Friday, July 26, 2013

bryant bickel/ masandra

La Playa Sauv Blanc 2012 Chile.. looking cool in a frosted bottle this was a surprise.. Had been in the store before with a different distributor. creamy and herbal.. lime citrus no big grapefruit bomb..

La Playa Chardonnay 2012.. a blend of chard and viognier.. not a big fan.. a little flabby

Rodolfo Torrontes Argentina 2012.. very sweet floral nose, follows through with a sweet finish... not one of my ffavorite torrontes

Rodolfo Pinot Noir High Altitude 2012  brickish color.. candy apple nose, sweet fruit...nice enough but one note...

La Playa Cabernet 2012  Colchagua Chile  not a lot of nose, some sweet fruit.. a little heat on the palate

Don Rodolfo Malbec Argentina 2012.. one more malbec to add to the list but at least it is pleasant.. juicy and ripe.. made in stainless

Llama 2011 Old Vine Malbec.. dirt nose, with a rich smoky finish. interesting..

Rodolfo Tannat 2012.. dark color and mouth filling juicy character.. would be great with bbq or brisket

La Playa Block Reserve 2010.. made from the best blocks.. a touch watery around the edges... a missing some fruit.. maybe not a good bottle

batasiolo with Stefano Poggi/ Missouri Beverage

Gavi.. a little woodsy, herbal but no wood all stainless. some ml.. didnt catch me

Barolo Bofani 2006 long tannins.. earthy on the palate...needs food

Barolo Boscaneto 2006 not as rustic as the first.. some earthiness and good tannins.. more pleasant

Barolo Cerequio 2006   from the western part of Barolo.. pretty spice on the nose, balsamic vinegar was mentioned... with long lush tannins.. my favorite.. brought in a six pack.

Barolo Corda Della Briccolina 2007  only 3 acres  name is ribbon on the little hill.. or close to that.. the color is more opaque in the glass. a lot more tannic.. needs more time to mellow out... pretty spices but just as good as the Cerequio/

thierry plummentaz with fine wine group.

Scharffenberger Brut Sparkling NV North Coast a little earthier than expected.. pleasant enough mousse.. starting to show the disgorgement date which is kind of cool for a non vintage... that way you can see when it came to the market

Roederer Estate Anderson Valley NV.. interesting to see the difference between the two sparklings. this one had no malo and a lot more refreshing acidity.

Fleur de Cap Chardonnay Stellenbosch 2012.. oaky and oaky nose.. maibe a little too overpowering

Domaine Ott Rose Bandol... a rose made with all the main black grapes of the Bandol leading with Mourvedre... smelled a touch off to me.. but sometimes the earthy character of the french overpowers

Meerlust Merlot South Africa 2008... doesnt look that old in the glass but very rich... and some richness on the end.

Querciabella Mongrana Toscana Red blend.. sangiovese, cab. and merlot.. the sangiovese definitely comes through..just got some good press from the spectator and I didnt get it..

Marques de Murrieta Reserva 2007.. spice box nose, cedar.. with some brett on the nose, long finish... great steak wine

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

vintage wine estates. jeff palmer/ major brands

Cosentino The Chard Lodi 2011... creamy and yet good acidity... true california style

Cosentino The Novelist Napa 2011... white bordeaux blend of sauv blanc and semillon soft with a touch of oak

the franc lodi 2011.. juicy dark and smoky.. a touch vegetal on the end but not enough to undermine.

the zin lodi 2011  briary nose, a bit of coffee and mocha on the finish.. pretty long aftertaste

the poet napa valley 2009  a bordeaux blend with more cab franc.. oak well integrated tannins.. and very supple

Rays Station Merlot California 2009  a little bitter and tannic

Rays Station Cabernet California 2009  some bing cherry.. a soft and dull cab.. uneventful

La Tarasque Cotes du Rhone 2010  tarasque is the dragon that ate people in the south of france.. good acidity with my type of finish.. coffee and mocha

Monday, July 22, 2013

craig rohner/major crush..

Chasseur has a second label Vrai Cote

Vrai Cote Chardonnay Sonoma Coast 2011  huge oaky mouthfeel.. lots of cedar and not even that much butter...

Vrai Cote Vine Gris Sonoma Coast 2012.. light pink in color.. dirty, earthy  with a strange fish aftertaste

Vrai Cote Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast 2010... dark fruits long finish.. very nice, especially compared to the first two... light in body and color but nice on the palate

Domaine de Servans Cotes du(r) Rhone 2011... hope this isnt a sign of things to come with the 11 cdr... dark walnut husk on the nose, earthy.. not a lot of fruit showing...

Charles Smith wines with Pinnacle

Vino Pinot Grigio 2012 Washington State... lots of upper notes of bright fruit and mineral but not much depth..

Eve Chardonnay Washington 2011 some pleasant depth and creaminess but after the acidic bomb the Grigio was its hard to find a bearing on this

Velvet Devil merlot 2011.. a bordeaux style merlot.. good tannin not a fruit bomb

Boom Boom Syrah 2012.. very young and juvenille.. needs time

Chateau Smith Cabernet 2011... dark fruit nose with lots of juicy fruit tannin on the finish

Reverly Red Blend 2010  cedar and more cedar..  large amount of cab franc with the tobacco and violet aromas...

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Patz & Hall with Lynda Barnes/ A bommarito

paul hobbs worked with mondavi and opus before going to simi and then starting his eponymous winery in the mid 90's... and thank goodness for spell check


Crossbarn Chardonnay 2012 Sonoma Coast  neutral oak and yet surprisingly woody..a little more herbacious than expected

Hobbs Russian River Chardonnay 2011.. not afraid of the oak and yet not over drawn with it either.. very pretty aromas of toast and soft caramel.. nice creamy mouthfeel and long finish. Would never be accused of being french but not over the top

Crossbarn Pinot Noir 2011 pretty color in the glass a touch vegetal on the palate.. cola and tea

Hobbs Pinot Noir Russian River Valley 2011 juicy and full bodied.. great mouthfeel and some tar/tobacco earthy notes on the finish.

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Cline/Domaine and Estates/ Glazer

Cline Viognier California 2012,.. very fresh and soft.. slightly creamy but done in stainless. great summer time wine

Cline Pinot Noir Cool Climate Sonoma 2011  dried fruit nose, some nice body but not overly exciting

Cline Cashmere California 2011  juicy bright fruit with just a hint of green at the finish but good food wine overall

Cline Syrah Cool Climate Sonoma Coast 2011... more about the bright fruit than the white pepper that I was expecting.. pretty if not complex

Jacuzzi Chardonnay Unoaked Chardonnay Sonoma Coast 2010 some tropical fruit... easy drinking with nice enough flavors but  another Chard at that price point.... really

Jacuzzi Pinot Noir Carneros 2010  dark fruit.. very smoky and seductive.. long fruit finish... very nice.

Jacuzzi, yes that Jacuzzi, was the family that owns Cline vineyards.

Friday, July 12, 2013

Burgundys

A big Burgundy tasting that unfortunately was not well attended by many, including myself. Bernie brought a few around to try. 6 out of 30 ish

Domaine des Rochers Macon Reserve Chardonnay 2012... clean and crisp but from the cold could have been any chard from anywhere

Domaine Henri Darnat Puligny Montrachet 2011.. wow.. delicate and a touch tropical and a touch oaky vanilla.. very pretty.. ordered a 6pk

domaine Cofferent Duvernay Fairended Chassagne Montrachet 2010 a little heavy on the palate but not in an interesting way.. blown away by the Darnat

Domaine Antonin Guyon Gevrey Chambertain Justices 2010.. from a region where people were executed.. not sure if by guillotine or not.. but there was a beautiful flowery aroma with strong tannins and long finish.. bought a 6 pk

Domaine Bertagna Vosne Romanee Beauxmont 2010.. very exotic and floral and way cheaper than a DRC Vosne Romanee.. but liked the Justices better and a little less expensive than this offering

Hall vineyards/Major Brands

Hall Vineyards in Napa has made a name for themselves with Cabernet. The upper end wine named Kathryn Hall was the number 2 wine from Wine Spectator last year,

Sauvignon Blanc Napa 2011.. lots of high notes but missing in the middle... nice enough but a little pricy.

Cabernet Sauvignon 2009. lots of spice box and tannin.. hoping to see more fruit, maybe as it settles down

Merlot 2009  Napa   100^% varietal..lots of fruit tannin and then good fruit on the end.. lots going on in the nose also.. much more interesting than the Cab and served after the cab which is unusual

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

wine with marian and pierre/ terra firma

Oustric (Ostrich) Rose 2012 provence grenache.. light salmon color, some strawberry and mineral but not really exciting

Deuce Vie Rose Red grape varietals rose.. light color.. a touch sweet with the minerality... a little more user friendly

Chateau Perenne bordeaux 2005 showing age in the glass by color and nose.. true french stink with a lean thin finish

Chateau Plaisance. Cuvee Alix 2005.. showing nice age color in the glass and very meaty.. almost syrah like.. soft tannins.. very pleasant

Chateau Guerry Cotes de Bourg 2009.. showing a lot of fruit on the nose and palate.. bright bing cherry.. with vanilla.. firm tannin structure.. very nice

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Tony Fabiano with Crimson Wine group/ Missouri Beverage

Archery Summit Pinot Gris Vireton 2011.. what is vireton? the curve of the feathers on arrows that allow for the proper flow... archery summit.. arrows.. got it..  stainless steel but pretty creaminess.. juicy..

Chamisal Stainless Chardonnay continuing on the no oak bandwagon.. fruity though and again creamy.. supposedly from the new zealand yeast.

Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc/ Viognier soft and sweet.. mostly chenin.. completely different than the Chenin from magerum

Archery Summit Pinot Noir Premier Cuvee 2010 made up of 6 premier vineyard sites in oregon.. and yet more California in style than I expected.  bright purple in the glass.. some mushroom and earth but not as much as expected.

Pine Ridge Crimson Creek Merlot vegetal nose but rich on the palate.. and going away

Margerum Wine with Jason Barette

Pinot Gris Klickitat Columbia Valley 2011.. very tropical fruit on the nose, light and crisp..but lingering finish

Chenin Blanc 2011... very interesting wine, lots of floral and herbal aromatics but lean and crisp on the finish

Sauvignon Blanc Sybarite Happy Canyon 2012.. a little more lean and grapefruit style... my least favorite of the whites

Riviera Rose 2012.. dry as a bone.. not a lot of fruit on the nose but nice depth on the finish

M5 Red Blend 2011 a red blend of 5 wines.. lean in style which is the house style I think.. more of a food wine than a sipping wine house

Syrah Colson Canyon, 2008.. and Purisima Mountain Vinyard Syrah .. again not the big bacon fat iodine northern rhone style

Grenache Alamo Creek Vineyard 2010.. ripe fruit but again with restrained style.. maybe just a little too cool?

Monday, July 8, 2013

wines from garco with robert noecker

Aviary Red blend Napa 2010  fruity nose, and lots of fleshy fruit on the palate.. with the heat and humidity you can taste the lack of acidity.. dark berry.. a touch hot on the palate

Aviary Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 Napa  both of these products are new to the market and new products in general.. tannins.. and raspberry.. full bodied with hints of vanilla and cherry

Twenty Bench by Regusci Napa 2010.. dark color in the glass.. oak hints and dark fruit, lots of glycerin for the full bodied effect. tannins are good and sturdy

summer whites with rich at pinnacle

Bedrock Shebang White Cuvee II  ... not sweet , not round... light tropical fruit on the nose but that was about all the fruit that came through. a blend of interesting old vine california white varietals.. green hungarian.. and trouseau gris for starters.

Manciat Macon  Les Morizottes 2011.. chardonnay some white peach for the most part uneventful even for a good price

Prum Domprobst Kabinett 2011.. soft and easy.. a touch of mineral.. with just enough petrol

DOmaine des Baumard Quarts de Chaume 2006.. almost honey yellow in the glass with a lot of honey and sweetness on the palate. and just enough petrol to let you know its old without being overpowering.. very nice