Schug Chardonnay Sonoma Coast 2018, California, USA

20 Wednesday May 2020

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This was the first wine of my Second Lockdown Virtual Tasting.  It was the only white in the lineup, so it had to be a Chardonnay from California.  I instructed everyone to chill half the bottle and reserve the other half at room temperature.  We were going to do an experiment.

The wine is a nice golden color in the glass.  The nose of the chilled wine had pear, apple and citrus notes.  On the palate it followed the theme with some nice acidity.  The finish was decent in length and showed off that Apple/pear combo nicely.  I had researched whether this wine had undergone Malolactic fermentation but could not find proof from any literature, except to assume it had as the winery mentioned one other Chard in their portfolio that specifically did not go through Malo.  The wine was quite sharp and lacked the telltale butter notes of the secondary fermentation, I’m baffled.

Anyways- we then tried the same wine at room temp.  Huge differences with flavors and mouthfeel.  The experiment worked, the point being that most pros taste whites at room temperature and we needed to see the differences.  Besides the fuller body it included less citrus, more pear and apple, alongside a touch of baking spices.  The wine drank beautifully for me and I gave it 91 points.  I would pair it with summer salad, prawn cocktail or blackened Salmon and drink till 2026.  $20 gets it 5 stars.  Salut….

Cameron Hughes Lot 717 Super Tuscan 2015, Toscana, Italy

19 Tuesday May 2020

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Very rich purple in the glass and semi opaque.  The nose gives off cherry, baking spices, bakers yeast and red currants.  On the palate it is very drinkable, smooth and fruity.  Raspberries, red currants and those spices hit the palate.  As the wine rolls over the mid palate I get a sour rhubarb note that gives the wine some zing.  Very fine grained tannins appear on the finish to leave a rather pleasant mouthfeel.  This light to medium bodied wine calls for white pasta dishes, roast chicken or Prosciutto wrapped Asparagus.  It gets 90 points from me and I would drink till 2024.  For $20, it’s a good deal on Super Tuscan juice.  4 stars.  Salut….

Cameron Hughes Lot 721 ‘Plan de Dieu’ 2018, Cotes Du Rhone, France

14 Thursday May 2020

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A touch murky in the glass with medium dark purple.  Semi opaque.  On the nose I get plum, bramble, white pepper.  The initial palate is very pleasing, if not a touch sweet.  Lush, ripe plums alongside blackberry and violets.  The mid palate has a nice tangy acidic bite alongside very ingrained, lithe tannins.  More purple fruit flavors and a spiciness comprise the profile I get on the back end with a nice, dry finish that is quite long.  This is a very drinkable pop-n-pour wine that gets 89 points from me.  I like it a lot for short term enjoyment.  Drink till 2024.  It’s a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mouvedre.  For $15 it gets 4 stars.  Salut….

J. Davies Cabernet Sauvignon 2014, Diamond Mountain District, USA

14 Thursday May 2020

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The nose is all-singing and dancing Napa Cab.  You can smell the sunshine.  Wow….. Ripe, lush blackberries.  Vanilla, coconut and several other oaky traits are evident without being obnoxious.  On the palate there’s a ton of vanilla alongside black fruits, jammy currants and a dose of the wood.  The mid palate is very smooth, full bodied.  Juicy and jammy with gobs of black fruit, lithe tannins and some deft oak.  The finish is very smooth, loaded with those wood nuances and providing me with a beautiful mouthfeel.  93 points.  For $100 it’s quite pricy, but then again Napa Cabs are not cheap.  5 stars.  Drink till 2027.  Salut….

Chateau Lafaurie-Peyraguey ‘La Chapelle de Lafaurie’ 2016, Sauternes, France

14 Thursday May 2020

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Light gold in the glass.  The nose is lemony with honeyed apricot and some orange marmalade.  The palate is very orange dominated.  Marmalade and green almond are the primary flavors.  Honey and some nuttiness also feature.  There is that bitterness that’s evident in orange marmalade- it appears on the midpalate.  The finish is very seductive, light and sweet.  It’s a candied melon meets honey and citrus reduction.  Did I mention it’s long and makes my mouth pucker?  Albeit young, this wine is delicious and will evolve.  Drink till 2034.  91 points and 5 stars, $35.  Salut….

Cameron Hughes LOT 692 Barbaresco 2007, Italy

12 Tuesday May 2020

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Quite see-through and showing off a reddish/purple hue in the glass.  On the nose I get sour cherry and rhubarb.  On the palate it starts off with that sour cherry, some cola and rooibos tea.  There is a crisp acidity that begins on the front end and carries all the way through.  Lithe tannins greet me on the mid palate where the sour cherry theme continues alongside some raspberry and vanilla notes.  The finish is quite tart but I get a very defined cherry note and some earthiness- leather and creosote.  Overall this is a tasty wine but for $39, it’s a stretch.  I’m going 89 points and 3 stars.  Drink till 2025 with Pasta or hearty appetizers.  Salut….

Cameron Hughes Lot 725 Zinfandel 2018, Russian River Valley, California

11 Monday May 2020

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I was looking for a spicy wine for tonights dinner- Chicken and Rice, Middle Eastern style.  This Zin was up next on the tasting rack.  In the glass it is a semi opaque purple with globby legs.  The nose presents rich purple fruit.  Plums, licorice, black cherry and a noticeable dose of sassafras.  The palate is what I had hoped for.  Luscious ripe fruit- blackberries, plums, that sassafras note and some nice, charred oak.  The wine has a nice acidity, not piercing but just enough to liven things up.  Tannins become evident on the back end and the wine finishes with a nice dry note, akin to leather.  Blackcurrant jam and spice box round out the finish that lasts a good 30 seconds.  Tasty wine with some cellaring potential.  Drink till 2027.  90 points and 5 stars for this $17 effort.  Salut….

Marques de Riscal Reserva 2014, Rioja DOCa, Spain

10 Sunday May 2020

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I have had many bottles of the Marques De Riscal, of whom a friend’s father was on the Board many moons ago.  I think of my visit to Spain every time I see the twisted wire around bottles of this Tempranillo.

In the glass it is a reddish shade, pretty opaque and showing off wide legs down the edges.  The nose is gorgeous- tar, black plum, earthy spice and bramble.  On the palate it is rich, unctuous and very fruit forward with blackberry jam, plum reduction, spice box and cedar.  It is delicious.  There is a very nice acidic component that carries me to the maid palate where those classic Rioja flavors of creosote come to the forefront.  There is a spiciness on the back end that I really enjoy.  The back end is long, with a crescendo of tannins peaking at the tail end.  It’s a really nice, dry yet tart finish with some definite wood influence.  The mouthfeel begs for the Strip Roast I am cooking on the smoker.  This wine is drinking beautifully and will cellar well till 2027.  92 points and 5 stars for this $20 stunner.  Salut….

Bodega Garzon Reserva Cabernet Franc 2018, Maldonado, Uruguay

09 Saturday May 2020

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I was impressed with the Garzon Tannat so I am hoping for equal results with this Cabernet Franc.  It’s very dark in the glass, lovely rich color.  The nose is very fruity with black berries, boysenberry and rich oak.  The palate is very appealing, light in a spright kind of way but thick with flavor.  Black fruits dominate with violets and a mint component thrown in for good measure.  This wine is very easy on the palate, with lithe tannins and a juicy acidity.  The mid palate continues the blackberry theme but in a more restrained way.  It’s not jammy or full throttle.  Very seductive, as I like in Cab Franc.  The finish is decent in length and shows off some oak with the black fruit.  It fades within 20 seconds and leaves me wanting another sip.  Overall this is a good wine, but not up to the standard of the Tannat.  90 points and 5 stars for this $15 wine.  Salut….

Marques de Murrieta Reserva 2015, Rioja DOCa, Spain

08 Friday May 2020

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It’s showing dark purple in the glass with barely perceptible legs- almost opaque.  On the nose I get jammy black currants, mint, cedar shake and bramble.  On the palate it is inky, with a nice grip of tannins right off the bat.  Black fruits, some earth and sour cherry notes all meet me after the initial wave of those tannins.  The mid palate is a little more tart, with a nice touch of acidity.  I was hoping for a little more earth out of this Tempranillo.  It delivers a more fresh and fruity wine that has its own nuances and attractions.  I am enjoying its youth.  The finish is a nice tart affair with some sour blackberries and a diminishing tannic presence.  The wine is still young but I think it will drink well for 5 more years.  I was looking forward to a bit more oak to be honest. Overall- decent, not great.  89 points and 3 stars for this $25 wine that garnered 90+ points from the pros.  Maybe I need to let it sit longer before I popped and poured, I don’t understand.  Perhaps it’s in a dumb stage.  Salut….