Tag Archives: Napa

Kirkland Napa Valley Meritage 2011

21 Wednesday Jan 2015

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Some friends and I were at a Costco yesterday and decided to try a few of the Kirkland  brand wines.  This was our first attempt, it cost $11 and is a blend of 49% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% each Cab Franc and Petit Verdot.  I took some basic notes:

Plummy with oak and currants.
Young and fresh, with hints of eucalyptus and oregano
87 points

At this price point it is a very serviceable party wine that won’t disappoint.  It could use another year of cellaring and drink till 2019.  3 stars from me.  Salut….

kirkland napa valley heritage

Worlds End Cabernet Franc Reserve ‘Against The Wind’ 2009

19 Friday Dec 2014

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I will pre-empt this post with the fact that I only bought a six pack, silly me.  Straight out of the bottle and into my glass for a lovely perfumed nose of violets, plums and cocoa.  Fruity and full-on explosion of blue fruits, pomegranate, mint and raspberry that sort of surprised me. Full bodied and almost syrupy, this wine has texture. Fine grained tannins are well integrated and the balance is razor sharp. Wow, this is good Cabernet Franc, and you know how I love this varietal. 93 points from me (One of the pros gave it 92, close enough).  2014-2019 would be a great window to enjoy this powerful, structured wine.  So easy to drink all by itself but it would pair beautifully with a lean cut of beef, perhaps coq-au-vin as well.  This wine has a near perfect mouthfeel for me.  Made by the famous Jonathan Maltus, this time from Napa Valley instead of his usual stomping grounds in Bordeaux.  Who wouldn’t pay $25 for this wine?  5 stars for sure.  Salut….

Worlds End Cabernet Franc Reserve Against The Wind

Merryvale Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2010

15 Monday Dec 2014

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Sundays in the fall are for football and Roast Beef.  Being half British means I need a weekly dose of Yorkshire pudding, gravy and tender beef served up with delicious wine.  This week was a first for me.  I have never cooked a Strip Roast.  It was magnificent, cooked perfectly and juicy to the last morsel.  The rub was key, garlic, olive oil, sage, thyme, salt and pepper.  I could go on, but this is more about the vino.

This Napa Cabernet was quite simply stunning.  Nearly black in the glass I knew I was headed to an extracted, rich, complex world….
Plums and eucalyptus greeted me on the nose and my first impressions were spot on.  Napa all the way, with gobs of plum, blueberry, black berry and mint on the initial attack. A very slight touch of wood adds complexity to the whole package.  Extremely fine grained tannins just coat the mouth, perfectly. Balanced acidity make for a great mouthfeel that leads to a long finish of cola and blue fruits laced with espresso.  I would easily award this wine 93 points, drinking between 2014-2020.  You know what to pair it with, just fork over the $65 and get going.  This is the fourth Merryvale I have tasted and I am really becoming a fan of their wine.  I think this wine merits 5 stars. I wish I had more so I could watch the evolution, I bet it’s gonna sing in a few years. Salut….

merryvale cabernet sauvignon napa valley

Strip Roast with Yorkshire Pudding and mushroom gravy

Strip Roast with Yorkshire Pudding and mushroom gravy

Turley Hayne Vineyard Zinfandel 2006

27 Thursday Nov 2014

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Wow, what an amazing bottle of wine.  Courtesy of my west coast friends, we opened this beauty up and indulged in some of the finest Zinfandel I have tasted.  From what I have experienced, California Zins are usually huge, bombastic and very high in alcohol.  This one has certainly mellowed in the cellar and is unique.

See-through purple that was bright as day.  Maraschino cherry nose with some violets, very interesting.  Smooth, if slightly sharp entry of cherry and kirsch. Floral, light and refreshing with sleek, almost invisible tannins and a long finish.  Hints of rhubarb on the mid palate were not expected from this delicious yet atypical wine. Needs cellar time to develop some earth and funk, but is drinking beautifully now.  I am going with 93 points.  The only place I saw it was at auction, be prepared to pay upwards of $50+.  4 stars and a treat to be able to taste such a wine.  Salut….

turley zinfandel hayne vineyard

Stags Leap Wine Cellars Chardonnay ‘Karia’ 2012

11 Tuesday Nov 2014

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For the past two weekends I have been tinkering on the Big Green Egg, trying to perfect a Turkey so I am ready for Thanksgiving.  The first effort was not very good, the recipe was too involved and the timing was not right plus I had to leave the grill alone for most of the afternoon to see my son’s football game.  I tried to cook it ‘low and slow’ but it ended up being dry.  This past weekend I tried it again, using the standard 325 degree heat, very little wood chunks, and a simple bouquet of herbs shoved up it’s heiny.  It worked.

I planned on drinking the Mazilly Pommard with the bird and I opened this Cali Chard up for my folks and Moxie, who prefer white wine.  I got in a glass or two myself and was glad I did, this wine is good.  Light yellow in color was to be expected, so I delved right into the nose.  Lemon zest, melon and yellow apples greeted me right off the bat.  Zesty with a hint of steel were on my notes for an initial impression.  I then got green apples and melons.  A smooth transition to a delightful mid palate left me thinking it was not quite buttery but silky in texture.  The wine had a long finish and I gave it 91 points.  I paid around $24 at Costco for it and will give it 4 stars.  It paired beautifully with the bird.  It would also ring with some seafood, perhaps a creamy pasta.  Tasty stuff.  Salut….

stags leap Karia chardonnaybig green egg turkey

Merryvale Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

27 Monday Oct 2014

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One thing I love about the Fall is cooking Sunday Roast.  Being half English, it’s in my blood to bang out Beef, roast veggies, Yorkshire pudding and gravy.  The Brits wouldn’t  serve up such fare without a bottle or two of Claret (Bordeaux red).  I switched it up a touch and went west, to Napa.  This wine was simply amazing.

Huge nose of violets, plums and blue fruits from a beautiful purple-hued glass.  Big mouthfulls of black plums, dark currants and absolutely gorgeous tannins greeted me right off the bat. Perfectly balanced with a hint of acidity and a polished finish that lasted forever. I later got olives, fig paste and perhaps a touch of eaucalyptus. This is a stunning wine. 93 points for me for this $60 effort make it a 4 star wine.  Salut….

merryvale cabernet sauvignon

 

Eagles Trace Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

18 Saturday Oct 2014

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I bought a magnum of this wine a while back and had it sitting on my ‘everyday drinker’ shelf for the past two months, waiting to pop it at a moments notice.  This past week I had that opportunity.  Black cherries and eucalyptus on the nose were telltale signs of this wine’s Napa roots.  Kir, plum and blueberry initially hit my palate along with some beautiful ingrained tannins.  Blueberry jam on a creamy finish with nice acidity lead to a great mouthfeel and long ending.  This is Napa Cab at it’s finest, showing off fresh fruit yet with great structure and complexity.  This particular bottle was relatively young, especially since it was in Magnum.  I would venture a 2014-2024 drinking window in large format.  92 points and 4 stars from me for this $55 effort.  Salut….

eagles trace cabernet sauvignon

Smith Wooton Cabernet Franc Napa Valley 2011

03 Friday Oct 2014

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This wine came highly recommended from a little wine shop in North Carolina where I visited last summer.  I paid around $36 for it and there were only 135 cases made.  I love this varietal and was waiting to pair this bottle with some Strip steaks, it was tasty starting with the raisin and cranberry nose.  A floral hit with black plums and lavender greeted me on the initial attack. Gripping tannins and juicy acidity gave this wine some serious structure yet I felt it was slightly one dimensional on the mid palate.  Heat on the back end that hit the nostrils made me look up the level-14.5%.  A slightly green finish dropped one point off this otherwise good wine.  89 points and 3 stars from me.  I would hold off and cellar this wine, drinking from 2016-2020.  Salut….

smith wooton cabernet franc

Stags Leap Napa Valley Petite Sirah 2011

22 Monday Sep 2014

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This is a varietal that I have fallen in love with.  Not a Sirah, nor is it petite.  The grape  is also known as Durif overseas and offers up hefty tannins with spice and plum being the main component flavors.  This particular bottle had a few years of mellowing time and it came across with black currants and plum on the nose with a nearly black complexion in the glass.  Licorice was very prominent along with black fruits and cola.  Sharp tannins and great acidity balanced each other beautifully on the mouthfeel and I really enjoyed the whole package.  I paid dearly for it at the Charlie Palmer Steak restaurant in Reno, but found it online for $30.  It was the final evening of my Reno adventure and was well suited to our Filet dinner.  91 points and 4 stars from me.  Salut….

stag leap petite sirah

Burgess Cabernet Sauvignon 2003

14 Monday Jul 2014

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This bottle has been cellared for a few years, waiting the right moment.  I pulled it out the other night for a red meat pairing, hoping it would live up to it’s pedigree.  Gorgeous purple in the glass with a nose of plums and sawdust.  I was intrigued.  It then showed cassis and black currants after I swirled the heck out of the glass.  Subdued plums and eaucalyptus come out initially on the first taste with some oak on the nose after airing.  The tannins are completely melded and there is a clear acidic component.  Mouth filling aromas and tastes of plum torte with briar patch and Napa dirt were the strong flavors after a little ‘glass time’.  I feel that this wine is nearing it’s peak and will start to fade after 2017 which is a far cry from the 1996 Burgess that I so adore.  89 points for this $50 effort making it a 2 star wine in my books.  Don’t get me wrong, it is a delicious wine, yet lacks technical merits to warrant a higher score.  Salut….

burgess cellars cabernet sauvignon