Festive Holiday Dinner Showcases Premier Napa Reds

Festive Holiday Dinner Showcases Premier Napa Reds - Quintessa, Fantesca, Clark-Claudon, David Arthur

Three mountains and five hills of Napa Valley sourced the fruit for a flight of top Napa big reds.The greatest joy of having a wine cellar collection is to pull special bottles for a special occasion such as a festive holiday dinner. Tonight provided the opportunity to showcase a line-up of favorite Napa Reds with beef tenderloin. Linda prepared her delectable beef tenderloin and imaginative twice baked potatoes, brussel sprouts, hericot verts and fresh dinner rolls. I pulled decade plus one year old Napa big reds to highlight the meal. Showcasing our favored Napa mountain fruits profile, we tasted wines from three corners of Napa Valley.

I wrote recently about the distinctive Howell Mountain terroir. We featured Howell Mountain Clark Claudon, Fantesca Estate from the opposing Spring Mountain District, and a pair of David Arthur wines from Pritchard Hill in the southeast corner of the valley. To round out the flight, Bill brought from his cellar Quintessa from the geographic center of that triangle featuring its five hills estate, and David Arthur Elevation 1147. To accompany the flight, Bob brought a St Emilion Grand Cru Bordeaux.

Visits to the estate wineries of Fantesca, David Arthur and Quintessa have been highlights of several of our Napa Valley Wine Experience excursions, and Tom and Laurie Clark-Claudon were featured producers at one of Napa wine producer dinners. Indeed, we hold close to a dozen vintages of each of these producers - certainly of Clark Claudon and David Arthur, both in about their 25th year or so of production. For Fantesca, they've just finished their first decade since their 2004 inaugural release, when Duane and Susan Hoff took over the estate.

Prior to dinner, we featured a selection of artisan cheeses and Linda prepared her baked brie with toasted nuts and berry puree, accompanied by an Austrian Riesling and Italian aperitif wine.

The 2004 dinner entree flight ....

Fantesca Estate Winery Spring Mountain District Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

As mentioned, our visits to the spectacular Spring Mountain Estate of Duane and Susan Hoff have been highlights of our Napa wine excursions in 2007 and 2009. We hosted Duane at our home on one of his first release tours when he was traveling the country building the Fantesca brand. Their classic packaging with their etched glass bottles provide a festive bottle for such a gala dinner.

Dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied, at eleven years, the complex Spring Mountain bright forward fruit flavors of cherry, black berry and black currant are giving way to a layer of cassis, tobacco, black tea and hints of dark chocolate and dried herbs with a refined tannin finish.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=355836

http://fantesca.com/ 



Clark Claudon Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

We hold more than a dozen vintages of this wine going back to their early releases in the mid-nineties.

Deep inky garnet colored, full bodied - aromas of ripe dark berry fruits, big mouth-full of forward complex but balanced, smooth, spicy black cherry and black currant and edge of red berry fruits, tones of cassis and dark mocha and turning to a predominant forward accent of sweet smooth sweet spicy oak on the smooth tannin finish.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=229261

http://www.clarkclaudon.com/ 





David Arthur Napa Valley Pritchard Hill Meritaggio 2004

As I have written in these pages, Meritage is the trademarked/licensed label attached to American releases of Bordeaux varietal blend wines. David Arthur uses creative license with this play on words to bring us 'Meritaggio', an Italian influenced Napa Valley blend of Bordeaux varietals accented by the Italian varietal Sangiovese - that associated with 'Super Tuscan' wines.

I thought this would provide an interesting comparison to the other Napa cabs, perhaps more approachable easier drinking early in the wine flight. Wow, what a surprise as this presented a big firm tight profile that ended up being the culmination (end) of the flight, with its firmness and complexity overpowering the rest of the wines.

As I update my records of this wine tasting depletion from our cellar, I realize we have a half dozen vintages of this label. I'll be mindful how to position this wine in future tastings.

This wine, a super Tuscan style blend anchored by Bordeaux varietal Cabernet Sauvignon (68%) with 12% Sangiovese made for an interesting diversion in the flight. The big full black berry and black raspberry fruits gave way to a layer of creosote with tones of dark mocha, black tea and leather with hints of vanilla and smoke on the firm gripping tannin finish.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=199677

https://www.davidarthur.com/

Bill punctuated the tasting with these two bold flavorful premium Napa Cabs....

Quintessa Rutherford Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2005

The name Quintessa refers to the five hills on the Rutherford estate property. Our tasting at the stylish winery estate on Silverado Trail was a highlight of our Napa Wine Experience 2003.

This was lighter than expected and ended up being our opening red wine providing the transition from the pre-dinner whites to the big reds.

Dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied, smooth, elegant and polished with bright vibrant dark berry fruit flavors accented by huge floral bouquet, tones of violet, cola and hint of clove spice with tangy bright acidity on the smokey tannin laced finish.

RM 93 points.

Bill's notes from Cellartracker:

"Excellent transition wine from pre dinner whites to the heavier Napa cabs served with beef tenderloin. This was lather than I remembered. Still the same characteristics though. A hint of clove and spice on the nose. Bright plum, cassis and a bit of cherry on the palate with a medium finish. This needs at least 30 minutes of air to reveal the fruit and complexity. Was a but surprised that this did not have the same weight or body of the '04 Fantesca or Clark Claudon that followed."

WCC - 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=493471

David Arthur Cabernet Sauvignon Elevation 1147 2003 

Of course the name refers to the topographical elevation of the vineyard from which this single vineyard designated fruit is sourced.

This was our last tasting of the evening so I saved some for the next day to taste again. The huge bouquet and powerful big forward blue fruits accented by licorice stood out and punctuated this. This was summed up and consistent with my tasting notes from last year for this label:

"Elevation is flawless, extraordinary in its refined elegance and harmonious balance. While full bodied it has no sense of weight in its symphony of seamlessly integrated flavors, silky smooth and polished balance of floral, dark fruit and accent tones from start to finish - lavender, sweet ripe black and blue berry fruits, whispers of cinnamon, clove, exotic spices and tobacco leaf on the soft lingering finish. At eleven years of age it seemed to be at its apex as I can't imagine it getting any better. It was delightful and delicious. I sense I drank my earlier Elevations too early to allow them to come together so nicely."

RM 95 points. 

Bill's tasting note on Cellartracker - "Love the depth and complexity of this wine. Earthy Bordeaux like nose of moss and forest floor. Blackberry, cola and tobacco on the palate. Deep indigo color. Full bodied with a long lingering finish. I have the sense that this will not improve with more age. Tannins are fully integrated."
WCC - 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=85663

http://www.davidarthur.com/

Ninety Plus Cellars Lot 76 Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, Bordeaux, France, 2011

Bob brought this to contribute to the flight. I've written often herein about Ninety-Plus cellars negociant practice of obtaining surplus wine for private labeling. After pouring at the St Emilion Grand Cru producer's release event in Chicago last month, its hard to imagine a private label version of any of their wines. 

Deep inky garnet, medium bodied, rather subdued aromas and flavors of blackberries with under currant of purple/blue berry fruits accented by a layer of woody pain grille, earthy cedar with tight firm gripping tannins on the finish.
RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1994433

http://www.ninetypluscellars.com/wines/lot-76-saint-emilion-grand-cru-bordeaux/


Prior to dinner, we tasted a selection of whites with artisan cheeses, fresh fruit, holiday cookies and chocolates, and salad.




 


  
Freie Weingärtner Wachau / Domäne Wachau Riesling Federspiel Terrassen 2007

Straw colored, light-medium bodied, crisp clean, slightly tart citrus apple with stone fruit with bright acid finish.

RM 87 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=509866






Cavalchina Passito Veneto IGT 2004

Originally straw colored, this has turned to tea color, medium bodied, the apple fruits, subtle tangerine and hint of apricot and peach flavors have given way, overtaken by tones of burnt caramel, smoke and nut on a flavorful lingering finish.

RM 87 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=436980

Deck the Halls with Hall's Napa Cab

Deck the Halls with Hall's Napa Cab

Its always a great joy to indulge in good food and wine with friends and family. Tis the season to engage in special wines as part of the holiday festivities. One such brand I enjoy is a play on words, Hall Napa Valley wines to 'Deck the Halls' for seasonal fun. So it was that another Sunday after church dinner with family provided the occasion to open Hall Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon with Linda's beef roast dinner.

We visited Hall's tasting room in St Helena in the old days (2003), before they opened their spectacular Rutherford Estate winery site adjacent to the vineyards on the lower slopes of the Vaca Range that form the eastern boundary of Napa Valley.

Our special tasting in the caves and tasting room there (shown left) was a highlight of our Napa Valley Wine Experience in 2013.

We hold Hall Napa Cabernets as well as their Sauvigon Blanc as staples in our cellar for festive wine occasions, as well as their signature Kathryn label for special vintages such as grand-kids' birth year wines (since this label didn't exist for our kid's birthyears) for related special occasions.

Hall Estate Napa Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

We hold the remains of a case of this wine and savor every bottle as one of favorites in the style and character that we enjoy so much with our favorite foods.

Dark garnet colored, medium to full bodied, a symphony of flavors accented by bold expressive black berry and black raspberry fruits with highlights of anise and mocha with tones of cedar, sweet toasty oak and clove spice and hints of earthy leather turning to a smooth polished lingering finish.

RM 93 points.  

Consistent with my last tasting of this wine replayed below ... can't believe I waited this long to try it again!

Dark inky color, rich, dense, concentrated, style, full-bodied, fruit forward ripe sweet currant, ripe black raspberry, plum, black cherry fruits, mocha and hints of black licorice with a long soft tannin finish. Has the rich thick jammy fruit of a south Australian Shiraz." I would emphasize big, full, concentrated fruits with a firm tannic backbone. In this evening's tasting it met my highest expectations and stood over a Barossa Shiraz and Keenan Cab, was a perfect complement to New York strip steak dinner.


https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=761928

Parker's Grill Provides Crossbarn Paul Hobbs WBTG Tasting

Parker's Grill Provides Crossbarn Paul Hobbs WBTG Tasting

We've recently discovered and written in this blog about Crossbarn Paul Hobbs wines, an interesting study in branding with a storied background, and heard from them about our blogpost. They contacted me to correct me on the branding nomenclature - Crossbarn Paul Hobbs, not the reverse as I wrote. We dined at Parker's Grill in Downers Grove to celebrate the holiday as well as a friend's birthday, which afforded the opportunity to taste a flight of Crossbarn, their featured producer, on offer BTG, by-the-glass. Parker's has a nice selection of WTBG - Wines By The Glass which they offer in both 3 and 6 oz pours - nice for Linda and me to have suitable portions. This affords the opportunity to taste a selection of wines as opposed to having just one when ordered by the bottle. This is of course also especially useful when a bottle is too much for one or one and a half consumers.

While Parker's website showed Crossbarn Cabernet on offer, what was available was a mini-horizontal of CrossBarn (by) Paul Hobbs Pinot Noir 2012's - Sonoma Valley and Anderson Valley, and a CrossBarn Paul Hobbs Chardonnay, Sonoma County (sic) 2014.

Paul Hobbs Crossbarn is the somewhat more affordable branded label offering from Paul Hobbs, the acclaimed producer known for premium quality Napa Valley wines. Crossbarn wines are produced down the road about a mile from the Paul Hobbs estate winery, in a former apple processing facility that's is the operations center for their Sonoma Coast wines.  I have found that Crossbarn provides moderate priced well crafted wines that generally provide quality tasting at reasonable value.

I selected Parker's hoping for a delicate seafood dinner but ended up ordering the Braised Boneless Shortribs with red wine sauce and mashed sweet potato, which I matched with the pair of Pinots.

Linda ordered the Mahi Mahi, and I had the Polenta fries as a side, both which we matched with the Crossbarn Chardonnay.

Our guest, special friend Marlene U who was having a birthday, ordered the herb roasted double chicken breast. All our entrees were delicious.

Following dinner, we closed with the deliciously decadent Bittersweet Chocolate Flourless Cake with Mocha Mousse and Sea Salt Caramel Gelato. This was worth the trip all by itself. Too bad it came with the gelato already melted. And, it amazes me how difficult it is get coffee WITH your dessert in restaurants. Their procedures seem to too often offer and serve these serially as two separate courses. In this case, we were never offered or given the chance to even order coffee with our dessert.

Crossbarn Chardonnay Sonoma Coast, Sonoma County 2014

The Chardonnay was golden strawed colored with medium-light body with tones of stone fruit, apple, pear and brioche with hints of lemon citrus with pleasant balanced acidity and subtle mineral on the finish.

RM 89 points.
https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2064679

Note - the winelist stated Sonoma County which is not listed on the producer's website, nor on Cellartracker. I suspect this may have been the Sonoma Coast Chardonnay. Having tasted BTG - by the glass, I did not see the label. The servers were pressed to keep up with the dinner and wine service so I didn't press to see the label. Nearly 12,400 cases were made of the 2013 Chardonnay CrossBarn by Paul Hobbs, all from the Sonoma Coast.
P.S. The morning after, I went to Binny's, the wine mega-merchant and found the Crossbarn Paul Hobbs Chardonnay. Indeed, the label reads "Sonoma Coast, Sonoma County"! See left.

CrossBarn (by) Paul Hobbs Pinot Noir 2012 - Sonoma Valley and Anderson Valley

The Pinot's were similar in many respects, both garnet colored and medium bodied with black cherry, raspberry and pomegranate fruit flavors with hints of black tea and cedar. The Sonoma Valley showed more pronounced dark berry fruit flavors with a slight hint of sweet mocha on the mid-palate turning to soft smooth tannins on the finish.

Anderson Valley - RM 88 points.
https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1710825

Sonoma Valley - RM 90 points.
https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2031503

http://parkersamerican.com/

http://www.crossbarn.com/

.

Conway Family Wines Deep Sea Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

Conway Family Wines Deep Sea Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

I wrote in depth about Conway Family Wines recently in this blog and got a kind note from them about my post. For a casual weekend evening of wine, fruit and cheese, we opened Deep Sea Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2009.

As I have written, I found this wine downstate and tasted it, then went back and bought more. I was recently there again and discovered they had another case on the shelves. I was questioned about wines for a holiday party by a colleague and in our discussion I spoke of this wine. As it happened another colleague was downstate and we reached out to him prompting him to go by and buy out the remaining stock from the merchant, which we will split between us. Such it is with these wine finds.

Having only consumed half the bottle several days ago, the remainder of the bottle was open in our wine cooler. When I revisited it tonight, it was as good or even better than it was late last week. Such it is with hearty well structured wines of a half dozen years of age. Interesting, that upon review of my earlier tasting experience, the same thing happened the last time we opened this wine, that it improved upon revisiting the following day!

Here are my notes from the previous but similar tasting of this wine, earlier this year.

Conway Family Wines Deep Sea Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

Consistent with earlier blog post. Consider this a Negociant wine since, according to the wine producer, it is sourced from a "number of the finest, well regarded vineyards within Napa AVA’s of Rutherford, Atlas Peak and Pritchard Hill, with each one contributing their unique characteristics to our blend".

According to the producer's release, "the dark fruit notes along with distinctive and pleasant chalky sagebrush notes greet your nose at first. This Cabernet has as plush an entry as we’ve seen in a lot of years. A round, soft, mouth filling wine that shows a smooth backbone of tannins and balanced acidity. The finish wraps up nicely with a lingering reminder of the mature dark fruits, ever so slight a hint of new oak, and the ever present palette of flavors that make Cabernet so sought after!"

This has incredible QPR - quality price ratio, at its price point below $20. The wine producer lists it at $39. 

Opened for casual wine sipping with cheese but its sophisticated enough to be worthy as a perfect compliment to grilled steak dinner. We left half the bottle and it was even better the next day.

Slightly obtuse upon opening but softened and become more balanced and approachable after about an hour. Dark garnet colored, medium to full bodied, full fruit forward black raspberry and cherry fruits with a layer of spice and hints of graphite and tea, turning to tones of mocha with nice balance and smooth polished tannin finish.

RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1517213

http://www.conwayfamilywines.com/

Grgich Hills Estate Napa Cab 05 - Grand Merrain Haut Medoc 10

Grgich Hills Estate Napa Cab '05 - Grand Merrain Haut Medoc '10

For the last of our family and friends' weddings in this event filled 2015, we attended the festivities of Ross and Stephanie, son of dearest lifelong friends Eric and Cathy, and daughter of new wine buddies George and Leslie. Prior to the reception, Dr Dan opened these two diverse reds in the hotel suite for casual sipping before we headed to the venue.


Château Grand Merrain Haut-Médoc Bordeaux 2010

This lesser label provided for casual sipping but would likely show better for a more serious tasting with food given the complexity of the Bordeaux blend.  It's more modest profile was overshadowed by the more fruit forward and polish of the more expressive Napa Cab.

Garnet colored, medium bodied, moderately complex aromas and flavors of blackberries and cherries were accented by a tones of tobacco, leather, and baking spices with a hint of cedar with moderate chewy tannins on a lingering finish.

RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2231689
 





Grgich Hills Estate Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2005

The harmony, balance and polish of this wine make it tempting for casual enjoyable sipping, but like the Bordeaux, this too would have been paired well with food for even greater enjoyment.

At ten years of age, this is likely at the apex of its drinking profile and will not likely improve further with more aging, but don't be in a hurry as it will hold for several more years.  Dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied,  full blackberry and black cherry fruits were accented by tones of cassis, mocha, leather, and hints of graphite and smoke with smooth supple tannins on the finish.

RM 91 points. 



https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=713400

http://www.grgich.com/

Moffett Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 2006

Moffett Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 2006

This wine is from Moffett Vineyard, a 20 acre site sitting 1500 feet up on Howell Mountain on the eastern slopes at the northern end of the range overlooking Napa Valley. The producer, Trent Moffett carries on the tradition started by his parents John and Diane Livingston, growing grapes and producing Napa Valley wines for over thirty five years.

I first acquired and tried this wine back in 2011. When I discovered it, after tasting it, I went back and bought the remaining stock at the local Binny's.

Approaching its 10th year, this wine seems to be at its apex and it appears it won't improve further with more aging based on this and my earlier tastings.

Representing those Howell Mountain terroir characteristics that I tend to favor in Napa wines, this is dark inky purple color - full bodied - concentrated yet polished and smooth with full flavors of blackberries, ripe plum and currants - with the fruit seeming to trend down somewhat from my recollection of earlier tastings, highlighted by a layer of mocha chocolate, anise, and tones of black tea with a touch of oak and spice - the wine shows great balance of toasted oak and acidity.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=661237

http://moffettvineyards.com/

Thanksgiving feast features diverse Pinot vs Rhone Wine Approach

Thanksgiving feast features diverse Pinot vs Rhone Approach to Wine Pairing

Thanksgiving dinner was held at son Ryan's and Michelle's for a gala family gathering of seventeen. Ryan and I both sourced some special wines for the event, taking two divergent approaches to accompany the dinner feast. Ryan served two Rhone wines while I brought two California Pinot Noirs. Both were ideal accompaniments to the delicious festive turkey, yams, mashed potatoes, dressing and gravy.

From the Northern Rhone, Ryan served Guigal Saint Joseph, and from the Southern Rhone, he served a Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape. From California I brought a Calera Ryan Vineyard Pinot Noir and a Ninety Plus Cellars Sonoma Pinot Noir.

Rhone Valley Syrah

I admit we've missed out on Northern Rhone Syrahs which is tragic given our fondness for Syrah/Shiraz, and considering how much we collect and drink this varietal. We do hold a collection of (Southern Rhone) Chateauneuf-du-Papes which include Syrah in the blend, but our focus has been primarily on Australian Syrah/Shiraz with an occasional Californian and once in a while, one from Washington State.

Son Ryan has discovered Northern Rhone labels and has been preaching their virtues and brought them to our attention. These are the original old world Syrahs, after all, and deserve attention of fans of the varietal.

Readers of this blog might recall our visit to the legendary Napa Valley Syrah producer Lagier-Meredith, where Carol Meredith is a plant geneticist. I asked her about the relationship between the Shiraz and Syrah varietals from the Rhone Valley, California and Australia. She indicated that at the end of the day, they're all related and essentially from the same lineage. So differences in labels from the various regions should be attributed generally to terrior, the distinct sense of 'place' from where the grapes are sourced - soil, climate, exposure, etc.

Tonight's Rhone experience showed two remarkable Syrahs or Syrah inclusive blends.

Guigal Saint Joseph Rhone 2009

Of course, knowledgeable wine folks know that old world producers (Italy, France, Germany) name or label their wines after the appellation or place where the grapes in the wine are sourced - Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Burgundy, St. Emilion, Bordeaux, and leave it to the consumer to know what grapes are associated with that growing area. New world producers, on the other hand, name or label their wines after the grape or varietal in the bottle - Merlot, Cabernet, Syrah, etc., as well as the locale from where the grapes are sourced. One might argue that this may be due to the fact that New World wine consumers are less knowledgeable, but it could also be argued that there is less correlation between regions and the varietals grown there - such as Sonoma Cabernet (a Bordeaux varietal) as well as Pinot Noir (a Burgundy varietal).

Guigal Saint Joseph Rhone 2009

While not as complex in the blend as a Chateauneuf-du-Pape, which features Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre, (hence the moniker 'GSM' given to some of this blend when from other regions), perhaps Cinsault, and may include several other varietals, this single varietal Syrah based wine still showed notable depth and complexity. This Northern Rhone label provides high QPR (quality to price ratio), especially compared to the CDP's and some of the named label Northern Rhones.

This was dark garnet and purple colored, medium full bodied, aromas and flavors of full, forward ripe black berry and black cherry fruits accented by a layer of cracked pepper, herbs, and tones of smoked meat, hints of creosote and smoke, with medium acidity, gripping but approachable tannins. 

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1262699


Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau 2009

A visit to this legendary producer was one of the highlights of our trip to Chateauneuf-du-Pape a few years ago.

This was one of the most expressive, vibrant yet balanced and polished Vieux-Telegraphs, or CDP's for that matter, that I recall having in a long time.

Bright garnet colored, medium-full bodied, lively, rich, concentrated, forward red berry fruits predominate, accented by some dark berry flavors with a pleasant flavorful punctuation of tones of white pepper and hints of clove on a long elegant complex but smooth polished finish.

RM 93 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1023306


Fitting the occasion of son Ryan hosting the holiday, I brought a Ryan Vineyard Calera Mt Harlan Pinot Noir along with a Ninety Plus Cellars Lot 125 Monterey County Pinot Noir for a comparison tasting.

Calera are one of the original Pinot Noir varietal producers in California dating back to the '70's. Their founding and ascent are featured in the entertaining and educational classic wine book "The Heart Break Grape", about the challenges of finding and developing a suitable site for the finicky Pinot Nor grape in the untested California wine regions. Calera, known for vineyard designated Pinots released the Ryan Vineyard label in the last decade with the 2004 vintage release.


Pinot Noir makes up a fraction of our cellar collection as I am not a big fan or collector of Pinot Noir, but we do keep a couple labels for suitable drinking to fit the cuisine and occasion. Hence, I tend to be less discriminating and palate trained in Pinot than I am the Bordeaux varietals, which I favor. Knowing Ryan was opening Rhone wines, I selected and brought Pinot Noir, also suited to traditional Thanksgiving fare cuisine.

Perhaps it is my lack of Pinot discernment that I found a $46 to be almost comparable to one costing less than half the price, however, as I've written often, Ninety-Plus Cellars and the negociant practice often feature quality releases at a fraction of their comparable value due to their sourcing of overstock or excessive inventory from acclaimed producers. Such producers' branding is maintained by their anonymity as they are indicated by their "Lot' designation.

Hence this comparison tasting between these two Pinots.

Calera Ryan Vineyard Mt Harlan Pinot Noir 2011

Translucent ruby red colored, medium light bodied, scent of dusty rose, cherry and raspberry fruit flavors with a hint of cola and spice turning to tones of mushroom and smoke with fine grained delicate tannins on the moderate lingering finish.

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1774888

 

Ninety Plus Cellars Lot 125 Monterey County Pinot Noir 2013

Similar characteristics to the Calera, albeit slightly less complex and less polished. While the Monterey County source for the fruit is unknown, it could come from the area close to or similiar to the Hollister Mt Harlan site of Calera. This provides good QPR (quality price ratio) with similarity to the Calera at a fraction of the price.

Garnet colored, medium light bodied, aromas and flavors of red raspberries and black cherry give way to tones of tangy clove spice and hint of cinnamon on the clinging tannin finish. 

RM 87 points.


https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2163001

Diamond Creek, Dunn, Craig Napa Big Reds Highlight Gala Wedding Celebration Dinner

Napa Big Reds Highlight Gala Carte-Conrad Wedding Celebration Dinner - Diamond Creek, Dunn, Craig, Lamborn

Another gala wedding celebration - Andrew Carte and Krista Conrad - offered an opportunity to indulge in special occasion fine wines. As with a couple earlier events this summer/fall of family weddings within our intimate wine group, Dr Dan's and then Bill and Beth C's, niece Krista's wedding celebration gave Sister Jan and Bro-in-law Bill (shown below) a chance to showcase some special wines. The festive event was held at the tony Mission Viejo Country Club.

This was extra special not just because it was a family wedding, but also because all the wines featured were from Napa winery visits that we had attended together.

Brother Bill is a different Bill C from another wine buddy with same name/initial featured regularly in these pages. Some of our favorite and most memorable winery visits in Napa Valley were with Bill and Jan - Diamond Creek, Dunn Family Vineyards, Lamborn Family Vineyards and Robert Craig Wines. So, it shouldn't come as a surprise that when they celebrated their daughter's wedding dinner, the wines served were from those events/prodcers.

Several folks commented about the Robert Craig Howell Mountain Cabernet served at the wedding to which I responded that its one of our favorites. Indeed, we're big fans of Robert Craig and have visited with the producer on numerous occasions. We first met Robert and tasted his wines back at our first visit to Robert Craig during our Napa Valley Wine Experience in 1996, and then again at our Robert Craig featured producer wine dinners in Napa Wine Experience 1998, and again in 1999. We tasted his Howell Mountain Zinfandels at the Robert Craig Howell Mountain Harvest Party '09 and during other visits such as our 2008 Robert Craig Vineyards and Winery visit up on Howell Mountain. Needless to say, we're long time fans of Bob and the Craig team and their 'artwork'.

Perhaps my preference for Howell Mountain appellation wines influenced Bill's collecting and subsequent selection of three of the four select wines served. 

I write often here about special occasion wines that add to the joy and enjoyment of the event. The fun was punctuated by being assigned wine steward duties to oversee the preparation and serving of the select wines at the reception dinner. Its what I live for ... but was the very least I could do in consideration of Bill and friend Andy having spent an entire afternoon prepping the wine at our daughter Erin's wedding dinner.

For the family and select guest tables at the dinner, we served the big Napa Cabs, and for another table of proclaimed Zin enthusiasts, Bill served Lamborn Family Vineyards Zinfandel - another producer visited together during one of our Napa Valley excursions.

The wines were all perfect accompaniments to the filet of beef and salmon dinner.

Diamond Creek Red Rock Terrace Napa Valley Diamond Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

This wine was tasted and sourced during our visit to the spectacular Diamond Creek vineyards back in 2010. As a group, we have a long tradition of serving this wine at such occasions. Linda and I served a flight of Diamond Creek magnums at son Ryan's wedding to Michelle Diamond. Bill and Beth C, shown pictured with Bill and Jan and us at that visit to Diamond Creek, served birth-year vintage 1982 Diamond Creek Gravelly Meadow Cabernet Sauvignon from double magnum at the wedding of their son Will. Then, this summer, they served Diamond Creek from magnums at son Drew's wedding reception dinner.

Tonight this Diamond Creek ..

Ruby red, medium-full bodied, full forward bright vibrant red and black berry fruit flavors showing a layer of acid on the front before turning to tones of cedar, mineral and dusty earthy leather. I sense this begs for more time to settle and develop a bit more.

RM 93 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=698360

Dunn Vineyards Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2011

We also visited Dunn Family Vineyards with Jan and Bill during our Napa Valley Wine Experience in 2008. Bill sourced these wines from the producer during that visit. Again we've served Dunn Cabernet at numerous such occasions, most recently, when Dr Dan's daughter was married this summer, I served her birth-year Dunn Napa Cabernet at a dinner with the group upon the announcement of their engagement.

What a showing! Randy Dunn's Cabernets are legendary for being long lived wines, especially his Howell Mountain vineyard designated label, while his Napa Valley label is supposed to be approachable earlier.

Based on tonight's tasting, its hard to imagine this Dunn could be any better, drinking very well at eight years of age. It was the most vibrant and expressive of the three legendary Cabernet labels.

Dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied, complex but smooth and balanced, forward black berry and black currant fruits giving way to tones of cedar and graphite, hints of sage and leather and spicy oak on the moderate tannin long lingering finish.

RM 94 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=683136

Robert Craig Howell Mountain Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

We have visited Robert Craig's site high atop Howell Mountain several times with both Jan and Bill, and Bill and Beth C. One of our memorable trips featured a picnic lunch at the site overlooking the  valley below. It was during that trip that Bill discovered and subsequently sourced Howell Mountain Cabernet (and the Zinfandel below) served to several of the tables at Krista's wedding.

As featured often in these pages, Robert Craig has several Napa Valley labels featuring Mt Veeder, Mt George, Spring Mountain and this Howell Mountain appellations. I often cite this as my favorite and tonight showed this label at its best showing characteristics that I favor - dark garnet colored, full bodied, full dark berry and black raspberry fruits accented by a layer of spice, sweet mocha dark chocolate and spicy oak on a full long lingering finish.

RM 94 points

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1820974

Lamborn Family Vineyards "The Abundant Vintage" Howell Mountain Zinfandel 2009

Lamborn Family Vineyards was another featured producer that we visited up atop Howell Mountain during our 2008 Napa Valley Wine Experience. Today legendary winemaker Heidi Barrett crafts their Estate grown Cabs and Zins. This is classic Howell Mountain Zin with full forward brambly fruit flavors. Bill served this wine to a table of Zin enthusiasts to much fanfare and acclaim.

Dark garnet/purple colored, medium/full bodied, black berry fruits with tones of pepper, hints of creosote and spice on a sweet tinged tangy moderate finish.

RM 91 points.

https://www.lamborn.com/

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1241258

Still gathering pictures and notes ... More to come ..

Mumm's Napa Valley Sparkling Wine highlights lunch overlooking Dana Point Beach

Mumm's Napa Valley Sparkling Wine highlights lunch overlooking Dana Point Beach

Rejoicing in our family gathering with son Alec, and V, in from NYC to So-Cal for a festive wedding weekend, we dined al fresco lunch at the Ritz Carlton Hotel overlooking Dana Point Beach. The 180 degree view of the Southern Orange County Pacific Coastline, perched high atop the cliff overlooking the surf befits the 180blũ named restaurant.

Basking in the So-Cal almost perpetual sunshine, we toasted on Mumm's Brut Prestige Napa Valley Sparkling Wine, the perfect complement to our lunch selections.

Of course this is deemed sparkling wine since Mumm Brut is from Carneros District at the bottom of Napa Valley where it meets Sonoma Valley. Brut is a blend of  58% Pinot Noir, 28% Chardonnay, 8% Pinot Meunier and 6% Pinot Gris, essentially the same as authentic French Champagne.

We drank this to re-live our visit to the affiliated G. H. Mumm sites in the real Champagne near Reims (shown left) with Alec during our Champagne wine region tour in 2006.

RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=8751

https://www.mummnapa.com/

http://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/Properties/LagunaNiguel/Dining/180blu/Default.htm 

Baldacci Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon

Baldacci Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon 2010

As part of the festivities leading up to the big wedding this weekend, we had a family dinner at Brü Grill & Market in Lake Forest, CA next to Mission Viejo. Sis Jan and Bro-in-law brought some special wines BYOB to accompany the grilled steak dinners. Brü Grill & Market was the first of a couple wine friendly restaurants we discovered over the weekend that features an extensive wine selection sold at retail prices which they then are served BYOB, in this case with an added $10 corkage fee. This is a very wine friendly accommodation for folks like us who place high value on the wine offerings combined with the food selections on the menu.

In what became the beginning of a busy festive weekend featuring several spectacular wines and settings, Bill brought Baldacci Family Vineyards, Napa Valley Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 which was one of the producers visited during Jan's Napa Valley wine weekend last spring, when she discovered and obtained this label. This was a perfect complement to the steak entrees. 

Baldacci Napa Valley Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon 2010

Tastes like rich concentrated Napa mountain fruit. Deep purple and dark garnet colored, full bodied, rich complex concentrated ripe black berry, black raspberry and plum fruits accented by a layer of mocha chocolate, hints of dusty earth and cedar before turning to spicy oak on the lingering silky tannin finish.

RM 94 points.
 https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1734834

http://www.baldaccivineyards.com/ 

Celebrate Grandson Birth with Vintage Birth Year Bordeaux

Celebrating Grandson's Birth with Vintage Birth Year Bordeaux

The Five Forts

Grandson Jesse Robert Fort was born on 17 November to daughter Erin and Son-in-law Johnny, new little brother to Lucy and Richie.

To celebrate this joyous occasion, we opened a bottle of Erin's birthyear Bordeaux at our celebration dinner.

I've written often in these pages about this practice of collecting special vintage wines for such occasions. Amazingly, while 1981 was not a highly rating vintage with prospects for longevity, we still hold about a case of such wines and they're still holding their own after 30 plus years.

Horizontal collection of 1981 Bordeaux

While we continue to be amazed, and pleased with the longevity and drinkability of these aged wines, I am diligently sorting through those remaining to consume those thought to be less age-worthy, such as tonight's Haut Medoc, Grand Cru Classé.

Several of those remaining bottles are higher end labels thought to be more ageworthy such as Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, Château Leoville Las Cases, Château Gruaud Larose, Ducru Beaucaillou and the legendary Château Mouton Rothschild, as shown in the picture of our horizontal collection of 1981 Bordeaux from a few years ago (and look at the price tags showing on some - of course those were acquired in the mid-eighties!). I look forward to enjoying each one of these remaining bottles in our collection and intend do so soon as they're understandably reaching their end of life.

At a recent wine group tasting dinner, we opened several vintage bottles including Château Cos d' Estournel 1981 (as well as '88, '89 and '91) and Château Brane Cantenac 1970, 1982 and 2000. One of the diners, a newcomer to our group exclaimed how he could'nt believe we were still holding, and drinking such old wines. I responded that over almost forty years of collecting, I learned we drank many of our Bordeaux too early, especially bottles from classic vintages such as 1982, 1986, 1989 and 1990. Indeed, somewhere in between is the optimum - opening a bottle at the apex of its prime drinking window. We'll continue to enjoy these wines and the adventure and experience of opening an aged bottle of a special vintage for a special occasion.

Château La Lagune Grand Cru Classé Haut Medoc 1981

We opened this at daughter Erin's house, where we were staying with the grandkids whilst E and J were still at the hospital with the new baby. While the cork disintegrated when I tried to extract it, using a cork screw rather than my ahso (two pronged cork puller - which was at home) that I normally use for such situations, the wine was still holding its own.

Dark garnet colored with no evidence of brickish or rust aging signs, medium bodied, the black berry and cherry fruits were a bit muted, giving way to a layer of acidic musty, earthy leather, black olive tapenade, and tobacco leaf, all classic aged Bordeaux characteristics. Time to drink. This was our last bottle of this label, the others having been consumed long ago. Our cellartracker records indicated our remaining bottle (s) are from the more age-worthy 1982 vintage.

RM 86 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=139280

Clos du Val Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2013

Clos du Val Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 - a blockbuster release !

For after church Sunday Brunch dinner we opened the just released, highly acclaimed 2013 Clos du Val Cabernet Sauvignon. With daughter Erin past her due date for our new grand-baby, this was likely the last dinner with the 'four-Forts' before baby makes five. 

The 2013 Napa Cab's are coming and all indications are that it is a blockbuster vintage, one of those where all boats rise with the tide, such that all earnest producers should have notable collectible releases, one for the consumer to rejoice and stock up. 

The Clos du Val received spectacular ratings and appears to be one of those rare wines that come along every so often where everything comes together for a high QPR (Quality Price Ratio) highest rated wine at a moderate price point. 

 Since it is still available in distribution, we wanted to try it to determine whether we should buy more while it is still available. All indications are this is a collectible wine that also affords near term gratification at an every day/week price - a $50 wine for $30. 

 Don't be surprised if the Producer and Distribution exploit the notoriety of high ratings to drive up the price as often happens in such circumstances. We've seen over the years such situations where certain producers take the long term view, maintaining their price point for the goodwill of the brand, while others exploit their short lived fame for quick fortune. 

Ideally, there will be several other similarly situated releases in this vintage so as to provide a mother-load for consumers and great windfalls for producers' and their brand and image, despite such exclusivity. 

 This was a delicious perfect complement to our Sunday grilled flank steak dinner. 

Pop and pour this for very pleasurable easy drinking but allow an hour or so for the true character and flavors to begin to reveal themselves. 

Dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied, a symphony of smooth polished complex flavors - tightly wound blackberry, black cherry, hints of plum and currant fruits accented by tones of black tea, black olive, hints of vanilla, light toast, and tobacco on the finely integrated supple sinewy tannin finish. 

RM 93-94 points. 

Pick some up for drinking now, and for putting some away to try over the coming years. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2122040

Vin Chicago describes it this way. "Even more impressive than the flavors is the structure. The tannins are powerful and youthful, yet as nuanced and integrated as you'll find in some of the world's best Cabernet or Bordeaux."

Vinous, Antonio Galloni gave it 95+ Points, (October 2015).

http://www.closduval.com/

Deep Sea Conway Family Wines - Paso Robles Merlot 2011

Deep Sea Conway Family Wines - Paso Robles Merlot 2011

Another selection from a wine brand seeking identity, or failing to capitalize on its heritage?

Another commentary on my study and observations on wine branding. Traveling for business this week provided the opportunity to stop in a wine shop in a remote city. This always affords a chance to see different producers and labels that don't otherwise show up in our large metropolitan home market. Sometimes smaller producers can only fill the demands of a smaller market, or other reasons. So it was that I found Deep Sea Merlot and Deep Sea Chardonnay from Conway Family Wines in Santa Barbara.

We've seen this label in secondary and tertiary markets from time to time. The rarity of the label may be exacerbated by the fact that some of their labels are no longer being produced, so finds like this are anomalies of the tail of the distribution chain. In some cases these offerings may be Negociant labels, wherein they purchase fruit from growers, or even purchase excess wine from producers, and market them under their own private label (s).

I've written in these pages about the branding challenge faced by a Negociant, that of building affinity for a brand that is associated with terroir, or sense of place, for a particular wine, when the grapes are sourced from various anonymous growers that may change with each vintage.

How stark the contrast with Chateau Laroze, showcased in last week's blog, where the land has been in the family since 1610, producing from the same facility under the same label since 1885. Such is the extent of the difference between 'old world' and 'new world' producers' and their wines.

We have found Deep Sea wines including their Syrah and Cabernet but this was the first time seeing and experiencing their Merlot. I've written in these pages about this producer and those labels from the California Central Coast and one from Napa Valley. Generally, they have provided modest price, good price point QPR (Quality Price Ratio) wines.

Their negociant practice is broadcast in their testament, "We purchase fruit from noteworthy vineyards in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Monterey Counties, and the Napa Valley. We contract with specific blocks, and actively manage the individual vines in that area. We work with growers to formulate viticultural practices and the rows are farmed to our specifications."

But, they also have their own vineyards as indicted by their website, “As with our estate vineyards, we concentrate on quality rather than yield per acre, and we carefully hand pick the grapes when they reach the right balance of flavor, acidity and sugar."

According to the Conway Family Wines website, the Estate is the thirty-five hundred acre Rancho Arroyo Grande in the Central Coast region of California, thirteen miles from the Pacific Ocean, where the coastal range meets the mountains of the Los Padres National Forest.

When I search Cellartracker for Deep Sea Merlot, a pretty good indicator of the marketplace with over a half million collectors and a several million bottles featured, I find this producer, Deep Sea Paso Robles Merlot, as well as Deep Sea Rancho Arroyo Grande Vineyard Merlot, although only one vintage of each. As a consumer of these wines, do I presume one (the first) is a Negociant offering while the latter is Estate Bottled?

As their website indicates, "Deep Sea wines showcase the maritime influence on grapes grown in California’s coastal climate. The grapes for our wine are grown in vineyards close to the Pacific Ocean, (where)Vineyards along the California coastline are cooled by fog and ocean breezes."
 

So it is with Deep Sea, a collection of labels but a conundrum in branding. I say this because we also hold Deep Sea Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Of course, the Deep Sea reference to proximity to the Ocean and its effects work for the Central Coast, and would work for the Sonoma Coast, but are a paradox when associated with inland NapaValley.

This leads me to the branding question; if the Conway Family owns spectacular lands with estate vineyards with such a rich heritage, why not leverage such and establish the pedigree and branding associated with terroir for your wines?

The personality of family association is strong for branding and building brand affinity and loyalty. Look at the number of premier labels bearing the family or 'place' name.

Indeed, the Conway Family feature a wonderful photo of their beautiful extended family of seven siblings and offspring.

 So Deep Sea, or Conway Family Wines, is Deep Sea Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon an oxymoron, an anomaly, or a step along the path to establishing an evolving, maturing branding strategy?

I see on their website the inaugural release of another label - Conway Santa Barbara County Cabernet Sauvignon. I will look forward to tasting their signature brand premium label release (s) and will watch their evolution with interest.

Meanwhile, we tasted the Deep Sea Paso Robles Merlot 2009

Dark ruby colored, medium full bodied, bright full aromatics project the flavors to come - full, somewhat forward black berry and black raspberry fruits with tones of cedar, a slight mustiness and hints of creosote and earthy leather on a moderate, soft tannin finish.

RM 86-87 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1847704

http://www.conwayfamilywines.com/

What is the real Deep Sea?