This Chardonnay from the Central Coast of California is a crisp, unoaked, and very vibrant style. I'm not usually a huge fan of unoaked Chardonnay because I feel many times they lack complexity and depth, but this wine was a complete shocker. I hate the packaging, but the wine is an amazing value and it has great fruit purity.
On the nose I get bright and vibrant notes of lime peel, kiwi, pear, and a generous dose of tropical fruits such as papaya and pineapple. On the palate this wine offers a crisp acidity and flavors reminiscent of pineapple, kiwi fruit, lemon-lime, honeydew, and tangelo.
As I said before, this is probably one of the best unoaked Chardonnays I've tasted and it's fresh, lively, and just downright good wine! 90 points
Click here to find out more about this wine
The 2006 Clos du Val Chardonnay is made from 100% Napa Valley fruit from the Carneros appellation. It was aged for 10 months in French oak barrels, 20% of which were new.
I have enjoyed this wine in previous vintages for it's amazingly candied fruit aromas and it's crisp and enjoyable flavor profile. Not to mention the snappy "barbie-like" packaging from the folks at R Winery. The wine was produced from 100% Shiraz from the Hickenbotham Paringa Vineyard in Riverland, Australia.
The aromas of this wine are just amazing and resemble a truck full of watermelon Jolly Ranchers!! The candied watermelon, strawberry, and cherry flavors are brilliantly crisp and bright and make you want to just chug this wine down around the pool on a hot summer day! The aromas really bring the "delicious factor" into play and deliver loads of bright,candied fruit.
On the palate this wine is just as playful and shows plenty of crisp candied strawberry, watermelon, and raspberry flavors. In my notes I wrote down the following adjectives: "Very Fruity, Fun, Crisp, Refreshing, and would be amazing to drink out by the pool while grillin' up some hot dogs!"
Fun Stuff!! - 90 Points
Click here to find out more about this wine
This estate bottled Pinot Noir from Oregon's Willamette Valley was produced from grapes grown on the 57 acre vineyard known as "Cardwell Hill". The vineyard is planted with various Pinot clones such as Wedensvil, Pommard, and Dijon 115/777 which all combine to give this wine it's complexity and character.
This has to be one of the very best Zinfandel's I have ever tasted. In fact I tasted this wine amongst five or six other heavy hitters at a private wine tasting and thought this was the wine of the night. It's not particularly inexpensive wine and it rolls in at about $5o a bottle, but it is a stunner in terms of quality.
Logging each wine I taste is a very important tool that not only has helped me remember wines I've tasted in the past, but has significantly improved my sense of smell and blind tasting skills.
Yes...... everyone has a good laugh when I break out my pen and paper to take notes during tastings among my wine friends and colleagues. Truth be told I think the only one that should be laughing is myself because I know the value this has had on me as a wine professional, and I think those that aren't taking notes are missing out.
I've been taking serious notes and logging my tastings for about 3 years now and can honestly tell you that it has significantly improved my sense of smell and blind tasting skills. Writing down the aroma and flavor profile helps you to develop your awareness of each element. Just like I have said in the past, I think it's also important to frequently smell and taste all different sorts of fruits and vegetables to be able to become extremely familiar with the aromas they exude.
When writing tasting notes you will begin to notice common characteristics in certain wines from certain vintages and certain appellations. You'll might notice things such as eucalyptus aromas in certain wines from Australia, or perhaps a good dose if barnyard from older vintage French wines. The more you taste and make yourself aware of the profile of each wine, the better you become at expressing and processing those thoughts.
See my article on improving your sense of smell here
Genesis 14:18
And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
Genesis 27:25, 28, 37
25 - And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine, and he drank. 28 - Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine: 37 - And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now unto thee, my son?
Genesis 49:11-12
11 - Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: 12- His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.
Exodus 29:40
40 - And with the one lamb a tenth deal of flour mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil; and the fourth part of an hin of wine for a drink offering.
Leviticus 10:9
9 - Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations:
Leviticus 23:13
13 - And the meat offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mingled with oil, an offering made by fire unto the LORD for a sweet savour: and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin.
Numbers 15:5, 7, 10
5 - And the fourth part of an hin of wine for a drink offering shalt thou prepare with the burnt offering or sacrifice, for one lamb. 7 - And for a drink offering thou shalt offer the third part of an hin of wine, for a sweet savour unto the LORD. 10 - And thou shalt bring for a drink offering half an hin of wine, for an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.
Numbers 18:12
12 - All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine, and of the wheat, the firstfruits of them which they shall offer unto the LORD, them have I given thee.
Numbers 28:7, 14
7 - And the drink offering thereof shall be the fourth part of an hin for the one lamb: in the holy place shalt thou cause the strong wine to be poured unto the LORD for a drink offering. 14 - And their drink offerings shall be half an hin of wine unto a bullock, and the third part of an hin unto a ram, and a fourth part of an hin unto a lamb: this is the burnt offering of every month throughout the months of the year.
Deuteronomy 7:13
13 - And he will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee: he will also bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep, in the land which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee. Deuteronomy 16:13 13 Thou shalt observe the feast of tabernacles seven days, after that thou hast gathered in thy corn and thy wine:
Deuteronomy 18:4
4 - The firstfruit also of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him.
Deuteronomy 33:28
28 - Israel then shall dwell in safety alone: the fountain of Jacob shall be upon a land of corn and wine; also his heavens shall drop down dew.
Joshua 9:4, 13
4 - They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up; 13 - And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
Judges 19:19
19 - Yet there is both straw and provender for our asses; and there is bread and wine also for me, and for thy handmaid, and for the young man which is with thy servants: there is no want of any thing.
1 Samuel 10:3
3 - Then shalt thou go on forward from thence, and thou shalt come to the plain of Tabor, and there shall meet thee three men going up to God to Bethel, one carrying three kids, and another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine:
1 Samuel 16:20
20 - And Jesse took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them by David his son unto Saul.
2 Samuel 6:19
19 - And he dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, as well to the women as men, to every one a cake of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine. So all the people departed every one to his house.
2 Kings 18:32
32 - Until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of oil olive and of honey, that ye may live, and not die: and hearken not unto Hezekiah, when he persuadeth you, saying, The LORD will deliver us.
1 Chronicles 9:29
29 - Some of them also were appointed to oversee the vessels, and all the instruments of the sanctuary, and the fine flour, and the wine, and the oil, and the frankincense, and the spices.
1 Chronicles 12:40
40 - Moreover they that were nigh them, even unto Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought bread on asses, and on camels, and on mules, and on oxen, and meat, meal, cakes of figs, and bunches of raisins, and wine, and oil, and oxen, and sheep abundantly: for there was joy in Israel.
1 Chronicles 16:3
3 - And he dealt to every one of Israel, both man and woman, to every one a loaf of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine.
2 Chronicles 2:10, 15
10 - And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil. 15 - Now therefore the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the wine, which my lord hath spoken of, let him send unto his servants:
2 Chronicles 11:11
11 - And he fortified the strong holds, and put captains in them, and store of victual, and of oil and wine.
2 Chronicles 31:5
5 - And as soon as the commandment came abroad, the children of Israel brought in abundance the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the increase of the fields; and the tithe of all things brought they in abundantly.
2 Chronicles 32:28
28 - Storehouses also for the increase of corn, and wine, and oil; and stalls for all manner of beasts, and cotes for flocks.
Ezra 6:9
9 - And that which they have need of, both young bullocks, and rams, and lambs, for the burnt offerings of the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the appointment of the priests which are at Jerusalem, let it be given them day by day without fail:
Ezra 7:22
22 - Unto an hundred talents of silver, and to an hundred measures of wheat, and to an hundred baths of wine, and to an hundred baths of oil, and salt without prescribing how much.
Neh 2:1
1 - And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence.
Neh 5:11
11 - Restore, I pray you, to them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money, and of the corn, the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them.
Neh 10:37, 39
37 - And that we should bring the firstfruits of our dough, and our offerings, and the fruit of all manner of trees, of wine and of oil, unto the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites, that the same Levites might have the tithes in all the cities of our tillage. 39 - For the children of Israel and the children of Levi shall bring the offering of the corn, of the new wine, and the oil, unto the chambers, where are the vessels of the sanctuary, and the priests that minister, and the porters, and the singers: and we will not forsake the house of our God.
Esther 1:7, 10
7 - And they gave them drink in vessels of gold, (the vessels being diverse one from another,) and royal wine in abundance, according to the state of the king. 10 - On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven chamberlains that served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king, Esther 5:6 6 And the king said unto Esther at the banquet of wine, What is thy petition? and it shall be granted thee: and what is thy request? even to the half of the kingdom it shall be performed.
Job 32:19
19 - Behold, my belly is as wine which hath no vent; it is ready to burst like new bottles.
Psalms 104:15
15 - And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man's heart.
Proverbs 3:10
10 - So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.
Proverbs 9:5
5 - Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled.
Proverbs 31:6
6 - Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts.
Eccl 9:7
7 - Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works.
Eccl 10:19
19 - A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry: but money answereth all things.
Song 8:2
2 - I would lead thee, and bring thee into my mother's house, who would instruct me: I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomegranate.
Isaiah 22:13
13 - And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for tomorrow we shall die.
Isaiah 27:2
2 - In that day sing ye unto her, A vineyard of red wine.
Isaiah 36:17
17 - Until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards.
Isaiah 56:12
12 - Come ye, say they, I will fetch wine, and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; and to morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant.
Jeremiah 31:12
12 - Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the LORD, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd: and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all.
Jeremiah 31:12
12 - Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the LORD, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd: and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all.
1 Timothy 5:23
23 - Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities.
This 100% estate grown red wine is from the French AOC of Coteaux du Languedoc and is a blend of 60% Syrah, 35% Mourvedre, 5% Grenache. It was aged partly in French and American oak (25% new) barrels for 12 months and partly in stainless steel.
This very opaque-purple wine is loaded with big blackberry fruit, bilberry, oak, earth/soil, and a touch of pencil led. It speaks to the place of it's origin and expresses black soil-like notes and a hints of herb.
On the palate the wine has bold spicy black currant flavors combined with hints of black licorice and graham cracker. (Thanks Jedd for the graham cracker aroma!) This wine is dry and full bodied and finishes with medium to long length.
To be quite honest I was expecting a bit less because I haven't experienced too many quality wines from this region in the past. I have tasted dozens of Languedoc wines that I thought were mediocre at best but this is actually really good stuff. 88+ Points
I believe this wine was made from fruit from California's Lodi appellation, but I do know the wine is part of a company called Blue Moon Wines. As to how it was made, I have no clue except for the varietal breakdown which is 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Syrah, and 10% Zinfandel. This type of wine I often refer to as a "gimmick wine" because of the cartoon-like label and catchy name. Lots of wines like these I feel often under deliver in terms of terroir and sense of place and can sometimes be very boring. I decided to share my notes on this one because it actually drinks pretty good.
On the palate this wine is a big, luscious, fruit bomb! Jammy raspberry fruit combines with coco, spice, and a touch of creamy oak. I see this wine being a fishing trip red wine! One that can be fun to drink without food or pleases with the most basic of snacks. I does finish a bit off balance with some ruff tannin a a touch of alcohol but overall I think it's a decent value play. 86 points
The La Fuga estate is situated at an altitude of 1,200 feet in an area of the Montalcino appellation considered to be among the finest. The microclimate is unique in that it yields wines with an exceptional balance between finesse and firm, supple structure. Of the estate's total surface area, half are cultivated. Twenty-five acres are planted to vines and the rest support olive orchards. The vineyards are registered under three separate appellations, with 16.25 acres classified for Brunello di Montalcino and 4.37 acres each classified for Rosso di Montalcino and IGT Toscana. The principal vineyard, which covers 11.25 acres and is entirely under the Brunello designation, is planted to 20 year old Sangiovese vines. The remaining vineyards are more recent, planted between 1993 and 2000. Vines are planted at a density of 1,600 to 2,200 stocks per acre. Maximum potential production is approximately 3,500 cases.
Campo al Mare is produced from 60% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Cabernet Franc grapes cultivated within the Campo al Mare estate in the D.O.C. zone of Bolgheri. This is another wine made from the Folonari family who established this 100 acre property in Bolgheri near the Mediterranean coast in late 2002. This is only the forth vintage of this wine with the first being the 2003 vintage which was released in 2005.
This Super Tuscan from Tenute del Cabreo is composed of 70% Sangiovese and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon. The Zano vineyards from which Cabreo Il Borgo is produced lie at an altitude of 1,050 feet with vines planted to a density of 3,000 to 5,000 vines per hectare (1,215 to 2,025 vines per acre). The grapes achieve optimum ripeness and are picked at different times: the Sangiovese first, in the first half of October and the Cabernet Sauvignon in the second half. Focus is on the most gentle treatment possible of the grapes during production.
The more wines I taste from this winery, the more convinced I am that they are world class producers. The 2006 Estate Grenache is a 900 case production made with 100% Grenache from the Purisima Mountain Vineyard in the Santa Ynez Valley. The wine was barrel aged for 10 months in 100% neutral barrels to ensure full varietal character.
The bouquet of this wine is extremely explosive and shows brilliant red fruit aromas. Watermelon, fresh strawberries, and hints of vanilla are just some of the aromas I picked out that were very enjoyable. On the palate this wine touches down with massive strawberry notes accompanied by some really interesting cotton candy-like flavors and some very nice minerality too.
The wine appears to have a touch of residual sugar or seems to be sweet. This could be the case, and the wine could have a touch of sugar left in it after fermentation, or it could be a false sense of sweetness brought on by the high alcohol content. The wine comes in at around 15.5% alcohol and it does show a bit on the palate but this didn't ruin the experience of this blockbuster effort. This is the biggest, most explosive Grenache I have tasted in some time. The finish goes on for days! 91 points
I absolutely love to taste wines like these and I thank my good friends for inviting me to taste their aged gems such as these.
The name of Hermitage La Chapelle is linked to the chapel of Saint-Christophe overlooking the terraced vineyards along the Rhône. Maison Paul Jaboulet Aîné has been the sole owner since 1919.
The wine is made from 40-60 year old Syrah vines located in a rich and varied soils with very diverse terroirs (les Bessards, les Greffieux, le Méal and les Rocoules). The 1995 vintage proved to be a difficult growing season and although healthy grapes were harvested, they were in very small quantities.
I enjoyed this wine very much in terms of it's complexity and depth, but oddly enough it wasn't my highest scored wine of the night. It was by far the most complex wine, but not the best tasting of the bunch.
On the very complex bouquet I got a dose of stewy cherry, cinnamon, brett, white pepper, and some meaty notes. This is the kind of wine you could smell for hours without taking a sip! On the palate the wine was dry, but as soft as can be, and showed nuances of cranberry, tobacco, plum, tea leaf, chalk, mineral, and stewy cherry tomato. Once again I think this wine is has amazing complexities but for me it lacked fruit and brightness. 89+ points
Click here to find out more about this wine
The Sea Smoke wines have become quite famous as of late and I have tasted them in the past and have been somewhat impressed with the quality.
The 2005 Sea Smoke Southing pinot Noir is 100% Pinot Noir from the Santa Rita Hills appellation. The fruit was sourced from the Sea Smoke estate vineyard and was aged for 16 months in 65% new French oak and 35% used French oak.
The bouquet of this wine expresses wild strawberry notes combined with crushed rock, earth, and violets. The alcohol is a touch visible on the nose and continues onto the palate where robust flavors of wild berry and earth are themed.
This wine has great acidity and is very powerful in it's attack. The only thing that bothers me is the intrusion of alcohol both on the nose and the palate. I really think this bottle could have done with another 2-3 years in the cellar to help calm it down a bit. Very good but not worth the hefty price tag in my humble opinion. 90 points
One of the worlds most storied and famously picked apart vineyards is Burgundy's largest grand cru the Clos de Vougeot. Named after the River Vouge, a stream separating Vougeot from Chambolle-Musigny, "le Vougeot" reflects both the history and present day of Burgundy, in all it's facets. In the year 1110 A.D. the Cistercians received a parcel of land near the village of Vougeot and created this cru as the first of their many wine growing accomplishments. Year after year they added parcel by parcel and eventually set up a cellar in the center of the vineyard, and around 1330 A.D. they built the famed wall of stones around the property.
As Burgundy's first experimental vineyard, the monks studied every aspect of viticulture including the microclimate, growth conditions, varieties of Pinot, and soil types. These early wine pioneers truly helped to define the concept of terroir, and there is even a legend that says that the monks quite literally tasted the soil to learn as much as they could about the unique differences.
The 125 acres vineyard is unique in it's soil variety. Every few yards the ground and soils change dramatically and the differences therein are what come to define where the best wines are produced. In the upper section, particularly where the Chateau resides, the soil is scant and rich in limestone providing a well drained and superior growing area for the Pinot Noir. Lower down, alongside the main highway, the soil is loamy and heavy and is more susceptible to waterlogging.
Today there are an average of 80 owners that share the vineyard's parcels of land. Following the Napoleonic code, throughout the centuries the vineyard has be divided up between children and relatives and some owners can own as little as one row of vines. Because of this, negociants play an important role in producing wines from the grapes of several owners and each year roughly 40 wines come onto the market with "Clos de Vougeot" on their label.
Though the quality of each Vougeot bottling varies quite dramatically, a good one has a special structure and density and it's own unique expression of the Pinot Noir variety. What makes the wine of le Vougeot special isn't so much the distinct tipicity of the terroir, but more the fact that the wine represents the entire image of quality at an exceptional level. This also explains why the vineyard continues to garner such respect and demand even after nine hundred years after it's foundation.
This Napa Valley Merlot was really hard to find information on and even harder to find a label. I think this is a second label to the Dark Horse winery wines. Since I don't have any tech information we'll skip it and go into the tasting notes!
I am a huge fan of the wines made by Dave Phinney at Orin Swift Cellars. Most of us have heard of the winery's flagship wine "The Prisoner" which I have reviewed a few times in the past here on the Blog Wine Cellar. I also reviewed the "Papillon" which is Orin Swift's Bordeaux blend.
California Appellations
54% Sonoma
16% Napa
15% Mendocino
9% Amador
6% Contra Costa
Some of these great vineyards include this wine is sourced from are Monte Rosso, Eagle Point, Rockpile, Bismark, Beatty, Page Nord, Duarte, Solari, Evangehlo, Battuelo's, Tofanelli, Korte, Mable Tiedemann, Frediani, Lewers, Alta Vista, and Bald Mountain.
He who loves not wine, women and song remains a fool his whole life long.
-Martin Luther
This Monterey county Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp refreshing summer wine that I believe would be brilliant with the actual cuisine it's name suggests (Ceviche!). Ceviche, for those of us foreign to this wonderful dish, is a traditional Latin American seafood soup or salad that usually contains either fish, shrimp, lobster, or a mix of all these seafood's, coupled with onion, tomato, cilantro, lime, and oil. Traditionally the fish isn't cooked with heat but rather with the acid from the key lime squeezed into the dish.
Anyways, now that I've gotten off the subject of wine I will return to what I though about as I tasted this crisp California Sauvignon Blanc. On the nose this wine displays aromas of pear, green apple, citrus, grapefruit, and a touch of grassiness. It is the typical aromatic profile of lots of California SB's.
On the palate this wine is simple, crisp, and refreshing, and shows flavors of lemon-lime, mineral, and wet concrete. A very simple wine with enough acidity and simplicity to pair with the already flavorful dish that is mentioned in it's title. 85+ points
Click here to find out more about this wine
I rarely have the opportunity to drink Dolcetto and I have to admit it's been maybe 5-6 months since I've tried one. However, I do remember from my previous encounters with the varietal, that it is usually a light and somewhat fruity style red that occasionally can be good, but most the time is average at best. The latter is how I feel about this wine because I feel it somewhat lacks fruit and is almost too rustic. Those big hearty Italian food lovers may actually dig on this wine, but I for one prefer the more light and whimsical Dolcetto's.
Today I wanted to spotlight a special blog that I think exemplifies great food and wine blogging. Memphis chef and blogger Ben Carter has put together an amazing culinary and wine review blog that just happens to be one of me favorite reads online.
Farella Park is a very small boutique winery located on the east side of the town of Napa in Napa Valley. They have been making some really special wines for the last few years and are quickly becoming one of my favorite producers because of the amazing quality they produce for the price category.
The 2004 Pepper Bridge Cabernet Sauvignon is composed of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Malbec. It was sourced from various vineyards located in Washington State's Columbia Valley appellation and was aged in 100% French oak barrels for 21 months.
This small production Pinot Noir (850 cases) was produced from fruit blended from vineyards in the Santa Rita Hills of Santa Barbara County. Roessler is a small family owned winery that focuses on the production of boutique single vineyard wines produced from various cool climate vineyards throughout California. They focus mostly on Pinot Noir but have added a few select Chardonnays to their collection as well.
The 2006 Peregrine Pinot Noir has a unique and layered bouquet of wild strawberry, crushed rock, rhubarb, and just slight hints of beef jerky and gamy meats. There's lots of bright red fruit and just enough funk and secondary elements to make it very interesting.
On the palate the wine has an amazingly rich and rounded mouth feel coupled with flavors of raspberry, and strawberry rhubarb. Rich, textured, lengthy, powerful, and nuanced are just a few adjectives I wrote down in my tasting notes about this superb effort. 93+ points
This Sonoma County Zinfandel was sourced from vineyard located in the Alexander Valley appellation. It was aged in French oak for approximately 16 months and was released from the winery in January of this year. Marietta is a great Sonoma producer who is churning out amazing wines as of late and their new packaging is in my opinion, a vast improvement from the previous label.
Château de Campuget in Costières de Nîmes is a beautiful wine property dating back to 1640. The 160 hectares vineyard is situated in the heart of the A.O.C. area, between Nîmes and Arles , a few kilometers from the right side of the Rhône river .
Here's a few pictures of where I'm currently employed. We have around 2500+ bottles of wine and maybe 300+ beers too!
This Napa Valley Merlot has all the ripeness and all rich fruit of the best Cabernet's and if tasted blind on this wine, I might have trouble choosing Merlot as the varietal. I'm not saying that Merlot is in any way inferior to Cab, but usually it doesn't carry this kind of weight and voluptuousness.
There are but few Chenin Blancs produced in the Napa Valley and even fewer that are 100% single vineyard Chenin Blanc. The Pocai Vineyard is located on the valley floor, resting between Maple Lane and the Silverado Trail near Calistoga. Although the fertility of the soil is low, the drainage is excellent. Yields from the Pocai Vineyard are small, 3 to 4 tons per acre. The fruit is intense and it is hand picked at harvest. Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chenin Blanc are all grown at the Pocai Vineyard.
This small 1200 case production of estate Sauvignon Blanc is a great example of what this varietal can express if made with the right fruit and techniques. I'm not usually a huge fan of Sauvignon Blanc, and in fact I feel it's a varietal that is commonly not very well made. Beckmen is a small but pretty well known winery from the Santa Ynez Valley and is quazi-famous for it's production of Rhone varietals such as Syrah, Grenache, Rousanne, and Marsanne.
