Tuesday, January 6, 2009

first post of the new year

Happy New year and hopefully good wines will follow. Starting out well with a tasting by Samantha Rodgers of Chateau Felice in the Chalk Hill region of Sonoma. Even though there are a lot of vineyards sights there are only 2 estates in the Chalk Hill region and Felice is one of them.

Chateau Felice 2005 Acier (ah-see-ay) Chardonnay 2005 Acier is french for steel and that is what they ferment this wine in. No heavy oak here...straw gold in color and not overly complicated. just nice soft chardonnay fruit...nice acidity.

Chateau Felice Chardonnay Estate 2005 toasty nose that isnt on the finish...not a bad thing as chard sometimes picks up too much of the oak...would have liked a little of the caramel on the finish but....nice enough...soft...

London Cab 2005 Russian River red cherry fruit, slightly green on the nose from youth, soft tannins , one of the go to wines I have for new under $20

Chateau Felice Cabernet Franc 2004 one of the reasons I love this wine is smoky, and dark purple.. juicy and meaty.. long pretty finish.

Chateau Felice American Celebration 2002 of which I have a bottle on the shelf. 70% cab, dark ruby color, mocha and tobacco were most notable for me. softerstyle with nice acidity.. seems to be their benchmark across the board..more about food friendly and less cocktail wine.

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