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Wine Type
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Vintage
Name
Variety
Locale
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Date
Posted
Score
Helpful
Comments
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Red
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2001 Alban Vineyards Pandora
Edna Valley
Grenache more
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60/40 - grenache/syrah - Seymour's Vineyard
An electric ruby-purple, opaque through the core. The nose is unmistakenly Alban-deep, dark and pure of fruit. A slight kiss of reductive aroma reveals itself in the background with persistent swirling-and-sniffing, adding to the freshness and vivacity of the wine.
The palate is much lighter than more recent Alban bottlings, intesity without heaviness. Black and blue fruit dominate with the classic Alban funk apparent. Represents fruit as much the dirt it was grown in. Currently, lip-smackingly delicious, but with years ahead of it. I can not even fathom the distance this wine will run. At 10 years it is sitll a pup, and in a great drinking window.
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White
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2004 Alban Vineyards Roussanne Estate
Edna Valley
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This is singing right now. 2004 continues to prove to have been an absolutely amazing year on the Alban Estate.
A DEEP golden color.
Nose of white flowers, honey, hazelnuts, orange rinds, limes, and a kiss of toasty oak. The hazelnut component is an especially intriguing element that I couldn't quite find the word for until reading one of the notes below, but that nails it--and for me is all Roussanne, all the time.
The palate plays very well with what the nose presents. The floral, fruit and spice components are all so beautifully intertwined and playing off each other, it is a thing to behold. What really blows me away though, is how lively and light on its feet this wine is, all while maintaining a massive intensity in both nose and mouth.
This is a great wine that I would recommend drinking now, or laying down in order to see what treasures it continues to reveal down the line. There is no hurry here.
Enjoy this wine!
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White
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2006 Alban Vineyards Roussanne Estate
Edna Valley
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Well I'll be damned if this wine doesn't significantly echo the traits of Mr Alban's old HdR running buddy Mat Garretson's Roussanne's from the early/mid-00s.
Tons of honeyed fruit, lots of citrus components dominated by lime, a bit of spearmint, and just a kiss of beatifully toasty oak (I wish there were a bit more!)
An obviously well-made wine that is currently not showing at the top of its game, probably due to its place in the aging cycle. I get just a glint of oxidation, and the wine is lacking a richness and mid-palate that I KNOW Alban strives for in his wines.
Yet another Roussanne that confounds and stupifies and forces me to continue to buy. Possibly the most intellectually challenging varietal made in California.
Stay tuned.
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Red
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1996 Alban Vineyards Syrah Lorraine
Edna Valley
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Score Reserved.
Streaks on the cork, possible heat exposure. Reserving judgement for this reason.
Beautiful nose true to the Alban wines. Lots of spice and Earth with a fair amount of charred meat fat.
In the mouth, sour component that dominates and distracts. Keeps the wine from being complete. Possible heat damage. Hate to score this with potential less than optimal storage conditions. But did want to note the fact that this could be OTH.
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Red
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2008 Alban Vineyards Syrah Patrina Alban Estate Vineyard
Edna Valley
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Hmmmm, ...Alban. Is this it? A new bottling, a new name below the masthead, what do we got here? I'm confused, this is like no other Alban I've ever tasted--so different. I miss the intensity that Alban usually offers up. And, is that clumsy oak (say it ain't so). Mr Buzz said this was a replacement for the old 'Central Coast' bottling, hmpf, I dunno know. My last experience with 'Central Coast' was the 02 ~3 weeks ago and it screamed Alban, all the way. This bottling is not giving it to me. Not my fave Alban, but here's my take:
nose: pure, strait-up, black olive syrah-ness. a kiss of oak around the edges to soften things up a bit.
mouth: Un-mistakenly Alban in the mouth with beautiful tannin structure (how does he do it?). Still on the palate, this just doesn't deliver the goods we are all used to from John. The fruit is sweet, but where's the red fruit we love in the Reva or Lorraine? Not there. Arrgh.
A great entry level Syrah for Alban, but certainly not what we Alban-philes are used to.
But, there's still a long way to go my friends...
On Day 3 this is finally giving up its Alban-ness on the palate. Damn his vines throw some tasty syrah fruit! All that being said, I'm sticking with the original rating of 89, but adding a '+' here. This wine WILL get better, but we should not expect Reva, nor should we. After all, nearly half the price. ...and I take it back, there's plenty of red fruits here. 89+
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Red
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2004 Alban Vineyards Syrah Reva Alban Estate Vineyard
Edna Valley
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This bottle showed a disjointedness I have never experienced with Alban syrah. Great nose with lots of intensity: black fruit, tanned leather, asphalt. Initial attack is promising, then things begin to fall apart. Mid palate is empty, with an almost stripped flavor profile. Everything seems to be in its right place, but there is just no flavor. Finish has an equally watery-wine like flavor. Very odd considering the sheer size and instensity of the wine.
I would love to see others share their tasting notes on this wine to see if this was an off bottle or not
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Red
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2004 Alban Vineyards Syrah Reva Alban Estate Vineyard
Edna Valley
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My first 100 point score! Absolutely magnificent wine. Have posted a note on this before that was less than flattering. This bottle was the picture of perfection. Everything of everything was going on with this bottle. The color was huge. The nose was a huge. The flavor was huge. The mouthfeel was huge. The finish was huge. The balance was exacting. Oh lord, if only more California Syrahs could reach these heights.
Opens with black to the rim color and obvious viscosity in the glass. Nose offers tar, blackberries, leather, violets and beef blood. Deep enough to leave your noised parked over the glass for minutes on end unwilling to take a break even to taste. Once in the mouth this is a seamless experience of taste, smell and feel. The palate offers more flavors than can be identified, but they are presented as a cohesive whole, almost as if it would be pointless to try dissecting the pieces apart. The texture is mouthcoating but stands tall on the palate as opposed to wide and flat. As for the finish, sit back and go for the ride. The core of this wine continues to reveal itself long after the wine is no longer in your mouth.
It is amazing how different 2 bottles of the same wine can be over the course of a couple months.
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Red
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2006 Alban Vineyards Syrah Reva Alban Estate Vineyard
Edna Valley
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91+(++)
First revisit.
Oh my, the intensity is, well, intense. Tons of deep, dark, black fruit. Chocolate, lavendar, and mocha. Currently, no classic Alban funk which is what I crave in these wines.
Showing thick, ripe, simple and monolithic.
If prior vintages are any indication, the upside on this wine is well worth a double plus. Huge fan of Alban.
Keep enjoying that juice.
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Red
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2006 Alban Vineyards Syrah Reva Alban Estate Vineyard
Edna Valley
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Had same evening as my 100-point 2004 experience. The relation between these 2 wines is obvious, however the 2006 is not nearly the wine the 04 was that night. Everything was there, just not in its right place. Disjointed, and at times a bit off. Judgement reserved for the time being. Happy to sit on my other bottles for a while.
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Red
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1996 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard
Syrah more
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This wine is in an absolutely excellent place right now, off the hook good with 60 mins of Oxygen. Mr Allemand creates some of his best wines in 'off' vintages (believe Kermit) (the '02 is the best wine of the vintage). After said hour I could not pull my nose out of this glass, it was absolutely singing in all of its glorious Northern Rhone-ness--pepper, violets, meat, leather, black fruit, white flowers. Upon taking the wine into the mouth, this is absolutely gorgeous, with a mouthfeel that lies perfectly half-way between water and oil, and a palate that mimics the nose. Go to town on this wine, it is in a good place. However, if you truly enjoy old bones, this one will get there, no problem.
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Red
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2008 Antica Terra Pinot Noir
Willamette Valley
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I have had one helluva time trying to figure out this wine over the past 8 hours. Having 5 bottles left, for now I am going to reserve judgement as far as scores go, due to my complete lack of ability to put my finger on where this wine lands at the moment. So if you will, please indulge my Pinto-like angel/devil moment with this wine:
Angel:
It has always been with Antica Terra where Maggie has been able to shed the shackles of her resume and be an individualistic wine-maker with no baggage. The 2008 continues this trend showing an individualistic wine with no peers amongst its neighbors. Informed only by the soils it is grown in, and the hand that conducts it in the cellar--no mentors, no critics. The nose is all soil; dark, rich earth. Lots of power that is wound so tight it almost vibrates after a good swirl and sniff. Hints of iron and other metallics enter the nose as the glass is tipped towards the mouth. Upon entry, the wine offers the expected raspberries we Antica lovers have come to embrace. The mouthfeel is silky and light and, aggressively separates itself from it's breathren down South. Oh what beauty, never voluptuous, never thin--a tightrope artist by birth. This is an aspect the prior two vintages of Antica did not offer (I believe Maggie may have figured something out here!). On the finish, this wine's youth pronounces itself with gusto and shuts everything down. The structure presents in spades and sends the fruit packing and asks the silkiness to head down the road to live another day. No awards for you tonight my friend, your Burgundian slant is dead-on, so approachability at this juncture is not the name of this game. Come back in a few years and we will see what you can bring to the table.
Devil:
WTF?!? I stick my nose in the glass and for every blast of brambly, enticing Pinot fruit that is pulled up my nostrils, there's a underlying metallic, band-aid thing going on that pulls all that goodness back away from me. Is that fair? I want all that goodness that is being dangled a stick's-length away. I fear, however, a flaw keeps it away, and, possibly, a flaw that will only brandish its insidiousness as time goes by. As for the power, this is certainly an iron-fisted Pinot, and it is clobbering the living crap out of the fruit. Can the potential of the fruit possibly outpace the strength of this wine? I don't know. I sense the character, I sense the effort, and I sense the love that went into this wine, and that is carrying things a long way, but I also sense some possible growing pains that went on with this vintage, and have kept this wine from attaining the greatness it's subsequent vintages will most assuredly attain.
As I mentioned earlier, this bottle confused the hell out of me. Unfortunately, I'm not going to sacrafice another cork tonight to gain clairity. Further, I'm probably a year or so away from gaining deeper knowledge on this wine. My bet is all of my next five bottles will produce better experiences than this one. Because of this, I hesitated, and again, to post this note. Ultimately, I landed on publishing, because half of one note is not going to break the Cellartracker model. I figure if others have a similiar experience, it's a service to both drinker and producer. And, if not, no one will be confused about whether or not this note's was a bum bottle.
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White
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2009 Argot Happenstance Sonoma County
White Blend more
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Holy Cow, did this wine take me by surprise! It is not often a wine is put in front of me, from a California winery I have never even heard a peep about and it stops me in my tracks. According to their website, this blend is 70/30 Roussanne/Chardonnay.
The wine leaps from the glass with a nose of honeysuckle, lime, jasmine and Bananas Foster. It was hard to pull my nose out of this glass. The first sip is an assault on the senses, viscous and rich on the palate filling the mouth with honeyed textures foiled by the perfect balance of acidity and liveliness on the tongue. Once in the mouth the most out-front flavors are a richness in orange rinds, balanced by kaffir limes. Honey, coconut and lilacs make there presence known all while the faintest echo of black licorice (!?!) echoes in the background. The finishes lingers as all the oily textures cling to the palate and allow this array of flavors to dance in the mouth.
What a thrilling wine! Can't wait to try their other stuff.
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Red
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2008 Argot Syrah Opening Salvo Bennett Valley
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100% Syrah. Tasted at San Diego Family Winemakers event. First time tasting at an this event and was surprised by how many 'good' wines were being poured there. Not surprised by how few 'great' wines were being poured there. This was 1 of the 2 'great' wines I tasted that day.
I sought this table out due to a bottle of their Happenstance I loved a few months ago and was not disappointed. All the wines were great (keep your eye out for their rose), but this was just unbelievable.
Makes an immediate impression with its color in the glass. A vibrant, almost electric ruby. Not purple. Completely opaque and upon swirling just creeps down the sides of the glass with its viscosity. On the nose there is an amazing concentration that is almost Hermitage-like with aromas of tar, beef blood, asphalt, worn leather and dry,black earth. With more swirling brambly, black fruit begins to show itself deep in the mix along with accents of cinnamon stick, mocha and bittersweet chocolate. Once in the mouth, the only word that came to my mind was POWER. Holy cow did they stuff everything AND the kitchen sink in this wine. Gobs of black fruits, iron and asphalt with distinct notes of lavender, eucalyptus, menthol (the last 3 apparently attributed to the terroir of the vineyard). I was told that this was raised in 100% new oak, and almost couldn't believe it.
The winemaker said this wine will show its best stuff in years to come or with plenty of aeration. The bottle I tasted was popped and poured in front of me, and was already showing incredibly well, but the tannins will probably benefit from a few years in the cellar.
The other great wine I tasted that day was the 2008 Westerhold Reserve (which I had never heard of) also from Bennett Valley that the folks from the argot table turned me on to.
I, for one, am going to be keeping my eye on this project. Bravo!
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Red
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2008 Arnot-Roberts Syrah Clary Ranch
Sonoma Coast
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11.5% alcohol?!?! per the label. Cool and, erm, cool.
Awesome wine.
The nose presents itself with all the typical notes that have become synonymous with the low alcohol Syrah movement in the cooler climes of Sonoma County. I first encountered a nose of this type with Pax's first Majik bottling, which was just TOO brambly, bright and edgy for my palate. This A-R Clary is more refined and less abrasive. The nose is all about whole cluster fermentation, bright, floral, woodsy, bright and floral (yes, I typed that twice on purpose). White flowers are the lasting impression here.
The palate is SO fresh and light, with nothing to weigh it down or distract from its lift. I expected pepper but arrived at flowers (lilacs, lily of the valley), along with tobacco leaves, herbs de provence and thyme. Most notably, however, is how damn fruity this wine is! Not the juicy, jammy fruit of the cultier Syrahs, but a crisp, pure, firm profile of fruit. No compote here. Deep,dark blackberries, that are still firm to the touch, and require a small tug to get off the bush.
Rumors had this wine being the opposite of my experience. The rumors were wrong, they definitely got this one right. I would guess little new oak, and 100% whole cluster from smell and taste, but don't know for sure. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.
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Red
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1998 Arrowood Syrah Saralee's Vineyard
Russian River Valley
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Finally reaching maturity as indicated by its mature claret-like quality. The fruit is brambly (at best), with plenty of pencil lead and graphite, cigar leaf, mature fruit skins, a kiss of blueberry and a bit of lift that doesn't quite sync up with the rest of the palate--this is the only thing keeping this from entering the 95+ zone. This may be at its peak or just past. A stunner.
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Red
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1999 Arrowood Syrah Saralee's Vineyard
Russian River Valley
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Bought on the secondary market about a year ago. This bottle was over the hill for my tastes. The mature nose of leather and sandalwood is actually quite pleasing and had me anticipating a wonderful Thursday night wine experience with my homemade pizza. Alas, the palate could not hold up as it was very drying and harsh, and, in taste, a bit 'cheesy'. The tannins in the bottle have far outpaced the fruit, and I think even the francophiles out there that would have eaten (snorted) up the nose would be disappointed with what is going on in the mouth. A real shame cuz I've had this bottle of wine many times before and, while not the stunner the 98 is, it has always been delightful. Hopefully, this is bottle specific. Reserving judgement on scoring.
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Red
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2007 Aubert Pinot Noir UV Vineyard
Sonoma Coast
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Oh, so rocking. Doing a little 4th of Julying and decided to open this bottle with chicken and steak on the bbq. I mean Mr Aubert, really?!? This is an absolutely awesome Pinot. All you naysayers and conspiracy theorists can step aside, and let this bottle of wine assume its rightful place on the podium. Beautiful nose of cherries, coffee and a bit of licorice. Then in the mouth, DEEP, DARK black cherry flavors, that are mixed with asphalt, coffee and chocolate--is this what the core of the earth tastes like? Then the mouthfeel, like a satin nightgown slipping over satin sheets. So smooth, so elegant. If I could post one gripe about this wine, and we're nitpicking here people, it would be a lack of Pinot sous-bois. But this is young, and I look forward to my future bottles. Sidenote, much, much, much better than a bottle I had 8 months ago. Definitely coming together. If you've got a few, might be a good time to rip one.
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Red
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2001 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Red Rhone Blend more
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Fabulous, deep core of dark, pure fruit. This wine shocked me in the precision of its fruit--incredibly clean for a Beaucastel.
This wine screams old vine fruit pedigree--intense, clean, strucutred, true. Dark earthy flavors of leather, scortched Earth and black fruits. Incredible structure towards the acid profile. At $75 this is a screaming deal in comparison to its domestic Rhone-blend brethren by outpacing them all.
Beaucastel's reputation for bretty wines generally scares me away, in this case there was absolutely nothing to fear. Further, I generally shy away from Mourvedre dominant wines for their iodine-y, animalistic qualities. Again, not to be found here, I loved the fruit this wine exhibited. Drink this wine!
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Red
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2001 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Red Rhone Blend more
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Drank again, 1 year later. Consistent with previous note. Really has not moved. Probably built to go for years, but showing so good right now. Why wait.
Note: Both bottles I've had were clean and pure. Good to know when dealing with this house.
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White
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2009 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Cuvée Roussanne Vieilles Vignes
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I'm just not on board with everyone else (or Parker for that matter) on this wine. Will it be great someday, I don't know and have a hard time pretending with these VV Beaucastels. Here is where it was at the night I had it:
In the glass, this wine looked like it was going to be one wild ride. Bringing the stem up to my nose the bouquet was certainly lucious, but not flamboyant. White flowers, marshmallows, white peaches all came out after a significant amount of coaxing. Almost nothing in the tropical or citrus family.
Once in the mouth the feel screamed Roussanne, pulling cashmere blanket over my tongue and muting all other feeling inside my mouth. Again, lots of marshmallow and white flowers, nilla wafer, buttercreme and a slight fleck of lime.
My guess is that this wine will be great at SOME point in its evolution but I'm not willing to stock up and try to hit that moving target at this price.
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Red
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2005 Beckmen Vineyards Grenache Purisima Mountain Vineyard
Santa Ynez Valley
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This is such a well made wine. Steve clearly works his ass off making this wine, and it shows. It is so good, it has the unfortunate distinction of echoing the Grenaches made by the Krankls at Sine Qua Non. It is a great wine, but is held back from reaching SQN-like heights by being somewhat less intense in its flavors and mouthfeel--but it is also 1/5 the price! Sorry for the caveat, but this is the reality of Cali Grenache. This wine rocks.
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Red
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2007 Bedrock Wine Co. The Bedrock Heirloom
Sonoma Valley
Red Blend more
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This wine has heft and density, but is not overdone in any way. Plenty of fruit and texture but currently this wine's character is hiding behind its oak. Good things ahead for this bottle, but now is not the time.
I love what Bedrock is doing with these "heirloom" bottlings. One of the more interesting projects going in Sonoma county right now.
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Red
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2008 Black Kite Pinot Noir Redwoods' Edge
Anderson Valley
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A really fabulous California Pinot. Pure in cherry fruit, but without the distracting cherry cola characterisic that has become so distracting in many of its RRV brethren. I enjoyed the hell out of this wine. Will it get better in the long run? Maybe, ...probably. But bsased on thiis tasting, I see no reason to wait.
Certainly a project worth keeping your eye on.
Get in there.
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Red
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2007 Carlisle Syrah Cardiac Hill
Bennett Valley
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Holy cow did Carlisle hit a home run with this one! I think 'Cardiac Hill' is a newer bottling for them, and if memory serves, there are some other producers who make wine from this vineyard as well, but can't place them at the moment. Anyways, that is not what is important here, what is is that this is an absolutely fabulous Syrah. I've had my share of Mike's wines over the years, and this may be my favorite yet. Gobs of Syrah character with black olive, lavender blueberries, rosemary and white flowers, with a bit of pie crust going on. Is there some red cherry in there too? Oh my! One of the most striking things about this wine is how 'French' it is, esp for a Carlisle. Now, I'm not saying anyone is going to mistake this for an Hermitage or Cote Rotie, but there is a decidedly 'French' style to the palate that I believe SO many Cali Syrahs lack (but need!). This is a huge bonus for me. I would love to taste this next to the SQN Atlantis Syrah (another French-ish styled Cali Syrah). If there were one thing I could quibble with about this wine, it's that the oak may be (just a touch) clumsy, and I could see the wine chocolate-ing up. But that's splitting hairs. Great wine, great effort.
If Bennett Valley isn't careful, and keeps cranking out Rhones like this, they may become to Syrah what Sonoma Coast is to Pinot.
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Red
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2006 Cayuse Syrah Cailloux Vineyard
Walla Walla Valley
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Possibly consumed too young.
Dominating FUNK presented by this bottle! Much like an intrusive oakiness or too much stemminess, this bottle showed a funk that was too distracting to merit a higher score. With a California palate I could be the wrong person to be rating this wine.
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