Wine tasting on January 29, 2010

Present were all core members including Winepath, Jimmy, Piroca, Uncle-N and Uncle-E. Uncle-OZ made another guest appearance. Courtesy of Winepath, we started with a mini-vertical (actually it is also horizontal since vineyards are different) tasting of FERRARI-CARANO's new winery "Prevail" cabs which were not blind tasted. The remaining 5 wines were blind tasted.

1. Prevail West face 2004 and Prevail Back Forty 2003

Prevail winery is a new venture by Ferrari-Carano which produce a small quantity of reds from two mountain estate fruits-- "West Face" and "Back Forty".  We tasted 2004 West Face and 2003 Back Forty.

Back Forty 2003 shows dark garnet with brown hue (a bit too brown for 2003). Nose has rubber tire chemical notes which is not pleasant. Palate is muted but mostly black fruit coming through leading to massive tannin which tasted bitter. Long lingering finish. To us, the wine is rough around the edges and the unpleasent nose follows everywhere which is bothersome.

West Face 2004 has a much better nose, at least, no unpleasant odor. Palate is not much different from Back Forty with muted black fruit and firm tannin. Both wines have lots of oak. I myself liked West Face 2004 better.

We are not impressed with these two wines. Especailly for the price, we can get much better polished wines elsewhere.

Here is information from their Web site.

Back Forty "Beyond the estate winery and across the lake to the back side of RockRise Mountain lies a 40 acre vineyard block, comprised of four specific mini-blocks, uniquely situated on diverse soils well-suited for growing superior Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. Back Forty is a wine with a "true sense of place"...respectfully reflective of this particular site."

Displaying deep aromatics of ripe blackberry and red cherry, Back Forty has a rich mouthfeel that is beautifully concentrated and supple, with silky sweet tannins and a long, lingering smooth finish.

The unique diversity of soil composition, extreme attention to detail in the vineyard, high-density planting of French ENTAV clones with their low yields, and the rigorous practice of blending selections makes Back Forty a recipe for success."
West Face "Superior Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah grapes are grown on LookOut Mountain to create this premier California-style red blend. Selected blocks are planted in volcanic soil on steep slopes with ideal western sunlight exposure, allowing the tiny berries to ripen evenly, producing a wine with intense concentration of fruit flavors. Slow ripening ensures long "hang time", producing an exotic, sensual wine. Deep purple in color with a flamboyant bouquet, West Face is a brilliant expression of mountain-grown fruit from specific vineyard sites. West Face will contiune to display consistent characteristics year after year."

2. Burgess Ilona 2003, SCore=2+~3

Color is nice dark garnet. Nose has chocolate and slight smoky earthiness. Palate has well-controlled fruit especially black cherry laced with vanilla leading to a nice firm but not too big tannin. Our tasters thought Italian, Spanish but settled on Cali cab or cab blend. This is 2003 Burgess Ilona which we tasted before. Again this is a consistency check. Last time, we liked this wine better and gave a 3~3+.

We said; "Color is dark garnet. Nose has lots of berries with very slight earthiness. Palate shows well controlled fruit mostly back fruit, blackberries and blueberries leading to well-integrated but firm tannin. Nice lasting finish.  Cali Cab was first mentioned. Other possibilities mentioned were Spanish, Priorat, Garnacha, Temperanilo, Argentinian Cab+Malbec etc. One of the tasters said he tasted a definite Merlot component. In general, everybody liked this wine. This is a Bordeaux blend from Howell mountain."

Winemaker Notes on 2003 Ilona Howell Mountain:

"Our soon to be released 2003 exhibits an intense yet subtle core of mountain-ripened fruit that reminds us of what makes our setting so unique, even amongst our neighbors on Howell Mountain. The 2003 is an estate blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. It has a deep garnet hue and complex aromas of spice, black cherries and balanced levels of vanilla, due to its aging in French oak barrels for 18 months. The full, rich flavors culminate into a lush finish – characteristic of the finest Howell Mountain wines."

The Origins of Ilona:

"Long-time Burgess Cellars veteran Catherine Eddy started Ilona, and explains its origins: "Ilona is an Eastern European name which over time had evolved into Elaine, my mothers name. The woman’s profile on the label comes from an ancient Greek coin I found in Paris, and after reading many stories of Greece, got the impression that the women of that time were both very strong, yet feminine. The label and the name set the right tone for this powerful, but also soft and rounded wine.”

3. d'Arenberg The Laughing Magpie 2007, Score=2+~3

This one came in a bottle with a screw top which limits the origin of this wine. Although Winpath tried his best to cover this up with a nice colorful cloth wine bag, we never miss any information we can glean from the bottles, color of foil and etc. Color is very dark. Nose has nice freshly cracked back pepper note. Combination of a screw top and this nose immediately makes us think of Aussie Shiraz. Palate is fruit forward with black fruit and plum leading to firm tannin. Some felt this one has an acidic kick. Most of us thought this is a very pleasent wine to drink. We thouht this is Australian Shiraz.

We are sure we tasted this wine in a different vintage but I could not find it in our wine blog.

92 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "Shiraz-Viognier blends have become quite the ticket in recent years (what to do with all that so-so Viognier) but one of the first and still one of the best is the Laughing Magpie. The opaque purple-colored 2007 The Laughing Magpie Shiraz (90%)-Viognier (10%) offers up an expressive bouquet of smoke, mineral, violets, and wild blueberry. Medium-to full-bodied on the palate, it has tons of ripe blue fruits, spice notes, and enough structure to evolve for 2-3 years. This lengthy, pleasure-bent effort will be at its best from 2010 to 2020." (02/09)

91 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 08: "Deep, bright-rimmed ruby. Exotically perfumed, sexy bouquet of blackberry and mulberry, along with fresh flowers and incense. Pliant dark berry flavors coat the palate, picking up a suave candied floral quality with air. Leaves a trail of Asian spices behind on the long, juicy finish. Already complex enough to drink."

winemaker's notes: "A blend of 90% Shiraz and 10% Viognier.
The intense aroma is young and forthright, offering a floral mix of peach stone, jasmine and dark maraschino cherries complexed by star anise, white pepper, black olives and fragrant garden herbs. The palate is full flavored, with beets, blueberries and red cherries and lovely cedary notes that compliment the black tea tannins and edgy mineral acidity."

4.  Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon 2007, Score=3+~(4)

Color is nice dark garnet. Nose is very seductive with dark chocolate and floral notes and cedar. Palate explodes with lots of fruit upfront especially black cherry and blueberries laced with ususal vanilla and caramel. Some felt this is over oaked but the rest of us were OK with oak. Nice well-integrated but firm tannin and lingering finish. This is our favorite of this tasting. Our consensus was California Cab and we even thought this is a regular Caymus. We did not guess at the vintage. This was indeed Caymus cab 2007. We have tasted both regular cab as well as special selection in the past. Caymus consistently makes excellent wines. We think 2007 is no exception. Certainly this has an aging potential and several more years in the bottle may tone down the oakiness.

92 points Wine Spectator: "Ripe and fleshy, with rich plum, wild berry, spice and savory herb notes that are complex, full-bodied and expansive on the palate, ending with firm tannins and a dash of espresso. Drink now through 2016." (11/09)

"Once again Caymus has hit a homerun with the latest release of their Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2007 is an amazing bottling that rivals past great vintages such as 1994, 1997 and 2001. Made in the quintessential California Cabernet Sauvignon style, this wine is big, rich and hedonistic, with flavors of dark berry fruit, mocha and chocolate that seamlessly lead into a smooth, supple finish that is nicely highlighted by rich oak accents. If you've been a perennial fan of Caymus, then this newest release will not disappoint! There are no scores as of yet, but experience leads me to believe this promises to merit scores in the low- to mid-90s." (Alex Pross, K&L Wine Merchants)

5.  Jean Louis Chave Mon Coeur Cotes Du Rhone 2006, score=2+

This one came in a green sloped shoulder bottle. Color is quite dark immediately excluding pinot based wines including Burgundy. Nose has a funky note but not that unpleasant. Palate has upfront muted fruit including red fruit, raspberries, cherry but definitely muted. Tannin is fairly assertive but mid palate is a bit flat and short finish. We all thought this is  from the south of France. Rhone was memetioned, probably blends of Grenache and Mourvèdre. Some thought it a bit on the heavy side for a classic Rhone. Languedoc, Crozes-Hermitage were also mentioned. This turned out to be Cotes Du Rhone. We assume this is mainly Grenache but it is much heavier and darker than usual Grenache wines. At this price range, it is not bad at all.

Wine Spectator Top 100 in previous two vintages

"Recently, when we tasted the 2006 vintage of the Mon Coeur, we understood why the previous vintages of the same wine have made the Top 100 list in the last couple of years. There are many very good Cote du Rhones produced, but only a few of them can rival Chateauneuf du Pape. One of them is the full-bodied, serious Mon Coeur Cote du Rhone! Hard to resist now, but will also age gracefully for 2-4 years. The reviews are now out on the 2006 and with 91 points it is well on its way to being in the Top 100 of 2009!"

Wine Spectator 91 points
"Alluring, with dark cocoa, game, braised fig and roasted plum notes laced with hints of iron and garrigue. The nice solid, muscular finish lets a loamy edge echo on. Drink now through 2010." -- J.M.

6. Las Perdices Malbec 2007, Score=2

Color is dark without any purple or blue hue. Nose has dirty sock, sardine mixed with "dried" poop (quoting Uncle-E's comment). Palate starts with mixed fruit with sweetness leading to mild tannin. Rather simple wine but pleasant enough. California Merlot was mentioned but most of us are not paying close attention at this point. This is Malbec from Argentina. !00% Malbec from Mendosa valley, Argentina.