Reviews

Château Lafleur

A lovely and enticing wine, with beautifully delineated and layered flavors of saturated plum, red/black currant, soft black cherry, tobacco/unsmoked cigar, earth, dusty/dry leather, and dried mint.…

Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia

After about an hour of decanted air and some swirling in the glass, this displayed beautifully layered and generous flavors of red and purple plum, Amarena cherry syrup (not overly sweet, viscous, or…

Wren Hop Pinot Noir Daughters of Earth Goldrock Ridge

Coming off rich and spicy right out of the gate. Previous notes apply. A dark, ripe, and spice-driven Pinot, with saturated, viscous flavors that you have to chew on a bit to get the full effect.…

Rivers-Marie Pinot Noir Silver Eagle Vineyard

Previous notes apply. Some nice red cherry and red raspberry notes. Has lost a little zip. Agreeable and satisfying, if not a bit simple and slower-paced at this stage. Drink now.

Outpost Cabernet Sauvignon True Vineyard

Much improved since I last toyed around with this wine in early Spring. After about an hour of air, this gorgeous Cabernet really started to open up and develop complex flavors, wave after wave over…

Vice Versa Pinot Noir Platt Vineyard

Now that this is in bottle it's exciting to see how this is settling in and where it's ultimately headed. A treasure trove of black cherry, red and black raspberry jam, earthy mulch, ginger snap…

Flowers Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast

Red and black cherry, strawberry, rhubarb, earthy cinnamon, and some cedar. Held its own fairly nicely for an appellation Pinot. The lighter side of medium bodied, with a medium finish. Not a ton of…

Vinroc Wine Caves Cabernet Sauvignon Atlas Peak

Dark black cherry, very ripe plum, and dark chocolate notes, with a bit of earth. Like The Mascot Cabernet served next to it, this wine suffered from a monolithic hit of near-over ripe fruit. A…

The Mascot

The first bottle was almost completely blown out and prune-ridden. It had been open for 24+ hours and showing every second of its over-oxidation. Prune and over-ripe plum, with a muddled and lost…

Catherine et Pierre Breton Bourgueil Clos Sénéchal

100% Cabernet Franc. At first sip this came off fast and furious with incredibly tart and acidic cranberry and pomegranate juice notes. Fiercely palate-clenching, with aggressive acid and a cutthroat…

Outpost Cabernet Sauvignon

Black and blue core fruit, with asphalt, black currant, tar, and black gravelly soil. Excellent mid-palate weight and a notable push of flavors. Coats the mouth with a mineral-driven viscosity,…

Mark Herold Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Stagecoach Vineyard

2013 Herold Coombsville and 2013 Herold Stagecoach Cabernets side-by-side.

Mark Herold Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Brown Label

2013 Herold Coombsville and 2013 Herold Stagecoach Cabernets side-by-side.

Becklyn Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon

Ripe black cherry, cassis, plum, blueberry, and dark black raspberry rule the roost here. Some cocoa powder, forest floor, and even a light floral note show up to assist in elevating the core fruit.…

Clos Solène Hommage À Nos Pairs Reserve

Black cherry, blackberry, deep/dark kirsch, rich cassis, and ripe purple plum round out the core fruit here. Additional notes of hoisin and clay make an appearance midway through the attack. There is…

Bevan Cellars Ontogeny

Dark black cherry, bitter dark chocolate, red and black raspberry, blackberry, black currant, pencil lead, and some clove. Mid-palate weight and complexity was elevated, with a really balanced push…

Bevan Cellars Merlot Alexis' Cuvée Showket Vineyards

PnP with just some swirling in the glass. Performed as described in my previous notes. Despite a touch of booze on the initial pull, the flavors of plum, black cherry, currant, and some faint…

Whitehall Lane Tre Leoni Napa Valley

Red and black cherry and some spice. Medium mid-palate with a round, light finish.

Argot Pinot Noir Estate

As with my previous notes, I mention this wine's lushness and ripeness first and above any of its other elements; it's profile is modern and rich, with plump red and black raspberry flavors gushing…

Purlieu Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard

So after an uber-goofy restaurant experience with a previous bottle of this wine, I had to conduct the at-home test to see if I just blew a cool grand on a pile of wine that was going to amount to…

B Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard

Well slap me silly with a stack of 80's skin flicks on videocassette... This wine didn't suck in any way, shape, or form, with B Cellars proving again that LPV can be both unctuously sexy as well as…

L'Aventure Cuvée "Les Demoiselles"

Blackberry seed, purple plum, red licorice, black tea, underbrush, pencil shavings, and some blue river rock. An interesting array of flavors, if not stunted a bit by a more linear delivery and…

Carter Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon La Verdad Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard

Six month checkup on this wine. Performs as awesomely as expected, especially with a little bit of air in the glass. Traces of booze on the back end with a few higher-toned red fruit and cassis notes…

Purlieu Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard

Making almost as much of a lasting impression as the titanic Tasmanian Teucer, this To Kalon impresses for its deep black and dark crimson red fruit flavors of chocolatey black raspberry, rich…

Fait-Main Cabernet Sauvignon Bettinelli Sleeping Lady Vineyard

Black cherry, currant, and cigar box dominate the profile of the 2016 Sleeping Lady. Medium-bodied, with a clean and pure execution, this particular sample showed a touch shy on its overall delivery.…