11/26/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Not as good as I remembered, but still very pleasant nonetheless. Enjoyed by all. Elegantly styled. Still has cellar life.

11/19/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Good for the price, went well with chicken tortilla soup.

10/20/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Thought this would be past its prime, but clearly had more life available. Not what I expected on the nose or palate, but both pleasant surprises. I found the bouquet to be floral and fruity and the palate expressed dark fruit throughout with a spicy mineral edge, but all integrated rather elegantly.

9/28/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Very good from this small producer. The oak was hardly present on the palate behind the big fruit and higher then average acidity for a cab, but was integrated enough to come out balanced properly. This improved with time open. For the price, very good, if you like the big, wet, red fruit style.

9/8/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

my opinion on this wine changes several times from "its okay" to "no thanks" and ended at ...... blah.

8/24/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Like this a lot, in its prime drinking window now I suspect. A lot of sediment, enough to filter it and serve in a decanter. Fun wine with a good QPR.

8/11/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Started well in a mellow groove that would make it a good part wine with appeal to anyone except the most refined and snobby drinkers (I will admit, yes, I am one of those). Eventually, the flabbiness took over and the wine became almost not there. No reasonable flavor, no distinguishable mouthfeel, a 0 sec. finish. The aroma stayed interesting (Bubble Gum & Candy???). Drinkable, but for a napa merlot from a project with experienced principles, shouldve been considerably better, even for the $13 price tag.

7/29/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Not overly big, as I was expecting, but very deep and lush. Dark and red fruits on both nose and palate. Color was very dark, although I was drinking out of a glass smaller then what I normally use. Opened up nice and drank very well. Well integrated and complex, which was interesting considering the blend and non specific "california" designation. Good buy for the price, will continue to age nicely.

7/29/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Awesome packaging, and good wine. It took around 3 hours to open up, and oddly it then didn't hold up very well, but in drank well. Structured, complex, full-bodied with tannins that need more time in bottle. Too young to drink right now.

7/11/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Lots of aroma and flavor to start, but falls apart quickly becoming disorganized and musty. Alcohol is not well integrated and stands out in the palate, but the rest of the palate is well (but not overdone) extracted dark fruit with some licorice and coffee. I believe this is Cabernet Sauvignon based. Fairly tannic, a little bit "wild."

7/5/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Hard to knock a bottle you get for free. Big fruit, big spice, juicy and lush. Lacking structure and poise, it comes across as disorganized and flabby, it misses the mark on extraction and lands in "jammy" territory. Although enjoyable with our dinner of sloppy joes, it is made in a crowd-pleasing style that you can buy in any supermarket for under $15 that I am not a very big fan of.

7/5/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Difficult to rate, was looking forward to having this wine again, but this bottle was "off," some kind of funk. Hopefully the rest of my bottles of this are okay.

7/3/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Really liked this Pinot, very stinky upon opening but it blew off, and the fruit came through wonderfully on both the nose and the lush palate.

6/28/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Very austere and tannic, needs more time, but can see the potential, Classic mountain fruit profile, well extracted. Will retaste tomorrow to see if tannins integrated themselves.

6/27/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

past drinking window

6/27/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Way past drinking age...

6/13/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

A little disjointed due to its maturity level, but having had this wine many times before, I can say it is a great bargain.

6/2/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Not what I expected. This is a white wine blend meant to be had with food, as it is full bodied with a large mouthfeel of floral flavors and some woodiness. This drinks like a french style chard. Very elegant, not fruity or crisp, as was expected from this blanc/gris blend. Unique and different, but good. The wood and creaminess mellowed with time and as it warmed, next bottle will be opened earlier and served with food.

6/1/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

A little on the harsh side, rather acidic. Decent flavor from a bottle well past its prime. An interesting blend that resulted in a new white wine experience: no definable varietal was prominent, but it didn't taste like it was all just poured in together. Decent summer sipper. Light and bright.

5/24/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Very surprised on this one. Quite good. Could hardly tell it was fortified. Very fruity with lots of deep dark fruit. Blackberry and boysenberry galore, with hints of eastern spices you would find in a nice zin. Nice domestic port styled wine. Good buy.

5/24/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Past its prime, but still had decent mouthfeel and acidity. Good blend. Lots of floral aromas and the palate was stone-fruit.

5/24/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Very good BDM, not what I thought it would be. It was mellow, elegant, and complex. Decanted around 1 hour. This is in its prime drinking window. Good color (deep red with a little rustiness at the edge). Aroma and taste were of dark fruit and some subtle herbs and wood with little heat from the alcohol in the finish. Well integrated.

5/16/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

This wine, for me, has too much of a clorine like personality, probably from it being several years past it's prime. The color is a stunning golden hue all the way to the rim, not yellowish or clear. The bouquet is stunted, but you can still pull some honeysuckle, carrot(???), and floral aromas, not a lot of fruit and little to no oak is present. The flavors are the same as what the nose says. There is a funk here I cannot identify, fig or raisin maybe, others seem to enjoy it although it turns me off. I realize my score puts this wine in the "above average" range when using the traditional scale, but my palate only allows my scale to span from about 79 to 100.

5/16/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

A lot of hype on this wine, and for the price (around $9), I still think it was a good buy, although I won't be seeking any more out. Color was spot on for a highly extracted shiraz. Aroma was as expected but misleading as it was fruity and mellow with only a hint of what was to come. In the mouth, this wine had a peppery core with hints of dark fruit around it that opened a little more with time. This wine was a tad solvent-y and very hot in both the mid-palate and finish with lots more pepper and obvious alcohol that, even a relatively low level, didn't even try to integrate itself. The finish was harsh but did mellow with time. Overall, at first, this wine was rough, but cleaned up enough to the point of being a sensible shiraz.

5/16/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

This wine was a home-made bottling by a friend and gifted to me, so I cannot be too rough here. All things considered, and compared to what I was expecting, I can honestly say I have had wines from legitimate wineries that were less drinkable then this. A noble effort. I intentionally did not score this, as I really do not have a reference database for home-made wine, and to compare it against "professional" wines just doesn't seem fair.

5/11/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Decanted, color was good, fair amount of sediment. Was a bit heavy on the burnt oak which made it seem harsh, but softened and opened up nicely with the juicy fruit showing well in an elegant, typical WA style... crowd pleaser. Glad I tried it.

5/9/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Consumed over 3 hour period, just kept getting better and better. Color was dark garnet red to the rim. Upon opening the wine was spicy with lots of peppercorn, spices, dark blue and black fruit. Mouthfeel was beastly (for lack of a better term). Big, hot and long finish. This wine lept bounds toward becoming very well integrated and the heat dissipated within 30 min (not decanted). When last sip was consumed, it was a completely different wine, with a long way still to go. The fruit came to the front and was beautiful, concentrated, elegant dark brooding blue and black fruit. This wine has a definite Rhone personality, with only a hint of typical Russian River characteristics. I have 5 more bottles and couldn't be happier. My wife said it was the 2nd best (possible tie for 1st) wine shes ever had, and rated it a 96.

5/8/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Once again, I have waited too long to drink one of my "every day" white wines because I have liked it so much in the past. Still, I can see what was here, as the wine was still drinkable, but both aroma and flavor very muted, and it didn't last long once it hit the air... typical napa sauv blanc... grassy and mineraly with a new zealandish grapefruit character on both nose and palate. No wood. Wish I would have drank earlier, as I think it would have been a pleasant drink.

4/29/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

consistent with earlier note, as expected. started the wine colder this time and let it warm. an obvious difference. bottom line, if you this bottle at a store soon, dont be afraid to purchase, i bought from the imported for less then $3/btl (not a typo - 2.99 is what i paid) - worth every scent, even if you only drink a half a glass!

4/26/2008 - ccarmichael Likes this wine:

Decanted. More important then what this wine was, is what this wine was NOT. Not overbearing with glycerin or it's alcohol (it is a brute at almost 17%), it does not come across as over extracted but as pure, smooth, and seamless. Blue, black, and red flavors are present, integrated and wonderful. Color was almost black, lightening to dark red at the rim. Aroma jumped out of the glass.

4/26/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Very yummy. Everything was right where I like it. Alcohol a modest level under 12% and residual sugar was around 18. Good color, dark, but still let light through, where the red was seen as (i hate to use this term) slightly coagulated blood before it turns brown. The nose was very nice showcasing the fruit of the black muscat. Liqueured flavors of cherry and boysenberry with chocolate and coffee coat the entire palate. The texture and viscosity is important to comment on here. The palate was broad and deep, but not brooding or overwhelming. This wine knew how to control itself. Viscosity was not on level with a typical glass-coating dessert or port wine, but more along the lines of a typical red with a lightness in its step. Overall a nice buy and a nice offering from one of my love-to-hate producers. Consumed at my father, stevo_the_wino's house.

4/26/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

I was rather disappointed, as I have never had a Shafer I didn't thoroughly enjoy. This bottle would have been an easy 91+ if it wasn't for the finish. Possibly a little cork taint. The color was spot on for napa cab, dark ruby almost to the rim. Classic cab bouquet of deep red fruit (think raspberry compote and cherry liqueur), chocolate, coffee, and hints of various spices, but all slightly askew. In the mouth the oak came to the front followed by the fruit and earth, with it all integrated rather well. Mid-palate belonged to the fruit and well-developed tannins. The finish was hot and sulphuric with big oak, and big tannin to boot. Ruined the wine for me, and I think a possible taint may have been present, I hope to be able to try this wine again in the future for reference. I had this wine at my father, stevo_the_wino's house.

4/26/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

For a wine that is supposed to be well past its prime, the color, aroma, palate and over-all experience of drinking this was hardly diminished. 100% verdelho, it showed a light yellow color with no green tint. The aromas were fresh and youthful with scents of lemon, orange, and tangerine, honey suckle, a little bit of wet stone minerality and even a hint of apple. The mouth was light and bright, continuing the aromas with added elements of fruit skin zest, but without the sweetness. The mouthfeel was larger then expected. A refreshing little wine, and purchased for $3 at a sale, it was worth every penny. This was consumed at my father, stevo_the_wino's house, but I have another bottle of my own purchased at the same time that I will consume shortly, as it won't last much longer, and re-evaluate. This bottle doesn't need to be too cold.

4/21/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Originally rated 93, but the score doidn't sit well with me, neither does 92 though. How's 92.5? The color was a slightly rusted ruby/red. The nose was very enjoyable and made it difficult to decide whether to sip or smell. I often picked up my glass, smelled, and did not taste. Did not decant, but I think this wine still as plenty of time, by the end of the bottle, the aroma had opened beyond the sangiovese stone and mineral with dark fruit it was showing off early into red fruit and liqueur laced with spiced stone. The mouthfeel was not overly austere or tannic, as I was expecting, but with mouth-coating fruit that was not dense or overly complex. Solid wine. I had it with cream of broccoli soup, gnocchi in a 4-cheese sauce, and white chocolate/raspberry cheesecake. Others enjoyed it with their various Italian dishes including veal, risotto and penne with various sauces (red and white).

4/21/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

Was adding inventory to CellarTracker and found this bottle, the synthetic cork doomed it. Although well past its prime drinking window, this wine still had something to show in the bouquet, I am guessing it was the original fruit, slightly oxidized. The palate was hard to swallow. As an adventurer, I dove in anyway, I could pick up some standard chardonnay elements of apple, but that's about it, as the oxidation took over. Educational experience.

4/19/2008 - ccarmichael wrote:

I took a bottle to the Serra/St. Pierre fight, most people didn't peg it as Cabernet it was that big with lots of extraction and lots of big pure dark fruit (mostly black and blue jammy style berry flavors), but it was pure and integrated. The alcohol and tannins took a back seat over time but were in-your-face upon opening. The bouquet upon opening was big and wild, then closed up and took a little time to open up to its true essences of the recurring blue and black fruit. The earthy/herbal/oak nuances I expected didn't start to show up until the last glass, and even then, it was a pleasant addition, with nothing "taking over." The color was glass-staining dark purple at the rim and almost black near the center. It spent around 1 hour in decanter, although by that time, there was not much left... crowd pleaser. If you like this style, it is a good buy if you can still find it.