Tag: 2015

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2015 Cabernet Sauvignon by Bumgarner Winery, Sierra Foothills, CA


2015 Cabernet Sauvignon by Bumgarner Winery, Sierra Foothills, CA

2021 Winemaker of the Year

Slightly restrained nose. Clean crisp and ripe plum. Most interesting is a distant beeswax. Tannins are firm, clean, fully integrated into the body. A slight departure from the norm in this region known for big, bold, brash wines. It reads on the light side ever so slightly. Bright crisp fruit expression, crisp sharp tannins, slight peppery finish. Underneath a refined smooth body with bright fruit accentuated by a touch of refined caramel lies a dry wine. A great reference Cabernet for anyone exploring this region and California at large.

As it opens up this region really emerges in a very bold way with prominent star anise, granite leather and tannins develop a fine grained dusty texture that coats the entire palate with a firm ironclad grip.

I have been following Brian Bumgarner’s work for over a decade. His wines are understated, faithful to the region and the art form.

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2015 Sauvignon Blanc by Sanford, Santa Ynez Valley, California

2015 Sauvignon Blanc by Sanford, Santa Ynez Valley, California

On the nose. Soft peach nectarine and lime zest. Subtle wet wood leather. Faint butter.

Body is dry, shows good balance, greeting with citrus up front quickly followed by a faint barely noticeable refined caramel. This creates a slightly viscous mouth feel. A touch of minerality further accentuates this and moistens the lips ever so slightly. Finish is characterized by citrus zest, and subtle spice warmth.

This is a classic Sauvignon Blanc. Subtle. Unsurprising from this Winemaker who’s wines tend to read like a thesis of what is possible in this region. The folks at Stanford have been great stewards of this legendary and historically significant vineyard. If you’re ever in the area I recommend stopping by to baseline your palate and establish a reference point. Nicely done folks.

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2015 Pinot Noir (Bel Sogno) by Dawn’s Dream Winery, Carmel Valley

Tonight’s Occasion: 2015 Pinot Noir (Bel Sogno) by Dawn’s Dream Winery, Carmel Valley, CA

Deep ruby red color. Beautiful aromatic nose out of the bottle with notes of fresh raspberries, strawberries, and red cherries. A wet, rocky, earthy leather permeates a background punctuated by pops of red vines licorice. Swirl vigorously to reset the entire stage all over again. I love it! As it breathes, a dusty expression emerges, so faint you’d likely miss it.

Body is silky, creamy, smooth with a touch of viscosity. A touch of acidity greets the palate and remains present, adding gentle tension throughout the experience. Moderate tannins provide unobtrusive structure while refined caramel reminiscent of neutral French oak immediately tames this expression. The body is quickly dissipates leaving crisp caramel, wet rocky leather and thin, so what dusty/chalky tannins. A slightly mineral finish lingers. A gentle warm spice heat lingers through the entire experience.

This Pinot all on its own. It eschews most convention, especially for this region. Sharing only subtlety and nuance typical of this region, it has its own identity. It is dry, structured, somewhat bold for a Pinot and will likely be perceived as abstract by the average palate. It is however a well crafted, terroir driven if not fascinating wine that will keep the advanced palate perfect company, especially for New Year’s Eve. Now, if you’ll excuse me…

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2015 Merlot by Newsom Vineyards, Texas High Plains

Tonight’s Occasion: 2015 Merlot by Newsom Vineyards, Texas High Plains

Deep intense ruby color. Very shy nose with dry tart plum skins, a hint of honeycomb and licorice. A herbal eucalyptus note lingers in the background so faint you’d likely miss it.

Body is firm, crisp and bone dry. Tart plum skins carry over greeting the palate with a dry tension that holds firm. This tension rolls into a citrus/lime punctuated by a crisp, refined caramel. This marks the transition to finish characterized by a dry, slightly bitter blackberry and hint of red cherry. Firm, crisp tannins provide rock solid structure throughout. The palate is rendered dry of not parched.

This wine is a fine example of what can be accomplished with Merlot. It is a clean, classic, mature execution. While impeccable right now, it is nowhere near its peak. I recommend another 5 years at least. This is a Vineyard with a story. This is a a grower first before a winemaker. For generations this family has produced coveted grapes. While exploring Texas Hill Country, every winery I visited made wines with fruit from Newsom Vineyards. Their highly understated tasting room serves as a library and reference for what is truly possible. An enlightening educational experience.

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WineSnob Calendar: International Tannat Day

Tonight we celebrate International Tannat Day – April 13th. I wasn’t tracking this date on my calendar so it kind of snuck up on me. I went back into the cellar and couldn’t find any Tannat to review for you tonight. So my last resort was to look through my archives and notes for any Tannat I have looked at before and I found two I had not yet posted. They are both by the same winemaker, Pisano from Uruguay. This was my first time exploring wines from this part of the world and I was thoroughly impressed. I did go back and buy more of the Reserva for long term review, however I must have opened it at some point. I guess it was too good to resist…LOL.

2015 Tannat Reserva

2015 Tannat Reserva Personal de la Familia, by Pisano from Uruguay. Unlike the last Tannat I opened from the same winery, this one is built big and strong. It is clearly made for the long haul. Laying this down for a while won’t hurt it. It reads like a classic Barolo or big Barbaresco with deep inky rich colors. The nose is prominent with dirt, and a hint of oak and berry. The nose quickly fades, giving way to a big body of notable acidity. Once opened up the finish turns buttery with lasting spice and tannin. Tannat is an interesting varietal. I only became aware of it mere weeks ago. Like Cab Franc, it is rare to find a single varietal Tannat. It takes personal passion to commit to it. love it! Go Uruguay!!! 🇺🇾😁🍷🍷🍷

2017 Tannat

2017 Tannat, Pisano, Rio De Los Pajaros, Uruguay. This one came as an interesting suggestion by my winesnob friend Nikki. We’ve been talking a lot about obscure varietals lately. She had been sampling this one and suggested I take a look at Tannat and what folks were doing with it. You know I still can’t get past the fact that I am enjoying a wine from Uruguay. It’s amazing! I’m tasting an honest wine. It’s well made. I cannot fault it. If this is representative of the varietal and the region, then I fully intend to explore it further. We are really living in the the Golden Age of wine, viticulture and oenology. It’s fascinating. There is so much good wine everywhere and it is so accessible. I feel very fortunate. This one has a nose of caramel and oak, balanced medium body and tannic finish. This varietal reminds me of others like Cab Frank, Touriga and Aglianico. They are not particularly complex but what they do, they do exceedingly well. I love it! Go Uruguay!!! 🇺🇾😁🍷🍷🍷

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2015 Chinon Bonaventure by Chateau de Coulaine

Tonight’s occasion: 2015 Chinon Bonaventure by Chateau de Coulaine (@chateaudecoulaine), Loire, France.

Warm thick nose out of the bottle with plenty of mushrooms loamy leather. Some call it barnyard or old victorian. Some don’t care for it but I absolutely love it and can’t get enough. It begins to dissipate within minutes to reveal sweet ripe dark cherries, some berry and subtle hints of marshmallow.

Body is more balanced than not with a subtle suggestion of acidity before quickly centering on the palate. Tannins are not as pronounced as one might expect, fairly restrained, allowing a rich meaty mouth feel. Plums replace cherries from the nose and that leathery essence permeates the background. It reads like an impeccably decorated old world set. Subtle spice guides the transition to a finish characterized by gentle tannic grip and warm, moist lips, tingling with spice.

I can only think of a few wines I’ve tasted that express leathery terroir this clearly. It is a sultry wine that feels wise beyond its age. For around $20/btl it’s a head scratcher. Please let me order a few more before it sells out 😅. This my friends is why I stay off the beaten path. Some little known Chateau in Chinon has been making this wine sine the 1300s.

Tres bien fait mes amis! 🍷😁👌🏽

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2015 Pinot Noir (Orchestral) by Hahn

Tonight’s occasion: 2015 Pinot Noir (Orchestral) by Hahn Wines, Santa Lucia Highlands, Central Coast, California.

Deep Ruby-Burgundy color. Big rich nose out of the bottle with bold floral aromas, berries and damp wood forrest floor with hints of cedarwood and black licorice. As it opens up and the heat dissipates, notes of citrus make an appearance over a pleasant leather.

Body is smooth, mildly acidic. It is characterized by buttery creamy tannins and spice from front to back. This is after all a big California Pinot at 14.5% ABV. It has a fairly lush silky mouth feel which can be deceiving as this wine is fairly dry. Very little, if any fruit is carried over. The leather and wood notes conspire to trick the palate into sensing otherwise. Finish is rather subdued as it quickly fades away leaving more than a healthy tingle of spice. Faint suggestion of black currants accompanies the finale.

Hahn is a pretty big estate with many offerings through most mass market distribution. However when visiting such a winery, you have to know what to ask for. See, every winemaker no matter how big, has a passion project. One they pride themselves in. A work of personal craftsmanship which is typically never on the menu. This is what I am most interested in with any winemaker. Only 73 cases of this lovely Pinot were produced. The layering, character and complexity shows. This is the type of wine I seek out wherever I go.

Nicely done Hahn!

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2015 Octagon by Barboursville

Tonight’s occasion: 2015 Octagon by Barboursville Vineyards, Virginia.

Dark rich color. Nose is characterized by caramel, warm wet earth, blackberries and tart plums. As it opens up it develops notes of coffee and cocoa.

Body is well balanced, has good structure and composition. With every sip, you are greeted with fine grained tannins, a touch of acidity accompanied by creamy tannins gives it a full mouthfeel. A nice leather permeates the entire experience along with black currants. Finish starts off smooth and creamy. As it opens up an increasingly dry tannic grip emerges, reminding you this wine is still young, built for the long haul. I am tickled by the fact that I am sipping such a precise, quality wine from Virginia.

This is a dry wine on all accounts. Made in the classic old world Bordeaux style. It is surprisingly accurate. Well done folks!

Few things please me like a winemaker/winery maintains an extensive library of their wines and makes them readily available to any wine enthusiasts who wish to explore their wines. Barboursville does an amazing job of this. If you visit the product page for this wine, scroll to the bottom, you can see an extensive library available for purchase. I cannot overstate how awesome this is for any WineSnob!

https://www.bbvwine.com/wine-shop/octagon

Tech Sheet

2015 Barboursville Octagon
Fermentation:  6-10 days on the skins in stainless steel
Maceration: 15 days
Composition: Merlot 50%, Cabernet Franc 20%, Petit Verdot 30%
Aging: 12 months French oak barriques, new 40%, used 60%
Analysis: Alcohol, 13.5%
Residual Sugar:
 0.0%
Total Acidity: 0.57%

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2015 Pinot Noir by Handpicked, Yarra Valley, Australia

Tonight’s occasion: 2015 Pinot Noir by Handpicked from Yarra Valley, Australia.

Deep ruby color. Moderately aromatic nose with berries, caramel and a little leather. You can tell this is a bigger Pinot, not unlike your typical Northern California Pinot Noir. Once it opens up aromas become more intense.

Bright but restrained body shows great balance as subtle tannin quickly steps up to the moderately acidic attack, along with notes of plum. A seamless transition to finish is punctuated by a subtle tightening of tannic grip, capped by moderate spice and heat that quickly dominates the palate and further down the chest.

At 14.5% ABV this is by all accounts a big bold Pinot Noir. However it still manages to be very approachable and not the least overbearing. A testament to the winemaker’s craft. It is clean crisp, and has great character, structure and balance. Well done Mates! 😁🍷

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2015 Riserva Sangiovese by Vino Noceto

Tonight’s occasion: a side-by-side with the 2015 Riserva Sangiovese and the 2015 Sangiovese by Vino Noceto.

This winemaker from Plymouth, Amador, California has been putting out an amazing Sangiovese with surgical consistency for as long as I can remember – well over a decade.

The Sangiovese alone is a benchmark by which I measure all other Sangiovese, regardless of where it’s from. I cannot overstate how well made it is. There is a more limited companion, the Riserva Sangiovese. I have been meaning to open both at the same time and explore them together, side-by-side.

Sangiovese

My previous notes hold. It is very well behaved. A mild mannered nose with hints of raspberry and cherry which become more prominent in a very well structured and balanced body. There is a subtle creamy under layer to the body. The finish is unmistakably peppery. The spice lingers long after the finish has faded away, like the tannins of a Syrah. It doesn’t take long to open up but when it does a light buttery, oak undertone permeates the entire experience. I consider this Sangiovese a prime example of what is possible with this varietal, in this region and the greater California wine region.

Riserva Sangiovese

Color has a hint of brown and a touch darker compared the Sangiovese. Nose on the Riserva has unmistakably a more oak. This is expected as it is barrel aged 6-8 months longer than the Sangiovese. This has the effect of smoothing out the edges and giving it a velvety mouth feel. It seems a tad more acidic.

Like any Sangiovese, I think it’s meant to be paired with food, especially meats. The Riserva even moreso. They both paired well with the New York Steak but it was pretty obvious this is where the Riserva really shines. It instantly cut through the steak, creating one seemless cohesive, creamy, buttery smooth experience. Wow. Hints of caramel, cocoa and tobacco emerge when paired. I’m not one to pair my wine as I like to fully immerse myself in all it’s nuance and complexity but this wine absolutely must be paired appropriately. The Riserva makes a great treat for any guest with a discerning palate. The Sangiovese is very approachable and an accessible price point, easily making it a very high quality every day wine.

I always keep several bottles of this Sangiovese in my cellar as a reference and to show fellow WineSnobs what is going on off the beaten path.

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