Friday Night Tastings, May 13, 2010

It is Friday the 13th, so we decided to do something superstitious and so paid a visit to a local DC wine bar, the VINOTECA, at 1940 11th Street NW. It turned out to be a very pleasant, popular spot. The wine list looked good, the service and the tapas-style food were very good as well. We started off with a a flight, called "Cab Ride". This included the following:
1.Ridge, 2007, Santa Cruz, CA.- good, spicy, ripe fruit but a bit acidic to our taste. Had the smokey feel which often is the characteristic of this winery. A 2.5.
2. Charles Smith, Chateau Smith, Columbia Valley, Washington state. An ok wine, not overwhelming. A bit "grapey" finish. A 2.0.
3. Longview, "Devil's Elbow", Adelaide Hills, Australia. The best of the three, this is a very nice cab from Australia. Muted fruit huge body, long tobacco finish. A 3.0.
We had several small dishes, such as crab cake, manchego and goat cheeses and lots of excellent olives. We had two additional and familiar wines (see below).
Since the bar was getting full at this point, we moved our operation into their delightful courtyard bar. The latter was very pleasant. We are told that on Sundays they have flamenco dancing, we will come back for that.

Shafer, Hillside Select, 2006

Uncle P decided to go for this wine, which is everyone's favorite. Superb, we will not try to describe it since we have reviewed this wine before. Most other wines pale by comparison. Reasonably priced at the winebar. An easy 4.75.

Penfold's Shiraz, St Henri 2005

This wine is considered a cult wine. Very dark, smooth, but with some arrogance-this is not a very shiraz-like wine. In fact it can pass for a cab. Very nice and reasonably priced. We thought a 3. It was unfortunate that it came after the Shafer.

Peter Michael, Les Pavots, 2002

>
Uncle P's generous contribution, Les Pavots 2002, is a true Bordeaux style California cab. Mature, not fruit forward, long finish. We had this wine before, a definite 4-4.5.

El Nido, 2003

We have had El Nido several times before. Chris Ringland, the winemaker, did not disappoint with this cabernet-monastrell meritage. This was the last bottle we tasted tonight, a 4.

FRIDAY NIGHT TASTINGS, APRIL 22, 2011

We reviewed 7 wines tonight; a new guest, Uncle CD, joined us for the event. This first bottle had a great nose, with dark chocolate, plum tastes. Very merlot-like, with a slight acidic undertone. A bit short finish. Uncle P thought that it was a cab-merlot meritage. A nice wine, it was a cab from Flora Springs, a Napa winery. R. Parker gave it 89 points, we gave 2.75

Seavey, 2003

This wine was opened the day before and was not covered. Seavey is an excellent wine, dark, rich, with vanilla, tobacco and raspberry flavors. Probably the best tonight, (next to the Matriarch, of course). A 4.

Chanarmuyo, 2008

This wine was difficult to pinpoint. Good nose, with a citrus finish. Some did not like this wine. "Syrrupy" was one comment. It was a tannat wine from Argentina. A 2.5.

Corbieres, St Eugenie

This wine, from Corbieres (Languedoc-Rousillon), had an unremarkable nose and a pinot-like "citrussy" taste. It comes from the foothills of the Pyrenees. Here is a short description that i could find:"Domaine Sainte Eugénie is positioned within the district of Fontfroide, the sweet spot of Corbières, with an 800 year history of viticulture. The estate is located within the foothills of the Pyrénées along the Mediterranean coast. Clay and chalk soils dominate here. The dry weather, sunny and warm climate combine to create an optimal growing environment." The wine is quite pleasant. A 2.

Stuhlmuller Vineyards, 2008.

This wine had an interesting "fresh, dirty" nose, a nice deep purple color and a tannic or mellow taste-depending whom you asked. Most of us liked this wine, which kept on evolving in terms of taste. It was a a cab from a small family vineyard a few miles outside Healdsburg, in Sonoma. Pretty good, this vineyard is often featured on the wine lists of local restaurants. A 2.5.

Beau Vigne, 2007

One of the best wines tonight, this was a rich, fragrant wine. Complex, huge, with "wood dominates"- Uncle P; violets (Winepath) , strong tannins (Jimmy), "North American Cali-cab, or might be Spanish" (Uncle E). It was a California cab, Beau Vigne 2007, from Napa. Excellent , a 3.5.

The Matriarch, 2007

This bottle was opened for Uncle E, who missed tasting this wine last Friday. As good as ever, the Matriarch was as good as last week.

A curiosity

One of our Uncles, while visiting a Brasillian attractive beach resort, came upon this bottle. Although it is in a beer-bottle, the drink is probably a cachaca, not a beer, nor a wine. We did not open this bottle.

FRIDAY NIGHT TASTINGS, APRIL 15, 2011

Tonight we had a guest taster, young Uncle C, who turned out to have great instincts. We were privileged to taste four Bond 2007 wines in addition to a pleasant, approachable merlot. The latter, from St Clement in Napa, had a distinct cabernet nose, even though it was a merlot. A bit thin, but very drinkable, everyone liked this wine. A 2.75.

Matriarch 2007

The Matriarch, Bond's second label wine was the first of the Bond 2007 wines tasted tonight. Nose was that of the dust of the garden after a late spring downpour (ok, so maybe it was an early spring downpour). A pleasant over-ripe cherry and currant with a long finish. Nice, a 3.5.

Quella, 2007

The third one to be tasted tonight, this wine had a rich, velvety taste. Very much a Bordeaux-style wine, with plenty of dark fruit, charcoal, vanilla and black pepper. An easy 4.75. Robert Parker's score was 97.

Pluribus 2007

This wine had a fabulous "dusty" nose. Aromas of lilac, apple blossom and plumeria with a very long finish. Superb, a 4.5. Robert Parker gave this wine 98+ points.

Vecina 2007

We left the best for last. Vecina 2007. Dark and robust, tremendously satisfying wine. Perhaps the higher the elevation, the more these grapes express themselves. After the previous three Bonds, it is hard to decide, but this wine was truly the best. An easy 5 for us. RB gave it 100 points.

FRIDAY NIGHT TASTINGS, FEBRUARY 25, 2011

OBSIDIAN RIDGE Cabernet Sauvignon, 2007, a 3. This is an interesting wine from the southern shores of Clear Lake region, just north of Napa Valley. The grapes are from the 2640 feet elevation in the Red Hills of the Mayacamas. Dark red, almost obsidian black, this wine has a surprisingly non-cab taste, more merlot-like with strawberry and tropical fruit and whipped cream impressions. Very soft, very easy to drink. The Lake County has some hidden treasures, with interesting, very reasonably-priced cabs.

RUSTON Cabernet Sauvignon., Napa 2004, a definite 3+. This vineyard is a personal favorite, it produces consistently mature and interesting wines. They will not release wines before their time, but the patience definitely pays off. This cabernet has a long finish with an impressive ability to stimulate old memories you never knew you had. Or you have long forgotten. I would say it reminds me of English boxwood on a cold rainy evening in the fall.