Cliffs Wine Picks – October 2017 Vol 1
2012 Treana White Central Coast
2006 Mitolo Shiraz Savitar
2016 Domaine de Bendel Côtes de Provence
2011 Chateau de Vaudieu Chateauneuf-du-Pape
2013 Myriad Cellars Sémillon McGah Family Vineyard
2012 Romanelli Montefalco Rosso
2012 Treana White Central Coast
This is a 50/50 blend of Marsanne and Viognier.
The wine is a light golden yellow color. The fresh and lively nose has green apples, white peach, wet stone minerals, lemongrass, orange blossoms and vanilla bean. This has medium to full body with decent acidity. On the palate tart apples, peaches and minerals come through on the front end with lemon grass and orange blossoms coming in later. The finish has nice length with sweet vanilla providing some depth. Traces of alcohol peak through at times on the back end and finish. This tastes very nice but should be opened over the next year before the alcohol becomes more pervasive. This has 14.5% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork. (88 pts)

2012 Treana White Central Coast
2006 Mitolo Shiraz Savitar – $32.50
It may put me in the “uncool” camp but I still love an occasional Australian Shiraz. I avoid the low end offerings that inevitably end up in “close out” sales, but there are outstanding bargains out there in high end wines if you look around.
The wine is a deep, dark, inky purple color. The rich and luxurious nose has blackberries, blueberries, dark chocolate, vanilla, smoked meat, dried herbs, warm baking spices and some earthiness. This has a full body, fairly solid ripe tannins and good acidity. This is a massive wine on the palate with loads of spicy, peppery berries with a nice smoked meat element followed by spicy oak and dried herbs. The finish is very long and like the palate, packed with flavor. No subtlety and not the most complex wine out there, but very balanced and tasty. Not a wine for everyone nor an everyday wine, but on occasion, this one will rock. This is in a prime drinking window and should hold nicely for several years. This has 14.5% alcohol by volume and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork. (93 pts)

2006 Mitolo Shiraz Savitar
2016 Domaine de Bendel Côtes de Provence – $16.99
This is a blend of 50% Grenache, 40% Cinsault and 10% Syrah.
The wine is a light, pale pink color. The inviting nose has strawberries, cherries, white peach, orange blossoms, lime zest and minerals. This has light to medium body with good acidity and just a hint of sweetness. On the palate strawberries and cherries pop out quickly with orange blossoms and minerals coming in later. The finish has nice length with lime zest providing depth and a crisp acidic closing note. The slight sweetness makes this very easy to sip on a warm, sunny day. This has 13% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with an agglomerated cork. (88 pts)

2016 Domaine de Bendel Côtes de Provence
2011 Chateau de Vaudieu Chateauneuf-du-Pape – $29.66
This bottle was purchased from Last Bottle wines, my favorite “flash” wine site. If you use the provided link and sign up, you get an immediate credit and I get a credit if/when you make a purchase. Check them out, they have awesome deals and their Marathons are always something special.
This is a blend of 74% stainless steel aged Grenache and 26% barrel aged Syrah.
The wine is a nice ruby red color. The exuberant nose has cherries, stony minerals, garrigue, raspberries, scorched earth and dried wildflowers. This has medium to full body with moderate tannins and very nice acidity. On the palate cherries, raspberries, minerals and garrigue come through on the front end with scorched earth coming in on the back end. The finish has very good length with a nice dried floral note providing depth. This is drinking very nicely but there is absolutely no hurry to open this one. I liked this one more and more as the evening wore on. This has 15% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork. (93 pts)

2011 Chateau de Vaudieu Chateauneuf-du-Pape
2013 Myriad Cellars Sémillon McGah Family Vineyard – $25
This wine is 100% Sémillon from the McGah Family Vineyard in Rutherford.
The wine is a light, pale straw yellow color. The sexy nose has melon, pineapple, lemon zest, spices, orange blossoms and dusty minerals. This has medium body with good acidity. On the palate nice up front fruit is balanced with spice, orange blossoms and minerals. The finish has great length with tart lemon zest urging you to grab another sip. This is one of the best Sémillon wines I have had the pleasure to drink. This has nice richness with good acidity providing very nice structure. This has 14.6% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork. (93 pts)

2013 Myriad Cellars Sémillon McGah Family Vineyard
2012 Romanelli Montefalco Rosso
Rosso wines from Montefalco are required to contain 60-70% Sangiovese, 10-15% Sagrantino and 15-30% other varieties of the winemaker’s choosing.
This is a blend of 65% Sangiovese, 15% Sagrantino, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot. The varieties were fermented and aged separately in a mix of small and large previously used French oak barrels.
The wine is a bright ruby red color. The appealing nose has cherries, dry underbrush, plums, baking spices, roasted herbs, violets and chalky minerals. This has medium to full body with moderate tannins and very nice acidity. On the palate cherries, plums and dry underbrush jump out on the front end with baking spices and roasted herbs coming in on the back end. The finish has good length with minerals and violets providing nice depth. This is a fairly luxurious Rosso that tastes very good. I really liked this one. This has 14.9% alcohol and the bottle is sealed with a natural cork. (93 pts)

2012 Romanelli Montefalco Rosso
Here are a few meals that featured some of the wines reviewed above.
Boneless Pork Loin Chop that was cooked with the Sous-Vide before being finished in a hot cast iron pan. A pan sauce with shallot, red wine and the juices from the sous-vide bag was than made in the pan. Some breaded and fried, fresh from the garden Okra and a baked potato completed the meal.
To pair with the Myriad Sémillon I breaded a couple fish filets with panko breadcrumbs and quickly sauteed. The fish was then cut into chunks and served with fresh from the garden greens and cheese as Fish Tacos. A little Mexican Rice was served on the side.
What goes better with a nice Italian Rosso than pizza? In this case a pie from the local pizza shop with two types of pepperoni, Italian sausage and extra cheese.
I am a big fan of the “Flash Wine Sale” site Last Bottle. You probably noticed some of the wines in this post were purchased from the site. All of these wines were purchased at a big discount. I highly recommend getting on their e-mail list. Like most of the flash sale sites, they offer one wine per day until it sells out. They also have a couple two-day marathons during the year. Last Bottle is a great site to buy special wines at prices low enough to open any day of the week.
If you sign up using this link you will get a $10 credit that can be used on your first purchase. I will also get a credit if you make a purchase.
Other than getting a credit as explained above, I have no financial interest in the site. After you are on the list, you can also get the same credit by introducing friends to Last Bottle.
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Notes – I use the “official” Cellar Tracker name for the wines. I use Cellar Tracker to help manage and organize my cellar. I highly recommend checking it out at www.cellartracker.com. Loading you existing cellar is a lot less intimidating than it would first appear. There is a good chance 99% of your wine is already in the system, so you generally only need to enter part of the wine’s name and the system will find it for you.
Prices noted are the prices I paid at the time of purchase. I don’t shop around to find the best prices, but always check out the sale and close out items when in a store. Wines purchased direct from a winery do not include any shipping charges. None of the prices include the sales tax.
All wines that were sent to me free of charge to sample will be noted and I will show suggested prices when available.
Cheers!