Wine tasting on November 20, 2009

Present were Winepath, Uncle-N, Jimmy and a guest appearance of Uncle-OZ. Piroca had another engagement and Uncle-E was again MIA. We had a special tasting of Chateau Winepath Grand Vin Cabernet Sauvignon 2008. Then, we blind tasted 4 wines. All 4 were quite decent.

1. Chateau Winepath Grand Vin Cabernet Sauvignon 2008, No score given

This is the formal debut of Winepath's Grand Vin 08 which was just bottled last week. Since it is too young to be evaluated properly, we will postpone scoring his wine. Color is nice dark garnet without turbidity (the best color so far of all Chateau Winepath vintages).  Nose, well, nose is a bit of a problem. It has a bit of turpentine or lacquer or solvent-like note. Since this nose was much stronger at the barrel tasting, this may dissipate further (let's hope). Palate is more classic Brodeaux-like with muted black fruit leading to nice moderate tannin and good long finish. Another problem may be that there is an acidic edge which makes this wine tasting a bit unbalanced.

We are very impressed that Winepath single handedly created quite a wine. Winepath himself could add more comments (he did, see below) here. Let us try his wine, may be one year or so later and see how it will develop.

Winemaker's notes: The Cabernet sauvignon grapes were from California's Central Valley and Napa Valley. Fresh grapes were stemmed by hand, crushed and cold-soaked for 36 hours prior to fermentation, which lasted six days at an average of 69 degrees F. The heavy cap was broken by hand twice a day during fermentation. When the Brix sank to 0 (starting at 24.5) the juice was pressed using an Italian vertical bladder press. The wine was aged in a new small 7.9 gallon French oak barrel for 13 months before bottling. The estimated alcohol content was 14%.

We thought Winepath should send his grand vin to RP since he lives rather close. If he gave this wine a high score his wines could become another cult wine.

2. Saggi 2007, Score=2+~3

Color is nice dark garnet with bluish tinge. Nose is pleasant with some meat and herbs, particularly sumac (like Merguez sausage as per Winepath). Palate is bit subdued with mixed black fruit with some blueberry taste leading to nice well-crafted tannin. Some felt this was too acidic others felt the acidity was well balanced. It has a nice long finish. Spanish (Tempranillo), California red blend with Merlot and P. Verdot (because of blue color) and Argentinian Malbec (may be because of blue color and sumac/lemony nose?) were suggested. We have tasted the 2004 vintage of this wine "Saggi". This is an interesting wine from Washington state, Columbia Valley. The Vineyard is called "Long Shadow" and several different wine makers from outside make different style wines. This one, Saggi, (I was told that "saggi" means "wise or wisdom" in Italian) is a North American version of a Super Tuscan. The wine makers are Ambrogio and Giovanni Folonari. Here is some info from the Long Shadow Vineyard web site.

"The Folonaris are among Italy’s oldest and most prestigious Tuscan wine families with a winemaking history dating back to the late 1700s.
Tasting Notes: Fresh, bright fruit combines with delicate notes of ripe, wild strawberry and well-integrated wood spice. A slight earthiness enhances the wine’s complexity and flavor. Silky in texture with a lengthy finish."

Vintage: "The Columbia Valley experienced an unusual heat wave in the spring of 2007 just before bloom that resulted in smaller-than-average berries, adding concentration and flavor to the grapes. Good set after bloom, ideal summer conditions and a mild September marked by warm days and cool nights allowed the grapes to ripen slowly and evenly, resulting in wines distinctive for their excellent natural acidity and deep, intense flavor."

Winemaking: "Hand-picked grapes were fermented in two-ton tanks, with particular care given to the Sangiovese, a delicate grape that requires gentle handling to avoid green character. To add richness on the mid-palate, the Folonaris extended Sangiovese maceration on the skins for 25 - 35 days. The wine was aged 18 months in 55% new French oak barrels, with the used barrels selected to enhance the wine’s fruit character and allow the Sangiovese to express itself.
Vineyards: Giovanni Folonari is a frequent visitor to the Columbia Valley and has quickly found the vineyards that allow him to craft a wine that combines Columbia Valley terroir with Tuscan style. Relying on vineyards that have been the primary source of this wine in previous vintages, Giovanni selected Sangiovese predominately grown in the Horse Heaven Hills for its balance and bright fruit character. Horse Heaven Cabernet Sauvignon, from Alder Ridge Vineyard and The Benches, adds complexity and earthiness. Yakima Valley Syrah contributes to the wine’s balance and freshness."

Alcohol: 14.6% pH: 3.75 TA: 0.58 grams / 100ml Blend: 43% Sangiovese 36% Cabernet Sauvignon 21% Syrah Release date: October 2009 Production: 2,145 cases

3. Tait "The ball buster" red 2007, Score=3+

This one came in with a screw top bottle. Color is dark with slight brownish hue. Nose is good and pleasant. Palate is very fruit forward with plum and black fruit  leading to nice well-integrated tannin. Finish is a bit short. Everybody liked this wine and the consensus was Cali Cab. This is "the ball buster" from Barossa, a mixture of Shiraz, Cab, and Merlot. We had the 05 vintage before and gave score=3. High PQR.

92 points from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "The Ball Buster blend has been an annual Best Buy and, even at the current asking price, the 2007 The Ball Buster is an awesome value (at least for hedonists). It is composed of 72% Shiraz, 17% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 11% Merlot aged for 12 months in seasoned French and American oak. Opaque purple-colored, it has a nose of cedar, leather, spice box, and blueberry that leaps from the glass. This is followed by a plush, full-bodied wine with gobs of flavor and superior length. This easy-to-understand effort defines the meaning of over-delivering and will do so for another four years."

90 Points from International Wine Cellar: "Ruby-red. Spicy red and dark berry aromas are deepened by licorice and pungent herbs. Sharply focused raspberry and cassis flavors are firmed by fine-grained tannins and gain sweetness with air. Nothing outsized here-I can't help but notice that the name doesn't really fit. Finishes with very good energy."

Winemaker's note: "The grapes that make up the Ball Buster blend are sourced from different vineyard locations throughout the Barossa. Vineyard sites are chosen to ensure that the resultant fruit is intense and that cropping levels do not exceed 3.5 tones an acre; typically these are clay soils on the fringes of the Barossa. Each vineyard site is visited twice a week during the maturing season to ensure that the fruit is maturing slowly and that water is only applied when necessary. Picking is only done when the grapes are physiologically ripe. The age of the vineyards that make up the 2007. All grapes are picked when physiologically ripe to obtain peak ripeness in terms of sugar and flavor. The grapes are de-stemmed into open fermenters, pH is adjusted and fermentation takes place over 7-10 days at a temperature of approx 24 degrees centigrade. Plunging and or pumping over takes place 3 times a day. The wine is then pressed using a Basket Press. Juice is then transferred to tank or Barrel to undergo Malo-lactic fermentation. Each batch is kept separate to determine on a year by year basis the quality of the fruit from that vineyard. All wine is racked and returned to barrel 2 to 3 times during the 12 moth period to ensure a clean wine that does not need any fining or filtration."

4. Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon 2005, Score=2+~3

Color is nicely dark. Nose has slight funk or earthiness but not unpleasant. Palate shows upfront well-controlled or a bit muted black fruit but well layered and ending in nice firm tannin. Good lasting finish. Consensus was California cab either Napa or Sonoma.

93 points from the Wine News: "Violet hue. Pretty nose with tobacco, leather and plum scents. Nice blend of black fruit and graphite have the great backing of cedar-laced tannins. Tart, drying notes on the finish with hints of maple and focused tannins." (Oct/Nov 2008)

91 points Stephen Tanzers International Wine Cellar: "Medium ruby-red. Currant, tobacco and menthol on the nose: classic Oakville cabernet. Then broad, lush and sweet, with very ripe flavors of plum, currant, chocolate and tobacco nicely lifted by minerality. Finishes broad, with huge but ripe tannins and noteworthy length. I find this fresher and less extreme than the Stag's Leap bottling."

90 from WaS and 91 from WE.

winemaker's notes: "This Cabernet Sauvignon has deep, expressive aromas and flavors of berry and black currant with nuances of mocha, violets and spice. The fruit envelops an elegant structure with firm, velvety tannins and excellent length. The wine's personality comes from the soils and climates of vineyards located in the geographic center of Napa Valley. Fermentation with both native and cultured yeast strains gives layers of nuance to the wine, and extended skin contact intensifies varietal complexity and softens tannins. The wine was aged in French oak château barrels and bottled it without filtration to capture the full flavor profile and lush texture."

5. Red dust Shiraz 2007, score=3

Color is dark brown with a pleasant nose. Palate is loaded with fruit, somewhat sugarfied but not bad, ending in mild tannin with rosemary, herb finish. All of us liked this wine. This turned out to be "Reddust" Shiraz from Australia. It has a very high PQR since I can find it from $9-13 on the Internet.

More information from Wine legacy web site:

"Distinctive Australian terroir produces distinctive Australian wines! As you’ve just learned, it’s taken the Australians a few decades, but little by little they’re zeroing in on the regions with the best terroirs. They didn’t have to look very far to come up with the name of this wine! This type of red earth is found only in some regions of Australia.

The striking image below gives you a pretty clear idea of just what the soil looks like. The color comes from iron oxides and it’s claimed to produce wines that are more refined and elegant.

A taste of Red Dust Shiraz will prove that fact to you. While the grapes benefit from the same warm, sunny climate of the Adelaide Hills that allows them to achieve perfect ripeness, they don’t get the overripe, jammy flavors that characterize Shiraz from some other regions in Australia.

The other secret to producing a wine with more elegance is the judicious use of oak. In the early days of New World winemaking, a lot of people were, shall we say, overenthusiastic in their use of oak on both red and white wines. The result was out-of-balance, heavy, tannic wines. Thankfully most have become less heavy-handed and have learned how to use oak to complement the natural fruit flavors without overwhelming them. In Red Dust, the oak is apparent but it makes up just one component in the whole. The personality of the Shiraz shines through with the sweet, spicy character of the oak playing an important yet secondary supporting role. Discover a stylish and well-balanced wine, you won’t regret it! This wine has the potential to age for another year or two, but enjoy it when the fruit is still youthful. Any red meat would flatter this Shiraz or serve it with an herbed pilaf of wild rice and lentils."

Interesting article on wine tasting

We always said we are very bad in identifying varietal or origins of wines but at least we thought  we knew which wines we liked. Here is an interesting articles appeared in Wall Street Journal about scoring and tasting wines. Thought you may be interesting in reading it.

Wine tasting on November 13, 2009

Present were Winpeath, Jimmy, Piroca and Uncle-N. Uncle-E was MIA. We blind tasted interesting 5 wines.  One of them, we deemed not quite drinkable.

1. Costanti Brunello di Montalcino 2003, score=2+

Color is dark garnet but lighter than typical California cab and had slight brown tinge on the rim indicating some age. Nose is pleasant with toasted oak, cedar but no funk. Palate is bit muted upfront with black fruit ending in firm tannin with reasonable long finish. Some tasters felt that this wine has an acidic edge. Winepath was decisive that this is Bordeaux. Others said "not French" since no basement nose was present and felt that this was in New World Style. There were some differences of opinion; Piroca thought this wine was very thin and not drinkable. Others felt this is not in our favorite style but certainly quite drinkable. Unfortunately, our old world wine connoisseur, Uncle-E was absent.


93 points Antonio Galloni (Wine Advocate): "[$90/750ml list] Costanti’s 2003 Brunello di Montalcino is among the handful number of standouts in this vintage. The wine reveals lovely depth and purity. Fragrant aromatics meld seamlessly onto the palate, where layers of dark cherries, spices and toasted oak come to life in a very pretty expression of Sangiovese from Montalcino. There is plenty of volume and depth here to insure at least another decade of superb drinking. The 2003 Brunello saw malolactic fermentation in steel, after which it spent about 18 months in 350-liter French oak barrels followed by another roughly 18 months in 30-hectoliter Slavonian oak casks. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2018. (Apr 2008)" 

93 points Stephen Tanzer (International Wine Cellar): "Good bright, medium red. Complex nose offers redcurrant, dried flowers, leather and minerals. Velvety and pliant in texture, with a lovely restrained sweetness to the berry, spice and floral flavors. Wonderfully spherical, balanced wine with no hard edges. Offers an impression of volume without weight and spreads out subtly to saturate the palate. The tannins are sweet and fine. (Jul/Aug 2008)"

93 points Wine & Spirits: "Grown at the higher altitudes (up to 1,300 feet) of Costanti's estate to the east of the town of Montalcino, this wine expresses the vintage more quietly than the Calbello (recommended above). It feels lean and restrained when first poured, the notes of dried cherry and mint gently rubbing dark, umami tannins. It gains stature with air, those dark tannins reaching deeper to become savory and ferrous, the fruit brightening to show fresh strawberry and cherry. While tempting to drink now for its beauty, the wine should become more elegant in five to eight years. (Apr 2009)"
 

2. Mollydooker The Maitre d' Cabernet Sauvignon 2008, score=3


This wine dones a screw top which narrows down possible origins (mostly from Australia). Color is nicely dark. Nose is very pleasent with sweet fruits. Palate is loaded with fruit with a hint of sweetness (bit sugarfied or candied). Some of the description by our tateres includes "fig dipped in white chocolate". Mild well integrated tannin. After some deliberation, consensus was that this is Mollydooker and choices are between Maitre D' and Boxer. What the contrast from the prior wine.

I could not find the rating for 2008 vintage but 05, 06, 07 have been 91 and 92 by WA.

winemaker's notes:
"Powerful with an intensely varietal nose perfumed with violets, plums, cloves and a touch of menthol. Full-bodied and bursting with dark fruit, spice and herbs with a rich plum finish and fine dusty tannins. Simply stunning Cabernet.
Tasting Notes: "Mmmmm...delicious Cabernet characteristics of plums, blackcurrant, scorched earth and a touch of menthol on the edge. Hints of liquorice and spice make up the complex aroma profile. Plush fruits and sensual, silky tannins make this a Cabernet lovers delight. Layers of dark fruits, dark chocolate, spice box and perfect silky tannins. Superb depth and concentration as well as a super long finish puts the 2008 Maitre D’ into overdrive!"

3. Two hands somedays are diamonds Napa Cabernet 2006, score=2+~3

Color is nicely dark garnet with blue tinge. Nose is very pleasant with floral note. Palate is New World style with tons of fruits upfront leading to quite firm tannin. Good long finish. We like this one. The bule hue made some of us think of Malbec but consensus was well made California Cab.

This is from the two hands Napa valley. The main two hands winery is in south Australia. Althouhg I could not find the narratives, RP reportedly gave 88/100. We would have given at least 90.

Here is some info from their website.
"Our passion for the Napa Valley emanated from a visit to California in the 90’s by the two hands, Richard Mintz and Michael Twelftree. At the time, the two proprietors were keen to learn as much as possible about the region, its terroir and the well known ability to grow cabernet sauvignon in this semi-maritime environment north of San Francisco. Of course, they were also keen to acquire greater knowledge of the US wine market and its consumer’s insatiable appetite for high end wine, so they journeyed across the great cities and restaurants of the vast and dynamic country to check it out.

In these early days they met many influential wine people of the USA, one contact leading to another. They barrel tasted at some of the most renowned wineries and took tours and vineyard walks at Araujo, Shafer, Harlan, Beringer, Opus One, Lagier Meredith, Spottswoode, Dalle Valle... and the list goes on. At each visit, Michael and Richard absorbed like sponges the idiosyncratic nature of the people, the dirt and the way they made wine.

Years later, in a position to obtain great fruit from vineyards across a number of micro climates of the Napa Valley, followed by an opportunity to work with one of the valley’s more well known winemakers at a world class winery - Outpost, the temptation was far too great to ignore. Hence the birth of Two Hands Napa in 2005.

It is our aim to emulate the success of the Two Hands Wines Australian business by producing cutting edge cabernet sauvignon wines of extremely high quality from distinctive micro-climates of the Napa Valley."

4. Susana Balbo Brioso 2006, score=3

This one came in a body-builder bottle. Color is nicely dark. Nose has some minerals and (nice) sardine smell. This is in New World style with loads of upfront black fruit leading to good firm tannin, may be too tannic. Spanish, Cali cab, Argentinian wines were suggested. This turned out to be Susna Balbo red (predominantly cab) from Argentina.

92 Points, Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate, 2008
"The limited production (600 6-packs) 2006 Brioso is composed of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec, 8% Merlot, and 5% Petit Verdot. It was sourced from ungrafted vines with an average age of 27 years and aged for 14 months in 100% new French oak. Purple-colored, it has a fragrant nose of pain grille, mineral, earth notes, black currant, and blackberry liqueur. Surprisingly elegant for its size, on the palate it reveals notes of chocolate, tobacco, and leather in addition to layers of rich black fruits. It should evolve effortlessly for several years and be at its best from 2012 to 2026. Susana Balbo is one of Argentina's most respected as well as renowned winemakers."

90 Points, Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, 2009
"Bright red-ruby. Musky dark fruits, graphite, licorice, cedary oak and a whiff of earth on the nose. Dense and serious, with sweet currant, graphite and cedary oak flavors complicated by a saline soil character and a whiff of musky reduction. Dry, broad and lush on the back end; coats the palate without leaving behind any undue impression of weight. The ripe tannins build, suggesting that this should improve in bottle over the next several years."

Varietal Composition: 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec, 8% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot
Vineyard Location(s): Agrelo, Altamira, Alto Agrelo
Average Vineyard Elevation: 3300 feet
Average Age of Vines: 27 years
Oak Regimen: 14 months in 100% new French barriques
Alcohol: 14.5%
Case Production: 600

5. Fort Walla Walla Cellars Merlot 2001, score=1

This one was a bummer. Color is dark garnet without brown color but nose is awful with burned hair and rubber with sewer gas. Palate is much better with well controlled fruit and well-integrated tannin but we could not see how one can enjoy this wine with this pungent unpleasant nose. We thought ths is from South Africa or Argentina or Spain but we just can not belive this one came from North America. RP (eRoberparker) reportedly gave 88 in 2003. Something must have happened in the past 6 years to develop this nose.

Wine Maker’s Tasting Notes
"Fort Walla Walla Cellars 2001 Merlot is dark and rich in color. Aromas of blackberry; cedar and mocha; highlighted by warm, toasty new oak, add smoky nuances to the wine. Full bodied and ample, the flavors reveal an intense cherry fruit, with a tinge of sweet spiced chicory. Mild tannins give the wine a firm but rich finish adding immensely to its enjoyment. Enjoy over an evening in front of a fire with a wide range of options for the next course."