal and now I can have some leftover gumbo for lunch next week and enjoy a glass of the Riesling while relaxing.  Life is good!

 

 

 

My wife had some nice bottles this week while I was traveling.  These are all 375ml half bottles that were on the counter to greet me when I got home.  The wines were a 2007 Novy Santa Lucia Highlands Syrah, 2009 Loring Clos Pepe Pinot Noir, and a 2006 Scherrer Alexander Valley Old and Mature Vines Zinfandel.

 

 

 

2009 Brassfield Estate Winery Eruption Volcano Ridge – $14.24

 

My Comments

This is a blend of 37% Syrah, 30% Mourvedre, 14% Grenache, 10% Petite Sirah and 9% Malbec, from the High Valley AVA in the eastern part of LakeCounty in California.  I took a flier on a couple of bottles a few months ago at the local wine store.  We opened one that night and thought enough to grab six more bottles ASAP.  This was made from obviously very ripe grapes, but showed no raisin or syrupy notes.  I’m looking forward to trying it again.

 

Winery History

Brassfield Estate Winery & Vineyard is located in the western section of HighValley at High Serenity Ranch on a truly distinctive and remarkable winegrowing property. Our valley floor vineyards sit at 1800 ft elevation. The higher vineyard blocks rise to nearly 3000 ft. The temperatures of some parts of this unique vineyard are some of the coldest in CA, giving Brassfield a heat summation equivalent to a Region 3 or less in some vintages.

 

In 1973, Jerry Brassfield purchased the original 1,600 acres here as a cattle ranch and wildlife reserve. Over the next three decades Jerry acquired additional property. Today, the LakeCounty estate includes 2,500 acres across both the eastern and the western sections of HighValley, as well as the Round Mountain Volcano.

 

The Vineyards were investigated for their potential to produce world-class estate-grown wines in 1998. Vineyard planting began in 2001. As the vineyards matured, the winery has grown with a state-of-the-art winemaking facility.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a deep, dark maroon color.  On the exotic nose there are blackberries, Asian spices, cracked black peppercorns, licorice, eucalyptus, dark chocolate, cherries, earthy tree bark, smoked meat, and plums.  This is fairly full bodied with solid, ripe tannins and decent acidity.  The fruit and dark chocolate hit the palate first with some nice earthiness and spice coming in a couple seconds later followed by a touch of excess oak.  Nice length on the finish with is slightly marred by a bit too much oak.  This will benefit from some time in a decanter or even better a few more months in the cellar.  Earlier bottle that had been decanted a couple hours didn’t show as much oak.  Tasty but give it some air.  (89 pts)

 

 

 

2001 Castello di Verduno Barbaresco Faset – $28.74

 

My Comments

This is a wine I bought from Garagiste Wine a few years ago,.  I opened one bottle but felt it still needed some cellar time.  I love a nice Barbaresco maybe even more than a Barolo, to me they are a bit more versatile to pair with food.  It’s hard to find a good quality Barbaresco for under $30, but this one could fill that void for me.

 

Winery History

In 1838, King Carlo Alberto of Savoy purchased the Castle of Verduno from the two charitable institutions and entrusted the management of his estate and wine cellar to the famous enologist General Carlo Staglieno.  Here, following the method suggested by Giulia Falletti Colbert, the ‘Oenotechnician General’ Paolo Francesco Staglieno made the first vinifications of the nebbiolo grape, laying the bases for modern Barolo.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine was decanted about 30 minutes.  The wine is a light to medium ruby with a fair amount of brick.  Earthy, cherries, fresh ground espresso, baking spices, dark chocolate, cedar, minerals, white pepper, and a slight floral note on the very pleasing nose.  Medium body with fairly solid tannins and very nice acidity.  Nice earthy cherries, spice, and minerals on the palate with just a touch of oak in the background.  Fairly long finish which has an added slight herbal note that is in no way distracting.  Tasting very nice now, but this will hold and maybe even improve over the next few years.  (92 pts)

 

 

 

My wife made her meat sauce that simmers for hours for dinner.  Add in a couple pieces of garlic-cheese bread and a touch of grated cheese and we had a fantastic dinner on this cool early Fall day.

 

 

 

2008 JC Cellars “The First Date” – $14.24

 

My Comments

I grabbed a few bottles of this from my local wine store at an end of vintage closeout sale.  I am a big fan of both red and white wines made from the grapes native to the Rhone region in France.  I’ve been looking forward to seeing what Jeff Cohn was able to do with this white wine.  I’ve been a big fan of Jeff’s red wines since his days at Rosenblum.  This wine is a blend of 75% Roussanne, 25% Marsanne.

 

Winery History

When Jeff Cohn was the winemaker at Rosenblum Cellars, annually he crafted more than 70 different wines.  Today, at his Oakland-based warehouse winery, the irrepressible vintner now limits himself to a mere 21 bottlings, focusing on Rhône varietals.  Cohn’s longtime relationships with some of California’s top growers and vineyards enable him to source some of the state’s finest fruit, including Rockpile in SonomaCounty, Fess Parker in Santa BarbaraCounty and Stagecoach in Napa.

 

My Tasting Note

A real nice, golden yellow color.  The wine has a rich and exotic nose with white peaches, pears, minerals, lemon curd, beeswax, spring flowers, spicy oak, and hints of vanilla bean, and apples.  This is medium body with decent acidity, and a creamy, oily texture on the palate.  Nice mineral laden, white fruit on the palate with some spicy oak in the background and citrus zest proving nice zip.  Seems a touch disjointed on the palate with the oak popping in and out especially on the finish when the wine is a touch chilled, at room temperature, the wine settles down and is much more enjoyable.  Pretty nice, but watch the serving temperature, this is much better served at “red wine temperature”.  (88 pts)

 

 

2007 Two Hands Shiraz Bella’s Garden – $34.99

 

My comments

Two Hands is probably my wife’s favorite non California winery.  Any time I pull one from the cellar, I get a big smile when she sees the bottle.  I grab as much of the wines as possible when I see them at a good price, because frankly, they are also a favorite of mine.  All the attention the winery gets from Wine Spectator is making it harder to find the wine at a decent price so I can grab case lots, so I make due with two or three bottles at a time.  Australian Shiraz may be a dead market according to most of the major wine writers, and that may be true, but now for Two Hands wines from Garden series down.

 

Winery History

Two Hands Wines was founded in early 1999 by Michael Twelftree and Richard Mintz.

The original aim shared by Michael and Richard was to make the best possible Shiraz-based wines from prized Shiraz growing regions throughout Australia. Their intention was, and still is, to showcase the diversity of Australian Shiraz by highlighting regional characteristics and allowing the fruit to be the primary feature of the wines. Two Hands refers to the very personable approach taken with each parcel of grapes, no matter how big or small. The wines are carefully guided through the viticulture and winemaking process by Michael Twelftree and winemaker, Matt Wenk.

 

In November 2011, Two Hands was named in the Wine Spectator’s annual Top 100 for the 9th consecutive year, an achievement that has never been equaled by any other winery in the world.

 

My Tasting Note

The wine is a deep, dark purple color.  There are crushed berries, minerals, fresh ground espresso, dark chocolate, smoked meat, black pepper, vanilla, black cherries, Asian spices, and violets on the very inviting nose.  This is fairly full bodied with nice, ripe tannins and good acidity.  The wine is big, bold, and ripe on the palate with no raisin or syrupy notes.  The palate features nice juicy, spicy berries with some oak in the background with minerals, meat, and dark chocolate.  There is a long, lingering finish with the spicy berries lingering seemingly forever.  This may not be for everyone, but if you want an in your face Shiraz, look no further.  (94 pts)

 

 

 

For dinner we mad a house favorite for the first cool weekend, a big pot of Paul Prudhomme’s Red Beans and Rice.  We usually freeze a nice ham bone with a fair amount of meat still attached just for the dish.  Add some andouille and we’re set for a nice, hearty meal.  The recipe is available online at http://bit.ly/SN9fMS

 

 

 

Mailing Lists

 

 

Rudius

I’ve been on the Rudius mailing list since the beginning.  Rudius is Jeff and Brittany Ames.  Jeff’s name may not ring a bell, but here’s a bit of his bio:

In 2001 Jeff became Thomas Brown’s assistant winemaker at brands including Schrader, Maybach, Outpost, and Tor.  Two years later, Jeff was named the head winemaker at Tor, a position he still commands.   Rudius is the culmination of Jeff’s goal of owning his own wine brand.

 

I have purchased a fair amount of Jeff’s wines and every one that I have opened has been outstanding.  I have had several of his cabernets and wines made by the Rhone varietals.  I highly recommend the Rudius mailing list.  More information about Jeff and Brittany, Rudius, and most importantly a link to join the mailing list is available on their site.  Visit http://www.rudiuswines.com/

 

 

Elyse Winery

This is Elyse’s 25th year.  You can help them celebrate the momentous occasion.  They are offering 25% off all purchases made through September 25th.  I have been a big fan of the winery since my first visit there in 2000.  They make some of my favorite, mid-priced, red wines.  I think their Cabernets, Zinfandels, Petite Sirahs, and Rhone blends are all very good to outstanding.  Visit http://www.elysewinery.com/25.html for more information.

 

 

Ledge Vineyards

This is one of my latest “finds”.  Mark Adams is the owner/winemaker for this family owned winery.  He releases one wine, and the grapes all come from the family owned vineyard.  The vineyard is about 7 acres currently and is located in Paso Robles not far from Denner and the James Berry Vineyards.  Mark is also been the assistant winemaker at Saxum where he has worked since 2004.  I highly recommend getting in on the ground floor of this exciting list.  Visit http://www.ledgevineyards.com/index.php for more information or to join the list.

 

 

Herman Story

I’m not on the Herman Story mailing list, but a friend who is on the list shares some of his allocation with me.  These are big, ripe, bold wines and every once in a while that’s what I get in the mood for.  These wines aren’t for Francophiles.  If my friend wasn’t on the list, I’d join.  If you like that style of wine as much as I do, I highly recommend checking them out, perhaps you can get something from the just released offerings.  Visit http://hermanstorywines.com/ for more information.

 

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

 

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!

 

 

 

2006 Steltzner Vineyards Claret – $15.19

This is perennially a bargain priced, good quality, Bordeaux blend from the Napa Valley.  This vintage is a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc, and 15% Merlot that was aged 16 months in mixed French oak barrels.  I have always felt the Steltzner Claret tastes good upon release, but is much better with a couple years in the cellar.

 

Steltzner Vineyards is a nice place to visit when you are in the Napa Valley.  It is directly across the Silverado Trail from Pine Ridge Winery.  I don’t know if they still make it, but they used to make a Stags Leap District Pinotage that was available to buy and on occasion to taste at the winery.

 

The wine is a fairly dark ruby color.  There is cassis, dried herbs, cigar box, black cherry, licorice, and some dark chocolate on the very nice and inviting nose.  This is medium body with fairly integrated tannins and very nice acidity.  Nice lush berries and dried herbs dominate the palate initially with some spicy oak and a bit of earthiness and cherry coming in later.  Decent length on the finish which leans heavily on the dried herbs and spicy oak.  This is a nice, low cost, Bordeaux blend in its’ prime drinking window.  (89 pts)

 

 

 

2011 Finca Constancia Altozano – $24.00

I’m spending some time on the road for my real job this week.  I went to dinner with a few coworkers from around the country to a “gastropub” that had an Irish Pub theme.  The wine list was very low end, since I’m sure most diners go there for the beers.  A few people wanted wine, so I was assigned the task of selecting a bottle that would work with some very varied selections.  I always feel lower end Spanish Tempranillo is a decent crowd pleaser so I selected this wine.

 

The price is what was paid at a decent Irish Pub styled restaurant in Pinehurst, NC.  I’m sure this is available at retail for well under $10.  This is a dark cherry red color.  The nose has candied cherries, dark chocolate, some earthy underbrush, and plums on the easy going nose.  The wine is medium bodied with soft, ripe tannins and decent acidity, at best.  On the palate the wine seems a touch off dry with the candied fruit and savory elements more or less coexisting without melding together into one entity.  In a dinner with a few coworkers, the wine was decent, in any critical situation this would not show real well.  (83 pts)

 

 

 

2006 Torzi Matthews Shiraz “Schist Rock” – $16.99

This is a purchase from Garagiste Wine from a few years ago.  I’ve liked past bottles even though it is not your usual Barossa Shiraz.  Past bottles have shown nice ripeness, but the wine doesn’t push the ripeness level like some of these wines tend to do.

 

The wine is a deep maroon color.  On the very nice and fresh smelling nose there are blackberries, cherries, dark chocolate, smoked meat, black pepper, vanilla, and some fresh wild flowers, with just a hint of dried herbs.  This is medium body with ripe, integrated tannins and very nice acidity.  Nice tart berries, cherries, and dried herbs hit the palate first with some black pepper and meat juices in the background.  This has decent length on the finish.  Not your typical Australian Shiraz that pushes the ripeness level to the edge.  This is a very nice week night wine that could use a bit more complexity on the palate and a touch more length on the finish.  (90 pts)

 

 

 

2008 Araldica Vini Piemontesi Barbera d’Asti Superiore Albera – $24.00

Once again we had a group going to dinner and once again the wine list was passed to me.  I like a nice Italian Barbera, and I felt it would pair fairly nicely with the varied dishes that were ordered.  Let’s see if I pick a winner or fall flat on my face.

 

The wine was a lighter maroon color.  This has a nice earthy nose with cherries, spice, and some underbrush.  The wine was medium body, at best with soft tannins and very nice acidity.  The palate had nice cherries with a fairly solid earthy overlay.  The finish showed a touch more fruit but was a bit short.  A decent value at a restaurant for mid 20’s, but there are much better Barbera wines out there that would fit in that price range.  The wine was dry and held up to the various meals, so I consider it a success.  On the critical end of the spectrum, a bit more complexity and more oomph on the finish would have helped.  (86 pts)

 

 

 

2005 Renard Grenache Unti Vineyards – $19.99

I bought several bottles of this from my local wine store on an end of vintage blow out sale at an exceptional price.  Past bottles have been very nice though a step or two away from being memorable.

 

The wine is a fairly deep ruby color.  There are cherries, earthy underbrush, dried herbs, some black pepper, and a slight herbal or stemmy note on the very nice nose.  This is fairly full bodied with fairly solid tannins and very nice acidity.  There is nice spicy red fruit and spice on the palate with some earthiness in the background.  The slightly herbal note creeps in on the backend.  The finish is of nice length, but one again the herbal/stemmy note makes an appearance.  I would have preferred not having the herbal element, but it was not that distracting.  (89 pts)

 

 

 

2007 Estancia Reserve Meritage – $22.50

Still on the road, but we were able to hit a restaurant for steaks and their Thursday Special, half price for all wines.  I was able to get this wine for less than the average price paid on CellarTracker.  This is unheard of for a wine purchased at a restaurant.  This earns Tripp’s a gold best buy.  This appears to be a regional chain in North Carolina and Virginia.  If you see one on a Thursday, stop in for good food and great wine prices.

 

The wine is a deep maroon color.  The very nice nose has cassis, licorice, baking spices, black cherry, dusty minerality, dried herbs, and a touch of eucalyptus.  This was medium body with soft tannins and good acidity.  On the palate the wine had nice spicy fruit with dried herbs in the background and just a hint of eucalyptus adding a nice element.  The finish had decent length and nice spicy fruit.  Not a world beater, but a nice wine to pair with a steak, especially for just a touch over $20 at a restaurant.  (88 pts)

 

 

 

2008 C.G. di Arie Interlude Estate Grown – $14.24

This has been a favorite since I grabbed a few bottles at a killer price on a close out sale at the local wine store.  This is a blend of 40% Zinfandel, 25% Syrah, 22.5% Petite Sirah, and 12.5% Primitivo from the Sierra Foothills of California.

 

A touch lighter than medium ruby color.  Brambly berries, white pepper, cherries, baking spices, dark chocolate, and a bit of earthiness on the open and inviting nose.  Medium body at best with ripe tannins and very nice acidity.  Tart, spicy fruit on the palate with a touch of earthiness on the back end.  Decent length on the finish with spicy, tart cherries with a bit of earthiness and spicy oak.  This is not a big, overly ripe style of wine.  Much more delicate and balanced.  Outstanding for under $15.  (90 pts)

 

 

 

Mailing Lists

 

 

Rudius

I’ve been on the Rudius mailing list since the beginning.  Rudius is Jeff and Brittany Ames.  Jeff’s name may not ring a bell, but here’s a bit of his bio:

In 2001 Jeff became Thomas Brown’s assistant winemaker at brands including Schrader, Maybach, Outpost, and Tor.  Two years later, Jeff was named the head winemaker at Tor, a position he still commands.   Rudius is the culmination of Jeff’s goal of owning his own wine brand.

 

I have purchased a fair amount of Jeff’s wines and every one that I have opened has been outstanding.  I have had several of his cabernets and wines made by the Rhone varietals.  I highly recommend the Rudius mailing list.  More information about Jeff and Brittany, Rudius, and most importantly a link to join the mailing list is available on their site.  Visit http://www.rudiuswines.com/

 

 

Elyse Winery

This is Elyse’s 25th year.  You can help them celebrate the momentous occasion.  They are offering 25% off all purchases made through September 25th.  I have been a big fan of the winery since my first visit there in 2000.  They make some of my favorite, mid-priced, red wines.  I think their Cabernets, Zinfandels, Petite Sirahs, and Rhone blends are all very good to outstanding.  Visit http://www.elysewinery.com/25.html for more information.

 

 

Ledge Vineyards

This is one of my latest “finds”.  Mark Adams is the owner/winemaker for this family owned winery.  He releases one wine, and the grapes all come from the family owned vineyard.  The vineyard is about 7 acres currently and is located in Paso Robles not far from Denner and the James Berry Vineyards.  Mark is also been the assistant winemaker at Saxum where he has worked since 2004.  I highly recommend getting in on the ground floor of this exciting list.  Visit http://www.ledgevineyards.com/index.php for more information or to join the list.

 

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

 

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!

 

 

 

 

2008 Santi Ripasso della Valpolicella Classico Superiore Solane – $11.37

This has been a house favorite when it comes to a low priced, good quality, Italian Ripasso wine.  Granted it’s not as big and rich as most Ripasso wines, but it also doesn’t cost $30 or more.  This packs plenty of quality into an $11 bottle.  This is perfect with pizza or a week night pasta dish.  We’re trying out a new pasta dish tonight and I think this will pair perfectly.

 

The wine is a deep ruby color.  There are earthy cherries, licorice, baking spices, fresh violets, and a touch of dried herbs on the very appealing nose.  This is medium body with soft, ripe tannins and good acidity.  Nice spicy, earthy, fruit dominate the palate with some dried herbs and spicy oak providing nice depth.  Decent length on the finish which again shows a bit of excess spicy oak.  Not the biggest or richest Ripasso out there, but for a touch over $11, this is a QPR keeper.  (88 pts)

 

 

 

We made a Fresh Tomato, Sausage, and Pecorino Pasta dish for dinner.  This is a Cooking Light recipe that is available at http://bit.ly/RXueAr

 

We used a hotter brand of sausage so the touch of richness in the Solane Ripasso held up well to the dish.  By the way, the dish is fantastic and is a very nice way to use any excess fresh tomatoes out of the garden.  As an added bonus, other than cooking the pasta, the dish takes less than 15 minutes to prepare.

 

 

 

2005 Copain Syrah Madder Lake – $25.00

It has been a couple years since I had a bottle of this wine.  Every bottle I had was good, but I always felt there was more “under the hood” and additional cellar time would help bring it out.  This is my last bottle of three I originally purchased.  I sure hope the five year wait was worthwhile.  This was Copain’s lowest priced single vineyard offering at that time.  This is from LakeCounty on California’s NorthCoast.  The 2006 vintage, which I still have in the cellar, was Copain’s last offering from this vineyard.

 

The wine is a medium ruby color with some brick at the edge.  The very nice nose on the wine has smoke, blackberries, fresh ground espresso, dark chocolate, meat juices, black pepper, and a bit of earthiness.  The wine is medium body with well integrated tannins and good acidity.  On the palate the wine has nice spicy, peppery berries and some earthiness leading into a very nice, lingering finish.  This is in a prime drinking window right now, but should hold for a couple of years.  (91 pts)

 

 

 

2005 Treasure Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District – $24.69

This is another wine from the négociant California winery under the 3 Finger Wine Company umbrella.  These are generally very nice, value priced wines.  Most of the grapes are excess purchased from much wineries that were destined to go into more expensive wines.  I had a bottle of this a few months ago and felt it was very nice.  This should go very nicely with some juicy, Saturday burgers, hot off the grill.

 

The wine is a deep, dark garnet to purple color.  The outstanding nose has cassis, dried herbs, cigar box, licorice, minerals, and hints of baking spices, leather, and wildflowers.  This is medium bodied with fairly solid, ripe tannins and very nice acidity.  Nice rich fruit and spice with dried herbs dominate the palate with just a touch of earthiness in the background.  This has a fairly long finish full of fruit and spice with the dried herbs lingering seemingly forever.  This is an outstanding bottle of wine that I imagine was destined for one of the big name, high scoring wines from the area.  You can sense the grapes in this wine were grown with the utmost case.  Glad I have another bottle, hopefully I can sit on it for a few years to see how this wine evolves.  (95 pts)

 

 

 

2004 Cellers Can Blau Montsant – $11.99

Needed some red wine to deglaze a pan and to add to a pot roast.  I’ve been wanting to open one of my remaining bottles of this for a while, this should work fine.  I’m actually looking forward to trying it again, I’ve liked the bottles I’ve had over the last several years.  This is a blend of  Carinena, Syrah and Garnacha, or as most Americans know them, Carignane, Syrah, and Grenache.

 

The wine is a fairly dark maroon color.  The nose has earthy berries, pine needles, well worn leather, cherries, meat juices, black pepper, dried herbs, underbrush, and a touch of licorice.  This is medium body with soft, fully integrated tannins and very nice acidity.  On the palate the wine has ripe, plush berries with a nice earthy overlay and dried herbs.  The finish is fairly long and very smooth.  This wine has aged very gracefully.  There are no rough edges or any out of balance elements on this well aged, bargain priced red from Spain.  (90 pts)

 

 

 

2007 Big Basin Vineyards Odeon Black Ridge Vineyard – $41.00

I’ve loved all the BigBasin wines I’ve had over the last couple of years.  I think they are one big score from one of the big wine publications from appearing on most wine drinkers’ radar.  Bradley Brown’s Rhone grape based reds are usually very big, ripe, and spicy that push the alcohol levels to the limit.  That said, the wines are generally big enough they can easily support elevated alcohol.

 

This is a blend of 60% Syrah and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Santa CruzMountains area on California’s massive CentralCoast.

 

This was decanted for about 3 hours.   The wine is a deep, dark, purple color.  The very deep and interesting nose had cassis, blackberries, black cherries, baking spices, licorice, fresh ground espresso, dark chocolate, dried herbs, minerals, and some toasty oak.  This is full bodied with a nice tannic backbone and good acidity.  The wine explodes on your palate coating it with spicy fruit, dark chocolate, and dried herbs.  There is a some nice, spicy oak providing some background “seasoning”.  The wine has a long, lingering finish with just enough toast oak to add interest without over powering the fruit and dried herbs.  This is a big, ripe, rich wine that perfectly conceals the alcohol.  This wine has years of life ahead of it, but it is delicious today with some air.  (94 pts)

 

 

 

We had the Big Basin Odeon with a very tasty pot roast with rice and veggies.  They tasted fantastic together.

 

 

 

 

Mailing Lists

 

 

Helioterra

Helioterra is a new discovery for me.  I met the owner/winemaker, Anne Hubatch, when she came back to visit her family in Wisconsin.  We tasted through her whole line up and I was very impressed.  I recommend getting in on the ground floor of this exciting Oregon winery.  Their next release is coming shortly, for more information, visit http://bit.ly/Q5TmSl

 

 

Elyse Winery

This is Elyse’s 25th year.  You can help them celebrate the momentous occasion.  They are offering 25% off all purchases made through September 25th.  I have been a big fan of the winery since my first visit there in 2000.  They make some of my favorite, mid-priced, red wines.  I think their Cabernets, Zinfandels, Petite Sirahs, and Rhone blends are all very good to outstanding.  Visit http://www.elysewinery.com/25.html for more information.

 

 

Ledge Vineyards

This is one of my latest “finds”.  Mark Adams is the owner/winemaker for this family owned winery.  He releases one wine, and the grapes all come from the family owned vineyard.  The vineyard is about 7 acres currently and is located in Paso Robles not far from Denner and the James Berry Vineyards.  Mark is also been the assistant winemaker at Saxum where he has worked since 2004.  I highly recommend getting in on the ground floor of this exciting list.  Visit http://www.ledgevineyards.com/index.php for more information or to join the list.

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

 

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!

 

 

 

 

2009 Domaine Roche Côtes du Rhône Villages Cairanne – $16.14

There’s nothing, in my opinion, better than a nice Côtes du Rhône when you want something interesting without dropping a load of money.  I grabbed three of these from the local wine store several months ago but until tonight, have not opened one.  This is a blend of 70% Grenache and 30% Syrah that aged in mostly cement, with a small portion in older barrels.

 

The wine is a deep garnet color.  There are cherries, licorice, roasted meat, dried herbs, minerals, black pepper, raspberry, and nice earthiness on the open and expressive nose.  This is medium body with fairly solid tannins and very nice acidity.  Loads of fruit, spice, and minerals on the palate with some dried herbs and earthiness in the background.  The finish is fairly long and again showcases the spicy, mineral driven fruit.  Very nice today, but will last in the cellar for a few years, at a minimum.  (91 pts)

 

 

 

 2007 Clos La Coutale Cahors – $13.29

I’ve been a big Cahors fan for several years, but due to lack of a decent selection locally, I got my Malbec fix from Argentina the last few years.  I always loved the big and tannic 100% Malbecs from Cahors.  Unfortunately, I was in the minority.  Over the last several years, a lot of the wineries in the region have begun blending in varying amounts of Merlot to tame the tannins and allow for earlier drinking.  This one is 80% Malbec and 20% Merlot.  I took the plunge on this one purely due to the #76 ranking in Wine Spectator’s Top 100 wines of 2009 and the killer price.  I guess I’ll find out tonight if the risk paid off.

 

The wine is a dark, inky purple color.  On the deep and dark nose there are blackberries, fresh ground espresso, Asian spices, dark chocolate, black cherry, and some nice earthiness.  The wine is medium body with fairly solid, ripe tannins and zippy acidity.  Not as big and bold on the palate as the nose led me to expect, it is much more restrained and laid back.  There are nice fruit and spice flavors on the palate with the acidity brightening it up considerably.  In the background some dark chocolate, walnut, and earthiness add nice depth.  Decent length on the finish, where I wish it had a bit more length and complexity.  All in all, very nice for the price, but not what the nose lead me to expect.  (88 pts)

 

 

 

2009 Novy Family Wines Four Mile Creek – $9.50

I perennial value priced favorite.  In this vintage, it seems to have a bit more oomph than most vintages.  Perhaps there was a surplus of very good grapes from some of the better vineyards or some grapes headed for single vineyard wines were declassified.  Either way, we’re the winners.  This is a jammy, fruity blend of Zinfandel, Grenache, Syrah and Nebbiolo.

 

The wine is a deep ruby color.  Blackberries, black cherries, baking spices, licorice, underbrush, with some earth and violets on the very open and interesting nose.  This is medium body with soft, ripe tannins and nice acidity.  Loads of jammy, spicy fruit grab the palate, followed by some toasty oak and earthiness.  Decent length on the spicy fruit filled finish.  Not much complexity but very tasty.  Killer QPR for under $10.  (89 pts)

 

 

 

2009 Syncline Grenache-Carignan – $19.94

Just got back home from a business trip and was in the mood for something a little different.  This is a 50/50 blend of Grenache and Carignan from the ColumbiaValley in Washington.  I’ve had a couple bottles of this wine over the last year, but felt it would be better with a bit of cellar time.  I guess it’s time to check in to see how it’s going.  As an added bonus, the wine is closed with a glass stopper.  In my opinion the best stopper for wines that will be consumed in three to eight years.  I need to see some research before I can extend the top end of that range.  I think these stoppers are a bit too costly to use on wines meant to be consumed not long after release.

 

The wine is a bit lighter than a medium ruby color.  This has a very nice nose with raspberry, meat juices, cherries, minerals, underbrush, licorice, fresh wild flowers, and baking spices with just a hint of an herbal note lingering in the background.  The wine is medium body with fairly solid, ripe tannins and very nice acidity.  On the palate the wine has a nice mix of fruit and spices with some earthiness and toasty oak adding depth and some complexity.  Decent length on the finish where the slight herbal/stemmy note reappears.  Not a big, overly ripe, and bold style of wine, but very tasty and refined.  (90 pts)

 

 

 

I was out of town on a business tip most of the week.  Instead of having my wife live without wine, I have a pretty nice selection of 375ml half bottles.  I currently have 20 different wines for her to choose from when I am away.  Here are the wines she enjoyed this week.  2004 Copain Garys’ Vineyard Syrah, 2006 Scherrer Old and Mature VinesScherrerVineyardAlexanderValley Zinfandel, and a 2006 ScherrerRussianRiverValley Pinot Noir.  Sorry, no notes on these wines, all I got from her was, “they were all good”.  Luckily I have at least one bottle of all of these, so maybe I’ll be able to try them the next time one is opened.

 

 

 

Mailing Lists

 

 

Helioterra

Helioterra is a new discovery for me.  I met the owner/winemaker, Anne Hubatch, when she came back to visit her family in Wisconsin.  We tasted through her whole line up and I was very impressed.  I recommend getting in on the ground floor of this exciting Oregon winery.  Their next release is coming shortly, for more information, visit http://bit.ly/Q5TmSl

 

 

Elyse Winery

This is Elyse’s 25th year.  You can help them celebrate the momentous occasion.  They are offering 25% off all purchases made through September 25th.  I have been a big fan of the winery since my first visit there in 2000.  They make some of my favorite, mid-priced, red wines.  I think their Cabernets, Zinfandels, Petite Sirahs, and Rhone blends are all very good to outstanding.  Visit http://www.elysewinery.com/25.html for more information.

 

 

Ledge Vineyards

This is one of my latest “finds”.  Mark Adams is the owner/winemaker for this family owned winery.  He releases one wine, and the grapes all come from the family owned vineyard.  The vineyard is about 7 acres currently and is located in Paso Robles not far from Denner and the James Berry Vineyards.  Mark is also been the assistant winemaker at Saxum where he has worked since 2004.  I highly recommend getting in on the ground floor of this exciting list.  Visit http://www.ledgevineyards.com/index.php for more information or to join the list.

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

 

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!

 

 

 

2007 Stefania Haut Tubee – $18.00

This has been a very nice wine over the past few vintages.  This is a bit of a strange wine in that it changes the blend every vintage, sometimes drastically.  The winery uses left over barrels from their main wines, small lots, or whatever is available to create a unique blend.  This vintage is, per the winery 50% Syrah with Cabernet, Merlot, Zinfandel, Grenache, and Mourvedre comprising the other 50%.   For comparison, the 2008 vintage is 37% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Syrah, 15% Merlot, 10% Zinfandel, 2% Grenache, and trace amounts of Mourvedre, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and PinotGris.

The wine is a dark ruby to maroon color.  There are blackberries, cherries, black pepper, baking spices, cedar, licorice, dried herbs, with hints of smoked meat, and earthy notes on the very inviting nose.  This is medium to full body with ripe, integrated tannins and very nice acidity.  The wine is very nice and refined on the palate, loads of fruit and spice with dried herbs and earthiness in the background.  Decent length on the finish which I wish was a touch fuller.  A very nice bottle of wine for under $20.  Probably needs to be consumed over the next year or two at most.  (90 pts)

 

 

2008 R Wines Pinot Noir Permutations – $12.74

This is a Pinot Noir from the Victoria region in Australia.  It’s been a while since I opened one of these, so today is as good a day as any to unscrew my last bottle.  Earlier bottles have shown some bottle variation.  Some have been VERY earthy, others had nice fruit and spice with just a vein of earthiness.

This wine is a shade or two lighter than ruby with considerable lightening at the edge.  There are cherries, raspberry, baking spices, earthy elements and some fresh flowers on the very light and alluring nose.  This is light to medium body with silky tannins and very nice acidity.  On the palate the wine has nice, juicy red fruits and spice with a streak of earthiness in the background.  The finish is a touch short, but all in all this is a nice, lighter bodied Pinot for south of $15.  (87 pts)

 

 

2008 Cosa Obra Proprietor’s Blend – $28.80

This is the initial release from this winery.  This wine is a blend of 90% Syrah and 10% Grenache and it is from SonomaCounty.  This was aged for 20 months in 50% new French oak.

I had a bottle about a year ago and it showed a lot of promise, but I felt it needed another year or two in the cellar to pull itself together and to open up.  I guess I’ll see today if my early guess held up.

The wine is a deep, dark, maroon color.  This smells like a fall day with blackberries, charcoal, smoked meat, hot asphalt, minerals, licorice, toasty oak, vanilla, white pepper, and a bit of cherry.  This is fairly full bodied with solid, ripe tannins and very nice acidity.  Big, bold, and ripe on the palate but everything holds together in perfect balance.  Nice meaty, spicy, fruit kick in immediately on the palate with just a touch of earthiness in the background.  A fairly long finish completes the package showcasing the fruit and savory elements with a bit of oak peeking in.  No hurry on this one, and another year in the cellar will be rewarded.  (93 pts)

 

 

2009 Grandes Vinos y Viñedos Cariñena Beso de Vino Seleccion – $8.48

I grabbed a bottle of this to try a couple years ago, based purely on a 90 point score by Wine Advocate.  It turned out the 90 points was by Jay Miller and not Robert Parker, so my expectations were greatly reduced.  This was actually a very enjoyable wine, loaded with acidity, and not syrupy and over ripe.  I actually felt it needed some cellar time for the acidity to integrate.

This is a blend of 85% Syrah and 15% Garnacha, briefly aged for 3 months in French oak.

This is a medium to dark ruby color.  There are blackberries, black cherries, baking spices, white pepper, plums, smoke, and vanilla on the slightly reserved nose.  The wine is a medium body, at most, with soft, ripe tannins and tart acidity.  Very bright, tart red fruit on the palate with spices and a touch of oak in the background.  With a bit of air, more spices and pepper also make it to the party.  Decent length on the finish with the tart, spicy, fruit fading a bit too quickly.  Not your typical, slightly sweet, soft, easy drinker usually seen at this price point from this area.  No complexity, but fairly tasty.  (87 pts)

 

 

2006 Franciscan Oakville Estate Magnificat – $28.49

On a whim, I grabbed a bottle of this wine from the local store when they were blowing them out.  I’ve had Franciscan cabernets in the past and they were generally pretty decent, especially if you found them at less then suggested retail price.  This is their top tier cabernet based blend in their “Prestige Wines” line.  As with most of the “Meritage” wines, the varietal breakdown changes every vintage, in this year the makeup is 56% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 3% Malbec, 1% Petit Verdot.

The wine is a deep ruby color.  There is cassis, crushed blackberries, dried herbs, cedar, smoke, baking spices, black cherry, and a slight herbal note on the soothing and comforting nose.  The nose is not an in your face style like a lot of the current release Bordeaux styled wines coming out of California.  I’m not saying that is a positive or a negative, just different, since I like both styles.  The wine is medium bodied with fairly solid tannins and very nice acidity.  The wine has a nice fruit and savory blend on the palate with a touch of spicy oak peeking through.  Decent length on the finish, I just wish it had a touch more length.  Once again, a touch of excess oak peeks out on the finish.  With some additional cellar time, the excess oak may integrate, but I don’t think there is enough fruit to help it hide out.  (90 pts)

 

 

Mailing Lists

 

Helioterra

Helioterra is a new discovery for me.  I met the owner/winemaker, Anne Hubatch, when she came back to visit her family in Wisconsin.  We tasted through her whole line up and I was very impressed.  I recommend getting in on the ground floor of this exciting Oregon winery.  Their next release is coming shortly, for more information, visit http://bit.ly/Q5TmSl

 

 

Remember to support your local wine store!

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

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 my local store is usually VERY competitive.  I generally get case discounts, and since I work there part time, I get a 5% discount.  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!