Reviews

Reviews March 1, 2012

Kung Fu Girl Riesling by Charles Smith Wines, Columbia Valley, Washington State.

Grape 100% Riesling   Facts I’ve been slowly working my way through the Charles Smith portfolio of wines for the last few years – with the only hindrance to my progress being their limited-availability. It’s quite a wonder why more restaurants/retailers don’t carry this line. I would challenge anyone to find a better value coming out of Washington State right now. It certainly beats the generic-tasting-juice that some of the “big boys” are churning out!…

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Reviews February 19, 2012

Fiftyrow Spring Mountain Syrah, Napa Valley, California.

Grape 100% Syrah   Facts There was such a huge amount of press over previous years on how Syrah was supposed to be “the next big thing”, and then more recently how that just never really panned out.Personally, I don’t see any need for people to wait around for a grape / wine to be named “so hot right now” before you give it your attention (i.e. hard earned $’s).Look at what happened to Malbec!…

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Reviews February 15, 2012

Christian Salmon Sancerre Rose, Loire Valley, France.

Grape 100% Pinot Noir   Facts This would happen to actually be only the 3rd Rose Sancerre I’ve ever tasted. Rose Sancerre isn’t made in huge quantities, but when you do find it, it’s always made from Pinot Noir. Personally I’ve always found Sancerre to produce some of the most reliable wines coming out of France. At least one wine from the region should be a staple on every wine list. Domaine Christian Salmon have…

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Reviews February 13, 2012

Yalumba “Y Series” Viognier, South Australia.

Grape 100% Viognier [Vee-ohn-yay]   Facts I’ve never felt that Viognier gets the attention it deserves, both in retail stores or restaurants. What first needs to be understood is that it shouldn’t be compared to any other grape, and so if you’ve grown weary of the “usual suspect” white wines, you might want to pay attention to this review! In 1980 Yalumba planted 1.2 hectares of Viognier in the Barossa Valley, this was Australia’s first…

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Reviews February 6, 2012

Bollinger La Grande Annee 1999, Champagne, France.

  Grape 63% Pinot Noir, 37% Chardonnay   Facts I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: you (we) don’t drink Champagne often enough! With that being stated from the get-go, I should probably point-out that what we’re dealing with right here isn’t exactly a once-a-week kind of bottle! I’ve been saving this bottle of Bollinger La Grande Annee for a special occasion, and that occasion was last Friday. So what was the occasion?…

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Reviews February 2, 2012

Luigi Righetti “Capitel de Roari” Amarone, Valpolicella, Italy, 2008

Grape Corvina, Rondinella, Molinara (%’s unknown)   Facts I’m turbo-passionate about Amarone, and if I could afford to drink it every day, I promise you I would! Amarone is stylistically very different than anything else Italy puts out, and is the king of wines from North-Eastern Italy. If you’re basing your opinion of Italian wine solely on Chianti, make sure you keep reading…  The Luigi Righetti winery is family owned and operated, and has been…

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Reviews January 30, 2012

A to Z Pinot Noir, Oregon.

Grape 100% Pinot Noir   Facts I’m going to go out on a limb and suggest the problem that people have with Oregon Pinot Noir, is that for the most part it tends to be quite “pricey”. With that out of the way, I’m not exactly setting myself up for success by starting this review with a slur against Oregon, so maybe I should explain myself a little deeper before I start getting angry hate-mail:…

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Reviews January 25, 2012

Querceto di Castellina L’Aura Chianti Classico, Tuscany, Italy, 2008.

Grapes 90% Sangiovese, 10% Ciliegiolo Sangiovese [san-joe-vay-zee] is the main grape in Chianti, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Carmignano and Brunello di Montalcino.   Ciliegiolo [chee-lee-eh-joh-loh] is a much more obscure grape than Sangio, and it took a little research to find out some info! We’re all still learning, right? The name is apparently derived from the Italian word for cherry in Italian: ciliegi. Through clonal research, Ciliegiolo has been discovered to be the parent of…

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Reviews January 16, 2012

Willamette Valley Vineyards Riesling, Willamette Valley, Oregon, 2009.

Grape 100% RieslingHistorical references to the Riesling grape can be traced back to Germany in the 15th century.   Facts I’ve been a fan of Willamette Valley Vineyards (“WVV” for the cool kids) for quite a while now. Yes, they’re certainly one of the largest Oregon producers (70,400 cases in 2010), but I feel WVV maintain a consistently favorable quality to price ratio. An attribute which I personally note is lacking in a number of…

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Reviews January 12, 2012

The Wolftrap by Boekenhoutskloof, South Africa 2010.

Grape Syrah 65%, Mourvedre 32%, Viognier 3% – often referred to as a “Rhone-blend”.   Facts Boekenhoutskloof, pronounced book-n-howeds-kloof, has always been one of my favorite wineries to say! Established in 1776, Boekenhoutskloof means "ravine of the Boekenhout". A Boekenhout is an indigenous South African tree generally prized for furniture making. Syrah brings the power, spice and dark fruit, Mourvedre brings red fruit and earthy notes, and Viognier (white grape) mellows the wine out and…

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Reviews January 6, 2012

La Spinetta Nebbiolo, Langhe-Piedmont, Italy 2008.

Grape 100% Nebbiolo [neh-bee-oh-low]   Facts La Spinetta was founded in 1977 by Giuseppe and Lidia Rivetti. They’re big on the idea that the best wines are made in the vineyard, rather than in the winery, and take as minimal of a interventionist approach as possible toward all their wines.  Each bottle of La Spinetta bears a pencil drawing of a rhino, and there’s a very good reason for that! Historically, the rhinoceros has always…

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