Page 24 - Staff Tastings

Upon recently opening one of our new arrival wines, 2011 Herencia Altes Garnatxa Negra, the first thing I noticed about it was the care and passion that went into its creation.  With a good winemaker, that care and passion will be the driving force to quality, and that is exactly what we have here with the 2011 Herencia Altes Garnatxa Negra.  Then, factor in the $9.99 price tag, and you have a 100% Grenache at an unbeatable value which makes it perfect for everyday drinking.  This wine truly combines affordability and great taste giving you the best of both worlds!

With a score of 91 points from Robert Parker, he called this wine "...a killer value..." Parker also said that "...at these ridiculously low prices, consumers will never suspect the wines are at this level of quality..." This is a value that you must try! This wine tastes like it costs at least 3-4x the actual price.

This Spanish delight is the product of old vines and concrete aging. 

Summer is here and that means refreshing and delicious whites. One of the newer finds we've enjoyed recently is Domaine Sigalas' 2011 Santorini which is produced from one of the island's indigenous varietals, Assyrtiko.

Domaine Sigalas was founded in 1991 on Santorini, part of the island complex of Cyclades located in the South Aegean Sea about 120 miles southeast of Greece's mainland. The island is essentially the remnant of a volcanic caldera, and the soil a mixture of ash, pumice and sand. It is the lack of clay and extremely high sand content of this soil that allows Santorini to remain one of the rare viticultural regions in the world not affected by the phylloxera pest. Therefore, the vines retain their original rootstock and are classified as old vines being over 50 years of age.

As there usually isn't any rain during their summer, the principal source of moisture is dew from nocturnal fog. As the sun sets, the high daytime temperatures fall and the humidity

The seventh vintage of our highly coveted Waterstone Cabernet Sauvignon has arrived - and it is nothing short of remarkable!

It's always exciting around the office when a new vintage releases. Everyone has something different to say in comparison to the previous vintages - yet this year, I think that we all agreed that the 2009, which was rated the top Waterstone in history by James Suckling, might be the best we've tasted thus far.

I tasted the 2009 and 2007 back to back. In my opinion, the 2009 was presently more approachable than the 2007. The climate and weather conditions for the 2009 vintage may help to support my case! 

Vintage
The 2009 vintage proved to be an outstanding year for the majority of the winemaking world.

In California, 2009 was hit with a cool, mild growing season without huge variations in temperature or damaging weather conditions. Also, a general lack of rain

The Pelissero winery is located in Treiso, Piedmont, which lies within the Barbaresco winemaking zone.  Traditionally, Nebbiolo in the area would be bottled as Barbaresco, and Barbera would be bottled separately.  However, their wine labeled Long Now is an unusual equal blend of both varietals.

The wine is named after the Long Now Foundation, an organization established "to creatively foster long-term thinking and responsibility in the framework of the next 10,000 years...to provide a counterpoint to today's accelerating culture." (longnow.org) People from music and the arts as well as science and technology banded together to form this group and a painting of their experimental Millennial Clock is featured on the label.

The concept of time in relation to wine is something that intrigued the Pelisseros.  A well-made wine can age for years and how it tastes through those years is always changing. Long Now is a modern blend of Nebbiolo and Barbera

I love Pinot Noir! It's my grape of choice when looking for a red to pop, and even more so when it's a hot day during the summer. Pinots are light on their feet but have enough complexity to keep you interested. I'm always looking for new ones try and although I prefer Burgundy, my wallet says otherwise.

Many of you know by now that the Oregon region is an excellent place to find great Pinots that won't break the bank. I also find that the terroir in Oregon produces wines closer to those of Burgundy, as opposed to say ones from California. We just checked some new releases into stock from Cristom, which is a producer that I've heard great things about, but haven't had a chance to try yet. It was purchased in 1992 by a Pittsburgh based engineer by the name of Paul Gerrie. He hired one of the top wine makers from California, Steve Doerner, to craft his wines. Steve previously spent 14 years at Calera winery in California, and before that studied under Jacques Seysses, owner and

The summer is unofficially now over after the Labor Day holiday. I'm ready to start thinking about the fall holidays, cooler weather and yes, red wine!

Last week I made a delicious batch of spaghetti and meatballs for my family. Classic mixture of veal, pork and beef, fresh herbs and seasonings, etc. YUM! I also decided to check out the 2007 Fanti Brunello di Montalcino, which I thought would pair nicely with this dish. Well, needless to say, not only did this make a perfect pairing, but there were no leftovers of anything when we were ready to leave the table. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the meal, and especially this beautiful wine from the amazing 2007 Tuscan vintage!

Brunello di Montalcino produced two excellent back-to-back vintages in 2006 and 2007, and they are both vintages you should experience. The Wine Advocate had this to about the 2007s: "...My impression is that most of the wines will not shut down in bottle and that 2007 will be a great vintage to

I chose this wine to taste, review and share with you for two very simple reasons: the bold, yet modest bottle design caught my eye, and my own personal intrigue for Sicilian wines. What I found out proved that the 2006 Feudo Maccari Maharis is one of the best hidden gems in our entire Italian portfolio.

IGT
Sicily has gained much popularity in recent years thanks to several producers, including Maccari, who've marketed this area as a prime climatic region for successful viticulture. Despite the heat, several unique grape varietals thrive in this region. 

This specific Maharis vineyard, located in Noto, shares its ground with the famed Etna Volcano. Volcanic soil has proven to be exceptionally great for grapes that grow in high sunlight regions. Noto is also within walking distance of Avola, which is where this region's #1 grape gets its name: Nero d'Avola.

I ask if Argentina is the New Spain because I remember four or five years ago when Spanish wines were very popular and becoming everyone's go-to wines that offered exceptional quality for their modest price tags. In today's wine world, Spain has kind of taken a backseat, and it seems I get asked more and more about wines from Argentina. In particular, it's the Malbecs from this great region that have become the new go-to wines for value seekers.

One wine in particular that recently caught my eye comes from one of the top producers in Argentina, Achaval Ferrer. Achaval has been producing world-class wines since 1998 and is owned by a group of Argentinian and Italian friends. It has attracted the attention of Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, which had this to say: "...Achaval-Ferrer is already established as one of Argentina's benchmark wineries?"

It's located in the foothills of the Andes, in the province of Mendoza. The region's desert climate is ideal for the development

For something a bit different this time around, the focus here is the song influenced by or at least name checking wine.  Some are originals and some are covers (let's keep it fresh!).  Grab a bottle of your favorite wine and your favorite person!

"Lilac Wine"
Written by James Shelton
Performed by Jeff Buckley
Because the late Jeff Buckley has one of the greatest voices ever recorded.  Listen now!

"My Hat Went Drinking"
Written and performed by Gregory Page
If ever there were an artist perfect for accompanying a bottle of wine, it's Mr. Page.  Prolific.

"Strawberry Wine"
Written and performed by Ryan Adams
Part of a concept record (29) with each song documenting a year in the songwriter's 20s, this song reminds the listener to avoid falling into life's trappings.

Chateau Montelena is a Napa Valley winery established in 1882 located just north of Calistoga at the base of Mount Saint Helena, its name actually a contraction of Mount Saint Helena. The Estate vineyard is comprised of sedimentary, alluvial and volcanic soils on various hillsides and flats which help in creating complex flavors and aromas in their wines. In 1976 at what is now called The Judgment of Paris, Chateau Montelena helped to bring California to the forefront of the world wine stage by scoring the highest placement amongst ten White Burgundies and California Chardonnays. However, it is probably their iconic Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, first released in 1978, that most people have collected over the years. As Robert Parker has mentioned: "Buying Montelena's Estate Cabernet Sauvignons is equivalent to buying blue-chip stock. The home vineyard is so consistent that even in difficult vintages such as 1989 and 1998, this wine is far better than its competition."