This estate is obviously very well known amongst those who frequent the dessert category and are constantly drooling over the prospect of purchasing their next bottle of Sauternes....... (oops, that tis' I). Chateau Guiraud is among the classified growths of 1855 and holds a place in the "Primer Cru" category along with ten other estates. It maybe worthy of note that it was the 9th best wine during this classification, which when you subtract Yquem from the equation, it really means Guiraud placed 8th amongst the eleven primer cru wines.
This wine is composed of 65% Semillon and 35% Sauvignon Blanc and it was aged in barrel for a total of 24 months. The average age of the vines is 35-40 years. The average yield is 12hl/ha. The maximum yield allowed by the appellation is25hl/ha.
On the nose I get brilliant aromas of creme brulee, orange creamsickle, honey, nutmeg, and a touch of white peach. I don't detect a great deal of botrytis spice, which to be perfectly honest isn't a deal breaker, but something that maybe has to do with the high amount of S.B. in this wine.
On the palate the wine continues to display it's incredible creaminess and flavors that resemble creme brulee, orange creamsickle, almond butter, and just a faint hint of spice. It has a very smooth and seductive quality to it that slides across the tongue like a silk ribbon, then on the finish a creamy nuttiness and a kick of acid settles in.
This wine is very tasty stuff, but I must be completely honest and say that it lacks a bit of concentration and complexity. It just doesn't have the power and spice of a great Sauternes and isn't nearly concentrated enough to merit a classic score. The bouquet is very beautiful, but the strength on the palate is lacking a touch. 91 Points
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The Concannon "Conservancy" wines are sourced from special vineyard land located in California's Livermore Valley. It's special because a number of growers have placed their land into a legal trust that protects against urban development forever. These wines are available nationally, but they are a smaller production than the standard Concannon wines.
As with most Petite Sirah this wine is very dark and opaque in color. It's made from 100% Petite Sirah and was aged in both French and American oak barrels.
On the nose this wine offers up aromas of black currant, espresso, charred meat, black pepper, and almost vegetable-like grassy tones. A perplexing bouquet....initially it has a farmland-type smell that perhaps is just a touch of sulfur that eventually does blow off. Charred meat and earthy soil......intriguing
On the palate the wine is richly textured and has flavors reminiscent of natural blackberry, dark chocolate, espresso bean, and cedar wood. It finishes with some nice dry tannins and flavors that remind me of earthy blackberry and pencil shavings.
This is a very nice value play and a wine that's pretty well made. 89 points
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Soave Growth in US Attributed to Consortium’s Progressive Marketing and Continued Production of Quality Wines that Deliver Great Value
New York, February 23 rd, 2011 ─ Long regarded as Italy’s favorite white wine, Soave is now gaining increasing popularity with America’s wine drinkers. During a seminar at this year’s ‘VINO 2011: Italian Wine Week’ (organized by the Italian Trade Commission), Soave Consortium oenologist Giovanni Ponchia announced that Soave exports to the US increased by over 20% in terms of volume and dollar value from 2009 to 2010. “The microclimates and diverse terroir in the Soave production zone give our wines unique personalities with balanced structures, beautiful bouquets and fresh acidity,” explained Mr. Ponchia. “Our wines are versatile, great to drink fresh and they pair well with international cuisines.” In addition to the overall category growth, the number of Soave producers selling their wines in the US grew by 16%.
While many younger American wine drinkers are now discovering Soave and appreciating the category’s diversity as well as the great price/value quotient, the American wine trade is re-discovering Soave aided by the Soave Consortium’s integrated marketing campaign that launched in 2010. “Our research showed that while our consumer target audience, Millenials, had little to no Soave brand awareness, the American wine trade was actually skeptical of the category feeling it was past its prime,” said Gino Colangelo of Colangelo & Partners, the Agency of Record for the Soave Consortium. “So our communications program has had a 2-track approach: introducing American wine drinkers to Soave and re-introducing the trade to the growing sales opportunity with Soave.”
In 2010, the integrated marketing program included a proactive publicity effort, press visits to the town of Soave (located between Verona and Venice in Italy’s Veneto region), sponsorship of the popular ‘Lidia’s Italy’ television program, social media including Facebook and consumer tastings organized online (‘Meet Up’ groups), a retail tasting program, regional print advertising and trade events.
The highlight of the 2011 program promises to be ‘Soave Month at Eataly,’ a promotion of Soave wines throughout May in New York City’s new retail Mecca for Italian cuisine. The promotion will include a Soave Bar in the Eataly Piazza, Soave by the glass in all Eataly restaurants, tastings in the Enoteca, a press event with Eataly principals ─ and Soave fans ─ Joe Bastianich and Lidia Bastianich, and a beautiful photo exhibit in Eataly entitled, ‘Glimpses of Soave.’ Additional 2011 activities will include print and online advertising, a continued publicity campaign, social media and retail tastings.
“We’re excited to continue the momentum we’ve established for Soave in the US,” said Arturo Stocchetti, the president of the Soave Consortium. “Ultimately the success of Soave in the US will be determined by our producers who will undertake their own marketing initiatives and most importantly, continue to make award—winning, delicious Soave wines.”
About the Soave Consortium
The mission of the Soave Consortium is to promote Soave wines — among the first wines in Italy to receive the DOC designation — to the world and protect the quality of Soave wines through the development and administration of strict production guidelines. Currently, the Consortium oversees and administrates production for 90% of Soave producers cultivating over 16,000 acres of vineyards and producing 45 million liters of Soave wine per year. For more information, visit www.ilsoave.com.
The Concannon "Conservancy" wines are sourced from special vineyard land located in California's Livermore Valley. It's special because a number of growers have placed their land into a legal trust that protects against urban development forever. These wines are available nationally, but they are a smaller production than the standard Concannon wines.
On the nose I get aromas of creamy vanilla, toasted oak, lemon, and some tropical fruit notes like papaya and guava. It's quite a nice bouquet that reminds me of some of the fabulous experiences I've had with California Chardonnay earlier in my wine career. I have to admit that my palate has somewhat shifted to a more subtle style of Chardonnay with perhaps a bit more minerality as opposed to the creamy vanilla and butter notes. However, every now and then I love to indulge in the deliciousness of these type of wines.
On the palate the wine has a round and creamy-like texture and flavors of sweet apple, pear, lemon curd, vanilla, butter, and hints of nutmeg spice make up the tasting profile. The alcohol spikes just a tad on the finish, but It's not all that intrusive.
Overall the wine is very serviceable and one that I think many people would enjoy. Like I said before, it's not really my style and to be completely honest, before I tried it I probably could have told you what it was going to taste like. It just lacks a bit of depth and sense of place, but it's still nice wine. 88 points (good value at $15)
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This vintage of the Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is composed of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, 3% Merlot, and 2% Petit Verdot. It was aged for a total of 18 months in French oak barrels (25% new).
On the nose I get aromas of dark chocolate, black raspberry, savory spices, graphite, tar, hints of prune, leather, and scorched earth. The bouquet evolves brilliantly with time in the glass, which suggests that as this wine ages the aroma profile will continue to improve and develop.
On the palate I get flavors of black currant, graphite, crushed rock, dried herbs, mineral, and wood spice. There are some leathery tannins on the finish that really remind me of tasting this wine in vintages past. To me this wine has really never characterized femininity, but is more masculine and forceful in it's youth. There is some nice dry coco notes on the finish. 90 points
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This Cal-Ital is a blend of 58% Sangiovese, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Petit Verdot, and 10% Merlot sourced from Califonia's South Coast AVA. South Coast winery where the wine is produced and bottled is located in Temecula, California.
Right away on the nose I get a good solid dose of oak. This creamy and toasted oak aroma combines with hints of jammy blackberry, spice, and sarsaparilla.
On the palate the wine is also completely dominated by the toasted oak flavors. There is also some hints of black cherry and blackberry, but they are almost completely masked by the heavy and awkward oaky flavors. The wine finishes slightly off balance and bitter.
I don't have a very wide sense of the appellation, because I have only tasted a few wines from this area in my wine career. However, I have to be honest and say that I think it's a very poor effort and lacks any sense of place because the wine is over-manipulated by oak treatment. I have tasted hundreds of "Super Tuscans" in the last decade and can honestly say I don't find any varietal expression in the 58% Sangiovese that is in this wine. 73 points
The nose is very interesting on this wine because it completely embodies what a crisp Italian Pinot Grigio might smell like. It's full of lemon-lime peel, grapefruit, apple, and pear aromas. There is also an underlining tone of mineral and wet stone.
On the palate this wine is fun, fruity, and has a touch of sweetness on the finish. I get lots of pear and apple flavors and a finish that reminds me of white table grapes. This to me is a "cocktail-style" wine that many wine novices would go goo-goo for, and could be extremely serviceable for a wedding or large dinner party. I really see it as a crowd pleaser.
On the back of the label it states that the wine is finished as a "Brut", but I would caution anyone purchasing this wine that it is not a dry wine. There's actually quite a bit of residual sugar and too me it actually seems quite sweet. It's a complete 180 to the dryness of a "Brut" Champagne from France. As I said before, the wine is fun and fruity and I don't necessarily think the winery intended it to be taken too seriously in the realm of "fine sparkling wine". 82 points
Here's a video from the wine maker:
Jean & Pierre Testuz, one of the most prestigious Swiss wine companies, has been established for more than 450 years, passing through 13 generations. The oldest documents describing the history of the Testuz family and their first vineyards date back to 1538. Today, Testuz is famous for producing high-quality wines in the heart of Dézaley.
Testuz is located in the heart of the appellation Dézaley, the most famous and prestigious wine district in Switzerland. The vineyard is situated between Lausanne and Montreux on the shore of Lake Geneva, overlooking acres of open fields.
The L'Arbalete is a white wine composed entirely from the Swiss-type of vine called Chasselas.
On the nose I get stunning aromas of lemon grass, creme, mineral, bread pudding, and hints of honey and stone fruit. It's really unlike any other wine I've ever smelt. It has an exotic-type nature to it, but it's not at all tropical. You know what it reminds me of?......a french bakery that's making some kind of lemon soufflé.
On the palate the wine has a very oily texture and coats the palate with flavors of crème brûlée, lemon curd, citrus, honey, and slight apricot notes. The finish is exceedingly long and has some toasted and buttered sweetbread notes. The acidity also shows up on the finish, which helps to balance the richness of this wine.
I can see this wine pairing excellently with all types of delicious seafood dishes. Scallops anyone??? Also because the wine is very round in texture and has it's alcohol under control, I can see it pairing nicely with several asian dishes as well. It's world class stuff and it's priced as such ($47.99). 92 points
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The color of this wine is very light and completely transparent when held up to the light. It almost looks free run juice to be honest....On the tech sheet provided by the importer Vineyard Brands it does indicate that the wine was "very lightly crushed in order to keep 20-30% of the grapes intact".
On the nose I get aromas of cherry, cranberry, tea leaf, rose petal, and hints of chalky soil. There's also faint hints of cola nut and sandalwood which I find quite intriguing.
On the palate this wine is quite light in terms of texture, but has an extremely penetrating nature about it. Perhaps it's the beautiful acidity and mineral character the wine contains. I honestly feel like I'm experiencing the vineyard and that this wine has been made in a very minimalistic fashion. There are delicious flavors of cherry, cranberry, tea leaf, and mineral that quite honestly grace the palate. The finish has a soft red plum and cranberry note that lasts for at least 2 minutes....a very long finish.
This wine is quite honestly a brilliant example of classic Burgundy and Pinot Noir made in it's purest expression. So complex, so true, so naked.....I absolutely love it. 95 points
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Supposedly scientist have found that the magical polyphenol Resveratrol (compound found in grape skins) combined with Rapamycin, an immunosuppressant drug, have synergistic cancer fighting reactions when used in unison.
Just another great reason for women to get out there and drink red wine!
It's never the wrong time of year to drink crisp white wines! I usually consume quite a bit more of them during the summer time, seeing that I'm located in the hot Arizona desert. However, I love this style of wine in the afternoon with light salads or soft cheeses. Riesling's from Washington's Columbia Valley often have a great crispness to them and can in many ways be compared to some of Germany's Kabinett-style wines.
On the nose I get freshly sliced golden apple aromas that combine with peach, orange blossom, and slight hints of mineral and petrol.
On the palate the wine has a very round and luscious texture, and flavors of orange marmalade, apricot, and citrus peel are the focus of the tasting profile. This is a very simple offering that has a touch of sweetness and finishes with medium to short length. A perfect light-lunch type wine that would go well with a salad and ham sandwich! 86 points
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I visited this property a few years back on one of my several Napa Valley voyages and instantly fell in love with the place because of the beautiful Sequoia Trees and cabin-style tasting room. What's perhaps even better is that their wine is usually equally impressive. I remember being quite taken with their 2004 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.
The 2007 Napa Cabernet is unique in that it's the first vintage they decided to use some of their coveted Tonella fruit (50 acre Rutherford Estate) in the blend. Here's a list of some of the growers they use to source the rest of the fruit from: Stagecoach, Morisoli, Lamoreaux, Boeschen, Beckstoffer, Cunat, Healy, Johnson, Madrigal, and Harris.
The color of this wine is deep and dark at the core of the glass and then the edges of the glass turn to a lighter, but still deep ruby red hue. Texture-wise the wine seems to look quite sleek, almost like a classic left-bank Bordeaux.
On the nose I immediately get classic Rutherford Cabernet aromas that send great reflexions of wines past into memory. The deep black raspberry notes that combine with dusty coco, peppercorn, and hints of forest floor are brilliant and refined. There's also hints of creme de cassis and a touch of black licorice and cedar that make up some of the secondary aromas. This wine continues to open up in the glass and unfold complex and seductive layers of aroma. Black cherry and soft hints of leather also enter the bouquet after the wine sits in the glass for around 15-20 minutes. World class bouquet...
On the palate this wine is a bit reserved at the moment (still very youthful) but still packs an enormous amount of black cherry flavor. There's also some very distinct peppercorn, cedar box, and dark chocolate flavors that dominate the mid-palate. This wine reminds me of young Cabernet from Bordeaux's Pauillac commune. It's refined, elegant, classic, sleek, and incredibly age-worthy. The finish is very long and is accompanied by hints of ripe black plum, graphite, and sweet tobacco. 93 points
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This Pinot Noir was produced from Pinot Noir Dijon Clones that were grown in Monterey County's Arroyo Seco appellation. It was aged in French oak barrels for a total of 13 months.
On the nose I get aromas of fresh wild strawberries, spice, mineral, and hints of toasted and smokey oak. It has a candy-esc type aroma that reminds me a lot of fresh strawberry preserves. The aromas are also very classically Pinot Noir and are what I would describe as "textbook" Pinot smell.
On the palate the wine is soft, elegant, and very fruit forward. It shows flavors reminiscent of strawberry, red raspberry, spice, hints of toast, and perhaps a touch of sour pomegranate. There's also that lingering hint of smokiness which I actually find quite appealing.
What I really enjoy about this wine is it's elegance and soft nature. It's a wine that has a rounded texture and in my opinion is best drunk on it's own. It doesn't have a high acidity level or a firm tannin structure, so it is very appealing on it's own without food. The alcohol does give a little kick on the finish which we could have done without, but overall it's a very nice wine. 88+ points
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It's not extremely common to grace the palate with a Petite Sirah from California's Russian River Valley. For the last few decades Pinot Noir has dominated the wine world from this particular part of Sonoma County, and I find it really interesting that the Foppiano Family still produces 6200 cases of this Estate Bottled Petite Sirah.
Foppiano Vineyards is one of Sonoma County's oldest family-owned wineries, dating back to 1896 when Giovanni Foppiano bought 80 acres of prime Russian River Valley land. Along with this Petite Sirah the family also produces Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and a Rosé.
The color, as one would expect is extremely inky and dark purple. The barrel regimen is as follows: 25% new French oak, 5% new Hungarian oak, 70% neutral oak
On the nose I get brilliant aromas of deliciously ripe black currant, blueberry, wild flowers, and subtle hints of vanilla bean and savory dark chocolate. Very pretty......
On the palate the wine is quite spicy and displays a unique array of flavors such as blueberry, blackberry, white pepper, graham cracker, and vanilla. I like how the wine doesn't have an over-cloying texture like many Petite Sirah's often do. The wine finishes with some really nice firm tannin and a sweet black cherry note that lingers for around 30 seconds.
The only thing I could be critical about with this wine is the slight touch of heat on the finish. The alcohol is stated as 15.2% on the label, but it's not something that entirely distracts from the overall experience of the wine. Perhaps with a few years in bottle this wine will become even more balanced and I would guess that the bouquet will only get better over the years. Killer wine fore the price ($18-20) 89+ points
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The 2008 Domaine Carneros Pinot Noir was made from 100% estate-grown fruit from vineyards located in the Carneros appellation. It was aged for ten months in French oak and then held back in bottle for an additional ten months prior to release.
The color of this wine is lighter-hued and is exactly what I expected before opening this bottle. That is, a wine made in a traditional style, devoid of any manipulation and over-extraction.
On the nose I get beautiful aromas of raspberry pie, black cherry, orange peel, rose petal, nutmeg, and very subtle hints of smoke. It's a very pretty and almost feminine bouquet, which I find to be very appealing indeed....
On the palate the wine has a very old world style texture, but at the same time it shows the California sunshine in it's ripe fruit flavors. By "old world" I speak of focused acidity and the absence of any fattiness or gloppy weight caused from access barrel toast or heavy tampering. The wine tastes fresh and straight from the vineyard.
I get flavors of red raspberry, cranberry sauce, red currant, spice, and hints of toast on the finish. There is a slight touch of heat on the finish which I think will eventually dissipate with a bit more time in the bottle. Remember that this wine is extremely young and it sometimes takes a wine a few years to catch it's perfect balance. 91 points
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My passion in the wine industry is finding wines that represent the place where they are made. With that said, I'd like to start of this post by saying that Hidden Ridge makes delicious and distinctive mountain fruit wines. These wines have a tannin structure that pulls on the palate, but also contain a rich fruit concentration that is only found on the steep slopes of the famous mountain ranges that surround the Napa and Sonoma valley.
Hidden Ridge Vineyard lies between Mount Hood and Diamond Mountain in the Mayacamas mountain range and is located in some of the highest elevations known to vintners on the California coast line. Elevations range from 900’ – 1700’ and surrounding mountain peaks rise to 2400’ and give shelter to the 55 acre vineyard giving rise to its name – Hidden Ridge.
Check out this incredibly bodacious picture I borrowed from their website:
I recently had the chance to sit down with Proprietor's Lynn Hofacket and Casidy Ward, and discuss what makes Hidden Ridge special to them, and why they believe so firmly that this young and brilliant vineyard holds such a special distinction amongst all the rest of California wines.
The overall sense I got from them and from tasting the wines is that Hidden Ridge is serious mountain wine, with serious passion behind their vision. They focus on powerfully structured Cabernet Sauvignon, that shows the character of the vineyard site.
So lets get down to my tasting notes.........
2006 Hidden Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon
All three of the wines tasted were incredibly dark and dense in color, with only the slightest differences from the vintage change with the 07's being a tad bit more purple than the 06'. They were wines with intense color and deep opaque cores in the wine glass.
On the nose the 2006 Cab' had a very savory character and almost a slight muskiness. I got aromas of black currant, blackberry, graphite, black licorice, and hints of clay. When the wine began to open up in the glass, more of the red fruit aromas started to emerge as well as hints of earth and wet forest floor. When we talked about these secondary aromas, Casidy described the ruff terrain around the vineyard and all the different types of trees and plant life that perhaps had an impact on the way the soil is expressed through the berries.
On the palate the wine was rich and opulent, and showed coursing flavors of blackberry, cassis, and chocolate. The tannin structure was very firm as to be expected from a mountain wine, however the 06' was very much the most integrated and soft of the three wines tasted.
Very well made wine (not overly chunky like other 06' Cali Cab's I've recently tasted). 91+ points
2007 Hidden Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon
This wine was slightly perplexing to me in the first 15 minutes of it being in my glass.....Then without notice in blossomed into the best bouquet of the night!!
On the nose I got a velvety chocolate aroma, almost like a milk chocolate bar. Then aromas of black licorice, brambly black raspberry, and subtle hints of black pepper came shooting out of the glass. The perfume from this wine was absolutely incredible after around 30 minutes of time in the glass. Very aromatic....kudos
On the palate I got intense black fruits and some really nice pomegranate notes that I thought were quite exotic. The chocolate flavors were very much present once again in this wine, but I would say they were more of a unsweetened version. The finish is very extended and has some tart mixed berry notes.
Power and Grace.... 93 points
2007 Hidden Ridge "Impassable Mountain" Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
This reserve bottling I felt was still a bit closed down on the nose, but really had the most silky smooth tactile sensation of all three of the wines. I adore when vintners can get Cabernet Sauvignon to glide across my palate in this fashion, and if the wine says reserve on the label, I almost need this silk for me to be completely convinced of the price tag.
On the nose I got dusty dark cocoa notes that combined with black fruits and hints of graphite. Once again I think that this wine needs a bit more time in the cellar before the aromatics come to full force.
On the palate the wine touches down with a silky and richly textured body and delivers flavors reminiscent of red raspberry, creme de cassis liquor, milk chocolate, and black currant. There is slight hints of a graphite-type minerality to it as well, which I believe is signature to the vineyard.
Great stuff...needs cellar time to reach it's full potential. 92+ points.
*For more technical data about each of these wines, and a more in-depth look at their history and what makes Hidden Ridge unique and special, please visit their website here : Hidden Ridge Vineyard
The 2010 Brancott Estate Sauvignon Blanc is very much made in the classic New Zealand style and features brimming acidity and some really amazing aromatics.
On the nose I get aromas of sour grapefruit, gooseberry, citrus peel, wet stone - mineral, lemon oil, and peach pit. Some of the words I wrote in my notepad were "Fresh, Vibrant, Alive"!
On the palate the wine has a nice rounded texture and displays flavors of white peach, lemon-lime, and gooseberry. The reason I mention the white peach first is because I really strongly believe that stone fruits take center stage on the palate and that the citrus is a secondary note. The wine finishes tart and citrus-y, but the attack and mid-palate are round and luscious.
What I really enjoy about this wine is that the citrus and acid isn't completely overblown like other New Zealand S.B's that I've experienced in the past. I find the wine to be balanced and very appealing. It's really crying out for a plate of oysters rockefeller to be completely honest! 90 points
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This particular wine is primarily made with the Tempranillo grape variety, and also has bits of Graciano and Mazuelo blended into the final wine. It was aged for 18 months in oak and was also held in bottle for an additional 18 months before release.
The wine is a lightly colored red and when glancing at the wine in my glass it reminds me of what a lot of California Pinot Noir looks like. It's core is ruby red, but the wine is really quite transparent around the edges and almost a dark pink shade. In more ways than one, aged Tempranillo-based wines often do remind me of Pinot Noir (stylistically).
On the nose I get a bouquet of black plum, cedar-spice, leather, sweet tea, and hints of cherry cola. The nose is actually very complex and to be honest is my favorite part of this wine. I even get a hint of rose petal on the bouquet, which is quite intriguing.
On the palate the wine is very classic and European in style. What do I mean by "European"?? Well, I'm talking about the somewhat lighter texture and soft elegance that the wine exudes. It's a style in which I very much appreciate and one that totally agrees with my palate. The acidity is fresh and lively and there is quite a bit to tannin on the finish as well. It's a very dry wine.
The flavors I get are black plum, blackberry, rustic leather, dried herb tones, and hints of cedar. It's really like chewing on plum skin with it's tannin-rich tactile presence, but the berry fruit is also present. The finish is long with hints of vanilla and cedar that coat the palate. The only thing I can possibly criticize it just the slightest bit of heat on the finish, but it isn't all that intrusive.
This is a lot of wine for the price ($12-15) and I definitely recommend it. 88+ points
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