The new vintage is HERE!!

We only had one formalized tasting this week, but that didn’t stop us from tasting a lot of wine for you. That’s the way it is sometimes. Some weeks we will have 4 or 5 formalized tastings with wineries and other weeks we will only have 1 or 2, but have a lot of quick one off tastings. We were really excited to get our new vintage of Noemi as it has been one of our best cellars the last few years.

2012 Noemi Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

Wine Spectrum 95+: Noemi certainly doesn’t disappoint with this gorgeous Cabernet Sauvignon from the rich and bountiful 2012 vintage. Aromas of perfume, violets, lavender, and macerated black cherries emanate from the glass. The palate boasts a silky smooth texture and mouthfeel with flavors of rich red berry fruits, hints of toffee and a touch of brambly chalk and underbrush. The tannin structure and balance are seamless and promise plenty of age-worthiness. A long, mouth-coating finish completes this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged 20 months in French oak. About 500 cases produced. Made by Rolando Hererra.

 

2012 Lewis Cellars ‘Reserve’ Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

Wine Spectrum 95: The headline reads: “2012 Reserve Cabernet – Return of the Big Block”. Running on high octane aromas and built on an iron block with deep reserves of black fruit this 100% Cabernet blend delivers 700 horsepower at the wheels. Coming off idle the nose slowly explodes with sappy dark and rustic berries, clove, cedar and sweet oak spices. Forged, ripe fruit pistons pump out the power for miles until finally finishing with an impressive band of ported and polished tannins. Motor must be warmed-up before driving! 1,200 case.

 

 

2012 Von Strasser ‘Reserve’ Proprietary Red, Diamond Mountain

Wine Spectrum 95: This Reserve bottling is made only in out- standing vintages, and represents the pinna- cle of our enological and viticultural skills. It is a tiny blend made from the best lots of the vintage. This wine is a unique blend of our finest Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, and Mal- bec blocks. Lush aromas of big red fruit, dark chocolate, vanilla and supple spices en- tice the taste-buds. Dense flavors of dark berries and cocoa nib lead into an elegant, impeccably balanced finish of caramel, pie spice, pepper, and sweet Cuban tobacco. 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Petit Verdot, 20% Malbec. About 200 cases produced.

2012 Matthew Wallace Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

Wine Spectrum 95: The 2012 vintage of Matthew Wallace is handcrafted by winemaker Julien Fayard (Lafite Rothschild, Melka Consulting, Le Pich, Purlieu…..) from grapes grown in two vineyards located in Stags Leap District and on Howell Mountain. The blend is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, classically-styled and fermented in small lots with the intent to choose only those that reflect the best of their site and vintage.

The heart of 2012 Matthew Wallace Cabernet Sauvignon is fruit grown in the coveted Stag’s Leap District accompanied by grapes from Howell Mountain. In Stags Leap, we isolated the steepest part of the hillside vineyard and fermented it separately in small batches. After 21 days of maceration, we barreled down the wine into 100% new French oak and aged it 18 months.

The wine is rich and dense with a beautiful tannin structure coming from the steep terrain. This West-facing slope brings dark, black fruits which are elegantly ripe and combined with lively spice notes from the barrel. The mouth is balanced with minerality and soil flavors typical of Stag’s Leap. The wine benefits from decanting in its youth. 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. 

2013 Lewis Cellars ‘Barcaglia Lane’ Chardonnay, Russian River Valley

Wine Spectrum 94: Think of our 2013 Barcaglia Lane Chardonnay as sailing off into the sunset. This vessel holds a vast cargo of golden, tropical fruits and spices with mango, cinnamon bark, toasty orange, and flecks of mineral like grain on a sandy beach. She carries plenty of canvas too, with wonderfully ripe and rich-textured fruit filling the sails. A fresh breeze of native acidity washes o’er the deck and keeps her on course till twilight and beyond. 550 cases produced.

 

 

2013 Groom Shiraz, Barossa Valley

Wine Spectrum 93+: The Barossa Valley is the source of our Shiraz. With it’s hot, dry conditions and fairly level valley floor and undulating hills, this appellation is generally recognized as the best red wine district in Australia. Our Kalimna property is located next door to the traditional Penfolds Grange “mother source” vineyard. The unforgiving soils of this area are well known to produce very low yields, loose clusters and extremely small berries. Classic, ultra premium Shiraz territory!

Daryl looks for a little less wood in his Shiraz than is typical of Australian Shiraz. He wants a wine that is rich, but not overly jammy, tannic, or oaky in flavor so that it can show off the spicy, anise, berry flavors – true varietal characters in the grape. He is looking for a firm, fleshy structure and a fine texture. Daryl achieves his results by traditional and gentle winemaking methods: fermentation is small batches, punched down in open-top vessels; a skin maceration of only 6 days; minimal handling throughout and aging in American oak (half new, half 1 year old). Careful barrel selection increases the quality and consistency of our Shiraz.

2014 Honig Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley

Wine Spectrum 93+: Bright acidity lends a crisp freshness to the flavors of peach, passionfruit, and lemongrass, artfully balanced by a touch of freshly squeezed grapefruit and lime. Juicy and refreshing, with aromas of jasmine, peach, and grapefruit rind. Medium-bodied, with a lingering finish. 95.2% Sauvignon Blanc, 3.9% Semillon, .9% Muscat.

 

 

 

2014 Von Strasser Gruner Veltliner, Diamond Mountain

Wine Spectrum 92: Von Strasser Winery is the first commercial pro- ducer of Grüner Veltliner grown here in California. Although rare in California, Grüner Veltliner is the Austrian flagship varietal, and has found a cult-like following in many of this country’s top restaurants. There is substantial weight to this wine with a nose of citrus and peach. Fermented in stainless steel to retain its freshness, our Grüner Veltliner has tre- mendous weight and backbone with flavors of tart tropical fruit and green apple. This is an invigorat- ing white which is exceptionally food-friendly and meant to be enjoyed young. 100% Gruner Vetliner. 400 cases produced.