Robert Craig Affinity Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Robert Craig Affinity Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Linda prepared a grilled beefsteak dinner that called for a hearty red wine so I pulled from the cellar Robert Craig Affinity Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. She finished up the Syrah from earlier in the week while I opened this bottle to enjoy with my grilled steak.

As I've written often in these pages, Robert Craig is one of our favorite Napa Valley producers and represents one of our largest holdings in our cellar. We've held many wine dinners with Robert and Lynn Craig and attended many events at the estate and winery. 

We visited Robert Craig's site high atop Howell Mountain several times with sister Jan and bro-in-law Bill, and Bill and Beth C. One of our memorable trips featured a picnic lunch at the site overlooking the  valley below shown below. It was during that trip that Bill discovered and subsequently sourced Howell Mountain Cabernet, Affinity and Robert Craig Zinfandel which they served at daughter Krista's wedding.

With Robert Craig at the estate high atop Howell Mtn
back in 2008.

We hold as many as two decades of Robert Craig vintages dating back to the inaugural vintage release in 1993. This label, Affinity, represents the Robert Craig Cabernet Sauvignon based blend of Cabernet Sauvignons and other Bordeaux varietals sourced from the various Napa Valley appellations.

Robert Craig flight of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons

Robert Craig offers at least five different Cabernet labels from what he used to refer to as 'three mountains and a valley', referring to his appellation designated premium labels from Mt Veeder, Howell Mtn and Spring Mountain. I recall on more than one occasion hearing Robert speak fondly of this label and the QPR - quality price ratio, and how he proudly held the price point of this wine to provide excellent value and be a draw to the Robert Craig brand. The appellation designated labels sold for twenty to thirty percent more. I wrote later about the discontinuation of the Mt Veeder label after two decades of being one of the flagship labels, and was Robert's favorite.

In late years, as Robert and co-owner wife Lynn retired and stepped down from running the daily business, the new owners raised the price point of this label from the high forty dollar range to upper sixty dollars, splitting the difference in the entry level price and the price point of the higher premium price appellation designated labels.

Robert Craig Affinity Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2008

I remember that we were in Bloomington, Indiana visiting son Alec at Indiana U, and we dined at Nick's bar, where we used to frequent when we were in college. I was astounded to see them serving this label, especially since as collectors of this producer and members of their club, it wasn't yet generally released. It turned out that a former employee of Craig Wines worked at Nick's in Bloomington and arranged earliest access to latest releases and acquired this wine for their wine selection. 

That was the first time we tasted this label, and we ended up acquiring a collection from the local Big Red liquors where it was already on the store shelves. 

We tasted a posted notes on this wine in 2011 and then again in 2019.

So, it was fun and only fitting perhaps, that I took this wine over to Alec's to drink with grilled Wagu beefsteaks we picked up at Mariano's, for dinner and to watch Indiana play in the quarter-final game of the Big Ten basketball tournament. Alec had also recently tasted this label brought by a friend to their home just the week before so he was eager to share a photo of tonights' selection with that friend. 

Tonight, this was consistent with my earlier tastings when I wrote of this wine back in 2011, "Dark inky color, medium-full bodied, concentrated full round black berry, black cherry, and ripe plum fruits with accents of spice and cedar on smooth moderate tannin lingering finish."

RM 92 points. 

Fellow Cellartracker, brianofthevine  sums up this wine well in his tasting note, "At 10 years of age, this is drinking very nicely right now! Blackberry, wild berry, and black cherry fruit up front. Notes of espresso, dark chocolate, licorice, with subtle spice and minerals on the mid-palate. Still has some firm, supple tannins with a nice long finish. The extra age has really done this wine justice."

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=980053 

https://www.robertcraigwine.com/index.cfm

@RobertCraigWine

Special Silver Oak Birthyear wines for Festive Holiday Open House

Special Silver Oak Birthyear wines for Festive Holiday Open House

Son Alec and d-in-law Viviana hosted a festive holiday open house so I brought from our cellar two special bottles - birthyear vintage wines of Silver Oak, labels. Tonight was a fitting occasion for a birthyear vintage bottle for Alec and Viv since this is their first holiday in their new home and as a family with their baby daughter. 

Every wine lover, and even casual wine folks know Silver Oak. I'd call it a cult wine since it has such a large devoted following but it has such broad appeal that I don't think cult does it justice. 

Ray Duncan founded Silver Oak with Justin Meyer in 1972, it’s now owned and operated by Ray’s sons, David and Tim. Silver Oak is famous for their Napa and Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignons that aged in oak before release introducing many to the effect and impact it has on a quality California Cabernet. Silver Oak have large 40000 case production and do a remarkable job managing their signature Oak profile, much like Caymus and some others. 

Silver Oak became notable for aging their wines exclusively in American oak, determining that it is best suited and most applicable to achieving the flavor profile that has become synonymous with the brand. Silver Oak have a reputation for producing exceptional, food-friendly wines that are both drinkable upon release and worthy of cellaring for decades to come.

We had the unique pleasure of visiting and touring the Cooper's Oak Winery and OAK Cooperage, source of their distinctive American Oak barrels during our Missouri Wine Experience last year.  

Silver Oak's flagship winery and vineyards are in the center of Napa Valley. They also operate vineyard properties, winemaking facilities, tasting rooms and s cooperage in Sonoma County, Alexander Valley.

Silver Oak are unique among most large production Napa and Sonoma producers in that they focus primarily on the production of just one wine from each appellation: Silver Oak Napa Valley and Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignons.

Robert Parker writes in Wine Advocate: "One of America's favorite Cabernet Sauvignon producers, Silver Oak Cellars produces over 40,000 cases of their Alexander Valley and Napa Valley cuvees. As I have said so many times in the past, it is hard to dislike a Silver Oak Cabernet as they are ripe, deliciously well-oaked, soft, plump, multi-layered, and silky."

We served Silver Oak birthyear vintage bottles at their gala Covid restricted minimized wedding celebration dinner.I featured that festive celebration dinner and wine flight in these pages in this blogpost, Big Bottle Birthyear wines for Wedding Celebration.

We then served Alec's birthyear vintage Silver Oak special single vineyard select Bonny's Vineyard Cabernet from a large format six-liter bottle at their wedding celebration weekend a year later, featured in this blogpost, Big Bottle Birthyear wines for Wedding Celebration. 

We served a special large format (six liter Imperials) birthyear bottle of Silver Oak (Bonny's Vineyard) for that gala event. We also served Silver Oak Bonny's Vineyard from the 1982 vintage at our eldest son Ryan's wedding, as well as several other birthyear special wines.  The single vineyard designated label is very rare given the exclusivity of small production from the 2 acre vineyard. 

This has become the custom in our family celebrations, we served a couple of large format six liter bottles of wine from our kids' birthyear vintage from our cellar. We did so at each of their weddings

I've written often about our cellar and our collection of verticals, horizontals, big large format bottles and birthyear vintages. And I've written about 'signature' producers featured in that collection - Silver Oak is one of those signature producers. Our affinity and reverence for this producer and their wines spans decades, and memorable family events and celebrations. According to our Cellartracker records, our Silver Oak cellar holdings still consists of 49 bottles and 2 pending in 23 spanning different vintages/labels) wines, including large format magnums of each of the four kids' birthyears, and another remaining six liter bottle of Bonny's vineyard like the one we served at their wedding welcome reception.

Alec and Viv served up a broad selection of cheeses, charcuterie, bruschetta, shrimp cocktail and dips - a great showcase accompaniment to these aged wines. They also served a selection of sparkling wine, white and red wines including Stag's Leap Artemis, Orin Swift Saldo. 

Tonight, these wines actually showed better than that earlier tasting, likely due to bottle variations or provenance of aging over two decades since they were acquired at auction over that period of time.

Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1990 Alexander Valley 1991

Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1990

Both of these aged bottles, at 31 and 32 years were well preserved with perfect labels, foils, and importantly, ideal fill levels half way in the neck, reduced less about 3/8 inches from being perfect fill, and near perfect corks. 

Producer's notes on this release: "The 1990 Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has a deep tawny color at its core with light rust edges. The fading coconut characteristic is complemented by molasses and freshly sawn redwood and rose petals. It has a light entry but is soft and inviting with medium depth and cedar flavors on the mid-palate. It has a focused and somewhat tapering finish of raspberry, proving to be an elegant and balanced wine with solid back-end structure. Decanting may be necessary due to light sediment. Enjoy now."

Winemaker Notes: "The Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has an intense ruby-red color and has the classic Silver Oak nose of cassis, blackberry jam, violets, chocolate, roasted coffee and ginger. This wine is full and rich in the mouth with a very long, slightly tannic finish."

Robert Parker gave this release 93 points writing in Robert Parker's Wine Advocate back in 1994, "The 1990 Napa Cabernet exhibits a Graves-like bouquet of tobacco, cassis, minerals, and spice. Chewy and full-bodied, with stunning extraction of fruit, this velvety wine should drink well for 12-15 years."

While past its prime, apex of its drinking window, this will not improve any further with aging, but is holding its own and will likely remain at this level of its drinking window for a couple more years.

Consistent with previous tasting of this label back in June of '19. Dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, this had bright ruby garnet color, very slight bricking at the rim, with the black cherry and black berry fruits having given way to the predominant signature nose and flavor of infused sweet oak layer for which the brand is known and famous.

The black cherry and black berry fruit was subdued, somewhat Bordeaux like with accent by notes of spice, black tea and tobacco leaf with tangy acidity and soft moderate tannins on the lingering tangy finish.

This was more complex and concentrated but more subdued than the bright more tangy acidic bright expressive 1991.

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/notes.asp?iWine=20741

https://www.silveroak.com/

Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1991

Producer note; "The 1991 Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has a dense, rich, crimson hue with slight bricking. The aromatics are complex and very interesting with notes of sandalwood, caramel, black pepper, cedar and strawberry fruit. It has a moderate entry, with espresso bean flavors and a finish buttressed by fresh acidity. On the finish, leather and Roquefort linger on the palate. Decanting recommended due to light sediment. Enjoy now."

Winemaker Notes: "The 1991 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has a youthful glow, with an opaque crimson hue and no signs of bricking. It offers aromas of blackberry compote and sandalwood. It is a full-bodied wine upon entry, but is dominated by ample acidity and coffee flavors on the mid-palate. The finish has moderate length, lively tannins and flavors consistent with the mid-palate. Decanting suggested."

This label release was awarded 92 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, and 91 points by Wine Spectator, one of  their *Highly Recommended, Top 100 Wines of 1995*.

This bottle was pleasantly dramatically different than that last tasting in 2019 of this label release, when it showed diminution from aging, past its prime and nearing the end of its drinking window. Tonight, this exceeded expectations, showing life remaining in its drinking window with little if any diminution from aging.

Dark ruby color, medium full bodied, bright full expressive tangy dark plum, cherry and black currant fruits with herbs, spics and notes of sweet oak on the acidic long finish.

 

RM 90 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=25548 

https://silveroak.com/  

@SilverOak

Father Son World Cup wine tasting

Father Son World Cup meet up and leftovers wine tasting 

Son Ryan came over to watch the USA-England soccer match and brought a couple wines left from their Thanksgiving holiday feast. I served up the remains of one of our's, a favorite wine left over from our dinner the other night. 

What great fun it is to share our wine interests together and experience the convergence of our respective cellar collections in producers' labels such as this one.  We've both have amassed a collection of Fantesca Napa Valley Spring Mountain District wines - Ryan most recently, collecting their ultra-premium special labels, while our collection goes back to the inaugural release and the ensuing early years. 

We first met producers Dwayne and Susan Hoff when they acquired the Spring Mountain property in St Helena in February 2004 and Fantesca was founded. Dwayne visited us in Chicago during one of his early promotion tours for the 2004 release of Fantesca Cabernet in 2006.

We tasted and acquired our early releases of this producer when we visited the Fantesca Estate and Winery on Spring Mountain in Napa Valley during our Napa Wine Experiences. We visited Fantesca during our Napa Valley Spring Mountain Experience in the autumn of 2009, and earlier during our Napa Wine Experience 2007, and again in 2011.

 We hold a vertical collection of more than a dozen vintages of Fantesca with their classy etched bottles, one of our favorites that we hold for special occasions and for special gifts.

 

In early 2008, Fantesca signed on veteran winemaker Heidi Peterson Barrett, whose Napa Valley resume includes winemaking stints at Screaming Eagle, Dalla Valle, and her own La Sirena.

 

Fantesca Estate and Winery Napa Valley "All Great Things - Honor" 2011 

 

This label "All Great Things" is Heidi Barret's annual Bordeaux blend produced for Fantesca - a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc.  

 

This is the third release of the series, which is inspired by the words of Winston Churchill:  “All great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope.”  

 

Each vintage release commemorates one of those notable words from the legendary Churchill quote - freedom (2015), justice (2016), honor (2011, 2017), duty (2012, 2018), mercy (2013), and hope (2014) - this one christened the (first) "Honor" release.

Dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, layers of firm bright black fruits with notes of dusty cedar, aged leather and spice, with notes of mocha chocolate and plum, with moderate tannins on the finish.

 

RM 92 points.  

 

https://www.cellartracker.com/notes.asp?iWine=2989151

 

http://www.fantesca.com

 

@FantescaWine -  https://twitter.com/FantescaWine

 

Boroli Brunella Barolo 2015 

Ryan then opened this vintage Barolo from Achille Boroli.

The Boroli family roots in Piedmont date back to as early as 1831. The family were entrepreneurs in the publishing business until Silvano and Elena Boroli set out to reconnect with venturing into winemaking business in 1997. 

The Baroli estate vineyards are located in the heart of Barolo in the towns Castiglione Falletto (Cascina La Brunella) and Barolo (Borgata Cerequio). All Barolo production and refinement takes place in the wine-making and ageing wineries at Cascina La Brunella, in the town of Castiglione Falletto. 

As an integration of the historic Cascina La Brunella, a new winery was built and opened in 2006, with all the modern building technologies.

Silvano and Elena Boroli managed the company 2012 when their son, Achille, stepped in to run the wine-growing and production business.

Achille Boroli grew up in the wine business and experienced every facet of winemaking shadowing the family's winery winemaker - tending to the grapes, blending the wines, tasting barrel samples - all aspects of  vineyard management and winemaking techniques. 

With the 2012 vintage, Achilles set upon to aim for the highest quality in Barolo achievable from their estate, applying the most meticulous methods in the vineyards and winery - cutting production levels, updating the winemaking technology, applying low intervention methods to raise the quality of the Boroli wines to the highest level, on par with the finest Barolo wines.

 

Boroli Brunella Piedmont Barolo 2015 

 

Barolo Brunella is 100% Nebbiolo, sourced from a single 7 acre estate vineyard in the territory of Castiglione Falletto, situated at the extreme western point of the ridge of Villero. It has vines with an average age of vines 40 years, was aged in large oak barrels (1000-1500L) for 18 months, and settled at least 1 year in bottle before release. It was first released in 2013.

 

Winemaker Notes for the 2015 release: "A clear ruby red color, with very light orange reflections. A net aroma in which licorice stands out at first, immediately followed by a fruity scent; the aroma makes you scent it again and again to discover different and pleasant facets. The fruity aroma magnificently prevails after a few minutes in the glass. A very enveloping, fresh and harmonious taste, with a delicate and tasty presence of wood. A long lasting taste that invites to sip it slowly again and again."

 

This release was awarded 93 points by James Suckling.

Bright ruby colour, medium bodied, elegant, smooth and polished fresh plum and cherry berry fruits with hints of licorice, mocha, fresh cloves and baking spices, with velvety mouthfeel with a persistent lingering soft sweet oak laced tannin finish. 

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3652155

  

https://www.boroli.it/en/

 

https://twitter.com/borolivini  

@borolivini

 

Piazza Del Dotto Napa Valley Sangiovese 2016 

I then opened this Sangiovese left over from our dinner earlier in the week that we opened with Linda's spaghetti and meatballs. This has become our favorite go-to wines for Italian dining. I wrote in detail about Del Dotto Napa Valley wines and their history producing Sangiovese in an earlier blogpost.

 

  We tasted and acquired this wine at the Piazza Winery Delicacies Wine and Food Tasting Experience during our Napa Valley Wine Experience 2018. We had previously tasted and acquired the 2015 release a year earlier at our Napa Valley Del Dotto Estate Cave Tour and Barrel Tasting in 2017. 

This is the last bottle of a couple of cases of this label we acquired during those visits. We've been trying to obtain more of this label and haven't seen it available on the Del Dotto shopping site or in the marketplace. We're hoping to find more. 

As we have written in recent tasting reviews of wine acquired during this Estate visit, this label is from Piazza Del Dotto, Del Dotto's newest project, a new winery south on St Helena Highway featuring an Italian-inspired “barchessa,” or barn, magnificently appointed with tasting rooms and dining areas. It is surrounded by fountain gardens with al fresco tasting cabanas, vegetable gardens, 17^th century fountains and an outdoor barn with turkeys, peacocks, pheasants and doves. There are wine caves as well, all surrounded by 8.5 acres of cabernet sauvignon vineyards.

This is Estate grown fruit, I believe from the Rutherford vineyards that surround the Venetian Estate Winery & Caves, the site for the Del Dotto cave tours and barrel tastings.

This was ruby colored medium full bodied, delicious sweet ripe raspberry fruits accented by notes of sweet vanilla, cedar, tobacco and almond with supple smooth silky tannins on the lingering finish.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3038663

http://www.deldottovineyards.com/ 

 

https://twitter.com/DelDottoWine

 

@DelDottoWine

Gala Family Celebration calls for for birthyear wine

Gala Family Celebration get-together opportunity for a birth-year wine

The family gathered at son Sean's and Michelle's to celebrate granddaughter Lavender's first birthday and got a surprise announcement. Opening her first birthday gift produced a t-shirt that read, "I'm going to be a Big Sister!

Notably, I had already pulled from the cellar and brought a bottle of wine from Sean's birth year for the occasion. 

Inglenook Napa Valley "Reunion" Estate Bottled Red Wine 1985

This label is from the storied label that was one of the original pioneers producing wine in northern California and Napa Valley. 

Inglenook was founded in 1879 by Finnish sea captain Gustave Niebaum and produced perhaps the best wines in the valley until it closed in the early 1900s due to Prohibition. 

Niebaum died in 1908, but his widow re-opened the winery in the '40s and the winery returned to its earlier eminence as a top Napa producer. 

Movie producer Francis Ford Coppola enriched with cash from the legendary Godfather movies, bought 1,500 acres of vineyards from the brand in the mid-'70s. 

Under his stewardship and direction, the winery kept producing high quality wines until it was sold several times in rapid succession in the years after this vintage went into bottle. 

Several decades of producing not up-to-par quality wines ended in 2014 when Coppola purchased the name of the winery (for a ton of cash) with the hope of returning the brand to its former glory. 

The flagship Napa Cab label for the estate is Rubicon which we saw manifested on the producer's vanity plate while at lunch down the road from the estate.  

This is the Bordeaux varietal from the historic label that I acquired at auction over the years, from son Sean's birth-year vintage to hold and open for some fitting occasion such as tonight. 

This Reunion label is sourced from the three historic Inglenook estate vineyards that sit on the magnificent expansive historic property on the edge of the Napa Valley up against the Mayacamas foothills on the west side of Rutherford. 

We visited and toured the estate (right) during our Napa Valley Wine Experience in 2009. 

This was awarded 91 points by Wine Spectator back in 1989 

Our Cellartracker records indicate we acquired several bottles of this label back in 2009. A decade later this bottle showed a stained label, good filled level and a somewhat soft cork that threatened to pull apart but with care was extracted in whole using a traditional waiter's corkscrew. 

The color was dark garnet colored, medium bodied, at 37 years this was showing its age but was still consumable - the tangy dark cherry and plum flavors were overtaken by a funky barnyard earthiness and wet wood that burned off after close to an hour - but was still a bit astringent with notes of tobacco, oaky spice cedar and black tea with modest tannins on the tangy acidic finish.

RM 85 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=208179

Lillian California Syrah 2016

An interesting wine I had never heard of or seen before, Ryan brought this premium artisan Syrah from his cellar. 

This is from winemaker Maggie Harrison who worked at legendary Sine Qua Non for eight years.

First released in 2004, she sources fruit for this small production artisan label from the prestigious White Hawk Vineyard in Santa Barbara County. 

She produces this Lillian Syrah and a some other labels from vineyards sources such as the Bien Nacido Vineyard in Santa Maria Valley, and the Stolpman Vineyard in the Santa Ynez Valley.

Lillian wines are crafted from Rhone varietals — Roussanne, Syrah and Grenache, and Cabernet Sauvignon. 

Lillian shares a winemaker, winery, and tasting room with Antica Terra, in Dundee, OR, as noted on the label, but the wine is designated California Syrah, attributing the vineyard sources of the fruit. 

Ryan opened this bottle the night before and noted the fruit was more muted than when opened. 

Dark inky purple colored, medium full bodied, tight, structured, bold, forward, concentrated black fruits with notes of cedar and hints of cassis, pepper and smoke. 

RM 91 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3042313

https://www.lillianwinery.com/

Melka CJ Napa Valley Cabernet BYOB at Carnivore & Queen

Phillippe Melka 'CJ' Napa Valley Cabernet BYOB at Carnivore & Queen

We went out to dinner with son Sean and d-in-law Michelle and dined at Carnivore & The Queen in adjacent Downers Grove, IL. I took from our wine cellar BYOB this Napa Valley Red wine to accompany our entree dinner selections - NY Strip Steak and Bone-in Veal Chop. 

 

Closing in on celebrating our grandaughter's, Sean and Michelle's daughter, Lavender's first birthday, this was a fun choice with its whimsical label with the child's hand-prints on the label and foil, as this label is named for and dedicated to the winemakers' two children. 

There's another reason I selected this label, from producer Phillippe Melka, a producer we know well and hold several of his labels across two decades of vintages. Phillippe was the mentor for Eric White of Galena Cellars Vineyards and Winey in Galena, IL, whom we met during our stay in the estate guest house during our getaway holiday week before last.

Philippe and co-proprietors and co-winemaker for Melka Estates, wife, Cherie Melka produce four distinct brands that reflect their philosophy of soil driven wines:  Métisse from Napa Valley, Mekerra from Sonoma Valley, Majestique from sites around the world and CJ, also from Napa Valley.

Both Philippe and Cherie are both academically prepared for their distinctive careers and achievement in winemaking.  Philippe having degrees in Geology, Agronomy and Enology; and Cherie in Microbiology from the US and a diploma in French Studies from the University of Bordeaux III. 

Philippe learned winemaking and vineyard techniques from legendary prestigious estates such as Haut Brion, Chittering Estate, Badio O Coltibuono, the Moueix domains and Dominus.  Cherie was more self-taught as a enologist gaining her wine knowledge from equally impressive estates such as Ridge Vineyards, Beaulieu and Silver Oak Cellars.  Their combined science backgrounds and extensive experience in the industry make them a perfect team in their winemaking endeavors.

The Melka brand started in 1996, when Philippe and Cherie moved back to Napa Valley from France and set out to produce their own brand, despite each working for different wineries.  They started modestly with only two wines in 1996, Métisse and CJ for a total case production of 500.

After years of consulting, Philippe and Cherie opened up Melka Wines, in 1996, celebrating their first vintage of a Bordeaux styled Red Wine labeled Melka Metisse with a total production of 500 cases. Soon after, Melka’s success would eventually lead him to 3 more labels, the Mekerra, Majestique and the first vintage of CJ in 1996, the year Jeremy was born with production of only 200 cases.

Melka Estates started with Philippe and Cherie Melka sourcing fruit for their first two labels, two wines  named in honor of their two children Chloe and Jeremy and Metisse. They have since grown to four collections, CJ (a red blend very approachable in its youth sourced from premium vineyards throughout the Napa Valley), Metisse (a word that means ‘blend of cultures’ with wines from the Napa Valley), Mekerra (from the property they own in Sonoma County) and Majestique (single vineyard wines from outside of the Napa Valley). As a footnote, one quickly realizes the affinity the Melka’s have for the letter ‘M’.

Philippe grew up in Bordeaux, earned his degree in Geology at the University of Bordeaux and later his Master’s degree in Agronomy and Enology. His first wine job was at Château Haut Brion in Bordeaux. His first introduction to the Napa Valley came in 1991 as an intern with Christian Moueix, proprietor of Chateau Petrus in Bordeaux and Dominus in Napa Valley. Philippe came to Dominus to study soils – then spent a few years as a traveling winemaker and ultimately settled in the Napa Valley in 1994.

Melka CJ Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

Cherie earned a degree in Microbiology at Northern Arizona University and worked for a while in pharmaceuticals as a laboratory technician. In 1989, she moved to California and took her first winery job for Paul Draper at Ridge Vineyards where she ran the lab for five years. It was here that she met Philippe who was working the vineyards.

The list of Napa wineries that Philippe has worked with over the years reads like a whose whose list of the valley – Alejandro Bulgheroni Estate, Brand, Bryant Family, Dana Estates, Lail, Hundred Acre and Tusk Estate among many other well-regarded brands.

The vineyards that contribute to the making of Melka wines are sourced from relationships with growers over the 20 years that they’ve been making this wine. Two primary sources of fruit for CJ are Soda Canyon, a unique area in Napa Valley near Oakville with hillside fruit, and Broken Rock has brought more fresh crushed rocks, good acidity and more massive tannins. 

This was a perfect complement to my NY Strip grilled beefsteak and sauteed portabella shiitake mushrooms with red wine reduction, and, the Dark Chocolate Flowerless Torte cake for dessert. 

At eighteen years, the fill level, label and cork were perfect. This was most likely at the apex of its drinking window and profile and will not likely improve with further age, but should last up to another decade.  

This is a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Petit Verdot.

This release got 92 points from Wine Spectator.

 Dark inky garnet colored, full bodied, firm, structured, tight, concentrated ripe, rich and lush blackberry and wild berry fruits with pointed notes of gritty eucalyptus cedar notes, black tea, dark mocha and cigar box with firm focused tannins on the finish. 

RM 92 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=283194

https://www.melkaestates.com/

https://twitter.com/MelkaEstates

https://carnivoreandthequeen.com/

Long Shadows Saggi BYOB at Angeli's Italian

Long Shadows Saggi BYOB at Angeli's Italian

Son Alec and d-in-law Vivianna treated us to a Anniversary celebration dinner at  Angeli's Italian, our customary favorite neighborhood trattoria. I took BYOB from our cellar this Sangiovese Blend, one of our favorite best drinking bottles in our cellar right now for an Italian cuisine dinner.

Long Shadows Vintners Series Saggi Sangiovese Red Blend 20162016

We discovered and acquired this wine during our Woodinville, WA Wine Experience back in 2015. As I have written in these pages, this is a selection of the Long Shadows Vintners Collection, a portfolio of seven ultra-premium wines showcasing the viticulture of the Washington State Columbia Valley growing region and the artwork and expertise of internationally acclaimed winemakers who crafted them.

Long Shadows was founded in 2003 by Washington State wine legend Allen Shoup, former Chairman and CEO of Chateau St Michelle, one of the premiere wine producers in the State. There he evangelized Washington Wines and championed collaboration with notable winemakers from around the world. Upon retiring, he started Long Shadows with a vision to produce the best, art of the possible wines showcasing/featuring the region's grapes, each produced by a world renowned winemaker reputed for producing grapes of that varietal.  Each vintner had access to Washington State's best grapes and a winery to outfitted to accommodate a their exacting cellar specifications. The idea was a resounding success as the wines have received critical acclaim that grown with each vintage. The Long Shadow collection went on to win numerous awards, including recognition as Food & Wine magazine's "Winery of the Year."

The Saggi label is a Sangiovese blended from top Washington State vineyards, from Candy Mountain, a warm area of the Columbia Valley adjacent to Red Mountain that produces fruit with ripe, black currant aromas and flavors. From the cooler growing conditions in the Yakima Valley, the Boushey Vineyard produces Sangiovese that is lively red currant with bright strawberry notes. Saggi also contains Cabernet Sauvignon, from the Weinbau Vineyard in the Wahluke Slope AVA, which contributes  structure and texture. Also in the blend is Syrah from the Bacchus and Den Hoed Dutchman vineyards, that add depth and complexity.

We talk about Den Hoed and their wines and our family connection in an earlier blogpost from our Seattle, Woodinville trip. 

Saggi, is crafted by the father-son team of Ambrogio and Giovanni Folonari, one of Italy’s oldest and most prestigious Tuscan wine families from A. & G. Folonari Tenute that produces a collection of small, ultra-premium wines from the family's numerous Tuscan estates. The Folonaris teamed with Allen Shoup to produce a wine that showcases Washington State's terroir with plenty of Italian character. Saggi (meaning "wisdom") is a blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah.

Long Shadows founder Allen Shoup originally met the Folonaris through mutual friend Piero Antinori. It was Allen who introduce Piero to Washington State while at the helm of Chateau Ste. Michelle, and it was Piero's regard for the vineyards of the Columbia Valley that piqued the Folonaris interest in creating a wine true to Washington terroir with plenty of Tuscan character.  Gilles continues that tradition, honoring the quality and style of wines the Folonairs inspired. 

From 2006, Long Shadows director of winemaking and viticulture Gilles Nicault collaborated with the Folonaris on Saggi's vineyard sourcing, winemaking and blending.  For this 2016 release , Gilles assumed complete winemaking responsibilities for Saggi.

We replaced this bottle with the current latest release from our most recent Club allocation shipment from the winery. We're members of the Long Shadows wine club and hence get regular Vault Key Club release allocation shipments of their top labels of which we share our case lot with Alec and fellow Pour Boy wine buddy,  Dr Dan. We've written in these pages about the Vintners Collection wherein Long Shadows collaborates with world class winemakers to craft varietal compositions from Washington State fruit. 

 

We tasted and posted about the latest 2018 release of this label just last week from our Pour Boys Wine Dinner,

Tonight's tasting was consistent with earlier tastings of this label, earlier this year and back in 2019. 

In January of this year -https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2022/01/saggi-long-shadows-sangiovese-red-blend.html ... and previously back in June of 2019 ....

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2019/06/american-sangiovese-for-italian-dinner.html

Vibrant and lively, this weighty Sangiovese-dominant blend offers enticing aromas and flavors of red berries and currants with an appealing hint of nutmeg and sweet spice. An elegant and refined wine, its bright acidity pops on the palate with expressive red fruit character that echoes across a long-lasting finish.

The 2016 Saggi is mostly Sangiovese at 60%, but has 29% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Syrah.

Bright ruby-colored, medium bodied, nicely balanced and polished, black cherry fruits are accented by with notes of spice box, dried flowers and hints of cedar and vanilla, smooth sweet tannins linger on a clean, graceful finish.

RM 92 points.

This was rated 94 points by James Suckling and 92 points by Wine Advocate,  91 points by Wine Enthusiast, and 90 points by Vinous.

Wine Advocate Jeb Dunnuck gave it 92 points noting, "It's certainly one of the best expressions of Sangiovese from Washington."

https://www.cellartracker.com/barcode.asp?iWine=3096196

http://longshadows.orderport.net/product-details/0536/2016-Saggi

 

Family Holiday BBQ Wine Cook-out

Family Holiday BBQ Wine Cook-out Features Family Favorites

Son Ryan and D-in-law Michelle hosted the family for a traditional Independence Day holiday cook-out and we opened several nice wines for the occasion. 

We enjoyed family, yard games with the traditional competitions in 'bags' and other, and culminating the day with celebratory fireworks.

Ryan smoked beef brisket and chicken and opened from his cellar a medley of whites and reds and I brought a couple reds for the occasion.

 

Cliff Lede Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2019

We've written much about Cliff Lede wines in these pages, one of our favored producers. The Cliff Lede winery estate and vineyards with their picturesque sculpture gardens at Yountville Cross Road and Silverado Trail are one of our popular visits during our many trips to Napa Valley. One of the more memorable was our private tour and tasting during our Napa Wine Experience 2009.

Normally one of our go-to wines we keep stocked for pleasurable casual sipping, today, we were introduced to a new label (below) from down under, one Ryan considers one of his go-to wines. 

This is a blend of 85% Sauvignon Blanc, 12% Sémillon, 3% Sauvignon Vert.  The juice was fermented in 68% French oak barrels, 30% stainless steel tanks, and 2% concrete eggs. 

This was awarded 93 Points by Wine Enthusiast and 90 Points by Wine Spectator.

Straw colored, light bodied, complex and structured but rather restrained, notes of melon and apple with hints of lemon meringue, tangerine with crushed rock and stone on the finish.

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3710508

https://cliffledevineyards.com/

@CliffLedeWine 

 

Cloudy Bay New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc 2020 

I failed the blind tasting of these wines even with a fifty fifty chance of getting it right. I swore the Cloudy Bay was the Cliff Lede with its sprites of peach fruit. This overshadowed the Lede, normally one of my favored Sauv Blancs. 

Founded in 1985 by David Hohnen and winemaker Kevin Judd their Sauvignon Blanc put New Zealand wine on the map. Cloudy Bay joined Veuve Clicquot in 2003 and became part of the LVMH family in 2010.

Cloudy Bay’s legacy began in Marlborough with Sauvignon Blanc and now includes Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pelorus méthode traditionnelle. The spirit of adventure continues with Te Koko, a barrel-fermented Sauvignon Blanc, and Te Wahi, a sophisticated Central Otago Pinot Noir from their two special southern vineyards.

Winemaker Notes: "The 2020 Sauvignon Blanc is bright and focused, with appealing and expressive aromatics of ripe grapefruit, makrut lime and passionfruit on the nose. The palate is mouth-watering , with zesty lime, lemongrass and juicy stone fruit characters melding together, underpinned by a subtle minerality. The vibrant concentrated fruit and freshness bestow poise and balance, and lead though to a long and impressive finish. A wine that will age gracefully for many years."

Straw colored, light bodied, aromas of floral, fresh and vibrant with aromatics of bright citrus, kaffir lime, orchard blossom and passion fruit, flavors of peach predominate with a crisp clean sharp tangy finish.

RM 91 points

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3767494

https://www.cloudybay.com/en-us/

@CloudyBay 

Philip Melka CJ Cabernet Sauvignon 2001

For a family gathering I brought from our cellar a family oriented wine, this label a tribute to Philippe and Cherie Melka's children with its child's handprints on the label. I took this in tribute to our two new granddaughters additions to our family this year, Lavender and Marylin.

We've recently been enjoying Philippe Melka's handicraft in the Long Shadows Vintners Series with his Pirouette label. 

When I last wrote about this label a year ago I said, 'at twenty years this is clearly past its prime drinking window and starting to diminish from age', but that was refuted tonight with this bottle. 

The fill level and label were perfect and the cork was near so as well. There were no signs of the cloudiness reported in that earlier note, leaving me to believe that tasting was an aberrant bottle. Tonight, this resembled and was consistent with previous, earlier tasting notes.

This was dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, the vibrant dark blackberry fruits were accented by earthy flavors of cedar and tobacco with notes of tar, smoke and hints of mocha.

RM 91 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=19571

https://www.melkaestates.com/

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2021/07/phillip-melka-cj-napa-cab-2001.html

@MelkaEstates

Fleury Estate Lauren Bryce Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

Ryan collects this wine as a member of their wine club and has amassed a vertical collection of their various labels. We first met Brian and Claudia Fleury at a Del Dotto event in their earliest days when they were just starting Fleury Estate back in 2000.

The Fleury Estate lies just south of St. Helena in Rutherford with a tasting room, winemaking facilities and a 11 acre estate vineyard. Fleury Estate Winery also owns 50 acres of premium vineyard land in the key locations of Napa Valley with vineyards in different appellations and elevations which enables them to craft consistent, high quality Napa Valley wines year after year. 

The cork of this thirteen year old disintegrated upon opening and the bottle had a slight funk to it which blew off for the most part after a while - but the bottle was clearly an off bottle. Never-the-less I found it enjoyable and notable drinking for the occasion. 

I defer to my tasting notes from this label from two years ago since it was somewhat consistent and perhaps a more fair representation. 

From earlier tasting in 2018: This (vintage) was dark blackish inky colored with full body, rich concentrated bright, vibrant, forward unctuous fruits of sweet ripe dark berry, black raspberry and currant fruits with notes of dark mocha and sweet toasty oak turning to nicely integrated tannins on a full chewy lingering finish.

This was delicious, very much my preferred style and profile, but perhaps too sweet for some folks' palette! That day I gave this 94 points. 

Today, likely due to bottle variation I give it a 91.

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2018/08/fleury-estate-napa-valley-cabernet_8.html

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1491336

https://www.fleurywinery.com/

@FleuryWinery

Mollydooker Carnival of Love 2017

We have fun with the whimsical labels of Mollydooker with their cartoonish characters and circus poster themed labels. But, there is nothing whimsical about their big full-throttle Shiraz in their premium label Carnival of Love. We adopted this and the companion Enchanted Path labels years ago for family celebration dinners.

This is one of our family favorites that we collect and serve at special family occasions. I featured this producer and label in an extensive blogpost back in 2018, and in an broader exposition of their portfolio earlier back in 2014, and most recently in February of this year.

'Carnival of Love' has become one of our family tradition wines which began when we started serving at wife Linda's and then family birthday parties, since Linda is a Lefty. We love this style of this big opulent forward Shiraz.

The Carnival of Love Shiraz is one of their best and has made the Wine Spectator's "Top 100" twice, the 2012 was #2 in 2014, recognized as the #2 Wine in the World, and that year, Mollydooker was named Winestate's Wine of the Year for 2014.

Winemaker notes for this release: "This McLaren Vale Shiraz is powerful and expressive. Lifted aromatics of dark berries and smoky oak leap boldly from the glass. With a satin like palate; cherry and satsuma plum flavors develop into decadent dark chocolate and licorice. Complex flavors, phenomenal depth and perfectly polished tannins are what makes this Carnival of Love one to be savored and celebrated."

This is 100% Shiraz. The grapes were grown on the Gateway vineyard in McLaren Vale, and the juice was barrel fermented and matured in 100% American oak and 100% new. 

This release was awarded 94 points by Wine Advocate and 93 points by Wine Spectator.

Dark purple garnet colored, full bodied, rich, concentrated, textured, juicy velvety smooth raspberry and cherry fruits with notes of caramel, cedar, oak and spice on a tongue coating lingering finish.

RM 93 points. 

 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3097884

 

https://mollydookerwines.com.au/  

@MollydookerWine

 

Ryan also served Mollydooker Two Left Feet Shiraz Cabernet and Austin Hope Paso Robles Cabernet. I'll feature them in a follow-on tasting post. 

 

Coco Pazzo Italian Wine and Fine Dining

Coco Pazzo Italian Wine and Fine Dining - Chicago

For a business partner dinner, hosted by son Ryan, we dined at Coco Pazzo Italian Restaurant on Hubbard street in trendy chic River North, Chicago. 

Opened in 1992 by restauranter Jack Weiss, Coco Pazzo serves classic traditional seasonal cuisine of Tuscany in a classic stylish 100 year old loft building with timber beams brick walls and rich cyprus floors adorned with blue velvet curtains for a rustic urban chic atmosphere. 

The extensive menu crafted by Chef Eric Hammond features both classic and contemporary dishes with the finest ingredients. 

Coco Pazzo has an award winning Wine Spectator Best of Excellence Award winelist assembled and curated by Wine Director Tamra Presley Weiss, featuring a broad and deep selection of Tuscan focused Italian wines from modest to the most exclusive producers and labels. They also serve twenty wines by the glass WBTG and a collection of large format bottles for special occasion dinners. The winelist has been recognized not only by Wine Spectator but also Food & Wine, The Wine Enthusiast and Wine & Spirits. 

From the wine list I selected three different wines in three styles and profiles to suit our diners' preferences and varied entree selections. All were ideal accompaniments and were very reasonably moderately priced values.

Avignonesi Grifi Toscana Rosso 2018

This Super Tuscan blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese was perfectly paired with my entree selection, the Saltimbocca di Vitello topped with sage and prosciutto with wine shallots and sides of Polenta and Spinach.

The Avignonesi estate still bears the name of its founders but since 2009 it has been owned by Virginie Saverys who pursued winemaking after a successful law career in Belgium. Saverys has turned Avignonesi into one of the largest biodynamic wineries in Italy with 340 acres of vineyards and a state-of-the-art winery in the Montepulciano appellation. 

Grifi is a Super Tuscan blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese - 50.42% Cabernet Sauvignon and 49.58% Sangiovese. It was aged 18 months in French oak barriques (225 ltr) and large Slavonian oak barrels (6000 ltr).

The Sangiovese comes from the Marmino (18.55%), Caprile (15%), El Grasso (10%) and Poggio Badelle (6%) estate vineyards. The Cabernet Sauvignon comes from La Banditella (40%) and Poggio alla Lodola (9.58%) estate vineyards. 

Winemakers' Tasting Notes: "The assembly of two such different personalities such as Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon blend together, giving this wine a unique character. Dark ruby red in color with purple reflections, the nose opens with notes of blueberries, blackberries and incense going up to sandalwood and graphite. In the mouth it is dense and complex with hints of blackberry jam and cinnamon. It then evolves like a balsamic explosion supported by good acidity. The lively tannin all over the palate accompanies the savory and persistent finish."

Dark garnet colored with purple hues, medium full bodied, dense complex concentrated blackberry and black raspberry fruits with notes of graphite, cinnamon spice, black tea, creosote and hints of what the winemaker refers to as balsamic, with a tangy acidic moderate tanning lingering finish. 

RM 91 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4114241

https://www.avignonesi.it/portfolio-item/grifi/  

@avignonesi

Acosta Pirrera Terre Siciliano Nerello Masalese 2016

Those that selected seafood entrees still preferred red wine so I chose this Sicilian Nerello Mascalese grape from the Mt Etna region from a spectacular vintage. 

Spanish, from Tenerife, winemaker Eduardo Torres Acosta fell in love with Sicily and moved there to produce local sourced wines. After gaining experiences with Arianna Occhipinti and Passopisciaro, he set to produce his own wine, initially renting 5 acres of 50-year-old vineyards on the slopes of Etna. He continues to produce totally organic "artisanal" wines, using only liquid sulfur and copper and, in the cellar imposing minimal human intervention.

From the Mt Etna Terre Siciliane region this is a blend of 80% Nerello Mascalese and 20% Nerello Capuccio, Minella.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3076123

 

Tenuta Monteti Toscana IGT 2016

For a third bottle, I ordered another Super Tuscan, this one a complex diverse blend of traditional Bordeaux varietals from a highly acclaimed vintage. 

Tenuta Monteti was founded in 1998 by Gemma and Paolo Baratta after years searching for a suitable property to develop for growing grapes and producing wines. They found and setttled on a property in a corner of Tuscany in the southern Maremma area, in a small valley, 15 km from the sea and 145m above sea level, where the fields are protected by the Monteti hill from which the estate takes its name. At that time the area was still unexplored and unproven for high quality wine production. 

In collaboration with consultant oenologist Carlo Ferrini, they pursued what they believed as extraordinary potential of the land to produce quality wines capable with personality with elegance.

Starting from scratch, without regulations of a pre-existing OC classification, they were free to experiment with the soil and the climate, to plant the varieties that would respond and best express themselves to their truest representation of their place. The result was planting Petit Verdot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Alicante Bouschetto, all chosen to best express the unique terroir - climate, soil, exposure, and elevation of the archaic Mediterranean hills.

In 2010, their daughter Eva took over running the company assisted by her husband Javier Pedrazzini, who is sales manager and production supervisor, and a team of agricultural manager, a managing oenologist, and 12 others working vineyards and the winery. 

Monteti is the flagship wine, named like the estate after the hill that protects the vineyard from the strong Mediterranean winds, and guaranteeing the microclimate.

The label is a blend of the estate varietal fruit, 45% Petit Verdot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 25% Cabernet Franc. It is aged for 18 months in medium-toasted French oak barriques, 70% of which are new. This is followed by further 2 years of bottle ageing before being released onto the market.

Monteti reveals the personality of the Maremman territory with its complexity and elegance; the Petit Verdot setting the personality, the rebel horse, Cabernet Sauvignon providing structure and longevity, softened and balanced by the Merlot, with the Cabernet Franc adding a feminine element that embraces and softens both.

Winemaker's Notes: "An intense and luminous garnet red, it offers to the nose exotic scents of delicate spices and marzipan, violet and black berries. In the mouth it is intriguing, harmonious, interwoven with elegant tannins, very long."

https://www.tenutamonteti.it/en/monteti-2016/ 

https://www.cocopazzochicago.com/

@CocoPazzoChi