| Wine Type | Vintage Name Variety Locale | Date Posted Score Helpful Comments More... |
|---|---|---|
| Red |
2004 Pride Mountain Vineyards Cabernet FrancNapa / Sonoma more |
1/3/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 89 pointsPurple color. Not the usual ripe/sweet Pride CF bouquet; nice but not jumping out of the glass as in prior good years. Dark fruits on the palate, medium finish, not tannic or acidic. A nice, very nice, bottle of wine but not nearly the quality of the 2001 or 2002. This one was also seriously outclassed by the 2005 Wolf Family CF (had the previous night), which sells for the same price. |
| Red |
2004 Lewelling Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon WightSt. Helena more |
12/27/2008 - Tory Griffin wrote: 95 pointsAmazing. Dark, rich, expressive, complex, this wine had it all. My first 04 Wight and it did not disappoint. Perfectly balanced, lengthy finish, this one completely filled the mouth. Great stuff. |
| Red |
2005 Bodegas Volver Tempranillo La Mancha Single Vineyardmore |
1/11/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 90 pointsI was initially surprised by the dark purple color given the inexpensive price tag for this wine. A big, penetrating bouquet of sweet raspberry/cherry liquor, with a hint of vanilla spice. A tad rustic in the mouth, medium-full bodied, good lingering finish. Although it is a different varietal, for whatever reason the flavor profile of this wine reminded me of an El Nido Clio--more scaled back and not as full-throttle as the Clio, but a similar flavor profile. |
| Red |
2005 Del Dotto Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena Mountain Missouri Oak 36 Monthmore |
12/27/2008 - Tory Griffin wrote: 91 pointsRich, smooth, a tad more restrained at this point than the 2005 887 vineyard. Sweet cocoa on the nose. Very nice, but I expected better. |
| Red |
2005 Del Dotto Cabernet Sauvignon 887 Missouri Oak 36 MonthSt. Helena more |
12/7/2008 - Tory Griffin wrote: 93 pointsWow. Huge, almost creme-brulee-like bouquet. No sense of tannins here, very round, ripe, not overly complex but very expressive on the palate. Long, long finish. Not a long-ager, but a total crowd pleaser for drinking now and over the next 5-8 years. |
| Red |
2005 Moniz Vineyard Petit VerdotNapa Valley more |
2/18/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 88 pointsDark as night, with classis petit verdot bouquet, dark dark fruits with a touch of spice. A pretty big wine for the modest price ($20), with dark dusty, not to sweet fruits leading to a somewhat tannic finish. Stuffing to last several more years. This wine presents a very good way to try a varietally-correct petit verdot at a reasonable price. |
| Red |
2006 Del Dotto Cabernet Franc Seven RowsRutherford more |
1/18/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 93 pointsA big, bold cab franc. Dark ruby/purple, penetrating bouquet, layers of ripe, rich fruit, chocolate, raspberry-liquer, long long finish for this very big luscious cab franc. |
| Red |
2005 Wolf Family Vineyards Cabernet FrancNapa Valley more |
1/3/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 93 pointsGorgeous, huge cinammon/clove/spice box bouguet. The flavors carry through on the palate. Perfectly balanced and sweet midpalate, with a long finish. A weightless wine that manages to penetrate the palate with flavor after flavor. Great stuff. |
| Red |
2005 Ehlers Estate Merlot St. Helenamore |
1/17/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 89 pointsA pretty darn good merlot. Adequate structure, a nice bouquet filled with espresso/spice, and nice balance in the mouth. Dark fruits and cocoa, medium finish, a well made, thoroughly enjoyable wine. Nothing light or thin about it. |
| Red |
2006 La Pèira en Damaisèla Terrasses du Larzac Les Obriers de La PèiraRed Rhone Blend more |
1/14/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 91 pointsGreat value. Dark, dark color, sweet bouquet that wasn't giving up much initially but which got better as the night went on. Big, juicy, layered purple and black fruits, mostly blackberry, lingered on the palate. Very smooth but with good acidic backbone. A good food wine, but also good on its own. Excellent value. |
| Red |
2006 Louis M. Martini Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma Countymore |
1/3/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 87 pointsVery nice. Medium bodied, good depth, no hard edges, moderate finish, can't ask for much more for $12. A great everyday wine. |
| Red |
2006 Ghost Pines Cabernet Sauvignon Winemaker's BlendNapa / Sonoma more |
1/4/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 85 pointsWell-made wine, dark color, but never really came around. Drunk over several hours. Decent, but the 2006 Louis Martini Sonoma Cab was better at this stage. Perhaps this one will improve in a few years. |
| Red |
2007 Bodegas Borsao Garnacha Campo de Borja Tres Picosmore |
1/28/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 89 pointsThis young wine was open for business. Medium ruby, aromas of cherry and baking spices, good grip and length in the mouth with more of a typical spanich grenache profile than the quaffer cherry pie wines in 05 and 06. Nice wine, great complexity for the price. A crowd pleaser. |
| Red |
2006 Switchback Ridge Merlot Peterson Family VineyardNapa Valley more |
2/27/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 89 pointsVery different from prior vintages. Not the big, dense, juicy mocha-infused wine like the 2004 or 2005. This wine had a remarkably pure cola/berry bouquet, and creamy cola and red fruits in the mouth. Medium bodied with a moderate finish. Different, and good, but not up to the quality of prior vintages. |
| Red |
2007 Viña Cobos Cabernet Sauvignon FelinoMendoza more |
4/21/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 89 pointsReally like this wine. Dark brooding color, not completely giving on the nose quite yet, and still a bit rustic at this stage, but it clearly has the fruit and stuffing to be much better in a year. It has amazing concentration for a wine of the price. My experience with this wine is consistent with my experience with the 06, which after a year was just a dynamite wine for the price. Good now, especially with some decent time in the decanter, it will just get better. |
| Red |
2007 Viña Cobos Cabernet Sauvignon FelinoMendoza more |
2/3/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 89 pointsLots of potential here. Dark almost purple color, good legs. Wasn't initially giving up much on the nose, but after being open an hour or so started to give up some dusty, dark fruit flavors. Good structure and balance in the mouth, with espresso and dark fruits dominating. 88 points on day 1, but given how the 2006 blossomed after a year (see my recent CT note), and given how I prefer the 2007 to the 2006 at the same stage of life, I am expecting very good things in about 6-12 months. My view is informed by the fact that on day 2, the bouquet was jumping out of the glass, chocolate/blackberry spices, while still maintaing the great balance and structure in the mouth, with a fairly firm tannic grip. Given how it behaves on day 2 I should say that I would give this another 12 months before starting to tackle my stash. Knowing me, however, I'll break into one or more sooner than that. It's very enjoyable now, with air, and promises to get better. |
| Red |
2006 Bodegas Juan Gil Monastrell Jumillamore |
1/8/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 88 pointsStill youthful and a bit tight, consistent with my experience with prior vintages of this wine. Dark color, good body, substantial tannins, semi-sweet midpalate, and a moderate-long finish. I rate it 88 now, which is how I initially rated the 2005, but after a year in bottle the 2005 was singing! I expect the same for this one too, so will buy more and let it rest for at least 6 months. |
| Red |
2006 Del Dotto SangioveseNapa Valley more |
1/17/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 92 pointsDisclaimer -- I typically don't like Sangiovese, and probably one looking for a "traditional" sangiovese would not be too into this wine. That said, I really, really llked this for what it was. Interstingly, it came off almost like a very ripe, creamy pinot. Strawberry/vanilla jam on the nose, and just layers of similar flavors on the palate. Ready to go, no aging necessary, this is a huge crowd pleaser--"a meal in a glass" proclaimed one of my guests. Well, it's not a big wine, so a "meal" in and of itself it is not, but still it was a complete wine from start to finish that keeps demanding additional sips. Shockingly, me, a cab/bordeaux lover, love this wine. Call it my dirty little secret. |
| Red |
2005 William Harrison SimpaticoRutherford Red Bordeaux Blend more |
2/7/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 88 pointsFirst tried this one at the winery a few weeks ago and bought a few due to the good QPR ($26). This one didn't disappoint tonight. Dark ruby purple color, very nice floral bouquet (from the cab franc). In the mouth this had good fruit, was a tad rustic (rutherford-like personality), and a medium finish. Very enjoyable but not terribly complex. Probably not much of an ager but solid table wine right now. Had with grilled burgers and it paired pretty nicely. |
| Red |
2005 William Harrison Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherfordmore |
2/13/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 91 pointsOne of my favorite Napa cabs that consistently delivers for a relatively modest price by Napa standards. Medium-dark ruby color, nose of dusty red and dark fruits, and palate-caressing silky flavors. The sweet red fruits dominate and lead to a fairly long finish that screams Rutherford. Good complexity. Tasted blind, one would be shocked to find out that this Rutherford cab can be found for in the mid-$30s. Great value. |
| Red |
2006 Erna Schein Syrah Homage to Ed Oliveira Alder Springs VineyardMendocino County more |
5/3/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 90 pointsOpen an hour and ran through the vinturi before drinking. The thing that struck me most about this wine was the evolution of the bouquet...it had just so many things going on it's hard to describe. Interestingly, this was not an over-the-top fruit bomb wine, but rather was medium-full bodied, silky, jammy, and had a good backbone and acidic profile. Balance is an overused word but really here it is appropriate. This was a fun wine to drink on its own. Very good stuff. |
| Red |
2006 Capiaux Cellars Pinot Noir Garys' VineyardSanta Lucia Highlands more |
2/13/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 91 pointsLight ruby in color, which is deceiving given the wine's mouthfeel. Great bouquet of cherry/vanilla and spice. Almost weightless on the palate. Everything here seems to be in balance. Not a fruit bomb or an overpowering wine, just a silky smooth, palate caressing, pure pinot. My first try with this winemaker's pinots, I was impressed. |
| Red |
2006 Elyse Petite Sirah Rutherfordmore |
1/10/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 90 pointsDark, dark purple. A viscous, full bodied, full throttle wine. Sweet/ripe raspberry/blackberry on the nose, with a touch of pepper. Tannins are still very prevalent, but not overly drying. Tremendous amount of dark fruits, good midpalate and structure, and a moderate finish that will certainly get better as the wine ages and the tannins subside. A very good value in Napa Petite Sirah. Can drink now with sufficient decanting (1+ hours) but will be better with a year or two of bottle age. |
| Red |
2005 Larkmead Vineyards FirebelleNapa Valley Red Bordeaux Blend more |
1/18/2009 - Tory Griffin wrote: 91 pointsStill love this wine. Amazingly sweet, cocoa berry nose. As smooth as can be in the mouth, yet with good grip. Silky finish. A fantastic crowd-pleaser. Can't wait to try the 2006. |
| Red |
2005 Larkmead Vineyards FirebelleNapa Valley Red Bordeaux Blend more |
12/13/2008 - Tory Griffin wrote: 92 pointsWhat a solid wine. The bouquet just jumps out of the glass, even with little airtime. Scents of mocha and dark fruits. Just smooth as can be on the palate with a very nice, medium-long finish. Not tannic, this was ready to go now. I can see this lasting for several years but can't see it getting much better. This went very well with, and stood up to, braised shortribs. One of my favorite go-to wines when I'm not sure if the crowd will appreciate a big cab and am not sure what time of opportunity I'll have to decant. |
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- Tasting notes: 59 notes on 57 wines
