Mike's Wine Blog

1982 Chateau Leoville Barton, Saint Julien

2006-03-26T23:32:00.000-08:00

Medium dark. Open nose with aromas of cherry, currants, chassis and oak. Big forward cherry and current fruit flavors, with hints of leather and tobacco towards the finish that developed as the wine aired, moderate acid, still soft fruity tannins, good structure and a long finish. My rating 90.

Parker rated this wine very highly when it was young, and it has developed into a very good, mature Bordeaux that does not show any signs of decline yet. In fact this wine seems surprising tight for a 20 year old Bordeaux.

2003 Las Rocas de San Alejandro Garnacha Spain Calatayud Vinas Viejas

2006-03-12T20:48:00.000-08:00

Dark. Raspberry and pepper on the nose. Big raspberry, strawberry fruit flavors with spices and pepper, high acid, soft tannins and a long fruity finish. A very fruity young wine that will be nice drinking over the next few years. I paid about $10. My rating 85.

2001 Chateau Bastor-Lamontagne, Sauternes

2006-03-12T20:46:00.000-08:00

Light golden yellow. Nose had lemon and orange aromas. Sweet orange and apricot fruit, moderate acid, and a long sweet, fruity finish. A medium weight young Sauterne. I paid about $20 for a half bottle. My rating 84.

2001 Beringer, Alluvium, Knights Valley

2006-03-08T23:05:00.000-08:00

Dark. Cherry and raspberry aromas. Cherry, chassis, and earthy flavors, moderate acid, soft tannins and long fruity finish. This is a Bordeaux blend that is good for near term drinking, and of the next 5 years or more. I paid $18. My rating 87.

2002 Chateau Souverain, Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley

2006-03-08T23:03:00.000-08:00

Dark. Very tight nose, with hints for cherry. Forward fruit of cherry and chassis, good acid, soft tannins, and a long fruity finish. This is surprisingly tight for a Chateau Souverain. It was very slow to open in the glass. It seems to need a few years to come around. I paid $16. My rating 85.

2004 McMainis Family Vineyards, Cabernet Sauvignon, California

2006-03-08T22:56:00.000-08:00

Dark. Cherry and plum aromas. Black cherry and mineral fruit flavors, low acid, soft tannins, and a long fruity finish. This is a big, flabby young wine. It has intense fruit flavors, but lacks structure. I don’t like it even for current drinking, but my wife liked it. I paid $8, so it may be a good value for those who like this style of wine. I tried this because the retailer claimed Parker praised this wine and it was only $8. My rating 75.

Zinfandel as the California State Wine?

2006-03-06T00:07:00.000-08:00

There is an effort in the California legislature to declare Zinfandel the California State Wine. This has apparently gotten some people up in arms who thing Cabnert Sauvignon is a better wine than Zinfandel. (here , free signup required).

I have been thinking about this and I guess I like the idea of Zinfandel as the California State Wine. What does it mean for a wine to be the state wine. The official California State Bird is the California Valley Quail. Why was it made the state bird? I don’t think I have ever seen one. It certainly is not the most widespread, most common bird in California. I don’t think it is the most beautiful bird we have in California either.

Cabernet Sauvignon is my favorite red wine, and California makes some of the best Cabernet Sauvignon’s in the world. When you think about Cabernet Sauvignon though, you think about Bordeaux as well as California. Bordeaux was producing great Cabernets hundreds of years before there was a single Cabernet Sauvignon vine in California.

On the other hand, Zinfandel is a grape that became famous in California. When you think about Zinfandel, the first place you think about is California. Now Zinfandel actually is a European grape from Croatia, but it became famous once it got to California, so it seems reasonable to me to make it the California State Wine. Now if we could just get more California wine makes to stop making overripe Zinfandel….

2001 Savannah Chanelle, Zinfandel, Santa Cruz Mountains, Estate Bottled

2006-03-05T23:32:00.000-08:00

Medium. Nose and fruit are dominated by raspberry flavors, moderate acid, moderate tannins, and a long fruity finish. This fine example Zinfandel is made from the almost 100 year old vineyard adjacent to the old Savannah Chanelle winery that were rescured by Daniel Gehrs in the mid seventies. Although it is 15.5% alcohol, it did not taste overripe to me. It seems to have improved from when I first tasted it at the winery last spring. My rating 88.

1992 Ridge, Zinfandel, Late Harvest, Lytton Springs Estate Vineyard

2006-03-01T22:43:00.000-08:00

Very dark garnet. Strawberry aromas. Very sweet strawberry and raspberry fruit flavors, soft acid, moderate soft tannins, and long raspberry fruit finish. Although this Zinfandel has 16.0% alcohol and is very sweet with 8% residual sugar, I detected only a slight hint of over ripeness. I think I like the 1991 better. My rating 85.

2004, Cline, Zinfandel, California, Ancient Vines

2006-03-01T22:40:00.000-08:00

Dark. Nose has aromas of strawberries and cherry. Big concentrated strawberry and cherry fruit flavors, moderate acid, modest tannins, and a long overripe fruit flavors on the finish. Another example of the overripe, high alcohol (15.0%) style of Zins which are popular in California winemaking today. We are going to make this the offical California state wine? Not rated.

2003 Cliff Lede, Claret, Stags Leap District

2006-02-20T11:05:00.000-08:00

Dark. Cherry, plum and spice aromas. Cherry, plums, and spices in the forward fruit, good acid, soft, round tannins, long fruit finish. The fruit on this wine developed more intensity on the finish, with hints of chocolate and nutmeg. This is a very appealing young Bordeaux blend wine. I’m not sure how it will age, but it is delicious right now. It is 69% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 1% Malbec.. 1948 cases produced. List price $35. My rating 90.

2001 Ridge, Mazzoni, Home Ranch

2006-02-16T22:53:00.000-08:00

Dark. Tight nose with some strawberry aromas. Big, tight wine with cherry and strawberry fruit flavors, moderate acid, high tannins, and a long fruity finish with a good dose of astringency. I think mostly harmless is the best description of this wine. Maybe it needs some more a few more years to open up. 45% Zinfandel, 50% Carignane, 5% Petite Sirah. My rating 80.

1997 Chateau Raymond-Lafon, Sauternes

2006-02-16T22:51:00.000-08:00

Golden. Nose has aromas of honey, apricots and oranges. It is very sweet, rich and oily in the mouth, with flavors of oranges and honey, moderate acid, and a long sweet finish. This is a good, young Sauternes, but I am a little worried about the acid for long term aging. Perhaps it just has so much big, fat fruit now that the acid is not showing. My rating 89.

1982 Chateau Lynch-Bages

2006-02-06T22:55:00.000-08:00

I had several bottle of this wine last year, here and here, and this one was very similar. It seems to have held up slightly better than the March 2005 bottle, even though the cork was stained all the way up the side and was not tightly seated. The cork broke into two large pieces while getting it out. The wine had earthy flavors with licorice and tobacco to add complexity to the cherry and chassis. My rating 91.

This was my Super Bowl wine. I thought it went well with the game. It definitely was not a wimpy wine.

2002 Savannah Chanelle, Pinot Noir, Armagh Vineyard

2006-02-06T22:53:00.000-08:00

Medium garnet. Cheery and spicey oak nose. Cherry and raspberry fruit flavors, moderate acid, soft tannin, and a long fruity finish. A very nice Pinot Noir with lots of fruit and good structure. My rating 86.

2002 Testarossa, Pinot Noir, Bien Nacido Vineyard

2006-02-05T00:57:00.000-08:00

Medium garnet. Cherry and oak on the nose. Big forward fruit flavors of cherry, plums, and raspberry with hints of muskiness, moderate acid and a long fruit finish. A very good Pinot Noir that continued to improve with airing. My rating 88.

I recently tasted the 2004 Bien Nacido Pinot Noir from Testarossa at the winery. It is very good, perhaps slightly better than this 2002, but the 2004 is very young and tight and needs a couple of years to open up.

2004 Cline, Cashmere

2006-02-05T00:53:00.000-08:00

Medium dark. Aromas of cherry and chocolate. Forward fruit has overripe flavors of chocolate and coffee, moderate acid, soft tannins and a long finish. The fruit has so much potential, but like the 2003 Cashmere, it tastes hopelessly overripe to me. The alcohol is 15.0%. Not rated.

1981 Chateau Margaux

2006-02-01T19:41:00.000-08:00

Medium dark, brownish around the edges. Open nose with aromas of cherry, cedar and spices. As it aired, the nose developed smoky overtones. Cherry and chassis fruit flavors dominate, with smoke, leather and spices, moderate acid, soft tannins, and a long fruity finish. Margaux is all about fitness and elegance, and this bottle certainly showed plenty of that. It does not have the power or concentration of a Latour, but it is superbly balanced with rich, complex fruit flavors. Definitely ready to drink, and will probably hold for a few more years. My rating 92.

The 1981 vintage of Margaux was overshadowed by the 1982 and 1983 vintages, which at the time were considered powerhouse wines. I have some of the 1983 Margaux and hopefully will get around to trying a bottle of it this year.

1986 Chateau Raymond-Lafon, Sauternes

2006-02-01T19:36:00.000-08:00

Golden. Rich nose with aromas of apricots and oranges. Big intense fruit flavors or caramel, honey, oranges and spices, high acid and a very long, fruity finish. A huge, balanced and very smooth, almost creamy, Sauternes. The best Sauternes I have had in a long time. It still seems very youthful, and shows no signs of decline. I expect it will continue to hold for a number of more years. I think this is clearly showing better than the 1983 Chateau Raymond-Lafon right now. My rating 91.

In the 1980s Parker speculated on how the 1983 and 1986 Chateau Raymond-Lafon would develop. Having tried both of these recently, it seems to me the 1986 is showing better right now, but the 1983 seems more youthful. The 1986 seems mature while the 1983 shows promise for further improvement.

2001 Cline, Zinfandel, Big Break

2006-01-28T14:08:00.000-08:00

Dark. Open nose with cherry, strawberry and eucalyptus aromas. Rich cherry, strawberry, eucalyptus and spice fruit flavors, good acid, moderate soft tannins, and a long fruity finish with a aftertaste of mint. Some people might be turned off by the mint and eucalyptus in this big Zinfandel, but I find it very attractive. It is ready to drink but will hold for at least 5 more years. This wine is made from 100-year-old head trained vines. I’m not sure what the price on this wine was, but the 2003 from this vineyard is $28 list. My rating is 90.

1998 Ridge, Syrah, Lytton Estate

2006-01-23T23:11:00.000-08:00

Very dark. Black raspberry aromas on the nose. Big black raspberry and strawberry fruit flavors with hints of chocolate, moderate acid, substantial tannins, and a long fruity finish. This is a huge wine that needs a bit more time. 90% Syrah, 10% Viognier. My rating 88.

I tasted this wine while watching the NFL league championship games. What do other people think is a good Supper Bowl wine?

2002 Cliff Lede, Pinot Noir, Napa Valley

2006-01-22T18:02:00.000-08:00

Medium dark. Cherry and cedar on the nose. Black cherry, spicey, moderate acid, soft tannins, and a long fruity finish. A nice Pinot Noir. I think this wine was around $25 to $30. My rating 85.

From my visit last summer to Cliff Lede, I expect them to discontinue this wine sometime in the next few years.

2002 Ridge, Grenache, Lytton Estate

2006-01-22T18:00:00.000-08:00

Dark. Strawberry and raspberry aromas on the nose. Big, concentrated strawberry and raspberry fruit flavors, moderate acid, some soft tannin, and a long fruity finish. The intense forward fruit was very good, but on the finish the fruit tasted slightly overripe. Still, this is a nice Grenache with loads of concentrated fruit flavors. 78% Grenache, 13% Petite Sirah, and 9% Zinfandel. 14.7% Alcohol. My rating 83.

1982 Chateau Branaire-Ducru, Saint Julien

2006-01-21T18:25:00.000-08:00

Medium dark, brownish around the rim. Open nose of red cherry and cedar with hints of smoke. Red cherry and chassis, moderate acid, soft tannins, and long fruity finish. A very good mature Bordeaux with nice fruit flavors, but lacking in the complexity of a top Bordeaux. The wine is ready to drink and doesn’t show signs of decline yet. My rating 89.

As you can see in the picture, I paid $15.80 for this wine. This was after the 1982 Bordeaux had arrived in the US and the prices had already gone up. I wish I could find wine of this quality for that price today.

2001 Ridge, Zinfandel, Dusi Ranch

2006-01-21T18:22:00.000-08:00

Very dark. Open nose of strawberry and cherry. Big forward overripe strawberry, cherry and raspberry fruit flavors, moderate acid, soft tannins, and long fruity, hot finish. This is a very fruity, but overripe Zinfandel. The Alchol is 15.2%, Not rated.