Dowdell Napa Valley Soda Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

Dowdell Napa Valley Soda Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

After our wine-dinner, we did another cellar dive and Dan pulled out this unique single label limited release Napa Cabernet that he picked up at auction. 

This label was marketed by Wilson Daniels a wine marketing firm who 'use education and brand-building to develop mutually rewarding, long-term relationships and strategic partnerships with luxury producers' to market and promote 'high profile fine wines featuring top terroir, that are benchmarks in their region'. 

One boutique merchant wrote in their promotion of this wine, 'We believe the project was initiated for a specific buyer in mind. That didn’t pan out and the wine wound up in limbo. Very little made to market. We just discovered it and we bought every single bottle we could get.' 

Essentially, someone had excess fruit, or wine, or as they said, proceeded on a wine production project that then needed marketing, promotion and distribution, developing a label and a brand. Since they were not owner producers, not producing 'estate' wines, these projects are often 'one-hit wonders', or less, if and when they don't live up to their hype or lofty expectations. They are fun and interesting experiments and experiences - just don't get attached to them as you may not see a follow on encore

This was 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from a single block of the former Stagecoach Vineyard in Napa, on the lower reaches of the Vaca Range above Silverado Trail, north of Atlas Peak, south of Howell Mountain. The Stagecoach Vineyard is one of the most storied legendary vineyards in Napa Valley.  Stagecoach fruit has sourced scores of premium and ultra premium bottlings by many top winemakers and labels over the years. The property was recently sold to E.J. Gallo which has caused much consternation through the Napa wine community and makes this independent bottling even more unique as a single vintage release appellation specific designated bottling, not likely to be repeated again? Cellartracker records indicate three vintages released - but only reviews for this 2014. With the only vintage reference on the rear label, who knows?

This label was crafted by notable winemaker Thomas Brown. According to The Terroirist Wine Journal, "Thomas Brown is the nation's hottest winemaker." He has received many 100-point scores from Robert Parker and James Laube. He was Food & Wine Magazine’ "Winemaker of the Year." He has lead or advised winemaking at Chiarello, Schrader, Outpost, Maybach, Revana, TOR, C. Mondavi, Jones Family, Harris Estate, Hestan, Seaver, Black Sears, Casa Piena and more.

I wrote about Thomas Brown and Chiarello in an earlier blogpost. 

This was aged for 19 months in 3 kinds of French Oak - Tonnellerie, Remond and Berthomieu.

This is packaged in an ultra-premium oversize, heavy glass bottle with a super deep punt. Unfortunately, the wine does not quite live up to the presentation of the packaging. 

Dark blackish inky purple, medium-full bodied, this wine is more defined by what it is not, rather than what it is, not overly dramatic or inspiring, not overblown, over-extracted or over-oaked, smooth, soft, balanced blackberry and black raspberry fruits with notes of cassis and tar, a touch of leather and spice turning to hints of aromatic floral notes and creme caramel on a smooth tannin laced lingering finish. 

RM 90 points.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2955120

Chiarello Roux Old Vine Petite Sirah Baked Brie - Chocolate Rapberry Crust

Chiarello Family Vineyards Roux Old Vine Petite Sirah 2003 with Baked Brie and Chocolate Raspberry Crust

Tonight Linda prepared an incredible baked brie and a crusted chocolate and raspberry along with a cheese plate. To complement the selection, I pulled a unique imaginative hearty bold red wine, Chiarello Petit Sirah.

This label is from Chiarello Family Vineyards, owned by Michael Chiarello, who is better known for his role as a Napa Valley chef, Emmy-winning TV personality, author, and founder of NapaStyle. From his Chiarello Family Vineyards, he produces five estate grown wines from the 20-acres of vineyards that surround his home in St Helena in Central Napa Valley. The property contains vines going back nearly a century.

To realize the potential of the property sourced fruit, Chiarello enlisted one of the top "old vine" winemakers in Napa Valley, Thomas Brown, named 2010 "Winemaker of the Year," by Food & Wine Magazine.

Brown has been recognized as a master at creating rich, dynamic wines from the ultra-ripe fruit of older vines. From those old vines they craft award winning Zinfandel and Petit Sirah based wines.

Not to be confused with Syrah, Petite Sirah is a cross of Syrah and another grape varietal, Peloursin. Despite its popularity, this grape is quite rare with less than 10,000 acres planted worldwide, mostly in California.

Petit Sirah was long thought to be related to an obscure French grape called Durif. After DNA studies by Dr. Carole Meredith, a Napa Winery wine producer at Lagier Meredith on Mt Veeder. Carole was educated as a geneticist at the University of California at Davis and went on to work in the wine business at Mondavi. She specializes in growing Syrah varietal based wines at the Lagier Meredith estate high atop Mount Veeder. We met Carole when we visited Lagier Meredith during our Napa Valley, Mt Veeder Wine Experience back in 2011.

The hertiage of Durif goes back to France where it was an offspring of syrah, the noble grape of Hermitage and Côte-Rôtie, and the lesser-known varietal called peloursin.

Petite Sirah was often mistaken for the more popular varietal Zinfandel to be. In the early days of California winemaking, much of the early labels sold as Burgundy or Chianti were often actually sourced from a grape whose name never appeared on the label, the sturdy, blue-collar petite sirah.

 Today, Petit Sirah is often added to Zinfandel wines for backbone and deep color, but more and more it is produced standalone. Petite Sirah is increasing found in the stores, and it often commands a higher price than what might be considered a more pedestrian Zinfandel which may have a broader following. Because Petit Sirah may be the more nuanced and complex of the two, it has gained notoriety and captured a wide following and is becoming increasingly popular. Subsequent more recent releases of this label have received enviable ratings and scores and command prices above $50.

The Chiarello Family Vineyards 2008 Roux Old Vine Petite Sirah (St. Helena) A was awarded 93 points and was noted as "a beautiful wine, just what a Napa Petite Sirah should be: Dark, dry, tannic and muscular, showing leathery, meaty flavors, with hints of blackberries, chocolate and violets, and a sprinkling of pepper," by a leading critic.

Ironically, our selection tonight is the second wine in a row that we pulled from our cellar to drink that was crafted by winemaker Thomas Brown, following the Schrader Double Diamond Mayacamas Range Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon that we drank Sunday night.

Thomas Brown has become one of the most sought-after consulting winemakers in Napa Valley. Brown moved to Napa in 1996 and went to work for All Seasons Wine Shop in Calistoga. There he met Ehren Jordan, winemaker for Turley Wine Cellars. He joined Jordan in 1997 helping in the cellar and learned the craft.

After three years, Brown ventured out on his own, beginning with clients he inherited from Jordan, Outpost where he produced Howell Mountain Zinfandel, and Chiarello where he produced this Roux Old Vine Petit Sirah,  He went on to produce Pinot Noir and Chardonnay for Nicholson Ranch and the Cabernet Sauvignon we drank Sunday night from Schrader, and others for Tamber Bey and Frank Family. Brown went on to produce his own Pinot Noir and became managing partner of Ridgetop Partners, a project that in 2001 purchased 40 acres on the Sonoma coast near Annapolis and planted 14 acres of Pinot Noir.

Chiarello Family Vineyards Roux Old Vine Petite Sirah 2003

Interesting heavy weight bottle with its painted label rather than paper label affixed to the bottle, properties found in more expensive premium labels.

Consistent with our last tasting notes for this label, "This was dark inky black/purple colored, big full bodied, rich, concentrated but nicely balanced and polished blackberry and black cherry fruits with layers of mineral, licorice, Asian spices, hints of smokey creosote with nicely integrated oak on the lingering clinging tannin finish.'

"At fourteen years of age, this 2003 was drinking well and seemingly still at the apex of its drinking window, although certainly not likely to improve any with further aging."

Tonight this was still holding its own at seventeen years of age.

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=146614

http://www.chiarellovineyards.com/

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2018/12/chiarello-family-vineyards-petite-sirah.html

Schrader Double Diamond Mayacamas Range 2002

Double Diamond (Schrader) "Mayacamas Range" Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon 2002

For Sunday night casual dinner, Linda prepared a homemade grilled pizza and to go along, we pulled from the cellar this Schrader Double Diamond Cabernet. 

Fred Schrader has been producing critically acclaimed premium Schrader Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet since 1998. In 2001, he created Double Diamond to produce Napa Valley wines in the Schrader tradition of excellence and to make it available to a broader audience of wine lovers. 

We sourced this wine through auction from WineBid who writes of this label: "Fred Schrader founded Schrader Cellars in Calistoga in 1998 after making wine for six years with Ann Colgin, who was then his wife. Colgin-Schrader Cellars launched in 1992... Schrader and his wife parted ways and he started Schrader Cellars, where his Cabernet Sauvignons have earned outstanding reviews. His grapes come from two of Napa Valley’s most prestigious vineyards, the Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard in Oakville and the Beckstoffer Georges III Vineyard in Rutherford. Schrader's current winemaker is Thomas Rivers Brown, one of California's star winemakers. Robert M. Parker Jr. admires Schrader’s wines, and called the 2006 Schrader CCS Cabernet Sauvignon “utter perfection.” Parker rated it at 100 pts. Like other limited production Cult Cab producers in Napa Valley, Schrader Cellars wines generally sell out through its mailing list."

Double Diamond is Schrader's 'second' label, a more moderately priced brand of Fred Schrader Cellars. While the flagship Schrader brand sources fruit from the legendary Beckstoffer To-Kalon and other notable Napa Valley vineyards, Double Diamond is sourced from other vineyard sources in Napa and Sonoma. While the Shrader flagship wines sell for $200-$270, Double Diamond sells for closer to $50, more approachable for the rest of us.

Schrader writes of the Double Diamond label. "Over the years, we have sourced our grapes from prime vineyards on the mountaintops, hillside slopes, and gentle floor of the Napa Valley. In each situation, we find the ideal sweet spot of the vineyard that produces the most elegant, character-driven Cabernet possible. Dense and concentrated, with exceptional character and flavor."

Like the benchmark Schrader Cellars Cabernets, Double Diamond is also crafted by acclaimed winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown and his team. They strive to produce a "neighborly expression of Napa Valley Cabernet to enjoy every day." 

"Throughout the years, Double Diamond, crafted by winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown, has been sourced from a complement of prime vineyard estates in and around Napa Valley. From rocky, high-elevation soils to the warm, rich valley floor, each incredible vineyard contributes its unique character to this enticing and eminently satisfying Napa Cabernet."

We hold a half dozen vintages of Double Diamond labels sourced from several different vineyards including this from the Mayacamas Range in Sonoma County. All are small limited production releases.

As with much of our wine collecting, we have fun with this label as another whimsical play on names as our daughter-in-law hails from the Diamond family.

Double Diamond (Schrader) "Mayacamas Range" Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 

This 2002 Mayacamas Range release Double Diamond Cabernet got 89-91 points from Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar.

Our last tasting note for this label was back in 2011 when I wrote, "Medium bodied,  - dark berry fruits, blackberry, black raspberry and currant with hints of mocha and cassis with a subdued spicy, moderate tannin finish." Tonight this was similar although the sprites of sweet mocha have given way to more of the notes of smoke and creosote, but this is still enjoyable and holding its own at eighteen years.  

This was ideal with Sunday evening homemade pizza!

Ruby colored, medium bodied, concentrated bright berry and cherry fruits are accented by notes of smoke, creosote, cassis, and spices with firm tangy acidity and a moderate lingering tannin finish. 

RM 89 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=14836 

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2011/05/schrader-double-diamond-mayacamas-range.html

https://www.schradercellars.com/double-diamond/

@schradercellars

Chiarello Family Vineyards Petite Sirah Roux Old Vine 2003

Chiarello Family Vineyards Petite Sirah Roux Old Vine 2003

For a quiet relaxing evening watching Christmas movies with Linda over pizza, I pulled this aged Chiarello Vineyards Petit Shirah from the cellar as a literal and classic 'pizza wine' - aka moderately priced 'every day' wine for drinking with pizza. Based on the price I paid nearly a decade and half ago, this exceeded both of our expectations being big, fruit-filled, forward and complex. Researching it further I see I got a good deal on this wine at $20 as the ASP, average selling price today is $60 and $65 for later vintages. What a nice surprise to find this gem in the cellar!

I admit that prior to opening and tasting, and subsequently researching this label further to produce this blogpost, I don't recall having prior knowledge of this producer or winemaker.

This wine is produced by Michael Chiarello, noted Napa Valley chef, Emmy-winning TV personality, author, founder of NapaStyle, who applied his culinary skills and personal flair for layering flavors to a new challenge—making small productions of handcrafted estate wines. His small winery, Chiarello Family Vineyards, makes five estate grown wines from 20-acres  around his home in the central Napa Valley. This wine is from his 4-acre parcel of 96 year-old vines that yield a mere 100 cases of wine.

Chiarello is collaborating with Thomas Brown, one of the top "old vine" winemakers in Napa Valley, known for crafting rich, dynamic wines from the ultra-ripe fruit of from the 94-year-old Petite Sirah and Zinfandel vines on the Estate.  Thomas Brown was "2010 Winemaker of the Year," by Food & Wine Magazine.

Chiarello Family Vineyards and their wines have consistently been recognized with 90+ ratings and accolades - named Editors Pick, Top Scoring California Sirah (Wine Spectator) with a 92 Rating; Editors Pick, Top Scoring California Zinfandel (Wine Spectator) with a 90 Rating; Top Ten Bottle From Napa (Food & Wine Magazine) and In Napa, Zinfandels Show Off Their Grace, (New York Times, Frank Prial, 11/13/02).

Thomas Rivers Brown hails originally from South Carolina. After graduation from the University of Virginia he traveled the wine regions of France, and eventually made his way to Napa Valley in the mid-1990's. He worked with and earned the craft as cellar hand and lab enologist for notable winemakers Ehren Jordan and Larry Turley of Turley Wine Cellars. In 2000, Thomas got his chance to produce his own wines when he was appointed winemaker for the new winery project Chiarello Vineyards. 

Since then, in addition to Chiarello, Thomas has overseen winemaking operations or consulted for many well known Napa Valley wineries including Schrader, Outpost, Maybach, Revana, TOR, C. Mondavi, Jones Family, Harris Estate, Hestan, Seaver, Black Sears, and Casa Piena. He also has his own wine label, Rivers-Marie, where Thomas Brown focuses his efforts on Pinot Noir.
 
Thomas Brown has been called "the nation's hottest winemaker." by David White of The Terroirist Wine Journal., He is one of but a few winemakers globally to have received multiple 100-point wine scores from the penultimate wine critic Robert Parker Jr. of The Wine Advocate, as well as from wine noted critic, James Laube of The Wine Spectator. It was in 2010 that Thomas was honored as Food & Wine Magazine "Winemaker of the Year."

Chiarello Family Vineyards Petite Sirah Roux Old Vine 2003  

This was dark inky black/purple colored, big full bodied, rich, concentrated but nicely balanced and polished blackberry and black cherry fruits with layers of mineral, licorice, Asian spices, hints of smokey creosote with nicely integrated oak on the lingering clinging tannin finish.

At fourteen years of age, this 2003 was drinking well and seemingly still at the apex of its drinking window, although certainly not likely to improve any with further aging.

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=146614

http://www.chiarellovineyards.com/