Wine tasting after the snow storms on 2-12-2010

What a week. All of us struggled with the largest back-to-back snow storms (or snow storm if you combine the two into one) in 120 some years. Everybody here pulled through with dedication, perseverance and team work. We just decided to have another small tasing just to unwind. Present were Uncle-N, Jimmy and Winepath. We had three wines and we just enjoyed them without covering the bottles. Only problem we had this evening was after the tasting. It took a long time to get home because of the traffic jams everywhere despite the fact it was much later than the usual rush hour. Despite tremendous work by the snow plowing crews, streets narrowed by snow banks and disappearing right lanes as you approach intersections just could not take the volume of cars.

1. John Duval Entity Barossa valley Shiraz 2006

Color is nice dark garnet. Nose has herbs, and faint cracked black pepper. Palate is loaded with fruit, black fruit, raspberry laced with coffee and chocolate leading to firm but nicely integrated tannin with a long citrus finish. Definitely New World but this one tasted more like California Syrha than Aussie shiraz.

96 points by James Halliday, winecompanion.com.au (Feb 08)

"John Duval Wines Entity Barossa Valley Shiraz 2006  

Saturated crimson-purple; has achieved the density of fruit to guarantee a 30-year life without the least hint of overripe fruit or alcohol heat; perfect balance and integration of fruit, oak and tannins; the work of a master."

94 points by  Jay Miller, Wine Advocate # 181 (Feb 2009)

"The 2006 Entity is a 100% Shiraz cuvee exhibiting a bit more restraint than the Plexus. It presents an aromatic array of smoke, pepper, Asian spices, tar, blueberry, and blackberry liqueur. On the palate it is full-bodied, smooth-textured, deep, and intensely flavored but not over the top. Its impeccable balance should permit 5-7 years of additional cellaring and it should offer prime drinking from 2014 to 2028. It, too, is a superb value. John Duval was the principal winemaker at Penfolds Grange from 1986 to 2002."

93 Points By Josh Raynolds of Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 08 

"Inky ruby. Pungent dark berry and candied cherry aromas are complicated by smoked meat, licorice and Asian spices. Powerful and deep in dark berry flavors, but almost shockingly lithe and precise, displaying fresh raspberry and blueberry on the back. An undercurrent of juicy acidity contributes lift and precision, and helps to extend the finish. This terrific shiraz offers a deft balance of finesse and depth, not to mention impressive finishing clarity and cut."

By johnduvalwines.com

"VARIETY: Shiraz: Sourced from old vineyards in the Krondorf, Stockwell, Light Pass and Marananga regions of the Barossa Valley

WINEMAKING: Fermentation with submerged cap in both traditional old open tanks and small stainless steel fermenters

OAK MATURATION: 100% barrel maturation for 18 months with 30% new fine grain French oak and the balance; 2, 3 and 4 year-old French and American oak hogsheads (300 1itres). Some batches finished fermentation in new barrels

STYLE:

My aim with Entity is to produce a wine true to the Barossa Valley, variety, and vintage. 2006 was a very good follow on from the excellent 2005 vintage. Good winter and spring rains and favourable conditions for flowering and fruit set resulted in good crops. Mild to warm conditions over summer and rain towards the end of February resulted in rapid maturation and an early start to vintage in the first week of March. Shiraz was all but finished by the end of March producing wines with rich flavour intensity and well balanced structure. The more subtle French oak was chosen to compliment the ripe blackberry, blueberry fruit. Traditional, low intervention winemaking techniques were employed with Entity, allowing the wine to be approachable in its youth but with ample structure and fruit depth to allow great potential for improvement in the bottle, under good cellaring conditions, for at least 10 years."

2. Worthy Sophia's Cuvee 2006

Color is dark but some brown tinge. Nose has earthy mushroom notes. Palate is restrained and reminded of us of Bordeaux with mostly black fruit leading to firm tannin. Earlier vintages of Worthy have been our favorite. As compared to the Duval Shiraz, it is quite a contrast but it is a rather classic Bordeaux style california red.

89 points by RP and 76 points by Wine Spectator. We certainly agree with 89 points of RP.

From the winemaker:

"77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Dense and purple, with tiers of earthy currant, blackberry liqueur, plum, cassis and violet flavors framed by ample tannins and sweet oak. A blend of declassified lots from Napa cult wines."

 3. Havens Wine Cellars 'H' by Havens Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

Color is nicely dark purple. Nose has musty note with oak and cedar. Palate has a nice upfront black fruit with chocolate and coffee ending in nice firm tannin. It has a bit of acidic kick. Palate is better than the nose. Recently we tasted quite a few wines from Havens. This one is rather inexpensive among the Havens wines but this one is from Napa rather than North Coast. Varietals: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Syrah, 11% Merlot; Appellation: Napa Valley; Alcohol: 14.5%.

The Story:

"Havens winery was one of Napa’s famed wineries and as many of you know was purchased by a larger holding Company called Billington Imports in 2006 which recently went bankrupt and all the inventory was then directed to be sold off by a liquidator on behalf of PNC Bank."

91 points by Jonathan H. Newman*

"The H by Havens 06 Napa Cabernet  includes small portions of Merlot and Syrah that create a very pleasant drinking wine and a pretty amazing value buy. A deep purple color.  Aromas of dark raspberries, plum, and blackberries that give you a sense that this wine will be well integrated. Plenty of nice fruit including black cherries, dark chocolate and blackberries with just touches of pepper and spice. A nice mouth feel with good acidity and a pleasant finish. This Cabernet is fairly full bodied, but the key is the tannins are not tight and dense so the wine does not need time and it is the perfect wine to pop, pour and enjoy now and over the next couple years. It should pair nicely with a wide range of foods including flank steaks, London broil, burgers, pizza with sausage, or pot roast."

Wine tasting on Feb 4, 2010

Because Piroca is taking off Friday and the threat of a big snow storm is on the horizon, we had a small tasting on Thursday instead of Friday. Present were Piroca, Winepath, Jimmy and Uncle-N. We tasted three wines. The first one was not covered since it is Bordeaux and Piroca has talked about this wine after his having this in a restaurant. The remaining two were blind tasted.

1. Calon Segur St. Estephe 2005, Score=3

This is the one Piroca had in a restaurant recently as per the recommendation of the sommelier and he liked it very much. He did manage to get one bottle and offered it tonight to be tasted. Amazingly, he paid less at the restaurant for this wine. Color is nice dark garnet. Nose shows no funk with cedar and toasted oak. Very good start for a Bordeaux. Palate is somewhat restrained but nice black fruit is coming through leading to big and firm tannin. Good long finish. For us New World wine lovers, it is still on a bit austere side but we can see that this will go very well with food especially a nice steak. The big tannin will be much more palatable with food. Reminded us of Ch Pavie. Solid 3.

95 points RP

"This great St.-Estephe estate has turned out a succession of brilliant wines. The 2005, a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot, has put on weight over the last year. An opaque ruby/purple hue is accompanied by a sweet nose of earth, smoke, cassis, and cherries as well as a textured, full-bodied mouthfeel. While the tannin is high, there is beautifully sweet fruit underlying the wine’s structure. It will require 8-10 years of cellaring after release, and should drink well for three decades. -Wine Advocate"

92-94 -Wine Spectator
"Dark-colored, with beautiful aromas of chocolate, spices and violets. Full-bodied, with superfine tannins and a long, long finish. Fresh and refined. A beauty. This is such a pleasure to taste. "

90-93 points -Stephen Tanzer
"(60% cabernet sauvignon and 40% merlot) Bright ruby. Precise aromas of black cherry, leather and flowers. Then densely packed and a bit tight in the middle. Lively and powerful, if a bit less pliant than the unusually fleshy 2003 was at the same stage. Finishes long, with mounting, dusty tannins. A very solid, chewy wine that should require a good seven or eight years of bottle aging and last for upwards of 20 years."

2. Burgess Cabernet Sauvignon 1995, Library release, Score=2+

Color has a brownish hue indicating its age. Nose has incense with some oaky note. Palate is muted with some black fruit leading to firm but integrated tannin with some noticeable acidity. We are not a fan of old wines and this was not one of our favorites tonight. Italian or French and Cali cab were suggested. This is a 1995 Burgess. Earlier days of our wine tasting, Burgess cab was one of our favorites. We can not remember which vintages but probably 2000-2. Compared to these more youthful wines (at the time we tasted them), this one lost some of fruit. This wine, however, got much better after some aeration showing more subtle nuances. Burgess was featured in the New York Times article about the wine cellaring and aging. This wine was cellared at Burgess and released recently as a library release. We wonder if the initial wine had enough structure to allow 15 years of aging.

93 Points - Jonathan Newman

"...This is a wine I know very well having first sampled this wine almost 7 years ago. It is considered one of Tom Burgess’ most storied Cabernet vintages.  The concept from Burgess  Cellars is that they would library a small amount of their original vintage and re-release it at least 10 years after its initial distribution so American consumers could enjoy their top wines with nice bottle age. Few wineries have adopted this practice because of the cost of cellaring wine for a decade.
...most importantly this wine does not disappoint as it is that rare wine from a special vintage, kept in perfect temperature control at the Cellars, and shows that good Napa wines age gracefully and that bottle age can bring many unique enjoyable qualities.
1995 was also considered to be a very solid vintage as most critics rated the overall vintage a 95 rating.
 On the palate, the wine shows its elegance with bright, sweet well integrated tannins that are smooth and round. Still solid backbone and on the palate holds its focus with  black raspberry, polished black cherry and touches of spicy oak and tobacco leaf. Enjoy this wine now and for several more years. It will be an enjoyable wine to pair with lean red meat, baby back ribs, roasted chicken, and lightly blackened fish...." (J.N.)

3. Juslyn Cabernet Sauvignon 2001, Score=2+~(3)

Color is dark garnet with a brown tinge, again, indicative of some age. Nose is a bit assertive with chemical and rubber tire note---not most pleasant nose. Palate is much better with nice fruit upfront including, in addition to usual black fruit, figs and prunes, with some smoky note laced with vanilla leading to well-integrated tannin. Among the three we tasted tonight, the palate is most fruit-laden. Our conclusions is that this is California Cab or cab blend. This turned out to be 2001 Juslyn. We have tasted 03 and 04 in the past. On both vintages, we mentioned about not-so-pleasant nose, so this must be common in all Juslyn cabs. This is what we said for 03 "The nose is very intense with sulfa or chemical smell and some minerality. Cruciferous (cabbage) vegetable nose was also noted. Some of us thought the nose is not pleasant. The taste is better than nose but again, heavy in oak with black cherry. It is rather Bordeaux-like. Nice tannin and long finish. This is a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot."

90 points, RP (Feb 2005)
"The 2001 Proprietary Red (which will be called Perry’s Blend beginning in 2002) comes from the Dr. Crane, To-Kalon, and George III vineyards. A blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 44% Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Franc, it is performing better from bottle than it did from barrel. Its dark ruby/purple color is followed by a fragrant nose of blueberries, black currants, vanilla, and crushed rocks. Medium to full-bodied and elegant, with attractive layers of fruit, this beauty can be drunk young or cellared for 10-12 years"