Hello, Feastlings.
We’ve consolidated our Saturday tasting with our Last Sunday tasting because we felt Easter would not only keep some of you from being able to attend, but it would also prevent us from conducting a tasting we could be proud of. So Kevin will be leading the tasting, but it will be priced like a Last Sunday tasting (that is, $35 plus tax and tip) and we’ll serve paired snacks as well. The
tasting will still be at 2:00, this Saturday, March 26th, and the wines will be, well, extra large. There are only a few spots left in the tasting, and you may recall that web or email reservations won’t do the trick, so if you’d like to join us, please call us at 326-9363.
Go Big or Go Home
2013 Emmolo Merlot, Rutherford $45.00
Tasting Notes from Winemaker Jenny Wagner: “My goal for this wine was to create a well-balanced Merlot with superbly rich fruit, soft tannins and dark color. This first release exhibits aromas of mahogany smoke, leather and brown spice, while earthy flavors intertwine with caramelized plum and smooth tannins reminiscent of ground cocoa.”
2011 Trinchero “Chicken Ranch” Merlot, Rutherford $40.00
This Merlot is more rustic and old-world in style than our other wines. A pretty wine, it showcases bright raspberry, pomegranate and cranberry aromas with hints of Chinese five spice. Good acidity and integrated oak lead into a luscious midpalate with a pleasant tart undertone. This is an elegant, approachable and very food-friendly wine”. – Mario Monticelli, winemaker
2008 Conde de San Cristóbal Vino Tinto, Ribera del Duero $27.00
From the winery: “The grapes for our wines come from the vineyards surrounding our cellar that are located at 1,925 to 2,175 feet above the sea level. The age of vines varies between 14 and 30 years. Our estate is comprised from seven different types of soils: sandy-loam, limestone-loam, clay, loam with layers of marl, sandy-clay, chalky-clay, and river alluvial soils. During the harvest, the hand-picked grapes reach the winery within 40 minutes where they are carefully classified on the selection table.”
2010 Speri “Monte Sant’Urbano” Amarone Classico della Valpolicella DOCG $63.00
Aged for 4 years in medium size Slovenian oak casks and new Allier oak then 12 months in bottle. Undisputedly symbolic of the Speri company, the Amarone Monte Sant’Urbano is a superb example of a fine, classic wine. It is an extraordinary wine with great complexity and a vigorous structure which has always been top for its elegance and quality. After carefully selecting the best bunches from the prestigious Monte Sant’Urbano vineyard, the grapes are left to dry for a long period (3-4 months depending on the vintage year). This creates a wine with plenty of structure and softness which will certainly age well.
2011 Flora Springs Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa $45.00
Grapes for this heady Cabernet Sauvignon are sourced from three of the most prestigious appellations in Napa Valley: Oakville, Rutherford, and Saint Helena. As in previous vintages, we press off a portion of our grapes early to minimize skin contact and retain the bright fruit forward character of the fruit. The balance is then left on the skins for an extended period of time to extract tannins which round out the mid-palate and create a lovely long finish. Chocolate-covered cherries, Herbes de Provence, fresh boysenberries, and a hint of tarragon waft from the glass to the nose. Deeply rich, provocative flavors of black licorice, rhubarb, and Asian plum round out the palate. This is a full-bodied wine yet its soft supple tannins lend to a silky smooth finish. Barbecue skewers and grilled vegetables would pair beautifully with this big, expressive wine.
2011 Mas Doix “Salanques” Priorat $36.00
Curiously enough the oak is more evident in the nose of the 2011 Salanques, as the warmer, drier vintage produced a riper juice that took the aromas and flavors (and possibly tannins) out of the barrels in a different way. It’s a blend of 65% Garnacha, 25% Cariñena and 10% Syrah denoting very good ripeness and all those spicy/smoky aromas from the élevage. The palate is powerful, concentrated and ripe with abundant, dusty tannins and a dry, cocoa-tinged finish. Even this will benefit from some more time in bottle. They didn’t produce Mas Doix in 2011, so some of the grapes usually destined for the Grand Vin made it into this cuvée. 18,000 bottles produced.