Outstanding California Cabernet

About a week ago, James Laube kicked off a robust blog when he described the pending first release of Levy & McClellan 2004 Napa Valley Cab at the one bottle "case" price of $350. Yep, $350 per bottle for the first edition of a California Cabernet seeking immediate cult status. Audacious is one word to describe it. Suffice to say that equal doses of smugness and indignation flew fast and furious on Laube's blog from keyboards around the world, alternatively applauding and lambasting the offering. Having registered on its mailing list a while back I actually received a personalized invitation from L&M, which was lovely, and promptly tossed it in the circular file. Cutting to the chase, while reading various diatribes of the legion of posters, someone mentioned Teachworth and its recent cab release and I bought a six pack and, well the rest is history.

So I opened a bottle of the Teachworth Napa Valley 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain District, Manzanita Hill Vineyard, 13.9% alcohol. According to the winerey's website, the grapes are organically grown in two sloping one-acre vineyards lying between 750 and 850 feet in elevation. Manzanita Hill is the lower vineyard and contains more vines and gets intense afternoon sun on its chalky slopes. Teachworth wines are aged for 30 months in French Oak barrels (new to old ratio?), then hand-bottled at the winery and aged an additional eighteen months before release. The winemaker is Phil Steinschriber of Diamond Creek Vineyards. Fifty cases of this wine were made, that's right just one barrel. I purchased two bottles of each of the Teachworth wines for $75 a bottle direct from the winery, exchanging faxes, calls and emails with Joan Teachworth, a charming, thoughtful woman who I would love to meet some time and tour her winery.

Tasting Notes: Dark red in the glass, notes of blackberries and chocolate on the nose, fine tannin balance, roasted almonds and toffee mid-palate, cedar, cocoa and allspice on the finish, fine structure, refined and elegant. Easily the match of a fine second growth out of the Medoc, though with a fuller dark fruit profile. A fantastic wines that evolves in the glass into myriad flavors and essences. Truly delightful to drink.

The bottle notes that this wine should be opened at least an hour before drinking, I never wait but did find that a little air did flesh out the flavors of this lovely offering. Decanting may work too, though I find that difficult to manage as it takes me two or three nights to drink this kind of prize and decanter stoppers, well . . . .

Rating: Superb (my first!)

Cheers, Barrld

Wine Blogger Wednesday #30; New World Syrah/Shiraz

Tim Elliot at Winecast.net is hosting the 30th edition of Wine Blogger Wednesday on February 7, 2007 so taste your new world Syrah/Shiraz and write him before then!

Cheers, Tim

New World Sauvignon Blanc Tasting

After my post on the Peter Michael L' Apres Midi, my sister asked whether I liked New Zealand sauvignon blancs. Good question; I've tried a number of them, essentially doing the round robin at an NZ tasting held by High Times, down in the Newport Beach area about 2 years ago with my friend Jeff, his wife and my wife. After about a dozen wines, maybe less, they all started to meld together into a giant field of alfalfa next to the green pepper patch. A handful were terrible plonk and should have been poured out on the spot. Of course I bought a ridiculous number of bottles that barely hit the "OK" meter, spur of the moment stuff egged on by my wife, taken advantage of while under the influence of morning booze. Fortunately, these were mostly bargains below $20, often less that $15 a bottle so not that costly an indulgence. Over time I enjoyed the wines well enough, passing them off as serious to the local guzzler crowd, who cocked one eyebrow and nodded shallowly, unconvinced. At any rate I still have a few here and there, on their last legs of life, so I dusted one off, literally, to see how it was, ahhh, maturing.

I have this "connection" in London, kind of a grey market thing, they buy the wines direct from the producer and then sell to consuming customers, skipping retailers. Theoretically, you miss one link in the distribution chain and avoid someone's mark up. Buying wines from the UK, where the pound has worked the dollar into shreds of late, can be tricky, then finding a shipper even more troublesome. Easier to go to the local store and pay $10 more a bottle than to deal with bioterrorism restrictions on imported wines, clearing customs, lost container cars, etc. Long story short, my UK connection sourced some wines from South Africa and, after doing a quick search hereabouts, it appeared that I couldn't get the juice in the US so, with the price being right, I picked up 6 bottle of Stellenbosch sauvignon blanc and 6 bottles of a meritage red blend. Both turned out to be good bargains and very good wines, esp. the red.

The Wines: From New Zealand, I chose the Seresin 2004 Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough, at 13.0% alcohol. Located on the northeast portion of the south island, Marlborough is perhaps the best known NZ area, producing quality SB, pinot and riesling, among others. Accordingly to notes on the bottle, the grapes for this wine were hand harvested, whole cluster pressed and aged in 3% old French barriques (I guess the other 97% was in stainless steel). The South African wine is a Vergelegen 2003 Reserve Sauvignon Blanc Stelllenbosch Region, with 13.5% alcohol. Located in the Somerset West area of South Africa, near False Bay, this is a gorgeous winery and wine making property, at least from the website, as I haven't ever visited any part of Africa. Actually, red varietals dominate the plantings at its various vineyard sites. This particular wine sat on its skins for 18 hours at 8 degrees C (46 F) then was fermented without lees contact, according to the wine maker. Under the heading of "too much information" I really haven't spent much brain capacity on learning about South Africa's wines and probably won't, as the Rhone and that ever persnickety Burgundy have priority.

SeresinTasting Notes: Light straw, alfalfa/barnyard and green pepper on the nose (not pleasant), sharp, grassy, tart lime and grapefruit, one dimensional midpalate, long viscous finish with green apples. A bit mellower after a few minutes in the glass and tastes a bit less weedy when colder. Well made but not exciting.

Vergelegen Tasting Notes: Golden yellow, grapefruit and straw on the nose, tart, lemon, asparagus notes, supple mid-palate, sharp, rather edgy mineral finish. Well crafted with a little bit of zing to it.

And the winner is . . . .

Vergelegen: Quaffable, Seresin: Good. So it goes . . .


Cheers, Barrld

"Inexpensive Yet Good" Red Burgundy?

Burgundy is probably in the bottom five of the "good value" and "price-to-quality" scales that those of us who care about the price of wine use in our wine buying strategies. The dollar's collapse against the euro, some decent to excellent recent vintages and general price inflation have conspired to push the price of many premiere crus from the more popular villages close to or above $100 a bottle and have priced almost all grand crus in the mid $100 and beyond range. For wines that have a lot of moving parts, indiscernable village designation, identifiable but confusing vineyards, indigenous producer/owner/family heir? vs. local negociant vs. mega-negociant, buying Burgundy, especially red Burgundy can be very frustrating and, ultimately, disappointing. While it seems quixotic to keep searching for "value" red Burgundies of real quality when $25 to $40 will buy a very good to excellent California or, dare I say? (Dare, Dare!) Oregon, pinot I guess the ephemeral, nearly orgasmic allure of a fine red Burgundy keeps saps like me forever questing. The Roumier 1996 Bonne Mares (a gift and obviously not inexpensive if you're buying) that we took to a dinner at Grace in LA a few years back was sublime and truly memorable, further whetting my appetite for more, albeit less expensive, Burgundy.

Anyway, having signed up for too many emails from retailers around the country, all of which I feel compelled to open just to "look," the folks at Crush Wine and Spirits on 57th Street in Manhattan sent out an offering of the wines from Vincent Girardin, vineyard owner and small negociant out of Meusault, extolling his collection of 2003s, blah, blah, blah. The prices seemed reasonable so, without knee-jerking I did a bit or research, read a few testimonials (Andrew Jefford, columnist at Decanter and profligate wine writer, gave Girardin positive press), and then I stuck my toe in the red Burgundy waters and ordered a mixed case of Girardin's juice, fingers crossed. OK a case is more like a leg than a toe, but I did receive the full case discount, which covered cross country shipping. Actually, I'm pleased with the quality of all the wines and with the diversity that it brings when we get together with my boozer neighbors and relatives, who treat bottles of red Burgundy with a greater degree of reverence than they would give to an otherwise superior California pinot.

So I had a bottle of Domaine Vincent Girardin 2003 Santenay 1er Cru "Les Gravieres," Vielles Vignes standing up in my cellar for a week or so, getting all nice and settled and, notwithstanding all the pinot that I've downed recently, I decided to give it a run. I have heard of Santenay before, know that it's a lesser Burgundy village in the south Cote d'Or but probably could not find it on a map. I paid just over $30 a bottle for the wine and see it on Wine-Searcher pro for about that price. It was imported by Daniel Haas and has 13.5% alcohol.

Tasting Notes: Gorgeous red ruby, nose of gravel, black plum and mint, a little chewy mid-palate, tightly wound, earthy, dark fruit with a slightly chalky finish. After about an hour, the wine opens and becomes more elegant, with notes of charcoal, blackberry, mushrooms and freshly turned soil. A fine quite drinkable wine that we'll finish tonight, but it's missing mystery, complexity and seduction. The impossible dream continues.

Rating: Quaffable

Cheers, Barrld

Vivid Viognier

Being a Rhone-head, a few years back I tried a Guigal Condrieu at dinner with the wife. Now I drink almost anything, esp. when I pay restaurant prices but the wife is, shall we say, particular. Two sips in and her nose was turned up, "tastes like jet fuel and burnt oranges." She has a terrific palate BTW. Anyway, I powered on, as is my ilk, but never found the wine approachable. We probably left half a bottle undrunk, a tragedy. The moral of the story is that it took me some time thereafter to actually buy another bottle of viognier. I took me even longer to figure out how to pronounce the name of this varietal. Nowadays, there are viognier lovers everywhere, and there is even a website devoted to the grape, enjoyingviognier.com. Some folks really do have too much time on their hands, as compared to us devoted wine bloggers.

At any rate, after I read about Greg Brewer's immediate success with Brewer-Clifton and its pinots and chards, which I've had and enjoyed for their elegance and defined fruit, I saw that he was the winemaker at Melville Vineyards and Winery so I got on its mailing list. I bought a bunch of varietals from the 2001, 2002 and 2003 vintages from the winery but tossed more recent mailers b/c, well I have too much wine and nowhere to stash it. At any rate, somehow I ended up with some bottles of the 2003 Melville Estate Viognier, Santa Barbara County (really the Santa Rita Hills, before it was a VA) which have been gathering dust and taking up space for a while. The only solution, drink the damn stuff. So I popped the cork on a bottle last night. One blogger on this site notes that the viognier that he generally comes across is insipid; that's not the word I would use to describe the Melville, which at 16.1% alcohol (yep, that's not a typo--over sixteen percent!) is a little bit hot. Curiously, the Melville website under the "past releases" tab does not even list a 2003 Viognier. Maybe they want to disown the wine and forget that they made it. At any rate I'm going to take a picture of the label and post it tomorrow so you can all see that I am not blind nor am I losing my mind.

Tasting Notes: Honey suckle and jasmine on the nose, apricots, kiwi and lychee fruit dominate mid-palate, syrupy, tongue-coating, a rather cloying, burnt orange finish. Well made and structured though it could have a bit more acidity to balance out the residual sweetness. OK by the half glass but definitely not a wine to drink in quantity. Perhaps it needs some spicy asian food to rejigger the flavors.

Rating: Good

Cheers, Barrld

Pinot Proselytizing

Have the pinot gurus gotten a bit carried away with their effusions about recent California PN vintages? How many “golden years of pinot” articles must we read? Look I’m a convert, perhaps a zealot, and I’m stocking up on as many recent California pinots as I can get my grubby little hands on—Kosta Browne (probably should sell it though), Fog Dog, Rochioli, Black Kite, Roessler, Tandem, Rhys/Alesia, Sea Smoke, you name it. No regrets here, esp. if boom turns to bust in coming vintages and my little gold mine satisfies my pinot fix through future green, herbaceous, washout years. Plus I’ll have no guilt sharing this lucre with my thirsty wino neighbors. Maybe in a couple of years you’ll drop me a line begging for a couple of bottles from my cache of small production juice, at FMV of course; we can talk then.

At the same time, if you read James Laube and his crew’s recent spate of pinot articles and tastings in WS and online, you’d think they gargle with the stuff every morning. Laube’s blog from yesterday gushes about how he and some cronies double-blinded a couple of bushels of 2004 and 2005 Napa and Sonoma pinots, sustaining their woodies all afternoon. Who needs Viagra? I guess they missed the Colts/Patriots game. Guys, I get it, I know that the convection of global warming, advancing techniques, artistic flair and God knows what else is sustaining an abundance of fine pinot right at my doorstep (figuratively, unless a prized shipment just arrived). I knew it last year too and the year before that; find something else to write about, just so long as it doesn’t concern the price of 2005 Bordeaux futures.

Which brings me to the bottle I opened last night, a 2003 Alcina Cellars Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast, Sangiacomo Vineyard, which I purchased direct from the winery as a mailing list buyer for about $38. I’ve opened a few bottles of other Alcina PN with the aforementioned neighborhood guzzlers and with other family freeriders over the holidays and the wines were definitely crowd pleasing. The winery wears a non-interventionist label, which I’m not sure I really understand as turning grapes into wine requires quite a bit of intervention, unless you have some kind of magical or spiritual powers. At any rate, the 2003 Sangiacomo was one of Greg Piatigorski’s (Alcina’s owner) first wines and JL loved it, rating it a 93. Thus I opened the bottle with considerable anticipation, noting its odd black synthetic “cork.” Sadly, my hopes were dashed and while not a bad wine by any stretch I was underwhelmed (at least at first, see below). I guess it doesn’t pay to read reviews before drinking. As Homer would say, “Doh!”

Tasting Notes: Fragrant opening bouquet of currants, cherries and earth. Vibrant mid-palate with raspberry ice and a bit of loam. Sharp acidity and juicy, though a bit rustic. Tart finish with a touch of pencil lead. Seems too dry for much more life so my guess is that this needs to be consumed in the near term. Consistent flavor profile with other Sonoma 2003s that I have tasted recently.

Rating: Good. [see post script below]

Cheers, Barrld

PS I drank some more of the Alcina 2003 last night (1/24/07) and it had mellowed considerably, with the tart/bitter finish now replaced with cherry ice cream flavors (think a spoonful of Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia). The wine became almost gulpable, losing its rustic edges. All in all a lovely wine that may age better than I originally thought. Maybe it needs decanting . . . what do you think?

Rating (revised): Tasty.

[Fruit] Bombs Away!! Balance at Over 16% Alcohol??

I don't get up in arms like some about the inexorable increase in the alcohol levels of both red and white wines in California. Severe crop reductions, leaf pruning and longer hang time push the sugar content of the harvested grapes higher, resulting in the rising alcohol levels. Or so we're told. At any rate, some complain that the increase in alcohol makes for huge fruit bombs that are searingly hot or port like. Maybe. My biggest complaint is that after two glasses I get a wicked buzz and end up with a headache the next am; not advisable on a school day if you KWIM.

Which brings me to Delectus Winery in Napa Valley. Started in 1995 by Austrian owner and winemaker Gerhard Reisacher, his wife Linda and their dog Flash ( now deceased ), Delectus survives on purchased grapes and makes fantastic red wines of all types, focusing on Cabs that compete with the top 10 or so best wines in any given vintage. The Delectus Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford Sacrashe Vineyard 2001 received a 96 from the Wine Spectator and at $75 a bottle is a relative bargain. The Reisachers, with daughter Julia adorning the Cuvee Julia labels with her art, purchased over 100 acres in the Mount St. Helena area overlooking Knights Valley and they are in the process of planting all Bordeaux varietals plus Petit Sirah. The future is wide open for this winery, and I have found their club, unimaginatively known as Club Delectus, to be a fine value both for the regular shipments of really good wines, often "libaried" and no longer generally available, and the discount on club member purchases.

Anyway, last evening I opened a bottle of the Delectus 2004 Argentum Napa Valley Red Wine, a Cab-driven blend including Merlot, Petite Sirah and Syrah. Halfway through my second glass I noted that the wine has an alcohol content of 16.2%. Holy S&$t!! The wife grabbed a full glass and loved it, not knowing what laid in store in the morning (she's a lightweight). At $22 a bottle this is a real value but I only wish that it was dialed down a notch or two so I could drink more of it at one sitting; as it was I had about a half glass too many and my head hurts.

Tasting Notes: Nose of chocolate nougat, blackberry and black licorice, loads of rich dark fruit and cinnamon, supple with teeth-coating tannins, a bit muddled/confused mid-palate, with a very strong Cab finish of tar and black cherry. Good balance given the alcohol level.

Rating: Tasty

Cheers, Barrld

Bargain California Pinot Noir? Not an Oxymoron

We've all been overwhelmed by the the volume of very good to excellent pinot noir coming out of numerous California appellations in at least the last 3 vintages. Sonoma, Russian River, Santa Rita Hills, the names ring of redolent wines that have captured the essence of pinot noir, the most tempermental and fragile of grapes. I will leave it to the masters to decide whether there is truly an Old World, Burgundian style of refinement and elegance competing with an more cowboy USA go for it approach with dense, dark berry and robust pinots. Suffice to say that in the $40 to $70 price range there are dozens of California pinots from recent years that are truly delightful, full of fruit, juicy, food friendly, gulpable. But the bargains? Not so fast. While pinot producers have not fallen prey to the reach for riches that cult and cult wannabe cab producers have, there has been tremendous inflation in pinot pricing. Having been on the Flowers mailing list from the beginning, through Greg LaFollette to the current winemaker, Tom Hinde, I have seen the prices for the fabled Camp Meeting Ridge to rise almost 100% over the last 10 years to a $65 per bottle on the current spring 2007 offering. Certainly good juice but a good value?

Turning to values, Navarro Vineyards fits the mold. In the Mendocino VA in Anderson Valley, Navarro is the birthchild of Ted Bennett and Deborah Cahn. These folks are into making fine wine, not a fast buck. The quality has improved dramatically of late and their wines are clearly in the top five quality to price competition amongst California wineries. Jim Klein, the winemaker, knows his way around vines and grapes. He produces worldly lots of of delightful Gewurtz and finesse driven Sauvignon Blanc, among others. But the vineyard's most recent production of pinot noir is a stellar example of this winery's goal of the finest of varietals and stunningly low prices. This must be a lifestyle for them not a cash cow. I love the Navarro 2004 Anderson Valley, Mendocino Pinot Noir, Methode A L'Ancienne at $25 a bottle, with a 6 and 12 bottle discount available at the website, and recommend it to all pinot lovers who don't mind a value now and again.

Tasting Notes: Earth and cherry notes on the nose, plum and black fruit (cherry, blackberry), tightly wound with a fine mouthfeel and texture, juicy and fragrant, a friendly metallic, graphite, plum finish. Needs a bit more time in the bottle to settle and relax. Fine juice.

Rating: Tasty

Cheers, Barrld

Is this a Sauvignon Blanc?

I opened a bottle of Peter Michael 2005 L' Apres-Midi Sauvignon Blanc Sonoma County last evening and faced a conundrum. First, a bit of background: a couple of years ago I had the 2003 PM Apres-Midi at Ivy by the Shore and loved it. In due course I found myself on the PM waiting list to join the mailing list. I figured it would be 3 or 4 years minimum but last year I had an offering of the 2003 Les Pavots and took it, even at the steep per bottle price. In the fall I was offered a slew of PM wines with good allocation numbers and selected a fewof his whites. This is my first taste of the lot and, at close to $50 a bottle, I plan to savor it. The problem is that the Apres-Midi doesn't taste like any Sauvignon Blanc that I've had before, not Sonoma, Napa, Santa Barbara, Loire, New Zealand, South Africa, nowhere. No grass, no green pepper, no cat pee odors, no hay. I bet in a blind tasting a number of professionals and MWs would mistake this for a white Burgundy Premier Cru. That said, it's a lovely wine that seems to have the breadth to match with a host of foods. Therein lies the issue; should a varietal taste within a particular range of flavors or are all bets off in favor of a winemaker's vision and technique? Has this wine been manipulated beyond recognition, with alcohol at a stunning 14.6%, or is it a masterpiece work of winemaking? Not for me to say, frankly.

Tasting notes:Very floral opening, with plumeria notes, lemony, crisp acidity and smooth mouth feel, pineapple, melon and banana (yes that's what I taste) dominate with hints of other tropical flavors like passion fruit. Fine balance.

Rating:Tasty

Cheers, Barrld

Summer White During the Winter

I unscrewed the cap off of a bottle of the Tablas Creek 2005 Vermentino the other day and was quite pleased. The winery, founded by the Perrin Family from southern Rhone and Robert Haas, is in Paso Robles and specializes in CDP style wines (duh!). I had little knowledge about the Vermentino, thinking it was from appellations in Southern Italy; I was right, though I guess there is some level of planting in the Rhone under the name rolle. Anyway, I joined the Tablas Creek club, received the requisite discount and am now a VINsider, kind of a goofy name. It's a good club, though, sending out a couple of high quality gifts and letting club members get higher allocations of the more in demand wines. Not sure that I will stay on board, as I found all the wines tasted so far to be in the good to quaffable range only. While Tablas Creek promotes its reds as the crown jewels I found its whites to be better as a group, though the 2004 Mouvedre is quite tasty.

Tasting notes on the Vermentino: Very balanced on the fruit/acidity front. No nose, almost no perfume except for a touch of lime. Citrus and gravel on the palate with a nice white peach finish. Clearly good with shellfish and other seafood and perhaps could stand up to spicy foods. Ultimately a nice wine to drink on the deck when the sun is out, even if there is a chill in the air.

Rating: Quaffable

Cheers, Barrld

Who knew? Powerful Merlot From San Diego County

In November 2005 we were on our way to the Wild Animal Park in Escondido, coming off of the 15 North at the San Pasqual Valley exit. It was about 11 am and we drove past a sign for Orfila Vineyards, and I mean past it. The wife, God love her, said "why not pop in for a tasting?" I kept driving, shocked by the thought. What could be more perfect than having a few tastes before taking two 3 year olds to the zoo? "You sure?" I asked. "Yep." You rock woman! Quick U and back to the winery, which sits on a rise overlooking its vineyards. I quickly situated myself at the bar and for $5 did the round robin of all the wines. Most were OK, a flabby Syrah, oaky Chard, tart grapefruity Gewurtz, but one wine was quaffable, the Reserve Merlot. Anyway, long story short I joined the wine club on the spot got a decent discount on the olive oil and such that the wife grabbed and ordered a case of the Merlot on futures, seriously, futures for a San Diego County wine! Can't remember what it tasted like then and I paid around $33 a bottle.

Now flash forward and I finally had the case delivered last week, though it was ready in late Nov '06. Let me get the technical stuff over with: 2004 Orfila Vineyards San Diego County Merlot, Ambassador's Reserve, Estate Hillside Vineyards--according to the winemaker, Leon Santoro, the grapes were harvested from 9/8/04 through 9/17/04 in two different lots. "Punch Down" and "Extended Skin Contact" [both his phrases] allowed him to extract maximum color and flavor. After full malo the wine was aged primarily in French oak [new? old? he doesn't say] and bottle on 10/10/06. Relatively small production of 962 cases showing notes of violets, spice, cherries and raspberries, deep, complex and tannic with vanilla and oak overtones [again, his words].

Anyway, I opened the bottle on 1/15, the day of the UPS Ground delivery. The wine still had travel shock and was tightly wound, almost closed, when I first tasted it. I let it sit upright on the counter (my kitchen is in the low 60s during the winter) for two days and tried it again last night. While still cramped and tight, the wine showed some game/beef notes, leather, blackberries and dark plum flavors and serious tannins. I never found the flavors that Leon mentioned but that might just be me. It had a very long fruit based finish and seemed almost like a decent Napa Cab. This is a real wine that needs to evolve and settle down in the bottle. I suspect that it will be drinking beautifully in 6 months or so and will pop another cork then.

Rating:Tasty

Cheers, Barrld

First Sip--Jan. 18, 2007

The opening post of any wine blog needs to set the scene; who is the blogger and why should anyone (add "in their right mind") spend time reading his dribble? Frankly, I have a lot of wine and feel compelled to drink my way through it, an unavoidable hedonistic drive brought on by my love of vino. I drink wine daily, often both red and white, have a wide range of preferences and often mix it up with old and new world varietals and some unusual stuff. I read Parker, WS, Decanter, QRW and numerous blogs though I am not driven by points when I buy wines. I like a discount and a find as much as the other guy or gal but also spend decent dollars to get the good stuff. I do have a rating system but it's far simpler than most--Superb; Tasty/Quaffable (thanks Miles, great word); Good; OK; Swill. I plan to also discuss where I purchased the wine in question and explore the many relationships, mostly commercial, that I have with all sorts of wineries, wine retailers and wholesalers. Anyway, let the fun begin!

Cheers, Barrld