Scott Lloyd with Frank Family /Major brands

Image of Frank Family Vineyards via Snooth

Frank Family Chardonnay Napa 2008 self described as liquid creme brulee with vanilla, cinnamon and texture.. a little hot on the finish but nice.

Frank Family Reserve Chardonnay Carneros 2007.. lots of charm in the bottle. rich but a minerality that makes a nice wine.

Frank Family Pinot Noir Napa 2008... mushroomy nose, some dried fruits.. garnet in color and a long finish

Frank Family Cabernet Napa 2006 offsetting nose of stinky feet , soft tannin and juicy, quick finish.. a little disappointing for the money

Frank Family Napa Zin 2006... soft bordeaux style of zinfandel... pleasant and very drinkable.. but like the peggy lee song, " Is that all there is?" good starter zin though

peter cargasacchi/brian loring /pinnacle

Image of Loring Wine Company via Snooth

One of the fun times is meeting legendary wine makers...Peter and Brian both make interesting wines mostly from the santa barbera and point north to Paso Robles.

2008 Point Concepcion Chardonnay ... round fruit from the sunshine but acidity and crispness.

2009 Point Concepcion Rose of Pinot Grigio.. made in the style of Northern Italian pinot grigio... keep on the skins for longer than usual the pinot grigio picks up a pretty pink color. rounder than most rose but still crisp enough for summer days

2008 Point Concepcion Syrah.. beautiful nose of meat and earth and roses... a little quicker on the finish than I hoped for but great while it lasted

this vintage the Loring wines were labeled with posts from each of the vineyard sites used.

Loring Shea Vineyards Willamette 2008 ..big bright fruit.. mocha and dusty on the finish... pretty

Loring Russell Vineyard 2008 from a warmer region than most pinot is grown in, this was all about big beefy flavors that would ho;d their own against a steak.

Loring Rossela Vineyard Santa Lucia Highlands.. soft supple fruit, pretty flavors

Loring Naylor Dry Hole 2008 named for his 5 attempts to drill a well for the vineyard sites. lots of spice and juicy red fruit.. a soft finish...

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misc. wines for monday

Rodolfo Pinot Noir Argentina 2009 good color with a touch of rust, fruity nose but the palate is all earth and tobacco.. little if any fruit still it wasnt a vegetal mess like I thought it would be.

Mas Des Bressades Costieres de Nimes... syrah and grenache..2008. beautiful nose of cedar, tobacco and vanilla. sweet fruit al the way through... a touch of iodine

those wines from Gazzolli and Ron DiGiovanni

from Craig Rohner and Pinnacle
2009 Wine by Joe Pinot Gris.. crisp, light and very sipable

2008 Flying Ace Riesling Mosel... sweet and boring

2009 Errazuriz Sauv Blanc Chile grassy and herbal, nice enough

2006 Fattoria del Cerro Vino Nobile di Montepulciano ... always a good value wine, a little less earthy than the other Sangiovese wines from this part of the world. good food wine for sure

2007 Audelssa Tephra Sonoma Valley garnet, cedar and vanilla on the nose... nice acidity and fruit but nothing overly exciting about it... may be my palate..

Tercos Winery/ Patricio Santos/ JJ Gazzolli

Image of Ricardo Santos via Snooth

I have to say I have been learning my spanish lately... today I sampled a wine called Tercos which means stubborn... and even though it sort of is a critter wine because it has a mule on it... I was impressed with the quality of this value argentine wine.

Tercos Torrontes 2009... pink grapefruit.. floral, not nearly as sweet as the Altos I had the other day..more of a food wine

Tercos Bonarda 2007.. earthy nose, juicy, soft tobacco on the finish..

Tercos Malbec 2007 a little bing cherry fruit but lush tannin

Tercos Sangiovese 2008... fruit forward..no italian sangiovese markers of saddleleather and tar..

Ricardo Santos El Malbec Las Madras Vineyard 2008 earthy nose, soft silky tannin, lush... very enjoyable wine for the money.

Well Oiled Wines from Argentina/Golden Barrel/Sebastian Barboza

Altas Cumbres Torrontes 2009 sweet nose, almost muscat like.. a little bitter on the finish.like cantalope rind..

Henry LaGarde Reserve Viognier 2009 no viognier nose, subtle sweet on the palate but not very interesting

Altas Cumbres Malbec (Altos Cumbres means Tall Peaks) a touch green on the nose and palate..strawberry and red fruit on the light finish

Altas Cumbres Cabernet dark color and flavors of bing cherry and raspberry... interesting

Henry LaGarde Reserve Malbec 2008 dark color, pretty fruity nose, a little heat ..med bodied with a quickish finish

Henry LaGarde DOC single vineyard Malbec 2007..juicy wine with a rich mocha long finish... nice

Familia Zuccardi with Leandro Lowu/Major Brands

Image of Santa Julia via Snooth

Santa Julia Pinot Grigio 2009... not many Argentine PG and this may show why... light, and quick finish... torrontes if much better

Santa Julia Organica Chardonnay 2008 a touch of tropical fruit, stainless steel only... good acidity.. '
Santa Julia Reserva Malbec 2008 bright purple iin the glass but green on the nose and palate... to be reserva in Argentina it must be in container at the winery for an extra year either in glass or bottle..

Zuccardi Q Malbec 2007 Q stands for Quality.. rich nose of fruit and mocha with a little green herbal character on the palate.. good acidity

Zuccardi Q Tempranillo 2005... winner of the tasting.. purple in the glass. from some of the oldest Tempranillo plantings in Argentina.. dill cedar on the nose, rich deep flavors of dark fruits on the long finish

Zuccardi Zeta 2006 the flagship for the company.. rich and silky on the approach... the soft tannins are sometimes too soft... dark fruits on the finish but those people looking for a big tannic finish would be disappointed

erin adams with glazer

Image via Wikipedia

Mohua Pinot Gris Central Otago New Zealand 2009 crisp, mineral, lemon and lime... light

Mohua Riesling Central Otago New Zealand 2007... nothing like an older riesling to show off Diesel, slate.. soft fruit but quick finish

Mohua Sauv Blanc 2009... a smoother version of New Zealand S.B. more grassy than grapefruit, not overly potent on the nose

Mohua Pinot Noir Central Otago, New Zealand 2008 one of the most beautiful noses I have smelled in a while, roses and earth and dried fruits but unfortunately the finish didnt match..

Spirit Tasting with Chris Straatmann/Missouri Beverage

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Deanston 12yr Unchill Filtered...nose of honey and heather..very scotch.. vanilla and orange zest over the alcohol... unchill filtered where they do not chill the wine to make particulates drop out.. leaves more of the guts of the product... fuller flavor

Tobermory 10 yr from the Isle of Mull... some salty air... no peat used though.. definitely more body than the Deanston

Tobermory 15 yr. finished in Olorosso Cask, giving it a slight sweet finish. it literally took my breath away when I smelled it the first time. lots of alcohol on the nose..

Bunnahabhain 12 yr Grassy and peaty and a little chunky

Bunnahabhain 18 yr.. darker yellow and much smoother

Bunnahabhain 25yr amazingly smooth and generous... for 250 or so it should be this good

Ledaig 10 yr Isle.... wow this smells like a smoking chimney..bandaid and iodine.. deep color... not for the faint of heart