Steaks, Cab, and Friends

We hosted an informal tasting last night at our home. Our guests were Erik Kleven, Michael and Claire Gordon, Scott and Shawna Gruner, and Adam Noble and his girlfriend Ami. Thank you to everyone for coming and bringing such great wines. Tracy and I had a terrific night.

The theme was cab based wines that will go well with steaks. All wines were served non-blind. Most importantly, this was Adam's first experience with Quilceda. He flipped over it. Wait until he tries a "great" vintage. We may need to do a vertical in his honor later this year.

These were served as the evening began, so we spent more time conversing and touring the house than discussing the wines. Nevertheless, the Kistler stood out. Despite my issues with mailing list policies, I really like their wines.

• 2001 Kistler Chardonnay McCrea Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Mountain

  I was cooking when I enjoyed this, so I was a bit preoccupied. The nose is classic California chardonnay with pine resin, roasted nuts, and lemons. The palate was lush and balanced with a strong base of ripe fruit. Exceptionally long finish.

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• 2001 Martinelli Chardonnay Martinelli Road 89 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Not up to the quality of the 01 Kistler McCrea but still a nice wine. The nose was very faint. The palate began kind of slowly but had the mid palate pine resin kick that I get from a lot of Helen's chards.

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• 1987 Columbia Winery Cabernet Sauvignon David Lake Signature Series Otis Vineyard 91 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley

  Had I had this blind I would have guessed Bordeaux. What a pleasant surprise. This is considered a great vintage in Washington, but I have not had as much luck with the other 2 bottles I have opened. The nose shows loads of minerality, earth, chalk, and chocolate. The chocolate gave me hope that it was not dead. This hope was justified because the palate was terrific. I found it to be lush with vanilla, rosemary and spicy tannins. Though it was well integrated there is still a firm structure. The finish was impressively long.

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• 1991 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Points

  USA, Washington

  The nose was fairly faint with not much beyond chocolate and some earth. The palate, however, was exceptionally round with an awesome structure. The spicy tannins seemed to pick up the fruit that remained and pummel it into my tongue. This wine lacked finesses but really grabbed onto my tongue and would not let go. The tannins seems to be winning the battle with the fruit.

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• 1991 Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 97 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  God bless you Michael and Claire for bringing this. Wow. The definition of what a great California Cab is. This joins the 87 Montelena as my top aged California cabs. Michael and I discussed how some people have posted that this wine is falling apart. That may be a factor of past storage. Michael bought this on release, and it has never left his cellar. Bottles that are stored this well can last for another decade or more. The color was still very dark with just a hint of pink. The nose was fairly faint with herbs and bramble but continued to open as it sat in my glass. I wish I had an evening to follow this wine. It found the palate to be amazingly lush and thick but still light and elegant. I found the pure expression of sweet blackberries to be riveting. The finish was one of the longest of any wine I have had. Wow.

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• 1990 Château Clerc Milon 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  This seemed to need more time to open. At first pour the nose was dominated by horse, but with time it blew off to show an aged nose of dried herbs. The palate was balanced with lush fruit and a wonderful tannic core running through it. I found it to be fairly simple but to end on a high note with spicy tannic finish.

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I enjoyed the Leoville more than my score might indicate. It just lacked fireworks and complexity, but I would like to enjoy a bottle on a week night.

• 2000 Bressler Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena

  I was less blown away with this wine this time. It was so out of place in a night with more traditional cabs. It really has some Aussie qualities. The nose is oak dominated with graham cracker and vanilla. The palate is so oaky and so young with explosive candied red fruits.

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• 1997 Château Léoville Poyferré 87 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  The nose had good minerality, some horse and a touch of cocoa. The palate showed some green but still had some sweet red fruit. Overall this wine was simple but ready to drink.

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• 1999 Pine Ridge Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford 91 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford

  This bottle had been open for 24 hours. It really improved with air time. This wine will be special when it matures in the cellar. The nose was still young and oaky graham cracker and vanilla, but I also found plenty of crushed raspberries. The palate was balanced and elegant with chocolate and sweet fruit. While this may not be the most complex wine it was well balanced with great silky tannins. I still sense that it is closed and needs more time.

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Served with a collection of pastries that Erik was kind enough to bring.

• NV Buller Calliope Rare Tokay 100 Points

  Australia, Victoria, North East, Rutherglen

  Ridiculously good. I can't imagine a better dessert wine. For those who do not like the "regular" Bullers this may be the wine for you. Despite the 20% alcohol there are not signs of heat on the nose or palate. The nose was awesome. As soon as I pulled the cork, the room was filled with scents of almonds, coffee, caramel, dark toffee and . . .. Simply the most intense and complex nose I have smelled. The palate followed in kind with nuts, burned sugar, nutmeg and toffee. Erik nailed it when he said that this wine had no hard edges. I need to get more of this.

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• 2001 Ridge Zinfandel California Essence Lytton Estate 82 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley

  This wine had a hard time following the Bullers. The nose showed Chex Mix and red bell pepper. The nose was very sweet but a bit strange with a overripe tomato element. No complexity at all. Fun to try.

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• 1985 Quinta do Noval Porto Vintage 91 Points

  Portugal, Douro, Porto

  We were only able to decant this for 5 hours, so I imagine it might have been better the next morning (had there been any left:)). The nose showed cinammon and cherries (very intense). I was amazed at how explosive the nose was from the moment I pulled the cork. The palate was of medium weight with spicy tannins. I found it to be long with tastes of almonds and cherries. Though I am sure this wine was last for awhile longer it was well integrated and ready to drink. It is hard to imagine how different it is (in terms of integration) from the 1985 Fonseca. Thank you, Scott, for bringing this.

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The red of the night was the Mondavi. I do not have much experience with 1991 Napa wines, but I would like to try more.

The wine of the night to me was the Bullers. It was the finest sweet wine I have had. I need to get more. :)