Monday, October 27, 2008

gazzoli wine with ron d

David Noyes Sonoma Pinot Noir 2006 lots of black fruit and tannin on the back of the palate. rough that may show improvement over time

Wellington Cabernet Sonoma 2004 100% cab juicy but hot alcohol. medium bodied..more action on the back of the throat..not too interesting

Bell Claret 2005 Bordeaux blend with a hint of syrah. lots of black berry upfront fruit. cedar..a quicker finish than I expected but all in all a good wine.

Truth Lindsey's Cuvee 2006 there are times when the nose will take me somewhere i do not expect. in this case the first thought I had was when i walk into Brookside Market... fruit, flowers and hint of cleaner... mostly from the Syrah I think...soft silky tannins...a fun wine. mc esher label looking label

Thursday, October 23, 2008

misc thursday wines

4 people brought by 4 different wines.
Miner Chardonnay Wild Yeast 2005 Napa made in the full bodied style of napa chard...lots of sweet aromas, pretty color of straw yellow in the glass. 100% malo and mostly new oak. so everything that some people love about napa chard.. rich and fat but still some acidity. Wild yeast makes it take on a life of its own.

Qupe Grenache 2006 Central Coast...a little green and yet some nice bright fruit. I am not a fan of young vine grenache just out of the bottle. this was no exception.

Les Clos de Paulillies 2005 Banyuls Rimage... dark almost black color, viscous and raisony. 100% grenache. reminds one of port with a little less alcohol kick... would work really well with chocolate.

Bernie brought one by and it smelled of nail polish remover and tasted very tart and uninviting.

cellar selection wines from major brands with jason maroon

les Brugueres Grenache blanc 2006 what a pretty white wine this is. aromas of milk chocolate and wild flowers. rich creamy textures.. a beautiful wine that wont sell much but they seem to have a small audience of admires...

Casajus 2003 earthy violets tobacco cedar not much fruit to it. very tight and not very inviting for the age it is.

Tikato Kios 2004 named for the greek isle that makes wine. surprising nose of a sangiovese, leather and red cherry.. bone dry and gritty...

Olvena Red Blend 2004 smells like my vets office..not a bad smell just not expecting it from the wine.. sawdust and wet hair...green on the palate from young vines or overcropping. and its old. a blend of temp, cab and something else.

fredrick wildman wines with jeff stierman

a supplier of wines from around the world
Trapiche Oak Cask Malbec rich aromas in the nose of dark berries and earth. beautiful purple color, nice finish..good value wine

Trapiche Oak Cask Cabernet 2006 it smelled of anise to me which is strange for a cab..lots of soft licorice or fennel. cedar and other wines today had the same kind of sawdust aromas.

Trapiche Varietal Malbec 2007 their entry level wine, a touch green but just from youth I think.. dark purple and nice enough finish.. supposedly the best selling malbec in the world.

Broquel Malbec 2006 15 months in new oak, dark purple also from long maceration. very lush and ripe in the mouth. with some woodsy aromas, and a hint of chocolate at the end

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

garco wines with gary childers of cannon distributors

Michel Schlumberger of Dry Creek in Sonoma
2006 chardonnay straw yellow color, nice ml and acid at the same time...toasty finish but just not overly interesting

Maison Rouge 2005 cute label because the chateau on the label is painted red...this is their kitchen sink wine. a bit rough and alcoholic like my uncle brad.. definitely needs food

Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 very pretty nose, dark color. great cab flavors of cassis and tobacco... lengthy finish.

2004 Deux Terres Cabernet Sauvignon meaning two terroirs or earths. more oak than the regular cab. dark cherry flavors, bone dry finish.. very very tight. made from mostly clone 6 cabernet found in california growing wild..interesting story...

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Boutique wine collection with Katherine Camera

another interesting group of wines



Pares Balta Rose 2007 organic wine earthy nose with strawberry and melon fruit, light body.



Huber Gruner Veltliner Obere Steigen 2005 named for the vineyard because it is above old fortifications. sweet nose, botrytis, without being sweet tasting, very mineral and old world.

Castro Ventosa El Castro De Valtuille 2006 deep purple color, dark and lush fruits, long finish.in the corner for sure.

Sola Fred 2005 carignane, earthy, cant get past the nose, will retry .

Pares Balta Mas Elena 2004 Penedes dark purle in color, earthy aromas, mushrooms mid weight, quick finish, a bordeaux blend, very old world. interesting too

Maisons Marques and domaines with Thierry Plumettaz

interesting portfolio
Scharfenberger Brut creamy mousse, green apple finish, long name, nice price from green valley

Roederer Estate L hermitage 2000 made in the same method as Cristal but with American grapes medium
body and good texture. maybe a little overpriced for what they are going for.

Schlumberger "Les Princes Abbes" 2005 having had this over the years it was interesting that this had a little sweetness to it.. almost like gooseberry. not to be confused with a sauv blanc but more than i expected

Carpe Diem Chardonnay( Sieze the day..dead poets society) an off nose of green vegetables and B.O. , not oaky and strange

Marques Murrietta Rioja Riserva 2004 beautiful oak nose, mostly tempranillo with a cedar, earth and spice finish.

Pio Cesare Barbera D'Alba 2006 blueberry nose, nice mouthfeel.. very enjoyable wine for the money

Carpe Diem ( sieze the...you know) Cabernet 2006 made at Dominus, sweet nose with a touch of youth tight in the palate. it could use some air or age

Ramos Pinto Quinta do Bom Retiro 20 year tawny from a single estate known as good retirement. honey, nuts and caramel, sounds like a breakfast cereal. almonds and toffee....amazing mouthfeel...it keeps going and going

Bodi wines with Sean Bell

Il Follo Rose Prosecco NV as with champagne this red comes from a touch of red wine, in this case Cab, strawberry and watermellon, mocha and fruit on the finish

Chateau de la Greffiere 2007 Macon california nose from a burgundy, sweet fruit almost tropical. not what i was expecting and my first attempt at 2007

Louis Chenu Savigny Les Saucours Blanc 2006 round in the mouth a touch hot on the palate and not overly interesting

Hoopes Vineyard Cabernet 2005 new to the market from a very small producer. everything a cali cab should be. garnet color, sweet fruit on the nose, tobacco and cassis on the finish. good tannins but soft too. very limited supply.

Icon estates

Ruffino Oro 2004 Chianti Classico anise and dark walnut on the nose, sweet fruit on the finish. A long standing favorite.

Ruffino Modus 2005 a super tuscan also with a touch of anise on the nose.. juicy start with a little earthiness on the finish from the sangiovese no doubt.

Robert Mondavi Napa Cab 2005 rich dark fruit and a touch of dirt.. very consistent property

Robert Mondavi Cab Reserve 2005 full bodied, a touch of syrah added for depth? very approachable now.

Simi Landslide Cabernet Alexander Valley 2005 fruit nose, but very tight on the finish...needs to open up some from the 2 years in oak

Franciscan Magnificat named for one of Bachs pieces that had 5 movements, this has 5 grapes.. dark purple and the smell I always get when I enter a winery..oak and grapes.. very approachable with 50% merlot. a touch more alcohol but not overwhelming.

Jackson Trigg Vidal Icewine from the Niagara Penninsula in Canada. tone fruits on the nose, not overly viscous or oily, good acidity. in a 187 ml bottle to try an icewine without the prohibitive cost of a 375ml

Stylus Napa Cab 2005 the project of the winemaker, 86% cab, lots of grip and black berry fruit, nice tannin on the finish , maybe a little pricey for a new project and this economy

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

italian from premier cru

genesis wines

Tasted through a few of these from washington state. very solid easy drinking wines.
cabernet good grip for the price point. fruity but not overly so. best of the bunch.

syrah juicy and a little iodine which i like.

riesling nice dark yellow, a touch of mineral nice viscousity. the problem is its too dry for sweet and too sweet for the dry drinkers.

these are the upper end wines from hogue of washington.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Campos Espana with Jose Hidalgo Sanchez-Migallon

Two wines that he reps for

Gladium 2007 Tempranillo The 2006 was lush and gorgeous this one seems a little green yet...a few months in bottle will help. dark colors in the glass and green and mocha notes on the nose juicy and nice enough acidity

Gladium Temp Crianza 2006 great color in the glass teeth staining purple even.. to be crianza it has to have 2 years in the cellar. 6 months in oak and the rest in bottle. an earthy nose, bright fruit and some tannin lots of violets and flowers. I would like to try it again in another bottle to see if the nose was just the way it will be. It can not be corked because its plastic

also today Jason with Cellar Selections
2006 Girard Chardonnay Russian River big old bottle of ML aromas and big mouthfeel.some oak and roundness... not for the faint of heart chard drinker

2005 Artistry Red from Napa new name that was just Red pretty ruby color. 54% cab and then cab franc bing cherry in the nose and palate nice ripe fruit, would like a little more complex flavors but the depth was fine.

ridge vineyard with Christina Donley

Ridge Three Valley 2006 Sonoma County juicy not overly briary...dark cherry light finish..

Ridge Geyserville 2006 Sonoma more grit and character. juicy lots going on. the best wine of the flight

Ridge Lytton Springs 2006 juicy i am seeing a theme here

Ridge Zinfandel Paso Robles 2006 100% zin lush and yes juicy with a soft finish.

I think I was expecting more from these wines overall.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Big red tasting with Premier Cru

Another large tasting set to give a lot of exposure to the restaurants and retail shops in town. All reds and most looked very good.

Fisher Coach Insignia Cab 2004 very dark and tannic. could use some time to open up and show more of the fruit.

Joel Gott Mohr-Fry Zinfandel 2006 lush and juicy. great fruit and finish.

Ramsey Claret 2005 a little weak on the palate but it was hard to compete with the other big boys.

Vall Llach Embruix (embru-sh) winery from Priorat one of my favorite regions. this winery is owned by a Spanish folk singer. carignan and mourvedre

Idus 2004 my favorite of the tasting. lush romantic and sensual. will have a case in stock

Vall Llach Vall Llach old vine small berry earthy. made from mostly carignane also,

Luca 2005 Argentina big and lovely..didnt write much but have it in stock.. more shiraz oriented than Syrah.

Palladino Serralunga 2003 big as it should be with earthy notes on the front and tannin and black fruit on the back.

Derrick and Robert

Derrick brought in a Gambal Chassagne Montrachet 2006 that was pretty caramel a touch of heat, a bit blunt on the mid palate but nice finish.

Bertrand Sauv Blanc Sud de France, 2007 a creamy style with more gooseberry than grapefruit, nice long finish.

Robert had Ogier Heritages dark and brooding, i would have liked a little more fruit though.

2006 Clos de l'oratoire Chateauneuf du Pape Full bodied and juicy, hot on the palate but nice finish.

wine tasting events

Two distributors had wine tasting events this week. and tomorrow night is the big drunk fest that is Glazers Holiday Show. Lots of free booze and stuff.. woo hoo....

Pinnale introduced some new Italian wines of which I tried a few.
Several I have already in the store. but the two I tried were Vinosia Falanghina 2006 soft and not very interesting. much like a pinot grigio

However the Vinosia Fiano d'Avelino was spectacular .. in some ways it reminded me of a Torrontes but with a little more guts. This would be a perfect turkey wine.


Robert Morehouse with Pedroncelli wines out of Sonoma. All of them very drinkable and pleasant
Chardonnay 2007 Dry Creek clean and crisp. not a lot of upfront fruit but very drinkable at the price.

Rose of Zinfandel a touch of effervescence I know I spelled that wrong and a nice sweet middle. light finish

Pinot Noir 2006 Russian River.my least favorite of the bunch. cranberry and tea on the nose and a weak finish

Merlot Benchlands 2005 a surprise at how pretty the nose was, blueberry and violet. juicy and easy on the tongue. nice enough finish

Cabernet Sauvignon Three Vineyards 2006 varietally correct but not overly exciting. nice example for someone wanting to start into cabernet

Zinfandel Mother Clone 2006 from old vine zins and it is soft and silky not briary like some people like their zins to be. very soft.

Saturday, October 4, 2008

My 200th post.

I usually dont follow through with good ideas...but 200 is not bad.

Wines today with derrick from bommarito.

Bucci Verdicchio 2007 Tremendous producer of this wine. mineral with a steely edge. round mouth feel and pretty stone fruits flavors. ageworthy

Case Ibidini from Sicily. pretty ruby color, almost a fruity beaujolais style nose. light finish great with pasta and pizza

Langmeil Three Gardens 2006 lovely blend of shiraz which you get in the nose, grenache in the mouth and mourvedre in the volume. year in and year out a winner.

From new wine salesman Jason Maroon
LF Edwards Carmenere Reserve 2006 minimal skin contact to keep from too much tannin, smoky nose with 10% cab for depth. a touch green from youth but nice round mouthfeel and a hint of cocoa on the finish

Merlot Reserva earthy but some nice fruit. a bit of a bite in the front not overly user friendly. a pass

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

John Islands Imports and Classique wines

I tried these wines a few weeks ago and lost my notes but I had ordered some and then found the notes so after tasting about 10 wines these were the wines I chose First off this is a new Import business run by a couple of young guys who have followed their passion for wine and done something about it. In this market and time where bigger guys like New Castle are going under it will be good to have new blood in the supply chain.



Domaine Galevan Paroles de Femme Cote du Rhone 2006 soft and feminine style go figure. a touch of dirt but very appealing flavors on the end



Domaine St Amant Grangeneuve Beaumes de Venise
licorice, anise and spices make this very provencial even though technically thats not. lots of foods this would go well with especially lambs and veal

Chateau de Seriege Merlot/Cabernet juicy with a lovely meaty midpalate. very well priced at around $11

Domaine Eternal ost du Roussillon Villages 2006 my favorite of the lot. smoky, dark and lots of grit.

bodi wines mixed bag

September 14 2005 Roussanne tasted before and have it in the store.. again with the green olive lush fruit that will only become more honeyed with age.

Chateau Felice 2002 Chalk Hill American Celebration a blend of cab, merlot and cab franc... i really liked it a lot then didnt then did.mild tannins a little cocoa and light oak. i think the cocoa got me.

Pichat 2004 Coe Rote Le Champon hot rustic and not showing a lot of syrah character.cute label though

Pretty Sally wines

It could have been the peppers in the corn chowder or just my being in the mood not to taste but I was a little disappointed in these wines, especially having had them in the past and found them at that time to be very enjoyable.

Pretty Sally Rose of Cabernet 2006 interesting rustycolor which was a little offputting. good acidity though and red fruits with a little cola flavor at the end

Pretty Sally 03 Cabernet oak oak and oak..tannic flavors maybe too young yet or not ever going to make it after all

04 Shiraz hot and fruity, hints of oak bing cherry not a traditional fruit bomb but too restrained for me with out showing a little bit of elegance. i feel bad because this wine has gotten some really good press so either its an off bottle or my taste buds arebeing goofy or I just dont like it.