Camigliano Brunello Di Montalcino 2001 wine review by (PB)

A great occasion deserves a great wine so why not Brunello? It is my lover's and my 36th wedding anniversary and the lasagna is in the oven. I opened this wine at noon to let it breathe as most Brunellos need lots of air time and to my surprise this wine was showing some maturity on the rim and in the bouquet.

Sweet tobacco and bright candied cherry fill the bouquet with ample cedar notes.
Palate--The wine is supple with relaxed tannins (mature) bright cherry fruit over stewed prune hints with a cedar presence. This wine is peak right now and will not get any better I don't believe. It is mature and begging to be enjoyed. Perhaps this is why it was on sale when I bought it at $40 on a recent trip to Phoenix.

At any rate, it will be the perfect accompaniment to an awesome lasagna and a brilliant wife who makes water blush in her presence. How blessed I am so raise a glass to 36 faithful years to each other and that my friends is infinitely more rare than the rarest Le Pin or Petrus and worth 10 times as much!

Ranschbacher Konigsgarten 1976 Beerenauslese Eiswein wine review by (PB)

This rare treat was only fitting to be opened made from the vintage 200 years after the Declaration of Independence was proclaimed. We had no idea what to expect except that it could very easily still be vibrant as this is precisely the kind of white wine made for aging. What did it reveal 33 years after it was made?

The color on the anxious pour was a remarkable amber hue that looked like it was fitting for a gem stone set as a pendant.

The bouquet was honeyed with stewed fruit with dill and orange rind aromas that were amazing.

Palate--Elegant rich and velvety thick and marvelous. Flavors of stewed peaches with caramel notes and perfectly balanced between luscious sweetness and solid acid.

This wine came from the basement of my mother-in-law who bought it on release after a trip to Germany. No label was available on line that I could find nor could I reference a price. Suffice it to say, this is a wine to remember! Raise a glass to Ed and Mary...

Duval-Leroy Champagne (NV) Brut wine review by (PB)

Celebrating on the 4th of July with (NW) and his brood we started off with this from his ample cellar. It has a straw hue with nutty, vanilla aromas.

Palate--fine stream of bubbles with up front nuttiness and light citrus. A refreshing and delightful sparkler from THE region called "Champagne." About $30. Raise a glass indeed.

Castle Rock Pinot Noir 2007 wine review by (PB)

Made from *Mendocino grapes this wine is a young purple with solid Pinot aromas with a slightly stinky Pinot nose and a Grenache-like cherry presence.

Palate--Sweet presence of fruity cherry and quite well made finishing nicely.

At the $12 price point, this is a wine worth picking up and a decent value so raise a glass.

*Castle Rock sources their grapes from various locales and states the locale on the label so pay attention to all the information available to you when buying wine.

Chateau Lafaurie-Peyraguey Sauternes 1998 Wine Review (NW)

Tasting notes:

Apricot and fig on the nose

Dense and thickly textured on the palate

Orange peel, honey, and cashew berry on the finish

This wine is probably hitting its stride about now. It has a lot of apricot and orange peel surrounded by some other interesting layers. While not a benchmark wine, it delivers classic Sauternes qualities and is a pleasure to sip.

I was treated to this wine by a friend who always manages to producer a good bottle of wine no matter what the circumstances. This wine runs approximately $55, but he said he scored a great deal at a local wine shop.

Raise a glass!

Chateau Bellevue Rougier Bordeaux 2005 Wine Review (NW)

Tasting notes:

Cherry, currants, and spice on the nose

Moderately dense and fruity on the palate

Red berries, herbs, and touches of vanilla and tobacco on the finish

Here's a good, solid value from the great 2005 Bordeaux vintage. Had I known, I would have bought more at $13.

What this wine has over many others in the same value price category is a layering effect of fruit, herbs, and spice. According to the producer, the dominant grape is Merlot at 60%, accompanied by the other classic Bordeaux grapes.

Grab it if you see it...and raise a glass!

Columbia Winery 2005 Chardonnay wine review by Billy

Nose:astringent and chemically upon opening, butterscotch minnerals underneath. The acetone smell should blow off after a bit but give it some time.
Palate:strong acids make this crisp but it lacks refreshing character.
Finish:apples and daisys.

Overall: this Chardonnay from Washington's Columbia valley is not the best. I like the mineraly-ness of the wine but it lacks the refinement required to pull off a fine, minnerals forward wine. Schizophrenic between buttery chardonnay and steely french whites. Raise a glass of something else

Rosenblum Syrah Solano County England-Shaw Vineyard 2005 wine review by (PB)

Real time review:
On the eve of the celebration of our independence as a nation I am slow cooking some ribs on my Weber with REAL charcoal--always the purist...

I just opened this bottle to celebrate such an auspicious occasion.

This wine is a deep black cherry colored with jammy plum aromas.
Palate is a bit coarse with austere fruit and chewy tannins. I will decant this sucker as I know there is much more there!

An hour later, it is relaxed with vibrant black cherry aromas, plum and sweet spices.
Palate has relaxed tannins, big ripe dark fruit and bready notes with a nice lingering finish. I paid $26 for this and it is nice but I would rather spend the same amount on one of their many single vineyard Zins. Raise a glass to the brave men and women who fought for our right to be free!

Umathum St. Laurent 2004 wine review by (PB)

This was another of the Austrian wines (Billy) of this blog, brought back from his trip. This one is a red and St.Laurent is the name of the grape. In the glass the hue looks like it should be a Syrah, deep and intense. The nose reminds me of a Malbec with heavy , dark aromas of berry fruit and sweet dill notes.

Palate--well balanced, bready, a bit "hot" with a sweet impression and more berries. Soft tannins round out this rather tasty wine even if finishing rather abruptly. I believe this wine is a bit pricey-- in the $30-$50 range. For the price, I'm not sure I would make the splurge again but it wasn't my dime and it was a "new" grape for me so raise a glass!

Chateau De Pommard 2000 wine review by (PB)

On opening the sight was not pretty. *Bricking at this young age for a Burgundy was tell tale of bad storage or a bad cork or both.

On the nose the wine had a gentle spice core with gentle cherry and licorice emerging.

Palate--Cherry and spice up front with minerals, bread, and more minerals on the finish. The wine was austere but I suspect this was a result of its oxidation. It was still very drinkable but quite ordinary when this wine should have been fairly impressive. Not a good representation of the wine.

(*Bricking is the appearance of the wine taking the color of bricks which is due to oxidation. Bricking by itself does not necessarily mean the wine is "bad" but it does mean the wine MAY be bad as it has aged. For this particular wine to show such "age" was not appropriate. As it turned out, (Billy) of this blog who supplied the wine paid $28 which was half price of what it sold at. This may be why it was being dumped for half off.)

Chasselas 2006 wine review by (PB)

On a recent trip to Switzerland, (Billy) of this blog, brought back some indigenous wines. This one, made from the Chasselas grape was a white that is pale gold, with a subtle bouquet of caramel underneath the fruit with a light touch of banana. Unique!

In the mouth this wine is loaded with minerals, is bone dry, fruit that I cannot even relate to anything I know, and has a very nutty finish like some champagnes.

Take advantage of your business travelings to explore wines you will never see anywhere else and raise a glass. (Sorry no picture of the label available.)