Drank this at 50-55 degrees based on prior experience. Lots of melon fruit, very nice feel in the mouth. Excellent with cheese and light antipasto, and later with salmon and pasta in cream sauce.
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Tasting notes on this bottle consistent with what I've written previously. I'm being careful to grade the wine based on it's merits and not my personal tastes (which is always hard) since I'm not a huge fan of Pinot Grigio in general. However, I've had better than this. The 83 this time around is probably a reflection of the wine's age. These are young drinkers. Still have one left. I suppose it could wait til Summer but that's about it I would say. Everybody still holding better drink up by summer 2007.
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Very pale yellow, with a touch of green. Very light bouquet. Immediately after opening, it was rather disappointing, with very little fruit in evidence, masked by something hard to describe, but not at all pleasant. Later, the fruit was stronger as the wine aired and warmed up. Melon, apple and pears. Much better after approaching 50-55 degrees.
This is drinking much, much better after vacu-vining the half consumed bottle and refrigerating for a couple of days. The fruit is much more in evidence and the bad taste from Day 1 is gone. Very nice finish. I upped my rating accordingly.
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La Famiglia was bought out by Steve and Bruce Cousins from Robert Mondavi last year: Steve posted the following on Wine.woot on 8/30/06: My brother, Bruce, and I are the proud owners of La Famiglia which we purchased from Robert Mondavi early last year. Like the Mondavi's we are of Italian descent and thrilled with the opportunity to own and market this delicious Pinot Grigio. We are a small family owned and operated business and you can check out our "roots" at www.armida.com. The La Famiglia wines are now produced here at Armida Winery in Healdsburg in northern Sonoma County. Let me know if you have any questions and we'll do our best to answer them.
On the vintages 2003 vs. 2004: The vintages are very much alike in that the grapes came from the same vineyards, the growing seasons were very similiar (almost perfect) and we continued our well-proven fermentation practices (VERY slow fermentation at 55 degrees F to hold on to all the delicious Pinot Grigio flavors and after the must was dry, weekly stirrings of the lees to extract a smooth creamy texture). The only difference other than extremely subtle vintage variations is that the 2003 was primarily Pinot Grigio with a bit of Tocai Friulano blended in; the 2004 vintage is primarily Pinot Griogio with a bit of Tocai Friulano and a bit of Chardonnay. While blending the 2004 vintage we rather enjoyed the way that a bit of Chardonnay enhanced the weight of the wine, while providing a rich counterpoint to the zingy crispness of the Pinot Grigio. Hope this is helpful! Cheers! Steve Cousins, PRoprietor, La Famiglia
My Tasting notes: Watery to pale slightly greenish yellow. Very clear. Moderate, youthful aromas of white flowers, delicate citrus, maybe some green apple?. Dry and light bodied on the palate. Acidity is tart and lively. Moderate flavor intensity. I taste citrus, green apple, and something smooth and mellow in the background. Perhaps it's the slight touch of chardonnay in this vintage? Good value especially at the $10 avg. price from wine.woot
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1/30/2009 - dwaynelm wrote: 85 Points
Fading fast, losing fruit.
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8/8/2008 - dwaynelm wrote: 88 Points
Lemon acidity, pear.
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6/26/2008 - oldsailor wrote: 86 Points
I was surprised to find this is still drinking just fine, I see no indication of decline.
Drank it at about 60 degrees, and the fruit of pear and melon came through. I get the minerality more in the bouquet.
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4/24/2008 - dwaynelm wrote: 88 Points
Pears, oak? Quite pleasant with Filipino food.
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3/3/2008 - dwaynelm wrote: 87 Points
Pears, honeydew, minerality on the finish - great QPV for $3.
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1/30/2008 - dwaynelm wrote: 88 Points
Nice pear & acidity
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12/12/2007 - dwaynelm wrote: 87 Points
Pearsm grapefruit, good acidity, nice minerality.
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10/28/2007 - dwaynelm wrote: 88 Points
Peach, pear, minerality, maybe a hint of oak?
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8/7/2007 - docmckay wrote: 83 Points
Not bad for a Pinot Gris
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5/18/2007 - oldsailor wrote: 88 Points
Drank this at 50-55 degrees based on prior experience. Lots of melon fruit, very nice feel in the mouth. Excellent with cheese and light antipasto, and later with salmon and pasta in cream sauce.
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5/1/2007 - oldsailor wrote: 87 Points
So far, a similar experience to my 9/29/06 notes. I hope it's better after it warms up some more.
Very nice at 50-55 degrees, lots of melon fruit, nice feel in the mouth. Upped my rating accordingly.
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2/16/2007 - careyd wrote: 83 Points
consistent with previous notes--last of these. Won't buy again
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2/2/2007 - careyd wrote: 83 Points
Tasting notes on this bottle consistent with what I've written previously. I'm being careful to grade the wine based on it's merits and not my personal tastes (which is always hard) since I'm not a huge fan of Pinot Grigio in general. However, I've had better than this. The 83 this time around is probably a reflection of the wine's age. These are young drinkers. Still have one left. I suppose it could wait til Summer but that's about it I would say. Everybody still holding better drink up by summer 2007.
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1/12/2007 - oldsailor wrote: 88 Points
Pale yellow color, not much bouquet, but a very nice PG nonetheless. Nice and crisp, flavors of melon, grapefruit, maybe apple.
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12/9/2006 - careyd wrote: 84 Points
My tasting notes pretty much hold the same as below. 2 more of these left. I didn't get as much green apple this time around though.
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9/29/2006 - oldsailor wrote: 85 Points
Very pale yellow, with a touch of green. Very light bouquet. Immediately after opening, it was rather disappointing, with very little fruit in evidence, masked by something hard to describe, but not at all pleasant. Later, the fruit was stronger as the wine aired and warmed up. Melon, apple and pears. Much better after approaching 50-55 degrees.
This is drinking much, much better after vacu-vining the half consumed bottle and refrigerating for a couple of days. The fruit is much more in evidence and the bad taste from Day 1 is gone. Very nice finish. I upped my rating accordingly.
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9/18/2006 - careyd wrote: 84 Points
La Famiglia was bought out by Steve and Bruce Cousins from Robert Mondavi last year: Steve posted the following on Wine.woot on 8/30/06: My brother, Bruce, and I are the proud owners of La Famiglia which we purchased from Robert Mondavi early last year. Like the Mondavi's we are of Italian descent and thrilled with the opportunity to own and market this delicious Pinot Grigio. We are a small family owned and operated business and you can check out our "roots" at www.armida.com. The La Famiglia wines are now produced here at Armida Winery in Healdsburg in northern Sonoma County. Let me know if you have any questions and we'll do our best to answer them.
On the vintages 2003 vs. 2004: The vintages are very much alike in that the grapes came from the same vineyards, the growing seasons were very similiar (almost perfect) and we continued our well-proven fermentation practices (VERY slow fermentation at 55 degrees F to hold on to all the delicious Pinot Grigio flavors and after the must was dry, weekly stirrings of the lees to extract a smooth creamy texture). The only difference other than extremely subtle vintage variations is that the 2003 was primarily Pinot Grigio with a bit of Tocai Friulano blended in; the 2004 vintage is primarily Pinot Griogio with a bit of Tocai Friulano and a bit of Chardonnay. While blending the 2004 vintage we rather enjoyed the way that a bit of Chardonnay enhanced the weight of the wine, while providing a rich counterpoint to the zingy crispness of the Pinot Grigio. Hope this is helpful! Cheers! Steve Cousins, PRoprietor, La Famiglia
My Tasting notes: Watery to pale slightly greenish yellow. Very clear. Moderate, youthful aromas of white flowers, delicate citrus, maybe some green apple?. Dry and light bodied on the palate. Acidity is tart and lively. Moderate flavor intensity. I taste citrus, green apple, and something smooth and mellow in the background. Perhaps it's the slight touch of chardonnay in this vintage? Good value especially at the $10 avg. price from wine.woot
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