Notes From The Cellar » Napa Valley

☆ 2009 The Prisoner

Steve — Wed, 25 May 2011 15:00:55 +0000

A Slight Decline, But Still Sublime

I am a big fan of The Prisoner. This is not news to anyone who previously read my rhapsodic review of the 2008 vintage. If you haven’t, feel free to, either now, or when you’re finished here.

I’m also a big fan of this wine, although it does show some dissimilarities with its immediate predecessor.

For one thing, while Orin Swift Cellars is still the name on the bottle, a new crew owns The Prisoner. The 2009 is the first vintage bottled by The Prisoner’s new owners, Huneeus Vintners, who also own (among others) Quintessa and Faust in Napa Valley, Flowers on the Sonoma Coast, and Veramonte in Chile.

I’m not so sure the change in ownership has benefitted the wine. In fact, before finding any of this out, I had already decided I preferred the 2008. Still, this remains one of the single finest value buys in Napa Valley wine in my opinion. At $35 per bottle, you can easily do much, much worse.

In fact, don’t let my hand-wringing over the inside baseball of ownership dissuade you: this is some really, really good wine.

The 2009 Prisoner has a dark burgundy core in the glass, that lightens a bit to red at its edges. On the nose you’ll find ripe cherries, a touch of strawberry and raspberry. The nose is almost entirely fruit, and not quite as complex as the previous vintage. The wine is medium bodied, and the palate gives more of the complex aromas and flavors that are missing a bit from the nose: incredibly bright, jammy raspberry and cherry notes mingle with subtle dark chocolate and just a touch of smoke.

Soft, supple tannins round out the mouthfeel. Incredibly tasty.

Hopefully, Huneeus won’t fix what ain’t broke, and hopefully fans will be able to enjoy The Prisoner for years to come.

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☆ 2007 Raymond Sommelier Selection Cabernet Sauvignon

Steve — Mon, 09 May 2011 15:00:14 +0000

The Sommelier Selects the Uninspired

Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t bad wine. It might not be easy to find, and it might not be the cheapest (Raymond’s “Reserve Selection” sells for less and is more readily available, from what I can discern), but it isn’t bad. The thing is, it isn’t particularly good, either.

These are tough wines to write about. Wines from renowned producers (or at the very least, popular producers), that really are not examples of bad wine, but that I also can’t get all giddy excited about and explain breathlessly to you why you should drink it.

I know this is available by the glass at a local wine bar to me, because that’s where I tried it, but you may not have a hip wine bar near you. You may not be able to find the Sommelier Selection, but if you really like cabernet (who doesn’t?), the following notes sound up your alley, the price is right, and the opportunity presents… you could do much worse.

The wine is dark ruby red at its core, and only lightens a touch, to a brighter shade of ruby. On the nose is a bit too much alcohol for my taste, but some nice blackberry and black cherry, and a hint of cedar box.

The 2007 Raymond Sommelier Selection is light to medium-bodied, with a short finish, and tannins that are present, but not too rough on you. Mostly-similar notes to the nose appear on the palate, including the black cherry and cedar, but there is a touch of herbaciousness here, something just a touch green, that you’ll either love or hate, depending on how you like your cabernet.

I can recommend the Raymond, it’s a bit simple, but easy to drink and inoffensive.

☆ 2008 Cakebread Cellars Sauvignon Blanc

Steve — Wed, 04 May 2011 16:00:45 +0000

More Than Just A Summer Sipper

The days are getting warm again.

As my diligent temperature-tracking tool for my hometown of Walnut Creek, CA, will attest, it got up over 81° F on Monday. May is here, Spring is in full swing, and barbecue season is right around the corner.

Fittingly enough, this is a wine I drank for the first time last summer. It’s just the kind of wine I want to turn to in the coming months, with their hot days, warm nights, perfect barbecue weather, and all that. A picnic in the park! See, I just thought of another place to drink this wine!

Cakebread Cellars has put together this very nice sauvignon blanc from not just sauv blanc, but from sauvignon musqué (an aromatic clone of sauv blanc) and semillon, with which sauv blanc is blended in almost every Bordeaux Blanc in France.

The wine goes through a very specific, and I find quite interesting, fermentation and aging process. 67% of the 2008 sauv blanc was fermented in steel tanks, then aged in neutral French oak barrels; 18% was fermented and aged in barrel; 15% was fermented and aged in tank, with no barrel time at all. A blend of processes like this makes for a very complete, well-rounded wine.

The 2008 Cakebread sauvignon blanc is light yellow in the glass, but like a lot of sauv blancs that I love (and I do love me some sauv blanc), there is a nice hint of green to the color of the wine. On the nose are crisp notes of apple and pear, very clean. The wine itself, though, is a touch more tropical, with notes of mango and melon to go along with the apple from the nose, plus a hint of sweet citrus and clean, biting minerality that I quite liked.

It might be a touch too sweet for me to get to a “freak out” stage for this wine, but overall, it’s an incredibly well-rounded, tasty, refreshing, and interesting white wine. More than just your average summer sipper, for sure; but definitely good to sip in the summer.

☆ 2008 Tallulah Como

Steve — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 15:00:41 +0000

Napa White Shows Off Less-Common French Grapes

I like white wine. I actually do. If you’re reading this, chances are decent that you yourself are a wine blogger, or at the least you’re kind of a wine nerd. So maybe you haven’t experienced, recently, the concept that so many people have in life, which is that they are either “white wine” drinkers or “red wine” drinkers.

Me, I’m a wino (and a discussion about “taking that term back” would be a worthy one, for another time).

While I once would have sworn up-and-down that red wine is the only wine for me, I have long ago now (or so it seems) accepted that good wine comes in many different—ahem—varieties.

And this, dear readers, is the kind of white wine I get especially excited about.

First off, the varietal makeup here is not something you’re going to be particularly familiar with, as it’s predominantly a lesser-drunk-here-in-the-States Rhône Valley grape (marsanne), mixed with an only-slightly-more-common Rhône grape (viognier) and the Queen of White Wine (and of Burgundy), chardonnay.

More precisely, the 2008 Como from Tallulah Wines is Napa Valley juice, and 53% marsanne, 37% chardonnay, and 10% viognier.

So, what’s it like? Tasty. Tasty, tasty, tasty.

The wine is bright in the glass, and gives off a bright, sharp yellow-gold color. The nose starts off a bit predictable—featuring a pear note off the bat—then starts throwing you curve balls, as some light spices mix with ripe melon and apricot aromas.

The wine is medium-to-full bodied, which I found I expected due to its color and viscosity when swirled. The spice notes from the nose mix with a tropical cornucopia of citrus (mostly orange), pineapple, and cantaloupe.

The fuller-bodied nature of this wine keeps me from describing it as particularly “crisp,” but the tropical, melon-revolving aromas and flavors are so refreshing, that this still works wonders as a chilled summertime white.

Even if you’d never heard of marsanne.

Verdict: A-

Tallulah Wines

☆ 2005 Marita’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon

Steve — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 17:00:28 +0000

Meet Marita

This, my dear friends and people who read me because they hate me but want to see what I’ll do/say next, is some friggin’ Napa Valley Cab.

Marita’s Vineyard Special Private Reserve Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (say that fivefold fast) is a pretty fantastic bottle of wine, if I do say so myself (and I do). Limited to 225 cases, this 100% hillside cabernet sauvignon is something everyone should try.

Unfortunately, by virtue of the fact that it runs a buck-and-a-half per, not everyone’s going to be able to. C’est la vie, n’est-ce pas, mes amis?

First off, the wine comes in one of the heaviest glass bottles I’ve ever encountered. Seriously, when I opened the box the bottle came in, I thought for a second it was a 1 liter bottle or something. It’s not, it’s a standard 750, but a good 10% taller and maybe 20% wider than most of the other 750s I have in my cellar. And heavy. Even empty (and hooo boy did I finish this one) the bottle felt like it might be half full.

I know the point of thick, heavy glass bottles is to lend a measure of elegance, perhaps even gravitas, to the wine. I couldn’t help thinking about the environmental impact of all that extra glass. Extra energy to make the bottles, if not recycled properly, extra glass in the trash/landfills and all.

It’s the exact opposite delivery mechanism mentality from the NPA, for instance.

But whatever, I’m not actually that concerned about it. Much more concerned about the juice, so shall we?

2005 Marita's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon

First things first: the wine is damn near black in the glass. It lightens to a rich ruby at the very edges, and mine showed just the slightest hint of tanning near the edge as well.

The nose is incredibly nicely balanced between some fruit aromas—mostly blackberry and rhubarb—and the other side of the cabernet aroma world, namely hints of leather and cigar box and cedar. On the palate, the wine is full bodied, and announces its presence with authority.

But it’s not a fruit bomb. It doesn’t “punch” you, as it were. And at 14%, it isn’t overly alcoholic for its robustness and size. It’s well balanced, all in all. The finish is long, the entire experience is lustrous and smooth, with soft, lush tannins and an overarching elegance that just rocks. It fucking tastes good, too, with fruit aromas of blackberry and black cherries that dance around.

Altogether, this is elegant, grown-up, still delicious wine, with lots of nuance and incredible balance. This is Napa Valley cab, writ large.

Verdict: 93/100
Price Point: $150

(full disclosure: this wine was provided to me as a press sample from VinTank)

☆ 2008 The Prisoner

Steve — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 16:00:05 +0000

Gladly Taken Prisoner

Orin Swift Cellars is new.

I don’t mean “new” like they were just formed yesterday, or this is their first vintage, or even that you probably haven’t heard of them. They weren’t, the first release of The Prisoner was the 2003 vintage, and it’s entirely likely that you have.

What I mean is that they’re nouveau. They’re young, and vibrant, and current, and modern. Exciting and interesting, doing things and saying things.

Winery honcho/winemaker/jefe Dave Phinney likes him some zinfandel. The first wine he released under the Orin Swift Cellars name was the 2003 Prisoner, a zinfandel-based blend of some incredible Napa juice. The latest vintage is no different.

The 2008 Prisoner is 46% zinfandel, 26% cabernet sauvignon, 15% syrah, 10% petite sirah, 2% charbono, and 1% grenache. The main players, in my opinion, are the first three, and before you read on you should probably try to think, for a second, what a zinfandel/cab sauv/syrah blend might be like.

Ready?

If your first thought was “big,” you get a gold friggin’ star.

Luckily for me, and everyone else who’s had the fortune of drinking the 2008 Prisoner, “big” is not the only appropriate descriptor here. Fruit-forward, balanced, acidic, earthy all work as well. So, the notes, then?

The wine is dark as night in the core of the glass, and lightens to a bright ruby red at the edges. The nose is lush with sweet cherries and darker, richer blackberries, plus a hint of tobacco or cigar box aromas. It smells rich. It smells like it’s not about to fuck around.

The Prisoner is a full-bodied wine that really coats your mouth. Here is an actual note I wrote in my notebook:

Tannin structure out the ass

This, I assure you, should be translated as “lots of structure.” The tannins aren’t rough or overpowering, though. Raspberry and cherry do a little dance, make a little love, and get down with a nicely-balanced earthiness and acidity that just makes itself known on the mid-palate. The lingering finish of cherries keeps you coming back for more.

I say god damn, this is some tasty wine.

The Prisoner has gained a cult following, and it is deserved. This latest vintage is a great example of California red blends done well, and for around $30 a bottle it won’t take your pocketbook captive.

Verdict: 95/100

2008 The Prisoner

☆ 2008 Gamble Family Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc

Steve — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 16:00:36 +0000

Hot Days, Cool Wine

The days have been hot here in Northern California. We’ve been joking that 2010 is the first year on record in the East Bay with no spring. One day it was raining and cold, the next day it was 95 degrees.

Hot days call for crisp, chilled white wine (or rosé, of course). This Yountville single-vineyard sauv blanc is just what the global warming ordered.

I have something of a love affair with sauvignon blanc. I was one of those guys who wouldn’t drink white wine. It wasn’t even that I necessarily didn’t like white wine, it was that I thought if I drank it, it made me some kind of wuss. Now, at 6’3″ and what my mother would lovingly refer to as a “husky” build, I don’t think too many people would have made an issue of pointing out my wussiness in carrying a glass of white wine around a party, but peer pressure’s a bitch.

So when I started drinking white wine, and started liking it, sauvignon blanc was a big part of that. Possibly just because it wasn’t chardonnay. Now that I’m a big proponent of drinking white wine (I cringe when people say “well, I really only drink red wine” like they’ve had all the whites on the planet), I’ve found reasons to like most of them.

I usually like a stinky sauv blanc. This isn’t that. The 2008 Gamble is very light in the glass, almost clear. Sauvignon blancish to begin with, for certain. The nose features notes of green apple and wet grass—some of the “stinkiness” I like.

On the palate, however, no stink/stank/funk/whatever. The wine is light bodied, dry and crisp, featuring notes of fuji and green apples, and some underripe tart honeydew melon. The finish lingers, featuring mostly the less-tart fuji apple on the back end.

Nice. Real nice, crisp and “refreshing” (I still struggle with using that to describe any wine, really). Perfect for hot days. Not a ton of acidity, and a hint of barrel-aging might make this a little more of an acquired taste for hardcore sauv blanc fans, but I can easily recommend it.

Verdict: B+

☆ 2006 B Legacy Reserve Merlot

Steve — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 15:00:37 +0000

Masterful Merlot Makes Me Melt

I’ve reviewed a few merlots, though most have been in meritage blends or as part of what is officially a cabernet sauvignon. Of the wines that are 100% (or, at least, predominantly) merlot that I have reviewed, the verdicts ranged from D to B+.

I’m not the biggest merlot fan on the planet, this is something I’ve said numerous times. However, I loathe no variety, and am always looking for the merlot to turn me back to the grape.¹ I say “back” because the first red wine I drank with any regularity² was merlot. I drank a lot of it, though not with much discretion.

But I digress. The fact of the matter is, I think I found that merlot. I think I found a wine made of 100% merlot grapes, from Napa, no less,³ that has gotten me truly excited about merlot in general again.

This may end up meaning I’m disappointed a lot as I drink merlots that don’t stand up to this one, but c’est la vie.

So what can you expect from the 2006 B Legacy Reserve Merlot from Bolen Family Estates? A lot. In the glass, the juice is gorgeous, shimmering slightly from ruby red at the core, to an only-slightly-lighter cardinal red on the edges.

The nose is subtle, and although the alcohol content is relatively high,⁴ there is no residual heat on the nose to get in the way. In the way of what? Exceptional notes of stewed raspberry, dark cherries, and a hint of allspice. Very inviting, very nuanced.

The B Legacy doesn’t disappoint when you actually go to drink it. It’s medium bodied, with great structure and balance. At first, the majority of the experience is rich, lush, fleshy fruit, a lot of plum and cranberry. Eventually, this wine tastes like Christmas. The cranberry is joined by hints of nutmeg and peppermint that just top off the experience.

It’s delicious wine, and very surprising for me.⁵ Only 120 cases of the 2006 were made, and as you ought to expect given that’s the case, it’s not cheap at $60 per bottle. It is, however, worth it.

Verdict: 94/100

(photo: surreptitiously, and with all apologies, stolen from Bolen Family Estates’ website.)

Footnotes

I’m sure Chateau Petrus would do it, but I don’t happen to have $400 on me…
In my—ahem—”early” 20s
The Oak Knoll District, a personal favorite, to be exact
Forgive me, everyone, for going off memory only here, but I believe it was above 14%
Being, as I am, no great lover of merlot

☆ NV Domaine Chandon étoile Brut

Steve — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 15:00:15 +0000

Supple Sparkler Celebrates Site Centennial

It’s my 100th wine review on Notes From The Cellar.¹

I think it only fitting, then, that my 100th review is that of a celebratory wine. A real aperitif-style sparkling wine from the Napa outpost of one of Champagne’s greatest chateaux, Moët et Chandon.

The Domaine Chandon étoile Brut is DC’s prestige cuvée,² and while it’s certainly no Dom Perignon, it’s a tasty little sucker. Aged for at least five years sur lees, it’s a wine they take very good care of.

In the glass, the wine is an extremely light yellow. Really, it’s off-white. The bubbles are tiny, and though there aren’t a ton of them, they move swiftly and put on a helluva show. On the nose, the wine shows off some pretty awesome notes of shortbread, lemon, apple, and vanilla.

The étoile is light bodied and crisp, with notes of honey and candied lemon zest joining a yeasty creaminess, and the apple and vanilla notes from the nose.

There’s a lot going on here, but don’t be scared off. The Domaine Chandon étoile is a wonderful way to toast a celebration—even one much, much more significant than a wine blog’s 100th wine review.

Verdict: A-

NV Domaine Chandon étoile Brut

Footnotes

To be fair, this isn’t the hundredth wine I’ve reviewed. The Wine Cube got two different treatments, and I’ve done one vertical review of four wines, those of Dunn Howell Mountain, but this is the 100th post I’ve made that has been marked “review.”
I find it hard to believe they even use this term, when—and someone feel free to correct me if I’m wrong—I believe the prestige cuvées from Champagne are always vintage wines

☆ 2007 Leviathan

Steve — Fri, 21 May 2010 15:00:39 +0000

Color Me Converted

Ah, the “Napa Cult Wine.” The perennially-overpriced subject of scorn and ridicule the internet over. Everyone’s tired of Napa fruit and paying the Napa markup. There’s nothing new under the sun, everyone out there is overrated anyway, so forth and so on and et cetera ad nauseum.

Anyone from Napa still reading? I think all that’s horsehockey, by the way. Just wanted to get everyone on the same page.

Still, of the Napa Cult Wines I’ve had, the 2007 Leviathan is the first one to truly live up to all the hype. And what hype there is for this wine!

Some background: Leviathan is a garage wine project from husband-and-wife duo, winemaker Andy Erickson (Screaming Eagle, Staglin, Hartwell, Favia, Ovid, Dancing Hares, Jonata, Dalla Valle, Arietta) and viticulturalist Anie Favia (Screaming Eagle, Favia, and Abreu). Erickson has an MS in Enology from UC Davis, and cut his teeth in the 1990s at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars.

The Napa pedigree on these two is second-to-none. So what about the wine?

40% cabernet franc, 30% cabernet sauvignon, 16% syrah, and 14% merlot, all Napa juice. It’s maybe the best red blend I’ve had. Ever.

In the glass, the wine is gorgeous, with a brilliant garnet core and only slightly lighter ruby edges. On the nose is some really awesome fruit, like blackcurrant, raspberry, and ripe red cherry, but it’s all muted and held in check by a bit of nutmeg and allspice.

This is as full-bodied as wine gets, without getting sickly sweet and syrupy like dessert wine. The tannins are soft and lush, and everything here is in such balance, that I didn’t notice any of the heat. And at 14.5%, I was expecting it. Blackberry and raspberry are the main notes on the palate, and the wine does remain fantasically fruity.

If you’re an anti-flavor fascist, you won’t care for this wine. But if you still love juice for being juice (even if only sometimes) then you need to try this. It isn’t even that expensive, available for $40–$50 from numerous online retailers. Sure, that’s no drop in the bucket, but this isn’t an “everyday” drinker. The tannins and balance lead me to believe you could easily get 5+ years of aging out of it if you wanted, but it tastes so fucking good right now, I wouldn’t bother.

I’m a convert to the cult of Leviathan. This is crazy, silly good juice.

Verdict: 97/100

(photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mamjodh/ / CC BY 2.0)