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7-25-2002
WHITES
2000 Benessere, Napa/Carneros,
California, Pinot Grigio
Light straw yellow, aromas of floral, apple, citrus, slightly tropical,
vanilla, lees and earth, hints of petrol and perhaps a shade of
grassiness, palate shows green apple, hint of citrus, lees and toasted
vanilla oak, medium body, crisp to somewhat tart acidity and hint
of tannic astringency, a sour finish with good length. Interesting
and pleasant though fairly simply. Easy drinking.
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Average Value
2001 Chateau de Pampelonne,
Cotes du Provence, France, Rose of Red Rhones
Light pinkish salmon in color, very appealing aromas of spice, rose
petals, strawberry, apple, toast, earth and minerals, the palate
shows some meaty, gamey character along with strawberry/raspberry,
apple, lees and herbs, seemingly very little oak, if any, light
to medium body, crisp to tart acidity, very nicely balanced. Great
sipping wine, lots of character, very dry. Great value at $10.
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Good Value
REDS
2000 Carlisle, Tom
Feeney Ranch, Russian River Valley, California, Zinfandel
Dark red, nose shows ripe roasted aromas of raisin, plum, prune,
caramel, vanilla oak and brown spice, very ripe flavors of black
cherry, chocolate, pepper, licorice, espresso, menthol, pepper,
stems and oak, some bitterness on the attack, generous style, a
bit over the top. Full bodied, moderate to slightly crisp acidity,
moderately strong tannins. Very stylistic wine. Not the typical
flavor profile for RRV zin. Alcohol is 16% and it holds it well.
Juicy, jammy and ripe. Price $27.
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Average Value
2000 Rombauer, El
Dorado, California, Zinfandel
Dark red, aromas are extremely port like, very ripe though a bit
closed down at the moment, sweet, candied, cola, musty, stewy cooked
fruit, the palate was flabby with residual sugar. There is a bunch
of stuff that has gone bad with this bottle, first off it may have
been cooked during transport, second off it has a distinct mustiness
that is apart from some potential corkiness. There was also the
fear of some stuck fermentation. 375 ML Bottle.
1999 Benessere, Napa,
California, Sangiovese
Dark garnet red, bright aromas of cherry, cassis, cinnamon spice,
mocha, sweat socks, rubber, coffee and earth, the nose is a bit
unusual, palate is a bit stemmy with flavors of black cherry, blueberry,
cocoa, spice and oak, the oak is a bit strong and it is over riding
the fruit at this point, medium full body, slightly crisp acidity
and fairly strong tannins, a bit coarse right now with some astringency.
This wine needs time and as with many Sangiovese wines the oak intrudes
heavily on the final product. It has some nice flavors but overall
it comes off as awkward and a bit out of balance. Time may heal
that.
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Average Value
2000 David Coffaro,
Dry Creek Valley, California, Zinfandel
Garnet red, a bit shut down with aromas of red and black fruits,
vanilla and brown spice, picks up some chocolate with time, hints
of green, perhaps menthol, slightly cooked, palate has flavors of
black cherry, zinberry, spice, oak, touch of under ripe green stemminess,
simple, juicy, smooth, fair balance, elegant, medium body, moderate
acidity and fairly mild tannins. This bottle seemed a bit off to
me, as I have had this before and it seemed more vibrant at that
time. Bought through the Coffaro futures program for a good price
at about $13.
Good Value
2000 Benessere, BK
Collin's Old Vines, Napa, California, Zinfandel
Garnet red, the aromas are fairly muted and closed down showing
a touch of chocolate with mixed black fruits and spice, mild though
seemingly complex, palate shows sweet ripe flavors of black cherry,
strawberry, cassis, chocolate, tar, herbs and oak, the oak is nicely
integrated, somewhat crisp acidity with moderately strong tannins,
some nice complexity here, wine showed some nice evolution during
the tasting. Everyone thought this was a nice zin.
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Good Value
1999 Tulocay, Chiles
Valley, Napa, California, Zinfandel
Dark garnet red, aromas of perfumed ripe cherry, currant, spice,
vanilla, clay minerals, herbs and toasted oak, flavors show ripe
sweet black cherry, blueberry and raspberry fruit along with vanilla
mocha and oak, full body, slightly crisp acidity and medium tannins,
fairly simple but decently balanced with some good length on the
finish, good price at $18
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Good Value
1999 Steltzner, Stags
Leap, Napa, California, Cabernet Sauvignon
Dark purple red, fairly strong rich aromas of black cherry, cassis,
cocoa, tar and oak, flavors of ripe black cherry, cassis, espresso,
tobacco, vanilla, chocolate, chalky minerals, oak, medium full body,
slightly low to moderate acidity, medium strong fine grained tannins,
very smooth, drank superbly on day two, becoming even more integrated,
very nicely balanced, with a medium length finish. Superb value
at $13 for a 375 ML.
Good Value
1999 Pine Ridge, Rutherford,
Napa, California, Cabernet Sauvignon
375 ML - Corked
1999 Karl Lawrence,
Napa, California, Cabernet Sauvignon
Dark reddish purple, fairly aromatic with black cherry, blueberry,
cassis, chocolate mocha, caramel, licorice, spice, chalk and oak,
flavors of blackberry, cherry, cassis, chocolate, pepper spice,
tar, anise, herbs, full body, slightly crisp acidity and medium
strong tannins, solid structure, drank very well for two more day
after the tasting. Good value for a solid CA cab at $40. Though
this one was a $20 - 375 ML split. This was the second time our
tasting panel has reviewed this wine. Notice the score went up!
The first one was done out of a full 750 ML bottle and I think it
was a bit shut down.
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Good Value
2000 Domaine Grand
Veneur, Chateneauf du Pape, France, Red Rhone Blend
Dark purple red, the nose is a bit closed, showing roasted dark
berry fruit, plum, herbs de Provence, anise, brown and pepper spice,
caramel, minerals and a bit of smoky meat, palate flavors of gamey
meat, herbs, anise, cocoa, blackberry and toast, some slight bitter
astringency on the finish, medium body with moderate intensity,
fairly simple for a CdP but very nicely balanced, slightly crisp
acidity with medium strength tannins. This wine was priced at $15
so it competes in the Cotes du Rhone class and on that basis is
a terrific value.
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Good Value
1994 Penfolds, Bin
389, South Australia, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz
Dark bricked red, very nice aromas with good intensity showing some
solid secondary development of sweet rich cedary oak, red and black
cherry, espresso, tar, caramel and brown spice, flavors of blackberry,
cherry, plum, prune, chocolate and sweet cedary oak, medium body,
moderate acidity, medium strength tannins, nicely balanced with
good length, showing very nicely, mature, very close to peak, great
price at $17.
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Good Value
2000 Les Aphillanthes,
Cuvee de Cros, Cotes du Rhone, France, Syrah
Inky purple, intense aromas with heavy sulfur that began to blow
off by day two, coffee grounds, tar, blackberry, toast, intense
and highly extracted flavors of blackberry, chalky minerals, anise,
tar, coffee grounds, toast and earth, rustic, earthy and intense,
full body, low acidity and strong tannins, this wine actually needs
a lot of time, it took about four days for it to calm down but when
it did it became quit smooth with very minor oxidation character,
it was fairly amazing at that point. This is one heck of a nice
wine if you can find it! I think our group score would have gone
up if they could have all tasted it a few days later like I did.
Tremendous wine at a great price of around $20.
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Good Value
1995 Domaine Clavel,
La Copa Santa, Languedoc, France, Syrah
Garnet red, slightly closed aromas of mild red and black fruit,
gamey meat, herbs, perhaps some mint and chocolate, a bit shy on
fruit, flavors show blackberry, dark cherry, herbs, anise, menthol,
cough syrup, modest fruit with a developed slightly mature profile,
smooth and balanced but kind of in between being young and forward
and fully developed so that the fruit comes off a little shy but
it has yet to develop any bottle sweetness. Interesting wine, I
think it will do better with a bit more time, a little bland at
this point. Good price of around $15 however.
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Good Value
2000 Lesec, Les Galets
Blondes, Chateneauf du Pape, France, Red Rhone Blend
Medium dark red, very pleasing nose with some floral aromas along
with a rich creamy black berry/cherry, cassis, herbs and peanuts,
perhaps a hint of eucalyptus, flavors of bright cherry, cassis,
meat, herbs, cocoa and oak, perhaps just a bit under ripe, medium
body, slightly crisp acidity, medium strength tannins, good structure,
nice balance, oaky finish, not terribly intense, fairly priced at
around $25.
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Average Value
1999 Behrens & Hitchcock,
Ode to Picasso, Napa, California
Syrah, Cabernet, Merlot, etc.
Dark purple, moderately intense aromas of blackberry, red cherry,
cassis, spice and oak, palate shows ripe intense blackberry, dark
cherry, meat, brown spice, cocoa and charred oak, full body, moderate
acidity, medium strong tannins, fairly long finish, the oak was
a bit too intrusive on day one, it took a couple days for the oak
to calm down but when it did this bottle became a much better wine.
We rated this wine on night one and there was some woody astringency
married to almost candied jammy fruit. Not totally pleasant but
this wine needs lots of time to calm down and then I think it will
improve a great deal, priced around $60. Pretty high!!
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Average Value
2000 Tensley, Iconoclast,
California Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon
Purplish red, very nice nose with aromas of roasted sweet blackberry,
crème de cassis, espresso, chocolate, brown spice, palate shows
smooth roasted ripe blackberry, cassis, tobacco, espresso and chocolate,
not terribly complex but fairly rich and intense, full body, slightly
crisp acidity and smooth medium strength fine grained tannins, very
nicely balanced with a fleshy chewy smooth mouth feel, pricey at
around $50 but that is likely fair for this wine. Only 58 cases
produced.
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Average Value
Tasting held at:
Wine Street, a local wine shop
in Carlsbad, California
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