Fattoria di Piazzano, di Bettarini, Chianti DOCG, 2006
I was going to an event with tons of people, and lots of them are happy to admit that spending more then $20 on a bottle is a waste for them. So I went down to Zupan's and got a number of bottles between $10 and $20 dollars (weighted closer to the former than the later). And this was one of those bottles. I tend not to usually like Chianti. I like earthy wines, but Chianti's are usually too thin for my tastes. However, this one I liked.
The nose was very interesting, including bark, wood, plum, mushroom, and artichoke. The taste was prune. And the finish was earth, bark, pine dirt , mineral, and red apple (including that dryness taste).
Cost:
Rating:
7.0(Sangiovese 80%; Canaiolo 20%)
Bethel Heights, 'Eola-Amity Hills Cuvee', Pinot Noir, 2006
Bethel Heights is another favorite, probably because they often source from Ribbon Ridge and I tend to like wine made from there. However, this bottle was instead sourced a bit south in the Eola and Amity Hills.
The nose was vanilla (oak), cinnamon, and red cherry. That oak and red cherry continued into the taste, along with pepper and cranberry (with hints of a citrus/sourness). The finish was cherry again at first; but the finish kept going, changing into an earthy, bark with mushroom. Nice and certainly a veryy good bottle of wine, but I personally refer the Ribbon Ridge bottles.
Cost:
Rating:
7.5
Left Coast Cellars, 'Cali's Cuvee', Pinot Noir, 2004
We had this wine right after the Kings Ridge (see other review). This wine was definitely a fuller body wine, and much less sweet even though this wine is also fairly heavy on the oak (that vanilla, while not technically "sweet", can make wine taste like it's sugary).
The nose was that oak and vanilla, but there was also nutmeg. The taste was an interesting amalgam of earth and berry. Mushroom on the one hand, and red cherry and raspberry on the other. The finish was long, with pepper and bark coming through. This wine might be a bit young as there was a hint of tangerine there at the end too; but not overly so (and not sour).
Cost:
Rating:
7.5
Kings Ridge, Pinot Noir, 2006
A $15 Oregon Pinot, really? Yep. So I had to try it.
The nose was oak and vanilla, and strawberry. The taste was a bit sweet -- that vanilla was just a tad overly sweet. Beyond that, was cranberry and raspberry. The finish had hints of pepper, and cantaloupe.
Overall this is not a bad deal. It's a little on the thin and sweet side, but hey, it's only $15.
Cost:
Rating:
6.0
Elk Cove Vineyards, Willamette Valley, Pinot Noir Rose, 2006
I'm normally not a rose fan; they're usually too sweet for me. But Pinot Noir rose? I had to give it a shot.
The nose was terrifyingly sweet. Totally watermelon, but with lemon. Then you taste, and it's light with and effervescence -- unexpected, but nice.
The taste is quick: some tangerine and pomegrante (not sour), and grapefruit. I smelled again, and there the watermelon returned, but it wasn't there on the taste. Phantom melons in my wine! And the sweetness I could smell, I did not taste (nice!). And then the finish. The fruit disappeared quickly, and you're left with something between vegetable and herbs -- hard to say, but probably artichoke and radicchio, and oregano and thyme. Very interesting.
Cost:
Rating:
7.5
Posted by Jason on August 23, 2008 9:53:44 AM PDT
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Cameron, 'Dundee Hils', Pinot Noir, 2006
I really like Cameron wines, just to get that out there. This one is no exception. Yes, there's a lot of oak on this one. And a lot of times I don't like that. It can make the wine less interesting, and worse, it can make it taste too sweet. But not in this case.
This wine had that haunting taste that I felt the next day. I love it when that happens -- sort of like a deja vu, I almost 'taste' it again the following day. Usually that means I liked it.
The nose has that oak I mentioned, but also earth -- dirt, mineral, and definitely clay and bark. There were floral elements too, mainly rose. It's a bit young so there was a citrus, kiwi. Denise smelled pomegranate too. The taste was totally red cherry and raspberry -- "rainier cherry and Elmer's raspberry syrup". The finish has a bit of that citrus again, though this time, it was tangerine. But that flashed quickly. The real finish -- and it was long -- was that cherry.
Cost:
Rating:
8.5
Mildiani, (Tsinindali, Georgia), Saperavi, 2005
Georgia (the country, not the state) has been in the new lately. And I was in Whole Foods, and what did I find? Yep, wine from Georgia. And it was pretty cheap. So why not get a bottle? In fact, I got one red (this review), and a white that we'll get to soon.
First off, this wine was really good for $9 (yes, I'm getting a case). The description at the store pegged it as a cross between a Cab, a Syrah, and Zinfandel. Not a bad description really.
The nose was full of plum, bark, and band-aids. And yes, this is not a $50 bottle ... there was an alcohol-chemical smell to it too. But the earthiness of it helped me overlook that sharpness. The taste was definitely plum and black cherry. It was also tannic sort of like a Cabernet Sauvignon. There was also a hint of nectarine. It has a dirty finish, like a dusty road in an old western movie. Denise said: "This is like cowboy wine. Smells like dung." (but in a good way).
Cost:
Rating:
7.0
J. Christopher, Dundee Hills Cuvee, Pinot Noir, 2006
The nose was: vanilla! Especially right at the beginning. Later, it evolved into more of a focus on blackberry and raspberry -- along with hints of cayenne and pepper. The taste was also heavy on the oak/vanilla (especially at the beginning) with raspberry and red cherry. The pepper returned in the middle, and hints of pepper remain in the finish. Predominantly, the finish is red cherry.
This is a really a yummy wine (despite the heavy oak at the start), and a bit better than it's price normally bares. I really like the berry + spice ratio, which is heavy on the spice. It's a high quality wine for that mid-zone between $25 and $40. Again, another wine I'd buy again.
Cost:
Rating:
8.0
Domaine Leon Barral, Faugeres, 2004
The nose is chemical (even after being open for awhile). But below the chemical is all kinds of interesting earth: pine forest floor kinda stuff. There's also pepper, which reappears in the flavor of the wine. The taste started out being kind of sharp, but that mellowed out after 20 minutes or so -- it's predominantly black cherry and currant. The finish is currant and blackberry. At the very end is that dryness that you get after biting an apple. And there's also an earthy-gamey essence -- moss, dirt, hay, and other barnyard paraphenalia.
This is one of those 'good' ones from Languedoc. From what I can gather, this is made from Cinsault, Carignan, and Grenache (in that order of prevalence). So it's rather like a Rhone in the components -- just not the recipe. Yes, despite the chemical nose, I'm going back to grab a couple more bottles of this one.
Cost:
Rating:
8.0
Trimbach, Pinot Blanc, 2005
The nose is oregano, lemon, peas, bay leaf, with hints of sage and thyme. The taste is lime and herbs. And it finishes with ... lime! The wine has some weight in the mouth (equivalent to a 2% milk) -- more weight that I expected. Another way to describe this wine is: a mojito made with oregano instead of mint! Critics tend to poo-poo Pinot Blanc, but I generally like it. And on a hot day (like it's been lately in the NW), this wine was quite tasty.
Cost:
Rating:
7.0
Domaine des Relagnes, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, 2004
The nose was mossy, black cherry, dirt (earthy), currant, fir (animal), rock, thyme, and lavendar (yeah, there was a lot to smell in that glass!). The taste was almost sweet -- very cherry. Red cherry. There was also moss and potting soil. The finish had short hints of mineral, and quickly went back to red cherry -- which lingered on and on.
Cost:
Rating:
8.0
Erath, Pinot Noir, 2006
The nose has that river rock smell (sort of like a moss smell), red cherry, rose, raspberry, geranium, and hints of bark. The taste is red cherry and raspberry. It's light, but not thin. It's fruity, but not overly so. The finish is red cherry.
This is by no means a powerful Pinot, but it is a very good one for the money. Quite enjoyable.
Cost:
Rating:
7.0
Panther Creek, 'Winemakers Cuvee', Pinot Noir
The nose was spicy with pepper -- and cedar, vanilla, bark, and rose. The taste was predominantly red cherry and raspberry. And the finish was pepper and wood.
Here's another example of the mid-level Pinot that is great to drink. It's not great nor memorable, and it's not disappointing and noticeably sour. It's right in the middle serving as an enjoyable bottle with dinner.
Cost:
Rating:
7.0
Ste. Chapelle, Dry Riesling, 2006
The nose on this was very nice. There was a bit of something for everyone: pear, green apple, kiwi, lime, cantaloupe, gardenia. The taste was predominantly pear. The finish was a bit of honey (yes, just a hint of sweetness) and lime.
Rieslings are seemingly shunned in wine circles, but this wine was quite nice and tasty on a hot day. Though, it should be noted that this is a "dry" Riesling. So it's not supposed to be sweet. But despite that, it was sweeter than, say, a Sauvignon Blanc. But it hit the spot for me. The best part: it's like $7 a bottle. Not great a great wine, but good enough for general drinking.
Cost:
Rating:
6.5
Redman, Willamette Valley, Pinot Noir, 2006
Sorry for the crummy picture, but I had this at the Ringside steakhouse on Burnside, which is very dark inside; plus, I didn't have have my camera and had to use my phone.
This wine was interesting to me because of my new fascination with Ribbon Ridge. They are located on the same Chehalem mountains -- "along side Ribbon Ridge proper" to be precise. And, they source from Willakenzie, another favorite of mine.
And the wine was quite nice. It was smooth and had no bad characteristics. However, it was also fairly one dimensional: raspberry and blackberry ... maybe some cherry. The finish had hints of spice -- pepper. But there wasn't much in terms of any earthiness or any deeper flavor dimensions that I tend to prefer.
Despite this description, I did like the wine -- again, it was very smooth. None of that chemical or overly alcohol smell. And none of that sourness that can ruin a Pinot.
Cost:
($12 for a glass)Rating:
7.0
Posted by Jason on August 6, 2008 8:26:36 PM PDT
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Dewey Kelly, Ribbon Ridge Vineyard, Pinot Noir, 2006
I bought this wine because it was $21, and from Ribbon Ridge. I'd never seen such a thing before. For those not familiar with Ribbon Ridge, it's its own sub-AVA now (part of Yamhill and Willamette AVAs too), running about 3.5 miles along the Chehalem mountains -- between Newberg and Gaston, Oregon. Patricia Green and Beaux Freres -- two more famous vineyards sourcing from Ribbon Ridge -- will set you back well more than $21 a bottle. Like more than double, and often quadruple that cost. So this bottle was too intriguing not to buy!
The nose was musty -- sort of a river rock smell -- along with cedar and cherry. The taste was lightly floral (rose), red cherry and raspberry. The taste very much reminded me of other wines from Ribbon Ridge. The finish was spicy -- with cayenne late on the finish. A bit later on, the taste and mouth-feel was very plumy.
And while the taste reminded me of Beaux Freres and others from the ridge, this bottle had nothing of the finesse of such bottles. It was a bit sour, though not so much so that it was bad; it just wasn't great like a Beaux Freres. Denise had a sip early on and got that "vanilla cream" hit -- the heavy vanilla and a bitter finish for her were too much for Denise; she didn't like it very much. Whereas, I liked the wine -- especially considering the price. If there was another bottle at the place I bought it, I would buy it again (if Denise would let me).
Cost:
Rating:
7.5