Stone Balloon Luxury Brand Tasting

Stone Balloon Winehouse, Newark DE
Tasted Saturday, May 12, 2012 by lockestep with 494 views

Introduction

Fifteen wines served with cheeses,dried mats and butlered tastings of shrimp and lamb, among others.

Flight 1 (6 Notes)

Flight 2 (9 Notes)

  • 2009 Murrieta's Well The Spur 89 Points

    USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Livermore Valley

    Dusty tannins, round fruit forward wine. Seems to need a year or so to bring everything into balance.

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  • 2009 Ridge Zinfandel Paso Robles 80 Points

    USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles

    I have been a big fan of ridge zins since first trying the York Creek and Geyserville in the mid-1980's. That being said, this is the first time in 25 years I have disliked one of their efforts. I have not had the Paso Robles in a few years,so I do not know whether this is a complete departure in style or a one time miss, but it is quite the miss. Overripe with a prune juice nose, way out of balance with tons of overripe fruit and nowhere near the acid needed. Really,really surprised at this,as were the rest of the Ridge fans at the tasting.

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  • 2009 Ridge Three Valleys 87 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County

    Terrific zin nose, medium to light weight in body, medium finish. Nice standard zin flavors, while it does not live up to the expectations driven by the nose, it is a fine food zin, would pair well with grilled foods.

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  • 2006 Col Solare 94 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

    Outstanding. Long, complex, in balance. Tried twice about an hour apart, both times came across as a home run. Plan to give it 3-5 years to develop some additional complexity.

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  • 2009 Cakebread Cellars Pinot Noir 87 Points

    USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley

    California pinot nose, a good deal of heat in the finish. Overripe,but the acidity seems ample. Maybe just going through a disjointed phase.

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  • 2007 Chalk Hill Estate Red 90 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Chalk Hill

    Nicely crafted meritage blend. Smooth drinking with integrated tannins. While it seems to have what it takes to hang around for quite a while, why wait?

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  • 2007 Jordan Vineyard & Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley 86 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Alexander Valley

    Fairly straightforward, possibly going through a dumb phase,but the Jordans I have had in the past were always more up front than this one.

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  • 2008 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 92 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    A classic Napa Cabernet, tannins are in balance, this will drink well for many years. Well played.

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  • 2008 Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Artemis 89 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Nice, smooth cab flavors. A bit lighter in body than I expected, and the tannins show up but not in great force. A bit of side mouth acidity says it will continue to develop, but not into a star, rather into a pleasant cab.

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