4/21/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Subtle vanilla, that opened up later into the dinner, and grapefruit. A medium weight more on the zesty, rather than buttery side. Citrus on the finish, a nice food wine, but not buttery enough for scallops…

3/23/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

You know the song “Too Much” by the Dave Matthew’s Band? Or been tempted by ultra-premium foreign sports sedans where a double turbocharged V-8 is squeezed into the space normally reserved for a V-6? Well this that kind of wine, pushing the envelope to the absolute max. Sweet, powerful, tasty, full of fruit, alcohol, glycerin, concentrated spices. Really good, but like drinking port in larger pours throughout dinner. Almost headache-inducing even before bedtime. Too much.

4/21/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Bright, sweet red fruits, black fruit and spices hit you right away. A bold, powerful, youthful body (California sun can bring youthfulness to 113 year-old vines?)(It does for my old bones.) The finish ends in a more savory, very black fruited profile. Immensely pleasing, but not over the top.

4/13/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Red and blue fruits, lots of tertiary flavors -juniper, forest floor, olives, a little raisin. As previously experienced, after 45 minutes - quite thin in the body (it did fill out somewhat several hours later) Stronger and very balanced on the finish. Nice minerality.

4/11/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Relatively simple peach and lemon flavors. Nice body, slightly oily, better after warming up.

4/9/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Lemons and grapefruit on the nose. A fruity body ending in a lemony but not too tart finish. Some grassy notes, too. Will serve this chilled as a summer quaffing wine!

4/1/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Pears and honey on the nose. The body is sweet and the fruit is richer, gliding towards a lemony finish. A strong step up from their entry-level regional Kabinett that was very recently tasted.

3/31/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Peach and peach pit, rose flowers and stems, and lemon in the nose. Medium to light weight body. Some dry stemminess persists through to the finish. Was a nice dinner wine.

3/18/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

An expressive nose of violets, cigar tobacco, and while I initially thought only black fruits - after an hour of decanting - red fruits appeared in quite a pleasant fashion. Medium weight body with excellent balance and strong structure, the tobacco carrying through to the dry, savory finish. Really a nice, honest wine, earning every one of its 92 points. Enjoy now or in the near future.

3/17/2024 - Zoomin Z wrote:

Smells and tastes like a Riesling, sweetness and minerality in a disjointed medium weight body where the fruit is somehow hidden, short finish. Fills the bill, barely.

3/17/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Blackberries on the nose, with tobacco notes. Round, fruity body with a soft structure. A little bit of a Cabernet savoriness on a dry finish. Really, this is exactly how an above-average $7.00 Bordeaux wine should taste! Should be very nice in our mushroom garnish for steak.

2/25/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

A monolithic wine, in both flavor and strength. Tobacco and sweet red fruits dominate from start to finish. Plush sweet fruit abounds. Alcohol noted on the finish - you’d have to be dead not to notice a 16.1% alcohol content…
…paired this wine with a spicy BBQ/cumin flavored venison stew…ahhh…

2/17/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Restaurant bottle, served slightly too warm. No matter, very pleasant. and seamless. Strawberries and spices on the nose, notably cinnamon. A smooth, round fairly plush body with good balance between the red fruits and the spices. Not at all tannic on the finish. Really, a new world wine.

2/16/2024 - Zoomin Z wrote:

A darker pink than most. A strawberry nose and round, fruity body. A green-leaf finish. A gentle, "inoffensive" wine with a relatively powerful alcohol content. (13.5%) Almost immediately I felt an urge to to mix this with lemon-lime soda.

2/9/2024 - Zoomin Z wrote:

Sat down, ordered our small-plate food selections (foie gras, quail, scallops, duck) and had our hearts set for a chenin blanc. "I'm so sorry, your selection is no longer available. May we interest you in our Vouvray?" "Bien sur!" Upon opening the bottle...

The wine was of a darker color and the nose smelled heavily oxidized: Honey, Baked apple, golden raisin, and hints of wet hay that quickly blew off. Nothing skunky, no brett but..."would a somm at this nice of a restaurant serve us a bad wine?" Being adventerous at all things chenin blanc, we soldiered on. The sweet body, waxy apple fruit and the sherry-like complexity did not affect us negatively at all throughout our enjoyable plates. I actually looked forward to the very last sip before dessert...but by then the gentle acidity had disappeared and my last sip revealed...prune.

An exercise in futility, or living on the edge?

2/6/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

A complex, evolving nose of red cherries and black fruit, some lavender and black licorice as well. After a half-four decant to soften the tannins - the medium-weight black fruited body still held a strong tannic and menthol spine. The finish was very long, with the tannins segueing into a very mineral finish. I selected this wine to hold up to a blackened steak dinner, and hold up, it did…

2/6/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

From a half-bottle. Grassy nose, but unable to shake that sweet tropical fruit salad tone present in most California Sauvignon blancs. Luscious fruit, but a bit too sweet on the finish for my taste.

2/4/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

I opened this half-bottle (bought on sale) to use as a sauce wine…but after tasting it…immediately used something else! While it has a very restrained nose of black and blue (plum) fruit and tobacco, the creamy body and dry but silkily gliding finish seemed in beautiful harmony. I enjoyed this throughout a pleasant, leisurely steak dinner at home.

2/4/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

“Duncan Hines cake mix…the vanilla kind…” my wife’s initial impression of the nose. I got ripe, confected (think cotton candy) sweet red and black fruit. The body is plush, with enough structure to make this a ratable wine, dry enough, although a little jammy on the finish. I could serve this at a party……?

1/27/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

The richest and most concentrated fruit in any Zinfandel that I have tasted that was sourced from the Sierra foothills. Rich black fruit on the nose, and tell-tale iron terroir on the finish. Yum.

1/18/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Intensely floral, with hints of citrus and chalk on the nose. A generous body - slightly oily at first, with a lemon and under-ripe peach finish. Plus minerality. Excellent QPR.

1/14/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

From half bottle. A little fizz upon opening, nothing lasting. Apricots, petrol and tropical fruit salad on the nose. A heavyweight, almost oily body with generous sweet fruit. Ample acidity on the finish. Just for fun, I’ll try to keep another bottle around for 5-10 more years…

1/12/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Butter, lemon, and calcium/limestone on the nose. A hint of melon as well. A rich, full body with a decided sweetness to the gorgeous fruit. A long finish replete with minerality and balanced lemony acidity. One of the more buttery and full bodied French whites that I have recently tasted.

1/11/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Strawberries and cola on the nose. Vibrant acidity. A nice mid-week food wine.

1/11/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Lemon, melon and pear on the nose. Generous, full body. Balanced lemony finish. Drinking well now

1/12/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Lemon and apple on the nose. Lively medium weight body and finish. Very nice.

1/6/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Very perfumed nose, with pear, grapefruit, star fruit and mint hints on the nose. Medium bodied with generous fruit, very smooth. A radish bite on the finish, with hints of lemon and neutral spirit. Balanced fruit, acidity and minerality, yet melted snow only is used in the making of this sake. Very much a sake that would appeal to serious grape winos!

1/5/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

An expressive nose of black currant, strawberry, cinnamon and smoky cigar. The body is concentrated and dark, with sweet, generous fruit and hints of Concord Grape held together nicely with a chocolate spine that eases to a dry enough finish. A very good party wine.

1/1/2024 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Apples and yeast on the nose. Pleasing fruit (definitely a brut)and a very pure, fresh body and finish. Not quite French bubbles, but the mouthfeel is surprisingly close. Taittinger doing a great job of marrying French technical proficiency with American fruit. Very enjoyable!

12/30/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

BlackBerry jam and spices on the nose. A plush fruity body balanced nicely between the fruit and the savory spices. Well made, not unlike a really good California cab…but the structure doesn’t hold up all the way into a soft finish. My guess it’s the Touriga grape?

12/23/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Tastes very typically of a Loire valley Cab Franc - Green pepper, the savory dry finish, etc. A little corky funk that blows off. But the quality of the fruit and the richness of the mid-palate really shine. Drink now.

12/9/2023 - Zoomin Z wrote:

Had a bunch of 375mls. Drank as a mid-week half-bottle to share. Never quite enjoyed any of this vintage due to a slightly weird flavor profile of unsweetened tropical fruit salad juice without the fruit...

12/16/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Sort of a severe, savory serious tasting pinot. The fruit opened up nicely (a day later!!)

11/29/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

A super light red. Would consider serving it chilled in the hot summertime. Too light for pasta or pizza.

12/29/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

A pleasant surprise, don't let the screw top fool you. Savory red and black fruits, with iron and sage notable on the nose. A medium weight body with generous fruit, but no cloying sweetness or jamminess on the finish. Very balanced flavors, will try to seek out this Amador County estate over many others...

12/24/2023 - Zoomin Z wrote:

Loads of tertiary flavors - forest floor, rosemary, wet cedar. The medium weight body seemed more plush with red fruit, finish was very soft. Would drink now.

12/24/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Nice minerality and oyster shell, but while very smooth, it seemed a little flabby. Maybe my fault for drinking it on the warm side. Will try next bottle on the seriously colder side...

…tried another bottle a week later - much colder, helped only a little…

11/12/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Gentle flavors on the nose - lemon, green apple, grass. A medium weight body with strong nuances of richer, riper apples. Nice minerality on the finish, the lemony acidity a little less pronounced with age.

11/12/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Toffee, raisin, burnt oak and oranges on the nose. A typically rich body and enough acidity to keep it nimble. Very nice.

11/12/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Popped and poured. I’m glad I used this as an aperitif, as the energetic acidity on the finish whet everyone’s appetite. (And also since the guests were partial to Spanish wines…)

The nose was primarily fruit driven; dark fruits and forest floor…really didn’t find much oak. A medium weight body and lemony, vibrant acidity for at least the first hour. Some black fruits opened up in the body and finish much later in the evening - only then I would have called it a typical Monastrell.

10/28/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Blueberries and dark chocolate on the nose. Concentrated entry into a lighter, medium weight body with plenty of mild but dusty, cigary tannins. What initially seemed slightly underwhelming is erased almost immediately by an incredibly long, mineral finish - one of the longest that I’ve tasted in years!

Imagine sitting back in the plushest chair with a silly, satisfied grin - not wanting to break the spell for a long while…

11/2/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Black cherries and cola on a simple nose. Generous, silky fruit gliding to a soft finish. A real easy drinker with just just enough to make it worthwhile.

11/1/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Raisins, oranges, caramel, gingerbread cookie, cinnamon, and black walnut on the nose. A medium weight body. Balanced caramel sweetness and orange/lemon acidity on the finish. Could still taste it, lingering in a pleasant mouthfeel an hour later…

10/30/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Monstrously powerful, juicy concentrated fresh fruit - bold almost beyond belief. Strong fruit and ample spices on the nose, enjoyed by all, but a freight train of a wine…

10/14/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Tobacco, black fruits and just a little meat on the nose. Fresh, generously sweet fruit on a medium-plus weight body. Just enough acidity to give a nice lift on a pleasing finish. Now is the time to enjoy this very hedonistic syrah!

10/6/2023 - Zoomin Z wrote:

Melon and tropical fruit on the nose. Decent fruit and weight to the body, but a thin, lemony acidic short finish.

8/26/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Tight, tart red fruits and leather on the nose. Medium weight body with generous fruit all held in check with light tannins and energetic acidity. Energetic and very representative of old-school Rioja. Went great with Spanish tapas, of course, everything from garlicky steak to crabmeat…

8/23/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Revisiting this wine after an ample opportunity to gain some age. Blackberries, meat, floral notes and a trace of cinnamon on the nose. Generous dark fruit throughout a medium-plush body. More savory notes subtly show on a finish that reveals more balanced acidity than before. While the younger wine was more of a voluptuous experience, there has not been enough structure to enhance this wine with age. A very good wine, but nothing now truly stands out.

8/15/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Liquid sugar! A most generous apricot nose, yet not without hints of botrytis, the pit of the apricot and candle wax. A heavy, sweet body and long finish dried out with mild notes of bitter botrytis. Only light acidity…sweeter than most desserts…

8/15/2023 - Zoomin Z Likes this wine:

Juniper and black cherries on a generous nose that ends with a burnt molasses note. A light to medium weight body of black savory fruit. More juniper on the lighter-side finish. So much flavor, yet so light on its feet!