Saturday lunch at Entourage

Saturday lunch at Entourage Downers Grove

We lunched at Entourage, DG and continue to marvel at how good their food creations are - every entree carefully and artfully prepared for delicious creations. 

Today, we both ordered the Daily Special, Parmesan crusted Baked Cod with Piccata, tomatoes and arugula, with crisp fried potatoes. It was delicious. 

The Entourage wine list offer a selection of WBTG - wines by the glass so we each ordered a glass of our choice for a food wine pairing. 

Linda ordered her usual favorite selection which we have featured often in these pages, Kokomo Chardonnay - featured in these blogposts - Lunch/Dinner Redux at Entourage DG and Kokomo Chardonnay at Entourage DG, and WBTG dining at Entourage DG.

I tried a selection new to the wine list … an interesting wine from an obscure varietal grape for an ideal summer sipper! 

Flores Picpoul de Pinet Languedoc Roussilion 2024

For my wine pairing I selected this Picpoul de Pinet, a crisp, zesty white wine from the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southern France. This is made exclusively from the ancient Picpoul Blanc grape, it’s nicknamed "lip-stinger" for its mouth-watering acidity.

Amazingly, the Languedoc-Roussillon is in fact the largest wine producing region of France with roughly 584,400 acres producing about 25% of France’s total wine production coming from the Languedoc (“long-dock”) and Roussillon. Historically, wine grape cultivation and winemaking in the region dates all the way back to the second century, as grapes were first planted in 125 BC near the Roman colony Narbo, or modern day Narbonne, in the production zone of Corbières.

The Languedoc-Roussillon region stretched from the Rhone to the Pyrenees. The population centers of Languedoc-Roussillon is the urban areas on the coastal plain, notably around Montpellier, Nimes and Perpignan. These old cities were points on the land route along the Mediterranean coast between France and Spain and Italy and Spain. Montpellier, the regional capital, is the 8th largest city in France, and has history dating back over 1000 years.

The Languedoc wine region has 23 Appellations d’Origine Contrôlée or Protégée (AOCs/AOPs), covering about 16% of production. Wines that don’t fit into this quality tier may be classified as Indication Géographique Protégée (IGP) selections.

The broad regional appellation Languedoc AOC forms the base of the classification system and covers red, white and rosé wines. Producers that use this designation may blend wine made with grapes from both Languedoc and Roussillon.

Within the Languedoc AOC are 10 subappellations that include Minervois, which produces red, white and rosé wines; Corbières (red, white, rosé); Terrasses du Larzac (red); Pic Saint Loup (red, rosé); and Saint-Chinian (red, white, rosé) and this wine’s source Picpoul de Pinet (white) .

There are also 5 commune or village appellations: Minervois-La-Livinière, Corbieres Boutenac and La Clape, Faugères and Fitou, 4 sweet wine appellations. The best-known is Muscat de Frontignan, and 3 sparkling wine appellations, all in Limoux: Blanquette de Limoux, Crémant de Limoux and Blanquette de Limoux Méthode Ancestrale.

The Languedoc and Roussillon warm, dry Mediterranean climate is defined by hot summers and mild temperatures throughout the rest of the year. Heat and sun might otherwise overripen grapes, but top vineyard sites stay cool thanks to their elevation and coastal breezes from the Atlantic and/or Mediterranean.

Ancient geological soils are varied, complex layers ranging from clay and limestone to schist, granite, marls and sandstone. Many of the regions’ top wines come from the rocky soils of mountain foothills.

This label is from Florensac, one of the oldest vineyard sites on the French Mediterranean Coast. Today, les Vignerons de Florensac (winegrowers of Florensac) consists of a collaborative of 260 growers.

This Picpoul de Pinet is 100% varietal Piquepoul, literally translated, Picpoul means “stings the lip,” referring to the grape’s naturally high acidity which produces wines with great brightness. 

Picpoul de Pinet displays flavors of lemon and saline, white blossoms and wet stones.These wines are light to medium bodied, bone dry, have mouth watering acidity, and typically a moderate alcohol level. They’re an excellent, affordable alternative to Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio.

Picpoul, also known as Picquepol Blanc, is a thin-skinned white wine varietal found mainly in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of Southern France, where it’s name is used in the name of the region Picpoul de Pinet.

Picpoul de Pinet boasts s bright, bone dry palate with a light body, sharp acidity, and subtle minerality. The refreshing wine is ideal for the Mediterranean climate, or hot summers here, a perfect wine for pairing with delicate seafood dishes or simply sipping. Described as “clean,” is a true expression of the grape stands out. Picpoul is rarely oaked, so the taste is a pure, unadulterated flavor of the wine. Its aromas and flavors are simple, honest, and untouched by outside factors like oak, additives, or other grapes.

With lip-stinging acidity, this wine is highly desirable for pairing with acidic and or fatty dishes such as seafood, fresh oysters, even fried chicken.

Decanter Tasting Panel rated this label 94 points.

Producer’s tasting notes - “Pale yellow color with bright green highlights. Fresh, fruity nose marked by notes of lemon and grapefruit. Lively and fresh on the palate, revealing a beautiful richness supported by lemony flavors. Good length.” 

https://www.cellartracker.com/w?5406221

https://entouragerestaurant.com/downers-grove/ 

Uriah Spring Valley Red Blend 2015

Uriah Spring Valley Red Blend 2015

Midweek dinner, we grilled filets of beef with baked potatoes. I pulled from the cellar one of our favorite labels, a Washington State Right Bank Bordeaux Blend for an ideal food wine pairing. 

We also had a delicious caprese salad … fresh mozzarella, tomato, lettuce and fresh basil from the garden,  and this “Twisted Olive” Raspberry Chocolate Balsamic dressing which is a heavenly pairing with the big red wine. From Modena, Italy, we get this from a local producer/importer at the local farmer’s market.

For this favored meal combination, for a nice relaxed evening dinner together, I pulled from the cellar one of my favorite drinking Right Bank Bordeaux varietal blends from one of our favorite producers, Spring Valley Vineyards. 

We visited Spring Valley during our appellation visit to the Walla Walla (Washington) wine region in the fall of 2018. We visited the Spring Valley Vineyard tasting room in downtown Walla Walla, then ventured out to the vineyards and winery northeast of town. There, we met Dean Derby patriarch, and husband to Shari Corkrum Derby, grand-daughter of Uriah Corkrum, namesake for this label. Meeting Mr. Derby was one of the highlights of our Walla Walla Wine Experience, especially since he has since passed on. We posted a Tribute to Dean Derby and memorium of that visit - Spring Valley Vineyard toward the end of 2021.  

All of the Spring Valley wines are named for one of the ancestral or current family members. Spring Valley Vineyard wines are all produced from 100% estate-grown fruit, a relative rarity in Washington.

Washington State and regional powerhouse Chateau Ste. Michelle Wine Estates purchased the winery and the brand from the Derby family recently, but they continue to own and operate the vineyards.

The complete lineup of Spring Valley wines featuring the family member labels is featured in a boxed set. Shown is our set commemorating the 2013 vintage releases.

Spring Valley Vineyards Uriah Red Blend 2015

The Spring Valley Vineyards adjacent to the 
farmstead site

This label, Uriah, is named for the Spring Valley Vineyards founder Uriah Corkrum, grandfather of matriarch Shari Corkrum Derby. Born in Walla Walla on June 1, 1866, he began successfully farming on his own during the 1880s. Unusual summer rain kept him from getting his harvested wheat to the warehouse so he lost everything in the depression of 1893. He persevered and, in 1897, acquired land in the area known as Spring Valley that is the site of the vineyards today. Uriah is featured on the flagship label Uriah Spring Valley Red Blend. This is our favorite label from the Spring Valley portfolio. 

This is 100% sourced from Spring Valley Vineyards in the wind-shaped Palouse Hills 12 miles northeast of Walla Walla, amid the picturesque wheat fields of southeastern Washington and the Blue Mountains in the distance. The initial block of Merlot was planted in 1993 on a southern hillside facing southwest. The vines follow the north-south slope of the hills in vertical rows, an orientation that when combined with the declination of the slope, allows the vines to take optimal advantage of air drainage, sunshine, and the reflective nature of the surrounding wheat fields.

The 2015 vintage was one of the warmest growing seasons on record in Washington. Warm temperatures continued through the spring and summer, moderating slightly into fall and extending an early harvest. Overall, 2015 saw very favorable growing conditions, producing optimal ripening across varieties and yielding outstanding wines throughout the region.

This label, Uriah, is a Right Bank Bordeaux Blend, meaning it is predominantly Merlot based rather than Cabernet, complemented by Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec. This release has a high percentage of Cabernet Franc which provides spiciness and bright flavor sprites. 

This 2015 release is a blend or Bordeaux varietals, 43% Cabernet Franc, 38% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec. It was aged 18 months in 100% French oak, 40% new.

Winemaker Tasting Notes: “Our most terroir driven blend, mostly Cabernet Franc and Merlot. A rich wine coming from one of the warmest harvests. The tannins are velvety and the finish is long and soft.”
~ Serge Laville, Winemaker.

This was rated 93 Points by Wine & Spirits, 92 Points by James Suckling, 91 Points by Wine Spectator, and 90 points by Sean Sullivan of Wine Advocate. 

We hold half dozen vintages of this label and pulled the oldest vintage as part of effective cellar management rotation.  

At eleven years this is probably at its peak, the apex of its drinking profile, not likely to improve further with aging, but certainly to age gracefully for another decade if you're patient enough to keep it that long. It seems more vibrant and expressive than it did earlier, hence am adding another point to my review. 

Bright garnet colored, medium bodied, elegant polished, rich but approachable for pleasant but sophisticated drinking, its right-bank style blend shows vibrant black berry and dark plum fruits with notes of cassis, spice, floral and hints of balsamic and herbs with dusty minerality with polished soft tannins on the lingering finish.

RM 93 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2648699

Linked referenced in this blog: 

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2018/10/spring-valley-vineyards-tasting-and.html

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2019/11/spring-valley-vineyards-nina-syrah-2017.html

https://www.springvalleyvineyard.com/

Arvin’s Acres Winery, Carroll County, IN

Arvin’s Acres Winery, Carroll County, IN

Visiting Carol County, Indiana for a family birthday celebration dinner, following the Spectacular Italian Dining in Rural Indiana featured in this blogpost, we visited Arvin’s Acres Winery enroute on our return home.

Todd and Anita Hoshaw founded Arvin’s Acres Winery and Meadery in 2018 when they purchased Anita’s Grandparents’, Bill and Alice Arvin's, 100-year-old farmhouse and property, to pursue their dream of building and operating a winery. Anita had the feeling, "You only live once and sometimes that can pass you by before you get to enjoy it." Three months later, they sold their house in Lebanon, IN and relocated to build and pursue their dreams in their childhood hometown of Delphi, IN.

Shortly after getting married in 2002 they discovered a common interest in wine and visiting the Indiana Wine Trails. They loved the camaraderie inherent in the wine business. They expanded their wine travels to other states, and over the course of the next 16 years, that feeling of fellowship and a love of wine left them dreaming of opening our own winery. 

Todd serves as Wine & Mead Maker and Beekeeper. Arvin's Acres produce a broad portfolio of quality wines, meads, ciders, and seltzers. Their non-grape fruit wine is produced from fruits grown by local farmers and their meads are produced from a combination of our honey and honey purchased locally.

They provide full winery experience in their hospitality center tasting room and a patio pavilion outdoors.

Arvin’s Acres produce a dozen wine labels from dry white and red wines, to semi sweet fruit wines and a sweet dessert wine. Their tasting room offers wine tasting flights of four different wines, wines by the glass, and of course wines are available for purchase by the bottle. They also ship wines. 

We sampled a flight of their dry wines, a couple of their sweet fruit wines, and their unique “Toasted”, a sweet Niagara grape varietal white wine infused with Thai Chili flakes for a bit of added kick. 

Todd suggested their ‘flagship’ might be the Limited Edition ‘Washington Reserve’, a blackberry fruit wine. 

Our view was the most complex and sophisticated wine was the “Trilogy Rouge”, a dry red blend of traditional Bordeaux varietals of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. 

They source their grapes from throughout the Midwest including Indiana, Michigan and also the Finger Lakes region of New York. Todd has three blocks of berry plantings on the property as well as his bee hives.

Weekends they offer live music entertainment on weekends and every second Saturday from June through October they host line dancing. On this day, performing was the talented and entertaining singer songwriter Adrienne Frailery from Milford, IN. She entertained the house playing guitar and the electric piano, singing a mix of soft rock, ballads, and country. 

I wrote about the Indiana Wine industry, the Indiana AVA’s and Wine Trails in more detail in this earlier blogpost - Carpenter Creek Cellars - Indiana Produced Wines.

A fun outing for an afternoon or evening, a taste of Indiana.

Spectacular Italian Dining in Rural Indiana

Spectacular Italian Dining in Rural Indiana

On Sunday, we traveled to Delphi, Indiana, 25 miles northeast of Lafayette, to wife Linda’s hometown, for a birthday celebration dinner for brother Stan, with sister Dr, Pat. 

We dined at Paretta’s Italian Ristorante on the courthouse square, city center Delphi, adjacent the Delphi Opera House, immediately opposition the Carrol County Courthouse - “La Tavola Where Everyone is Family”. 

In their words, “We carry on our heritage of immigrants who ventured to the United States in the late 19th century, seeking a fresh start and carrying with them the rich culinary traditions of Italy. At Paretta’s, we believe in doing things the hard way because it’s worth it. That means hand-rolling fresh pasta, creating mouthwatering dishes from scratch, and taking no shortcuts in our quest to serve you the finest Italian cuisine.”

What an incredible culinary discovery of this dine site -  quant, rustic, unpretentious, the food was outstanding, rivaling our favorite Italian dine sites at home, in Chicago, even New York City. 

The siblings, Linda, Stan and Pat

We could not have imagined such a delightful dinner, in a rustic Tuscan Mediterranean setting, with such extraordinary imaginative and thoughtfully prepared dishes. 

From the “Start the Table” appetizers we ordered the Bruschetta Board - Crostini Bread with Three Flavors - Margherita, Ricatta Honey and Pesto - three different preparations of bread and toppings - all were delicious,  and the Fried Ravioli with Marinera, Alfredo and Pesto Sausage - both were artfully presented and delicious, albeit the portions were small, suitable for two or three, but a stretch for four. 

For Main Course entrees we ordered the Baked Pasta - from the menu - choice of two types of pasta, penne or spaghetti, and choice of five preparations Marinara, Vodka, Alfreda, Bolognese or Pesto, and choice of addition of one of four meats, steak, meatballs, Shrimp or chicken. 

Linda ordered the Penne, Pesto and Steak, while Stan and I both ordered the Spaghetti, Bolognese and Meatballs. Both selections were extraordinary, artfully presented, delicious and ample proportions. 

Spaghetti, Bolognese and Meatballs 

Penne, Pesto and Steak 

Pat ordered the “Brunch Plates” the Calabrian Heat - Eggs, Calabirna Peppers, Pepperoni, Potatoes and Ricatta. 

For a finishing dessert course we had the home-made Tiramisu, which was delectatble. 

A surprising delightful and memorable outing, worthy of the journey. 

Our server Liz was great. 

Afterwards, on our way home, we drove seven miles north of town into the country to visit Arvin’s Acres Winery for a tasting flight of locally crafted wines. I wrote about that in a follow on blogpost - Arvin’s Acres Winery, Carroll County, Indiana. 

Pirouette Red Blend with Tomahawk Ribeye

Pirouette Red Blend with Tomahawk Ribeye

Saturday night dinner, we grilled out and ate on the patio, one of our favorite meals, grilled tomahawk ribeye beefsteaks with baked potatoe, asparagus and sweet corn. 

Linda masterfully achieved the perfect preparation of the steak, “Pittsburgh Style”, as its called, charred on the outside for extra flavor, a hot pink center.

For an ideal wine pairing to complement the dinner.I pulled from the cellar a Washington State Bordeaux varietal blend. 

Long Shadows "Pirouette" Columbia Valley Bordeaux Blend 2017

We hold nearly a decade of vintages of this label as part of our Long Shadows club allocations so as part of cellar inventory management, I pulled the oldest vintage release. I’ve written about earlier vintages of this label in earlier blogposts - Long Shadows Pirouette 2016 with beef roast, Long Shadows Duo Showcase Katy Business Dinner, and Long Shadows Pirouette 2014 at Sullivan’s Steakhouse.

. 

As I wrote in those earlier blogposts, this is one of our favorite labels for a Bordeaux varietal red blend, a sleeper, not well known or sufficiently regarded, given the pedigree of the winemaker and the quality of the product. 

This is the Bordeaux varietal red blend from the Long Shadows Vintners's Collection that features world class winemakers and Washington State Columbia Valley fruit. 

This label is produced by legendary winemakers Philippe Melka, named one of the top nine winemakers in the world by Robert Parker, in collaboration with Agustin Huneeus, Sr.. another legendary wine producer. I;ve written about about Philip Melka numerous times in these pages including that recent Sullivan’s Steakhouse post and previously - Château Boswell Napa Valley Estate Reserve Red Wine 2016. I featured Huneeus in a recent blogpost here - Faust Napa Cab with St Pat’s Dinner.

We’ve featured Long Shadows and their vintners collection, and our visit to their hospitality center and tasting room in Woodinville (WA) in these pages. 

We’re members of the Long Shadows wine club and hold nearly a decade of vintages of their various label releases. 

Checking our cellar inventory, we hold nearly a decade of vintages of this label so we pulled the oldest in our holdings. At nine years of age, this is likely at the apex of its drinking window.

The 2017 Pirouette is a left-bank Bordeaux blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 13% Malbec, and the rest Petit Verdot, crafted from small lots from Washington State's finest vineyards.  It was aged 22 months in French oak barrels with 85% being new.

 

Winemaker notes - “The Cabernet Sauvignon, primarily sourced from a collection of Red Mountain’s best vineyards, gives Pirouette the structure and textured richness that has come to characterize this acclaimed growing region. A small percentage of old vine Cabernet from Sagemoor Vineyard, planted in 1972, adds complexity. Merlot brings juicy richness to the finished wine. Malbec from Sonnet Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills adds spice. Finally, Dionysus Vineyard’s Petit Verdot enhances the wine’s color and contributes to the wine’s layers of intense aromas and flavors.’

“The 2017 Pirouette has an expressive nose with a firm core of dark fruit and mocha flavors, displaying a layered concentration of black cherry and well-integrated oak spices. Vibrant and full-bodied across the mid-palate, this is a texturally pleasing wine with a broad and lengthy finish.” 

This was a blockbuster release, rated 96 points by Jeb Dunnuck and International Wine Report, 94 by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate and 93 by Steve Tanzer.

Dunnuck wrote - “It can be drunk today but will develop additional complexity with 3-4 years of bottle age and keep for two decades or more.”

Dark ruby colored, full bodied, vibrant expressive blackberry, plum and black currant fruits with savory accents of cinnamon and clove spice, bitter dark chocolate and crème de cassis with smooth polished tannins on a sumptuous finish.

RM 94 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/w?3581703

https://longshadows.com/library/pirouette/6951

https://longshadows.com/

@LongShadowsWine

@unwindwine

Pizza and Big Red for USA Watch Party

Pizza and Big Red for USA Watch Party

We gathered at son Alec’s to watch the USA in the World Cup. Alec ordered in pizza’s from Freedom Brother’s in Naperville. I took from our home cellar a favorite big red ‘pizza wine’ for the occasion. Before pizza they served salad and triple cream Brie and Carmella Gouda artisan cheeses. 

Venge Vineyards ‘Scout's Honor’ Napa Valley Red Blend 2019 

We’re long time fans of Venge wines dating back three decades. This big red blend is named for the family golden retriever who used to roam the vineyards. This is a mainstay of our cellar that we keep on hand for such occasions. We have a half dozen vintages of this label in our cellar, drinking and cycling the oldest, replacing it as we go with the latest current release. 

Since 2018, current releases are the new branding of a painted wine bottle as opposed to the more traditional and modest glued paper label. 

This wine is based on a tradition of producing a full bodied, robust, fruit filled red wine based on old-vine Zinfandel and blended with dry-farmed Petite Sirah, old-vine Charbono, and finished with mountain vineyard Syrah. 

Earlier release winemaker notes suggest “The result is an unpretentious, generous mouthful of red wine that we recommend be opened and enjoyed immediately upon release.”

The 2019 Scout's Honor is a blend of 63% Zinfandel, 16% Charbono,12% Petite Sirah and 9% Syrah. 

This release was barrel aged for 14 months in 50% new American Oak and the balance in once used tight grain French Oak.

Grapes were farmed and harvested from four single vineyards in Napa Valley. The Zinfandel was picked from two, old-vine (60 to 100+ years old), dry-farmed vineyard sources: Venge’s newly acquired “Signal Fire Vineyard” estate, and the Frediani Vineyard—both located in the heart of Calistoga. The Charbono is from old, dry-farmed vines (60 to 100+ years old) also planted in the Frediani Vineyard. Robbie Mondavi’s Oso Vineyard located on Howell Mountain supplies the Petite Sirah; the Syrah from  Napa’s finest, from Stagecoach Vineyard, high in the mountains of the Atlas Peak AVA.

Winemaker Notes - “The small, individual lots of fruit were destemmed into a combination of stainless steel tanks and open top fermenters, where whole-berry fermentation took place for an average of 20 days. No conventional pumps were used in the making of this wine. Only diaphragm air pumps, forced air pressure movement, or bulldogging, and transfers by gravity were employed to preserve the pure fruit integrity in the wine.”

This release was rated 93 points by Wine Enthusiast and 90 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

This is always a crowd pleaser, great with hearty cheeses, BBQ, tangy pasta or pizza. 

Dark inky purple colored, full bodied, rich concentrated brambly ripe black berry and black raspberry fruits, spicy tobacco, dusty earth, hints of anise and black pepper and toasted oak with chewy gripping tannins on a long lingering tongue puckering finish.

RM 93 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/w?3922323

https://www.vengevineyards.com/ 

Family celebrates Independence Day and birthday

Family celebrates Independence Day and birthday together  

The family gathered at son Ryan’s house for a gala Independence Day and birthday celebration potluck dinner with grilled beefsteaks and fine wines, and fireworks.

Ryan grilled ribeye beefsteaks, Linda brought scalloped potatoes, Viv brought salad, Erin brought bacon wrapped scallops and home-made cheesecak, plus there was an ice cream birthday cake for g-daughter Marliegh’s birthday. 

I took from our home cellar two bottles from Ryan’s 1982 birthyear vintage year. Ryan served a medley of sparkling, white and big red wines. 

Chateau Cantemerle Haut Medoc 1982 

Chateau Cantemerle is the amongst the well-known Bordeaux estates you pass as you drive along the D2, the main route of the Left Bank of Bordeaux, heading north from the city centre of Bordeaux towards the Medoc, 22 km or a thirty minute drive north of the city. 

Chateau Cantemerle is also one of the oldest properties in the Bordeaux wine region dating back to the 12th century.The estate took its name from the Lords of Cantemerle in 1340 when Ponset de Cantemerle named the estate.

In 1892, the descendants of the last of the Villeneuve family, Jeanne Armande, Baroness Charles d’Abbadie, sold Chateau Cantemerle to the Dubos family after owning the estate for over three hundred years. At the time, the Dubos family also owned a vineyard in Margaux, Chateau La Tour de Mons. The last family owner, Bertrand Clauzel sold Chateau Cantemerle in 1981 to the SMABTP group.

The new owners set upon a much needed restoration of the estate, replanting as much as 50%, and making improvements to the cellars and the winemaking facilities. The SMABTP Group has continued increasing their holdings in Bordeaux with additional vineyard purchases on the Left and Right Bank including recently added Chateau Haut Corbin, Chateau Grand Corbin, and Chateau Le Jurat, located in the St. Emilion appellation.

The huge Chateau Cantemerle Vineyards cover 265 acre with225 planted to the designated Bordeaux varietals, 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. 

It is the goal of the estate to continue increasing the percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in their vineyards over time. On average, the vines are close to 30 years of age. They have old Cabernet vines, which are close to 70 years of age.

While this is a fifth growth producer, the 1982 vintage was a classic legendary harvest, and as ‘all boats rise with the tide’, even the lesser renowned labels produced high quality collectable wines. Robert Parker wrote in 1995 of this release: “How can you bet against the bargain hunter's favorite Cantemerle in a vintage like the legendary '82? … 'This wine has turned out better than I would have thought. It is loosely structured, soft, and easy-going… The sweet, herb, peppery, and berry-scented nose is followed by a friendly wine with round, generous, medium-bodied flavors with no hard edges.

At forty five years, this is pushing this wine past its ideal drinking window, still in consideration only by the spectacular vintage, and being aged in a large format magnum. As shown the fill level was mid-neck, the label while intact was separated from the bottle, and most importantly, the cork was partially saturated by mostly intact. The bottom fifth of the cork separated upon extraction using a two pronged cork puller. 

This was double decanted three hours before serving. The color was dark garnet colored with only slight opaque discoloration setting in. The medium bodied fruit was starting to give way to damp earth and leather notes, with offputting tones of what I would call ‘sausage’ or bacon fat, setting in after several hours. 

At 45 years, the remains still approachable but diminished to 85 points. 

https://go.cellartracker.com/wine/37378

Another forty five year old wine, again beyond its prime drinking window, but still holding on as approachable. 

Beringer Special Select Late Harvest Johannesburg Riesling 1982 

At forty four years, the label, foil and most importantly the cork and fill level were still fine. When young, these wines are pale straw colored, darkening over time to golden, then brownish weak tea, and finally, coffee colored as this was tonight. Holding some residual sweetness with notes of black tea or coffee, but for the most part at the end of its drinkability. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/w?252638

Veuve Cliquot Brut Champagne NV

Greywacke New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc 2025

We featured recent vintages of this label in these earlier blogposts - 

Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc, and last year’s same day celebration …. 

Lede To Kalon and Greywacke showcase 4th of July Celebration

CheckerBoard Napa Valley Diamond Mountain Coyote Ridge Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2017

This is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Checkerboard estate vineyard on he upper reaches of Diamond Mountain on the northern Mayacamas Range above Calistoga, CA in northern Napa Valley. 

This is a single vineyard designated bottling sourced from the Checkerboard Winery Coyote Ridge Vineyard, located on a long ridge line that runs Eastward downhill from the Aurora Vineyard knoll on the upper reaches of Diamond Mountain. The vineyard blocks are on the hillside above Nash Creek Canyon to the South. The terroir consists of red iron oxide clay soil, a South and slightly Eastern exposure with the lower reaches at a 900 foot elevation, which allows the top of the summer fog line to reach the Vineyard. This creates an ideal microclimate and growing cycle for its vines.

Winemaker Martha Mcclellan’s notes - “So typically Coyote Ridge, the 2017 vintage of this single-vineyard offering is approachable and immensely enjoyable. Dusty barrel aromas laced with cinnamon and milk chocolate follow through on the palate and are joined by notes of dark cherry, dried cranberry, fig jam, and red spices. For the texture aficionados among us, the tannins are reminiscent of the finest silk and deliciously sweet. In its youth, the 2017 vintage of Checkerboard Coyote Ridge benefits from decanting prior to serving."

Dark inky purple, full bodied, brooding thick concentrated but smooth and polished black cherry fruits with bright brilliant expressive notes of cinnamon and milk chocolate with fine tannins on a silky finish. 

RM 94 points. 

https://go.cellartracker.com/wine/3871559

Lewis Alec’s Blend 2017

A family favorite, commemorating the Randy and Debbie Lewis’ grandson Alec, and designated a ‘signature’ wine of our son Alec. 

We love Lewis Cellar’s and their wines, one of the highlights of the wine producer visit tastings at our Pour Boys 2017 Napa Wine Experience.

I've often written in these pages about the fun we have with this branding, with its signature 'L' on the label, ala Laverne and Shirley, or wife Linda, or her mother Lucy, or our daughter Erin Leigh, or her daughter, our first grandchild/daughter Lucy! That coupled with the Hoosier heritage of Randy Lewis, Indy 500 race driver from our native Indiana, and, their affinity to family, naming labels after their grandkids - Alec, Ethan and Mason, we adopted Alec's Blend as a signature label for son Alec and feature it at family celebrations.

Lewis Cellars Napa Chateau Tasting

Lewis Cellars Alec's Blend is a rich, full-bodied red wine from Napa Valley, primarily a Syrah-based blend with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc. It is known for its plush, fruit-forward profile with notes of dark berries, vanilla, and spice, and fine, polished tannins. The wine is made from grapes grown in top Napa appellations like Calistoga, St. Helena, and Rutherford.

Dark fruits (blackberry, blueberry, black cherry), vanilla, toffee, chocolate, espresso, and savory notes like pepper or bacon fat.

Afterwards, the family gathered for traditional neighborhood Fourth of July fireworks …