February 23, 2010 at 7:35 pm (Age, Bordeaux, breathable glass, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, California Taste Fine Wine, Cellaring, Collecting, Comparisions, Earthiness, Food, Francec, glasses, Laguna Niguel, Malbec, Napa, Petit Sirah, Petit Verdot, Soil, Tasting, wine critics, Winemakers, wineries)
Tags: Acid, Black Fruit, Bordeaux, Boyd 2006 Big Ranch Cuvee, breathable glass, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, California Taste Fine Wine, Cellaring, Cherry, chocolate, Clos du Val, cornerstone 2005 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon, Earthiness, Hope and Grace 2006 Napa CAbernet, JR 2005 rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot, Modis Operandi 2007 Vicarious Red, Napa Valley, Petit Sirah, Retail Wine Stores, Rutherford Dust, Soil, Stags Leap, Tasting, Value Wines
It is not often that I say I love a certain wine tasting, but that was just the case this last Friday. We featured a few boutique wines from Napa and one solid Cabernet Sauvignon from Stags Leap district. All of the wines were big reds. The few I got to sample the day after the tasting were even better.
Which brings me to a slight digression. I am finding more and more that the wines in our tastings typically taste better on day two than day one. At California Taste Fine Wine, we do not decant that often before a tasting. The thinking goes, that if we are going to sell a bottle of wine, we like to have it just as you would at home. You are going to open and then just pour yourself a glass. That is kind of how we want to do the tastings. We want to mimic the home experience.
But Friday, these wines were all so good. We started with the Cornerstone Stepping Stone Cabernet Franc. I wrote a bit about the wine earlier (See my Cabernet Franc Post). Suffice to say, this was an excellent wine to start a tasting with. Then came the 2006 Clos du Val Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. This is actually a blend of a few wines, much like a Bordeaux. The trick with Clos du Val is to let them age a few years. The rewards are immense. This is a solid bottle of wine, with lots of black and red fruit and a long finish. The idea is to stock up and put a few into the cellar. Go back to the older vintages while you wait. At least that is what I do. And I recently had a 1981 Clos du Val Cabernet that was drinking beautifully.
We also tasted the Boyd 2006 Big Ranch Cuvee. This is a blend of 40% each Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc and 5% Syrah. This is a big, luscious red blend that lingers. Aged in oak, they only made 325 cases. So this is one to collect.
We opened the Modis Operandi 2007 Vicarious Red. The tasters really liked this wine and this is another sudo Bordeaux blend were one of the grapes is Syrah. This is one of those wines that lingering in the head and on the tongue. Big fruit and a long finish. Again one of those low production wines. Only 12 barrels produced.
Hope and Grace 2006 Napa Cabernet was at first just okay. But on day two, it was absolutely incredible. The wine unwound to a lush nose of violets and Cassis, coupled with Oak and blackberry. Wow! Totally unexpected and quite a treat. And so smooth.
The JR 2005 Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon was yet another sleeper. The first night, the wine should the dark fruit and a hint of the famous Rutherford dust. Rutherford dust is a special earthiness that wines get in a special are of Napa. There is an alluvial fan of dirt, dust, stone and gravel that spread out eastward from Mt. St. Helena after an eruption many thousands of years ago. Wines grown in this region have a very distinct taste. There are a few areas in Chile that are similar, but a Rutherford Cabernet is a very tasty thing. On day two, this wine was in full swing. If you like Napa Cabernets, this wine would be at the top of your list.
We finished the tasting with the Cornerstone 2005 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. Only 500 cases were produced of this black beauty. It is a very concentrated wine with plum, cherry and mocha. This was a very smooth wine and on day two, it was absolutely spectacular.
I have often thought that there are amazing values in the $30-$60 range of wines out of Napa. These wines certainly prove that point. But what I am really discovering is that so many wines are tasting better the second day. So now I think I need to open two bottles at once. I need to enjoy half of each and wait for the rewards that come with drinking the wines on day two.
And yes, this is indeed happening with a number of whites as well. You will have to experiment for yourself, but the journey is well worth it. Ask your local retailer for help in finding these boutique wines. Great reds from premier wine areas such as Napa do not have to cost $100 or more. Value is what tastes good and delivers. These wines did just that.
So think like me and open two at once. Swirl them around your mouth and enjoy as they go down like silk. Then cork them as you save save some of each for the next day. Let me know if I am not absolutely correct. If you cannot wait, decant or use breathable glass. So now you are Uncorking Happiness, times two.
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February 11, 2010 at 8:08 pm (Age, Bordeaux, Cabernet Sauvignon, California Taste Fine Wine, Cellaring, Collecting, Earthiness, Food, Fruit, Italy, Malbec, Merlot, Napa, Petit Sirah, Petit Verdot, Storage, Winemakers, wineries, Zinfandel)
Tags: Acid, Black Fruit, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cain 5, Cakebread, California Taste Fine Wine, Cherry, Clos du Val, Clos Pegase, Darioush, Dominus, Far Niente, Italy, Merlot, Nickel & Nickel, Opus One, Petit Sirah, Petit Verdot, Pine Ridge, Retail Wine Stores, Shafer, Zinfandel
The big day of romance is drawing near and I am told I need to deliver a big red on Sunday. I asked what that meant and that meant a juicy red with a fruit forward taste and a long finish. Well, that describes so many wines, it is insane. So my frantic search begins.
I am found of Italian wines, but I think we are talking here about a big California red. Recently, I posted about Patel Zinfandel, but I do not think that is it. I am guessing we are talking about Cabernet or a Cabernet blend. At California Taste Fine Wine, we just got a shipment of O’Brien Seduction, a Cabernet based blend out of Napa. This is a wine rich in cherry, blackberry and toasty oak. It has a splash of Cabernet Franc which adds acidity and gives the wine a longer finish. The name alone screams romance. And the packaging is nice too.
When it comes to Napa Cabernet, most are not 100% Cabernet. Often they blend in Petit Sirah for color and to give the wine a little depth. Same for Petit Verdot. Both of these have been used for many years to soften, color and round out many Napa Cabernets. Merlot plays a huge role in this, as it is the partner of Cabernet Sauvignon in Bordeaux, France. While at least on the left bank. The right bank is primarily Merlot blends with Cabernet Franc. Hello, Petrus!
But getting back to my dilemma. I think I need to start the festivities off with a Rose and maybe something sparkling. (See Valentines Wines, Part IV). I need to produce a bottle of Cain 5 Blend from Napa out of the cellar. When it comes to big Napa reds, there are a number of incredible wineries to choose from: Clos Pegase, Clos du Val, Darioush, Shafer, Pine Ridge, Opus One, Dominus and so many more. But the best advice is to ask a retailer what they recommend.
Finally, if you are going out to dinner, definitely bring a bottle with you. Two things will happen, you will save money by just paying the corkage fee and perhaps you will discover a new favorite that might just become a Valentines tradition. All of the wineries mentioned produce outstanding reds that will not break the bank.
I will go and dig out a bottle of Cain 5. Maybe a bottle of Cakebread, Far Niente and Nickel & Nickel too.
For those of you saving a bottle for that special some time, now is the time. Enjoy what you like and do not be afraid to open that special bottle. An occasion such as Valentines is why you bought it in the first place. Now that is what I call Uncorking Happiness.
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February 4, 2010 at 4:46 am (Age, Cabernet Sauvignon, California Taste Fine Wine, Cellaring, Collecting, Earthiness, Food, Fruit, Merlot, Paso Robles, Soil, Storage, Tasting, wine critics, wineries)
Tags: Acid, Cabernet Sauvignon, California Taste Fine Wine, Clos du Val, France, Italy, Languedoc, Magnums, Merlot, Retail Wine Stores, Rioja, Tannins, Tasting
I have mentioned before that it is smart to immediately start buying wines for your birthday or from your birth year. The longer you wait , the wines are more expensive and harder to find. remember to ask your friendly neighborhood wine retailer for help.
But you can also just start collecting wines you like or wines from wineries you like. That is exactly what I did. One of my favorite wineries in the world is Clos du Val in Napa Valley. This Stags Leap winery has a very French flair.
We enjoyed a magnum of 1981 Napa Cabernet. MAny will say that Napa Cabernets will not last. I beg to differ. Two Thanksgivings ago, we open a 1976 Cabernet from Clos du Val that was absolutely stunning. Both wines had abundant fruit, strong acidity and soft tannins. Each wine had a long finish and could have aged at least five more years.
One other wine we enjoyed in the last week was a 1999 Palisades Vineyard Cabernet from Clos du Val. This was another Magnum and was indeed very fruit forward. It was well balanced between fruit, tannins and acid. A real treat. And the crowd favorite.
A few thoughts about this whole birthday wine thing. First, if you can get a magnum or larger bottle, you should go for it. The little extra expense is well worth it. Larger bottles age slower and are less affected by temperature fluctuation. Plus when celebrating, typically there a few folks around and you want them to try the wine. And most importantly, wine is mean to be shared and enjoyed. It does not do any good to kep huge amounts on hand, unless your plan is to properly age the wine for future enjoyment.
We had always had a philosophy about wine buying. One for today, two for tomorrow. For me, tomorrow is now as I enjoy some great wines with a bit of age. And surprises occur all the time. I had a bottle of Chateau Lafleur Merlot from the Languedoc region of France. This is a wine that was made to be consumed right away. I buried it in the cellar and a month ago found it and popped the cork. The vintage: 1996. It was wonderful. Same thing with a 1992 Rioja. Both bottles cost about $6. Miracles can happen.
So get to a local retail shop like mine and start building that collection. You will be Uncorking Happiness with each bottle.
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January 26, 2010 at 10:13 pm (Cabernet Sauvignon, Comparisions, Cote du Rhone, Earthiness, Food, Fruit, Malbec, Merlot, Napa, Paso Robles, Soil, Tasting, wineries, Zinfandel)
Tags: Anise, Asinthe, Berry, Black Fruit, Cabernet Sauvignon, California Taste Fine Wine, Cassis, chocolate, Clos du Val, Cote du Rhone, Dry Creek Vineyards, Earthiness, Layercake, Licorice, Malbec, Merlot, mocha, Mosby, Rotta Winery, Soil, Tasting, Truffles, Zinfandel
We are constantly lead to believe that chocolate pairs very well with Port. And yes, it does. But what many people do not realize is that chocolate pairs well with many red wines.
But I have to digress for a moment. Many years ago, I had a Vichon Cabernet from Napa in Sedona, Arizona. (Vichon is no longer made in Napa). The restaurant owner said, “Try it with this.” What he had was a chocolate mousse topped off with whipped creme. The whipped creme had vanilla in it. The whole thing with the dry Cabernet was one of those moments that change your perception of food and wine pairings. At that time, I was not that into the whole thing like now, but I enjoyed a good bottle of wine.
So When California Taste Fine Wine had the red wine and chocolate tasting, I wanted to turn a few people around on their thinking.
The first wine was the Don Rodolfo Tannat. Tannat is an earthy wine with chocolate/mocha notes in it’s taste. The chocolate with mocha paired well with that as did the Vidal Fleury Cote du Rhone. Both of these wines had an earthiness and a hint of dark fruit that made the chocolate sing. This would have been stunning chocolate with a Malbec as well. It would have brought out the ground coffee/earth of Malbec
The Clos du Val Merlot and the Dry Creek Heritage Zinfandel matched up nicely with Cassis Truffles. The big fruit bomb of cassis was perfect foil for these wines that had a large amount of berry in them.
A word about the chocolates. The chocolates were custom made for the tasting. There were truffles with coffee/mocha, cassis, and Absinthe. There were also dark chocolate cups. But we will get to that shortly. Our thanks to Lynnsey Ramos for her culinary skills.
The next wine in the tasting was Mosby Obssessione. This was a bottling of Montepulciano from Italy. This wine paired well with truffles coated in coco powder. Those were purchased from Costco. They are not overly sweet and again, the hearty character of the wine and chocolate matched well. At this point, I started to realize that there was a theme happening. And the next wine proved the point.
For many years, Absinthe was an illegal beverage in the United States. It has just been legalized in the last couple of years. The primary taste of Absinthe is Licorice or Anise. There are whole rituals for drinking the liquor. But we will save that for another time. Lynnsey incorporated about a teaspoon into a number of truffles. That made them very hardy and tasty. And it went very well with the very fruit forward Cabenet Sauvignon from Layercake. The bit of the Absinthe cut the fruit of the wine and brought out its acidic side.
The final wine was Rotta Zinfandel Port. We pored that into the little cups. Then we slammed the whole thing into our mouths. Delightful, especially as the tasters were going hands free.
But the trend that developed is this: When you have an earthy wine, it tends to pair very well with dark chocolate and chocolates infused with black fruit flavors. Something to keep in mid when you need an instant dessert and all you have is a bag of Hershey’s Special dark and a bottle of red. Try it and see if you are Uncorking Happiness.
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December 14, 2009 at 5:47 pm (Cabernet Sauvignon, California Taste Fine Wine, Cellaring, Chardonnay, Comparisions, Fruit, Malbec, Napa, Tasting, Zinfandel)
Tags: Black Fruit, Bodega Vinorum, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cakebread Cellars, California Taste Fine Wine, Chardonnay, Cherry, Clos du Val, Layercake, Malbec, Primitivo, Zinfandel
Saturday, it was cold, wet and raining. But a small group braved the weather and gathered at California Taste Fine Wine, prepared to determine which wine they liked better. The concept of the tasting was to pit Cakebread Cellars against Layercake and few other random wines. If you are not familiar with Cakebread or Layercake, check out the links. But Just a quick word about Layercake: The wines are produced by the same people that make the 100 Acres wines in Napa. Extremely high end and very tasty. And the reputation of Cakebread is legendary among wine drinkers.
We started by pitting Cakebread Chardonnay (2008) against Clos du Val Chardonnay (2007). The Clos du Val had a sharper taste than the Cakebread. A bit more tart and not as smooth as the Cakebread. But this is just my opinion. The tasters voted and Clos du Val won by a single vote. I am not sure if price was a factor, as the Cakebread was about $20 more than the Clos du Val.
The next smack down was all about Malbec. Layercake (2008) vs. Vinorum (2005). Both are from high in the Andes near Mendoza, Argentina. Malbec is quickly gaining in popularity among wine drinkers for both big fruit, earthiness and very good prices. You can pick up great bottles of Malbec for well under $20. But in this tastng, it was very interesting as the tasters tied on which was better. This speaks to the quality of both wines and price differential was only $4. So you can’t go wrong with a nice Malbec, it seems. And for those who like an earthy wine, this will fit the bill. Just a side note, Rose of Malbec is very good as well.
The next challenge was perhaps the most interesting of all. Layercake Primitivo (2008) against Cakebread Zinfandel (2006). Primitivo is basically the same grape as Zinfandel but typically hails from Puglia in southern Italy. And yes, Zinfandel is red and is not native to California, where it seems it is the state grape. It originated in Croatia and is believed to have to California with the missionaries. But on to the tasting. The Layercake was thick and chewy, with tobbacco, black fruit, oak and a hint of earth. The Cakebread was fruitier with toasty oak and lots of finish. The tasters voted overwhelmingly for the Cakebread. I was personally torn as I thought both were exceptional.
The final challenge involved Cabernet Sauvignon. Cakebread (2006) vs. Layercake (2007). Both were rich with black cherry, blackberry, blueberry and oak, hints of cinnamon and clove. Both had a long finish. But For me, the Cakebread was a wine that needed a bit of cellaring. It was very complex, not 100% integrated yet. This is a bottle that five years from now, I will be screaming, why don’t I have a case of this? It is a wine that will surely reward the patient. The Layercake was a bit fruitier and was exceptional as well. It is the wine that is good for stunning your holiday guests. The tasters voted in favor of the Cakebread, 2 to 1. But it must be pointed out that the price differential between these two wines is about $45.
It is nice when our customers can come and vote on what they like. Most said each wine was great, but the California palette certainly showed in this tasting. The wines that were more fruit forward tended to get the nod over those that were more restrained. It would be fun to revist these same vintages in two years and see if the opinions are the same. And we would get to see just how nicely these wines are developing.
At California Taste Fine Wine, there are a number of themed tastings each week. And we believe in educating the wine buyer so they become a better consumer in both retail and when ordering wine in a restaurant. We look forward to helping you enhance your wine experience as you uncork happiness.
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