I had the pleasure of tasting 7 wines from Terras De Tavares at Chez TJ in Mountain View, CA.  I am not very familiar with the varietals of the Dao region in Portugal.  After tasting these wines, I am very interested in trying more dry wines from this region.  The Dao region is known for producing fortified wines – Ports.  The wines I tried show that the dry wines of the Dao should be taken seriously.  The price to quality ratio (PTQ) is excellent in my opinion.  If you are looking for complex and elegant wines at a very reasonable price, you should keep you eye out for these wines.

White DOP, DAO Torree de Tavares, Bical (40%) / Cerceal (60%)
Appearance -> medium- lemon core -> water white rim
Nose -> clean, medium+ intensity aromas of minearl, white floral, grapefruit (tangy acid)
Palate -> high acidity; medium length with a clean acidic finish, medium intensity flavors of mineral, lychee, floral (jasmine), citrus pith (on the start), wet sea shell (on the finish); medium alcohol (12.7%)
Quality -> the wine is a very enjoyable wine made from varietals usually used for the production of madera.  The acidity and flavor intensity of it lends itself paella or white boullaibase.

Red 2006 Geographical Indication BEIRAS – Torre de Tavares (40% Touriga Portuguesa, Jaen 50%, Aragones 10%) – 3.5 euros (price from producer)
Appearance -> Opaque ruby with blue hints core -> ruby rim
Nose -> clean, medium intensity aromas of earth, light bandaid (blows off with 20 minutes), cinnamon, cardamon, mace, red fruit, oak
Palate -> high acidity; medium tannin (fine-grained), pronounced intensity flavors of caradmon, cinnamon, dried red cherry, mace

Red 2005 D.O.P. DAO Terras de Tavares, Touriga Nacional — 7.90 Euro (cost from producer)
Appearance -> opaque ruby/black core -> ruby rim
Nose -> clean, medium intensity aromas of sugar cookie dough, earth, violets, dried cherry (red & black)
Palate -> high acidity; medium+ to high tannins, medium+ intensity flavors of dried cherry (black & red), earth, red floral, warm spikes; medium+ alcohol, medium+ length
Quality ->Good wine but comes across a bit hot on the finish.  It is an excellent value for the price.

Red 2005 D.O.P. DAO, Terras de Tavares Reserva (70% Jaen, 30% Toriga Portuguesa) — 7.90 Euro (cost from producer)
Appearance ->Opaque ruby with black core -> ruby rim
Nose -> slight nail polish hint (blew off in 20 minutes), pronounced aromas of banana, red fruit, hint of oak, mace
Palate -> medium+ tannins (fine-grained and smooth but has a slight chalky note on the finish); long length; medium+ intensity flavors of red currant, fresh cranberry, pomegranate, fennel; medium+ acidity
Quality -> This is an excellent wine!  The aromas and flavors are complex and layered.  The wine is very balance with respect to alcohol, intensities, tannins and acidity.

Red 2006 D.O.P. DAO Terras de Tavares Reserva (60% Jaen, 40% Touriga Portuguesa) – 6.90 euros (cost from the producer)
Appearance -> opaque ruby and black core -> ruby rim
Nose -> clean, medium intensity aromas of black fruit (plum, cherry), red fruit (plum), earth, leather
Palate ->high acidity; medium+ tannins (very soft), long length; pronounced intensity flavors of plucot, plums, earth, warm spice, red currant, smoke, tobacco, tar (complex and layered)
Quality-> Good to Excellent for the price, complexity and balance.  The wine has a good balance of acidity, tannins and flavors.  The complexity of the wine combined with the acidity will give the wine good aging potential.

Red D.O.P. DAO Terras de Tavares Reserva 2007 (50% Jaen, 50% Touriga Portuguesa) – 7.90 euros (price from the producer)
Appearance -> opaque ruby and light purple hue core -> ruby rim
Nose ->clean, prounounced intensity aromas of fresh cracked pepper, warm spices, light oak, red fruit
Palate -> medium+ alcohol; medium+ length, medium+ tannins with green tannins and bitterness on finish; pronounced intensity flavors = aromas
Quality -> The wine is very young but does have potential with aging.  It was very helpful to taste the other wines especially the 1997 wine.  The primary aromas / flavors are very intense and need time to mellow in the bottle.

Red D.O.P. DAO Terras de Tavares Reserva 1997 (60% Jaen, 40% Touriga Portuguesa) – 9.90 Euros (price from the producer)
Appearance -> opaque- ruby core -> ruby with brick tinted rim
Nose ->clean, pronounced aromas of floral, stone fruit, red currants, red cherry (complex and layered)
Palate -> medium+ tannins (velvety); long length; medium+ intensity flavors of dried cherry, compote cherry, plum, celery salt (on finish), black ground pepper (on entry)
Quality -> Excellent.  The wine is complex, layered and very balanced.  The wine could easily age another 15 years before being over the hill.  The aroma and flavors evolve with time in the glass.

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of going to the Terroirs & Signatures De Bourgogne 2010 wine tasting in San Francisco.  Unfortunately, I only had an hour and half to taste so I had to go into speed tasting mode.  Given I was speed tasting, I was just rating the wine up to 5 stars where 5 is the best but not taking any significant notes.   I only got to 12 out of the 21 producers.  Overall, the wines were very good with only a few of the wines showing “earthy / barnyard” characteristics.  The wines seem to be much cleaner than in the past from the region — excellent fruit characteristics, bright acidity and well balanced (in general).   It seems that the international wine style is starting to creep in Burgundy or is it more modern production techniques cleaning up some cellar issues (not sure but it seems like an improvement to me).  For more information on Burgundy — http://www.Burgundy-wines.fr

The tasting will also be available in Los Angeles  on February 12th to trade only.

Exhibitors Choice Table
4 stars — Maison Jaffelin, 2007 Rully (white)
3.75 stars — Collin Bourisset, 2007 Pouilly-Fuisse
3.25 stars — Domaine ROUX Pere & Fils, 2007 Rully, Clos des Mollepierres [Note: the oak seemed a bit much to me]

Champy
3.25 stars — 2007 Saint-Romain (good minerality and acidity)
3 stars — 2008 Bourgogne (white) (spicy)
3 stars — 2007 Corton-Charlemange (too much oak for my taste)
2.75 stars — 2007 Volnay
3.5 stars — 2007 Vosne-Romanee (light & delicate)
3.25 stars — 2007 Gevrey-Chambertin (heavy and earthy)
3 stars — 2007 Corton (dark fruit and earth)

Chanson Pere & Fils
3 stars — 2008 Vire-Clesse
3.25 stars — 2007 Puligny-Montrachet
3.25 stars — 2007 Beaune 1st Cru, le Clos des Mouches
3 stars — 2007 Pernand-Vergelesse 1st Cru, en Caradeux(white) (flavors seem a bit under developed)
2.75 stars — 2007 Bourgogne Pinot Noir (spicy by thin)
2.8 stars — 2007 Pernand-Vergelesse 1st Cru, Vergelesses (red) (seemed overcropped but has potential in later harvests)

Collin Bourisset
2.25 stars — 2007 Bourgogne Pinot Noir
3 stars — 2008 Macon Villages
3 stars — 2008 Vire-Clesse

Maison Joseph DROUHIN
3.25 stars — 2008 Chablis, Vaudon
3.5 to 3.75 stars — 2007 Puligny-Montrachet
3 stars — 2007 Chorey-les-Beaune (an easy drinking wine)
3.25 stars — 2007 Cote de Beaune
3 stars — 2007 Gevrey-Chambertin

Domaine FOURREY & Fils
2.75 stars — 2008 Chablis 1st Cru, Mont de Milieu (had a musty note to it — would have score much higher otherwise)
3.25 stars — 2008 Chablis 1st Cru, Vaillons

Domaine Pierre GLANTENAY
3 stars — 2007 Volnay
3.5 stars — 2007 Volnay 1st Cru, Santenots
2.25 stars — 2006 Pommard (earthy and some brett)

Maison JAFFELIN — A producer to watch!
3 stars — 2007 Puligny-Montrachet
2.25 stars — 2007 Meursault (too much acidity — flavors are overwhelmed)
3.25 stars — 2007 Rully (white)
3 stars — 2007 Pouilly-Fuisse (good mineral and green apple)
2.5 stars — 2008 Macon Peronne (strong honeyed fruits)
3 stars — 2007 Chassagne-Montrachet
2.25 stars — 2007 Rully (red) (light concentration and quite earthy)
3.5 stars — 2007 Givry 1st Cru, les Grandes Vignes
2.75 stars — 2007 Beaune 1st Cru, Les Cent Vignes
3 stars — 2007 Pommard
3.25 stars — 2007 Nuits-Saint-George

Olivier LAROCHETTE
2.25 stars — 2008 Macon Villages (funky taste)
2.5 stars — 2007 Bourgogne Chardonnay, Vieilles Vignes
3 stars — Bourgogne Pinot Noir, Vieilles Vignes (very soft wine but seemed a tad out of balance)

Chateau de Messey/Domaine BELLEVILLE
3 stars — 2007 Mercury (white) (floral, strong mineral and good concentration)
3.25 stars — 2007 Rully 1st Cru, la Fosse (ripe fruit – apple and mineral)
3.75 stars — 2007 Puligny-Montrachet, les Boudrieres
3.5 stars — 2006 Meursault 1st Cru, la Piece sous le Bois
3 stars — 2007 Aloxe-Corton

Domaine des MALANDES — Outstanding producer
2.5 stars — 2008 Petit Chablis
3.5 stars — 2008 Chablis, Vieilles Vignes, Tour du Roy (50% oak)
3.25 stars — 2008 Chablis 1st Cru, Cote de Lechet
3 stars — 2008 Chablis 1st Cru, Vau De Vey
3.5 stars — 2007 Chablis Grand Cru, Vaudesir
4 stars — 2007 Chablis Grand Cru, les Clos

Domaine PARENT
2.75 stars — 2007 Bourgogne Pinot Noir (good acidity, should improve in the bottle)
3 stars — 2007 Pommard
3.5 stars — 2007 Pommard 1st Cru, les Epenots
3.75 stars — 2007 Corton Grand Cru, Les Renardes (needs many years of bottle age)
3.25 stars — 2007 Corton Grand Cru (red) (violets)
2.75 stars — 2007 Corton Grand Cru (white)

Chateau de VILLARS Fontaine
2.75 stars — 2002 Bourgogne Hautes-Cotes de Nuits, les Jiromees (white)
3 stars — 2003 Bourgogne Hautes-Cotes de Nuits, le Rouard (white)
2.75 stars — 1997 Bourgogne Hautes-Cotes de Nuits, les enevrieres
2 stars — 1993 Bourgogne Hautes-Cotes de Nuits, les Genevries

Thankfully, my palate is not longer on the fritz.   After getting that back, I went back to double check the 2008 White Hawk Vineyard, Sangiovese which is scheduled to be bottled on the 16th.  It will be bottled into shiners as the label is no where near ready…I have to write up the back label text based on my tasting of the wine.

My tasting notes on the wine:
App -> opaque ruby/black core transitioning to ruby rim (very deep color)
Nose -> clean, medium+ intensity aromas of boysenberry, oak, baking spice, black fruit (cherry, olive), sour cherry
Palate -> high acidity; medium tannins with a hint of fine-grained green tannins on the finish, medium alcohol; medium to long length; pronounced flavors of black cherry, sour cherry, oak, boysenberry, blueberry, blackberry, baking spices with a tart finish; medium+ concentration and mouth-filling texture.
Overall -> the wine strongly reminds me of a Brunello de Montalcino from a fairly warm site. This is a huge wine that will need 12 to 18 months in the bottle before the true nature of the wine will be revealed. The wine has very dark aromas and flavors but a nice balance of spice and tannins to help give it longevity.  The acidity is quite bright so it will age very well and we be really good with food!

The difference between the 2007 and 2008 vintages is huge and surprising.  The 2007 vintage was much more like a Chianti Classico made in a lighter style than the dark, brooding 2008.  Each are lovely and I am looking forward to enjoying them in the future!

A couple of days ago I was checking the final blend of the 2008 White Hawk Vineyard, Sangiovese, Santa Barbara to make sure it was ready for bottling.  A very interesting thing happened to me — my palate was not working due to the nasty cold that has been around.  This is the first time that I have had this happen to me.  It was very strange — I could smell the lovely aromas of dark cherry, sour cherry, boysensberry, floral and tar notes; when I put the wine in my mouth, I was expecting to have similar flavors and good concentrated wine based on the depth and intensity of the aromas I smelled but I got a nasty surprise.  I could only taste fruit and oak tannins with a bit of white pepper on the finish.  It really kind of freaked me out. 

I took a sample home with me to have some of my friend try to see what they picked up in the wine.  Thankfully, they really enjoyed the wine and gave me some good feedback on the wine.  My palate had started to return to normal that day but it take take another couple of days before my palate returned to normal. 

Your taste is primarily driven by what you smell.  So, if your nose is stuffed up, you tend not to taste sublte flavors or any flavors at all.  In my case, I had nasal congestion but I could still smell the great aromas which was a good sign for the wine that I picked up such strong and pleasant aromas.    I have done a small amount of research on why the temporary loss of taste bud sensativity but I have not found anything yet.  If you know of any reason why this is, I would love to find out more about it.

Last Saturday was the 19th Annual ZAP Grand Tasting at Fort Mason, San Francisco.  I was lucky enough to get into the trade portion of the tasting at 10:00 AM.  The trade crowd is maybe 1000 to 1500 people vs. the general portion which was between 5000 and 6000 people.  The attendance this year seemed much lower than in previous years — it could also be that I left around 2:00 PM (only an hour into the general portion).

I was in speed tasting mode so I only have a star rating from 1 to 5 where 5 is the best.  A new find for me was C.G. Di Arie Vineyard & Winery — the owner is a food scientist who has moved into wine making.  He has done a very good job with his wines — give them a try!  The Gregory Graham, Gamba, Mazzocco and Edmeades wines really stood out for me this year.  I strongly suggest that you try their wines / visit the wineries.   The wines are listed alphabetically by winery

Bella Vineyards & Wine Cave, Healdsburg, Sonoma
3.75 to 4 stars — 2007 Lily Hill, Dry Creek Valley $38 – (light, complex, layered with ripe fruit but not overly so)
3.75 stars — Two Patch, Alexander Valley, $38

Boeger Winery, Placeville, Sierra Foothills
3.5 to 3.75 stars – 2006 Walker Vineyard, El Dorado, $18

Bradford Mountain Winery, Healdsburg, Northern Sonoma
3.5 stars — 2006 Dry Creek Valley, Dry Creek Valley, $28
3.75 stars — 2006 Grist Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley, $34

Brutocao Cellars, Hopland, Mendocino
3.3 stars — 2007 Estate Reserve, Hopland Ranches, Mendocino, $34
3.25 stars — 2006 Estate, Hopland Ranches, Mendocino, $22

C. G. Di Arie Vineyard & Winery
3.5 stars — 2006 Gunther Vineyard, Shenandoah Valley, $25
4.25 stars — 2006 Southern Exposure, Shenandoah Valley, $35
3.75 stars — 2007 Sierra Foothills, $18

Calcareous Vineyards, Paso Robles, Central Coast
4.25 stars — 2005 Twisted Sisters, Kate’s Vineyard, Paso Robles, $26
4 stars — 2006 Calcareous Vineyard, Kate’s Westside Vineyard, Paso Robles, $26

Candor/Hope Family Vineyards, Paso Robles, Central Coast
3.25 stars — NV Candor, Central Coast — a zinfandel blend, good concentration

Chatom Vineyards, Murphys, Sierra Foothills
3.5 stars — 2006 Calaverous, $19
3.75 stars — 2008 Barrel Sample, Calaveras, $19

D-Cubed Cellars, St. Helena, Napa Valley
3.75 stars — 2006 Napa Valley, $27
3.25 stars — 2006 St. Helena, $32
3.25 stars — 2006 Howell Mountain, $37

Edmeades Winery, Redwood Valley, Mendocino (they poured 7 zinfandels and they were all very good this year)
4 stars — 2006 Perli Vineyard, Mendocino Ridge, Mendocino Ridge, $31
4.25 stars — Piffero Vineyard, Redwood Valley, Redwood Valley, $31
4 stars — 2007 Mendocino County, Mendocino County, $20

Four Vines Winery, Paso Robles, Central Coast
3.25 stars — 2007 Biker, Paso Robles, $25
3.25 stars — 2007 Dusi, Amador, $25
3 stars — 2007 Sophisticate, Sonoma County, $25
4.25 stars — 2007 Zinbitch (blend of Biker and Dusi) — only 300 magnums made!

Gamba Vineyards and Winery, Fulton, Northern Sonoma
4.5 stars — 2008 Estate Old Vine, Russian Rivery Valley, $43
4 stars — 2008 Moratto Vineyard, Russian River Valley, $43
4.25 stars — 2008 Russian River Valley, $35

Gregory Graham Wines, Lower Lake, Lake County
4 stars — 2007 Crimson Hill, Red Hills, Lake County, $18
4.5 stars — 2007 Crimson Hill, Red Hills, Lake County (late harvest – 375ml), $22

HammerSky Vineyards, Paso Robles, Central Coast
3.25 stars — 2007 Estate Reserve, Paso Robles, $39
3.25 stars — 2007 Open Invitation Zin Blend, Paso Robles, $49

Harney Lane Winery, Lodi, Central
2.5 stars — 2007 Old Vine, Lizzy James Vineyard, Lodi, $33
2.75 stars — 2007 Lodi, $20

Hendry, Napa, Napa Valley
2 stars — 2006 Block 7 & 22, Napa Valley, $30

Klinker Brick Winery
3.35 stars — 2007 Old Vine, Lodi, $18 (light but complex aromas and flavors)
3 stars — 2007 Old Ghost Old Vine, Lodi, $37 (fruit was overripe)

Lava Cap Winery, Placerville, Sierra Foothills
3 stars — 2006 Rocky Draw, Lava Cap, El Dorado, $22

Leonhardt Vineyards, Geyserville, Northern Sonoma
3.3 stars — 2007 Rserve, Dry Creek Valley, $48 (complex and spicy)

Mauritson Family Winery, Healdsburg, Northern Sonoma
3.75 stars — 2007 Rockpile Cemetery Vineryard, Cemetrery Vineyard, Rockpile, $39
3.5 — 2007 Rockpike Ridge Vineyard, Rockpile Ridge, Rockpile

Mazzocco Winery, Healdsburg, Northern Sonoma (they had 4 reserve zinfandels — all very good and 6 regular zinfandels — all very good but not quite as concentrated as the reserve wines)
4 stars — 2007 Maple Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley, $32
4.5 stars — 2007 Maple Vineyard, Reserve, Dry Creek Valley, $40
4.25 stars — 2007 Smith Orchard Reserve, Dry Creek, Valley, $50
3.75 to 4 stars — 2007 Pony Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley, $32

Murphy-Goode, Healdsburg, Northern Sonoma
3 stars — 2006 Snake Eyes, Alexander Valley, $35
3 stars — 2007 Liar’s Dice, Sonoma County

Novy Family Wines, Santa Rosa, Northern Sonoma
3 stars — 2008 Novy, Russian River Valley, $20

Outpost Estate Wines, Angwin, Napa Valley
3.5 stars — 2008 Barrel Sample, $45 (will be bottled in 3 months, good concentration with a elegant layered finish)

Perry Creek Winery, Someset, Sierra Foothills
2 stars — 2006 Zinman, Sierra Foothills, $14
2.5 stars — 2006 Altitude:2401 Fair Play Farms, Sierra Foothills

Renwood Winery, Plymouth, Sierra Foothills
2.5 stars — 2006 Grandmere, Amador, $40

Rosenblum Cellars, Alameda, Bay Area
3.5 stars — 2007 Rockpile, $?

Saddleback Cellars, Oakville, Napa Valley
3.5 stars — 2006 Old Vine, Napa Valley, $36

Selby Winery, Healdsburg, Northern Sonoma
3.5 stars — 2007 Bobcat, Sonoma County, $34 (ripe flavors w/ RS and 17.8%abv!)
3.75 stars — 2007 Old Vine, Sonoma County, $24 (elegant, layered, concentrated with 15.7% abv)
4 stars — 2007 Zinfandel Port, Sonoma County (fragant, perfume aromas with a clean finish)

Carol Shelton Wines, Santa Rosa, Northern Sonoma
3 stars — 2006 Wild Thing, Cox Vineyard, Mendocino County, $24
3 stars — 2006 Rocky Reserve, Florence Vineyard, Rockpile, $33
4 stars — 2006 Karma Zinfandel

Sierra Starr Vineyards, Grass Valley, Sierra Foothills
3.5 stars — 2009 Zinjolais, Sierra Foothills (Zinfandel fermented using carbonic maceration — this would be a great wine chilled in warm weather.  Note: this must be a unique wine!)
2.5 stars — 2006 Old Clone, Estate Vineyard, Sierra Foothills

St. Francis Winery & Vineyard, Santa Rosa, Sonoma Valley
3.5 stars — 2007 Karen’s Terrace, Sonoma Valley, $35
3.25 stars — 2007 Old Vine, Sonoma County, $25

Storrs Winery, Santa Cruz, Bay Area
3.25 stars — 2005 Lion Oaks Vineyard, Bay Area, $34
3.25 stars — 2006 Rusty Ridge, Bay Area, $30

Storybook Mountain Wines, Calistoga, Napa Valley
3.25 to 3.5 stars — 2007 Mayacamas Range Estate, Napa, $34

Tin Barn Vineyards, Sonoma, Sonoma Valley
3 stars — 2007 Dalraddy Vineyard, Napa Valley, $27

Valley of the Moon Winery, Glen Ellen, Sonoma Valley
2.75 stars — 2006 Estate Old Vine, Sonoma Valley, $25
3 stars — 2007 Sonoma County, $20

Venge Vineyards, Calistoga, Napa Valley
2.75 stars — 2007 Scout’s Honor, Napa Valley, $38

Zina Hyde Cunningham Winery, Boonville, Mendocino
2.5 stars — 2007 Old Vine, Redwood Valley, $30 (lacking in fruit and too many tannins)

Recently, I did some blending trails with my two lots of Syrah from 2008.  The two lots are from the Thompson vineyard and White Hawk vineyard in Santa Barbara County.  The goal of the blending trial was to see if the wines were ready to make the primary blend of the two and/or would I need to bottle them seperately.  Thankfully, the two syrahs (each made as a blending component of a Santa Barbara County Syrah) are complimentary to each other.

2008 White Hawk Vineyard, Syrah, Santa Barbary County
App -> opaque black w/purple hues core changes to a purple rim
Nose -> Medium+ intensity aromas of black fruit, black olive, dried herbs, boysenberry
Palate -> Medium+ tannins (fine-grained with a hint of green tannins on finish), high acidity; medium+ intensity flavors of black fruit, violets, fresh raspberry (frambiose), blackberry, earth, cherry; medium+ alcohol, long length

2008 Thompson Vineyard, Syrah, Santa Barbara County
App -> opaque black/purple hues core changes to a purple rim
Nose -> pronounced intensity aromas of toasted espresso, milk chocolate
Palate -> Medium+ Alcohol; pronounced flavors of black fruit, bramble berries, spicy red fruit, light sulphur note (from recent sulphur addition) red grapefruit on finish

The blending trials consisted of 50% Thompson / 50% White Hawk to get a baseline to see how the two complimented each other — quite positive! — followed by blending with different amounts of Viognier, Grenache and/or Mourvedre.  The result of the trial for the primary blend turned out to be 49.5% Thompson / 49.5% White Hawk / 1% Catie’s Corner Viognier.  The primary blend will be completed and put back into neutral barrel as the wine does not need anymore tannins to round out the wine.  The small amount of Viognier does a great job of enhancing the aromatics and softening the strong tannins from the Thompson Syrah (it was in a new barrel with med+ toast). 

Primary blend
App-> opaque black/purple core transitioning to a purple rim
Nose -> Medium+ intensity aromas of black fruit(olive, cherry, cassis), blueberry, earth, red floral, apricot (slight from viognier)
Palate -> High tannins (soft), pronounced intensity flavors of black olive, sweet olive plant flowers, boysenberry, blueberry, currant, warm spice on finish; long length, high acidity, pronounced concentration

The primary blend with re-evaluated in 5 weeks to see how the blend is settling down.  The goal is to bottle the wine sooner rather than later to maintain the excellent aromas and flavors.  I think it will be a very good wine which will need 12 to 18 months in the bottle before it really starts to open up.  The wine is very big with an elegant and complexity to it.  I am very excited to see what it turns into!

I had the opportunity to taste three Thai fruit icewines recently.  The entire concept of Thai icewines is just plain odd, but the fruit side of it makes it even more intriguing.  The flavors of the icewines are: Pineapple, Mangosteen and Passionfruit.  Mangosteen is a fruit only grown in Southeast Asia; it is a wonderful fruit that is exotic and familiar in flavor — floral, apple, pear and good crunchy texture.

The three icewines were all very interesting and good in quality.  My preference was for the Mangosteen and the Passionfruit.  The Pineapple tasted about equal parts pineapple and lemon — the two do not work as well as you might expect.  The Passionfruit and Mangosteen would make excellent bases for some very interesting cocktails. 

If you are looking for something out of the ordinary or something that would be a natural drink to work with Asian and Indian food, you should definitely give these products a try!

I was one of the judges in the 2010 Pinot Noir Shootout held on January 11th at Boudin’s restaurant in Fisherman’s wharf in San Francisco.  The final round consisted of 64 wines being split into two panels of 32 wines.  Each panel had 4 flights of 8 wines to be judged on a 100 point scale.  A wine given a score of 90 or higher indicated the judge felt the wine should be included in the final list of Pinot Noirs to be included in the public tasting as part of the 2010 Pinot Noir Summit (Feb 27th, Osher Marin Jewish Community Center, 200 N. San Pedro Road, San Rafeal, CA, 94903 — tickets available on the Affairs of the Vine website).   Each group of 32 wines had 13 judges rate the wines. The Pinot Noir Shootout had approximately 280 wines entered from all over the world.

Flight 1:
87 pts - Ampelos Cellars, 2006 Ampelos Vineyards, Reserver – Rho, Santa Rita Hills, 520 cases, $45  retail
90 pts - Claiborne & Churchill, 2007 Edna Valley, 2380 cases, $25 retail
89 pts - Row Eleven, 2006 Santa Maria Valley, 2000 cases, $36 retail
89 pts – Cumbre of Vine Hill, 2007 Barrel 31, Santa Cruz Mountains, 187 cases, $59 retail
89 pts – Spy Valley, 2008 Marlborough, 8106 cases, $29 retail
90 pts - MacMurray Ranch, 2007 Sonoma Coast, 75000 cases, $24 retail
92 pts - Robledo, 2006 Rancho Rincon, Estate, Los Carneros, 900 cases, $40 retail
90 pts - Fulcrum, 2007 Anderson Valley, 100 cases, $52 retail

Flight 2:
88 pts – River Road Vineyards, 2007 Stephanies Vineyard, Estate, Russian River Valley, 997 cases, $26 retail
87 pts – Oak Knoll Winery, 2006 Red Hill Vineyard, Red Hill Oregon, 430 cases, $24 retail
89 pts – Hahn SLH Estate, 2007 Santa Lucia Highlands, 2591 cases, $29 retail
91 pts - Shandel’s Oppenlander Vineyard, 2007 Estate Grown, Mendocino County, 250 cases, $40 retail
93 pts – Lionheart Wines, 2007 Sonoma Coast, 50 cases, $40 retail
89 pts – TR Elliott, 2007 Three Plumes, Russian River Valley, 150 cases, $40 retail
90 pts – Left Edge, 2008 Sea Ridge Vineyard, Timberline Block, Sonoma Coast, 300 cases, $40 retail
91 pts – Artesa, 2007 Carneros, 20664 cases, $24 retail

Flight 3:
90 pts – CRU, 2008 Appellation Series, Santa Lucia Highlands, 240 cases, $32 retail
85 pts – La Fenetre, 2007 Le Bon Climat, Santa Maria Valley, 115 cases, $55 retail
87 pts – Sonoma Coast Vineyards, Freestone HIlls, Sonoma Coast, 450 cases, $40 retail
88 pts – Handley Cellars, 2007 Anderson Valley, 4029 cases, $30 retail
88 pts – David Bruce Winery, 2007 Santa Cruz Mountains, 1232 cases, $30 retail
87 pts – Truchard Vineyards, 2006 Carneros Napa Valley, 4503 cases, $35 retail
85 pts – Belle Vallee, 2006 Grand Cuvee, Willamette Valley, 382 cases, $42 retail
84 pts – Orentano, 2007 Russian River Valley, 400 cases, $40 retail

Flight 4:
89 pts – Deaver Vineyards, 2007 Sierra Foothills, 112 cases, $24.99 retail
89 pts – Nicholson Ranch, 2007 Sonoma Coast, 169 cases, $42 retail
88 pts – Manzoni, 2007 Manzoni Family Estate, Santa Lucia Highlands, 324 cases, $24 retail
89 pts – Mahoney Vineyards, 2006 Las Brisas Esate, Carneros, 300 cases, $28 retail
90 pts – Heart O The Maountain, 2007 100% Pommard Clone, Santa Cruz Mountains, 25 cases, $58 retail
87 pts – Dierberg Vineyards, 2006 Estate, Santa Maria Valley, 4400 cases, $42 retail
86 pts – Pessagno, 2007 Four Boys Vineyard, Estate Grown, Santa Lucia Highlands, 192 cases, $55 retail

I did score my wine the highest out of the flight of 32.  Note: I did not realize it was my wine during the tasting — I am a bit embarressed to say that but it is the truth.  At least, I consistently like my own wine.   After the tasting, the judges were conferring and it appeared that my scoring was fairly consistent with other judges including picking the Lionheart Pinot Noir as the top in the flight.  I hope that I do place in the top three after everything is tabulated.   

The wines in the other grouping were:
David Bruch Winery, 2007 Anderson Valley
Wedell Cellars, 2006 Hillside Vineyard, Edna Valley
Canihan Family Vineyard, 2007 Exuberance (Reserve), Carneros/Sonoma Valley border
Big Basin Vineyards, 2007 Alfaro Family Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains
Clary Ranch, 2006 Estate Sonoma Coast
CRU, 2007 Vineyard Montage, Central Coast
Ampelos Cellars, 2006 Lambda, Ampelos Vineyards, Santa Rita Hills
Longboard Vineyards, 2007 Russian River Valley
Bogle, 2007 Russian River Valley
Bjornstad Cellars, 2007 Hellenthal Vineyard, Sonoma Coast
Nicholson Ranch, 2007 Estate, Reserve, Cactus Hill, Sonoma Valley
La Fenetre, 2007 Calmant Creek vineyard, Sonoma Coast
Gloria Ferrer, 2005 Rust Rock Terrace vineyard, Carneros
Sonoma Coast Vineyards, 2006 Petersen Vineyard, Sonoma Coast
Pacific Coast Vineyards, 2007 Babcock Vineyards, Santa Rita Hills
Elk Cove Vineyards, 2008 Mount Richmond vineyard, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton District
Bohemian Vineyard, 2008 Bohemian Vineyard, Russian River Valley
Willamette Valley Vineyards, 2007 Tualatin Estate, Willamette AVA
Brophy Clark, 2007 Garey & Goodchild Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley
Eric Ross, 2008 Saralee’s Vineyard, Russian River Valley
Amisfield, 2007 Lowburn, New Zealand
Russian Hill, 2007 Estate Vineyards, Russian River Valley
Wild Earth, 2008 Central Otago
Vine Hill, 2007 Santa Cruz Mountains
Perception, 2007 Russian River Valley
Balletto Vineyards, 2007 Winery Block, Russian River Valley
Pegasus Bay, 2007 Waipara Valley, New Zealand
Kendric Vineyards, 2007 Marin County
Kenneth Volk Vineyards, 2006 Bien Nacido Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley
Lucienne, 2007 Doctor’s Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands
Stephen & Walker, 2006 Monterey
Scott Cellars, 2008, Sierra Madre Vineyard, First Mesa, Santa Maria Valley

I believe that the top 40 or so wines from the final round will be included at the Pinot Noir Summit based on the aggragated scoring of all the judges in each flight as part of the public tasting.

I would like to wish everyone a very happy and prosperous new year! 

2009 was an “interesting” year to say the least.  Lionheart Wines saw some good development of the brand and some great wines going into the bottle.  The year has helped me focus on what Lionheart needs to do better as well as what wines make sense to be producing in 2010 (assuming we have the cash for that!).  I would like to continue to focus on Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Sangiovese and Rose.  The white Rhone wines are lovely but the market place is not quite ready for them.  I could be changing my tune if I can figure out how to get the production costs down to a more managable price point.   I love syrah but it has not caught on as well as I planned on.  Again, who knows Syrah might bust out with the right production costs.

In 2010, we will be releasing some very good wines from the 2007 and 2008 vintages.  So, please keep your eye out for them.  Also, if you know a place that you would like carry Lionheart Wines, please let me know where so I can contact them directly.  Jen and I are looking forward providing great wines and service to our wine club members and retail partners. 

May you enjoy a lovely and safe time including some of the grape on New Year’s Eve and New Year Day!  Please make sure you have a designated driver!

Sincerely,
Leon Glover
Winemaker, Lionheart Wines

I had the pleasure of participating as a judge in one of the preliminary round judgings for the 2010 Pinot Noir Shootout.  Note: I have entered by 2007 Sonoma Coast, Pinot Noir in the the event.  My wine was not tasted in this particular preliminary round. 

As part of the judging system, only 32 wines are tasted at a time in the preliminary rounds.  Each wine will be included in two preliminary rounds to make sure the wine is of appropriate quality for the final round of judging.

The wines in this preliminary round with the score I gave the wine plus what the range of scores for the round were if I have the data for it:

Flight 1:
85 pts – Heart O’ The Mountain, 2007 Estate Blend, Santa Cruz Mountains, 385 cases, $48 retail
89 pts – Belle Vallee Cellars, 2007 Reserve, Willamette Valley, 1088 cases, $28 retail
88 pts [80-90] – Mietz Cellars, 2006 Carmine’s Vineyard, Russian River Valley, 150 cases, $35 retail
91 pts [86-91] – Hahn SLH Estate, 2007 Santa Lucia Highlands, 2591 cases, $29 retail
88 pts – Eric Ross, 2008 Saralee’s Vineyard, Russian River Valley, 310 cases, $40 retail
85 pts – Wild Hog Vineyard, 2008 estate, True Sonoma Coast, 348 cases, $35 retail
90 pts – [77-90] – Willamette Valley Vineyards, 2007 Elton Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette AVA, 410 cases, $45 retail
88 pts – Wedell Cellars, 2006 Hillside Vineyard, Edna Valley, 100 cases, $125 retail

Flight 2:
84 pts – Baretto, 2007 Reserve, Santa Cruz Mountains, 172 cases, $40 retail
89 pts – Escarpment, 2007 Martinborough, New Zealand, 3000 cases, $36.99 retail
87 pts – Signorello, 2007 Estate, Las Amigas Vineyard, Carneros, 104 cases, $50 retail
87 pts – Valley of the Moon Winery, 2008 Carneros, 4440 cases, $20 retail
80 pts – Kyra, 2007 Washington State, 380 cases, $22 retail
91 pts [80-91] - CRU, 2008 Sppellation Series, Santa Lucia Highlands, 240 cases, $32 retail
82 pts – Brandborg, 2006 Estate, Ferris Wheel Estate, Umpqua Valley, 450 cases, $38 retail
91 pts [79-91] – TR Elliott, 2007 Three Plumes, Russian River Valley, 150 cases, $40 retail

Flight 3:
86 pts [82-91] – Pacific Coast Vineyards, 2007 Babcock Vineyard, Santa Rita Hills, 88 cases, $62.50 retail
85 pts [71-91] – Handley Cellars, 2007 Anderson Valley, 4029 cases, $30 retail
86 pts [79-88] – Phillips Hill, 2008 Ring of Fire, Anderson valley, 150 cases, $45 retail
87 pts [79-91] – Surfrider, 2008 Edna Valley, 548 cases, $27 retail
87 pts [75-91] – Lion’s Pride, El Molino High School Vineyard, Russian River Valley, 120 cases, $40 retail
83 pts [80-92] – Orentano, 2007 Russian River Valley, 400 cases, $40 retail
83 pts [80-89] – Wild Earth, 2008 Central otago, 7000 cases, $29.99 retail
84 pts [74-92] – Clary Ranch, 2007 Estate, Clary Ranch Vineyard, Sonoma Coast, 458 cases, $36 retail

Flight 4:
86 pts [75-91] – Villa Mt. Eden, 2007 Grand Reserve, Russian River Valley, 1120 cases, $23 retail
83 pts [76-86] – Firesteed, 2008 Oregon, 25114 cases, $15.99 retail
91 pts [83-92] – Deaver Vineyards, 2007 Sierra Foothills, 112 cases, $24.99 retail
89 pts [79-89] – Kyra, 2008 Washinton State, 350 cases, $22 retail
87 pts [82-91] – Phillips Hill, 2008 Oppenlander Vineyard, Mendocino, 600 cases, $45 retail
84 pts [81-89] – Balletto Vineyards, 2007 Burnside Road vineyard, Russian River Valley, 300 cases, $34 retail
82 pts [81-87] – Erath, 2006 Leland Vineyard, Willamette Valley, 550 cases, $45 retail
85 pts [80-90] – CRU, 2008 Appellation Series, Santa Maria, 317 cases, $32 retail

My scores tended to be in the middle or toward the higher end of the ranges.  I scored the first two flights a bit higher than I probably should have as I needed to calibrate my scoring range a bit.  This is a great example of why wines should be tasted double-blind to make sure they deserve the score given.  If I was judging more often, I think the recalibration time would be much quicker.  Also, after each flight the judges discussed the high and low scores of each wine which is a great way to get feedback on how you are rating a wine.

I hope that my wine makes it into the final round!  I guess only time will tell.