Reviews

Wren Hop Pinot Noir Daughters of Earth Goldrock Ridge

Still right in my wheelhouse. A little rich and spicy after a couple hours of air, but otherwise was a fun Pinot. Don't try to geek-out on it too much. It was flaunting some of its Bevan party flair…

Myriad Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

Previous notes apply. This rescued us from an otherwise abysmal wine consumption lineup earlier in the evening. 93+ points. Some short term (6 months) cellaring is probably best, but it performed…

Goldeneye Pinot Noir Anderson Valley

My friends keep buying it, so I keep rating it. A wet blanket of a Pinot; total snoozer. My previous notes apply.

Hall Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

A messy diaper performance; wonky, fruity, and pretty mushy. Not much focus, with a one-note pile of ripe, flabby fruit. Sorta like taking a spoonful of raw Bisquick drop biscuit dough and plopping…

Honig Cabernet Sauvignon

Lithe, cedar-laced black and red currant, tan bark, and dry dirt. A little stemmy, with a limited display of flavor. Thin mid-palate. Bitter on the back end. Weak.

Talley Vineyards Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard

Same as last month's notes. Drink now as a PnP, or hold for another year with confidence.

Buccella Merlot

Pretty shut down overall this go-around. Some red and light black fruit flavors, but otherwise not much excitement going on here. Some vanilla and alcohol-laced cassis on the back end; showing lithe…

Switchback Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon Peterson Family Vineyard

PnP was a tad tight and linear, but after a few hours of stretchy-time, it stopped being a wallflower and its flavors started to arrive to the party. A wine for those that don't necessarily gravitate…

Myriad Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

All previous notes apply. Last minute pull this time. Served in crappy stemware with lackluster food. Luckily this wine was a nice reprieve from an otherwise challenging dinner service. 92+ points.…

Outpost Cabernet Sauvignon

Same as previous notes. Not a sin to pop the cork presently, but giving it a couple of years to fill out completely would be most prudent. Ideally wait until 2019+. QPR is pretty darn good on this…

Carlisle Syrah Rosella's Vineyard

Same as two months ago. I had to go back to drinking a KB Pinot Noir (which was barely memorable as it was) just to get some flavor going back on my palate. Not too encouraging when a forgettable…

Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Russian River Valley

It's been a year since I last had this wine. PnP and consumed over two+ hours. Still in that 91-92/93 point realm for me. It kicked out some nice notes of raspberry, strawberry, cola, and hints of…

Bevan Cellars EE Cuvée

It's been over a year since my last bottle. Same as all of my previous notes on this wine except it really showed well from start to finish, with no tannic or heat issues at all. Performed good as a…

Shafer Relentless

Same as before. A solid red over the course of two days. A little tight on PnP and in need of some air throughout consumption. Ultimately, I'd recommend a short decant (2+ hours) or hold for another…

Becklyn Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon

PnP was a blast of an assortment of wild flavors. Rich cassis, sweet Amarena black cherry, purple plum, black raspberry, IHOP boysenberry syrup, cocoa, Milk Duds, vanilla bean, red and black…

The Grade Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Winfield Vineyard

Same as previous notes. Held up nicely over two days. Best after a couple hour decant after PnP. 93-94 points. Likely to level out at this point and start to gracefully age. Has plenty of life left…

Rivers-Marie Cabernet Sauvignon Lore Vineyard

Looks like I'm the outlier this time around, as this wine didn't deliver the way I had hoped it would, even in its youth. At best for me, it was in that 90-92 point bracket, and honestly that's being…

Rivers-Marie Cabernet Sauvignon Lore Vineyard

Same as previous notes, except that this never fully came around to anything that provided any real pleasure for me. I get the potential, but it is something that I cannot foresee delivering in a way…

Hall Cabernet Sauvignon Eighteen Seventy-Three Napa Valley

This score is based on Day 2. The first day it was a hot, alcohol-ridden, acidic mess. Day 2 it finally came around...a bit. Still, the booze was apparent; it never fully quit, on the back end…

Kobalt Cabernet Sauvignon

This essentially took 2 days of air before it really started to show its potential. Day 1 was a little hot, but still displayed a big, powerful core fruit that was certainly pleasurable (if not a…

Arista Winery Pinot Noir Longbow

Medium-bodied and not especially complex; mid-palate was a bit light. Darker red fruit profile, but displayed somewhat thin and lithe overall. Ok with food, but not much of a performer on its own.…

Bacio Divino Cabernet Sauvignon Janzen Beckstoffer Missouri Hopper Vineyard

Revisited this after a Coravin pour the previous week. PnP with about an hour of air did this wine some good. Favored by most over a 2015 Bevan Ontogeny served alongside it. Decent depth and some…

Tusk Estates Cabernet Sauvignon

An excellent showing this go-around. Previous notes apply. This needed about 2 hours before it really started to find its glide. There was some decent grip and tension swirling around the deeper core…

Scarlett Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve

Same as my notes from earlier this month. Wild and concentrated flavors, with a mid-palate that is incredibly intense. This and a '13 Tusk were tied for WOTN. The Tusk was much smoother (after about…

Hourglass Cabernet Sauvignon Blueline

PnP was a little tight, but it only took about 20 minutes of air to start performing. This is what I would categorize as a fairly standard example of what's coming out of Napa from the 2014 vintage.…