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Month in Wines: October 2014

November 9, 2014 1 comment

Ahh, the ever accelerating pace of the days, weeks and months flying by like a runaway train, as we are getting closer to the holidays… Another month becomes a history, and as usual, it is the time to summarize the wine experiences. Typically, this is not a very difficult task with may be 12 -15 wines which would be typically mentioned in this “month in wines” posts. It seems to be a challenging undertaking for October 2014, as it included a trip to Washington with 7 excellent wineries and lots of great wines. Well, I will do my best to control of size of this post and not to inundate my readers with repetitious details. Quick reminder: only the wines rated 8- or higher are included into this post (yes, with possible exceptions).

Let’s go:

2013 Mark Ryan Viognier Columbia Valley – Perfumy, bright, with crisp acidity and medium body. Delicious overall. 8

2012 Sparkman Cellars Enlightenment Chardonnay French Creek Vineyard Yakima Valley – Elegant, with a touch of the Chablis-like gunflint on the nose, and enough of butter, vanilla and substance to make it a soulful wine. 8

NV Ayala Champagne Brut Majeur (12% ABV) – One of my all time favorite Champagnes. A full package – yeasty nose, freshly baked bread, toasted apple, perfect mid-palate weight. One of the best QPR for Champagne that I know of. 8

2013 L’Ecole No 41 Chenin Blanc Old Vines Columbia Valley (13.5% ABV) – I read it many times that acidity is often brought up as a primary characteristic of Chenin Blanc – but my experience doesn’t support it. This wine,. similar to some of the best Vouvray wines I ever had, was showing a bright white fruit, medium to full body, ripe apples and balancing acidity. 8

2011 Tikveš Barovo Red Wine, Macedonia (14.5% ABV, 65% Kratosija, 35% Vranec) – we can call this wine the “dark power”. Almost black in the appearance, with tar and espresso at its core, ripe blackberries and soft tannins. Vranec is considered one of the most heart-friendly grapes. And Kratosija adds one more grape to the collection. 8-

2011 Field Recordings Petite Sirah Edna Valley (15% ABV, 100% Petite Sirah, Crocket Hill Vineyard) – ripe blueberries, packaged into the soft frame, with bright nose saying “drink me” and blueberries all the way on the palate. Round, smooth, elegant – a “dangerous wine” – it is gone before you notice. 8-

2008 Henri Cruchon Gamaret Morges AOC (13% ABV) – Restrained, delicious old world wine. Earthiness and minerality, somewhat muted on the nose. Touch of blackberries and smoke on the palate, more earthiness, soft tannins and excellent balance. 8-

2009 Chateau Greysac Médoc AOC, France (14% ABV) – Chateau Greysac is one of the Bordeaux staples – always reasonably priced, and very consistent, year after year. Good dark fruit on the nose with a touch of earthiness, blackberries. More blackberries on the palate with a touch of cassis, refreshing acidity, well integrated tannins and medium to long finish. 8-

2012 Laplace Madiran AOP, France (14% ABV) – a rare breed – Tannat from its place of origin, France. Dark, dense, concentrated, with tar and ink on the palate, but showing fresh fruit surprisingly well. Full bodied wines, very dense and present. 8-

2006 Trapiche Broquel Malbec Mendoza, Argentina (14% ABV) – no sign of age – fresh, approachable, touch of sweet oak, dark fruit, well noticeable tannins and perfect balancing acidity. Delicious. 8

2011 Siduri Pinot Noir Sonoma County (13.1% ABV) – classic, classic, classic – dark smokey fruit on the nose, same on the palate – cherries, hint of mushrooms and forest floor, vibrant acidity, more smoke on the palate. 8

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And here are the [red wine] highlights of the Woodinville trip (lots of them) – for the tasting notes, please click on the wine name:

2010 Elevation Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Stillwater Creek Vineyard Columbia Valley – 8
2011 Elevation Cellars Jammin’ Red Blend Red Mountain and Columbia Valley – 8-
2010 Elevation Cellars Merlot Stillwater Creek Vineyard Columbia Valley – 8-
2009 Elevation Cellars Monolith Bordeaux Blend Hedges Vineyard Red Mountain – 8+
2011 Pondera Entwined Columbia Valley – 8-
2011 Pondera SVS Number One Columbia Valley – 8-
2011 Pondera Malbec Stillwater Creek Vineyard Columbia Valley – 8+
2009 Pondera Prima Donna Columbia Valley  – 8
2010 Des Voigne Cellars Montreux Syrah Columbia Valley  – 8-
2010 Des Voigne Cellars “Untitled” Columbia Valley – 8-
2011 Des Voigne Cellars The Composer Wahluke Slope – 8-
2012 Sparkman Cellars Ruckus Syrah Red Mountain – 8
2011 Sparkman Cellars Rainmaker Cabernet Sauvignon Yakima Valley – 8+
2011 Guardian Cellars Gun Metal Columbia Valley – 8
2011 Guardian Cellars The Informant Syrah Wahluke Slope – 8
2011 Guardian Cellars The Rookie Cabernet Sauvignon Red Mountain – 8
2011 Fidelitas Boushey Vineyard Red Wine Yakima Valley – 8-
2012 Mark Ryan NumbSkull GSM Walla Walla – 8
2012 Mark Ryan The Dissident Columbia Valley – 9-
2012 Mark Ryan Long Haul Red Mountain – 8+
2012 Mark Ryan Dead Horse Red Mountain – 9-
2011 Abeja Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley – 8-
2011 Leonetti Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Walla Walla Valley – 8+

And we are done here. So, what were your wine discoveries for the past month? Cheers!

Categories: Month in Wines, wine ratings Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Month in Wines – July 2014

August 4, 2014 2 comments

Uff, July was a busy wine month! Especially taking into account the Wine Bloggers Conference experiences, there were quite a few wines which were on the high mark. Anyway, below are the wine highlights of the month – the wines which were rated 8- out of 10 or higher. Here we go, without any particular order:

NV Ruffino Prosecco DOC – nice apple on the nose, good firm acidity with the touch of apple on the palate. An excellent sparkler. 8-

2013 La Garagista Coup de Foudre Pettilant Naturel, Vermont (11% ABV) – Minerality through the roof, round and delicious until the very last drop. 8

2012 Bellangelo Dry Riesling Finger Lakes (12.3% ABV) – Perfect Riesling nose, clean fruit, minerality and excellent acidity. 8

2013 Bellangelo Dry Riesling Finger Lakes Seneca Lake (11.3% ABV) – nose of white stone fruit, honeydew. Touch of green apple and expressive minerality on the palate. 8

2012 Bellangelo Semi-Dry Riesling Finger Lakes (11% ABV) – nice white fruit on the nose and palate, shouldn’t be consumed ice cold, as it removes form the wine. 8-

2013 Bellangelo Semi Dry Riesling Finger Lakes Seneca Lake (10.8% ABV) -apricot on white peaches on the nose. Very refreshing and a pleasure to drink. 8

2013 Château du Rouët Rosé Cuvée Réservée Tradition Côtes de Provence AOP  (12.5% ABV) – strawberries + perfect acidity = refreshing summer wine. 8-

2013 Charles Krug Sauvignon Blanc St. Helena – Napa  – outstanding. Grass, cat pee, lemon, refreshing and balanced – what else you can wish for? 8

2012 Donnachiara Fiano de Avelino DOCG Montefalcione (13% ABV) – sweet fruit on the nose, plump, open, touch of minerality and fresh cut grass, nice acidity. 8-

2013 Aridus Viognier Arizona – beautiful nose, classic floral Viognier , very elegant (despite a touch of heat), nice saltiness on the palate, great complexity. 8-

2012 Sevtap Istanbul Sauvignon Blanc Santa Ynez Valley (12.4% ABV) – unusual nose, beautiful concentrated fruit, refreshing. 8-

2013 Imagine French Colombard California (13.6% ABV) – simple, refreshing, nice lemony notes and acidity. Perfect for the summer day. 8-

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2007 Ar. Pe.Pe Rosso di Valtelina DOC (13% ABV) – Nebbiolo at its best. Not the powerful rendition covered in impenetrable oak armor, but naked, vulnerable grape, in its sweet plum and sapidity (thank you, Stefano!) elegance. Really a beautiful wine. 8

2011 Ravenswood Zinfandel Teldeschi Single Vineyard Dry Creek Valley, California – delicious, layer after layer. Restrained, with smokey raspberries and herbs, perfect fruit, silky tannins and savory notes. Did I say “delicious” already? 8+

2012 Field Recordings Petite Sirah Huerhuero Vineyard Paso Robles (15.1% ABV) – wow. Sweet fruit, blueberries, blackberries, over the top wine – but with an excellent balance. If you have the bottle, don’t open it now – it will evolve over the next 4-5 years. 8+

2011 BellinghamThe Bernard Series Small Barrel S.M.V. Coastal Region WO, South Africa (14% ABV, 75% Shiraz, 22% Mourvedre, 3% Viognier) – Very restrained, firmly structured, perfect acidity and with a good portion of the dark magic of Shiraz. 8-

2011 Casa Bianchi Premium Leo Malbec, Mendoza, Argentina (15% ABV) – nose of supple fruit, herbs and spices, touch of eucalyptus and dark chocolate.  Very dense, balanced and smooth on the palate. 8-

2010 Vineyard 511 Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain – sweet plums and cassis on the nose, touch of eucalyptus, great density, elegant and with the excellent aging potential. 9-

2011 Rodney Strong Vineyards Symmetry Meritage – open herbaceous nose, touch of red fruit, raspberries, cherries, firm structure, firm tannins. An excellent Bordeaux blend. 8

2006 Jordan Winery Cabernet Sauvignon – beautiful nose, open fruit, touch of earthiness, cassis, the same on the palate. Perfect Cab! 8

2010 Jordan Winery Cabernet Sauvignon – wow, open, explicit nose, eucalyptus, soft fruit, wow again. young tannins. 8

2011 Taken Red Wine Napa Valley – blueberries and blackberries on the nose, nicely restrained, perfect acidity, firm tannins, good structure, excellent balance. 8

2012 Sevtap Zig-a-zig-ah Cabernet Sauvignon Santa Ynez Valley – eucalyptus, pure, beautiful, dark fruit, cherries, overall an excellent wine. 8-

2012 Sevtap Pillow Talk Petit Verdot Santa Ynez Valley (14.25% ABV) – concentrated, earthy, almost black color, notes of barnyard. Very balanced overall. 8-

2012 Sevtap Wish You Were Here Sangiovese Santa Ynez Valley (13% ABV) – Tobacco and earthiness on the nose, clean tobacco and coffee flavor profile on the palate, an excellent balance. 8-

2010 Lions Peak Vineyards Roaring Lion Cabernet Sauvignon  – classic Cab, cassis, green bell pepper, soft, round, supple, good open fruit. 8-

2010 Lucas & Lewellen Cabernet Sauvignon Clone 6 Santa Barbara County – classic cab, cassis, belle pepper, perfect structure. 8

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And we are done. What were your special wine experiences lately? Cheers!

Categories: Month in Wines, wine ratings Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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