Community Tasting Note

• Mark1npt Likes this wine: 94 points

  April 20, 2023 - Coravined a glass off last night, 95 to start. Big, juicy dark red ripe fruit, excellent acidity and integrating tannins. Nothing harsh, but perhaps a little of the 15.2% alc prominent. Two hours later, juicy leaves, blacker fruit emerges, it calms down and drops a point or two in my book to a 93.
  
  Opened the rest of the bottle tonight to have with Carol's awesome Miso Sea Bass and wild rice with mushrooms. Heaven in a glass. Smooth, dark red fruit, chalky minerality and it's juicy and flavorful....lots of sweet tobacco, and loads of barrel spice, too. 95 pts once more. Two hours in again and some of the juicy leaves and it starts to replay like night #1......but the tobacco seems to be hanging on longer and stronger, which is a profile I really like, and the acidic backbone lends a certain energy and much length to the finish with spice all the way through past the finish. This wine made by Richard Arrowood is just fantastic. Not a fruit bomb Napa cab (it's actually Sonoma) but it has staying power and def aging potential. I hope in 20 more years at the age of 85, I'll be popping the last of my then, 28 yo bottles and enjoying a great aged wine of his as I do now with his 30+ yo Arrowood bottles.......averaging out my score to a 94 for this bottle. Make no mistake this is an 'in between' wine. It's not old enough or resolved enough to be a hit with the Bdx Left Bank or old time Napa crowd yet and it's not a big enough fruit bomb for the New World Cali Hedons.....

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33 Comments

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/20/23, 5:48 PM - Very nice note Mark! I must admit though, I think a Chard would have been a better compliment to the sea bass! Will be curious if these hold up as well as his AR wines!

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/20/23, 6:02 PM - Beg to differ, Jason. I've tried both whites and reds with this dish.....the Miso glaze, the wild rice and mushrooms yearn for a red. Bdxs work even better with this recipe. One of the few times a red with a white fish is best!

• sfwinelover1 commented:

  4/20/23, 6:03 PM - Great note; thanks for this, Mark. I’ve likewise enjoyed DA’s wines for years, although it’s been a while since I’ve had one of the Reserve Especiales (although as of 5 or so years ago, the last ones from the late 90s-early 00s were still drinking really well). And as I’ve confessed, unfashionably, I’m kinda a Sonoma Cab geek, from Laurel Glen to Verite to Peter Michael, and excited to try the Cornells and DiCo Montecilo which are gathering some needed dust. Cheers!

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/20/23, 6:12 PM - Thanks, sf! I just love his wines, so sorry to see him retire, but we all deserve it, after a lifetime of work. The old RE's are still drinking really, really well. I have a stash of them, too and just recently picked up some '94 and '97s. Wine Bid has a bunch of them right now, though not at the nice prices they were a few years ago. This AC '15 will easily see another 20-25 years.
  
  ps.....I'm kind of a Sonoma cab geek, too.

• sfwinelover1 commented:

  4/20/23, 6:31 PM - Betting money, at least in my case, is on not waiting that long . . .

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/20/23, 6:51 PM - Lol.....I'm not waiting that long either, my friend.

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/20/23, 6:56 PM - Let's just agree to disagree! I have had Miso sea bass and Miso black cod (sable fish) and I find the acidity and butteriness from a Chard (esp. Burgundy) pair up exquisitely with the sweetness of a Miso glaze. Not saying a red wouldn't go with it.....just saying, for me, a Chard pairs better! :) Caveat: I can see the mushroom & wild rice begging for a red!

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/20/23, 7:00 PM - Funny though....I had a wine dinner not too long ago, and we had the Miso course with a Burg and a mushroom course with an old Dominus, and both were paired extremely well!

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/20/23, 7:03 PM - Curious Mark, because you like Sonoma cabs, have you ever tried Daou? (I have not, but have always been curious)

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/20/23, 7:06 PM - Daou, is Paso. I'm not a fan of Paso cabs.
  
  Reds with the Miso Sea Bass, dirty wild rice and mushrooms (all served together), is a no brainer for me. If just the fish, white rice and say carrots, then yes, the white. We don't do 'courses' in our kitchen.

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/20/23, 7:18 PM - My bad re Daou....sorry! Haven't had many (not sure any) Paso cabs....do love their Rhone blends though!
  
  I typically don't do courses either, but this was a wine dinner I host every other month....for that, I do do courses and try to match them up with wines. Not sure I always succeed, but I try nevertheless!

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/20/23, 7:24 PM - When you isolate a certain food for courses, it's totally normal to isolate a perfect wine for that 'course'.
  
  But like I said, we don't isolate, we serve total meals and tend to pick the wine that blends with the 'entire' plate of food, the best.
  
  Neither one of us, is incorrect, we just do different things.
  
  Re: Paso.....much like most of Wash St cabs, there's just a flavor profile or feel to them that I don't like with but a very few outliers. Just my palate and preferences, but I'm sure there are tens of thousands of wine geeks that have a different palate than mine and disagree. To each his own, as there are a bazillion wines out there for all of us to like.

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/20/23, 7:38 PM - Bottom line, you enjoyed the wine with your meal! Thanks for the note!

• sfwinelover1 commented:

  4/20/23, 7:59 PM - So, as a food-matching wine geek, I’m more likely to go with IRBDW and say white, especially since sea bass is such a mild fish. But with the miso with the savory notes, it opens up the possibility of pinot or aromatic whites like rieslings, gewurtzs or white rhones, among others. To me, it would seem like a Cab, even one as well structured and balanced as I’m sure this one is (although I’m a bit surprised about the 15.2% abv), would be likely to eclipse the food, but I’m also a b eliever that everyone should drink what they like, and as someone whose favorite food group is fish and favorite wine group are the BDX grapes, Cabs in particular, sometimes you gotta break the rules . . .

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/20/23, 9:10 PM - sf, I've had cabs with lobster before too, though that's not nearly as good a match as this food grouping we're referencing tonight, is.....by itself the fish would def scream for one of the whites you suggested, and I've had this exact same meal a few times with a nice creamy, oaky tropical fruited Napa chard, which I def liked......but the dirty wild rice with its earthy/starchy tones and the myriad of dried gourmet mushrooms and all the savory components they bring, really set off the meal with a nicely aged Bdx or Cali (non fruit bomb type) cab, quite well. A big fruit bomb would def overpower it. Again, the beauty of food and wine is you can play with these things all the time and find what floats your boat the most. I'm sure after having Carol make this a few more times, I'll probably switch it up and do a meal with some whites again, too.

• sfwinelover1 commented:

  4/20/23, 9:38 PM - Even some of the other lower alcohol red Rhones can match surprisingly well with fish. But hey, if someone wants to take me out for some high end omikase and brings a Harlan, who would I be to say no?

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/20/23, 9:41 PM - Lol exactly, why not just put up with it?

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/20/23, 9:47 PM - FWIW....and it is not worth much....Parker once bragged about have a CdP with sushi.......so to each their own! Although I do get the red with the mushroom and wild rice, just not sure why you didn't have that with a steak instead of sea bass! :)

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/20/23, 9:49 PM - Oh, and btw, Mark...if I was having dinner with you, I would have just enjoyed it and the wine...would not have said a word! Only mentioned I was surprised, especially because focus seemed to be on the sea bass, not the mushrooms and wild rice. But, as I said, would have eaten it, and would have enjoyed it! :)

• Decanting Queen commented:

  4/22/23, 4:01 AM - Reading this late but just have to add:
  Syrah plus Oysters 🦪
  Mark hates oysters and everyone insists on champagne or a white will do, but it is a pairing worth trying!!

• sfwinelover1 commented:

  4/22/23, 6:48 AM - DQ: I’m thinking you mean something more N. Rhone than C. Coast? I wouldn’t have thought of that but may give it a try. Champagne is great, but also love the Spottswoode SB and most Sancerres.

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/22/23, 9:23 AM - Can't stand most SBs, but Champagne and Oysters is an awesome pairing, so is Reisling and Oysters...I suppose a Rhone wouldn't be bad, but think the saline in the oysters would compliment more acidic wines....just my 2 cents!

• sfwinelover1 commented:

  4/22/23, 9:27 AM - Without wishing to overthink this, my first instinct if going red would be a higher acidity, lower alcohol Pinot, Burgundian, Central European (or even Northern Italian), or if New World, maybe Rhys.

• Decanting Queen commented:

  4/23/23, 4:55 AM - Syrah can be any origin but should be on the younger fruitier side. I read it in an article a few years ago, didn’t believe it (I am a champagne and oysters snob, I confess). But it was really good and have played around subsequently with different Syrah’s. It’s worth a try even if you are skeptical!

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/23/23, 5:16 AM - DQ......I wish more of us wine drinkers could be more open minded or 'fun seeking' and overlook the traditional thoughts of only having whites or reds with certain foods. While oysters disgust me personally, I applaud your combo recommendation. I still liked my adventure a few years back at a restaurant with both a white and a red in front of me while I tried their Miso Sea Bass with all its sides on the same plate at one time. (the melding of flavors can provide quite the ying vs yang when trying to decide which wine works best for that 'entire' meal) Most of us eat all our meals that way, with everything on our plate at one time. Only a very few and usually only on special occasions have a meal in 'courses' where one wine shines and melds perfectly with that particular food item. I experiment quite a bit with wine and food and most times I fail miserably, yet still enjoy the wine or the meal in themselves. Even the last time I had a big sweet juicy cab with a fresh sweet lobster (not the best combo, I admit) I could appreciate and enjoy both at the table at the same time.

• sfwinelover1 commented:

  4/23/23, 6:12 AM - I’ll confess that this is a bit of an ongoing conundrum for me, since, although I’m a proud omnivore, I eat very little red meat—although I am looking forward to a think loin lamb chop tonight and enjoying contemplating whether I want to pair it with a Napa Cab, BDX or CDP—but have a strong preference for reds, particularly Cabs and BDX blends. Seafood dishes with richer fish, like salmon, or more savory sauces lend themselves, for my palate to more experimentation than food like oysters, which I also love dearly, and sushi (ditto). But never say never, right?

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/23/23, 8:18 AM - sf, in today's age it pays to be wine & food 'fluid'!

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/23/23, 8:32 AM - I confess, I don't drink as much as you guys, and I seldomly open bottles just for myself to have with dinner. Most of the time I open wines, it's to share with people, or at wine tastings with a group, so it is much easier to find foods that will compliment the wine....even in larger group settings we go to restaurants and do courses for flights. Sometimes, we experiment, sometimes we order food that isn't the best match because we want a certain menu item, but this is the exception. However, I will say, that even when my wife and I eat alone, we still do courses, i.e., a salad course, a main meal course and sometimes a dessert course.
  
  I find that some wines need certain foods, e.g., many Italian wines. The higher acidity just begs for food. I also find sweeter Rieslings pair well with spicy foods, and Salmon and Pinot is heavenly, slaty and Champagne, etc. Often times, and I don't want to sound snobbish, but the wines are enjoyed just by themselves or with Charcuterie. In many cases, where I have been to pot luck tastings, i.e., everyone brings a small dish to share, I will either pick out something that goes with a certain wine, or I will eat separately from drinking the wines. But hey, maybe I am the freak exception!

• I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine commented:

  4/23/23, 8:35 AM - SF.....Mr Omnivore, I am sure mushroom and cheese dishes go pretty with your Cab palate!

• sfwinelover1 commented:

  4/23/23, 8:48 AM - IRBDW: I don’t think you sound snobbish at all. I think charcuterie—depending on the specifics of the charcuterie, of course—can pair well with almost anything, perhaps because of the more bite sized nature of the food. I don’t do a ton of cooking with cheese (I tend to eat it before dinner, usually Manchego), but I tend to find parmesan, goat and feta, the main ones I use, work better with sangios (and in the case of the latter 2, Rhones) than Cabs, although the Tuscan BDX blends, with that distinctive terroir, can be a good alternative. I eat tons of mushrooms, almost all wild (porcinis, morels, hedgehogs and chantrelles in particular) other than the occasional shitakes and oysters. Like so much regarding wine, though, I think most of this is personal preference rather than right-wrong. Just my $.02!

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/23/23, 8:53 AM - sf and Jason....there is no right and wrong! Eat and drink what you like....that's the only rule. I'll gladly pass my plate of oysters over to the DQ!
  
  Jason, like you I find Italians to always be best with food.

• sfwinelover1 commented:

  4/23/23, 8:57 AM - Mark: I think Italian wines are, on an overall basis, the best with food, and often relatedly, often at their best with food, but quite a few Italian wines are at least equally good, IMO, as cocktail wines, like the BDX-based Guado al Tasso, Ornellaia and Solaia (but save the Sass for food) and the Casanova di Neri BdMs.

• Mark1npt commented:

  4/23/23, 9:09 AM - I fully agree, sf....there are exceptions that drink really well on their own, for sure, especially the ones you noted. Per Jason's comment though, the higher acidity (as is their overall norm) seems to beg for food with most Italian wines. If I don't eat something with them, I frequently experience a good dose of heartburn afterwards. May just be my own issue, but it seems I've heard it from many others as well when it comes to Italian wines.

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