I need your help if you will.

 I am finding that I find it difficult to get to my own blog on my cell phones or computer using a search engine. I would really appreciate some of you telling me how you access my blog.  You should be able to reply here.  Thank you in advance!     PB of the Winecaskblog

Quivira Zinfandel 2017 (Sonoma Dry Creek)

 

Aubergine hue with aromas of perfumy, rose petal, lovely Zin bouquet with spicy sweetness on the edge.

Palate--*On opening--Silky, slightly tart, watery, thin texture, with austere fruit that is tightly wound. 

*After 90 minutes of breathing it is a delicious Zin with cranberry juice and a nice strawberry beam finishing with gentle black pepper at the very end... 

*This wine has been open for only a couple minutes and needs to BREATH!  I am confident it will be a totally different wine when it has been given some time! And I was right.  This is found at the $25 price point which is a bit hefty for the wine but it's a nice Zin and a nice gift from a friend. Raise a glass.

Stone Castle Vineyards Merlot 2018 *Updated review

Ruby hue with slight bricking on the rim.  Aromas of summer strawberry, sweet spring flowers, beautiful candided, cherries and a brief hint of mint right on opening.

*Palate--Tart first impression, with subdued fruit all around, one dimensional, flat mid palate.

Well, this happens and it is disappointing when it does.  The bouquet of this wine is quite enticing but unfortunately, sometimes a wine seems to give everything it had to the bouquet and leaves the palate high and dry. It is possible that it will open up and improve with breathing but I am not optimistic.

This wine is from Kosovo which is why I bought it.  You just don't see many wines from this part of the world. It has been aged for a year in French oak but it didn't help this wine at this point. With the slight bricking at this relatively young age, any contribution from the oak has been lost.  

*I will update this when has had time to breath.

        After giving it a day, even before we were done with dinner the previous night the wine was better as a "food" wine.  Tasting it about 20 hours later, this wine reminds me of a Tuscan Sangiovese.

The wine is still rather acidic but it works with the right pairing. I just took a taste with a piece of aged Gouda and it works really well.  So for a country that isn't known for its export wine industry, for the price of around $8 I would recommend giving it a try. It is at least a different wine experience.  Raise a glass!

Les Sommets Liés Corbieres 2020

 

Eggplant hue with aromas of bright red apple with bright cherries, with a lovely sweet floral suggestion of lilacs. 

Palate--"*Sweet" first impression with spicy, delicious red fruits, a well done structure, lip smacking acidity and a pleasant but quick finish.

The Languedoc-Rousillion region is one of the best wine values in France. The wines are fruity, well balanced, have character and gives you a big bang for the buck!

I think I paid about $12 (if that) for this really beautiful bargain so raise a glass!

*In this case "Sweet" does not mean sweet. I emphasize this because many do not like "sweet" wines but a truly sweet wine means it has residual sugar which has not been converted to alcohol. This is a well made quaff from Southern France 

Casa Santos Lima "Confidencial" Tinto Reserva 2018

 

Pretty Garnet hue with aromas of cherry, sweet cherry hard candies above the rim, gentle sweet spices. (Needs to breath)

Palate--Lovely first impression with a nice balanced acidic foundation which catapults the brimming flavors of ripe raspberry and cherry filling the mouth. Finishes quickly but again, breathing may enhance this.

This is one of those "buy more now" kinds of value wines that are much better than their price tag (under $10)

This will only get better with some air time so open it, breathe it, and raise a glass! 

 (check previous review of same wine from a couple months ago.)

Rough and Ready Wine Productions Petite Sirah vs. Petite Verdot (Lodi) 2021

Youthful dark purple hue with aromas of bold blackberries with a blueberry hint and sweet hard candies with a grapey/cherry edge at the end.

Palate--Nice bold mouthfeel, big blackberry flavors which seem to end quickly but that could be my convalescing palate post covid. 

Petite Sirah, not to be confused with Syrah, is a very dark, very big fruity grape which is often used as a blending grape but also stands on its own when done in balance. Petite Verdot is classic blending grape of Bordeaux and imparts an intense, deep blackish-purple hue. There has been some "trials" in the past few years by wineries putting Petite Verdot as a varietal meaning bottling it on its own merits. It hasn't caught on (yet) but can be an interesting quaff.  

I think I paid about $8 for this youngster and for the price it is ok if you like the big, bold fruit bomb kinds of wine which I do when paired properly.  This one will be going with our home-made italian sausage soup and it will be just fine so raise a glass! 

Post covid update

 Drinking wine without thought or discrimination can be done and at time should be done. Just "enjoy" what you're drinking and if you're not enjoying it, dump it!  "Life is too short to drink bad wine." 

So my smeller/taster is recovering but it has a ways to go yet. Thanks for your loyal patience! Raise a glass!

Postponement of reviews due to Covid...

 As many of you know I am sure that one of the symptoms of Covid is a loss of smell/taste. Alas--My smeller is out of commission. For some people they regain their senses of smell and taste in a few days, for others it may be several months. Hopefully mine will be short lived. 

Until then--raise a glass!

Castle Rock Pinot Noir (Mendocino) 2020

 

Very pretty light crystalline ruby hue resembling a gorgeously polished gem stone.  Aromas of unique subtle milk chocolate with a definite citrus (grapefruit) on the edges, with a raspberry/strawberry beam.

Palate--Structured elegantly with a balanced presentation of the aromas, now to the tongue. It is juicy, with a stately palate not normally found in this level of wine. This is not your average Pinot and I believe will yield more when it breathes. Finishes quickly for now... Raise a glass!

Montes limited Selection Cabernet Sauvignon and Carmenere 2017 (sorry bottle label will not paste in)

Black cherry hue with aromas that re green et the rim, with sweeter berries pushing the green aside.

Palate--Bright red berries with start structure, tar, hint of espresso at the back and nice fruit through out with that green edge and a touch of burnt wood. 

Montes is a notable Chilean vintner with solid production of Cabernets.  This one is a blend with 30% Carmenere fruit from the Colchagua Valley.

This is a tasty creation form Montes and the blend is well done!  I paid around $12 for it and it will pair well with our BBQ'd chicken on the grill so raise a glass! 

La Zorra La Moza Rufete 2015

 

Rusty garnet hue is just starting to show some aging. Plum with ripe red berry and blackberry notes with gentle spices.

Palate--Rather flat first impression, with a soury/tart front palate, lip smacking dry as dust tannins, and super quick finish.

This is not a great Spanish wine.   I paid around $6 for this closeout wine and it needs to be closed out! 

Pass this one by!

Easton Zinfandel (Amador County) 2016

Lighter garnet hue with nice aromas of ruby red grapefruit, perfumey violet, sweet and tart pie cherry hint.

Palate-- Lovely first impression with a nice tartness and integrated flavors of luscious red berries, cherry cream, with a finish that lingers and leaves a nice "drink me more" ending. This is a distinctive Zin with the characteristic of giving one a fresh "first impression."

This was a present from a friend--a fellow oenophile-- who knows my love of Zinfandel and is much appreciated.

Around $20, this is nice treat so raise a glass!

Fonseca Bin 27 Reserve Porto

 

Intense nearly black purple hue with aromas of something I have no descriptor for; it's something like dark berries and plum and bing cherries all rolled into one. Sweet cherry berry dark chocolate candy cordials with sweet baking spices and spiced apples you have at Thanksgiving.

Palate--Textured like thick silk, glorious ultra pure sweet fruit of ripe black plum, and a lingering finish that goes on and on and on. Marvelous! 

I don't remember what I paid for this but I believe it was only around $16 and what a great find!

Pairing it with Christmas plum pudding!  Raise a glass for sure!!!

Lincourt Sta. Rita Hills Chardonnay 2013

Light golden hue with aromas of perfumy honeysuckle, orange, and numerous tropical fruits with a hint of citrus. Lovely!

Palate--Mouth filling flavors of all the things in the bouquet with a great razor sharp acidity on an ultra fruity foundation.  Finishes a little quick but reminds you to go back for more!

This has never seen oak and is absolutely lovely even at this late age for what would be a production level table wine. A 10 year old chard at the price point I paid is absurd, but then I find that most assessments of how long a wine will last are woefully lacking. 

I have had this for a few years and I think I paid around $10 for it though I see it on line closer to $15. This is a serious Chard, well made and a ridiculous value.

I am pairing it on this new year's eve with a seafood chowder consisting of Maine Lobster, Maine scallops, and wild caught Gulf shrimp. If you can find this, it has years left on it so raise a glass and remember that for all the crazies in the world today, there is a Creator who is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent and is utterly in control. His ways are not our ways He tells us in the book of Isaiah, so raise a glass! 

  

Norton D.O.C. Malbec 2017 Mendoza

 

Pours like a two year old wine with a very young hue with residual purple on a garnet frame.  Aromas of nice black berry and red berry bouquet with yeasty notes. 

Palate--A tart first impression with a subdued mid palate with light berry flavors on an awkward foundation finishing quickly.

What is DOC on the title line?  It tells you a lot about the wine in general. DOC is the lowest categorization that many wines can have depending on the laws of any given area of the world.  They all differ. What this means here is that all the fruit in this wine are sourced from all over the Mendoza region of Argentina. That isn't "necessarily" bad it just means that the wine is table wine quality meaning everyday economical drinking for the most part.  

I paid $9 for this bottle which usually runs around $14. It is not up to the standard of Norton which is generally well made, economical wines.  This one is a pass!  But Norton is a solid maker so try another!

New Years Eve means "Champagne?" (2022)

 

Let's get one thing straight, There are a zillion "sparkling" wines but only ones made from the grapes of Champagne, France are actually "Champagne!" All others from all over the world are just "Sparkling wines."

Now about New Years Eve and popping those corks: Call them bubbly, or sparklers, but NOT Champagne.

Okay now that, that is out of the way, what about that big celebratory POP that people love to do when they open their gassy wines? First of all, the proper way to open a sparkling wine of any type is to place a towel over the cork and slowly work the cork out of the wine bottle until it is nearly to the point where it will POP.  Take your dominant hand while still holding the towel over the wine bottle and ever so gently maintain pressure DOWN on the cork while at the same time you are twisting the very secured cork under the towel back and forth and the goal is to actually release the gas with a nearly silent psssst! THAT is how you remove a cork.

Now this is very practical! You may not care opening that $10 bottle of bubbly and losing half the bottle of wine to the floor as it explodes shooting your wine into oblivion. But when you have a more pricey of bottle of bubbly or a $50+ bottle of Champagne, and you waste half a bottle in a showy explosion you may think differently about that POP.

There is one exception to this sound advice and that is if your bubbly is "Barefoot Bubbly" by all means shoot it all over the place but in your mouth...  Raise a glass!

William Hill Chardonnay (North Coast) 2019

 

Crystalline light golden hue with aromas of tropical fruit salad with a beam of citrus, and stone fruit

Palate--Tropical fruit galore with a buttery mid-palate, and finishing with still more fruit and more! Structurally sound with creamy mouthfeel and a long lasting finish that goes on and on and on! 

This is a really super Chardonnay around the $15 price point and it is a BARGAIN! It is super fruity making it wonderful as an aperitif but because it is dry even though it tastes sweet, it will do right by my menu for this evening.

I will be pairing it with bacon fat sauteed Maine scallops, and a rice pilaf.  This is a pretty easy to find wine so GRAB one and try it out.  Really nice--but I think I said that already... Raise a glass!

ILauri "Le Pinciaie" Montepulciano D'Abruzzo (Riserva) 2017

Pronounced ruby hue with aromas of raspberry, and gentle spices on the rim. 

Palate--Tart first impression with mineral beam, razor sharp acidity, austere first impression and this after breathing it for several hours. It finishes with a nice Montepulciano reminder and lingers for a bit.

*I had a glass breathing on the counter for 3 hours and that is the above review. I just re-reviewed it with a fresh pour from the bottle and it sports a bit of cherry, with the acidity toning down a touch with a richer beam of varietal flavor mid palate.  This is odd in my many decades of experience. *I am thinking this will be a much better wine with food when I pair it in a while with grilled Prime sirloin steaks, double baked potatoes, and home grown green beans. 

*It was indeed very nice with my grilled sirloins accentuating the grilled char, while toning down the bitterness of said char. 

$20 seems to be the price point on this wine.  Raise a glass!

 

Famille Perrin Cotes Du Rhone Villages 2019

Brilliant ruby hue with a bouquet of bread yeast, bright summer black cherries, cocoa, chocolate covered cherries, and savory spice.

Palate--Big bold, fruit with lots of complexity in this very nice GSM blend. Plenty of savory red berry relish, but has a surprisingly quick finish. 

This is a really nice Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre (GSM) blend for the money. I may have paid $12 for it and it's a winner at that price!  If you find it, grab it and buy several. This will be around for several more years and only getting better. Raise a glass! 

Shannon Ridge "Buck Shack" Zinfandel 2018 (Bourbon Barrel aged)

Gorgeous dark garnet/cranberry jelly hue with aromas of subdued dark berry fruit with a very gentle spice on the edge.  

Palate--Lots of fruit upfront, with a steely edge, bold, big mid palate with tons of blackberry jam and a finish that is fleeting.  (This is upon opening and needs some time to open up. *Check back...)

*After an hour: Loads of dark berry fruit, a beam of something like dark baker's chocolate, and still a quick finish.

I reviewed this (a different bottle) at the beginning of the month not realizing I had done so. The aging mind is frustrating... LOL! This Zin, with fruit from Lake County is supercharged with an alcohol level of 15.9% which is crazy over the top! 

After I reviewed this I checked on line for a price point since I paid $7 for it. It is listed at $25-$35 which is nuts! And while I respect the folks at the Wine Enthusiast I take great exception at their 92 point rating.  I would give it an 88 which is vastly different than their score. 

At any rate, I would not want to pay anywhere near the "list price" for this wine but at $7 I love it! 

I am pairing it with a French onion tart made with loads of smoky bacon, cottage cheese and sour cream on  pizza dough.  One of my wife's favorites. At that price raise a glass!