Hodge Podge of Rockstars!

Due to a rough week, we opened some goodies tonight.

Chateau Monbousquet, Saint-Emillion, Grand Cru, 1999
This was stunning. I've said it before, the more I drink wine, the more I want to drink older Bordeaux. It's so great. This isn't even a great vintage but it is so seductive. Release price was $35! Unreal value at $35. I can't imagine it getting much better, but it certainly will hold up for another 10 years. The nose evolved over the course of 1 hour. From cedar, coffee, bittersweet chocolate, creme de cassis, black fruit, it was a delight to smell. The palate was perfectly tailored, with lots of complexity and just the right amount of punch, wrapped in a velvet glove. This was my WOTN by far.

Saxum, James Berry Vineyard, Paso Robles, 2005
Everyone loves Saxum, and it's obvious why. This wine was rich, opulent and expressive. After the Monbousquet, the alcohol seemed searing. It's really ripe, really extracted and is turned up to full-volume. I don't know why I keep opening these in their youth. I'm sure it will become great with a few more years of age, but for now, I'm not really that interested in drinking it.

Mollydooker, The Boxer, Shiraz, McLaren Vale, 2006
Oily, viscous, and mouthfilling. This Shiraz packs tons of wallop, flavors and intensity, but in a really greasy and oily package (in a good way). The wine penetrates the palate and overwhelms your sensory inputs so that all you can think about is this rich juice. It demands attention, pulses, and is alive with a heartbeat. If you like Aussie Shiraz for it's bigness, you can hardly do better than Mollydooker.

Chateau Margene, GSM, Paso Robles, 2006
Actually dominant in Mourvedre, this wine shows classic Paso halmarks. Overall, a really interesting and enjoyable bottle.

Beringer, Alluvium, Knight's Valley, 2004
Merlot dominated blend from Sonoma. This wine was sexy, silky, and just plump enough. I liked it a lot. $25 is a very fair price.

Bedford Thompson, Mourvedre, Santa Barbara, 2003
This one stumped everyone. We all thought it was Port-like and overripe. It showed a bit of residual sugar and no sense of age at all. Further we all thought it to be high in alcohol and it turned out to be 13.5%. Stumpper.

Covenant, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa, 2006
This was splash decanted for a moment before consumption. Everyone guessed it correctly. It was delicious, but really tough to get it to show any life. It was really tightly wound. Should be a great wine in a few years.

Chateau Destieux, Saint Emilion Grand Cru, Bordeaux, 2000
This was a great bottle. I've never heard of this producer, but the wine was great. It showed a bit of ripeness, which is indicative of the vintage, and a lot of class and pedigree. Overall, a great wine.

Thursday, January 8th, 2009

Awesom and intersting day of tasting-

Tissot, Traminer, Arbois, 2006

Tissot, Chardonnay, Arbois, 2006

Tissot, Vin Jaune, Arbois, 2000

Tissot, Poulsard, Sas Souffe, Arbois, 2005

Tissot, Spirale, Arbois, 2005

These are all incredible wines. They're super unique. A will do more research and report back.

Roessler, Chardonnay, Clos Pepe, Sta. Rita Hills, 2006

This was awesome.

Travaglini, Gattinara, Italy, 2003

This is a great little Nebbiolo from a lesser known DOCG in Piedmonte. 'Nuff said.

TR Elliot, Pinot Noir, Queste, Russian River, 2006

This is such a great wine that no one is award of. Very, very pretty, with a lot of complexity and depth, and a very appealing subtlty.

Saxum, Broken Stones, Paso Robles, 2005

This is probably the 5 time I've had this in the last 12 months. It's always good, but I'm getting burned out on the style. It showed a lot of flash, but just a bit too intense for my liking at the moment. It is a great wine for the release price of $45, but hard to justify the current marker value of $75+.

Massena, The Moonlight Run, GSM, Barossa, 2005

This was very similar to the Saxum. It has all ripe fruit, raspberry jam, chocolate, and alcohol. Good, but not for me.

J. Runquist, Zinfandel, Amador County, 2006

Really a great showing for this wine. Kind of a darkhorse. It was almost more refined than the Saxum and the Massena. A lot of fruit, but not overdone, just a great, pure, fresh Zin.

Friday, November 22nd, 2008

WOW, Talk about customer generousity! This was one of those nights where everyone was just sharing great bottles. I was thrilled to be on the receiving end. We had 5 bottles open for the usual tasting, and then 10 different bottles opened by customers and graciously shared. And check out the wines, some really awesome stuff.

Donated Bottles

-Valley View, Tempranillo, Applegate Valley, Oregon, 2005
This was a shocking little wine. It wasn't particularly sophisticated, but it was thoroughly enjoyable.

-Martinelli, Pinot Noir, Bella Vigne, Russian River, 2006
Very delicate and pure. The wine is tightly wound, but not at all big. Just light-footed, soft and very pure flavors, very polished. Delicious.

-Scherrer, Pinot Noir, Russian River, 2006
I prefered this to the Martinelli. It more richness and detail. The aromatics continually changed from one sip to the next. Very impressive. Kudos to Fred Scherrer.

-Tre Viti, Pinot Noir, Central Coast, 2006
I thought this was a bit too big and flamboyent for my liking, but other customers seemed to love it. It was darker, but not saturated, and the flavors were intense and candied. A very nice effort from this unknown producer.

-August Briggs, Pinot Noir, 2001
Wow, this was interesting. This seemed much more evolved than 7 years would indicate. The wine had savory flavors and orange peel, without much left of the signature Pinot Noir youthfulness. Very interesting wine and a great example of age.

-Palmina, ?????, Santa Barbara, 1997
This was cooked, unfortunately.

-Kukkula, Lagniappe, Paso Robles, 2006
This is a ripe, high-alchohol, zesty, flamboyant red wine. It's good, but not my style.


-Torrin, Syrah, Paso Robles, 2006
Only 80 cases, produced. This was black in color and ultra-concentrated, but ultra pure. Really dense, but has tremendous potential for the opening and fleshing out.





-Blankiet, Cabernet Sauvignon, Paradise Hills, Napa, 2005



This is a pricy wine. I don't want to like it, but unfortunately, I do. It shows real pedigree on a level that few producers in Napa do, and dare I say it, even a sense of terroir from the Paradise Hills vineyard. It was densely tight and almost certain not to open for another 3+ years. The wine is a contender for a "First Growth" estate if Napa ever has a classification. Watch out for this producer, while they aren't new, each year they reaffirm their status as a dependable and superlative producer.



-Saxum, Broken Stones, Paso Robles, 2006
Saxum has established a firm place in my heart as perhaps my favorite producer in Paso Robles. The 2006 Broken Stones reaffirms what I already know, and that is, don't open these wines for at least 3 years from the vintage date on the label. It was good, but just wirery and out of control. While I know it's way too young, I still enjoy trying it and assessing the situation early on. One notable difference with this vintage is that the alcohol is even higher than normal, over 16%! I'll trust that Justin Smith has an objective with this higher level and look forward to seeing how this wine evolves. As for now, it's all intense and un-harmonious.

Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008

-Saxum, Heart Stone, Paso Robles, 2005

Just finishing the bottle from Sunday. It was showing so beautifully 2 days later. I just couldn't get enough.

Sunday, June 1st, 2008

Grant and Casey Homecoming Party

-Arista, Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast, 2005 (excellent!)
-Saxum, The Heart Stone, Paso Robles, 2005 (excellent!)
- A bit of beer as well.