Posts Tagged red wine

Located in St. Helena, a small winery from Napa that produces Cabernet, Chardonnay and Petit Sirah. This 2006 has a sleek look and is packaged well. I’d bought two of these at about 17 dollars a bottle. It appears this is selling for around 25 at various locations now. The first bottle of this was very good but I’d waited about a year before trying the second. Here are some notes on that tasting and my impressions:

On opening, the classic Napa nose. I didn’t decant this one, just popped and poured. There’s the blueberry and cherry notes, with oak and bell pepper and smoke. The tannins are fairly integrated at this point and there’s not a ton of grip in the flavor, in a good way. It takes about 30 minutes or so for it to smooth out and then there’s just rich chocolate covered cherries and cab goodness. Towards the end of the bottle, it has still a good bit of acidity and structure. There’s blue and black fruits followed by bell pepper and mushroom. Overall, a very nice wine. Of course the price made this even better but overall for $25 I’d say this comes in around a 90pt wine.

Rating: 90pts

Mockingbird Hill Wine
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When the weather starts to get cold, I turn to the red wines, and I seem to always turn back to the Rhone valley. I can always depend on these wines to be hearty, meaty, and maybe in cases a little austere. They tend to be the perfect balance between drinkability and serious reflection. I find myself turning to these wines at the end of the week when I want to unwind from everything and slip into the weekend. Here’s a few options if you’re looking to do the same.

2005 Domaine Grand Veneur Cotes du Rhone Les Champauvins

This wine had some huge fruit and a ton of tannins. Though I drank this right away, the wine took around 2 hours to really open up. The nose was full of bosanberry, lavender and black licorice. The flavors included kirsch, bacon fat, and leather. There were also notes of earth and a game-y quality. The intensity of the wine continued right until the end of the bottle. Priced around $17.

Rating: 92pts

2005 Domaine Le Colombier Vieilles Vignes Vacqueyras

This wine had a very pretty nose of floral and earthy components. The color was at first thin, however with a little bit of air, the wine turned a more violet hue and seems to thicken. A mostly Grenache base, this wine was smooth and subtle on the front of the palate, mixing in a little bit of spice and licorice. The end was a little rustic and earthy, showing a bit of dirt and tar at back of the throat. I quiet enjoyed the cherries and dark chocolate flavors. Nice floral component as well – a little lavender I believe, cut with some mustard greens. Priced around $17.

Rating: 92 pts

2005 Domaine Presidente Cairanne Cotes Du Rhone Villages

This was a wonderful wine from a great vintage. As my first taste of the 2005 vintage, it didn’t disappoint. There was a lot of fresh fruit, with nice cranberry and raspberries notes. There was also the classic licorice and lavender flavors mixed into earthy mushroom and bacon fat. Overall, this was a very enjoyable wine with good body and nice finish. It was also a good value, priced around $13.

Rating: 91pts

Oregon Pinot has to be one of my favorite wine regions. Their pinot tends to be a nice middle-ground between the richer, bolder California wines and the austere French version. They tend to capture both the power and grace, along with the rich flavor complexities. There also tends to be more structure to the wines allowing them to really open up in the glass and expand. Here are some tasting notes on these Oregon beauties.

2004 Ransom Pinot Noir

Not as full bodied as say the Patty Green wines, but still a very rich and mouthfilling wine that delivers the goods. Lots of strawberry and raspberry flavors backed by mushrooms and earthy complexity. Good medium body, and well integrated tannins. Decent finish though a little short. Overall, this wine drinks remarkably well. Priced Around $27.

Rating: 91 pts

2006 Ken Wright Cellars Shea Vineyards Pinot Noir

This was a massive pinot. Priced around $40, it was the perfect blend of New and Old World styles. After decanting for about an hour, the nose really blossomed into a mix of strawberries, wild mushrooms, and black tea spices. The tannins were huge in this wine, probably the most pronounced I’ve ever had for a Pinot. There was a distinct earthy quality to the wine that allowed the flavors to just linger on the tongue. While I admit, it was probably a little soon to try this wine based on the underlying acidity, I can’t say I was disappointed by any means. A great wine!

Rating: 94pts

2005 Witness Tree Vineyards Pinot Noir

This wine has beautiful perfumes of lavenders and lilacs. There are also some strawberry notes on the nose as well. This wine has a medium-bodied, velvety texture, though it drives through with a ton of acidity. The finish is long and elegant. There are very earthy elements in this wine. Mushrooms, dried cherries and strawberry-flavored dirt seem to be sprinkled in. This is a fantastic wine, especially for the price point of around $30. From the Willamette Valley, it’s a great cross between the California fruit-bombs and the funky, Burgundy pinot noirs.

Rating: 93pts

2006 Chateau Bianca Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Oregon

This wine started off with a nice fragrant nose, containing hints of flowers and mulling spices. The flavor started off tasting like cola and cotton candy. There was a sense that this wine was almost over-processed. However over time, the cola sweetness faded away, and the wine found a more earthy nature along with a richer body. It never became a serious wine, but for the price of around $15, it delivered a solid Oregon Pinot experience.

Rating: 88pts

2006 Patricia Green Cellars Eason Vineyard Pinot Noir

This Oregon wine started initially with a light bright red color, however within an hour it darkens significantly. The nose was a bouquet of cranberries and fall spices. The initial taste was full of cranberries and apples, along with a hint of oak and tobacco underneath. Within about an hour however, that taste expanded and the fruit forward wine gave way to an earthy mix of mushrooms and exotic spices. The wine possessed notes of nutmeg and cinnamon, along with star anise and tea leaves. The finish was long and luscious. This was an extremely well made wine.

Rating: 94pts

Australia does a number of things right. One of those things just happens to be wine, which makes me happy. They also tend to produce quality wine at a good price which makes my wife happy when balancing the checkbook. Shiraz has been the wine of choice for Aussie producers to stamp there mark upon. Based on the reviews below, I think they’ve definitely done a great job with that.
2005 Marquis Philips Sarah’s Blend

At $12, this blend of Shiraz, Cab and Merlot was nothing fancy.  But it did not really try to be either.  It was a very fruit-forward wine, with integrated tannins and a nice smooth finish.  Good chocolate and raspberry flavors persist through a finish that lingered just long enough.  If you enjoy a ton of fruity flavor in your wine, this is a great wine for you. Overall, it is a nice bargain.

Rating: 90
2004 Innocent Bystander Shiraz/Viognier

This was a very well-made wine. This blend reminded me more of a California Syrah I’ve had recently in that it wasn’t the big monster wine that most Australian Shiraz tends to be. Instead the wine had notes of mushrooms and lavender, along with mocha and hints of tobacco. The body was smooth and round on the palate and the finish was also very nice. I would say this wine tended more towards the French style of syrah. It was a solid wine and great value for the price of $15.

Rating: 91pts
2004 Aramis Black Label Shiraz

The nose was full of blueberries and raspberries with hints of Asian spices and white pepper too. The taste was big and rich – a fairly full-bodied wine, that starts off a little tight, but within an hour is nice and lush. There’s a lot of good fruit here too. There was some tannins in the wine but they were already integrated well into the mid-plate. Flavor components include those same raspberries along with some chocolate and tobacco notes. The finish was medium length, and very smooth. Overall this wine was very enjoyable. Priced around $20

Rating: 92 pts

2004 Kilikanoon Shiraz Parable

This was a big meaty wine with a spicy nose and lots blue and blackberry flavors. My first taste was overwhelmed with oak and earthiness. There were huge tannins. Even after 3 hours, they are still big and vibrant. The wine possessed flavors of chocolate cake and raspberries, followed by earth and tobacco. By the 3rd hour, the wine had sweet fruit, big tannins and earthy tar, along with tremendous grip. There were notes of tobacco and leather mixed with green bell pepper and spice box.

Rating: 94pts

Below are some notes on various Italian wines I’ve had over the years. There’s no particular order here, but hopefully you’ll find something you like.

2004 Renzo Masi Chianti Riserva

This was nice little chianti I found, priced around $14 dollars. While it might have been a little more new world in style, it was a wonderfully simple and all-together enjoyable wine. Made in a richer style, with bigger fruit, the wine had a dark color, and a floral nose. The taste was full of earth, cherries, and lavender. There was a good backbone of acidity running through the wine and the tannins were fairly noticeable. Contrasting with the dryness however was a ton of big fruit giving this wine a huge presence. Overall I crowd-pleaser.

Rating: 90pt

1998 Le Presi Brunello Di Montalcino

I had this out in San Francisco at our favorite Italian restaurant, Venticello. A really nice wine with great floral aspects of lavender and strawberries. This was a medium bodied wine, brick colored. The nose was amazing! Dried cherry and strawberry flavors on the tongue along with a rich, earthy flavor of mushroom and roasted game. The wine went great with my roasted lamb meal and gorgonzola gnocchi.

Rating: 92pts

2003 Le Macchiole Rosso

This was a wonderful wine. Priced around $25, this wine had the classic Tuscan nose; lots of strawberries and mushrooms, followed by some white pepper and dried cherries.  It reminded me of a Brunello, with its nicely integrated tannins and earthy flavors.  It went perfectly with the lamb Osso Bucco I was eating at the time.  Even after dinner, it was the perfect Italian wine to linger with at the table.  It was not too tannic that it overpowered.  The beautiful acidity it possessed kept the flavors lively, and the finish long and lush.

Rating: 93

1999 Villa Caffagio San Martino ITG

Made from 100% Sangiovese, this was a wonderful wine we picked up while traveling through Tuscany. It had a plum red color and a slight orange hue around the edge of the glass. The nose was full of sandalwood, Asian spice, and crushed cherries. This medium-bodied wine was long and rich, though not overpowering by any means. The tannins were nicely integrated, creating a soft mid-plate. The finish was smooth and the flavors of earth and mushrooms slightly lingered on the tongue. I let this wine decant for about 1 hour prior to drinking; however I doubt it needed that much time. This wine is definitely recommended if you can find it.

Rating: 93 pts

2004 Altesino Rosso Di Altesino Montalcino Tuscany

This wine was a medium bodied, brick-red colored wine. At the beginning, it started tight and acidic , but the earthy flavors eventually came through.  The wine opened up within an hour, becoming softer and more approachable. The tobacco and dried cherry flavors dominated the mid-palate. This was a nice wine for the price ($12).

Rating: 89 pts

2003 Podere Il Pozzo Chianti Ruffina Reserva

This wine was a well-made Chianti with earthy, rich and classic in its flavor. Cherry brick colored. The wine definitely softened a bit as it opened up. Initially, it had some firm tannin that melted away and exposed a dark oak core. The wine possessed a classic style and texture for Chianti. Priced around $17.

Rating: 85pts

2004 Toscolo Chianti Classico

This was a solid Chianti wine with good depth and cherry notes, full of good acidity and earthiness. There was good balance between the fruit and the earthiness, though it was a little heavy without food. With a little air, it boasted sweeter fruit and a dried cherry core. It is a decent everyday Chianti priced around $15.

Rating: 89pts

2003 Villa Dante Tuscan ITG

The rich fruit can’t hide the fact that this wine was over-oaked and had a little too much meaty earthiness to the wine. It also seems to lack a good finish to the wine, remaining a bit hard and rustic even with proper decanting. The flavors found included mushroom, meat, earth and tobacco. Also with a little air, the flavors, while softened, also looses a bit of the bounce the fruit provided. Priced around $10.

Rating: 85pts

1999 Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino

This wine took about 3 hours to open up. It started very hard and tight. It reminded me more of a Chianti at first. There was still a lot of acidity to the wine which means it would probably be good for a number of years to come. Once it opened up however, the rich fruit and also the big chewy tannins really started to show. Big dark plums and cherries dominated the palate, and the flavors resembled more of a merlot-type grape with chocolate and mushrooms. The taste was a little one-dimensional however to rate it this wine too high. I would have to say good but not great given the price, around $50.

Rating: 90pts