Showing posts with label v1984. Show all posts
Showing posts with label v1984. Show all posts

Sunday, March 4, 2018

Marston Petit Sirah 1984

Pour Boy Reunion and a classic 1984 Marston Petit Sirah

Bill & Beth C returned from their transplant home down on Seabrook Island SC to attend our annual OTBN Pour Boys wine group wine tasting and dinner. They came by for a pre-dinner tasting the next day before heading to their son Drew's to see the new grand-baby. To commemorate the events, I pulled from the cellar this vintage bottle from Drew's birth year.

Marston Vineyard Spring Mountain District Petit Syrah 1984

My notes from an earlier review of this wine back in 2004 on this label's vintage twentieth anniversary.  

"Dec 31 - Marston (Family) Vineyard Napa Valley Petit Syrah 1984 (Bottle 790 of 812) - RM 90 - Today, 'Family' is part of the name and the winery provides cabernet fruit for Beringer Private Reserve. Not many 20 year olds down in the cellar (since the 84 Bordeaux's are long gone being a short lived vintage) but pulled this one out on the last day of 04... Surprising body, structure and backbone with inky purple colour. Intense currant, black cherry, cedar anise and plum with a firm tight long full finish. Amazing staying power and life left - thankfully I have at least one more ... 2014?

From the Marston (Family) Vineyard website - Over the last 25 years, the Marston Vineyard has produced numerous award winning wines.Andre Tchelistcheff helped craft small quantities of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, and Zinfandel in the early 1980’s. Sean Thackery produced legindary Petite Sirahs from the Marston Vineyard in the early 1990’s winning Best Red Wine in the world. For the last decade Beringer has been responsible for the vineyard. Cabernet Sauvignon from Marston Vineyard is in the Beringer Private reserve Cabernet. Marston Vineyard designated Cabernet is also made by Beringer. The year 1998 marked the beginning of a new era for Marston Family Vineyard. The first Marston Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon was made by noted winemaker Philippe Melka."

Well, we missed pulling this wine in its thirtieth anniversary year, 2014, but here we are four years later. At thirty-four this is still holding its own showing surprising vibrancy and resilience and no signs of diminution from age. And my earlier notes indicating we still held a bottle missed the fact we were holding two. Hence, after drinking this one, we still hold one more. As shown on the rear label of this wine, released from library in 1998, it was built for long term cellaring. It is standing up to that objective indeed!

According to the Marston Family website today regarding their wines, each vintage will remain “forever limited” to 600 cases and is produced from selected blocks on the property. According to the handwritten serial numbers on these bottles, exactly 812 bottles were produced of this wine.

Marston Family Vineyards dates back to Michael and Alexandra Marston purchasing the property back in 1969 as part of a consortium. then acquiring the remaining ownership in 1976. Back in 1969, many of the original vineyards dating back to the turn of the century were still in production.

Our last remaining bottle
Over the next four decades, Marston Family Vineyard had a line of legendary winemakers who produced numerous award winning wines. In the early 1980’s, Philip Togni and the late Andre Tchelistcheff crafted small quantities of Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Rhone (this Petite Sirah) and Zinfandel.

This vintage was among the vintages from 1982 – 1986 that were overseen by legendary André Tchelistcheff, who was considered America’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker, and was notable for his contributions toward defining the style of California’s best wines, especially Cabernet Sauvignon. Called the “Dean of American winemakers”, industry giants such as Robert Mondavi and Louis Martini considered him their mentor.

Noted winemaker Sean Thackery produced legendary Petite Sirahs from the Marston Vineyard under his Sirius label through the early 1990’s including winning “Best Red Wine in the World” with the 1992 (some records say 93) vintage.

Noted winemaker Philippe Melka and his team managed the property and winemaking for a dozen vintages up until 2010. During this time they began replanting certain blocks of the vineyard, and in 1998 released the first vintage under the current label.

The release of the 2010 vintage marked the first release of current winemaker, Marbue Marke who continues to this day.

Marston Family Vineyards sit on the most southern slopes of Spring Mountain on the western slopes of Napa Valley above the town of St Helena. The original vineyards date back to the late 1800s and over the years were planted with as many as eleven different varietals, including Johannesburg Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Petite Sirah, Zinfandel, and Cabernet Sauvignon. This 1984 vintage of the Marston Petite Sirah was sourced from a small 3-acre plot on the property where some of those first plantings were done back as early as 1890.

The bottle from our
2004 tasting
Previous owner Al Menasco became a pioneer in developing new vineyard practices. He experimented with different types of vineyard spacing and planted a dozen varieties of grapes in different soil types and micro climates on the property. He kept meticulous records to discover the optimum growing conditions for these varietals.


Over the years, the family whittled the vineyard’s focus from eleven varietals to one, and the Pettit Sirah vines, like the others were replaced with Cabernet Sauvignon which is the sole focus of property today.

Today the vineyards comprise about 10 percent of the 500 acres of heavily forested land on terraced hillsides that range in elevation from 700 to 1,100 feet just above the fogline resulting in extended hours of sunlight. The additional sunshine coupled with the lower temperatures allow the fruit to ripen more slowly and uniformly, which ultimately enhances the wine’s concentration, complexity and texture. Furthermore, the rocky, mountain soils limit the vigor of the vines contributing to their fruit's richness and concentration.

We have one remaining bottle of this 1984 vintage release. Based on its storied history and amazing stamina and longevity, we'll look forward to a suitable and appropriate occasion to open it - clearly an OTBN candidate in the next few years!

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=389018

http://www.marstonfamilyvineyard.com/








 



Saturday, May 2, 2015

Celebration dinner features Progressive Red Flight

Celebration dinner features Progressive Red Flight

Following a gala bridal shower Linda gave for friends Bill and Beth's soon to be daughter-in-law Alyssa, they hosted a dinner with an extensive progressive wine flight. Dinner featured beef tenderloin, twice baked potatoes and hericot verts with prosciutto and dinner salad. Pre-dinner featured a selection of artisan cheeses. For the pre-dinner wine flight Bill opened with Freestone Sonoma County, then Sea Smoke Ten Pinot Noirs.

For a midi, transition from the Pinot's to the big Napa Cab's I brought a Fidelitas Optu Columbia Valley red blend. The Main course was highlighted by Diamond Creek Gravelly Meadow, followed by birth-year vintage wine for son and groom to be, Drew, Duckhorn Napa Cabernet. Following dinner with medley of chocolates, Dan opened a brooding a Brunello di Montalcino.

Freestone (Joseph Phelps) Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2011

Label from 2007 vintage from cellar.
I write often about how difficult it is to find a high QPR Pinot Noir at a lower price point. This is such a find. Bill posted his tasting notes for his hosted wines so I defer to his lead.

"This is usually our "go to" everyday Pinot and it never disappoints. A bit brighter on the fruit than is my preference but still has some earthiness to provide balance. Was a nice opener to the evening but was overwhelmed by the Sea Smoke 10 that followed."

WCC - 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1650014


Sea Smoke Ten Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir 2009

Bill and Dan love this wine and are both club members and get regular allocations. This is a classic example of that addage, the next best thing to having a great wine cellar is having a wine buddy with a great cellar! I enjoy an occasional Pinot Noir, especially in the summer with lighter food fare but generally trend to the Bordeaux varietals which predominate in our collection.

This was an elegant and polished pre-dinner wine, great witht the artisan cheeses. Bright vibrant cherry, dusty rose with hints of rhubarb and cranberry.

Bill's tasting notes from Cellartracker - "Full disclosure - I am a bigger fan of Sea Smokes Southing than I am 10. I usually find the 10 to be a bit hot and heavy on the alcohol. In retrospect, I likely have been drinking 10 too early. This was delicious. Full bodied, polished, full of ripe cherry and strawberry, balanced by earthy, smoky flavors. This pretty much overwhelmed the 2011 Freestone Pinot that preceded it. An elegant complement to a charcuterie tray to start the evening event."

WCC - 90 points

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1025981

Fidelitas Optu Columbia Valley Red Wine 2002

The name Fidelitas means "faithful, loyal, true". I thought this was an appropriate wine for celebrating an upcoming betrothal. The producer's mantra cry is "Fidelitas is faithful to Bordeaux grape varieties, loyal to modern craft winemaking techniques, and true to Washington State's Red Mountain terroir."
I remember attending a wine tasting at the local Binny's, the Chicagoland mega-merchant, now with over thirty stores that recently extended downstate to Central Illinois, and hearing a fellow taster rave about this wine. I research it and obtained a six pack from the producer. It was in its infancy then, 2002 being just the third release. 

Today, the current release is their 13th vintage of what is now known as Optu Red Mountain, a big, bold wine red blend. The brand has now grown to 18 red wines and two white wines: all Bordeaux-varietals, 90% sourced from Columbia Valley Red Mountain appellation, with the exception of some "lasting vineyard relationships that are too good to pass up", according to the producer.

The name OPTU appeared with the 2002 vintage, which as the producer recalls, was their most 'most exciting vintage by packaging standards, and the origin of the name OPTU.'  Says, Jess Zander, "I also happen to LOVE this vintage and was lucky enough to hoard some for several years.  A blend of 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot, and 9% Malbec.  I believe that this is the first wine we included some Red Mountain fruit with 10% of the make up coming from Red Mountain Vineyard.  We bumped the line up to a total of 6 products in this vintage, most notably with the introduction of Champoux Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon."

This was appropriately ordered as a transition from the Pinots to the bigger deeper Napa Cabs. Dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, subdued blackberry with hints of blueberry and plum fruits, with tones of tobacco, tea and hints of medium-light oak, appropriately balanced with medium acidity and moderate, soft tannins.

RM 89 points.

 https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=107171 

http://www.fidelitaswines.com/

Diamond Creek Gravelly Meadow Diamond Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2001

We visited the Diamond Creek Estate with Bill and Beth and the vineyard tour and tasting experience were clearly one the highlights of our Napa Valley Wine Experience in 2011. The Gravelly Meadow vineyard is shown left.

When Bill presented this, I anticipated it would be at the apex of its tasting profile and it certainly seemed to be so. When he opened the bottle and poured a taste, the aromas exploded out of the glass with huge fruit and floral perfume. This was exceptionally full flavored and perfectly balanced, its complexity was  a harmonious symphony of flavors.

Bill's tasting notes from Cellartracker for this tasting - "I cannot imagine this being any better than it was last night and consistent with prior experience indicating that the 2001 Napa Cabs are undoubtedly in their prime right now. Deep, opaque, purple in the glass. Nose very much resembling a St. Estephe with herbal earthy notes. But this explodes on the palate with layer upon layer of dark cherry, blackberry, chocolate and mocha. Also detected some minerality reflecting the soil composition. This really fills the mouth and has a long, long lingering finish. Likely the hit of a gala dinner with friends Rick, Linda, Dan and Linda. Wish I had another bottle."

WCC - 94 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=28307

http://www.diamondcreekvineyards.com/


Duckhorn Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1984

We've stopped at the Duckhorn Estate in northeast Napa Valley on many occasions during our Napa trips as it sits at the foot and entrance to Howell Mountain. Its an idyllic setting and also enjoyable tasting. 

To commemorate the day's proceedings, Bill opened this special birth year vintage release Napa Cab. At thirty plus years it showed remarkably well with amazing resilience - still wholly approachable showing the aging potential of hearty Napa Cabs from reputable producers, when cared for and cellared properly. This was a nice complement to the beef tenderloin, the black pepper laced potatoes and the after dinner dark chocolates.

Bill's tasting notes from Cellartracker -

While past prime, this wine is still interesting for someone who has experience with older wines. This still retains its indigo color but is showing some bricking. On the palate, while there's still some fruit present, leather, tobacco and cedar flavors are more apparent. Tannins have given way to glycerine. Still this was very approachable, reasonably priced, better than the last bottle. A fitting birth year wine in recognition of second sons impending wedding and the wedding shower given by friends Rick and Linda.

89 Points

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=42636

http://www.duckhorn.com/

Conti Costanti Brunello di Montalcino 2007

Dan brought this from his cellar. A fitting finish to the evening. True to the Brunello di Montalcino DOCG, this is 100% Sangiovese.

Dark garnet colored, full bodied, complex black berry and black cherry turning to sage, mushroom and earthy forest floor with firm but nicely integrated tannins on the acidic finish.

RM 92 points.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1334850

http://www.costanti.it/eng/storia_ieri_en.html

Saturday, May 31, 2014

OTBN 2014

OTBN - Open That Bottle Night 2014

This night's tasting featured a varied selection of wines following a couple themes. One  commemorating this year being the 4th decade for Linda and me featured the four decade anniversary vintages of '74, '84, '94 and '04. The others reflected the spirit of OTBN, to bring whatever label was desired for drinking that night. As is always the case, the occasion produced a great tasting event of fabulous and interesting wines, great wine and food pairings, fellowship, friendship and fun.

Bill and Beth hosted and prepared a great wine friendly dinner of beef tenderloin, duck breast, scalloped potatoes, haricot verts, green salad, caprese salad and a desert course. Before dinner there was a selection of artisan cheeses, and shrimp cocktail.  A mixed green salad was accompanied by a cold tomato based soup.

The 'line-up'.

The OTBN (Open That Bottle Night) tradition calls for the event to occur the last Saturday night in February. This year's event was postponed twice, initially due to an outbreak of the flu and then for another conflict. So we declared tonight's tasting to effectively became our fourth OTBN in this column. See our 2011, 2012 and 2013 OTBN reports.

As written in this blog to explain previous OTBN's, here's the story. Credit (or blame) for this annual wine bachanalia goes to Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher, wine columnists for the Wall Street Journal. OTBN - Open That Bottle Night, was conceived for those that have a special bottle of wine or champagne hidden away being saved for a special occasion that for whatever reason hasn't happened.  

Every year since 2000, on the last Saturday night in February, Open That Bottle Night (OTBN) has been celebrated - the time to uncork and enjoy that cherished but here-to-for elusive bottle. OTBN was conceived by Gaiter and Brecher to say, what the heck, go for it, Open That Bottle (to)Night. They realized they weren't alone - having that special bottle set aside for an occasion that just never happens. On this night, you don't need an excuse or a reason - just do it! Take advantage of OTBN to open that bottle and enjoy it! Enjoy it by yourself, or better yet, enjoy it with someone special, or even better, with a group of special friends. Have everyone bring such a bottle and let the story telling begin, because amazingly, every OTBN bottle has a story or some meaning, or not. What the heck, Open That Bottle (To) Night!. Let the fun begin.   

The ritual for all our tasting events starts with the 'lineup', the exercise of lining up the bottles in the planned order of tasting. This is a fun debate that by default conforms to the prescribed tasting conventions - starting with the lighter and simpler wines first since a heavier or heartier wine will overpower lesser wines and you'll lose all sense of discrimination or calibration for them.

More precision on tasting order is:

Dry before sweet: This is probably the most important of the following rules, so if in doubt - opt for the "dry before sweet" rule. Sweet wines typically carry a long finish - drinking a dry wine with a short finish following a sweet wine with a long finish will almost always leave the dry wine tasting sour.

Old before young: Mature wines tend to provide the most subtle, elegant, and finessed nuances and should be sipped first to honor the complexity of the flavors that aging provides. Younger wines bear more tannin and fruit and will often wipe out some of the subtle qualities of older wines if tasted first.

White usually before Red: White wines are usually more delicate than reds - which is why many presume that red should always follow white. However, in some cases (ex. light Pinot Noir vs. full-flavored Voigners) sweeter wines pack a longer finish than dry wines, so save your sweet syrupy whites to follow drier reds for optimum flavor.

Light-bodied before full-bodied: The delicate flavors and aromas found in light-bodied wines will be missed entirely if consumed following tannic, robust reds.

Once the initial tasting order is set, part of the fun is testing it to see if we got it right based on the actual tasting results. Most often we get it right with just a few tweeks along the way. Again on this night, this was the case. 

Before we ventured into the flight, Bill served a pair of chardonnays with the pre-meal shrimp and assorted cheeses - Sancerre 2012 and Chateau Montelena Napa Valley Chardonnay 2009.

We started the red wine flight with two 1984 California Cabernet Sauvignons - Guenoc Lake County, and Silver Oak Napa Valley.

Guenoc Lake County Cabernet Sauvignon 1984

The story behind this bottle goes back to a tasting that occurred in July 1998 when I served a large format six liter bottle of this wine to colleagues from around the world at a global country managers meeting. Colleague Pete F and I entertained the group and I hosted a special wine tasting featuring 16 different wines from their respective countries from my cellar. One of the highlights of the tasting culminated with the 6 liter bottle the label of which we all signed (left). 

My notes from that event - "What do you expect from a 14 year old Lake County Cab? What a pleasant surprise to find this one full of berry, plum, cherry and an earthy mocha chocolate. This was tasted from a six liter bottle which no doubt held the fruit." 

The story about tonight's bottle resulted from our visit to the winery in the early 90's seeking a bottle of 1984 from their library. They said there weren't any for sale. When I told them I was holding this 6 liter bottle in my cellar for a special occasion and I wanted some from that vintage to 'test' before serving, they kindly obliged with a couple bottles. This is the last remaining bottle from that purchase. Read more about large format bottles.

I was prepared to dump this and move on to the next bottle, expecting that I had held onto this thirty year old for too long. Not to be as we were pleasantly surprised to find it was still holding was eminently drinkable, albeit with diminished color, structure and fruit being whispers of what they once were as noted above. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=34985

Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1984

Notice (above) the Silver Oak '84 bears the old historic 'silver' label that today is used only for the Alexander Valley release while Napa Valley is now adorned by an upscale painted bottle branding and packaging.

As with the Guenoc above, this was still drinkable although it had diminished color and fruit. That Silver Oak signature oakiness still predominated and stood out over the subdued earthy berry and cedar leathery finish. 

RM 84 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/editnote.asp?iWine=22527


Leoville Barton St Julien Bordeaux 1994

From Bill's cellar. From a more modest Bordeaux vintage, this still showed classic left bank complexity of earthy leather and notes of cedar with smooth polished subdued blackberry fruit accent with a hint of anise on a nicely refined lingering tannin finish.

RM 89 points. 


https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1174





Château Malescot St. Exupéry Margaux Bordeaux 2004


Bill had open this magnum of this savory Bordeaux to start the evening. 

Dark garnet colored, medium bodied with huge floral perfume aromatics that typify the best of Margaux. They give way to pleasant, nicely balanced black raspberry and black currant fruits with tones of anise, expresso, and hints of spicy mocha on a leathery tobacco finish. 


RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=87208





La Rioja Alta Viña Ardanza Reserva 2004

Lyle brought this Tempranillo based Rioja Reserva.

Garnet colored, medium bodied, black fruits give way to earthy, tobacco, spice, smoke and leather with a long balanced finish.

RM 90

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=844857




Peter Michael Les Pavots Sonoma County Knights Valley Red Wine 2005

Ernie brought these two Peter Michael selections from his cellar.

Les Pavots is an estate bottled Bordeaux blend from the slopes of Mt Helena above the eastern Knights Valley in Sonoma County.

Dark ruby colored, elegant and polished, full bodied with full complex concentrated layers of blackberry, black raspberry and blackcurrant with tones of black tea, cigar box and hint of dark mocha and cedar on a silky smooth finish.

Blend: 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Cabernet Franc, 12% Merlot & 2% Petit Verdot

This got huge reviews and scores - 95 points from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator
and 93 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

RM 95 points.

 http://www.petermichaelwinery.com/

Peter Michael Esprit Des Pavots 2004

’Esprit des Pavots' literally means “The Spirit of the Poppies.” This wine is sourced from the original Les Pavots vineyard blocks recently replanted with the rarest and best clones of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

Dark ruby colored, full bodied, bright vibrant expressive full forward concentrated rich berry and plum fruits, smooth and polished despite complexity from hints of mocha, anise and black tea with full tannins on the lingering finish.

RM 93 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=224266

Joseph Phelps Insignia Napa Valley Red Wine 2004

Dan brought this and the Dominus Estate from his cellar - two napa Valley Bordeaux Blends. This may have been my favorite of the evening although the Les Pavots was a close second.

A blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot, 12% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec

Another huge point scorer with  97 points from Wine Enthusiast, 94 from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator.

Dark ruby and inky purple color, full bodied, this required about an hour to open and reveal its true charachter and fruits - complex but elegant, balanced and polished, rich deep concentrated notes of blackberries, cassis, with hints of rich, crème caramel, sweet oak and cedar with smooth polished finely integrated tannins on the long finish.

RM 95 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/editnote.asp?iWine=165834


Dominus Estate Napa Valley Red Wine 2010 

While this got a 100 point rating from Robert Parker, the most noted major reviewers, like so many Dominus releases, it may take a decade or more for it to reveal its full potential.

While clearly a spectacular wine, at this young age, its a bit closed and tight suppressing its fruits and other nuances.

Blend of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot

Dark garnet colored, full bodied, firm, dense concentrated complex layers of black fruits, black tea, creosote and anise with hints cedar of spice and dark chocolate with firm tight but well integrated tannins on the finish.

RM 94 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1374630



d'Arenberg Dead Arm McLaren Vale Shiraz 2004

Ernie also brought this from his cellar. The '04 is as big and dense as Dead Arm gets but was not as sweet as some vintages.

Dark inky black purple color, full bodied, thick, dense, tongue-coating unctuous layer of ripe plum, black raspberry, ripe blueberry and a layer of anise and black cherry with a spicy long firm tannin lingering finish.

RM 92 points.

 https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=246254



Taylor (Fladgate) Vintage Port Quinta de Vargellas 1974

I acquired this bottle at the legendary British wine merchant Berry Bros. & Rudd at their shop at 3 St James's Street London back in the early eighties. Back then of course you carry it in your hand luggage on the airplane.


Single Quinta Vintage Port (SQVP) is a title given to Port wines produced from a single vineyard (quinta) and from in a single vintage.


This is regarded by many as the most exciting category of port wine, since it offers the winemaker the opportunity to explore a more terroir-driven approach to fortified winemaking. An emerging style, SQVP started to gain popularity after 1986 when transportation restrictions were raised and smaller estates started to enter the market.

Single-quinta, or single-vineyard, vintage Porto is produced only in exceptional years in which a general vintage is not declared. Quinta de Vargellas vineyard has been part of the Taylor Fladgate estate for more than a century. It is known as one of the top 100 vineyards in the world with the highest percentage of old vines of any quinta in the Douro, with 60% over 75 years old. 


The 1974 vintage was a moderate year that was not declared by the major port houses. Some excellent single harvest colheitas were produced. For the vintage ports, despite a huge crop, very few vintage port-wines were bottled from this year and the bottles are very rare.

Quinta de Vargellas is the flagship of Taylor Fladgate's declared vintage Portos. In the best undeclared years, Quinta de Vargellas is produced on its own as a single-quinta vintage Porto.

While top vintage Vintage Ports often age for several decades, these SQVP's tend to last a decade or two so at forty years of age, this was pushing the limits of its aging window. Furthermore, the bottle and cork showed some signs of seepage although I don't recall ever noticing this in the cellar. Lastly, upon decanting, there was no less than a half a cup of sediment resembling coffee grounds in the bottom of the bottle. 

This was a bit lean in body and the color was a bit opaque and showed tones of rust color with an orangish hue. It had a big aromatic nose and flavors of intense concentrated black berries, black raspberry, and anise, with tones of cloves, cedar and touch of smoke with a big strong layer of high alcohol. It open immediately and continued to soften throughout the evening. It was drinkable and a tribute to our 1974 anniversary celebration but clearly nearing its end of life.  

Two nights later this was smooth and nicely balanced and resembled a moderate cognac which we enjoyed with some caramel, chocolate and berries. 

RM 85 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=36107

Taylor Fladgate Vintage Porto Quinta de Vargellas 1995

Lyle is a big port enthusiast and he matched my Taylor Fladgate with this vintage selection. 

Dark ruby colored, medium bodied, intense berry, dried raisins, fig with layers of cedar and anise with a long fruity, alcohol laced finish. 

RM 88 points.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=19047




The OTBN crew and their wine contributions to the flight are pictured below.

The hosts - Bill and Beth. 



 The author/blogger of unwindwine blogspot.



Sunday, February 9, 2014

WCC Family Dinner Features Cellar Select Birthyear Wines

WCC Family Dinner Features Cellar Select Birthyear Wines

For an impromptu family dinner celebrating two of three of Bill and Beth C's son's being home for a weekend/evening, we were honored to join in the special festive occasion. Beth was preparing lasagna so Bill and I chose some hearty wines that also happened to represent the boy's birthyears. Bill pulled out a magnum of 1989 Silver Oak Alexander Valley. I had contributed earlier a 1984 vintage Barolo picked up on a trip to Europe, waiting for a suitable occasion to feature that vintage. Ironically, I also brought another 1989 vintage wine, this from Benziger Family winery in Sonoma, ironic since Bill had already opened a bottle of Benziger for predinner tasting. 

Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1989

Served from a magnum, this was medium bodied with dark blackish purple color. Bill's notes from Cellartracker, "Plenty of fruit left in this but not much backbone. Was pleasantly surprised that this was still in OK shape. Medium purple color showed no signs of age. Took about an hour after decanting for the nose to reveal perfume and floral notes. Reminiscent of cherry and raspberry on the palate with a touch of oak but the tannins are gone, making this a bit thin."

WCC 86 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=41259

http://www.silveroak.com/

Benziger Family Winery Imagery Series Cabernet Franc 1989
There are several wines producers that offer artist label series, wines with a different label each vintage featuring original artwork from an artist, or more typically, each vintage featuring a different artist's work of art adorning the label. The most famous of these of course is Chateau Mouton Rothshild, one of the world's most noted wines. Their labels feature original artwork by world class artists produced specifically to adorn their signature vintage of Mouton Rothschild first growth Bordeaux. They are so distinctive that even empty or past drinking window bottles become collector's items in their own right. I've had fun over the years collecting or seeking out each vintage of Mouton's and have an image library of their famous line of labels in my wine Mouton wine label library on unwindwine.com.

This is not an attempt to compare Benziger wine to Mouton Rothschild in any sense other than the concept of an artist series of wine labels.

In the case of Benziger, their Imagery Series is an artist series of wines that feature artwork by a named artist adorning the label. Benziger then feature a special bottling of wine from a named grower and featured winemaker (s) with each bottle of the limited bottling is individually numbered. This bottling features 1989 Alexander Valley Cabernet Franc from Blue Rock Vineyards, and was crafted by Benziger winemakers and friends Bob Goyette and Bruce Rector.

The Imagery Series was created to offset Benziger's wines produced from their Glen Ellen estate with lot of specially crafted wines from boutique or varied producers who might otherwise sell their wines to be private labeled or blended into other larger production wines.

At twenty-five years of age, it was time to open this wine, on this occasion, it was serendipitously a birthyear tribute to Matt and Molly who were with home for the weekend and joining us for dinner for a gala family dinner.

Medium bodied with garnet rust color, this opened initially a bit lean and astringent but over the course of the evening revealed more and more black cherry fruit accented by spice, cigar box and hint of  earthy leather on the finish.

RM 87 points.

How ironic that I pulled this Benziger Family bottle from the cellar for Beth's lasagna dinner to find Bill had opened and was serving a Benziger Family selection for before dinner.

We visited the Benziger Family estate in Sonoma Valley Bill and Beth C during our Sonoma Valley Wine Experience back in 2008.  I had this 1989 vintage bottle in the cellar having purchased it at auction over the years. So it was fitting to bring a Benziger 89 for a family dinner with 89 birthyear son Matt visiting from out of state.

Benziger Family Winery Sonoma Valley Appellation Series Syrah 2009

Bill had already opened this and was serving it when we arrived so it was serendipitous that I brought another Benziger, notable in that we visited the estate together during our Benziger Family Winery - Sonoma Valley Visit in the Autumn '09

Bill's notes - "Popped and poured. Found this to be a bit flat and one dimensional with a focus on light fruit flavors...blueberry, blackberry. Expected more spi

This really opened with time and in many ways was the surprise of the evening by virtue of its improvement and value. Some white pepper became evident on the palate. The nose became highly floral and the fruit blossomed. Nice bottle of wine.
ce but it was lacking. Will see if this opens with another hour or so.

WCC 85 points.

I found it dark purple colored, medium bodied, a bit lean with a moderate black berry fruit accented by tones of white pepper with hints of spice.

RM 87 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1482609

http://www.benziger.com/

Abbazia Barolo 1984

I purchased this bottle in a little neighborhood wine shop in London near Oxford Street and Ware Road back in the late 1980's. It had been lying down in our cellar for over two decades. With my penchant for having wines for special occasions and having kids born in three different years in the first half of the 80's decade, I presumed we'd have one of their friends from this vintage year to toast at some point.

With our wine collecting and tasting with dear friends the Connolly's becoming increasingly commonplace over the ensuing years, it was only fitting to bequeath this bottle to them as its the birthyear of their middle son, Drew. It was only a matter of time we'd likley end up drinking it for some occasion. With the bottle aging it was due and Bill pulled it when tonight's family dinner came together with Drew and Matt being in town from Tennessee. 

While this was lean and a bit austere, it had more life in it than I expected. Garnet colored, medium bodied, the nose was muted but after an hour or so the black cherry and cherry flavors emerged and predominated over a layer of leather, dry earth and hints of minty anise on a rather tight finish.

RM 85 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1791877