News From Napa And Beyond
Posts tagged 2007
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Nov 23rd
Gorgeous notes of tropical fruits, vanilla, white peach, and mineral on the nose. Plush on the palate, it has superior depth, layered flavors, and outstanding length with grilled hazelnut and brioche notes weaving through the plump apple, pear and fig flavors. Long and juicy with orange marmalade on the finish. 95 POINTS The Wine Insiders
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Mar 25th
Sierra Madre Pinot Noir
This brand new Pinot Noir opens beautifully in the glass, with captivating aromas of ripe red cherry, violet, strawberry, and then launches forth with hedonistic flavors of red plums, spicy black cherry and scintilating notes of lavendar. ollow. Long on the palate, this wine offers a sleek silky, cherry-strawberry finish with lightly toasted oak. This sultry wine promises to age gracefully for 3 – 5 (peaking around 2012) years but will also perfectly enhance Salmon, Chicken, or any French triple cream cheese tonight (after decanting ½ hour). 94 points.
BUY: Sierra Madre Vineyard Pinot Noir 2007
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Mar 5th
Oakville Ranch Chardonnay
Our favorite new BIG (tasting) Chardonnay discovery under $35: rich golden color and intoxicating aromas of confection (smells like frosted Wedding Cake actually!) honeysuckle and orange marmalade lead into this elegant thriller to be enjoyed now or anytime over the next 3 years. It displays complex flavors that including macademia nuts, caramel, and tropical fruits melded together in a luxuriously texture for an delightful Chardonnay experience. 94+ points
BUY: Oakville Ranch Chardonnay Napa 2007
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Feb 26th
We join Belle Glos founder and winemaker Joe Wagner in a tasting of his new lineup of wines. Watch below or click here to watch in larger, high quality HD video.
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Feb 25th
Premiere Napa
The closest thing the wine world in Napa has to the film world’s Academy Awards in Hollywood is called “Premiere Napa Valley.” Ironically, both events occur on the same weekend with “Premiere Napa” this past Saturday and then the Academy awards of course on Sunday. The analogy isn’t perfect since one event is strictly an awards ceremony and the other event is a charity auction but the similarities include:
Premiere Napa Valley is the largest annual gathering of the most influential individuals at the highest level of California collector wines (cult winemakers including Screaming Eagle’s Andy Erickson pouring his own Realm Cellars, legendary winery owners including both Mondavi brothers, and renowned critics such as James Laube of the Wine Spectator). The most fun aspect of Premiere Napa is the opportunity to rub shoulders with the most talented ‘up and coming’ wine talents as well as the world famous luminaries while tasting their best wines (favorites listed below) all before noon a Saturday morning.
Similar to the Oscars, Premiere Napa is a very private, invitation-only event. The venue is the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in the heart of Napa Valley. Having attended both Premiere Napa and the Oscars, I can assure you the food (and wine of course) is tastier in Napa! After savoring barrel samples of the finest new Cabernets (preview tastings of 2007 vintage this year) attendees rise to the CIA’s test kitchens and nosh on the student chefs’ most accomplished cuisine. Believe me, nothing tastes better than a plate full of gnocchi and roast beef after drinking Cabernet for 2 hours!
The last similarity to the Academy Awards is that Premiere Napa ends with perhaps the most high drama in the collector wine world. The auction is an annual barometer of which winery’s “stock” is high this year as well as which undiscovered winemaker is most likely to achieve the coveted “cult” winemaker status (and salary). The final tally on each winery’s barrel lot value is seen as not just a testament to the quality of their next vintage release but also the overall popularity of the brand. This year, there was a particularly tense air as the auction began due to the extreme consumer market uncertainties. Several big name wineries (names withheld to protect the ‘innocent’) barrel lots sold for a mere fraction of their closing price years ago while a few new names achieved bids reminiscent of Napa’s boom days in the late 1990’s.
GENERAL COMMENT ON TASTING:
The wines we tasted (95% of the barrel lots were Cabernet or Cab. blends) fell into three camps:
- Exquisitely balanced with a galaxy of sensuous fruit carefully melded together with plush tannins to age a decade plus (this describes most of the wines listed below)
- Extremely tight tannins and way too young to even form an opinion about the potential journey ahead. This list (undisclosed) includes many big, big, big name wines that surprised me by their intensity at this point. I hope they will evolve gracefully with a bit more time
- Disappointing wines that were either thin, overly vegetal, downright funky, or just completely uninspiring. The particularly disappointing aspect for these wineries is that, for the most part, Premiere Napa is seen as an opportunity to “put your best foot forward” so this list (undisclosed!) included a few former favorites that made me pause as I think about the ability for these wineries to maintain their lofty reputations in the years to come.
Favorite Wines sampled at Premiere Napa on 2/21/2009 include:
NEW DISCOVERIES (not ranked)
Ovid
Chateau Boswell
Realm
Continuum
Hewitt
Hourglass
OLD FAVORITES (that continue to impress!)
Plumpjack
Lewis
Cliff Lede
Vineyard 29
Quintessa/Faust
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Feb 5th
Frank Family Chardonnay
The 2007 Napa Valley Chardonnay is multifaceted and vibrant; it opens with aromas of Kaffir lime leaves, yellow plum, juicy peaches, and dried pear. These bright aromas are countered by vanilla bean Crème brûlée, lemon curd and cinnamon baked apple. The palate is lively, smooth, and layered; bursting with pineapple, Bosc pear, and Russet apples, moving into spiced cake, and buttery pie crust, while being accented by a subtle hint of Thai ginger. 94 Points.
BUY: Frank Family Chardonnay Napa Valley 2007
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Jan 19th
Brown Estate Zinfandel
With the ZAP Zinfandel Festival still almost two weeks away, the mental and physical preparation has surely already begun amongst all lovers of this insanely popular grape. One of the year’s most heavily-attended tastings, ZAP showcases producers from all over California and provides a rare opportunity to taste Zinfandels from regions as disparate as Napa, Paso Robles, Shenandoah, and more – all within brief moments of one another.
Year after year, one of our favorite wines at the festival is the Brown Estate Napa Zinfandel. This bottling marries the unique, concentrated flavors of Zinfandel with a structure and complexity that one might expect from a Cabernet grown on the same property. There’s nothing shy or reserved about it, either. At tasting after tasting, we’ve seen people fall in love with this wine upon first sip – its abundant fruit flavors instantly converting casual festival goers into diehard Brown Estate followers.
BUY: Brown Estate Zinfandel Napa 2007
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Sep 3rd
One of our very favorite annual events is Hal and Fiona Barnett’s harvest party at their spectacular home and boutique winery at the pinnacle of Spring Mountain in Napa. For an “insiders” peak at this party and the opportunity to meet Barnett winemaker David Tate click here to view our video blog. One highlight this year was sampling the new release of Barnettt’s “Sangiacomo” Vineyard Chardonnay! In 2007, Wine Spectator magazine awarded the Barnett Chardonnay ‘Sangiacomo’ an “Outstanding 93” point rating, putting this wine in the same company as collector favorites such as Peter Michael and Kistler that cost more than triple the price. We’ve been recommending Barnett Chardonnay for many years as the “boutique” version of Rombauer Chardonnay because both are sourced from the exact same “Sangiacomo” vineyard but Barnett’s production is less than 1/10 the production of their more famous Napa counterparts. Below, see full tasting notes from Barnett’s winemaker David Tate, former assistant winemaker at Ridge vineyards whose 2005 Chardonnay was ranked #3 in the World by Wine Spectator magazine.