Wine Tasting on 3-20-09

We had a good wine tasting. Present were Piroca, Winepath, Jimmy, Uncle-E and Uncle-N. We were also honored by the guest appearance of Grasshopper. We blind tasted 5 wines; all of them quite good and again proving we are pretty poor in discriminating wines but we keep tasting.

1. Santa Rita Floresta Cabernet Sauvignon 2004, Score=2+~3

Color is dark with purple hue. Nose has prominent cedar and woody character and black cherry. Nice fruits upfront with rather strong tannin and acidic finish. Some thought this is bit harsh and mentioned that it may benefit from decanting. In terms of the identity of this wine, the tasters were all over the place; Sangiovese (Italian), might be Cab, No, No, this is not Cab, might be Petit Verdot, etc. In terms of the origin of this wine, California, Argentina, Italian, and, of course, Uncle-N brought this, Spain were mentioned. This is a Cab from Floresta Apalta, Chile.

"Opaque purple. Powerfully scented nose offers a sexy array of dark berries, incense, floral oils and oak spices. Fleshy and sweet, with palate-staining blackberry, cassis and candied licorice flavors. Picks up an exotic floral pastille character on the back. This boasts impressive focus and lift for such a lush wine, with gentle tannins lending focus to the finish. Very sexy stuff" 91 Points - Josh Raynolds from Stephen Tanzer's IWC

"The purple-colored 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Floresta Apalta offers an alluring aromatic array of pain grille, pencil lead, spice box, earth notes, cassis, and black currants. Full-bodied on the palate with layered, already complex flavors, this well-balanced, lengthy effort will offer prime drinking from 2011 to 2019." 90 Points - Jay Miller from Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate

2. Barone Cornacchia Montepulciano D'abruzzo Le Coste 2004, Score=2+~3

Color is nice dark ruby. Nose has some slight funk (musty earth) but rather closed. Palate is quite surprising with very forward fruits (not quite fruits bomb) with mixed red and black fruits especially black cherry ending in big tannin. Everybody thought this is made in a New World style. Spanish meritage was the consensus, may be Priorat, Rivera del Duero etc. What a surprise, this is from Italy, Montepulciano D'abruzzo by Barone Cornacchia. Except for nose, there is nothing to suggest this is Italian wine. Uncle-E objected to the fact this does not taste anything like classic Italian wines. May be this wine is for American taste.
Bit about this grape; the below is from Wikipdia; “Montepulciano d'Abruzzo is a type of wine grape as well as a type of red wine made from these same grapes in the Abruzzo region of east-central Italy. The grape is however recommended for 20 of Italy's 95 provinces. Up to 10% Sangiovese is permitted to be added to the blend. It is typically a fruity, dry wine with soft tannins, and as such is often consumed young. If aged by the winery for more than two years, the wine may be labelled "Riserva."This wine should not be confused with Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, a Tuscan wine made from Sangiovese and other grapes, but not the Montepulciano variety.”

“COLOR-great dark; NOSE-bright, ruby red; a little cocoa/coffee action; TASTE-I'm blown away by this wine; this is a MASSIVE red wine; it's so juicy; it's delicious, but it's still true; it's got the big fruit, but not a BOMB; just gorgeous red fruit; light tobacco on the back-end; rose petal for days; if someone told me this was a $75 cult Italian wine that got 94 points from Parker, I would believe it -- it's that delicious; great ripe black fruit; I love it; (AFTER 48 hrs open: more tannic, darker fruits, more rounded -- very nice)”; GV-93

3. Kobalt Cabernet Sauvignon 2004, Score=3+

Color is nicely dark with nose of sweet cherry, vanilla and chocolate. Palate matches the nose with nice forward fruits with tastes of usual suspects (vanilla, caramel, chocolate) with nice well-integrated tannin and long finish. We said this is a classic high-end Cali Cab but Piroca has fooled us with wines from other countries especially from Spain (Alto Moncaya Aquilon, for example), so some caution was mentioned. But this turned out to be Kobalt 04. As you may well know, this is one of the small production boutique wineries in Napa and the wine maker/owner is Kevin Carriker.

“The wine exhibits a dark ruby/purple color and an impressive nose of toasty oak and sweet black currants intermixed with licorice and camphor, as well as a touch of graphite. Lead pencils shavings are also present. The wine has outstanding fruit, full body, ripe but generous tannin, and a rather flamboyant, opulent personality, much in keeping with the style of this vintage. Drink it over the next 15-20 years. 92 points”- Robert Parker.

4. Shafer Merlot 2006, Score=2+~3

Color is dark. Nose has very slight funk and minerals. Nice upfront fruits with integrated tannin, very pleasant wine. Piroca thought this is Merlot and the rest of us were favoring Cab or Cab blend. This turned out to be Shafer Merlot 06. Some of us tasted this wine before. Even after knowing this is Merlot, it really tasted like Cab to us (except for Piroca, of course). This was made by the legendary “Elias Fernandez” who used to shoot “Bambi” and her mother to protect vines.

winemaker's comments: "This release is marked by its perfumy aromas of dark fruit that push out of the glass. The wine itself fills the mouth with opulent flavors of red and black berry fruit, licorice, spice, pepper, strawberry and plum. It's a wine that pairs so well with food, it makes me hungry just tasting it." —Elias Fernandez

5. Dumol Syrah Eddie's Patch 2005, Score=2+~3

As Uncle-E brought this out, because of the shape of the bottles, our differential diagnosis was narrowed to Syrah and Pinot. When it was poured, we knew this was syrah; very dark almost black. Nose is nice with black fruits and bacon. Palate reflects the nose with plumy black fruits up front, nice silky mouth feel with bacon and firm tannin and citrus finish. Very tasty wine. Because of the lack of strong black pepper, we (mostly Prioca) felt this is California Syrah. We (except for Uncle-E, of course) are not familiar with this winery but DuMol is apparently a small production winery in Russian valley.

“The 2005 Syrah Eddie’s Patch has really turned out beautifully since I tasted it a year ago. Huge color (opaque purple to the rim) with an extraordinary nose of frying bacon, roasted meats, licorice, tapenade, and blackberry, the wine is dense, full-bodied, broodingly backward, with super purity, and stunning length and richness. It is hard to know how this wine will age, but it is certainly a fabulous Syrah that should drink well for at least 5-8 years if not longer.”- RP 94 Pts