Category Archives: Wine reviews

Burgess Cabernet Sauvignon 2002

24 Thursday Oct 2013

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I picked up some Swiss Chard as part of the Paleo ingredients for tonights dinner.  Moxie warned me that it would be bitter which gave me pause to think of a good pairing.  Turns out she was incorrect- the Chard was superb, crunchy, full flavored as well as balanced.  I de-stemmed the leafs, washed the bright red stalks and rinsed the rich green leaves.  Sauteing the thicker stalks and garlic in some European butter, I added the leafy parts right before serving.  It was a great new revelation in our quest for new foods to eat following the caveman diet.

Back to the wine….  I absolutely love the ’96 Burgess and think it is a well developed Cabernet that shows great evolution and firm structure.  I have built up a few bottles of various vintages, hoping for replicas.  Having tasted this particular vintage about two years ago, I was somewhat disappointed with its development and banished the remaining bottles  to the cellar.

With tonight’s menu, I felt I needed a fruity yet somewhat mature Cabernet to do battle with the potential bitterness awaiting us in the sauté pan.  I picked the Burgess as I felt it would fit the profile.  It worked, but it need not have bothered- as I mentioned the Chard was great and did not reflect the anticipated dryness.  The wine however showed great length and purity.  A young purple color in the glass followed by a gorgeous plum and black fruit nose gave way to a smooth tasting Cali Cab.  Dark fruits and cedar mixed with some leather and funk.  Seriously smooth tannins caress and the whole thing is on tip-toe, balanced impeccably.  I truly wonder how great this wine could be if given another 5 years, i’m guessing it will evolve like it’s big brother the 1996.  I am super stoked that I opened this wine and uncorked a monster in the bottle.   It is refined, yet powerful, fruity but svelte, satisfying and alluring.  I dig this wine.  I used to be so anti-Napa, but Burgess really opened my eyes (palate).  I have come to appreciate the longevity, finesse, fruitiness as well as the evolution of the better wineries.  For $55, you can still find this wine out there.  Not a bargain, it will reward you for many years to come as it is just starting its way towards the secondary life of tertiary flavors.  5 stars because I reckon this is a 91 point effort. Salut….

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Cupcake Vineyards Red Velvet 2011

22 Tuesday Oct 2013

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I have had this wine before, but never posted about it.  The nice lady hocking the wares at my local grocery store was not sure of the blend (damned temp agency people) but as she was looking it up I smelled the Zin in the sample she had poured.  Turns out Zin, Merlot, Cabernet and Petit Sirah make up this steal of a $9 bottle.

Very dark in the glass thanks to the heavies, it has a very fruit forward style, albeit not very complex.  Very straightforward aromas and flavors of candied strawberry and Maraschino cherries.  It finishes with some mocha and very little dryness.  This is a pop-n-pour wine as it has little tannic backbone and the acidity is mild at best.  It will serve you well at a large party and the lack of tannins make it an easy wine to quaff.  85 points and 3 stars for me.  I classify this as a cheap and cheerful wine that is widespread.  Salut….

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Bodegas Penafiel Miros de Ribera Reserva Coleccion Privada 2001

22 Tuesday Oct 2013

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I have drunk numerous bottles of the lovely ’01 Penafiel wine and love its evolution.  Speaking of evolution, our caveman diet continues and Moxie has really gotten creative. Tonight, she used my Moroccan Tagine for the first time.  Designed by the Bedoins, it needs very little liquid and was used to slow cook meat, spices and fruits.  The conical top retaining the moisture while the ceramics evenly distributed the heat.  For our dinner, beef with butternut squash seasoned with paprika, cinnamon, ginger, red and black pepper, garlic, cilantro, onion and salt.  She added some whole tomatoes not realizing how much liquid they would add to the pot.  A truly sumptuous dietery meal that was complex, filling and a revelation.

The Tagine

The Tagine

The Beef

The Beef

The Wine

The Wine

To the wine. I needed something that would handle the beef, the spices and offer a complexity to match the ingredients.  I found it in my old favorite.  The wine has matured since I last tasted it and the secondary life is now alive and kicking.  Still dark purple on the nose, I saw no bricking (indicating age).  The nose was vibrant, with cherry, red currants, oak and spice.  I was getting excited about the first sip.  It offered up a mature compote of berries, blue and red.  Black stone fruits and some spice with a hint of vanilla came through.  The extra depth was made up of earth and cedar, with some plum notes mixing it up with incredible tannins.  The structure of this wine is amazing.  Precise acidity and hand crafted tannins are holding this wine upright.  I honestly think it is just starting its evolution, with at least another 4 years ahead.  It paired beautifully with the dinner as the wine was able to stand up to the myriad of spices Moxie had thrown in there.  Made from 100% Tempranillo, it rates a 92 from me and 5 stars.  I can’t remember what I paid for it, but if you can find it you need to get summmm.  Salut….

Chateau Bordenave Sauternes 2010, part deux

21 Monday Oct 2013

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I hardly chirped up about the 2010 Bordenave when I first tried it.  Last night, I had a hankering for something sweet and this one just happened to be lying around.  Considering it is about $15 per bottle, I did not fear pulling the cork and being underwhelmed.  I was in for a surprise.  Seems like I have had a string of crappy wine lately and it is nice to re-visit a bad one and get some satisfaction out of it.

More unctuous in the mouth, it was somewhat sweeter with more depth of fruit.  Pineapple was evident but the botrytis gave off a lovely honeyed apricot.  Juicy acidity balanced the wine and kept the sweetness in check.  I enjoyed half the bottle while watching a movie and found myself licking my lips several times.  Sauternes is never cheap, this bottle is very ‘reasonable’ and I am glad I still have a few hiding out downstairs.  4 stars and 90 points from me this time.  Amazing what a little cellar time will do for a young wine.  Salut….

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Domaine des Monts Luisants Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Monts-Luisants 2009

20 Sunday Oct 2013

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That’s a helluva label to tell you that this is a Burgundian Pinot Noir.  Supposedly from a 1st cru vineyard (Burgundy still boggles me), denoting a high quality and from the amazing 2009 vintage.  That is why I bought this bottle which retails at about $55 today.  I don’t think I got a good deal.

This wine was atypical of the Burgundian profile.  I got strawberry and cut grass on the nose.  The wine is very pale in color which is expected of the varietal.  On the palate, more strawberries but unripe.  Sour cherries and cut grass mingle with graphite and some earthiness.  I am not digging this profile.  Very tannic and with tremendous acidity, this is probably a lurker.  I hope so.  It has the potential to be great lived.  Not ready for drinking until at least 2016, and hoping that it will get out of the sour stage it is sitting in.  87 points and 2 stars for now.  I will need to re-visit this one at  much later date.  Salut….

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Los Clop Malbec Reserva 2009

20 Sunday Oct 2013

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Last night Moxie banged up some amazing veggie stuffed flank steaks.  I needed a juicy, big , fruity wine to match her culinary skills.  I opened this Malbec from Argentina’s Mendoza region and give her a half cup for the marinade/sauce.  I then went to the glass.  Beautiful purple with some great plums and blackberry on the nose.  A delicious palate of dark berry, purple plums and chocolate.  Medium tannins and good acidity make this a juicy drink for $15.  However, as good as it was while we were cooking, it became muted as soon as I sat down for dinner.  The wine did not hold up to the meat at all.  I was really surprised.  After dinner, it came back to life without any food around.  I have never seen this happen.  A great drinking wine, but not worthy of pairing with food, strange.  Anyway, I would buy it again for the price and simply drink it before or after dinner, perhaps at a party- problem solved!  3 stars and 88 points for me.  Salut….

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Maison Champy Gevrey-Chambertin Vielle Vignes 2008

20 Sunday Oct 2013

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Gevrey-Chambertin is supposed to be a structured and bold Pinot Noir from the Burgundy region.  This is my second try at this bottle.  The first was in 2011, I hated it and decided to cellar the rest for potential improvement.  Nothing here folks.  A major dud from this producer who used ‘old vines’.  Sour cherries and pencil lead.  Some strange funk going on, but not the kind that I like.  Very sharp acid and some ingrained tannins but no real finish.  The lead component took me a while to pinpoint.  It really is unpleasant.  This was not a cheap wine, and can be found now for $40.  WS gave it 90 points.  I reckon it is an 84 pointer and a major pass.  1 star and moving on.  #dissappointed.  Salut….

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Chateau Denisiane 2009, part trois

17 Thursday Oct 2013

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I have written about this wine twice, both times it sucked.  The 2009 Denisiane completely underwhelmed me and pissed me off because I had bought a case on high recommendations.  I have given it some time to sort itself out (actually I was ignoring it).  Tonight, it came through, sorta.

After last night’s epic dinner of Ribeyes etc, we had some leftover meat and mushrooms.       I wanted to spice things up so I concocted a spicy Panang curry comprising the leftovers, peas, onions and sliced almonds.  The curry was medium hot on the spice scale and the ingredients melded beautifully.  I had no aspirations of pairing this wine well when I  came across it in the cellar.  Almost a ‘throwaway’ I figured it couldn’t hurt and besides- I was not about to open something good for the curry.

Regulation purple color in the glass it actually offered up plums and dark currants in the nose.  Prior to eating the curry, I tasted it and was not overly impressed.  Once I got stuck in, the wine surprised me.  The fruit actually sharpened, the tannins cut the heat and the acidity was beautiful.  I could not have paired a better red with this South East Asian dish!  After dinner I let my taste buds normalize so I could further evaluate the wine.  It was starting to come alive.  More dark plums and blackberry came across.  The tannins were quite dry and persistent.  The acidity was back to normal, which was good.

I panned this wine big time.  For $12 I thought it was crap and had no chance of improving.  I was wrong.  It has evolved and come out of its shell.  Still a very basic red table wine I think should now garner 85 points.  However, seeing as I had to work on it for over 2 years it only deserves 2 stars from me.  I would never buy it again, but actually look forward to the future evolution of what I still have in cellar.  Salut….

PS. I got most of the way through dinner when I realized that peas are not Paleo diet friendly.  Sorry Moxie, I cheated…..but not on purpose.

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Carpineto Vigneto Poggio Sant’Enrico 2001

17 Thursday Oct 2013

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A Vino Nobile di Montepulciano made from the Sangiovese grape.  I have been sitting on this one for a while waiting for the right time and the right meal.  Tonight my stars aligned.  Moxie went nuts and cooked the mother of all Paleo meals- a Ribeye, Bang Bang Shrimp, sauteed mushrooms, roasted Yam fries and a Kale/Brussell sprout salad with homemade French country dressing.

IMG_0031The wine was superb.  I just love Sangiovese and this one was so typical of the grape.  Cherries and a delicious use of oak.  This wine is 12 years old and is just now coming to life.  A great tannic profile with racy acidity have given this wine an iron-clad structure.  It still shows purple/red in the glass with no bricking.  It’s nose is dark cherry and strawberry.  Secondary flavors of earth, capsicum and leather really excite me.  I am getting a long finish and the tannins are mouth puckering, yet smooth.  Alcohol on this wine is 13.5% which is about where my threshold lies.  This wine started out at over $60, can be found today for about $42 and will not let you down with a big steak, pasta or rack of Lamb.  A serious wine that gave me much enjoyment, 92 points and a 4 banger.  Salut….

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Ravens Wood Old Vine Zinfandel 2011

14 Monday Oct 2013

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The 2010 Ravens Wood Zinfandel was my go-to wine when in a pinch.   The 2011 version leaves me bewildered.  Hollow, lacking fruit and just average.  What little fruitiness I got was predominantly plum, with some cherry mixed it.  There was a certain spice that overcame the fruit.  Pepper and oak were evident and the lack of tannins apparent.  I must have missed something here because this winery is consistent.  Perhaps I had an off bottle.  For around $9 it is usually a great QPR wine that works well for parties, BBQ’s and even the odd poker game.  I did enjoy it somewhat, but was disappointed at the difference between vintages.  I am reserving judgement on this one for a second tasting.

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