Wine Musings Vol#91

Wine of Merit: ***++Lopez de Heredia Vina Bosconia, Gran Reserva, Rioja, 1981: I love this wine. Wonderful nuance and verve. Mature color, great notes of rose hip, potpourri, rhubarb and minerals. Palate glides but never thins. Cherry, white strawberry and more minerals in the mid palate. Medium, long finish. Great!

***+Ch. Ducru Beaucaillou, St. Julien, Bordeaux, 1999: A lovely, terroir-driven, stately wine. Elements of juniper, spicy red and black berry fruit, licorice root, smoke. Wonderfully elegant on the palate. Completely integrated and suave with no fading. Lingering, fine finish. I think 1999 is generally an under appreciated vintage for Bordeaux.

***+Von Strasser, Estate, Diamond Mountain, cabernet sauvignon, 1995: Similar to Diamond Creek, I find Rudy Von Strasser's wines to be blessed with a great sense of place. Nuances of freshly turned earth, rose hip and rose petal, toffee, raw tobacco leaf...gorgeous. Still coating, rich and long, this wine is really hitting its stride. Terrific.

***(+)Phillips Hill, Toulouse vineyard, Anderson Valley, pinot noir, 2007: A new wine for me. A cool climate signature, with deep red and black fruit, pipe tobacco, a touch of bey leaf and earthiness. Lovely integration and volume on the palate, with air. Firm tannic backbone suggests cellaring, as does the long, firm finish. A well crafted wine that will benefit from time.

Wine Musings Vol#90

Wine of Merit: ***++Clos des Papes, Chateauneuf du Pape, 1995: Elegant. This wine has aged into a lovely, balanced, almost Burgundian chateauneuf. Warm, rich cherry compote, kirsch, red peppercorn, toasted caramel. Touch of earth and lavender. The palate glides, with more pepper and red fruit. Finish is long and spicy. With time the acids become more pronounced as the fruit fades. Drink now.

***+ Castello di Camigliano, Brunello di Montalcino, 1997: I have posted on this before. A wonderful, full, rich brunello. Deep, chocolate covered black cherry, caramel, cigar tobacco and smoke. Generous, layered, coating palate. Velvety. Furry, long, lithe finish. Great.

***Viader, Estate, Diamond Mountain, cabernet sauv/franc, 1994: Another lovely, aged, nuanced wine. Elements of plum and black currant, roasted meats, sage, espresso and violet. Good concentration and integration, front to back. Finish is resolving but still fine.

***Laurel Glen, Terra Rosa, Sonoma mountain, cabernet sauvignon, 1990: This wine was made before Patrick moved the Terra Rosa label to Argentina. Lovely, mature sonoma cab. Turned earth, roasted plum and chocolate, anise, cigar box. The palate is thinning a bit but still generous through to a resolving, fine cab finish. Great balance. A nice find while digging through the cellar.

***Windgap, Russian River Valley, pinot gris, 2007: Springtime in a glass. From the lovely vermilion color to the whiff of fresh blossoms, this wine conjures up picnics on the great lawn with not a cloud in the sky. Persimmon, beach nut, orange blossom. Touch of spearmint. A hint of line dried fresh laundry. The palate is rich with minerals and slightly citrusy. The finish is clean and fresh if a bit abrupt. Great food wine.

***Marchese Frescobaldi, Nipozzano Riserva, Chianti Rufina, 2005: Delicious. Fresh, unpretentious chianti, happy to be quaffed from a tumbler in the company of a nice pizza. Bright cherry fruit, blood orange, grilled fig, zesty pepper, chocolate. Medium, friendly spicy finish. Mmmm....tasty.

Wine Musings Vol#89

***+Wine of Merit: Shane Wines, Jemrose vineyard, Bennett Valley, syrah, 2007: Notably opaque and inky. Complex aromas of iron, wet stone, grilled meats and spiced red fruit. With time cafe au lait and a floral, violet note. Rich and layered, picking up more chocolate and spice on the palate. Lovely integration and balance. Lingering, mineral finish. A new producer for me and one to watch with enthusiasm.

***+Domaine de l' Aigueliere, Cote Doree, Montpeyroux, Coteaux du Languedoc, syrah, 1995: I have enjoyed the evolution of this wine since its issuance. Initially very pronounced and almost challenging to drink, the Cote Doree has mellowed in its old age, now offering a lovely melange of lavender, fresh oregano, red fruit, licorice root, cured meats and smoke. Just delicious. The palate is playfully racy and sweet, the finish fine, balanced and of medium length. Patience has its virtues after all.

***Arcadian, Fiddlestix vineyard, Santa Rita Hills, pinot noir, 2004: Garnet hued, with nuanced aromas of licorice, cinnamon, tisane and sour cherry. The palate is firm, with pronounced minerals, black pepper, more racy red fruit and a long, mineral, tannic finish. Complex and perhaps still holding much in reserve. Worth it.

**++Antonio Vallana e Figlio, Boca, Piemonte, nebbiolo, 1996: A wonderfully interesting, aged nebbiolo. Prominent notes of oxidized iron, turned earth, nicoise olive, plum, dried cherry and cranberry. Nuances of baker's chocolate and tar. Acids are still bright and the palate is lively. Great integration and a fine, resolving finish. Refreshing after so many "international" wines.

**++Shane Wines, The Unknown, Sonoma County, syrah, 2007: A much cooler profile than the Jemrose. More blue and black fruits, coated in chocolate, mint and violets. More pronounced on the palate, picking up malabar pepper and rich, dark roasted coffee. Delicious.

Wine Musings Vol#88

Wine of Merit: ***+Les Bahans du Chateau Haut Brion, Pessac Leognan, Bordeaux, 1996: The second wine of the famed 1st growth estate. Wonderful. Classic Graves and very reminiscent of the 1st growth. Lovely autumnal and sous bois elements, minerals, dark red fruit, broad leaf tobacco and cigar box. Good structure, balance and integration but clearly ready to drink, though no drop off. A can't miss wine made for Claret lovers. I believe that 1996 Bordeaux is finally coming around. A great time to check in on them if you are cellaring that vintage.

***+Domaine Serene, Evenstad Reserve, Willamette Valley, pinot noir, 2004: Powerful, concentrated and structured pinot noir. Lovely notes of blackberry fruit, pine, nice florals, pipe tobacco and milk chocolate. With time in the glass the wine exhibits more richness on the palate and excellent length. A wine for now or maybe even better in a few years. Promising.

**+Clos Pegase, Pegase Circle Reserve Port, petite syrah, 1995: A curiosity more than anything. Very sweet, black, juicy petite fruit. A touch of spearmint and blueberry. A little grainy. Gliding palate front to back with a black fruit finish. Not a wine I would recommend nor would I avoid it entirely. Nice with a chocolate desert.

Wine Musings Vol#87

Wine of Merit: ****Kistler, Vine Hill, Russian River Valley, chardonnay, 2006: Just a lovely iteration of chardonnay. Evocative, vibrant notes of lemon oil, beeswax and clover honey waft up from the glass. The palate is full and oily with good structure, a hint of mineral and spice and a long, finish. A note of pepper and nutmeg at the end. Really great.

***+Detert Family Vineyards, Oakville, Napa Valley, cabernet franc, 2004: This wine packs a wallop. Very primary still. Thick, intense, concentrated palate with a black licorice, baker's chocolate, minerals and braised fennel. With time hints of lavender and violets. Firm finish with black pepper and maybe a chocolate covered licorice thing. Delicious, but I think I will hide this in the cellar for awhile. Quite a while!

Wine Musings Vol#86

Had the pleasure to spend some time with Roy Piper and Aaron Pott at Seven Stones last weekend. At the time we tasted the 05 and 06 from bottle, the 07 from barrel. The notes are in the order we tried them. All of these wines are of merit:

***+Seven Stones, Napa Valley, cabernet sauvignon, 2006: Decanted for an hour or so. A lovely wine by all measures. Perfumed, ripe nose of plum and black cherry, licorice root, hint of sage. Some earth and espresso grinds. The palate is coating and velvety, nice mineral focus, not blousy at all, fine tannic ledge front to back.

***++Seven Stones, Napa Valley, cabernet sauvignon, 2005: Popped and poured. Very similar notes to the 2006. Even better structure and depth. Slightly more focused, slightly better delineation. Pretty consistent. 93 pts.

****+Seven Stones, Napa Valley, cabernet sauvignon, 2007: From barrel. Wow. Home run. Not that the others are not worthy...but this wine is clearly very special. Much darker, concentrated blue/black berry fruit, deep, chiseled lead pencil, hint of chocolate mint. Rockin. Even more focus, depth, texture and minerals on the palate. Deft integration and balance. Extended minerals and a fine, super long finish. Slightly floral. Somehow, even at $150+, this wine seems like a steal when compared with others of its ilk (Araujo, Harlan, Abreu come to mind). Superlative. Run, don't walk!