Showing posts with label 'V'. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 'V'. Show all posts

Monday, April 20, 2020

Viader V Petit Verdot 2000

Viader "V" Napa Valley Proprietary Red Blend 2000

We discovered and acquired this label during our visit to the Viader winery estate on the lower reaches of Howell Mountain during our Napa Valley Howell Mountain Wine Experience 2008. We have since acquired and still hold more than a half dozen vintages dating back to this 2000 release. 

The Viader 23-acre estate sits at 1200 foot elevation overlooking Napa Valley. The vineyards are planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Syrah. Viader is known for its Bordeaux-style blends. The elevation is notable as that is the height that the fog reaches above the valley floor and hence is the point at which below is designated Napa Valley, and above it designated Howell Mountain. This is due to the difference terroir due to the effects of the fog on the ripening vines. 

With son Alec engaged to Vivianna, this has become somewhat of a 'signature' wine for us and our future daughter-in-law.

Readers of these posts know we have a lot of fun with wine labels associated with family members and friends, as well as vintage specific wines for birthyears, anniversaries and memorable occasions.

Tonight, we video-conferenced with Vivianna and Alec celebrating her birthday together, albeit remotely and virtually. In this case our virtual visit was due to distance between Chicago and New York, and not the isolation due to the current Coronavirus pandemic. In commemoration of her and her special day we opened this vintage release of the ultimate 'V' label and shared it via video.

Another 'V' series of labels we enjoy with and in honor of Vivianna is from Venge Vineyards, as shown.

The 'V' is a testament to the producer and winemaker Delia Viader, a remarkable and impressive lady who was born in Argentina and educated in Europe before earning graduate degrees in the U.S., a notable role model for any career minded female. It is also the branding and label for this single-varietal designated wine that is based on the Bordeaux Varietal Petit Verdot.

Delia Viader spent much of her formative years in Europe and in France where she earned a doctorate in Philosophy from the Sorbonne University in Paris, then pursued advanced business studies in the US at MIT, UC Berkeley and UC Davis.

Recognizing the potential Napa Valley wine industry in the 1980's, Delia acquired the Howell Mountain property and set out to create a world class wine estate, and continued studying Enology and Viticulture at University of California, Davis.  During this time she also raised her four children in the wine environment and culture.

We had the pleasure of meeting Delia Viader during a producer tasting evening sponsored by Binny's here in Chicago back in 2005

Petit Verdot (“peh-tee vur-doe”) is used as a blending grape in red Bordeaux blends because of its full body, plentiful color, tannin and floral aromas of violet. Because of its boldness, Petitot Verdot typically comprises less than 5-10% of the blend and is rarely produced as a single-varietal wine.

In recent years, Petit Verdot has emerged as a increasingly popular single varietal offering and we have collected the varietal from several of our favorite producers including Spring Valley and Del Dotto. Viader were ahead of their time in offering this as a standalone offering back in the day.

To accompany this special wine, Linda prepared a spectacular meal complete with grilled stuffed mushroom caps with sausage, jalapeno and cheese. 

Viader "V" Napa Valley Proprietary Red Blend 2000

This released was awarded 92 points by Wine Spectator.



This is a blend primarily of Petit Verdot sourced from a 1.2-acre plot in the northeast corner of the estate of  where the soil is particularly rocky and the yields are incredibly small. The producer says, "in each vintage, these grapes are short on production but always long on personality".

The blend also contains some Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Only 353 cases were produced of this release.

Dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied, firm structured blackberry and black currant fruits, licorice, spice, leather with hints of menthol and dark mocha, finishing with bright acidity and dusty, fine tannins.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3022

https://viader.com/ 

Saturday, April 23, 2016

Viader 'V' 2002 Proprietary Napa Red Blend

Viader 'V' 2002 Proprietary Napa Valley Red Blend for gala family dinner

With son Alec visiting home from NYC with g-friend Viviana to run the Naperville 1/2 Marathon on her birthday weekend, it seemed only fitting we pull out a bottle of 'V' for our gala family dinner celebration. This might be considered the flagship label of Viader. The 'V' has a double significance - it stands not only for Viader, but it also represents Petit Verdot, the core varietal in this Bordeaux blend. We featured this wine BYOB from a Magnum with our dinner at Angeli's Italian, our favorite neighborhood trattoria.

We discovered this limited release wine during our visit to the Viader Estate on lower Howell Mountain back in 2008

The “V” label is an exclusive Viader blend of Petit Verdot, to showcase the unique character of the the Petit Verdot varietal.  The fruit is sourced from a small three quarter acre vineyard plot in the northeast corner of the Viader Estate where the ground is particularly rocky resulting in especially small yields rendering highly concentrated fruit. Petit Verdot typically represents a miniscule percentage of a Bordeaux blend. It is included for its dark color and firm backbone to complement the other varietals, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and or Cabernet Franc. 
 


labelViader 'V' Napa Valley Red Blend 2002

The blend for the 2002 release was 72% Petit Verdot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 3% Cabernet Franc, almost upside down from a 'normal' Bordeaux blend.


This was dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied, bursting with bright vibrant black raspberry, ripe plum and currant fruits, accented by a layer of mocha, hints of leather and earth on a tangy bright silky smooth but firm tannin lingering finish.

RM 93 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=70507

http://www.viader.com/ 




Saturday, May 23, 2015

Pichon Baron and Viader 'V' 1999 Flight

Château Pichon-Longueville Baron and Viader 'V' Highlight Birthday Surf-n-Turf Dinner

For a family gathering for a gala birthday dinner, L prepared the ultimate feast, lobster tails and filets of beef. To pair with the entree's we served Fritz Sonoma County Chardonnay and Pichon Baron Pauillac, one of my favorite reds. Following the Pichon we pulled from the cellar Viader 'V' Proprietary Red Blend from the same vintage for a mini horizontal comparison. Son Ryan brought from his cellar a Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape. To complete the dinner we had baked potatoes and sweet potatoes and haricut verts. We were joined by Ryan, Michelle, Erin, Johnnie and Marleigh, Lucy and Richie.

After dinner we had celebratory chocolate cake with ice cream. 

Bill and Beth joined later for the second round wines which also included a Groom Shiraz 2004 for the ladies while the men focused on the Bordeaux Blends.

Fritz Winery Sonoma County Russian River Valley Chardonnay 2008

Butter colored, medium bodied, slightly tart on opening with layer of acidity, tone of green apple, tropical fruits, hints of lemon and hints nutty almond. Tartness and acidity conflicted with lobster tail and lemon.

RM 86 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=772492






Château Pichon-Longueville Baron Pauillac Bordeaux 1999

Following the last couple UGC Bordeaux tastings where this wine was one of the standouts, I selected this from the cellar to showcase my birthday dinner. This is classic Bordeaux at its best. Even though we PNP - pop and poured this without decanting, it immediately resonated from the glass with classic Bordeaux bouquet and flavors of dark berry fruits, graphite, violets and hints of smoky tar, tobacco and cassis. Dark ruby  colored, medium bodied, polished and nicely balanced, soft and almost delicate for a Pauillac, the tongue coating fine tannins are silky smooth on the lingering finish. At sixteen, this is likely at its prime drinking now.


RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2339





Viader 'V' Proprietary Red Blend 1999


We acquired a couple vintages of this limited release flagship Bordeaux Blend at the winery during our 2008 Napa Valley Howell Mountain Wine Experience, and then several more vintages at auctions. We met winemaker and principle Delia Viader at the Viader tasting at the Chicago Lakeview  Binny's.

I recall from the tasting at the winery that this blend features a higher percentage of Petit Verdot accented by Cabernet Franc, to compliment the Cabernet Sauvignon, which manifests itself as more firm, greater backbone and more predominant lead pencil graphite tones propping up the black fruits.

Dark blackish garnet colored, medium bodied, this opened with an obtuse acidic edge of black cherry that took a half hour to shed. Over the course of the hour it gained complexity and depth with concentrated black fruits punctuated by pencil lead, creosote and tobacco leaf. The longer it was opened the more it took on a layer of sweetness with tones of dark chocolate/mocha and sweet oak with gripping tannins on the moderate finish. This too is likely at its apex now at fifteen years.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=25929

Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée 2003

Son Ryan brought this from his cellar for our celebration dinner.

This was tight and a bit closed with the fruits subdued and overtaken by a layer of black tea, tobacco leaf, with hints of creosote over the black berry fruits. This needs bold zesty bar-be-que to offset the tight firm black fruits and non-fruit layer.

RM 87 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=19857










Groom Barossa Valley Shiraz 2004

Fruit for this wine comes from vineyards directly adjacent to the renowned Penfolds Kalimna vineyard - source for their legendary Grange Shiraz, the Groom Kalimna Bush Block was planted with Shiraz in 1997 and produced its first crop in the 1999 vintage, and from another reputable quality Barossa vineyard, the Fechner Vineyard, which is home to 50 year-old vines.

This was fuller and richer than I remember from other vintages, dark garnet colored, full bodied with concentrated blackberry and black raspberry fruits accented by ripe plum, turning to a layer of caramel/mocha, vanilla and spice with hints of tar and leather on a chewy gritty tannin lingering finish. 

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=113265

http://www.groomwines.com/