A little of everywhere
The Red Hills Appellation
Saturday 4:00pm until 7:00pm (or until it's gone)
$5 per person
Our tasting this week will feature our "GrandKids," Nina and Nicole. We have them for the week and they will help us present wines from France, Spain, California (hence the picture of the Red hills appellation) and Washington State.
Since the "G" kids are our first priority these notes are posted as a work in progress, meaning not edited or reviewed until Friday.
Hope to see everyone Saturday afternoon.
Paul, Aulikki, Nina, Nicole and Tanya too . . .
Lucien Albrecht Pinot Gris Cuvee Romanus Reserve 2007
France, AlsaceVarietal: 100% Pinot Gris, Unoaked.
Winemaker's notes:
This Special Cuvee is hand-crafted from exclusively domaine-grown fruit. Named after Romanus Albrecht, the first wingrower of the Albrecht wine family in 1425. This finely crafted wine is made from old-vine vineyards from a careful selection at the time of the harvest.
Bright pale golden color. This Pinot Gris is a rich, powerful wine with aromas of grapefruit, peach and some lovely mineral notes. On the palate the wine is rich yet dry focused on mineral flavors, citrus fruits and spice. Creamy and velvety wine with a soft finish showing up elegance and balance for such a rich white wine. Sweet floral flavors alongside crisp mineral notes make for an elegantly balanced wine. The clay/limestone soil gives the wine a creamy, velvety texture with a long finish.
Will be a very good pairing with all Thai and Asian dishes,Cobb & shrimp salads, shellfish, poultry, Semi-soft cheeses like Brie and Chevre will also complement it well. Serve chilled.
Alsatian whites characteristically age well due to their high acidity and lower percentage of alcohol. You can age this wine for another 2-4 years however it's fresh and delicious tasting now!
CMS White by Hedges 2007
USA, Washington, Columbia ValleyVarietal: 64% Sauvignon Blanc, 35% Chardonnay, 1% Marsanne
Tasting Notes: Ripe pear and pineapple aromas dominate the bouquet with notes of banana, candied apple, grapefruit, grass, anise, caramel, and gooseberry. That same ripe pear and pineapple are the more prominent flavors, as well as some herb, fig, and sweet fruit notes. The mouth feel is nicely viscous combined with crisp acidity.
Cellaring: For optimum fruit flavors and aromas, drink now.
Production: 100% stainless steel fermentation to dryness at cool temperatures in order to retain maximum fruit aromas and flavors. Fruit was sourced from five different Columbia Valley vineyards.
Harvest Notes: 2007 was another excellent year for Washington State wine. Consistent temperatures without excessive wind and rain, which made for nice set. The warmer summer temperatures helped the grapes ripen fully, while cooler nights and a lesser amount of daytime heat in September and October months helped preserve acidity and develop concentrated flavors.
Martin Codax Ergo 2006
Spain, RiojaVarietal: 85% Tempranillo and 15% Mazuelo
Very dark blackish-purple, a shiny patent-leather look, clear violet at the edge. Simple but fresh, young and primary aromas, cherries and vanilla. Bright and tangy cherry fruit on the palate, with plenty of fresh-fruit acidity for balance and food-friendliness. Tannins evident only as a slight puckery quality in the long, juicy-cherry finish. A bit closed in youth; pouring out a couple of glasses with splashy aeration about an hour in advance helped it open up in time for dinner.
FOOD MATCH: Good with red meat in general; it made an outstanding match with beef short ribs, simmered, deconstructed and defatted, then braised in their own gravy with onions.
75 Amber Knolls Cabernet Sauvignon 2005
US, California, North Coast, Clear Lake, Red HillsVarietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
The Amber Knolls Vineyard is located in the Red Hills Appellation of California. All grapes are organically grown and sustainably farmed.
Lake County has the cleanest air in California, the third cleanest air in the United States, and sits at the highest section between the Vaca mountain range and the Mayacamas mountain range. The Mayacamas are famous for great Cabernet wine, due in part to ancient pyroclastic soils that contain volcanic glass.
The Red Hills Appellation and The Amber Knolls Vineyard contain obsidian gravel that allows the soils to drain well, which is extremely important for growing Cabernet grapes. The high elevation sunlight combined with the rich volcanic red soils and obsidian fragments produce quality grapes.
This hand-selected, hand crafted vineyard designated Cabernet Sauvignon hails from the Amber Knolls Vineyard. The property is showcased by its deep, red hillside soils that are heavily laced in obsidian. We believe that Amber Knolls has unlimited potential in creating some of the finest grapes grown in the world. The 2005 vintage of Amber Knolls Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon has bright aromas of cherries, cranberries, and roses. It leads into a deep layering of earthy spices, vanilla, and cocoa. It finishes with beautiful and youthful tannins, creating a nice balance of Black cherry and spice.
Robert Parker Rating: 90 . . . An excellent value in Cabernet Sauvignon from the Beckstoffer family, this offering indicates that a higher potential for quality exists for Lake County Cabernet than previously believed. A dark ruby/purple color is accompanied by a classic nose of sweet black cherries and cassis (reminiscent of a Rutherford Cab), pleasant spice and smoke characteristics, medium to full body, and silky tannin. This pure, elegant beauty should be consumed over the next 10-12 years. Drink 2006-2018
