Decanterberry Tales - A Willamette Valley Wine Blog - california tag

La Crema, Sonoma Coast, Pinot Noir, 2006

Sun, 01 Feb 2009 19:50:01 GMT

So this was the last wine we had during our "Pinots of the World" flight night. First New Zealand, then France, Australia, Oregon, and now California Pinot Noir.

The nose was vanilla, white pepper, cinnamon, dust, hyacinth or maybe violet. The body was medium (the Oregon and this California had much more body than the rest, but then, that's their reputation). This had a real meatiness to it; that was the consensus. The taste was white pepper again, red cherry, strawberry, and it was spicy (not really discernible). The finish was back to the red cherry and it was long -- longer than any of the others.

Overall, the consensus was that this La Cream and the Maysara from Oregon were the clear favorites (though I still think about that Chorey-les-Beaune).

Cost:

Rating: 8.5

Frank Family Vineyards, Chardonnay, 2006

Sun, 28 Dec 2008 16:05:28 GMT

So this was a California Chardonnay to compare with one from Oregon (see earlier review). Again, this was the same vintage (2006) and the same price point (about $32). And I was surprised to find that this one was not that super-oak, super-butter Cali Chard. In fact, it was very nice as well.

The nose was -- I kid you not -- gruyere cheese! This, mixed with lime. The taste was very crisp and fruity. Much more fruity and sweet than the Oregon Chard. No, this isn't to say it was sweet. Just relatively. It did have an oaky aroma, but it wasn't that buttery/oak bomb at all. It was crisp like a cucumber or a bartlet apple. Like the Oregon Chard, this also had tastes of pears and hints of melon. And there was also some tangerine in there, but in this one, it was a much sweeter tangerine than the Oregon version. Someone else thought it tasted like sweet lime (not sugary, but not at all sour).

Alexandra noted that this one had "more fruit aroma than fruit flavor". Herb noted the flowery aromas. Everyone thought this was clean and fresh and crisp. Well done.

Cost:

Rating: 9.0

Arrowood, Grand Archer, Merlot, 2000

Sat, 06 Dec 2008 01:45:51 GMT

This is a wine that our sister-in-law had purchased years ago, and we had it following the Chateauneuf-du-Pape for our Thnksgiving feast. Being an Oregonian, it was hard to want to like this commercial California wine. But I have to admit, this wine knocked the doors off the CndP we had preceeding it (though, to be fair, it was one of the poorest CndPs I've had). Anyway, this was not that. And, honestly, it was nice.

The nose was vanilla, and a strong river rock smell. Later, the nose got a bit more funky: cayenne, tobacco, prune, smoky, raisin, and white pepper. The taste was prune and tobacco. Really strong smoke, sort of like Grandpa's pipe. Denise went off on this. She described it like a "thick button down sweater by the fire place hearth". The finish was also tobacco and prune, and a little raisin to boot.

All-in-all, this was the favorite of the night.

Cost:

Rating: 8.5

Robert Mondavi, 'Private Selection', Pinot Noir, 2007

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 04:36:51 GMT

Mondavi and Parker: the two most famous Roberts in the wine world. Big! And they make all kinds of wine. We drink a lot of Oregon and French Pinot, but I don't usually drink all that much from California. When I do, it's usually because someone brought it, and this was one of those cases. I wouldn't usually pick such a thing at the grocery store, but I'm very curious to taste it if given the chance. And here it was ...

The nose was red cherry -- really strongly cherry! Past that, there was a bit of raspberry, bark -- as well as green floral aromas: geranium, lavender, and carnation. The taste: whoa ... Cherry! Denise took a sip and exclaimed: "cherry bomb"! There was some subtle vanilla in there too. The finish was, well, you can guess. The finish was also a tad citrusy (acidic).

The back label describes it this way: "our Pinot Noir unfolds in elegant, silky layers of wild cherries, berries and aromatic spices. Warm oak nuances linger on the finish". Which is to say: cherry and a bit of vanilla (oak); we didn't find any spices that we could discern.

Denise described irreverently (as she does): "this is like teenagers who wear that cheap perfume. It's as shallow as cheap perfume". She went on to say that it was just not complex, and had no depth. I agree with that. Simple. Fruity. Good if that's what your you're looking for. Plus, it's cheap ($11).

Cost:

Rating: 5.0