11/20/2023 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Lush red fruit, velvety tannins. Very nice, glad I have another.

10/26/2023 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

RRV-esque cola on the nose, with Carneros funk on the palate, from a Lodi Pinot. Go figure....

9/21/2023 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Delicious. It's a shame Fjellene isn't around anymore.

9/9/2023 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Hint of sweetness on the entry, with bright cherry and strawberry notes. Good acidity, light spice and tannins give it a dry, slightly tart finish. Very enjoyable on a warm summer's day. In our top 3 of VA Rose, along with Trump and our favorite, the King Family "Crose".

8/26/2023 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Bone dry, yet fruit forward. Not flabby at all but moderate acidity. Mostly strawberries on the palate. Very enjoyable.

8/21/2023 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Mixed berries on the nose with some allspice and a bit of heat from the alcohol. Raspberry and bramble palate with well integrated oak. Tannins become more pronounced with some air and flavor profile is heavier on spice and bramble when paired with pepperoni/sausage pizza. Medium body, medium+ finish. Holding up well.

3/6/2023 - ChipGreen wrote:

This has held up surprisingly well. 7 years later and my notes are nearly identical as they were in 2016, minus the bitterness. I need to seek out more "orange" wines.

8/3/2022 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Really hitting its stride. Strawberry and guava with a little funk and a touch of spice near the finish. Creamy yet juicy mouthfeel.

5/21/2022 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Asian pear, golden delicious apple, baker's yeast, a hint of citrus zest and a medium+, slightly tangy finish with some tongue-buzzing acidity/minerality. TLDR: Good stuff!

5/21/2022 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Holding up well. Carneros funk with some black cherry, blueberry/blackberry, sage and a hint of pepper.

1/24/2022 - ChipGreen wrote:

Pear, red apple and ozone on the nose. Hint of sweetness on the entry, then red apple on the mid-palate segues into bracing acidity and an unfortunate bitter note that persists through the finish. Will probably delegate our last bottle for Mimosas.

1/12/2022 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Composite cork. Amazingly fresh for an inexpensive 15 year old blend of Sangiovese, Zinfandel and Merlot. Raspberries, earth and allspice with a slight herbal (sage) note. Improved in the glass over an hour of air time.

11/28/2021 - ChipGreen wrote:

Enjoyed the bottle with family at Thanksgiving dinner. Pears on the nose. On the palate, I detected notes of pear, waxy lemon and golden delicious apple with a little quince and spice (white pepper) on the finish. The wine paired well with turkey and stuffing

11/28/2021 - ChipGreen wrote:

Still drinking great although cork stained all the way to the top on one side.

11/20/2021 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Still drinking nicely. Paired well with home made tacos. Black cherry and cocoa on the nose and palate. Tertiary earthy and herbal notes. Soft tannins that are a little chalky but not grippy on the medium finish. Enjoyable.

7/3/2021 - ChipGreen wrote:

Somewhat disjointed. The characteristics of its two components are instantly recognizable but they don't seem to mesh very well.

5/12/2021 - ChipGreen wrote:

$80 at Ken Stewart's Lodge in Bath, OH. Paired well with the entire meal. Deviled eggs w/lobster, mixed greens salad with Balsamic, Chilean Sea Bass in soy sauce w/ginger glaze.
Light and nimble with lots of tiny bubbles but no persistent bead (maybe the glass was to blame?). Medium minus mousse. Medium plus acidity with a slight mineral buzz on the tongue.
Lemon-lime and biscuit palate. Not complicated but enjoyable.

3/20/2021 - ChipGreen wrote:

Holding up very well. Black cherry, plum and currant on the entry with some light oak and leather on the mid-palate and light dusty tannins on the finish. Great QPR!

3/20/2021 - ChipGreen wrote:

Wine had seeped all the way through cork and become oxidized. Bummer!

2/28/2021 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Smooth, easy drinking red blend. Seems to be in its prime drinking window. Paired well with cheesesteak sandwich and also enjoyable on its own. Trending towards darker fruit profile. Plum, blackberry and currant with saddle leather and light oak. Medium+ finish with slightly chalky tannins. Thumbs up!

12/25/2020 - ChipGreen wrote:

Acetic and tart. Cloudy appearance.

11/23/2020 - ChipGreen wrote:

Savory with black and blue fruit. Lots of sediment. Plenty of life left.

5/29/2020 - ChipGreen wrote:

Still going strong. Very enjoyable but lots of sediment.

5/9/2020 - ChipGreen wrote:

LOOK: Beautiful golden hue in the glass, with great clarity. Slow-forming, medium spaced legs when swirled.
SMELL: Lemon butter nose with hints of peach and citrus zest.
TASTE: Golden delicious apple, and Myer lemon with some white peach, general citrus and tropical fruit notes. Light baking spice notes as well, which became more pronounced when the wine was paired with spicy Asian noodles in yakitori sauce.
FINISH/MOUTHFEEL: Some viscosity leads to a creamy, rounded mouthfeel despite medium acidity and Clark’s signature minerality on the tongue. Lip-smacking finish that invites continued sips.

5/3/2020 - ChipGreen wrote:

Absolutely crushed it with spinach ravioli in seasoned butter sauce. Delicious!

5/2/2020 - ChipGreen wrote:

The best thing I can say about this wine is, it's drinkable. A rare "miss" for WineSmith. Is it the Acacia wood influence? Something is definitely off here.

4/22/2020 - ChipGreen wrote:

Grapefruit/pineapple nose and palate. Fruity without being sweet. Some of Clark's trademark minerality on the mid-palate. Very enjoyable.

1/18/2020 - ChipGreen wrote:

Natural cork closure. Dark and inky in the glass - not unexpected for a PS. An almost opaque magenta-purple color. When swirled the wine coats the glass, showing some viscosity, before slowly melting away to reveal it’s medium-sized, medium-spaced, slow-running legs. On the nose, blueberry pie and candied cherries with a little heat and just a hint of spice. Very pleasant aroma which invites multiple sniffs. On the palate, blueberry upfront but with a surprisingly strong red fruit component as well. Sweet, jammy strawberry with tart cranberry, pomegranate and/or rhubarb notes remind me of the strawberry-rhubarb pies my grandmother used to make. From start to finish; mostly sweet heat on the entry, followed by expressive fruit flavors on the mid-palate and lingering fruit with a spicy kick and a little oak on the medium+ lip-smacking finish. Tried it with some nonpareils and was surprised that they accentuated the spicy notes of the wine. It was an interesting and enjoyable pairing. Note that there is some light sediment in the bottle.

10/7/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Has held up very well and paired perfectly with spicy Szechuan chicken.

10/7/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Surprisingly fresh and enjoyable. Plenty of fruit left and well balanced.

10/7/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Lots of spice, tannins and sediment with very little fruit. Not bad but definitely past it's prime.

10/6/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Wonderfully balanced. Brioche, light berries and citrus zest with lively mousse and fine bead. We placed a bottle of this on every table at our wedding reception 3 years ago and today took it to a clam bake to share with friends who attended the wedding. It was gone in a flash!

9/8/2019 - ChipGreen Likes this wine:

Easy drinking Cab. No signs of oxidation despite cork being saturated all the way to the top. Mostly cherry palate with a mild savory component and light tannins.

8/19/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Smooth and delicious with a thick, juicy top sirloin. Cherry, raspberry, cassis and just the slightest hint of menthol. Well integrated oak and medium tannins. Rich and deep with long finish.

8/19/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Still drinking well. Nicely balanced.

8/4/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

On the nose; green table grapes, golden delicious apple and citrus zest. Also a slightly floral note.
On the palate; white peach, freshly picked pear, grapefruit and tangerine. Bright acidity and pronounced minerality.
Day 2: A little rounder on the nose. More of a ripe pear than freshly picked and stronger golden delicious apple than before. Less citrus on the nose than yesterday but more on the palate.
I am tasting some green apple. Also still getting grapefruit and tangerine. Kind of a “Sweet-Tart” wine but mostly tart - not really sweet. Overall sense of citrus on the palate.
Acidity has dropped just slightly. Minerality still in full effect but like the nose, the palate/mouthfeel is a little fuller and rounder now. Likely due to the 5 months elevage on the lies.
Not even close to being over the hill, this wine is aging very gracefully.

7/15/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Still drinking well. Bright acidity, lemon meringue palate with lime zest. Some flinty minerality. Refreshing on a hot summer day!

6/22/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Nose of strawberry, peaches and orange blossom. Freshly picked strawberry palate with hints of citrus and a touch of spice on the finish.

6/19/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Has held up incredibly well. More minerality and spice than fruit at this point. Slight hint of petrol. Impressive!

6/19/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Delicious! Peter's wines are so well balanced, everything is in perfect harmony.

6/19/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Surprisingly fresh and somewhat fruit forward. Very enjoyable.

6/19/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Still drinking beautifully, long spicy finish

6/13/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Fairly fruit-forward with some earth and spice. Short finish. Paired well with lasagna and penne arrabiata. Good, not great.

5/5/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

The cork broke upon opening but the wine has held up very well and was a nice surprise, given the somewhat unusual blend. Medium bodied with dark fruits, leather and light oak. Medium tannins and medium+ finish. Throwing some sediment, so filter and/or decant.

4/27/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

LOOK: Pretty, semi-translucent magenta color. Good clarity. Closely spaced slow-running legs when swirled.
SMELL: Strawberry preserves, cassis, violets and a dash of wet straw. Possibly some brett? Enticing aroma, I keep sticking my nose in the glass…
TASTE: Similar to the nose, with the addition of a little white pepper spiciness and minus the violets. The strawberry is less jammy on the palate than on the nose. Slightly tart on PnP but quickly rounded into form in the glass. Not super complex but it is super tasty. Well integrated oak and medium tannins while the finish is medium+. I tried pairing it with some Beehive Red Butte Hatch Chili cheese and it was an excellent match. The chiles and spice rub of the cheese brought out more of the white pepper notes in the wine. As with most good pairings the wine made the cheese more enjoyable and vice versa.
SUMMARY: This is a delicious, well-balanced wine. I don’t have a whole lot of experience with Grenache as a single varietal (although I do love a good GSM) but most of what I have had was, like this, from CA. I have found two distinct flavor profiles in the ones I have tried. Fruit-forward strawberry-centric vs. Earthy, spicy, smoke bombs. This is definitely the former and falls right into my wheelhouse. Not sweet by any means but the strawberry notes do lead the way. Along with the cassis, white pepper, slight funk, oak treatment and tannic structure, it all comes together synergistically to create some great juice!

4/12/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Burnt caramel, toffee, figs, golden raisins, orange peel. Tasty Aussie "Sticky". Better chilled.

4/7/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Expressive nose and palate to match. Peach, nectarine, apricot and general citrus notes. You can tell there was some oak treatment as the wine is well rounded with some creaminess to it. Paired with Chinese food. It was a nice match, especially with the crab rangoons.

3/25/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

LOOK: Deep, dense ruby, almost purple in the glass. Good clarity with slow running legs and 1/16" translucent meniscus.
SMELL: The nose changed over time with air. At first it was tart cherry with a hint of allspice. After some time in the glass, it evolved into a deeper cherry scent with a hint of menthol and light oak.
TASTE: Initially tart with bright cherry and that buzzy minerality that is Clark’s trademark. The minerality carries through the mid-palate and leads to some light spice and mild tannins on the finish. Shouldered the bottle with that first taste and left it uncorked. Revisited an hour later to find that the tartness had dissipated to some extent, revealing a deeper, Bing cherry flavor profile. Also getting some currant and a general red fruit vibe. The minerality is still prominent and the spice is starting to show up in the mid-palate and carry through the finish which has gone from medium to medium+. I just cheated and looked at the pH. Surprised it’s as high as 3.73 as the wine seems fairly acidic but it’s that minerality at work. Got some skillet meatballs with pomodoro sauce, ricotta and parmesan cheese and toast points from room service. The meatballs brought out more of the spice and it was a very nice pairing. This wine was tasty on its own but really shined when paired with food. Having one last glass as I type this and the wine continues to evolve. The cherry notes deepen further, bordering on black cherry. The spice notes continue to show up sooner and last longer, while the minerality stays constant. This is not a typical CA Cabernet Sauvignon by any means but it is quite nice. Lighter and more nimble than the big bold fruit/oak bombs that are typical of New World style Cabs. The tannins have become more noticeable but are still relatively mild.
OVERALL: I would say that this wine is still very primary and will no doubt change over time in the cellar seeing as how it changed so much over a few hours in one night once opened. It was bottled so recently that it has barely had a chance to stain the cork. Still, it is very approachable now and will likely cellar for many years as I have found that Clark’s special brand of winemaking magic imparts not only instant approachability, but also great longevity.

3/16/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

Holding up well. Nice fruit, earth and tannins. Some sediment.

3/7/2019 - ChipGreen wrote:

375ml bottle with tight cork that has appeared to slow the aging process. The color is a very light hue of gold with a nearly 1/8" meniscus in the glass. Medium+, slow-running legs when swirled. Pretty good clarity, I noticed some minor precipitates in the first glass, maybe just some cork residue since there is some stuck to the sides of the bottle too. On the nose, peaches and apricots at first sniff. Additional swirling and sniffing brings out some orange citrus and light floral notes. Very enticing bouquet. On the palate, more peach and apricot with some honey and citrus zest. I did notice just some slight bitterness on the finish. I am pretty sensitive to bitterness so this would probably not be noticeable to most people. It pops up on the finish but segways into a nice little acidic bite which, along with the lingering sweetness, leaves a good impression. Paired the last glass with some Beehive Barely Buzzed cheese and it was a great match! I think this is a little more complex than your average Muscat. Whether or not there was some Botrytis involved is a mystery but it seems likely.