Bill Harlan, (pictured on the left) Owner of cult wine label Harlan Estate and Bond winery, has purchase the 21 acre former Diamond Oaks Winery that is located adjecent to his own property in Oakville, Napa Valley. Included in the purchase is the winery and the surrounding property, which includes 4 acres of land planted to Cabernet Sauvignon and 2 acres of olive trees. The Diamond Oaks label and inventory were not included in the sale, which sold for an undisclosed price.

Harlan admits he is unsure about the development of the property but termed the purchase as "strategic" and later added that he didn't want the property to be sold to someone he didn't know. "I'll figure out what to do with it eventually," he said.

The facility which was home to three previous brands, has switched hands and ownership over the years and was even at one time owned by Robert Mondavi.

With a capacity of 60,000 cases annually cult wine collectors will no doubt be waiting for Harlan to announce a new and up incoming project.

Search for Harlan wines here!

Lussac-Saint-Émilion is a AOC located on the right bank of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers in Bordeaux. It's commonly grouped in with so-called satellites of Saint-Émilion. Lussac is planted to four of the five Bordeaux varietals, with Petit Verdot being the odd one out. Merlot is the dominant varietal of the four in most blends.

This wine is composed of 70% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc, and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon. (25 years old vines) It's aged in 50% vats, 20% new French oak barrels, and 30% one year or older barrels. The wine is 100% Estate bottled.

Chateau Bel-Air Lussac-St-Emilion is a winery that has been in existence for over a century and amazingly enough it's been owned by the same family. They have and amazing history and if you check out their small but well organized website -> Chateau Bel-Air You'll see labels pictures of old 1945 labels.

Another neat thing is this bottle of wine is very inexpensive. I purchase a half bottle for $11.99 at the wine shop!

On the nose I get the classic rustic right bank Merlot leatheriness that is quite common for wines from St. Emilion and it's satellites. It's almost like it smells earthy and austere. There is also some crushed blackberry notes that combine with hints of tar and graphite.

On the palate the wine has a slender texture but packs some pretty astringent tannins on the finish. In fact the tannins are quite green and somewhat bitter. I must point out that this wine is far to young to be consumed and the winemaker would probably want to lynch me if he knew I was reviewing it as a baby. However, there is a overall rustic character to this wine and although it shows some decent cherry notes, the wine is far too bitter and green for me. There is a dirty soil character and a greenness about the tannins that I don't really find too appealing.

I will try the other half of this bottle tomorrow and if it does decide to soften up a bit and shed some of its rusticity then I will report back. As for now I think this wine merits 82 points.

Click here to find out more about this wine

One of the funnest things that has to do with enjoying wine is finding joy in the hunt for the hidden gems! Anyone can grab a bottle of Caymus or if you prefer Bordeaux then lets say......Latour for example, but the real joy is in finding a hidden beauty.

I remember realizing how damn good a bottle of Marietta Cabernet was when I reviewed it and gave it 100pts on a QPR scale.....and I believe a 92+ point overall score. Now that to me is a hidden gem and especially for twenty bucks! I must have bought a dozen bottles of the 05' vintage until it was sold out on the shelf.

Now just because I say "hidden gem" doesn't necessarily mean the wine has to be from some obscure place or winery. Marietta has been around for years and has even received some really smashing press in the past. What it means to find a gem like this is to find the right wine, in the right vintage, for a knockout price, and finding it when it's under the radar.

When you come across a great little wine that you believe to be unbelievably good for the price and is perhaps worthy of some time in the cellar, then buy a case and enjoy it for as long as you can before the normal wine crowd figures it out. Trust me they always do!

P.S.... don't be afraid to quiz you local shop owner or wine steward for their little gems. You'll be surprised to find out just what they have stored away for themselves. They never have the money to buy it for themselves but often times love to hoard it away!

I last reviewed the 2004 vintage of this wine that you can look at if you click on the link. I gave it a 93 point score so we'll see how this wine compares in quality.

Cliff Lede is a great winery located in the Stag's Leap AVA that produces some really classy Cabernet Sauvignon. I also highly enjoy and rate their Sauvignon Blanc which is among my favorite SB's produced in Napa.

Wow.... as I'm sitting here waiting to taste this wine and review it, the aromas have completely filled the room. It's making me crazy so I'll come back to the tech data after I taste it!

On the nose this wine explodes with aromas of blackberry, cassis, chocolate truffle, coco powder, anise, crushed rocks, and white pepper. This black fruit and melted licorice is what I've come to expect and adore about this wine. It's textbook Stag's and incredibly consistent with this particular wine.

On the palate the wine has an incredible texture and splendidly mouth-coating effect. Monstrous flavors of creme de cassis liquor and melted black licorice completely dominate the primary and introductory flavors of this wine. On the mid-palate the wine shows some beautiful over-ripe black cherry notes and black tea. On the finish I get graphite and crushed rocks and boat loads of velvety tannin that last for at least a minute.

The structure of this wine is very impressive and while the wine is very drinkable at this stage and shows incredible ripeness, there's no doubt the wine will age for a decade. Another knockout wine and for around $60 it almost approaches a value when comparing it to some Napa Cabs. 91+ Points

Click here to find out more about this wine

For quite some time now I have dreamt about building a proper wine cellar in my house.

No.... not just an old wine box in the corner of my closet, but an actually real deal wine cellar with the proper insulation and wine racks needed to keep my wine in the perfect environment for pristine provenance.

I have an amazing walk-in closet in my office that is chalk full of empty wine bottles, wooden wine boxes, and other miscellaneous junk that probably needs to find a new home at the dump!













I have studied the basics of whats needed in order to turn this space into a bonafied cellar for my collectible wines. Here is a basic list of things to consider:

1: Proper Insulation - If the space you're looking at for the cellar has a wall that is close to an outside wall and may be subject to heat, you may need to insulate with extra layers of insulation on the walls.
2: Proper Cooling System - Finding the appropriate sized cooling unit for the space is key in order to keep the temperature as stable as possible. Cooling systems come in all shapes and sizes but they are not air conditioners! Choosing a wine cellar cooling system is important because you'll need to monitor both the temperature and humidity for your cellar.
3: Proper lighting - Fine wine needs to be kept in a relatively dark place where dangerous UV's can't effect your wine negatively. I would suggest installing a very dim style of lighting. Not a big ol' bulb!
4: Proper Door - This is really something not to be underestimated. If you want to keep your wine at a consistent temp, it's vital that your entry way is completely sealed and won't let warm or cold air in or out. Look into finding the right weather stripping and so on......
5: Proper Wine Racks - You'll want your wine held firm and in a secure laying down position. When your collection grows this will ultimately be an important organization tool as well. Having the proper racking is also key for creating an aesthetic appeal to your cellar.
6: Decor - This is an easy part because you can choose from all kinds of art, wine labels, and creative wine decorations. I suggest getting some really cool Bordeaux wine box planks off of your collector pals or from the wine shop!

There may be a few things left to consider such as security, insurance, and perhaps software to catelog your wines..... but these things may not be of importance if your building a small cellar such as my own.

There is an amazing website that I've come across that has lots of information about building your dream wine cellar as well as all the equipment and advice you'll need. Just visit the links in this post to find out more about "Vintage Cellars".

As with most Port houses Quinta do Portal has been producing wine for generations. They make pretty much every style of Port wine such as vintage Port, Colheita Port, aged tawny Port, late bottle vintage port, ruby and white Port, and the even make non fortified still wines as well.

This "Fine Tawny Port" is a simple non-vintage style tawny Port that is relatively inexpensive but has really classy packaging and is a nice value Port wine.

The wine has a caramel looking color with just the slightest tinge of pink, and appears to be kind of hazy or cloudy in the glass.

On the nose I get aromas of molasses, caramel, orange peel, orange marmalade, nuts, raisin, tar, nutmeg, and white pepper notes. The bouquet obviously evolves throughout the drinking experience to unfold all of these aforementioned characteristics.

On the palate the wine reminds me of an orange tootsie roll pop with it's sugary molasses-like texture and orange marmalade flavors. I also got flavors that reminded me of brown sugar, raisins, and on the finish nutty almond notes. After about two minutes of tasting I also noticed that the aftertaste is reminiscent of red apple skin.

This is a decent quality Port wine for the price. It's a bit fruitier that I expected for a tawny style but I actually enjoyed that. If you give this wine sufficient time in the glass it improves dramatically and I don't suggest serving it too cold. 86 points

Click here to find out more about this wine

Are you looking for OurWorld Prizes?

The free-ourworld.com gives out prizes such as resident upgrade for your account, cheats , codes and others.

Simply when you request the ourworld codes you want, and after collecting the equivalent amount of points for it, you will receive an email with the requested codes.

Below is a tutorial video showing you how to access this great website and become a member in order to get some amazing prizes, cheat, and codes.

You can also refer your friends and earn more and make this program really work for you. Visit the website link in this post and follow the tutorial on the site in order to find out how to get free Ourworld Gems.

I sincerely hope that the wines from Kosta Browne will continue to be a great as they presently are, despite the change in ownership of the winery. I have been lucky enough to taste a handful of their Pinot's and can honestly say that they're my favorite wines from Sonoma.

The Kanzler Vineyard is located in the hot spot for growing amazing Pinot Noir, Sebastopol. The first vintage made by Kosta Browne was in 2002, but this was the first time I have had the chance to taste this wine from this vineyard. The vineyard is planted to Pinot clones 115, 667, and the famed Pommard clone.

I tasted this wine with a group of friends last night and amongst a table with about 15 really good wines, this may have been the only truly fabulous wine of the night.

The bouquet was extremely expressive with generous amounts of pure berry medley, and some very nice crushed rock and mineral notes.

On the palate the wine was perfectly balanced with fantastic delineated flavors and the purest fruit nuances. The oak integration was flawless and the ripeness of the fruit impeccable. I remember telling everyone at the table that I thought the wine tasted like wild strawberries and creme. In fact the wine almost tasted like dessert with the sweetness of the tannin.

If you have your pick of the litter....I strongly recommend the Kanzler Vineyard because this wine was in the top two to three Pinot Noir's I have ever tasted in my wine career. 100 Points

For me it was the perfect impression of the varietal.........

Click here to find out more about this wine

This Cabernet Sauvignon from Tupungato, Mendoza is composed of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Malbec. The vineyard is located in Tupungato at 3,936 feet above sea level and is planted in loamy textured soil. The wine is aged in French oak barrels for 8 months.

I'm not used to tasting many Cab's from Argentina but have always thought that if they can grow such amazing Malbec, then Cabernet is something that they can definitely improve on. When visiting my local bottle shop I asked the wine manager (a friend of mine) what little gems he had for a cheap price. He pointed out this bottle and I knew the producer because I really love their Torrontes, so I decided to give it a shot.

On the nose I get aromas of dusty black cherry, cassis, black licorice, oak, tar, pencil led, and dark chocolate. The wine opens up significantly when given the proper amount of oxygen and it's full bouquet is actually very complex. Let this baby breathe!

On the palate big voluptuous black fruits and dusty black cherry dominate with lingering cedar and graphite notes. It's also a bit liquor-like and is somewhat like creme de cassis with it's thick texture and licorice notes.

This bottle of wine is every bit worth it's $10 price tag and if you see it in your local shop I recommend picking it up as and excellent value. Also try the Torrontes because it's amazing! 88 points

Click here to find out more about this wine