Pull That Cork

Online Torrontés Tasting

Posted on May 18, 2012 by Peter

I’m going to try to write this as we do an online tasting of Torrontés from Argentina. We will see how successful I am at keeping up with a Twitter feed, drinking wine and typing. Torrontés is a white wine grown at high elevations in the Mendoza region, the two I will be tasting are grown above 5500 feet.

I can say now that my plan did not work. No way I can keep up on Twitter and writing at the same time. We did have fun, however, tasting the 2011 Crios Torrontés and the 2011 Finca Las Nubes (farm of the clouds) Torrontés and tweeting with everyone. People all over the country joined in and @CriosWine and @ArgentineanWine were tweeting from Mendoza along with @VinesOfMendoza. All were tasting the Crios Torrontés and many were tasting the Finca Las Nubes or another Torrontés from Argentina.

The 2011 Finca Las Nubes Torrontés was grown in the Cafayate Valley in the Salta region. This is north of the city of Mendoza and the average vineyard elevation is 5576 feet. The wine was a clear, light yellow color and the nose was floral with jasmine, honeysuckle and a hint of rubber tire. Quite an interesting aroma. This is a very crisp wine, plenty of acid and the flavors were complex with jasmine, orange blossom, orange rind. The finish was pleasant and long, too.

The 2011 Crios Torrontés sourced its grapes from La Rioja, Tucumán and Mendoza, all at an average elevation of 5576 feet. These areas are a little south of Salta but just as high and dry. This wine was also the light yellow color typical of Torrontés. While the previous wine was orange like, the Crios is much more lemony. The nose was floral with lemon blossoms, perfume and plumeria. The flavor I’ll describe as “zesty”, real crisp with lemon blossoms and lemon zest. The Crios also had a pleasantly long finish.

Both of these Torrontés were excellent and I highly recommend you try both of them together to see the differences. These would be great with anything spicy or just to sit in the backyard and sip on a warm evening. I was really surprised at the complexity of these wines. Torrontés may displace Sauvignon Blanc as my summer wine.

Disclaimer: These wines were provided to us as tasting samples.

Posted in Online Tastings, Tasting Notes | Tagged Argentina, La Rioja, Mendoza, Salta, Sauvignon Blanc, Torrontes, Tucuman | Leave a comment

Sake Sunday

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Peter

We decide to try some sake this weekend. We knew very little about sake but had recently watched a video of Lucy Brennan, owner of Mint/820 in Portland, Oregon making sake cocktails. We received some sake from SakeOne, a premium craft brewer in Oregon and decided to do some research and taste it too. Sake is more like beer than wine, it is brewed using rice rather than fermented with grapes. The process is rather involved as it requires polishing the rice so just the starch is left, then let it cool and rest and then some washing, soaking and steaming.

SakeOne first polishes the rice until only 60% of it is left to get down to the starchy center. Then it is left to rest and cool for a few weeks and pick up some moisture from the air. Next it is soaked and steamed and moved to tanks where the Koji spores are added. The Koji digest the starch and convert it to sugar so the yeast can convert that to alcohol later. Just as with wine, different yeasts can impart different flavor profiles. Much like wine the Sakemaster must know the exact time to move from one process to another.

In Japan, sake drinking and brewing has been declining for many years while in the USA it has been increasing. Here in America it is served by itself, usually chilled, or mixed in a cocktail. There are many different kinds of sake including infused sake that does very well in mixed drinks. We decided to approach our experiment by trying the sake straight up first and then making a couple of cocktails with the same sake.

We started with SakeOne Moonstone Asian Pear Sake and the SakeOne Moonstone Plum Sake. These come in beautiful blue bottles with the bottle decoration the color of the fruit.

The SakeOne Moonstone Plum Sake was a translucent pink color with a very obvious nose of cherries and flowers. The flavor is a combination of sweet plums and cherries and it has a long clean finish.

For our first cocktail we decided to make a Sake Cosmopolitan – We used 1-1/2 oz. vodka, 1/2 oz. SakeOne Moonstone Plum Sake and the juice of 1/2 a lime. Shake well with ice and strain. This was excellent! Really refreshing with a great taste. If you want to add another layer of flavor add about 1/2 oz. of Triple Sec.

The SakeOne Moonstone Plum Sake has a very light straw color. The nose was citrus and ripe pear. We jokingly tried to guess what kind of pear but don’t have them often enough to tell. The flavor of pear was predominant along with a little citrus rind bitterness. This sake also had a long clean finish.

We tried a couple more experiments that failed so we decided to go with a recipe from SakeOne named ‘Falling’. Combine 2 oz. of the SakeOne Moonstone Asian Pear Sake and 1 oz. of the SakeOne Moonstone Plum Sake with 1/2 oz. Pear Brandy and a splash of lime juice. This was a very nice cocktail, really clean pear flavors and very refreshing. It is also a low alcohol recipe since it doesn’t use vodka or other high proof spirits.

These were both very enjoyable on their own and really excellent in a cocktail. It would be fun to have a sake party where everyone tries to make their own best cocktail and share it. We are going to do some more experimenting and in a couple of weeks we will post the results. Meanwhile we are headed to the backyard to sit and sip our sake.

Disclaimer: These beverages were provided to us as tasting samples.

Posted in Other Wine Tastings, Tasting Notes, Wines of the Weekend | Tagged Japan, Rice Wine, Sake, SakeOne | Leave a comment

2005 Taltarni Cabernet Sauvignon

Posted on May 12, 2012 by Peter

With the warmer summer weather here, we usually start drinking more white wine and less red. However, last night I just felt like I needed a red wine so I opened a bottle of the 2005 Taltarni Cabernet Sauvignon Pyrenees Victoria. This Australian Cabernet comes from the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains in the state of Victoria. This is way down in the south-east of the country.

Victoria is Australia’s most populated state and second in the amount of rainfall after Tasmania. The Taltarni Vineyards have been around since 1969 and are located about 2 hours driving distance from Melbourne.

What struck me when I first poured the wine was how dark it was, a really dark garnet. In the nose there was a hint of earthiness with dark fruit and mint, a very nice combination. The flavors were dark fruit, leather, licorice and a little green pepper. There were big tannins but plenty of acid and flavor to complement them. The finish was long with flavor and tannins. This would be a great wine to have with grilled meats. Highly recommended. Now that we drank the last one in our cellar I’ll have to find some of the newer vintages to try.

Posted in Tasting Notes | Tagged Australia, Cabernet Sauvignon, Taltarni, Victoria | Leave a comment

Malbec Around the World

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Peter

We tasted Malbec from several areas of the world this last week. George and Gail were going to be out of town and asked me to hold the Thursday night tasting for them. I felt it would be a good time to revisit Malbec so Gail ordered some wines for us to try. She provided one Malbec from California, three from Argentina though one was an American producer, one from Chile and one from Cahors, France. I felt this would be an interesting mix. I always like a Cahors in the group when we taste Malbec and I didn’t know they produced any Malbec in Chile other than for blending.

I didn’t know any of these wines so I was unsure what order they should be poured in. I finally decided to pour the Chilean wine first so I could get a true taste of it before I tasted any others. It always seems the first taste memory sticks better than later ones. It turned out to be a good choice. It was the 2009 Concha y Toro Serie Riberas Gran Reserva (14% alc.) from the Colchaqua Valley. It was grown on the South Bank of the Tinguiririca River so the temperature is moderated by the river and coastal breezes. There was a big dark fruit nose, ripe dark fruit flavors with some vegetal and tobacco notes. A real nice complex wine with moderate tannins and good acid. This turned out to be the favorite wine of the group.

I followed the Concha y Toro with a California Malbec, the 2010 Francis Coppola Diamond Collection Malbec (13.5% alc.). The Coppola is a California Appellation so I don’t know where the grapes come from. I imagine some are from Napa and some from other areas in California, maybe the Central Valley. The nose was minimal with dark fruit flavors and somewhat bitter tannins and finish. Overall not a very interesting wine.

We moved on to the Argentinian Malbec that was bottled in Acampo, California. The 2011 Robert Mondavi Private Selection Malbec (13.5% alc.). The Mondavi was a blend of 88% Malbec, 7% Tannat and 5% Syrah. This had dark fruit (berries) and a little vanilla on the nose. The flavor followed the nose, sweet dark fruit and vanilla. Interestingly, the producers notes said there was no oak aging but the wine had vanilla notes. Moderate tannins and enough acid.

At this point I decided to jump across the pond to France. The 2010 Rigal “The Original” Malbec, 100% Malbec. The color was a dark ruby and the nose had dark berries and licorice. In the mouth there were tart cherries and berries. Plenty of acid with moderate tannins and a slightly bitter finish. While the flavors were pleasant the wine seemed awkward, out of balance.

Back to Argentina for the last two wines, the 2009 Argento Malbec Mendoza (13.5% alc.) and the 2009 Graffigna Centenario Malbec Estate Reserve (13.5% alc.). Initially the Argento had a stinky nose which really put you off. We decanted it and that cleaned it up and brought out more of the flavors. The Graffigna was the better wine and was the number two favorite. With a smokey, rubber tire and dark fruit nose, moderate tannins an good acid. The flavors were dark fruit and tobacco, a complex well balanced wine.

The evening was quite interesting and informative. I always like to compare the same varietal from different areas and see the similarities and differences.

Posted in Thursday Wine Tastings | Tagged Argentina, Cahors, California, Chile, France, Malbec, Napa Valley | Leave a comment

2007 Penfolds Bin 128 Shiraz

Posted on May 4, 2012 by Peter

2007 Penfolds Bin 128 Shiraz is from Coonawarra in South Australia. Coonawarra is one of the premier wine producing areas in Australia, particularly for Cabernet Sauvignon. The region has unusual bright red soil over a shallow limestone ridge and a maritime climate similar to Bordeaux.

The Penfolds Shiraz has a very dark ruby color with a forward nose of dark fruit and ripe plums and spice. The flavor is rich dark fruit with some floral and bacon fat notes and a hint of vanilla. A complex, interesting and very pleasant wine. The only fault it has is a rather short finish which is a little disappointing considering how good the wine is.

Posted in Tasting Notes | Tagged Australia, Coonawarra, Shiraz, Syrah | Leave a comment

Pinot and Pizza at Twomey Cellars

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Peter

This past Saturday, Nancy and I and our wine buddy Dave decided to take a little road trip. We drove up to Healdsburg for the Twomey Cellars Pizza and Pinot Spring Release party. Twomey is part of he Silver Oak family and has two tasting rooms, one in Healdsburg and one in Calistoga. While Silver Oak makes the Cabernet Sauvignon, Twomey makes Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Merlot.

Dave, Nancy and Pete

We had heard about the Twomey Release party via Twitter and it sounded like a fun thing to do. The weather was great and it is a nice scenic drive up through the wine country. We arrived a little after noon and were greeted with some souvenir wine glasses to taste with and to take home. We immediately headed for the tasting bar and were rewarded with the 2011 Sauvignon Blanc. This is an estate wine even though it doesn’t say so on the label. Some of the vines it came from are grown right in front of the winery.

The 2011 Sauvignon Blanc was very well made, no residual sugar, good acid, plenty of fruit and other flavors and no grassiness like New Zealand wines. I am not a fan of grassy Sauvignon Blanc so I like most California ones. This was an excellent wine to start the day with and will be great drinking while sitting in the backyard this summer. While we were enjoying the wine and talking to the pouring staff they brought in some of the pizza from the wood fired oven to try. It was a Spring Foragers Pizza made with Fiddle Head Ferns, Ramp Pesto, Mushrooms and Burrata Cheese. It was excellent and paired well with the wine.
After some time visiting in the tasting room we went outside to the patio and lawn area for Pinot Noir and more pizza. I took a few pictures while Nancy and Dave got a glass of the 2010 Anderson Valley Pinot Noir and the Short Rib Beef Bolognaise Pizza. Twomey had brought in a wood fired pizza oven and their chef Dominic Orsini made some fantastic pizzas. This oven was really hot, it cooks a small pizza in less than a minute.

After I took a few pictures I went and got a glass of the 2010 Russian River Pinot Noir and we sat down at a table on the grass to drink our wine and have more pizza. Servers kept circulating with different kinds of pizza and you only had to get up when you wanted more wine.

The first thing I noticed with the Russian River Pinot Noir was the nose. It was big perfumed fruit, all kinds of berries, just an incredible smell. The flavor was great and followed the nose. Each of the Pinot’s are made by winemaker Ben Cane. He is from Australia and has made wine around the world. His style is more like Burgundy but distinctly from the areas the grapes come from. The wines are all well balanced and he keeps the alcohol levels in the 13% range.

All three Pinot Noir were very good. The 2010 Russian River Pinot Noir had a huge nose and great berry flavors. The 2010 Anderson Valley Pinot was a little lighter wine with great complexity and strawberry, raspberry flavors. The 2010 Sonoma Coast Pinot started off a little subdued but really opened up as it sat in the glass. The longer it sat the more complex it became. Nancy and I both chose the Sonoma Coast as our favorite.

We spent a couple of hours at Twomey tasting each of the wines more than once and having several slices of pizza. We also spent a lot of time talking with the winemaker, the chef and other employees. Everyone was so friendly an knowledgable. It was really a great way to spend a sunny afternoon.

Posted in Other Wine Tastings, Vacations and Trips | Tagged Anderson Valley, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Russian River, Sauvignon Blanc, Silver Oak, Sonoma, Sonoma Coast, Twomey Cellars | 4 Comments

“Hop on the Bus” with Double Decker Wines

Posted on April 25, 2012 by Peter

Occasionally we are sent wine samples and asked to taste with a group of others online and trade questions and comments while we are doing the tasting. It is a lot of fun trading tasting notes with others while we are all drinking the same wine. Usually the wine maker is also online to tell us about the wines and answer our questions. Tonight we had that opportunity again. Our friend Dave came over along with George and Gail, good friends and owners of our local wine shop, Fine Wines of Stockton. I set up the laptop with an external monitor so everyone could see and join in.

We had three wines to taste from Double Decker, a Wente Vineyards property. Double Decker is a brand featuring easy to open and easy to drink wines. It was originally Tamas Estates and has been renamed to Double Decker. If you have been drinking Tamas Estate wines you will remember they had a Tamas Double Decker Red. I think it is a fun name to go along with some fun wines.

The wines we tasted were the 2010 Double Decker Pinot Grigio, the 2010 Double Decker Zinfandel and the 2009 Double Decker Red Blend. All the bottles come with screw caps instead of corks and all the wines are from sustainable vineyards and carry the California appellation. Along with the Double Decker name their motto is “Hop on the Bus!”. The winemaker, Karl Wente described how each wine was made and what he was trying to accomplish. He also added a little note on what music to pair with each wine. All of the wines retail for $9.99 and should be available nationally on May 1.

The first wine we tasted was the 2010 Double Decker Pinot Grigio (13% alc.). The grapes for this wine came from the Santa Lucia Highlands. As it has not been on any oak the wine was a very light yellow. The nose was floral showing the
3% Viognier and 4% Reisling that was added to the Pinot Grigio. The wine was crisp showing good acid and there was nice fruit flavors, some tangerine along with some floral flavors. There was a long flavorful finish. Karl paired it with a Mozart Concerto.

Next we tasted the 2009 Double Decker Red Blend (13% alc.). The Double Decker Red Blend consists of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah and Barbera. The wines in the blend were fermented in stainless steel and aged in a combination of neutral oak and stainless steel. There was a little vanilla along with blueberries and ripe dark fruit in the nose. Gail says cough syrup finish. The flavor was dark fruit and some spiciness, you can pick out the Barbera if you concentrate. Well balanced with pleasant light tannins. Nice QPR for a $10 wine. Pairs with 7 piece band.

Last we tasted the 2010 Double Decker Zinfandel (14.5% alc.). This wine was aged for thirteen months in barrels from France, Eastern Europe and America. The barrels were first, second and third use barrels. These grapes were sourced from the Livermore Valley. There was an earthy nose with medium red fruit. The flavors were medium fruit, spice and it had a black pepper finish. This was not an overripe jammy wine like a lot of Central Valley Zins. The wine really showed off the true Zinfandel flavor instead of being covered up with oak or too ripe of fruit. Pair with Led Zeppelin.

All three wines are very approachable, flavorful, drink now offerings. Karl really hit the mark with what he wanted to do. At $9.99 each they have great QPR.

Disclaimer: These wines were provided to us as tasting samples.

Posted in Online Tastings | Tagged Barbera, Double Decker, Livermore Valley, Petite Sirah, Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Viognier, Wente Vineyards, Zinfandel | Leave a comment

2006 Stacked Stone Zin Stone

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Peter

We have found Stacked Stone Cellars in Paso Robles produces some very nice wines. We have previously reviewed the Quarry and the Quarry Reserve. Today we are having the 2006 Stacked Stone Cellars Zin Stone. This is their flagship wine, dry farmed and head pruned. The first thing we noticed was the color, it was a light ruby, much like a Pinot Noir. There was a light nose of raspberry and flavors of light red fruit with some black tea. The wine felt very light in the mouth and the tannins were light and smooth along with good acid. Even at 15% alc. this is a very civilized wine and will make a great summertime wine. Recommended, particularly if you like Zinfandel that is not over the top jammy and ripe.

Posted in Tasting Notes | Tagged Paso Robles, Stacked Stone Cellars, Zinfandel | Leave a comment

Chardonnay From Around the World

Posted on April 17, 2012 by Peter

This week we tasted Chardonnay from several areas around the world. We tasted Chardonnay from here in the USA along with South Africa, France, Italy and Chile. It was interesting tasting the differences and similarities of the same grape from different countries.

2007 Mulderbosch Chardonnay – This wine is from the Stellenbosch Hils area of South Africa. It was a medium yellow color with a vegetal and citrus nose. The flavors were citrus and mineral with good acid and medium length finish. No wood was perceivable in the wine.

2010 Bolla Chardonnay Delle Venezie IGT – From the Veneto area in northern Italy it had a very light yellow color, almost clear. There was a tropical fruit and floral nose, minerals, citrus and orange blossom flavors, good acid and a long finish.

2006 Grove Street Sonama County Chardonnay – The color was a somewhat dark yellow. The nose was stinky initially but blows off to leave anise and vanilla. This wine had a rounder mouthfeel with toast and caramel flavors. Good acid with fairly long finish with flavors of smoke. Flavors seem to come from the barrel toast.

2007 Mommessin Pouilly Fuisse – Another dark yellow wine. There was a tart (cheesy) nose with honey and mineral flavors. An interesting wine with plenty of acid and a slightly bitter finish. Some tasters thought this was an older Chardonnay than it was.

2009 Columbia Crest Grand Estates Chardonnay – Made in the Columbia Valley in eastern Washington, the color was a light yellow. There was a floral, orange blossom nose with tropical fruit, orange and caramel flavors. A rounder mouth feel than some of the others, with good acid and fairly long finish.

2009 Marques de Casa Concha Chardonnay – From the Limari Valley in northern Chile the wine was a light yellow. There was a toasted almond nose with mineral and citrus flavors, not floral. Plenty of acid and a fairly long finish.

All of these wines are inexpensive and easy drinking if you are looking for a light Chardonnay. Great for summer sipping when you don’t want a big buttery, oakey wine.

Posted in Tasting Notes, Thursday Wine Tastings | Tagged Chardonnay, Chile, Columbia Valley, France, Italy, Sonoma, Sonoma Valley, South Africa, Veneto, Washington | Leave a comment

2009 Alma Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Peter

Made from a blend of four clones the 2009 Alma Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir (14.2 alc.) by Sotelo Wines is a light ruby/garnet color. It has an earthy fruity nose with cherry and earth flavors. Very light smooth tannins and good acidity make this a pleasant easy drinking wine with a nice long finish. The four clones used are the 777, 667, 5 and 3.

Why use so many clones to blend the wine? The winemaker was trying to develop a certain style most likely. Although it could be they just had the wines around and decided to blend them to use all of the wine. The 777 clone gives color and aroma and longevity to the wine while the 667 clone gives color and nose along with some earthiness and structure. The other two clones must not be used too much as I was unable to find any information on them.

Posted in Tasting Notes | Tagged Alma, Pinot Noir, Sonoma, Sonoma Coast, Sonoma Valley | Leave a comment

2008 Elizabeth Spencer Cabernet Sauvignon

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Peter

The 2008 Elizabeth Spencer Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (14.2 alc. ) was a nice medium ruby color. The nose was a little closed with red and dark fruit. The flavor was much like a Bordeaux, dark fruit, tobacco and licorice. The tannins were very smooth and well integrated and there was plenty of acid. While very good now this wine should also age well for several more years. Only 60 barrels made.

While Elizabeth Spencer Wines does not have their own vineyards they source their grapes with long term contracts from several areas in northern California. We have had two of their wines and both were excellent. We have driven by the winery several times without stopping but next time I’ll definitely stop by to try their other selections.

Posted in Tasting Notes | Tagged Cabernet Sauvignon, Elizabeth Spencer, Napa Valley, Wine | Leave a comment

Hermitage and Crozes-Hermitage, Wines from the Rhone

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Peter

We tasted three wines from Crozes-Hermitage and one from Hermitage this last Thursday. These are wines, primarily made from Syrah from the northern part of the Rhone Valley in France.

The Rhone River Valley is in the south east of France and empties into the Mediterranean ocean. The Rhone Valley appellation follows the river from the ocean to about 150 miles north. This makes for substantial climate differences from north to south and therefore many different wines. In the Southern Rhone the red varietals are Grenache, Mourvedre along with some Syrah. In the Northern Rhone the red varietal is almost completely Syrah. In fact for AOC wines only Syrah is allowed, although a small amount of white wine (Marsanne or Roussanne) may be blended in.

You could write an entire book on the Rhone Valley and the many sub appellations so I am going to stick with just Hermitage and Crozes-Hermitage. Hermitage is one of the premium ares of the northern Rhone. Not as well regarded as Cote-Rotie but still very good. Hermitage is the hill the town of Tain l’Hermitage is located just below. It got it’s name as a “hermit” lived there at one time. The 300 plus acres of grapes grow up the south west side of a steep granite hill and are divided into a number of named vineyards and produce over 700,000 bottles of wine each year. Hermitage is surrounded by Crozes-Hermitage so it cannot expand the area at all.

Crozes-Hermitage surronds Hermitage and is a much larger area with more variance in the quality of the wines. The wines are also Syrah with possibly a little Marsanne or Roussanne blended in. As I mentioned, we tasted three wines from Crozes-Hermitage and one from Hermitage. This was a blind tasting and the wines were not presented in any order.

The first wine we tasted was the 2007 Les Varroniers – Crozes-Hermitage, M. Chapoutier. The color was a medium ruby and the nose was floral with berries (raspberries) and earth. The flavor was complex dark fruit and leather and earth with moderate grippy tannins and good acidity. The finish was of medium length. This was very nice but expensive at $63.

Next we had the 2006 Hermitage – La Sizeranne, M.Chapoutier. This ruby/garnet colored wine had a somewhat closed nose of dark fruit and smoke. Another complex wine with smoke, leather and dark fruit flavors. Moderate grippy tannins and a medium length finish. An excellent wine but at $130 it is out of my price range.

Our third wine was the 2007 Crozes-Hermitage – Les Jalets, Paul Jaboulet Aine. This comes from a 6 hectare vineyard along with some purchased grapes. The wine was a ruby/garnet color like the previous wine. The nose was ripe baked fruit with smoke. The flavors were spicy dark fruit, black pepper and smoke. The mouth feel was light with moderate tannins and good acid. This was a little more affordable at $32.

The last and favorite wine of the group was the 2007 Crozes-Hermitage – Domaine de Thalaber, Paul Jaboulet Aine. The Domaine de Thalaber is often compared with the quality of Hermitage. This was also the favorite wine of the group. The color was ruby and the nose was fairly closed with a little dark fruit. The flavors were more austere with dark fruit but we felt there was plenty of potential for aging here. There just semed to be something in the background that would come out as the grippy tannins faded with age. It had a nice light mouth fell and a medium length finish with flavor. However, another expensive wine at $87.

These were all very good wines but the prices tend to be rather high. However, this piqued our interest and we will be looking for wines from this area at afordable prices to try.

Posted in Thursday Wine Tastings | Tagged Crozes-Hermitage, France, Hermitage, Marsanne, Rhone Valley, Roussanne, Syrah | Leave a comment

French Sauvignon Blanc

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Peter

This week our Thursday night tasting at Fine Wines of Stockton was French Sauvignon Blanc. The first thing I thought when I saw the subject was Sancerre. However, none of these wines were from Sancerre or other areas I normally think of for French Sauvignon Blanc. All were from Bordeaux except one which was from Burgundy. That was a surprise to me, I didn’t know there was Sauvignon Blanc in Burgundy. Since George and Gail are in France tasting the 2011 Bordeaux, Craig presented the tasting. He gave us a good education on the whites of Bordeaux and was kind enough to let me copy his notes for inclusion here. The tasting notes are ours but the background information on each wine was provided by Craig.

2010 Mouton Cadet (12.5% alc.) The color is a very light yellow with a floral and citrus nose. Flavors of melon and hay with mineral flavors with plenty of acid and a long finish. This was the favorite wine of the group.

 Owned by Baron Phillipe Rothschild of the Rothschild banking dynasty, Mouton Cadet was designated as Rothschild’s “second label” in 1930, and is considered a successful popular priced wine. Mouton Rothschild and Mouton Cadet are legally, two separate entities, and are at opposite ends of the branding scale. A white wine was added to the line in 1970. This white wine is a blend of 65% Sauvignon Blanc, 30% Semillon, and 5% Muscadelle.

The 2009 Grand Bateau (12.5% alc.) has a light yellow color. The nose was closed. Flavors of minerals with a bit of vanilla in the background, good acid, though less than the Mouton Cadet. An austere but interesting wine.

Grand Bateau is the sister company of Chateau Beychevelle which took part in and sponsored its creation. This wine is a blend of 75% Sauvignon Blanc and 25% Semillon. The grapes are hand picked and following skin-contact maceration 75% of the juice is fermented in oak barrels. The lees are stirred giving the wine more weight and fat. After blending and filtration, bottling happens in late spring following the harvest.

2010 Simonnet Febvre Saint Bris Sauvignon (12.5% alc.) – This wine has a light yellow color with hay on the nose. Flavors of dry hay with a lot of acid. This is a more “characteristic” Savignon Blanc, one which you should find easy to pick out the varietal in a blind tasting.

 Saint-Bris is a white wine appellation, created in 2003, in the far north-west of Burgundy. It specifically applies to the area’s crisp, cool climate wines made from the Sauvignon Blanc and Sauvignon Gris grape varieties. To qualify for the Saint-Bris appellation, wines must be grown and made within the communes of Saint-Bris-le-Vineux, Chitry, Quenne, Irancy and Vincelottes. This white has the distinction of being the only Sauvignon Blanc produced in Burgundy. lt contains 100% Sauvignon Blanc from 25 year old grapes grown in clay and limestone. It is fermented in stainless steel; matured for 6-8 months.

2010 Chateau Bonnet (12% alc.) – A very light yellow color with wet hay on the nose. Grassy, hay flavors with plenty of acid. This wine is very herbaceous and stinky.

 Chateau Bonnet lies to the north of the Entre-Deux-Mers, on the clay-chalk slopes of the commune of Grezillac, some 10km south of Saint Emilion. Andre Lurton took over and renovated the 17th century estate and vineyards in 1956. Today, half of Bonnet’s production is devoted to this popular dry white, a blend of Sauvignon Blanc (50%), Semillon (40%) and Muscadelle (10%) grapes. Maturation is 4 months in stainless steel on the lees.

2008 Chateau Ferrande (13% alc) – This wine has a medium yellow color with an herbal, minty nose. There are herbaceous, bitter lemon peel and lemon flavors with good acid.

The vineyards are in the heart of Graves, in the Costres Gironde commune, near the Gironde River. They compose 94 hectares (6 of white and 88 of red) The soil is mainly sand and gravel with a surface of large pebbles which promotes drainage and help retain the overnight heat. This wine is a blend of 50% Sauvignon Blanc and 50% Semillon and was fermented in stainless steel, no oak aging.

2008 Les Charmes-Godard (13.5%) – A medium yellow color, honeysuckle on the nose. Flavors of honey, floral and sweet dried fruit flavors with good acid and a rounder mouth feel. This was the number two favorite wine for the night.
 
In 1988 Nicholas Thienpont bought Les Charmes Godard, a 16 acre property in Cotes de Francs (the smallest of the Bordeaux appellations) on the slopes of the Gironde. It is the dominance of Semillon (70%) that separates this wine from most whites of Bordeaux. New oak (25%) adds structure to the wine without damaging its fruit character. The wine remains on its lees for up to eight months.

All were pretty good and there were so many individual nuances to each wine you really need to try a selection and see which producer you like the best.

Posted in Bordeaux, Thursday Wine Tastings | Leave a comment

2011 Bordeaux En Primeur Tasting

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Peter

Every spring in Bordeaux the they have an En Primeur tasting for wine buyers and writers. I don’t know too much about it except our friends George and Gail of Fine Wines of Stockton go every year to select the wines they will later import for us to taste and buy. It is often called a barrel tasting although the majority of wines are in bottles. The Chateau’s bottle wine that is their best idea of what the final blends will be and so it may change slightly before it is bottled for sale. These are pretty young wines and are usually quite tannic.

Gail just sent me an email saying they were now tasting the 2011 and are also able to taste some of the 2010 wines they tried last year when they were there. When they return I will sit down with them and write a more in depth article on the subject and also on their impressions of the 2011 Bordeaux.

Posted in Bordeaux, Misc | Leave a comment

2007 Stacked Stone Cellars Quarry

Posted on March 27, 2012 by Peter

Back at the end of January we had the 2007 Stacked Stone Cellars Quarry Reserve from Paso Robles. We like it so much we decided to try more of their wines. The first is the 2007 Stacked Stone Cellars Quarry. The same name but not the Reserve, also the blend is different and the cost is significantly less. While the reserve had 55% Petit Verdot this wine has only 10%. The complete blend is 40% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc, 25% cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Petit Verdot.

The color was lighter than I expected, a medium ruby and the nose had cherry and red plum. In the mouth you get lots of flavor, cherries, plums, tobacco and dark chocolate. There was somewhat a dusty characteristic like you get from Cabernet from Rutherford sometimes, quite interesting. The tannins were very well integrated, very smooth and plenty of acid to hold up to the flavor and higher alcohol (15.2% alc.). The finish was long with fruit and cedar. Highly recommended!

Posted in Tasting Notes | Tagged Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Paso Robles, Petit Verdot | 2 Comments

2008 Sterling North Coast Petite Sirah

Posted on March 25, 2012 by Peter

I was surprised when I had the 2008 Sterling Vineyards North Coast Petite Sirah. I expected a wine that had a lot of tannins but not much complexity. Instead, while there were some grippy tannins there was also good brambly dark fruit, blackberries, with a little vanilla. The wine was a medium ruby color and had a big nose of dark fruit. There also was good acid to balance out the tannins. We really enjoyed this wine and will have to get some more to enjoy with a nice dinner.

Posted in Tasting Notes | Tagged North Coast, Petite Sirah, Petite Syrah, Sterling Vineyards | Leave a comment

Tuscan IGT Wines

Posted on March 18, 2012 by Nancy

Tuscan IGTs were the theme of our Thursday night tasting. “What is a Tuscan IGT?” you ask. Italy’s wine classification system is composed of four classes. VDT – Vino da Tavola indicates the wine made it Italy, without respect to the location. It is generally consumed locally. The IGT – Indicazione Geografica Tipica designation indicates a wine from a specific region in Italy. It is intended to note higher quality than table wines, but they do not conform to the more specific requirements of the DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) or DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garanita) designations. The IGT designation was created in 1992. Super Tuscans fall into this category. The DOC and DOCG designations more specifically define wine regions, production, alcohol content and varietals that may be used. In addition, DOCGs must undergo blind tasting for quality. The purpose of both of these designations is to create and maintain higher quality wines for local as well as world-wine consumption. The DOC and DOCG designations were defined in 1963. So, as you can see, these wine designations are relatively recent.

Tuscany is in the center of Italy, on the “left” coast opposite the island of Corsica and includes both Florence and Siena. Both Chianti and Brunello are produced in this area.
I think of IGTs as mutt wines. With Tuscan IGTs the combination of grapes is generally Sangiovese with something else, often Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon, whatever the winemaker has or prefers to use. The flavors are widely variable in my experience.
We tasted 8 wines on Thursday night…yikes! It was a challenging wine tasting. Vintages ranged from 2004 to 2009.

Because we tried so many wines I am just going to give the highlights of each one.

2008 Toscana Castello Di Meleto – This wine had a very light mouth feel with lots of flavor. A good sipping wine. This was the favorite wine of the night.

2006 Villa Antinori – Bacon fat and smoke along with ripe dark fruit and grippy tannins makes this wine a better choice with food. Maybe some Syrah in this wine?

2006 Campanaio – This wine was very sweet with ripe fruit and tobacco flavors. The tannins were drying and abundant which definitely makes this a food wine.

2007 Il Molini Di Grace Volano – This wine generated many different opinions. The nose was stinky with flavors of dried fruit and raisins and smoother tannins. I thought this wine was over the hill, though other tasters thought it was very interesting.

2007 Antinori Tignanello – The ripe dark fruit and smoke nose gave way to very ripe dark fruit flavors with vanilla and a huge amount of tannins. The finish was very long. This wine was described as having a flavor like cough syrup by several people. This Super Tuscan is a $99 wine!

2009 Rosso Di Altesino – This wine had a yeasty nose (smelled like waffles) with dried fruit flavors and smooth tannins. Most thought this was a pleasant drinking wine.

2007 Tolaini El Passo – Dark cherries on the nose, followed by ripe red fruit and significant, but very smooth tannins and good acid. This was one of my favorites of the group. It is a well balanced and flavorful wine by itself and would pair well with food.

2004 Il Molino Di Grace Gratius – The stinky nose is followed by raisin flavors, spice and dark fruit. Tannins are significant with good acid. This wine had that great combination of light mouth feel and good flavors. This wine has that older wine flavor, but did not taste over the hill.

The alcohol in all of these wines is in the 13.5% range, something I appreciate in wines. Lower alcohol wines pair so much better with food and are easier to drink on their own. I thought this was a very diverse group of wines, of course the vintages varied widely as well. The range of fruit flavors and tannin quality are what stood out to me. Let us know if you have tried any wines from Tuscany that were memorable.

Posted in Thursday Wine Tastings | Tagged Cabernet Sauvignon, DOC, DOCG, IGT, Italy, Merlot, Sangiovese, Super Tuscan, Syrah, Tuscany | Leave a comment

2004 Chateau Troplong Mondot

Posted on March 17, 2012 by Peter

The 2004 Chateau Troplong Mondot is a Grand Cru Classe from St. Emilion in Bordeaux. It is a dark garnet in color with a somewhat stinky nose. Along with grippy tannins there was dark fruit and tobacco in the mouth. A very well balanced wine with plenty of flavor. I believe it would go great with roast lamb and should hold up in the cellar for many more years.

Posted in Tasting Notes | Tagged Bordeaux, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, France, Merlot, St. Emilion, Wine | Leave a comment

#WineChat Wednesday – Australian Whites

Posted on March 14, 2012 by Peter

I believe we have mentioned before that #winechat is hosted on Twitter by Life of Vines on Wednesdays at 6:00 pm Pacific. This Wednesday the subject was Australian White Wines and the guest was Susan Barros of Wine Australia.

We had the time to participate this week so I collected three white wines from Australia. They were all inexpensive, under $12 and two were unusual (for us) blends.

The first wine we tasted was a 2007 Jacobs Creek Reserve Riesling (13.5 alc.). This wine is from South Australia in the Barossa Valley. This is a little south of Clare Valley which arguably produces the best Australian Riesling. It has a Mediterranean climate which should help give it good acidity. The color was straw yellow and the nose was petrol and mineral with a little roundness to it, maybe a little fruit, too. Lots of petrol in the mouth along with some grassiness like a Sauvignon Blanc. Great acidity, really crisp and a long finish.

Our second wine was the 2009 St. Hallett Poacher’s, a blend of 61% Semillon, 25% Sauvignon Blanc and 14% Riesling (11 % alc.). This wine is also from the Barossa Valley except for the Riesling which is from the Eden Valley to the east of the Barossa Valley. This area is not really a valley, it takes it’s name from a town there and is higher and cooler than the Barossa Valley. This wine had a light yellow color, the nose had a little petrol from the Riesling and maybe a little citrus. The flavor is light with a hint of petrol, some fruit and something I can’t quite pick out. This is a fairly light wine with moderate acidity. I wouldn’t pair it up against anything too big. It might be best sitting in the backyard on a hot day enjoying a nice chilled glass. I think the acidity just seemed a little light since it followed the Jacobs Creek, now that I tasted it again there is plenty of acid.

Third and last is the 2009 Pillar Box White, a blend of 52% Sauvignon Blanc, 43% Verdelho and 5% Chardonnay from Padthaway, Australia (12% alc.). Padthaway is next door to Coonawarra and one of the five regions of the Limestone Coast. At one time it was under the sea, hence the limestone, and as late as the mid 1800s’ it was under freshwater most of the year. This wine had a very light yellow color, the nose has a little fruit. Plenty of acid, some citrus, grassiness and other fruit in the mouth. A fairly complex white wine. I rate this “interesting”, I want to try this later with some food, also this summer just sitting out in the backyard.

It’s nice to have some lower alcohol wines. I really like the acidity in these wines, they will make for some nice drinking this summer in the backyard with chips and guacamole. During #winechat I noted how the Aussie’s aren’t afraid to blend anything with anything else. @SMCBarros replied – They are a fearless bunch! I think that pretty well sums it up.

Posted in Other Wine Tastings, Tasting Notes | Tagged Australia, Barossa Valley, Chardonnay, Eden Valley, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, South Australia, Verdelho | Leave a comment

Our Sixth and Final 2008 Bordeaux Tasting

Posted on March 12, 2012 by Nancy

Haut-Medoc was the appellation for this week’s Bordeaux tasting. This is an area on the left bank of the Gironde River and is quite large, almost forty miles in length. There are fifteen communes and six appellations with their own communes within Haut-Medoc. We have already tasted wines from some of these, such as Margaux and Pauillac.

Because of the variety of terroir, it is really not possible to characterize the wines in any particular way. Very few of the chateaux in the generic Haut-Medoc were classified in 1855 Bordeaux Wine Classification but several were later classified as Cru Bourgeois to designate the quality of their wines. Cru Bourgeois is a designation which has been controversial since its introduction in 1932. It was most recently changed and reintroduced for the 2008 vintage.

2008 Chateau Malescasse – A Cru Bourgeois. The color was medium ruby with dark fruit and cedar on the nose. Tobacco, dark fruit and cedar predominate in the flavors. Tannins are significant and smooth with good acid. This wine drinks well now and goes very well with food.

2008 Chateau Beaumont – Another Cru Bourgeois has a lighter ruby color. The nose was stinky initially. Flavors were vegetal, tobacco and red plums. Tannins were smooth, but significant with good acid. This wine and the Ch. Malescasse are similar in style.

2008 Chateau Cambon La Pelouse – A medium ruby color. Nose consisted of fruit and licorice. Flavors taste of riper fruit with tobacco as well. Tannins are significant, grippy and slightly bitter on the finish.

2008 Chateau Lanessan – Medium ruby color with a fruity nose. The flavors taste of red fruit, vanilla and tobacco. Tannins are moderate and the finish is hot. Just a bad year, I have had this wine from others years and liked it.

2008 Chateau Cantemerle – This was the last Chateau to be designated a classified growth back in 1855. It was classified as a fifth growth. The color is dark ruby with a smoky, earthy nose. The flavors taste of ripe dark fruit and chocolate with significant tannins and plenty lot of acid.

2008 Chateau La Tour Carnet – The second classified growth (fourth growth) in the group, it had a dark ruby color and ripe cherry nose. Flavors tasted of very ripe fruit and vanilla with significant, well integrated tannins and plenty of acid. The finish was very long on this wine.

In terms of taste, these wines fell out in pairs, with the first two tasting similar and the last two tasting very similar. The last pair of wines was the most complex and the most ripe fruit flavor.

Posted in Bordeaux, Tasting Notes, Thursday Wine Tastings | Tagged Bordeaux, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, France, Merlot, Petit Verdot | Leave a comment