Round Lake Vineyards and Winery - Round Lake Minnesota

Round Lake Vineyards and Winery - Round Lake Minnesota

On our cross country roadtrip getaway, we stopped at Round Lake Vineyards and Winery in Round Lake, Minnesota, a further exploration and discovery of Midwestern Wines. Round Lake Vineyards is the family owned and operated enterprise of Scott Ellenbecker and Jenny Ellenbecker, and their two sons, Logan who serves as winemaker, and Mason who manages events and marketing.

Scott Ellenbecker, CEO, and Logan Ellenbecker,
Winemaker

We started our trip with a visit to Galena Cellars Vineyards and Winery in northwestern most Galena, Illinois. I wrote in an earlier blogpost about Galena Cellars' efforts to determine the ideal grapes for the unique terroir of their Northern Illinois site - the exposure, soils, drainage, climate and elevation - all the elements that contribute to and manifest themselves in the wines produced from grapes grown on the property. 

For our visit to Round Lake, we met and were hosted by founder proprietor Scott Ellenbecker who took us on an extensive tour of the vineyards and the production facilities. 

Round Lake has taken great care and put much attention to the careful selection of grape varietals that are best suited to their unique site. They have twenty-two acres planted to vineyards on the thirty acre estate on the shore of Round Lake, which provides some micro-climate moderation in extreme weather.

The Round Lake Vineyards were first planted in the spring of 2007 in three grape varieties: La Crescent, Frontenac Gris and Marquette which are some of  their most treasured vines producing some of their best and most award-winning wines. 

In 2008, they planted two more blocks in the grape varietals St. Pepin and Brianna, which source two of the most distinct wines produced by the winery. They also added to their Marquette plantings.

 

Since then, they have added Petite Pearl, Sabrevois, King of the North, Petite Amie, Frontenac Blanc and Louise Swenson grape varietals.

Most recently, they also planted the Itasca grape developed by Peter Hemstedt who at the time was at the University of Minnesota. 

The Marquette grape has proven to be especially well suited to the distinctive terror of the site and produces strong canes and beautiful bunches. 

Round Lake's south-facing slope runs from the crest of the hill north of the winery towards the south and has sandy loam soil with great drainage for both water and air and rich topsoil that holds great nutrients - an ideal vineyard location to grow grapes.

Marquette grapes due
to be picked in a couple of weeks

Round Lake has had the most success with the Marquette grape of which they have three different blocks, each producing fruit with distinctive characteristics - one lighter and fruity while the others are richer and more complex. 

The Round Lake property has rich black soils that are streaked with fractions of sand and gravel that provide good drainage and also gives the wines great mineral character. The well water on the property reflects the strong odor of iron and minerals, which also translates to the wines we grow. 

Today Round Lake grow over 19,000 vines across four vineyards in seven blocks. They also source grapes from contract growers across the region as well as sources as far away as California.   

Wines produced by Round Lake are branded and labeled according to their source and are attributed to Estate wines, Minnesota Wines and American Wines for grapes sourced from outside the state and region.

During our visit they were amidst the crush of several ton of Brianna grapes that had just arrived from their source in Iowa and we were able to witness them 'crushing' and de-stemming the grapes and pumping the juice into the stainless steel tanks for fermentation - overseen by winemaker and production manager Logan. 

 

 We also toured the bottling and labeling line and the barrel storage cellar. Scott shared the challenges they have faced in the past year with their supply chain - experiencing severe difficulties in sourcing barrels, bottles, corks and supplies. 

 

Scott showed us the barrel storage facility which is being readied for filling, that includes barrels sourced from leading French cooperages that used to operate out of Napa Valley, but have since closed, forcing them to ship barrels from France through the port of Norfolk. He also sources new American Missouri oak barrels from the Oak Cooperage in Higbee, Missouri.

We toured and wrote about the Cooper's Oak Winery and OAK Cooperage facilities during our Missouri Wine Experience a few years ago, when we got the chance to watch them cut and shape the wood, assemble and toast, then trim the barrels. Oak produces barrels for some of the top producers and brands in the United States, France and beyond, including, most notably, the cult Napa Cabernet producer Silver Oak, who have since acquired the business to ensure an ongoing supply of their specified optimal barrels for their wines.

Round Lake do a great deal of marketing and promotion of their venue which sits on the shore of Round Lake, as a site for special events including weddings. Scott talked at length about his culinary preparations and the many dishes he created for wine dinner special events at the winery. 

Round Lake have a Bistro restaurant and host live music at events and on weekends. They also host many wine dinners paired with Round Lake Wines. Scott shared with Linda many of his culinary creations that he has crafted for such events.

We dined at the Round Lake Bistro restaurant and did a wine flight tasting outside on the veranda adjacent a small pond and fountain. 

Round Lake produce a broad portfolio of wines - Red, White, Sweet and Sparkling.  

We tasted a Red Flight of the following labels:

• Round Lake Vineyards Sangiovese 2019 - This is actually sourced from the Sierra Foothills, Amador County California
• Round Lake Vineyards Heron Red Blend 
• Round Lake Vineyards Gander Red Blend
• Round Lake VIneyards Petite Pearl 2019
  

 
We also tasted Round Lake Brianna - one of their most popular white wines. It is a grape that is most consistent and natural in reflecting the source fruit.

The restaurant and adjacent grounds with live musicians performing on the lawn.

 

https://www.roundlakevineyards.com/

 

Ladera Napa Valley Lone Canyon Cabernet at Morrie's Steakhouse, Sioux Falls

Ladera Napa Valley Lone Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

For our getaway roadtrip, we took nearly a case of wine to enjoy during our overnight stays and dinesite dinners. During an overnight stay in Sioux Falls, SD, we dined at Morrie's Steakhouse which proved to be perfect venue for the occasion - a fine wine and dining experience. With our grilled beefsteak and salmon entrees, we took from our home cellar this BYOB Napa Cabernet which proved to be a perfect accompaniment pairing for the dinner. 

We dined at Morrie's Steakhouse in Sioux Falls. For dinner I ordered the grilled New York Strip beefsteak, perfectly prepared 'Pittsburgh style', my favorite, hot pink center with charred outside, served with whipped potatoes. Linda had the Salmon entree. Our server Erin was attentive, professional, and adept at serving our vintage wine.

We discovered, tasted and acquired this wine during one of our visits to the winery up on Howell Mountain above Napa Valley, during our Napa Valley Howell Mountain Wine Experience in 2008.

https://mcnees.org/winesite/napa/napa_08/napa_08_ladera.htm

We featured our visit to the winery in previous blogposts in these pages.

We last tasted and posted about this wine just a couple months ago when I reposted about this producer and label, we discovered this wine and purchased it following our visit to the Ladera Vineyards estate and winery up on Howell Mountain in 2006 and then again during our Napa Valley Howell Mountain Wine Experience 2008. 

We'd driven past the property, formerly the historic Chateau Woltner many times over the years on our treks up Howell Mountain in northeast Napa Valley.

The fabulous historic winery building consisted of production and barrel storage below and a rustic tasting room upstairs. It is surrounded by spectacular gardens, beds of lavender, and of course the vineyards. 

 

Ladera was founded when Stotesburys moved their family to Napa Valley from Montana in 2000 when they acquired a historic Howell Mountain property featuring an 82-acre vineyard. For the next 16 years, this property served as the home for Ladera.

With deep agricultural roots, and decades of experience as ranchers, Pat and Anne Stotesbery acquired the Napa Valley mountain vineyard in 1996. The following year, they purchased their second vineyard, Lone Canyon, embracing life as full-time winegrowers and vintners. In 1999, they founded Ladera, which means “hillside” in Spanish and Italian, and made their debut vintage of Cabernet Sauvignon. Ladera initially primarily focused on Cabernet Sauvignon of which we still hold a several cases of four different labels across several vintages from this era.  

Around 2008, their son Dan visited us while on a wine promotion trip to/thru Chicago and we took him around to several of the local wine merchants in the area.  

Stotesburys sold the Ladera land on Howell Mountain in 2016, following the next year selling their Lone Canyon and the Mount Veeder property.

Ladera Lone Canyon Vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

Ladera produced several labels of Cabernet Sauvignon including several sub-appellation designated labels from Howell Mountain and this one from Lone Canyon, Napa Valley. 

Lone Canyon Vineyard is located on the flanks of Mt. Veeder in the western hills of the Napa Valley. The ranch consisted of 480 acres of which 75 were planted to vines. 

The topography is very steep in some areas with elevations reaching 1,100 feet above sea level. The elevations, as well as its specific location in Napa Valley, contribute to the unique climate at Lone Canyon. The clay loam soils are of moderate depth and are very well drained.

Winemaker's Vineyard Notes: The 2004 Ladera Lone Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon is truly an expression of the Lone Canyon vineyard. The unique terroir of this vineyard allows the fruit to showcase the vintage at hand. 

This is one of several bottles we still hold from a couple of  mixed cases we acquired during our winery visit back near its release. 

Winemaker Notes: The 2004 Lone Canyon Cabernet is a perfect example of how rich and lush the wines from this property can be. This wine is exuberant in color and the aromas are alive with spicy and herbal fruit. The nose provides earthy, brambly undertones with brilliant dark fruit. A full bodied entry hits the palate with flavors of dark cherry and licorice. The wine is layered with textures that are bold and masculine yet maintain tannins of a velvety character. The dark fruit flavors blend with the complex tannins to produce on extremely long fruit finish.

This was awarded 91 points by Wine Spectator and 90 points by Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar.

Tonight, this was consistent with our earlier tasting experience and published notes for this wine.  

Dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, firm, tight and concentrated complex black berry and black raspberry fruits with notes of black tea, cassis, mineral sage and herbs with fine smooth tannins on the lingering finish.

RM 91 points. 

Upon selling their vineyard properties, “It was too big for us, and taking care of it was more than a full-time job,” says Pat. “We wanted to focus our energies on doing what we love the most—making great wines. Because of the relationships we have formed, we are fortunate to be able to partner with Napa Valley’s greatest growers in pursuit of this vision.”

 

Ladera has evolved, moving away from owning vineyards and instead partnering with several of Napa Valley’s most respected growers, to source fruit from acclaimed sites. “Over the course of our first 20 years, our love of mountain vineyards took us from Mount Veeder to Lone Canyon to Howell Mountain and beyond,” says Pat. “From each location we learned a great deal, which made our wines better and better. Today, this knowledge and experience, along with the freedom and ability to work with Napa Valley’s greatest vineyards, is resulting in our finest wines ever.”

Today, after more than two decades producing estate wines in Napa Valley, they continue to produce extraordinary mountain-grown Cabernet Sauvignons, along with acclaimed Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays from their Pillow Road Estate Vineyard in the Russian River Valley. They reside and host wine tastings and events from their winery new location on Silverado Trail in Calistoga.  

One Cellartracker writes about this wine: "Screaming awesome. Can totally see why Harlan bought this vineyard. Incredible cedar, cassis, cherry liquor, minty herbal notes, silky long finish, such a Bordeaux feel, seems perfect right now. Wow. 95 points." 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=355631

https://www.laderavineyards.com/

http://mcnees.org/winesite/napa/napa_08/img_napa08_ladera_winery_remc.jpg

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2020/08/ladera-napa-valley-cabernet-sauvignon.html

https://twitter.com/laderavineyards

https://www.morriessteakhouse.com/

Galena Cellars Vineyards and Winery

Galena Cellars Family owned and operated Vineyards and Winery in historic Galena, Illinois

We took a cross-country driving getaway road-trip for a week and pursued our interests in wine, Frank Lloyd Wright architecture sites, historic landmarks and magnificent scenery. 

Our journey started in historic Galena, Illinois, where we stayed in the 'Old Farmhouse' country house amidst the vineyards of Galena Cellar Winery and Vineyards.

Galena is known as the hometown of legendary civil war general Ulyses S Grant who went on to be President of the United States. US Grant is featured on two of the Galena Cellars flagship wines, a red and a white. 

Sourced from their website, Galena Cellars has a long storied history in Midwest wines dating back to 1974 when Robert Lawlor took a class in home winemaking in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. 

In 1976, Christine Lawlor graduated with a Degree in Enology from Fresno State University and opened Christina Wine Cellars in MacGregor, Iowa, producing 200 cases of Cherry Wine.

In 1980, the Lawlors opened a second winery in an old Milwaukee freight depot in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. 

Galena Cellars was born in 1985, when the Lawlors, during a trip to purchase grapes, seized the opportunity to open a third winery in Galena, Illinois. They called up Christine’s brother, Scott, and his wife, Karan, to move to Galena to help with the project.  They restored an old historic 1840’s grainary building on Main Street in Galena. Galena Cellars celebrated its first annual “Beaujolais Nouveau” Wine Celebration and was featured on the Today Show.

In 1990, they acquired the current farm vineyard site on North Ford Road, just outside of town, and began growing experimental grapes. They moved the wine production to the vineyard location. The family decided to focus production in Galena and closed the McGregor and LaCrosse locations.

Christine Lawlor-White was honored as “Winemaker of the Year” by the Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Association. She went on to win this award again in 2008, and 2017.

Cousins Eric and Sarah, Christine’s Son and Scott’s Daughter, pursue formal education in winemaking at California Polytechnic State University and Fresno State University, respectively. Upon graduation, they both embarked up winemaking careers. 

Scott, Karan, & Christine Lawlor retired after the passing of their parents and Galena Cellar founders and first generation winemakers, Robert & Joyce Lawlor. The third generation was called on to return from California, Britt White returning to take on operations of Galena Cellars, and Eric White to become Winemaker & President.

In 2019, Christine Lawlor had the honor of presenting the “Winemaker of the Year” award by the Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Association to her son, Eric White.

The challenges to produce great Midwestern wines are numerous, starting with finding the ideal terroir - sense of place - combination of climate, terrain, soil, drainage - all the elements that manifest in the grapes that make up the wine. When we lived in California, we missed three notable things from the Midwest - steak, corn and tomatoes. All the elements of Midwest climate and soil that provide ideal conditions for corn and soybeans and such, are opposed to the environments and conditions best suited for vini vinifera - wine grapes , which are best served when starved and stressed in poor soil and arid climate.

Galena Cellars vineyard grapes

Another element affecting Midwestern wines is the quest to find or craft the ideal grape varietal to suit the specific terror of a location. 

'Old World' wine producers, in Italy and France, have been producing wines for six, even seven centuries or more, while 'new world' wine regions such as Central Coast and Northern California counties such as Napa and Sonoma, Washington and Oregon Columbia Valleys, have been producing fine wines for half a century. 

The new world is still experimenting and fine tuning the vineyard plantings to find the optimal grapes for each site. 

So it is that the Midwest is a newcomer to the wine business and are still in the early stages of finding or grafting and crafting the optimal grapes for their environs and sites. 

Although, this might be disputed as we learned and posted from our Missouri Wine Experience last year. Missouri has a long history of viticulture and winemaking dating back almost two centuries with some of the oldest wineries in the US, and some of the historic largest wineries and highest producing wine areas in the US. As early as 1850, there were nearly sixty wineries in the Hermann, Missouri area producing more than 10,000 gallons of wine per year.

By 1904, there were more than 100 Missouri wineries, the Hermann area alone produced 3 million gallons of wine, mostly by small wine grower/producers.When France’s vineyards were plagued by the phylloxera louse that threatened their entire wine industry, it was Missouri that came to the rescue. When nearly all France's grape vines were destroyed, Missouri’s state entomologist, C.V. Riley, was among the first to discover that Native American grapes were resistant to the pest. Missouri winemakers shipped millions of phylloxera-resistant rootstocks across the Atlantic, ultimately saving the French wine industry.

Missouri is also home to the first designated AVA, American Viticulture Area in the US.

Today, Galena Cellars are on the forefront of the effort to create or find the ideal grape and produce wines that best exemplify Northern Illinois is Eric White, President and Winemaker for Galena Cellars.

Eric grew up in the wine business of his mother, Chris Lawlor, who planted vineyards, tended the vines and crafted wines from the time he was yet a toddler. Several of the wine labels today still bear the branding of Lawlor Family Vineyards. Eric was exposed to all aspects of the business and as early as 1999, when he was but 12, Chris gave him his first opportunity to help make - now Galena Cellars’ flagship wine - Eric the Red. 

Eric studied winemaking and earned a degree in Enology from Cal Poly Polytechnic University in San Luis Obispo, CA. He worked internships at wine producers in the Paso Robles and Napa Valley wine regions during his studies. Upon graduation and completion of his harvest internship, he worked at legendary Heitz Cellars, one of the oldest family-owned wineries in the US working alongside David Heitz.  

Eric went on from harvest intern to Associate Winemaker where he crafted the 2010-2012 vintages of the notable estate label. The final vintage he worked at Heitz Cellars went on to earn 100 points from Wine Enthusiast Magazine.  

In 2015, Eric went to cult-cab Napa Valley producer Brand, sited up in the esteemed Pritchard Hill AVA in the Vaca Range overlooking southeast Napa Valley. It was during this time at Brand that he worked with Phillipe Melka, one of the most renowned winemakers in California.

Readers of this column know we are huge fans of Phillipe Melka and collect numerous labels crafted by him, both under his own brand, as consulting winemaker to many other leading brands, and as contributing winemaker to the Long Shadows Vintners Collection project in Washington State. 

During his time working for Melka at Brand, Eric met his wife, Oniqueh, who was also working in the wine industry in California. 

Eric returned to Galena in early 2018 at the request of his mother and his grandfather's wishes, to became the winemaker and to oversee the business of Galena Cellars.

Galena Cellars produce estate wines, crafted from grapes grown on their four vineyards on the property, as well as wines from grapes sourced from growers across the Northern Illinois and Iowa region, across Illinois, and from growers in Northern, Central Coast and Central Valley California. These wines are labeled as Estate, or 'Illinois', 'Upper Mississippi Valley Region', vineyard designated, or 'American' accordingly.

One of Galena Cellars vineyards is devoted to research in the study of grape varietals seeking the varietal best suited to Northern Illinois terroir. The nearly two acre vineyard is devoted to a non-profit research project in conjunction with the Northern Illinois Wine Growers Association and planted to more than twenty different varietals in search for those best suited to the region (shown below). 

Northern Illinois Wine Growers non-profit
research vineyard plot

At the winery site where there are guest rooms in the main house, that once also served as a tasting room, a guest house in the old historic original farmhouse, which is adjacent to the winery, a large tasting room, wine cellar shed and bottling building.  

Galena Cellars produce a broad portfolio of two dozen labels of wines - red, white, sparkling and port style - offered in create your own tasting flights, BTG - By the Glass, and of course by the bottle, at their wine center retail tasting center downtown and at the winery vineyard site outside of town.  

In our tasting flights we tasted the following wines:

From the Wine Club Member Exclusives flight, Red Wines:

• Galena Cellars Malbec 2020
• Galena Cellars Frontenac Amphora 2020 - This is a locally sourced wine sourced from Galena Cellars Ryndak Ranch Vineyard
• Galena Cellars Chambourcin 2019 - This is sourced from the Wayside Ridge Vineyard in the Shawnee Hills of Southern Illinois

Galena Cellars Proprietor's Reserve Wines

Red Wines 

• Galena Cellars Cabernet Franc 2020 - This is sourced from the Wayside Ridge Vineyard in the Shawnee Hills of Southern Illinois
• Galena Cellars Generals Reserve Red - Blend of unspecified European Varietals
• Galena Cellars Gambler's Red - a blend of 80% Zinfandel, 18% Marquette and 2% Petit Sirah
  

Galena Cellars Red Wine Flight

White Wines 

• Galena Cellars General's Reserve White
• Galena Cellars Viognier  - This is sourced from the Wayside Ridge Vineyard in the Shawnee Hills of Southern Illinois
• Galena Cellars Oktoberfest - A German style semi-dry wine, a blend of Traminette, Riesling and Muscat Grapes 

Galena Cellars White Wines featuring
General US Grant and Proprietor Manager Britt White

We also tasted selections from their Dessert wine collection:

• Galena Cellars Maple Cask Niagara - Sherry Port style
  
• Galena Cellars Red Raspberry Framboise - Port style
• Galena Cellars Frontenac Port - Port style from locally grown Frontenac
  

Galena Cellars Dessert Wine Flight selections

Other examples of the breadth and depth of the Galena Cellars portfolio of wines ...

• Eric the Red
• The Secret Garden Edelweiss
• Frontenac Gris
• Señor Sangria
• Bubblin Blanc
• Muscat Canelli
• Chambourcin Rosé
• Britt White 
• Gratitude
• Cabernet Franc
• Peach
• Marquette
• Foxy
• Cabernet Sauvignon
• Vineyard Rosé
• Honey Mead
• Sparking Frontenac Gris
  

Galena Cellars Tasting Room,
Main Street, Downtown Galena

 

 We stayed in the 'Old Farmhouse' guest house sited on the Visitor Center property, adjacent the winery, cellars, bottling shed and the tasting room, overlooking the vineyards and farm fields to the horizon.

Great fun taking our wine flights back to the front
porch overlooking the vineyards.

https://galenacellars.com/

Force Majeure Red Wine BYOB Fried Green Tomatoes Galena

Force Majeure Red Wine BYOB Fried Green Tomatoes Restaurant in historic Galena, IL

The first stop of our cross country roadtrip getaway was the historic town of Galena (IL) where we stayed in a farmhouse amidst the vineyards of Galena Cellars Vineyards and Winery. This was one of the first nights out on our cross country road trip on which we took several of our favorite label wines from our home cellar to enjoy BYOB or with carry-out dinners at our hotel or other special venues.

We dined the first night downtown Galena at Fried Green Tomatoes Restaurant, purveyor of Italian and American Cuisine. I ordered a New York Strip steak with their port wine reduction sauce and mashed potatoes. To accompany our dinner, we brought BYOB from our home cellar a Big Red Blend from Washington State Columbia Valley.  

Fried Green Tomatoes Restaurant is in the historic Galena, IL, home to former US Civil War General and US President Ulysses S. Grant. From the restaurant website ...

"In 1854, Jesse R. Grant (General Grant’s Father) owned the Leather and Finding Store located in this building, Grant dealt in all kinds of leather, coach trimmings, saddlery hardware, shoemaker's kits, and findings. Ulysses S. Grant, a West Point graduate and experienced military officer, moved to Galena in 1860 to help his father and brothers with the leather business.

In 1900, Frank Owen, who was a mayor of Galena, ran a saloon in the upper part of the building. For nearly three-quarters of the 20th century, the Dowling Building was a monument shop. Most recently, the building housed a drug store, a sports outfitter, and an antique store.

Restaurant owner, Fred Bonnet, wanted a building with history and vintage character to support the distinctive dining. “I left the brickwork exposed. I left the patterns on the wall and reproduced them elsewhere in the restaurant. The history of the building Mr. Dowling built is part of the experience for our guests,” explains Bonnet."

Force Majeure Washington State Columbia Valley Red Mountain Ptera Red Wine 2012

We visited the Force Majeure Vineyards Site Visit and Tasting in Walla Walla Washington back in 2018. We met winemaker Todd Alexander and marketing director and wife Carrie when they visited us in Chicago during a release tour stop in Chicago in 2016. As a member of their wine club we've collected a selection of their red wines every since, as well as older vintages dating back a decade such as this Force Majeure 2012 vintage release. 

his vintage release is a unique blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. This label, Ptera, was only made in a few vintages and quickly become a mailing list favorite. This was from the Force Majeure Collaboration Series, begun in 2004 with a partnership between viticulturist Ryan Johnson, owners Paul and Susan McBride and seven specially selected winemakers, each chosen for their proficiency with various grape varietals and styles.

The “Collaboration Series” was produced in small quantities of Bordeaux- and Rhone-inspired wines, sourced from the notable Ciel du Cheval Vineyard from 2004 to 2013, and including in later years the Force Majeure Vineyard.  This and the follow on 2013 release were the final vintage for the “Collaboration Series” wines, as Force Majeure estate production increased to allow them to be a completely estate-focused winery sourcing fruit from their own vineyards.

This label was a unique blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. It was awarded 95 points by The Wine Advocate and 91 points by Wine Spectator. 

Completely consistent with earlier tasting notes of this label release, at nearing a decade old, this was likely at its prime, at the apex of its drinking window and profile. The cork was in perfect condition as shown.

Dark inky purple garnet colored, full bodied, firmly structured but nicely balanced and approachable full black raspberry and black berry fruits are accented by notes of cola, coffee, spices with lead pencil graphite and floral turning to fine grained tannins on the long lingering finish.

RM 92 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2236027

https://forcemajeurevineyards.com/wp/

https://www.friedgreen.com/

Hall Estate Napa Cabernet at Harry & Izzy's Steakhouse Indy

Hall Estate Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon at Harry & Izzy's Steakhouse Ind7

We dined with dear friends Eric and Cathy at Harry & Izzy's in Indy and ordered from the winelist this standard-bearer estate Napa Cabernet. 

We hold a dozen labels from Hall and close to a decade of vintages of this label, so it is one we know well. This was our first encounter with this vintage release and it exceeded our expectations, prompting us to rush out the next day and pick up several bottles. 

Our tours and visits of the Hall Rutherford Winery Estate Appellation Tasting, cellar and cave tasting room have been highlights of several of Napa Wine Experiences. We enjoyed meeting Kathryn Hall at their Flagship namesake Kathryn label 2015 vintage release tour wine club tasting in Chicago in 2018, pre-covid. We first discovered Hall and their Napa Valley wines during our Napa Valley Wine Experience back in 2003.

Our first Rutherford estate tour and tasting was after its opening back in 2013. https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2013/04/hall-napa-valley-rutherford-estate.html

Hall Estate Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

This may be one of the best releases of this label that I remember, resembling the higher priced premium and ultra-premium labels from their extensive portfolio of a dozen Napa Valley Cabernets. 

Even though this is their standard estate label, its a sophisticated Bordeaux blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot and 2% Merlot.

This is sourced from vineyards throughout Napa Valley, from Hall organic estate vineyards to 'small rugged hillside' sites of our partner growers. Hall states: "By blending these various lots, we create a rich panorama on the palate, a landscape of complexity and character that clearly depicts Napa Valley."

Winemaker notes for this release: "Our 2018 Napa Valley Cabernet is deep ruby in the glass, and displays effusive aromas of crème de cassis, dark plum, anise and dried herbs. The palate is lush and layered with fine-grained tannin supporting flavors of dark berry, cocoa, and a hint of freshly turned earth. The long and supple finish showcases the impeccable growing season that allowed us to coax the very best from each of our unique vineyard sites."

This exceptional estate bottling reflects the near perfect growing season of the Napa 2018 vintage. Hall describes the "season began in late February. Our Spring weather was mild, and allowed for extended flowering that produced very uniform grape clusters. Temperatures throughout Napa remained steady and warm during the majority of summer and fall, without any heat spikes, making for a long and unhurried harvest. The resulting wines are incredibly smooth and polished, with magnificent texture and color."

This is one to pick-up and enjoy for early gratification or hold for a decade or more. It will be fun to see how this evolves from graceful cellar aging for some time.

Wine Spectator, James Molesworth gave this release 93 points.

 

Dark inky purple garnet colored, full bodied, complex with rich concentrated dark berry fruits accented by layers of dark mocha, crème de cassis, oak, earthy tobacco and slight hint of cedar on the lingering tannin laced finish. 

RM 93 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3883343

https://www.hallwines.com/2018-hall-napa-valley-cabernet-sauvignon

 

https://twitter.com/HALLWines

 

https://www.harryandizzys.com/

 

https://twitter.com/harryandizzys 

 

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