2010 King Estate Pinot Gris Signature Collection – $12.82

This is a wine we love to have with dinner on the deck in the Summer.  If we drank more white wine, this would be called our “house white”.

A light, golden, straw color. Apples, white peaches, pears, citrus zest, minerals, and a slight floral note on the fresh and lively nose. Light to medium body with crisp acidity. Nice juicy, citrus and white fruit on the palate with some minerality. Mouthwatering finish with lime and apples. Not as rich as prior vintages but still very nice, especially on a warm Summer evening.  (88 pts)

I paired the King Estate Pinot Gris with a favorite Summer meal, a Crawfish Salad.  The recipe, from Hanneke Eerden, from The Netherlands is available at http://www.thedutchesscooks.com/2012/05/crawfish-salad/  I replaced the avocado with an egg, but the Crawfish and her salad dressing makes the dish.  The wine has enough acidity to cut through the dressing but enough fruit to tame the spicy Crawfish.

2005 Consilience Syrah Camp 4 Vineyard – $14.24

I got a little flack on Facebook over this wine.  Granted, it is a massive wine packing 16.5% ABV.  The wine actually is big enough to support and conceal “most” of the alcohol.  This isn’t a wine to have every night, or even every month, and it will be a total turnoff for a lot of wine drinkers, but every once in a while, I enjoy a wine in this style.

Deep, dark purple color. Charcoal, blackberries, black pepper, blueberries, smoked meat, dark chocolate, and some vanilla on the big and open nose. Full bodied with solid, ripe tannins and decent acidity. A mouthful of fruit and spice with some smoked meat coming in on the back end. Decent length on the finish which also stars the smoked meat and berries. Could use a touch more acidity to help hold it in check, it gets a bit muddled on the back end and finish and shows a touch of alcoholic heat. No subtlety but tasty.  (90 pts)

2009 Loring Wine Company Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands – $24.00

Loring is a mailing list I very highly recommend.  Brian’s wines are usually very good to outstanding.  I feel their appellation wines, such as this one, are some of the best deals available in the marketplace on quality California Pinot Noirs.  The house style is fruit forward, rich, wines.  These will never be confused with a Red Burgundy.  Ripe fruit is not a flaw.  Luckily I get these wines in sufficient quantities because we seem to have a Loring wine every other week.

From a bottle that had been opened about 2 hours but not decanted.  Deep ruby color.  Black cherries, raspberries, baking spices, minerals, white pepper, fresh wild flowers, and a hint of earthy underbrush on the very enticing nose.  Medium body with soft, ripe tannins and very nice acidity.  Nice spicy fruit on the palate with minerals and an earthy element in the background.  Long, lingering finish featuring the spicy fruit.  Outstanding effort with great QPR.  (93 pts)

2011 Bedrock Wine Co. Mourvedre Ode to Lulu Rosé – $18.00

The Bedrock Rosé as well as the Villa Creek Pink is our main Summer Rosé wines.  We usually stock up on one other wine to get us through the season.  This year the third bottling was the 2011 One Time Spaceman MCA Rosé.  All three are made with Rhone grapes but are very different from each other.  The Bedrock has the bigger acidity with nice spice and minerality and the One Time Spaceman is the softest and fruitiest.  The Villa Creek is somewhere in the middle.  All three are very different, but very tasty and welcome on my deck with dinner any time.

A nice, light, pinkish salmon color. Minerals, strawberry, white pepper, melons, orange zest, and a bit of dusty earthiness on the very appealing nose. Light body with crisp acidity. A very dry rose with nice minerality and fruit with the white pepper and citrus making an appearance on the back end. Nice, lingering, mouthwatering finish. The real deal. Even those who like a crisp French Rose will find pleasure in this wine. (92 pts)

We tried a new dish for dinner to pair with the Bedrock Rosé, Pan-Fried Shrimp with Creole Mayonnaise from MyRecipes.com via Cooking Light magazine.  We just julienned some cucumber and carrots and added some broccoli florets to go with the dipping sauce to round out the meal.  The recipe is available at http://bit.ly/OsKpBe

The acidity in the wine helped cut through the slightly spicy mayonnaise, but the nice fruit helped tame the spicy shrimp.  I love a nice cold Rosé with a hot from the pan dish, a case of opposites attract.  Next time, I may kick up the heat a bit and open an off dry Riesling.

Wine News:

The always anticipated newest Saxum offer hit the old inbox this week.  Great wines, but the price increases are pushing the wine to the “Very Special Occasion” category.  I remember when the wines were south of $50, now they are getting close to the $100 price point.  The wines get great scores so I’m sure the point chasers and the flippers will be buying, but my purchases are dwindling.

One winery that always gets my business is Carlisle.  Great wines and the owner, Mike Officer, is doing a great job keeping the wines reasonably priced.  I took just about everything Mike offered in his latest release.

Also at nice price points, Villa Creek and Bedrock offers will be out in the near future.

Surprise news:

A few years ago I ordered and paid for a case of wine from a Napa Valley based winery.  We visited the winery multiple times and always enjoyed their Cabernet Franc.  After ordering the wine but before shipping, the winery went bankrupt.  After repeated attempts to get “my” wine, I was told everything was gone, there were no “bones left to pick”.

I e-mailed and used every available means to get hold of the owner.  I have been exchanging e-mails with him over the last few days, and he has agreed he owes me the wine and will send me my case out of his “personal” stash as soon as the weather cools a bit.  I don’t have the wine yet, but this is the closest I have been to getting it in 3 years.  Fingers crossed I’ll get my 2007 Diamond Mountain Cabernet Franc.

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

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 Bedrock Wine Co. Zinfandel Old Vine – $22.50

From a bottle that had been opened about 2 hours, but not decanted. Deep, dark maroon color. Brambly berries, black pepper, dark chocolate, vanilla, plums, minerals and a floral note on the very nice nose. Medium to full body with solid tannins and decent acidity. Loads of fruit and spice on the palate with a very nice black pepper component. Fairly long finish with the peppery berries and a bit of an earthy element lingering nicely. Still young, could use some additional cellar time.  (91 pts)

2008 New Harbor Pinot Noir – $5.70

A nice lighter ruby color. Cherries, plums, baking spices, a bit of earthy underbrush on the nice but slightly reserved nose. Fairly light bodied with soft, ripe tannins and nice acidity. Sweet fruit and spice on the palate with some earthy elements in the background. Seems to have just a trace of residual sugar, but not too much. Fairly short finish. Not a world class Pinot, but a perfect $6 Pinot for a week night dinner on the deck.  (87 pts)

2010 Treasure Hunter Cabernet Sauvignon Panjanatan Paso Robles – $19.79

Decanted about 2 hours. Deep, dark ruby to maroon color. Cassis, cedar, dried herbs, minerals, wild flowers, and a touch of licorice on the open and inviting nose. Medium to full body with fairly solid, ripe tannins and very nice acidity. Nice spicy fruit on the palate with dried herbs and a bit of earthiness in the background. Nice length on the finish which is showing a bit of oak. Could use some cellar time to help the oak integrate on the back end. Very nice now, better down the road.  (91 pts)

2009 The Lucky Country PTY LTD Shiraz The Lucky Country – $11.88

Deep, dark ruby to purple color. Blackberries, licorice, blueberries, some cedar and a faint floral note on the very open nose. Medium to full body with ripe tannins and slightly low acidity. A pretty distinct dark chocolate element on the palate to go with the fruit and spicy oak. Decent length on the finish. Easy drinking wine not meant for any serious contemplation. A bit soft and a bit overly oaky, but for a bit over $10, it works nicely.  (88 pts)

2009 McPrice Myers Grenache L’Ange Rouge – $30.40

From a bottle that had been open a couple of hours but not decanted. A deep garnet color. Blackberry liqueur, vanilla, baking spices, licorice, black pepper, black cherries, and some dried herbs on the big and rich nose. Full bodied with solid, ripe tannins and good acidity. Loads of spicy, peppery berries on the palate with enough tannins and acidity to support it and keep everything in place. Fairly long finish with a nice lingering peppery spice. This is big and pushes the limit but never crosses the line. I think I’d drink fairly young while the tannins and acidity are youthful enough to support the rich flavors.  (91 pts)

2006 Novy Family Wines Nebbiolo Stolpman Vineyard – $19.00

Light to medium ruby color with a fair amount of brick. Rose water, cherries, baking spices, underbrush, some tar, licorice, and a slight dusty element on the soft and enticing nose. Medium body with solid tannins and very good acidity. Spicy, earthy fruit on the palate with very nice grip. Nice, lingering finish with spicy fruit and a nice earthy edge. In prime drinking window.  (91 pts)

2008 Allegrini Palazzo della Torre Veronese IGT – $14.24

Deep maroon color. Blackberries, plums, smoke, dried herbs, vanilla, wild flowers and some minerality on the open and expressive nose. Medium body with silky, ripe tannins and decent acidity. Nice layered fruit and spice on the palate with just a touch of earthiness in the background. Nice length on the finish which is nicely spicy. Very nice.  (91pts)

2010 Cupcake Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc – $7.12

Very light, pale, straw color. Fresh cut grass, gooseberry, lemon zest, grapefruit, and some minerality on the nose. Very light body with crisp, mouthwatering acidity. Bright and zippy on the palate with the citrus and a nice herbal over lay. The herbal notes continue into the finish with the citrus turning more towards lime. Finish could be a touch longer, but this is very nice for the price.  (89 pts)

2001 Elyse Cabernet Sauvignon Tietjen Vineyard – $35.00

From a bottle opened about 2 hours but not decanted. Deep maroon color. Cassis, cedar, licorice, cherries, dried herbs, baking spices, and a touch of dusty earthiness. Medium body with nice, ripe tannins and good acidity. Nice, spicy, red and black fruit with a bit of earthiness and dried herbs in the background. Good length on the finish with the fruit and savory elements sharing the load. In a real nice drinking window, but no hurry on this one.  (92 pts)

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.