trademark with mark joseph.. new distributor in town

With the collapse of Garco and Golden Barrel there will be new distributors in the market. Trademark is one that has been around for a short while but will be adding to their portfolio.

Hestia Chenin Blanc 2011 Washington   I was hoping for something here.. Chenin can be a great wine when produced in cooler climates..(vouvray)  this had a slight honeyed character with some minerality but the finish was blunt and dull.. reminding me of old italian whites

Anne Amie Cuvee A Muller Thurgau Willamette Valley 2012... this wine on the other hand is really fun... before Pinot was the rage in Oregon the german settlers had planted riesling and Muller, which is a hybrid of Riesling and.... , this wine has light melon and pineapple with pleasant acidity... a little short on the finish would be my main complaint

Vega Tolosa 11 Pinos Bobal La Mancha 2012 Bobal is a grape type from spain that usually is a blending grape.. dark inky in the glass. a slightly young nose that from the taste should go away with time.. nice grip or texture on the palate.. sweet cherry on the back

Gigi Rosso Barbera d'Alba 2010  dark purple in the glass, italian stink on the nose, cherry bfruit with some tannin on the finish... pleasant enough... but not really a stand out

Chateau Brandau Bordeaux Superiore 2011  mostly merlot with 20% cab,, meaty nose a little earthy on the palate.. medium body but there is a slight metallic hint on the finish which killed it for me

Gallo fine wines, not an oxymoron, really

Brancaia Chianti Classico 2009.. nothing but dusty earthy Italian stink. one would think they were corked except they did not have that flavor.. some weight to it but nothing of what I thought Brancaia would be like

Las Rocas Vielle Vigne Garnacha 2010... lots going on from this old vine monster.. worth twice the price... upfront fruit and structure. and good price for what it delivers... one of the times where gallo money helped improve the product and keep the price down.

marion with terra firma

Domaine du Pere Caboche Rose 2013  my first 13 rose to try. not really impressed with it. hints of strawberry.. a touch blu nt on the finish.. maybe predominately new vines

Smoke Stack Sauv Blanc 2012  smelled sb.. herbal,, melon.. surprisingly sweet..

The Path.. a new wine by the Sebastiani family  as a whole not very pleased with the assortment... too much residual sugar or fruity, not any complexity or thought to good wine, just drinkable wine.. all of them were from the 12 vintages.

Chard, Pinot noir, Cabernet and Merlot

josh mott. ionia

2011 Vinchio Vaglio Serra Rebus ruche  fromm Castagno Monferato.. sweet nose, some dark cherry fruit but quickish finish

Jax 3 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2012 fruity nose, hints of rhubarb.. but red cherry on the palate.. nice enoughh

2012 Nemorino Rosso Tuscano blend of syrah, sangiovese and merlot.. not an italian stink on the nose, mouthwatering acidity.. pretty but not usual tuscan.. must be syrah

2010 Roza Ridge Petite Verdot Washington usually a blending grape because of its herbacious nature... this is a riper version nice up front fruit tannin.. some cocoa on the palate. fun wine

2008 Hyatt Winter Harvest Riesling Washington  golden yellow color.. light viscousity.. tastes more like a apple than grape wine.. not complex at all.. just sweet

Jade Lynch/ Bennett Lane Winery Napa/ Pinnacle

2010 Bennett Lane reserve Chardonnay.. forgot to ask why they call it reserve when they do not have a regular chard... purchased fruit.. lots of mid palate activity.. toasty nose, enough acidity but a slight dullish finish

2009 Bennett Lane Maximus described as a red feasting wine, named for Maximas someone from the middle ages.. Cab, merlot, syrah and malbec.. juicy with some texture on the mid palate..

2009 Bennett Lane Cabernet Sauvignon Napa  good tannin, dark fruit long finish.. everything you want a $60 cab to do

2006 Bennett Lane Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.. dusty nose, lots of upfront fruit tannin.. could probably hold for some time but when most current vintages are 2010.. hard to explain the 2006 is just in the store.. difference between restaurant where age is valued.. and liquor stores where the question is whats wrong with it..

claire and wines pinnacle

Au Bon Climat Pinot Noir Santa Barbara 2012... slight green nose, vegetal probably will go away with age.. lots of red berry fruit but  expecting a little more

San Fabiano Chianti Putto 2012 bright cherry on the nose and palate.. not typical italian... but a good sipper

Fin Amour Mauyry Cotes Catalanes Languedoc 2008... toasty oak nose and way to much oak on the palate.. hiding the fruit.. way too much oak

Cult Cabernet Sauvignon NV.. vanilla and sweet cherry on the nose.. not a lot of tannin.. kind of boring after a bit..

Clio 2011 vanilla and lots of grip on the palate.. can use some food... lots of black fruit and tannin... tasty but big

Marian Fuica with Terra Firma

Americana Chardonnay 2012  candy sweet on the palate.. upfront fruity but not very interestng

Seigniur de Lauris Vacqueyras 2009  grenache based.. typical of the region.. dark in color and flavors of dark fruits.. restrained but interesting

Americana Petite Syrah 2011  lots of color not a lot of flavor

Agua de Piedra Malbec 2012 Argentina water of the stone.. a little earthy on the nose but good fruit through to the finish.. a touch dirty

Hoopes/ Appellations

Hoopes is a smaller vineyard in Napa, Yountville

Hoopla 2012 Chardonnay Napa unoaked with no ml but stirred lees for the creaminess.. and some tropical fruit nice

Hoopla The Mutt 2011 blended.. juicy with chocolate and mocha hints.. lots of fruit upfront but a quick finish

Liparita Yountville Cabernet 2009  dark color with some alcoholic smells.. blue fruit on the palate.. with some structure tannin.. almost sweet finish

Hoopes Oakville 2010 cedar and smoky... nice grip or texture

Liparita Oakville 2009  toasty lush and supple... just what you would expect from this price and quality.

josh mott/ Ionia wines

2012 Vinchio-Vaglio Serra Verde Mare Cortese light colored slight green hue white wine.. some pretty fruit on the front but it faded quickly to a dull finish...

2010 Durigutti Bonarda Argentina one of the most interesting wines I have tried in a long time... very linear or single minded on the palate and then it explodes in the back... lots of syrah like character... fun

2011 matteo Correggia Roero Nebbiolo  Light in color but clear.. slight italian stink some light cherry or red fruit notes... pleasant finish. delicate

2009 Roza Ridge Syrah Washington State.. juicy and pleasant more fruit forward than expecting not a long finish but pleasant for the money... have to say I hate the label though.. looks like someone spilled liquid on it..

Terlato wines/ Major Brands

Sanford Pinot Noir La Rinconada Santa Rita Hills 2010  clay aromas, crayon, very bright fruit.. ample acidity..

Markham 1879 Red Blend Napa Valley 2011  merlot based and very ripe given the vintage being cool.. pencil box on the nose, juicy ripe fruit finish

Lapostolle Canto de Apalta, Rapel Valley chile 2010  merlot, carmenere based. 1st vintage of these.. very jucy with a lot of upfront fruit but a bit rough on the edges..needs food

Tiramisu Liqueur marsala based liquor.. lots of cocoa and chocolate. sweet.. a little lighter than kahlua but a somewhat similar

cynthia/ bommarito

Wither Hills Sauv Blanc Marlborough 2012... yet another sb from new zealand.. and yet this had a more interesting nose of lime and jalapeno.. zesty as usual on the palate

MacRostie Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2012.. lots of high notes... definitely cool climate chard.. not a lot of ml..

MacRostie Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2011 toasty marshmellow nose, no mistaking it for cali pinot but not the fruit bomb some can be.. more complicated and finessed

St Hallett Gamekeepers  Red Barossa 2012  very clean nose, and juicy with a touch of green young vine on the back

St Hallett Faith Shiraz Barossa 2011.. lots of bing cherry up front fruit.. not much depth past that but tasty for what it is.

josh mott/ ionia

Hyatt Pinot Gris 2012 Rattlesnake Hills Washington 2012 if i was tasting this blind I think I would have said it was Sauv Blanc.. very grassy and fragrant

Paydirt Sauv Blanc 2011 Central Coast.. if tasting this I would guess Chard.. you can see why some called Sauv Blanc a poor mans Chardonnay... round  with some toasty notes.. but very linear on the palate... straight through from front to back

Domaine Sainte Leocadie Minervois 2010 a syrah grenache carignan blend.. young vine aromas and a little juicy but missing some middle and finish.

Bodega Monteviejo Petite Fluer Argentina 2009  a malbec blend... a little old.. some spice on the palate but a bit blunt on the finish

Turnbull with Joel Portmann/ Pinnacle Imports

Turnbull has been in the kc market for a long time but lost in a big distributors book so they moved to Pinnacle.. more than doubling their last years number in the first months

2012 Turnbull Sauvignon Blanc  herbacious and grassy... not quiet... made with interest instead of as an afterthought.. stainless steel and mouth watering tannin

2010 Turnbull Napa Valley Cabernet ... tight nose but yummy fruit.. lots of lush tannin on the end... dark fruit...

2010 Turnbull OakVille Cabernet... meant to showcase the dirt of the Oakville AVA  defintely more tannic again with the dark fruit and mouthwatering tannins..

2010 Turnbull Black Label Cabernet best of the oakville vineyard.. mountain fruit,.. lots of higher notes on the palate.. mouth filling and huge would need some time to settle out.

Neyers Vineyards. Missouri Beverage Bruce Neyer

Bruce Neyer. vineyard owner and National sales director for Kermit Lynch
Chardonnay Carneros District 2012  toasty nose made with 3 year old air dried barrels.. double native yeast both in innoculation and malolactic fermentation  a touch hot on the finish with a long smooth finish

Zinfandel Vista Luna Borden Ranch 2011... heirloom vineyard perfume nose, softer style.. more balanced less highly charged alcohol.

Sage Canyon California Rhone style blend 2012  lovely on the palate and nose. a blend of carignan, grenache, mourvedre and syrajh.. juicy fruit

Pinot Noir Robert Road Sonoma coast 2012 mushroom and earthy nose with a bit of dried fruit.. dark fruit.. lots of maceration.. from low yield viens

Merlot Neyers Ranch Conn Valley Napa 201.. dark color pretty wine great texture  the way california merlot shoud be

Cabernet Sauvignon Neyers Ranch Conn Valley Napa 2010  true to vintage.. dark color with cassis and cedar nose, dark vanilla cherry and supple tannins on the back

listening to mr neyer was a lesson in wine making from soil and trellacing to chemical reactions in the wine and soil compounds.

Ionia Imports/ Josh Mott

An importer that specializes in Italian and California wines

Bodega de Edgar Albarino 2012.. lots of oaky chardonnay like character. clean finish hard sell

Fox Run Doyle Family Vineyard Unoaked Chardonnay 2012 oldest vines in US from new york.. a bit of heat on finish.. nice enough fruit..

Tiera Zinfandel 2011 sonoma jammy a bit briary.. a little weak on the finish

Barrel 27 right hand man Syrah.. 2011  definitely california style rhone style.. but still juicy and enjoyable.. not as rich as i remember it being.

siduri and novy /pinnacle

2012 Siduri chehalem mountains pinot noir pretty nose, a touch soft on the palate.. not  very complex

2012 Siduri Abret Vert Pinot Noir.. full lush almost syrah in style... long finish.. bought a case

2012 Siduri Bucher Pinot Noir dark in color.. a russian river valley product.. nice dried fruit with good fruit

2012 Siduri Santa Rita Hill Pinot Noir cedary soft on the palate... good finish

2012 Siduri Hirsch Pinot Noir  Sonoma... dark berry nose and flavors.. dark and dense

2012 Siduri Gary's Pinot Noir maderized slightly

2012 Siduri Sierra Mar pinot Noir lots of raspberry.. and a little mushroom earthy.. pretty lush fruit

2012 Siduri Sebastiano Pinot noir... flowrey...almost patchuli..a little waxy on the finish.

2012 Novy Russian River Zinfandel jammy full bodied.. some coffee on the finish

2012 Novy Carlisle Vineyard more blueberry notes.. dark color.. lighter on the palate.. mostly like a bordeaux style

2011 Novy Santa Lucia Highlands Syrah  a leaner style ,,, more rhone than australia... good fruit