Melville 2006 Estate Santa Rita Hills Chardonnay

Melville Vineyards and Winery puts out a good quality Estate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir year after year. The Melville 2006 Estate Santa Rita Hills Chardonnay is no exception.

It has a light golden straw color with a hint of green in the glass.
The nose displays light citrus, pear, and tropical fruit. The aromas are elegant and subtle in character. (I suspect my wine is a smidge to cold as well...)
The palate is round and soft with creamy citrus, light green apple, tropical fruit, and a light note of caramel at the mid palate. Slightly round mouth feel from 10% malolactic fermentation, but remains soft, crisp and fresh. The acidity is sufficient, but I would have wished for just a tad more to accentuate the crisp and fresh side of the wine.
Despite a relatively high alcohol level of 15.3% there is no trace of heat on the palate, which definitely is a big plus.

Over all a nicely balanced, very good quality wine that is sure to please many palates. Especially if you like me prefer the not overly oaked, buttery Chardonnays. This one offers a more round and soft palate that is refreshing, lively, and not to heavy. I know I'll be pouring, and enjoying, it this summer...

Buy it directly from the winery for $30 or find it at Wine-Searcher.com from $22.99. A great deal for this wine!


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Ramey Wine Cellars wine tasting

Saturday we went to our local wine store, Capitol Cellars in Roseville, for a Ramey Wine Cellars tasting. Five wines were poured, and to my excitement they tasted one of my favorite Napa Valley wines, the Ramey Jericho Canyon Vineyard. But let's stat at the beginning...

First to be poured was the 2006 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay ($39). A round chardonnay with tropical fruit, creamy lemon, cooked apple and oak notes, with good acidity. A good start indeed with nice acidity backing up the fruit and oak.

Next was the 2006 Russian River Valley Chardonnay ($39). This wine had some more complexity to it and was fitting my palate better with tropical fruit, citrus, white floral, and again the slightly buttery oak. Good acidity balance the fruit and makes it complex, and refreshing/crisp, at the same time.

The third wine was one of their vineyard designated Chardonnays, the 2006 Hyde Vineyard ($61). This chardonnay was the most multifaceted of the three. It shows tropical fruit, white floral, pineapple, and light peach. This wine is supported by great acidity and minerals that really lifts the wine and makes it stand up to the more concentrated fruit and round oak. Full-bodied and complex with a long finish. It is perfect for me to enjoy right now, but can definitely rest quite a few years in the bottle for the palate that prefers a more mature Chard.

On to the two Cabernet Sauvignons that was poured.
The first one was the 2005 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($51) displaying concentrated fruit and berries with black cherry, sweet dark currant, plum, and chocolate. Tart, green tannins dominates after the fruit lingers off. Needs a year or two in the bottle for the tannins to melow out and become more balanced.

On to a favorite that I have enjoyed previous vintages, the 2005 Jericho Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon ($111). This was the first taste for me of this vintage. It has a dark garnet/purple color in the glass. The nose exuding blackberry, earth, strawberry jam, violet, and oak notes. The palate is intense and jammy with black cherry, blackberry, dusty black currant, earth notes, and oak. Full bodied with good acidity and young, green, massive tannins. Definitely a bottle to lay down for a couple of years before revisiting. This is going to be a beauty!

What a great flight of wines to taste on a sunny terrace! A perfect way to spend a Saturday afternoon!

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The Bohan-Dillon 2006 Hirsch Vineyards Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

Visiting Selland's Market earlier this week, to bring home some of their fabulous carnitas for dinner, I could not resist taking a look at their wines and of course "accidentally" one of them ended up coming home with me...

Tonight it was time to try the "errant bottle", a Bohan-Dillon 2006 Hirsch Vineyards Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. Made by Hirsch Vineyards from 97% estate fruit for the cost of $29.99 (at Selland's), compared to the Hirsch Vineyards 2006 Sonoma Coast for $55 (made from the same fruit), I hoped for it to be a high quality wine for a bargain price.

It has a clear ruby red color in the glass.
The nose displays cherry, raspberry, red currant, tobacco leaves, tea, and vanilla notes.
The palate showcasing light plum, cherry, sweet tobacco, and heat from the alcohol (14.6%), backed up by good acidity and sturdy tannins. The heat being a little unflattering, but as you sip the wine and get to know it, it becomes less noticeable.

Overall I definitely enjoyed this wine. As I said, it is certainly a flaw that the alcohol shines through but considering the relative complexity and balance of the red ripe fruit/berries, acidity and tannins, I have a tendency to forgive. At $25 this is definitely a wine to enjoy, alcohol traces or not. This wine will give you a good idea of what the Hirsch Vineyards Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir is about, for under half the price. Don't miss out!
Surprisingly enough the best deal I could find online is actually from the winery itself for $25.

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Melville 2006 Estate Verna's Vineyard Pinot Noir

Melville 2006 Estate Verna's Vineyard Pinot Noir is made from 100% Melville fruit from their Los Alamos Estate. Aged in 20% new French oak.

The wine has a ruby red color in the glass with slight cloudiness.
The nose shows ripe lush raspberry, strawberry, sweet red cherry, sweet floral, and a hint of baked rhubarb.
The palate displays raspberry, cherry, and red fruit with spice. Soft and round on the palate with young tannins matching the fruit, good acidity and a long savory finish.
The wine is medium bodied, fruity, and was really nice with salmon, or great just to sip on it's own.

Find this wine at Wine-Searcher.com from $19.99, a great price for this very enjoyable wine.


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Alma Rosa Winery and Vineyards wine tasting

Spending the weekend in Santa Barbara I decided to go to the Alma Rosa wine tasting at East Beach Wine Company last night. Stepping into the shop the place was packed and it took a minute before we reached the counter and could pay for two tastings and get our glasses. To our delight the owners, Thekla and Richard Sanford was there themselves, with their daughter Blakeney, to pour and talk to the customers. Nothing beats the opportunity to talk to either the owners or wine maker as you taste a winery's wine. Both Thekla and Richard where very nice and pleasant, and spent quite a bit of time with us. It was a true pleasure to talk to them, and you could tell how passionate and excited they are about their wines.

A short bio: Richard Sanford was the first to plant Pinot Noir in Santa Rita Hills in 1970. 1981 him and Thekla started Sanford Winery, and after parting with it in 2005, they founded Alma Rosa Winery and Vineyards at the location of their old winery. All grapes are grown organically with sustainable agricultural methods.

The tasting started of with the Alma Rosa 2006 Santa Barbara County Pinot Gris. A light crisp white with pear, citrus and notes of honeysuckle. Nice acidity and minerals on the finish.
Next up was the Alma Rosa 2006 Santa Rita Hills Pinot Blanc. This wine showing creamy citrus in a dry, still very crisp wine.
The Alma Rosa 2006 Santa Barbara County Chardonnay was fermented in partially new French Oak and then aged in stainless steel tanks, not undergoing malolactic fermentation. I really enjoyed this clean, crisp chardonnay, with notes of tropical fruit. Perfect poured chilled a warm spring or summer day.
The Alama Rosa 2005 El Jabali Santa Rita Hills Chardonnay went through a different process. It was fermented in stainless steel tanks and then aged in 20% new French Oak. The grapes comes from a older vineyard then the 2006 Santa Barbara County Chardonnay and you can tell the difference. This wine is heavier/denser in the fruit on the palate, with ripe tropical fruit, white fragrant floral, and round oaky vanilla notes. Still on the lighter side and with good fresh acidity, but the first Chard was my favorite.
On to Pinot Noir, which is what I really came for.
The Alma Rosa 2005 Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir has light bright fruit with raspberry, red cherry, and notes of oak/vanilla. All wrapped in good acidity and integrated, but slightly woody, tannins.
The Alma Rosa 2005 La Encantada Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir shows darker, deeper fruit with black raspberry, cherry, blueberry, herbs, and spice. While the 2005 Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir is made from all six clones in La Encantada vineyard this is only made from two of them. In this case resulting in a more concentrated Pinot.

Find all these wines at Alma Rosa's website.

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Marshall Family Wines 2006 Barry's Blend California Pinot Noir

The Marshall Family Wines 2006 Barry's Blend California Pinot Noir is made from grapes from Russian River Valley and Mendocino, and was aged in French oak prior to bottling.

The color in the glass is dark ruby red and slightly cloudy.

The nose shows dusty berries of cherry and raspberry, earth, and floral notes.

On the palate medium to full bodied, with a meaty quality, cherry, dark raspberry, earthiness, and spice. Good acidity and young, green tannins on the relatively long finish.

This Pinot Noir can be found at Wine-Searcher.com from $19.95 or at the winery's website for $25.

This pinot has a slightly different style than I prefer. The more fruit forward tend to be my favorites but this was certainly not a bad bottle at all. For $20 I would say it's a good value, although I would most likely pick another bottle for that price range.

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Achaval Ferrer 2006 Mendoza Malbec

Achaval Ferrer was founded in 1998 and is located in the province of Mendoza, Argentina, at the foot of the Andes mountain range. The area's desert-like conditions are perfect for growing Malbec, giving low yields, poor and well drained soils, and warm days with cold nights, which concentrates and gives depth to the final wine.
Roberto Cipresso is the winemaker and he also owns a winery in Montalcino, Tuscany.

Achaval Ferrer 2006 Mendoza Malbec has a beautiful, dense, dark purple color.

Heavy dark cherry, blackberry, blueberry, lingonberry, and vanilla greats you on the nose.
Tasting the wine it shows big, ripe, dark fruit with blackberry, sour cherry, plum, and touch of smoke at the finish.
This wine is big, pleasant, and a great wine for a cold night in the fall. Don't expect great things but certainly good. Serve it with a hearty stew and light the fire place...

I found this wine at Costco for $16.99 and thought I would give it a try. I am glad I did. I would describe this wine as something in between a Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon. It has the big fruit of a Zin, but the finesse of a Cab.
Find it at your local Costco or at Wine-Searcher.com from $16.99.


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Paul Martin's American Bistro, Roseville

Paul Martin’s American Bistro is having its grand opening tomorrow, Monday, at Eureka Rd in Roseville. I got a preview and tasted their food at the soft opening Friday at lunch with my husband and a friend.
The restaurant is a joint venture by Brian Bennett and Paul Flemming. Executive chef is Peter Serantoni and the Day-to-Day Head Chef is Scott Rose that has previously been at Spataro Restaurant and Bar, and Paragary's Bar and Oven, among others. The goal for the restaurant is to concentrate on seasonal, sustainable, and organic ingredients, sourced from local farmers/producers.

The restaurant has a modern, sleek, warm, decor with brick wall accent, brown leather, and a lot of wood. The large bar covers a full wall of the restaurant and serves up a long list of specialty drinks made with their own fruit infused vodkas, and more.

We were seated promptly and ordered a bottle of ZD 2006 Chardonnay (a wine we have enjoyed many times), and were served bread and butter. The butter is hand churned in the restaurant from organic cream. A nice touch. Although there was a wide array of great looking starters we went straight for the entrees. I ordered the Cedar Plank Salmon topped with Bacon and Shallots ($17.95) served on top sauteed spinach, criminis, and jus. The salmon was cooked medium just to my liking and the bacon/shallot topping added a big punch of flavor. A really good dish.
My husband ordered the Braised Short Ribs with Mashed Potatoes and Horseradish Sauce (18.95). I am a big fan of short ribs and these make it to my top 3 list of best that I have had. And I have tasted a lot! Succulent, incredibly tender and big flavor. A true rustic comfort dish and the best out of the three entrees we tried.
My friend tried the Grilled Skirt Steak with Maple-Bourbon Glazed Roasted Sweeet Potatoes and Arugula ($17.95). The beef came out as ordered, and this dish with its sweet accents was very tasty as well.
For dessert we ordered the Devil’s Food Cake with Vanilla Whipped Cream and Sour Cherries ($6.75), and the Pear and Huckleberry Crisp with Vanilla Ice Cream ($6.75). The cake is a dark chocolate cake with medium dense ganache (I would guess that a semi sweet chocolate was used). It was a little bit to heavy on the ganache and I wish it had been bitter sweet instead. But that is just a matter of taste. It was still very good. The crisp was not to sweet, flawless, warm, and delicious.

The service was really good for being a soft opening and the manager came up to our table several times to check in and make sure that everything was to our satisfaction.

I am leaping with joy that there is finally another quality restaurant in our area. I can’t wait to go here for dinner real soon to try some items from the dinner menu. Two members of the staff independently told us that the Braised Lamb Shank is the best item on the menu. I will have to find out...

Paul Martin's American Bistro
1455 Eureka Rd
Roseville, CA 95661
(916) 783-3600


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WhiteHaven 2006 Marlborough New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc

Before summer comes to an end it's time to try a couple of more Sauvignon Blanc. Last night we opened a WhiteHaven 2006 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. I have enjoyed several great Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough this summer and this was a new arrival on the shelf in my grocery store that I had try.

Greg and Susan White, and wine maker Simon Waghorn, established the winery in 1994. The production in 1995 was 5000 cases and next years production, 2008, is estimated to 200,000 cases so this is a winery that have grown quite a bit over the years.

The wine has a clear, very light straw color in the glass. The nose is vibrant of citrus, under ripe white peach, and hints of grass. The palate is equally pungent with apple, citrus and kiwi, with really nice acidity. This is a dry and very refreshing wine but intense and bright on the nose and in flavors. If you like more austere whites with more emphasise on the mineral component my guess is that this is not so much for you.

I found it fun and tasty and for $11.95 at Wine-Searcher.com and Winezap.com you can't really ask for a much better "budget" wine for late summer evenings...

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A Taste of Sacramento

Friday night we went to a food, wine, and beer event in Sacramento, A Taste of Sacramento, a benefit for Easter Seals. It featured over 70 local wineries, breweries and restaurants who showcased their wine, beer and food to ticket holders. As you understand there was not enough time, nor room in my stomach to tasted everything at the event but I did want to share a few thoughts with you on some of the participants that I particularly enjoyed (or not).

Let's start with the food. Best BBQ in town was served up by J.R.'s Texas Bar-B-Que who plated mesquite smoked brisket and baked beans. This is what BBQ should taste like. Ruth's Chris Steakhouse had sliced steak with mashed potatoes. Yummy. Rubio's flavorful, juicy and tender carnitas in flour tortilla with guacamole was surprisingly good considering it being a chain restaurant. Someone was serving a good mahi mahi taco roll as well, but I can't recall who it was... I also had shrimp with a great cocktail sauce that I think it might have come from Pilothouse Restaurant...
For dessert I had two favorites, The Berry Factory (owned by Shari Fitzpatrick of Shari's Berries) with their chocolate dipped strawberries (to die for) and a local chocolate maker that I had not heard of before, Chocolate Silk The Chocolate Architect. They had a wide variety of fudge. The toffee chip chocolate fudge and espresso chocolate fudge were my two favorites.

On to the wine. Holly's Hill Vineyards from Placerville, produces Rhone varietals, and poured a 2006 Viognier that really stood out with intense white peach on the nose and pear at the palate. Sometimes viognier can be a little bit over the top for me but this one did not have to sweet fruit and was lighter and more refreshing then most viogniers. They also had their 2005 Patriarche, a blend of Mourvedre, Syrah, Grenache, and the lesser known Rhone varietal Counoise. Very nicely balanced with large, but not to ripe fruit, and savory tannins. Good wine for food.

Montevina was there and I only tasted their Barbera and it was a disappointment to me. The entry level Barbera was bland and diluted and lacked the concentration this grape can have. Tasting the one-step-up Terra d'Oro Barbera didn't do it for me either. I moved on...

Cosentino Winery was there and poured a long line of wine. As a former wine club member I know their wines very well. I tasted their 2005 Franc (Cabernet Franc) and the 2005 CigarZin (Zinfandel). These two wines have a very constant quality trough vintages and these were not an exception. They were as big, concentrated and plush as ever, with good tannins.

R. Merlo Estate Vineyards, poured one of the few Pinot Noir that was at the event. The style of this 2002 Pinot Noir was more delicate and less concentrated, compared to the central coast Pinot I usually drink, with red cherries and red berries and only hints of darker fruit. I usually prefer some more of the later, but it was never the less a really nice Pinot Noir. I also tasted their 2002 Syrah. This one full of ripe, big berries and tannins to match. Very good.

Last but not least M2 Wines was there, with owner/winemaker Chris Matheny and his wife Diana pouring the wines. This was one of the best pourings at the event. I have tasted their wines at a wine tasting a while back and reviewed them in a prior post. They had the same line up at this event and you can read my thoughts on their wines here. One extra wine was poured that I had not tried before, the 2004 Clone Six Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. A great wine with dark cherry, black currant, oak and high on firm tannins. Will definitely drink well for many years to come.
Chatting with Chris and Diana they told me about the M2 Autumn Winemaker Dinner they will be hosting October 20th at Fair Oaks Nursery. When seeing the menu and the wine they'll be pairing with the four courses, it was hard to say no, and we did not... They are hosting a gourmet meal with appetizer, choice of crab bisque or roasted beet salad, for entree beef tenderloin or plank grilled salmon, and then a chocolate creation for dessert. All paired up with M2's exciting wines, for a very reasonable $80. To get more information, and join in on the fun call Diana at (916) 838-7914 or email her at dmatheny@m2wines.com. Maybe I'll see you there...

With that I am wrapping up my thoughts on the 2007 A Taste of Sacramento event. I'll be back next year.

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MWC 2006 Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir

MWC stands for Margerum Wine Company and is a small winery run and owned by Dough Margerum. Margerum wines are produced in a 240 sq ft space behind Brander Vineyards facility in Los Olivos. All wines are hand crafted by Dough and he strives for individuality and to make wine he himself wants to drink.

The 2006 Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir shows a vivid, clear, ruby red color in the glass. On the nose slightly perfumey with raspberry, red cherry, earth, vanilla and a hint of herbs. In the mouth this wine shows bright, soft, red fruit/berries with earthy notes. This is not a power house pinot but more elegant and velvety with good acidity, and moderately firm, young tannins. For $24.95 at our local wine shop, Capitol Cellars, I honestly can say that this is a really good wine for the price.

Looking online I can only find this wine on one site, Los Olivos Wine Merchant (a great wine shop in the center of Santa Ynez wine country with the perfect lunch cafe), for $28.

Find it and try it...

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M2 Wines

Last Saturday we went to a wine tasting at our local wine store, featuring M2 Wines. I was not familiar with this winery and excited to try something new. Chris Matheny, owner and winemaker, did all the pouring and was very informative and loved to talk about his passion, and wine in general. Needless to say, I had a great time.

Chris Matheny and Layne Montgomery

M2 Wines got it's name from the first letter in two gentlemen last name, Layne Montgomery and Chris Matheny. The two of them met in 1999 and in 2000 they started making wine as amateurs. In 2004 it was time to go commercial and since 2006 they have their own winery in Lodi. M2 does not own their own vineyards but buys grapes from premium vineyards throughout California. That way they can source the different varietals from the areas where they express the best characteristics.
Chris explained to me that their goal as winemakers are to intervene as little as possible to let the vineyards and grapes express themselves in the wine, showing the essence of the location and the grape varietal. Getting there they use only the highest quality yeast, barrels, etc. Another amazing fact that only proves their commitment to producing great wine is that they actually punch down the cap 2-3 times per day. Far from always the case at many wineries...

On to the tasting:

The 2004 Dos Arkies California Red Wine (named after the fact that they are two guys from Arkansas) is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Petite Sirah. Great blend for $18 that is a tad bit low in complexity but easy and pleasing to drink. Red cherry, black berry, and blue berry dominates on the nose. The palate offers red cherry, black currant, some spiciness from black pepper, and smokey oak. Great value for this medium bodied wine that is sure to be a crowd-pleaser.
The 2005 Singularity Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley($35) is a Cabernet Sauvignon blended with a small amount of Syrah and Petite Sirah. Did not take any tasting notes on this one as I was preoccupied talking to Chris... I do remember that I liked it...
Next up was the 2005 Duality Red Wine Sierra Foothills ($20). A blend of Syrah and Petite Sirah. Again, talking to much with Chris but I do remember the strong impression of the dried, smoked meat and dark berries that hit you big time on the nose. The palate again carried that dark fruit and berries along with mouth puckering firm, high tannins . Big wine, big tannins! This one demands a good BBQ!
The 2005 Row 23 Herzog Vineyard Clarksburg Petite Sirah ($28) was poured next. This wine offered floral/perfume on the nose with dark berries. On the palate vivid, round dark fruit and berries again, with smooth, round tannins. Different at that point from the previous wines that all had more edgy, firm tannins.
The last wine was a surprise as it was not on the tasting list. Chris had pulled a barrel sample that morning from the 2006 Clone 6 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (3-pack for $120) and poured is as a future. This one made me really excited. Only 175 cases produced this will be bottled in March and released in October next year. Straight out of a French oak barrel that morning this wine was bright in fruit with red cherry, black cherry and violet on the nose. The red and black cherry shows up on the palate again with black currant and oak notes. Very high in mouth puckering tannins at this point, I can not wait to see what it has to offer next October when my shipment is arriving.

This is a realtively new, up and coming winery and I am looking forward to follow them as they develop over the years. Their wines are all really nice and leaves a promise of things to come in the future.
Find their wines at their website.


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Galante Vineyards

We were in Carmel this weekend for Mother's Day. Passing by the Galante Vineyard Tasting Room I just had to stop by to taste their wines. I had not heard about this winery before and I got some good information from the very knowledgeable and friendly tasting room staff. They explained the wineries wine making philosophy and methods. The wine maker strives for the wine to express what in France is called terroir. That means, in short, letting the soil, surroundings, location and weather express itself through the fruit in the wine and intervene as little as possible. The wines are gravity racked and have not gone through fining or filtration.

On to the tasting. I tasted around eight wines and I will mention the ones I liked the best.
First out was the 2006 Carmel Valley Sauvignon Blanc ($25). It has intense peach aroma and flavor, with a hint of tropical fruit. Good acidity gives this wine a nice freshness.
The 2005 Carmel Valley Petit Sirah is much more delicate than most Petit Sirahs that I am used to. Soft medium dark berries and soft tannins. Very easy to drink. Recommended by the tasting room staff as a summer BBQ wine.
On to the Cabs. I got the 2002 ($40) and 2003 ($30) Red Rose Hill Cabernet Sauvignon side by side to compare. The 2002 is a more elegant wine with red cherries and berries and softer tannins. The 2003 was my favorite with dark cherry and berries, and a hint of violet, with more pronounced acidity and firmer, but still moderate, tannins.
Their most expensive Cabernet is the 2003 Blackjack Pasture Cabernet Sauvignon ($60). This is their most intense and complex wine with dark fruit, black berry, black currant, and a hint of oak. Great medium big, smooth tannins, medium plus acidity, with the dark fruit, gives this wine a long finish. A really nice Cab.

Find these wines at Galante Vineyards website.


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Tapiz 2006 Mendoza Argentina Chardonnay

Thought I would try this Chardonnay from Mendoza when I found it one the 5 cent sale at BevMo (buy on bottle for full price and get the second for 5 cents).
This wine has a medium light, clear, straw color in the glass. On the nose, creamy, ripe, green apple with lemony citrus and a hint of buttery oak. On the palate the apple is more of the tart character with citrus and round, creamy mouth feel and medium acidity.
This wine was fermented in new French oak for 8 months and you can certainly detect it both in the nose and on the palate. It is however still a relatively refreshing chardonnay with not to heavy creaminess.
I got his at BevMo for $ 14.99, with bottle number two for only 5 cents, so that means that I only paid $7 per bottle. This wine is by no means going to "break any scoring records" but it is a solid, nice chardonnay for a good price. This is a wine that will most likely please the crowd considering the realtively low price.

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Roasted Beet Salad with Sauvignon Blanc = Great Spring Satisfaction

Tonight I served a Roasted Beet, Fennel and Goat Cheese Salad with the Long Meadow Ranch 2006 Rutherford Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc, a match seemed to be made in heaven.
The freshness of the SB went perfect with the sweet roasted beets, the tanginess of the goat cheese, and the acidity of the citrus in the vinaigrette. Mmm...
The 2006 LMR Sauvignon Blanc has a beautiful, very pale straw color in the glass. On the nose, crisp apple and pear. The apple follows through to the palate with some citrus and tropical fruit. This wine is round and full bodied in the mouth but still possesses that refreshing taste you want from a SB. I had the 2005 last year and thought it was great, and the 2006 is right up there with it. A perfect wine with a light seafood dish or salad this summer.
Find it at LongMeadowRanch.com for $18.

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Rideau Vineyard

Rideau Vineyard Tasting Room

During our weekend in Santa Barbara we took a little trip up to Santa Ynez Valley to do some wine tasting. Our favorite during this tour was Rideau Vineyard which was founded in 1997 by New Orleans native, Iris Rideau (at photo to the left). The tasting room is a historical 2 story Adobe built in 1884. Through the years it has served as stagecoach stop, a famous inn, a guest ranch, and a working ranch. Iris Rideau bought it in 1995, after the property had sat abandoned for 10 years, and restored it to it's current condition.
The estate grows exclusively Rhone varietals and we decided to do the Reserve tasting at a $15 cost per person.

The first pour was the 2006 Estate Viognier. It has not been bottled yet so this was a futures sample. Cloudy due to coming straight from the barrel this was a nice Viognier but a little bit to fruity and sweet for my taste. After this we got to taste the 2005 Estate Viognier. A year in the bottle makes a huge difference and this was much more balanced, not to sweet, and had a slight crispness to it. A really good Viognier but at a pretty steep cost of $52.
Next we moved on to another barrel sample, the 2005 Santa Barbara County Syrah. Lush with ripe, dark berries and young tannins. Followed by the 2004 Santa Barbara County Syrah. Again you could taste the difference a year in the bottle makes. The 2004 was more balanced with less jammy fruit, and the characteristic hint of peppar. Both very good Syrahs.

The 2004 Chateau Duplantier, a blend of Syrah, Grenache and Mourvedre, was my favorite red. Beautiful fruit, not to jammy or ripe, with nice balance, a hint of spice, and adequate tannins. What a great Rhone blend!

Last but not least the 2004 Petit Sirah, dark and fruit forward but a little bit more elegant than many other Petite Syrahs. A nice finish to our tasting.

Me and friends in tasting room

Did I mention the very friendly and extremely knowlegable tasting room staff?
This all adds up to a great winery to include in your next tour of the Santa Ynez Valley, and I highly recommend it.

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The Crossings Marlborough 2004 Sauvignon Blanc

I am once again trying a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. This one placed #44 in the Wine Enthusiast Top 100 Wines of 2006 (rated 91 points), so when I saw it at BevMo for only $12.99 I just couldn't pass on it.
The name of the winery has an interesting history. Back in the nineteenth century, early pioneers found a specific spot at the Awatere River where their horses could wade across, and they called this spot The Crossings. This point now lays within The Crossings Wine Estate, and thereof the name. The Awatere Valley is a sister valley of the Wairau Valley where the legend of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc began, and they share very similar characteristics in their climate.
This wine has a very pale straw color in the glass. The nose presents a nice soft peach, tropical fruit and what I interpret as a hint of grass(?). The dry palate shows tropical fruit and some mineral. As it sits in the glass and breaths for a while the dryness softens and gives way to a softer, sweeter note.
I really enjoyed this SB but find myself liking the slightly more fruitier style of the Kim Crawford and the Huia a little bit better. The best deal I found online was at www.wine-searcher.com from $8.95. A really good deal!

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Day trip to Napa Valley

Yesterday I left with a friend for a day trip to Napa Valley. We had a fantastic day with great food and wine, and here is the story...
We started of with a stop at the Cosentino Winery where we got free tasting, as I am a wine club member. Jeff, who poured for us, were very knowledgeable and great to discuss the wines with. My two favorite wines their were pouring was the 2005 CE2V Napa Valley Chardonnay (a fresh, fruity, round, Chardonnay with just a hint of creaminess and oak) and the 2002 M. Coz Napa Valley (a big, fruity, well balanced Meritage). A fun little story that Jeff shared with us that I was not aware of is that the M. Coz label is the shape of Napa Valley and the dots represents the location of the vineyards the wine is from. I love to learn little tidbits like this one...

The Demonstration Room at CIA

Moving on we had reservations at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone for their Demonstration Class. It is only $15 and you get to sit down for a one hour demonstration performed by a professional chef, ask as many questions as you want, and then taste the result. Yesterdays course was Marinated Flank Steak with Horseradish and Green Peppercorn Mayonnaise. This was a lot of fun and the food was delicious. Everybody gets a copy of the recipe so you can make it on your own at home. I know I will!

The finished dish and recipe

After a quick snack it was time for more wine tasting. We went just across the street from the Culinary Institute to Charles Krug. My friend is a wine club member there. So again a free tasting. They had a new release event going on and there were a little bit over 10 wines to try, so a lot of tasting, but I wasn't one to complain. The tasting staff here was one of the best I have come across during my many trips to Napa Valley. They shared a ton of information with us about the rich history of the winery, which is the oldest winery in Napa Valley, dating back all the way to 1861. Read more about it at www.charleskrug.com. They also took time to discuss the growing season,the wine making process, and of course the wine itself. Very educating in a great, friendly environment!
We had a wonderful time at this tasting and all the wines were fantastic. My favorites were the 2006 Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley (a crisp, lively, fruity wine perfect for hot summer days), the 2002 Limited Release Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (wonderful dark heavy fruit and berries with some earthiness and great tannin structure), and the 2003 Limited Release IX Clones Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (same great qualities as the 2002 Limited Release Cab.) They also poured a real treat for us, the 1979 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Dark red, brick color in the glass and to my surprise, some really nice fruit still present. This was a great example of a wine that really has aged well. Yummy!

Me and the Charles Krug 1979 Cabernet Sauvignon

My friend, Robyn, in front of the restaurant at CIA

At this point it was time to go to the Culinary Institute again. We had a 5 pm reservation at the Wine Spectator Greystone Restaurant. We decided to do a wine flight with dinner. There was about 5 different ones to choose between, all with different themes. I love wine flight as it is a great way of sampling several wines you might not have had before. For starter we did the sampler with five different small items. A Cracker with Fromage Blanc, a Cauliflower Soup with Red Pepper Oil, a Croustini with Fois Gras and Pickled Pears, a Shrimp Wrapped in Fried Strings of some kind, and finally a Fried Pocket with Short Ribs, Salsa Verde and Micro Greens. A delicious sampler!
I had the Red Wine Braised Short Ribs with Horseradish Mashed Potatoes and Caramelized Cipollini Onions for main course and then ended the meal with their Molten Chocolate Cake with Caramel Sauce and Vanilla Ice Cream. Over all a great meal and dining experience.

Molten Chocolate Cake Dessert

Dinner was over and it was time to head home after a great day. We promised each other to return real soon.

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Kim Crawford Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2006

I've heard so much about this wine, and ranking as number 40 on Wine Spectator Top 100 Wines of the Year, rated 92 for a mere $16 I just had to try it.
The color is light straw in the glass. A ton of tropical fruit, star fruit and passion fruit on the nose. The palate shows beautiful cloud berry, passion fruit and grape fruit that is balanced out with crisp, refreshing acidity on the long finish. I REALLY enjoyed this wine. One of the best buys I have come across in a long time. A must try for everyone!

Find it at http://www.wine-searcher.com/ for only $10.97.

Beaujolais Nouveau

Everybody else has been writing about Beaujolais Nouveau, so I thought I just might as well do it to.
For those of you who are not familiar with this wine, here is the quick rundown. Beaujolais Nouveau is grown in Burgundy and every year at 1 minute past midnight on the third Thursday of November this wine is released. And not a minute before that. This wine is at that point a very young wine that was only harvested weeks earlier, therefore "Nouveau" ("new" in French). Unlike other red wine this is best served slightly chilled (around 50 degrees). It is a great wine for somebody who is trying to make the transition from white to red. The reason being that this red contains no tannins, because the must is pressed only after three days. Making this a very light and fruity red.
To celebrate the release last week with the rest of the world, I picked up a bottle from BevMo.
Out of their selection I chose the Beaujolais Nouveau Bouchard Aine & Fils 2006, a 100% Gaway ($8.99 at BevMo). Light red/purple in the glass with lovely ripe raspberry and strawberry on the nose. Tart cherry and red berries on the palate, with a medium length finish. I drink these wine very seldom and in small quantities so it is a little hard to have an opinion. I did enjoy it and would simply like to describe it as a festive, fresh wine with a quality above the median Beaujolais Nouveau.