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5th Annual Burgers and Cabernets
Tasted April 23, 2011 by floydtp with 896 views
Introduction
Great event with even better people, food and wine. There were a total of 40-45 wines on hand spanning from 1970 to 2007. I only tasted through about 27; which is OK as my palate was pretty much shot by then anyway. Highlights for me were the Signarello 1999 and Favero 2006 as they both stood out as being unique. Sensory highlights included detecting interior latex paint on the nose of one wine (and enjoyed it) and also smelling something that reminded me of a cake my great aunt made around 27 years ago that I have smelled or tasted since.
Flight 1 (26 notes)
Red
2002 Neal Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
88 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting, handling and provenance unknown. Nose of mildew, unintegrated oak, cassis and some heat. On the palate, it is very rich with black cherry before the tannins take over. It really didn't have a finish, it sort of tapers off from the middle.
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Red
1999 Chateau Ste. Michelle Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley
90 points
Enjoyed at a tasting, handling and provenance unknown. Funky, vegetal nose. Not a lot of fruit left, hints of iron. Some leather on the finish but not a lot of complexity. Mild tannins, drink this one now if you have any in cellar.
Red
2002 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon
91 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting, handling and provenance unknown. Lovely nose that reminds me of a cake my great aunt used to make when I was a kid that I haven't smelled or tasted in almost 30 years. There is some fruit on the nose but hard to pinpoint through the caramel and chocolate aromas. Very tannic with sweet, black fruit turning sour just before the finish of rubber and cigar box. Hold this one a few to several more years.
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Red
1970 Château Cantemerle
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting. PnP, decanted and tasted 3-4 times over the course of 3 hours. Almost no fruit left on the nose or palate, very vegetal with some non-descript chemical notes and hints of balsamic vinegar. No score given.
Red
2004 Château Cos d'Estournel
89 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; handling and provenance unknown. Very interesting nose of plum and coconut. The taste is a dusty cassis with layers of other black fruits. Medium-high tannins and a consistent but short finish. Hold for 3-5 years.
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Red
1999 Signorello Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
93 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unkown. Very nice old world nose of cassis and cigar box. More of the same on the palate with some sour fruit just before the finish. Cassis at the beginnning of the very long finish and rubber at the end. Very enjoyable wine with some life left but ready to drink. (I'm not entirely convinced this is the correct wine for this note as I thought the bottle indicated Bacchus vineyard).
Red
2003 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon
93 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; handling and provenance unknown. Nose of latex paint and graphite. Very spicy on the palate with cassis, leather and cedar. The transition to the finish is smooth and consistent with the taste and goes on for 30+ seconds. Very unique and a cadidate for WOTN for me. Hold for 3-5 years.
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Red
2001 Pahlmeyer Proprietary Red
88 points
Enjoyed at a tasting; handling and provenance unknown. Very weak nose of cassis and red fruit. On the palate, this one is also reserved with some chocolate and cassis before the tannins take over. Very nice and long finish of cassis, leather and rubber. Enjoyable, but not showing much complexity tonight.
Red
2003 Clos du Marquis
86 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; handling and provenance unkown. Aromas of casis and leather. On the palate, it has more cassis and leather with a somewhat consistent but short finish. OK but not great wine, good to open on a week night with pizza.
Red
1997 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley
87 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unknown. Very weak nose of cassis and leather. On the palate it has plum, cassis and non-integrated oak. The finish is short and consistent with the taste. Ready to drink.
Red
2007 O'Shaughnessy Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain
91 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; handling and provenance unknown. Beautiful nose of dark fruit and violets. Taste of cassis with some cocoa. Very long finish that ends with sour cherry. Not quite as young tasting given vintage but has many year ahead of it.
Red
2000 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon The Montelena Estate
88 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; handling and provenance unknown. Spicy nose of dark fruit and chocolate. Tastes inlcuded more cocoa, cassis and some sweet fruit. Low tannins, drink now.
Red
1998 Showket Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
90 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unknown. Tight nose with some red fruit and cassis. The taste is mostly cassis and un-integrated oak transitioning to a medium finish of cedar and fading, sour cassis. Not sure if this one is on the up swing or down. Drink now.
Red
2003 Turnbull Cabernet Sauvignon Black Label
90 points
Audozed for 5 hours before double decanting. Nose of violets and cassis with more cassis and leather on the palate. Quite a bit tannic with a decent finish of cedar and rubber.
Red
2001 Egelhoff Cabernet Sauvignon
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unknown. Very tight and austere nose of mostly cassis. Hard to assess on the palate before the firm tannins take over. Very short finish consistent with the taste. Hold for 3-5 years. No rating assigned.
Red
2005 Del Dotto Cabernet Sauvignon Vineyard 887 St. Helena
91 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unknown. Very enjoyable nose of cassis and plums. Very spicy on the palate with hints of caramel and chocolate. Fairly tannic with a medium finish consistent with the taste. Hold for a few to several years.
Red
2003 Bressler Cabernet Sauvignon
90 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; handling and provenance unknown. Enjoyable nose and taste of cassis and plums. Nice finish with more cassis, some black cherry and faint evidence of oak treatment. Hold for 2-3 years.
Red
2008 Rocca di Frassinello Maremma Toscana Le Sughere
87 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unknown. Nose of cassis and oak, same on the palate. Very short oaky finish. Needs some time for the significant oak treatment to integrate, medium high tannin level. Overall not terribly complex and not my style but probably does appeal to a significant portion of the market. Not sure of the blend but would guess it is something close to 50/50 sangio/cab.
Red
2006 Favero Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Favero Vineyard
93 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; handling and provenance unknown. Very nice nose of cassis, coconut, violets and a hint of lavender. The taste is consistent with the smell with more black fruits and some mint and licorice. The finish is a good 30 seconds with more of the same and some black tea before mint at the very end. Medium tannins. Very enjoyable and possibly my favorite of the evening. Probably not a long term ager. Drink over the next 2-4 years.
Red
2006 Wattle Creek Cabernet Sauvignon
85 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; handling and provenance unknown. Reserved nose of cassis and some heat. The taste is mostly non-descript berries before transitioning to a very short finish. Low tannins. Pleasant overall but little complexity. Drink now.
Red
1999 Sebastiani Vineyards & Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Cherryblock Sonoma Valley
90 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unknown. Nose of cassis and leather. The taste is slightly vegetal with some sour black fruit. The finish is medium short with red fruit and cedar. With a little more time the oak should integrate better but drinking nicely now.
Red
2002 Krupp Brothers Estates Cabernet Sauvignon Veraison Stagecoach Vineyard
87 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unknown. Nose of cassis and leather. Lots of red fruit, vanilla and more leather on the palate. Fairly short but consistent finish. Overall, a very big, in your face type of wine. Not my style but well made for what it is.
Red
2007 Ladera Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
90 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unkown. Vegetal nose with some black fruit and forest just after a rain. More black fruit on the palate with firm tannins. Enjoyable now but seems to have plenty of life ahead of it.
Red
2002 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon The Montelena Estate
91 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting; provenance and handling unkown. Very rich nose of red fruit and tobacco (much more expressive than the 2000 vintage that was also tasted). Didn't note the ABV but the nose seemed to have more heat than typical for Montelena. A lot of fruit on the palate that I wasn't able to pinpoint. Very long finish of cassis and cigar box. Medium tannins. Hold for a few more years. Overall, this wine isn't consistent with the Montelena house style due to its concentrated almost explosive fruit.
Red
2002 Château Lynch-Bages
89 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting. Decanted for 15 minutes before tasting. Somewhat vegetal aromas with some graphite. Tastes of black fruit, some spice and more graphite. Somewhat short finish. Medium tannins. Certainly enjoyable now but I would hold for a another couple of years to see if it opens up any.
Red
2001 L'Aventure Optimus
90 points
Enjoyed non-blind at a tasting. Decanted for 15 minutes before tasting. Big nose of mostly black fruits and violet. Very concentrated taste with dark berries, some sweetness and heat. Smooth and consistent medium long finish. Medium tannins. Very enjoyable today but has plenty of life ahead of it.