Provenance Vineyards, September 18, 2013

www.provenancevineyards.com

I was hoping to pick up my September wine club shipment, but the e-mail announcing its availability hadn’t arrived (and never would, it later turned out).  Still, I wanted to share my favorite winery with my good friend so that he might also learn about Provenance.  My friend enjoyed all of the wines they offer, but was really impressed with the Cabernet Franc and its value.  I was glad to try a couple of newly released wines too.  As it turns out, the one wine I enjoyed the most would be a part of my September club shipment.  I was a little disappointed that the 2010 Hewitt Cabernet Sauvignon was not yet on the tasting menu, but I will look for it again when I return in November to pick up the September and November shipments.

This visit I wanted to taste some of my favorites.  I started off with the 2010 Winemaker's Reserve, a Bordeaux-style blend including Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.  Next, I tried the 2009 Beckstoffer To Kalon Cabernet Sauvignon, followed by the 2009 Beckstoffer TK2 Cabernet Sauvignon (a slection of the better lots from the former), then the 2007 Hewitt Cabernet Sauvignon and ended with the 2009 Hewitt Cabernet Sauvignon .  My favorite of the Provenance wines was the To Kalon Cabernet Sauvignon for its ripe fruits and great balance.


A full review was written already about Provenance Vineyards during my visit on February 8^th, 2012.

October 14, 2013 – Wine: 2003 Chappellet Signature Cabernet Sauvignon

When this wine was young back in 2006, it sure delivered the wow!  I remember buying two half-bottles speculatively when it was first released (thinking what pretty packaging).  After opening the first bottle, I was so impressed that I sought out a case of half bottles.  Wine Enthusiast’s 94-point endorsement of the wine confirmed my initial impressions of the wine too.  The next few bottles I opened were all wonderful.  Then, the wine went into the oddest state of being thin, off-dry and unbalanced that made it unlikeable.  This continued through four bottles, so I decided to bring one of the remaining bottles to the winery to get their impression.  (One or two bottles is variation, but four bottles makes a trend.)  By the time I got to the winery in 2010, the wine had evolved again into a full-bodied, balanced, complex Cabernet and my point was lost.  The winery was not interested in tasting again three years later so I decided to open the next bottle myself.  I found the wine to be quite complex with fascinating intensity while still maintaining decent balance.  On the palette I noted dark cherry, red currant, baking spices, leather, and minerals.  I am looking forward to opening the one remaining half-bottle of this wine.

2003 Chappellet Signature Cabernet Sauvignon

October 10, 2013 – Wine: 2006 Ridge Lytton Springs

This was probably my least inspiring bottle of this wine (I had bought six half-bottles when released).  In the past, this wine showed lively fruit, great structure and balance, and nice texture.  Of course, the 2006 vintage was unkind to most wines made from Northern California grapes, but this wine had bucked the trend.  Tonight I had opened the bottle too late to give it a decent decant before drinking, and I was penalized for not doing so.  The wine tasted a little thin and suggested it was past its peak – for the first 90 minutes, that is.  Then, the minerals presented themselves and pulled the wine into balance.  I have added a note to my catalog to let this wine open next time.

2006 Ridge Lytton Springs

October 5, 2013 – Wines for a block party

I know … I’m a fast becoming wine snob.  At the block party, my neighbors gracefully offered me a glass of the wine they had brought out to share.  It was a 2011 Forest Glen Merlot, which they bought for under $4.  I tasted it and was surprised that the wine performed better than most of the 2011 red wines I had tried the day before at my favorite wine store, each selling for $15 to $25.  I provided the next bottle (and the two after that) to share the kind of wines that I enjoy.  Of course, I drew from my party wine stack, but even those wines are hand-picked for their quality-to-value delivery.  Each bottle was well received by my neighbors.  Here is what I opened:

2010 Artezin Mendocino Zinfandel: 
This wine has good body and excellent balance, nice structure, and properly restrained Zinfandel appeal.  And at $12 a bottle, I’m wondering why I bought only three.

2009 Provenance Napa Valley Merlot: 
Needless to say, there was no comparison between this wine and the Forest Glen.  This Merlot is structured, complex, ripe, and well composed with a good finish.  The Forest Glen was tasty, balanced, and simple (but nearly elegant).

2009 Savannah-Chanel Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir: 

The poor folks at the winery probably felt this fruit-bomb Pinot Noir would never come around, so they cleared it out at 2/3 the original price.  For $14, this was a fun Pinot Noir in its youth.  Now it is developing some sophistication and the fruit is taking its proper place, which is really making me appreciate having bought a whole case of it.  I’m not yet at the point where I don’t want to share it, but getting close.

November 6, 2013 – A toast to my brother’s life

Yesterday afternoon, I received the news that my younger brother had died.  His death ended a multi-year effort to recover from a serious bicycling accident.  His prognosis was never too upbeat, but recently seemed less so.  The good news that I can take away from this is that he no longer suffers from his injuries or recovery.  My brother had always celebrated life his way.  He stayed connected with his family and attracted many friends.  His death will leave a void in all of our lives that can only be capped with pleasant memories from our lives together.  Tonight, in his honor, my mother and I will raise a glass and toast to his life.  The wine I have selected for this occasion is the 2001 Hewitt Cabernet Sauvignon.  I just left the bottle at my mother’s house for an extended breathe (about two hours or so).

Corison Winery, September 18, 2013

www.corison.com

I had a wine club pickup at Corison as well, so I decided to stop by and try some wines while I was there.  Unlike the comfy confines of the Freemark Abbey member’s tasting room, the Corison tasting experience puts you right in the middle of their operations.  While the grapes outside were eagerly awaiting harvest, new oak barrels had been delivered to the Corison operations building and were standing there, still wrapped in plastic.  It must be the engineer in me that really appreciates the proximity to the operations and seeing the details of how wine is made.  Corison is a great place to visit just after harvest to witness first-hand the winemaking process.

Brand new wine barrels await final preparations before being filled with the 2013 harvest at Corison.

This wine club shipment featured the newly released 2010 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.  As I usually do, I like to taste the wine before I decide how many bottles to tuck away in my cellar.  Structurally, the 2010 is very similar to the 2009.  Flavor-wise, the 2010 is earthier and suggests dark chocolate, while the 2009 leans more toward ripe berry flavors.  We were also offered a number of other wines to taste, so I selected the 2004 and 2005 Napa Valley Cabernets to taste.  These are two of my favorite vintages from Corison and tasting them is a pleasure.  The 2005 is my favorite of all that I tasted at Corison today.


A full review was written already about Corison Winery during my visit on April 6^th, 2012.

September 24, 2013 – Wine: 2003 Robert Biale Black Chicken

If only I had started drinking wine a few years earlier, I would have realized just how good the 2003 vintage was for Zinfandel and how rare it is to get a great Zinfandel vintage.  Then I could have stocked up on the stuff.  So, when I recently found this 2003 Zinfandel by a great Napa Valley vintner on sale, I quickly snatched it up.  Alas, there was just the one bottle available, but what a delicious bottle it turned out to be.  This elegant Zinfandel has good body, a sense of richness, good balance, great fruit, minerals, and spices.