Wine tasting at Tofu’s xmas party
Every year our friend Tofu, vegan chef and blogger of what the hell does a vegan eat anyway, hosts a tremendous Christmas party. Typically he and his wife showcase a number of incredible dishes. The food is outstanding and completely vegan, which always surprises me as most of my diet consists of meat. He and his wife’s tasteful creations are always a prime example of culinary art. For the last handful of years we’ve been fortunate enough to attend. This year Tofu added a splendid wine bar to his finished basement. In addition to having a bottle of Faust (thanks!) there were several new wines I was able to sample.
Heitz Cellar 1998 Napa Valley Grignolino Port
Upon mentioning that I’ve tried a vintage of this wine Tofu disappeared into his cellar and came back with a bottle of Heitz Cellar Grignolino Port from 1998. It should be noted that with this port the grapes were harvested in 1998, but the wine was not bottled until 2000. I’m not really sure which is the appropriate way of stating the vintage, but I’ll assume it’s the year the grapes are harvested. This wine was very sweet on the attack with deep apricot and honey flavors. It is a very unusual wine and definitely worth trying, especially if you have never had a grignolino wine.
Coturri 2005 Zinfandel
This Coturri zin is organic and now very difficult to get a hold of due to the extremely limited supply. I can’t remember how many cases of this wine were produced, but I believe it was less than 1000. The Coturri had a light almost pino noir like color. On the palate, it carries strong fruit at first, almost port-like due to the sweetness, than it transitions into a very smooth mid-palate with soft tannins. I will definitely be looking to try more of this wine and others by Coturri. If you are looking for this wine and you are in the Akron/Kent area look for it at Riverside Wine and Imports (probably the only place where you will find it).
I can’t adequately rate either of these wines as I had been drinking, not sampling, other wines before these, but I’m definitely going to be looking forward to trying them again.
Hogue 2005 Cabernet Merlot
So it’s been awhile since I’ve posted. Summer has a way of flying by, doesn’t it? I assure you, when I’m stuck indoors all winter there will billions of posts.
This evening I tried the Hogue 2005 Cabernet Merlot blend. A Washington state blend from the Columbia Valley region this wine can be found I’m just about every grocery store in Ohio. For better or worse I’ve seen this wine everywhere, which prompted me to give it a shot. I’ve tried the late harvest reisling from Hogue and found it to be a decent value so I wanted to try one of their reds.
This wine took awhile to open up. At first it seemed to have a reserved nose. Yet after several hours of decanting it revealed an interesting red licorice nose, which I like. More of the same on the palate; bright red berries with licorice candy describe what I am tasting. Not bad, but nothing memorable. (picture coming soon, I’m posting from my iPhone and pic linking isn’t the best)
84
14 Hands Cabernet Sauvignon - revisited
I have not been a fanatic about wine forever. It was back about a year ago that Sarah and I were meeting up with a few of her co-workers at a wine bar in Independence called Budapest Blonde that wine became important to me. I recall the one lady we were meeting was incredibly late and we just sat around slowly nursing our wine and debating over what appetizers to pick (from the limited list of 5 choices). It was on this random Friday in June that I started getting really excited about wine; and it started with 14 Hands. I ordered a glass of 14 Hands 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon and since wine wasn’t exactly my thing back then I was definitely not expecting anything tremendous. It only took about two sips before I realized this was the best wine I’d ever tasted. I don’t remember too much about my initial impressions of it, other than it was the best wine experience I’d ever had. If my memory serves me correctly it was the smoothness and lush berry flavors that impressed me the most. I was so distracted by it I lost track of the conversation going on around me. The next day I began buying up cabs and the rest is, well, this …
So today I went to pickup my wife from work and I stopped in at Heinen’s in Twinsburg. I’d never been in that location’s store so I had to check out the wine section. They carried the 14 Hands Cabernet which surprised me because it’s a restaurant-only wine. However, since they have a cafe there it makes sense. So, without further adieu …
14 Hands 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon, $10.99
Even without decanting this wine for more than an hour I get strong scents of dark berries on the nose. There is a finer element to it that I’m having trouble describing. I’d call it “polished” though I’m not sure what that means. A solid full-bodied mouth feel that is extremely smooth and consistent. It’s bursting with fruit, but not as much of a fruit bomb as some of the Napa cabs. It has an hour-long finish that is very balanced with soft tannins. There is very subtle oak, but it’s by no means overpowering. Overall, this is probably the best wine I’ve had at this price. Everyone should buy this wine. I can’t believe how awesome it is … really.
92
Clos du Prieur
Clos du Prieur 2005 Red Wine ($17)
This wine has a beautiful inky purple color. A very strong cherry and black berry nose and a bit of a plum smell. I’ve been staring at this bottle of wine for about an hour just wondering what it tastes like. This is a French wine from the Languedoc region. It’s a 50:50 blend of Grenache and Syrah grapes. Normally wines from this area are a standard mix of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre grapes. I’ve had a few of these GSM wines and they didn’t really impress me too much. Let’s try this one and see how it does without the Mourvèdre. Wow, this wine is incredibly dry. Not as dry as some of the Barolos I’ve had, but seriously dry. On the front end it carries some very noticeable raspberry flavors, but without the intense sweetness. It’s got an almost Old World mid-palate that transitions into a very smooth finish. Despite how dry this wine is the alcohol is very smooth and polished, I’m hardly noticing it. After a few sips I’m noticing that the finish is quite lengthy with waves of black cherry flavors coming and going. I’m having this wine with pizza right now, but I’m thinking it would be even better with a steak or a German hamburger.
92
UPDATE 6/13 @ 9:51pm:
A second opinion …
My buddy Chris has rated this wine an 87. He explained that it’s fairly one-dimensional and uninteresting. My wife also thinks the wine sucks and I can’t get my dog to drink it. Just sayin …
Prado Ayala Rioja
A Spanish wine that I found on winelibrary.com and was reviewed by Gary V. As I am typing this I have not yet tried the wine, but Sarah just gave it a taste. She made a hardcore whiskey face and said “you’re gonna love it” …
Prado Ayala 2006 Rioja, $10
A dark red almost maroonish color. A somewhat tight nose that I’m having trouble figuring out, kinda spicy with a slight cherry smell. Bold, but not overly tannic or oaky. The wine is very smooth, very soft tannins on the finish. It’s interesting to watch the legs on the side of the glass, this wine is thick. Overall the flavor seems herbaceous almost tangy with the cherry and berry flavors. Josh Raynolds rated this wine an 88, which is pretty astonishing for a $10 bottle from Rioja. For $10 it’s definitely an interesting alternative to the grocery store special of the week.
87
Eppalock Ridge Shiraz
I just got back from a weekend in Amish country. It’s beautiful down there and very peaceful. We went to three different wineries including Breitenbach, Swiss Heritage and Silver Moon. I really wanted to like these wines, but none of them seemed half as good as wines coming out of California and Australia at much lower prices. I’ve decided that tonight I need to have a wine made as far away from Ohio as I have in my cellar.
Eppalock Ridge Heathcote 2002 Shiraz
Nice dark red garnet color that is inky and purplish. A strong nose with fragrant black currant and a slightly earthy smell. Wow, this wine rocks! Peppery and lush with a very good mouth feel. It has really strong dark fruit flavors and tremendous polish. However, the best part of this wine is the finish. Silky smooth with lingering flavors of spice and black berries. Not a bad deal for $19
90
Cactus Creek Cabernet Sauvignon
I’m reviewing another wine from the mixed case I bought a few weeks back from Winelibrary. At some point I added this wine to my list because it was one of the most popular cabs purchased under $20. At $12 a bottle it was worth a shot. The wine is made in Napa out of 100% cabernet sauvignon.
Cactus Creek 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon
Without question, this was one of the strangest wines I’ve ever had and clearly one of the most interesting wine experiences I’ve had to date. The color was a bit brighter with more of a red brick color compared to other cabs I’ve had. It had a very smokey nose with slight (and I mean slight) hints of strawberries and raspberries. The wine was medium-bodied and almost light, but with the strangest flavor … jalapeño pepper! No joke, even Sarah agreed with me; this wine tastes like jalapeño peppers! It’s like they bottled a bunch of them but somehow removed the heat factor. This isn’t really what I’m looking for in a wine, but extremely interesting and considering the price it’s worth trying.
88
De Lozar Ribera Del Duero
I ordered a mixed case of wine last week and this Spanish wine is the first I’ve tried. De Lozar Ribera Del Duero is made of 100% Tempranillo grapes from vines that are 70+ years old. I bought this wine for two reasons; first, because it was $10 /bottle and second because Jay Miller of the Wine Advocate gave it a 89 rating. Here’s a picture I snapped of it this evening:
De Lozar Ribera Del Duero 2005 Red Wine
A VERY fragrant nose that seemed to open up further with a few swirls in the glass. It’s got a strong smell, but it’s one that I had some trouble figuring out. It is higher in alcohol, 14%, so that may be a factor. It’s weird, but to me it smells like a combination of tomatos and cranberries. Deep garnet-purplish color, it’s definitely a very attractive wine. At the beginning, it tastes like black currants, but transitions into a really odd kinda barnyard flavor. I’d say it’s medium-bodied with good overall complexity and a smooth finish. The finish might be what surprises me the most given the high alcohol content. It’s very very smooth with soft tannins. The length of the finish is also fairly long and tails off with a hint of cherry cough syrup. I’ve only had a few Spanish wines, but they all seem to exhibit a bit of the Robitussin flavor. I’m not really into the cough syrup thing, but some people will like it. Either way, for $10 a bottle this is a good wine; much more complexity than you will find in most of the wines at Giant Eagle!
87
2005 Nachtgold Eiswein
My wife is definitely not a fan of the kinds of wine that I like. One of the things I like to do to test the quality of a wine before I drink it is have my wife try it first. If she makes a whiskey face, it’s a good wine. If she likes it, it’s probably a total fruit bomb or boring. Granted this reaction is limited to red wines; we generally are at odds with what we like. Ice wine, I’ve found, is where we meet on a common ground.
Ice wine is analogous to a Starbucks Mocha. People that claim to hate coffee typically still love a good mocha. Similarly people that claim to hate wine will probably love ice wine. Apart from Beerenauslese and some Rieslings, ice wine is probably one of the sweetest wines you’ll ever have. It’s all about two things sugar and acidity. Ice wine is extremely viscous but it still feels crisp and refreshing due to the high acid content. It’s made from grapes that have stayed on the vine far past the typical harvest and have frozen. This means the sugar content in these grapes is tremendous. When making the wine they take frozen grapes, which aren’t completely frozen, and extract the 4 drops of non-frozen juice from the grape and ferment it. The end product is a wine so sweet it’s almost like pure syrup.
2005 Nactgold Eiswein
I have no idea how to rate these wines. I’ve only had a handful of them in my life and they have all been wonderful. My wife enjoyed this wine, but she liked the Debonne Ice Wine better. Overall, this wine had exceptional golden color, a deep apple/pear nose and a rich sweet flavor with a long clean finish.
90
Cleveland International Wine Show - Top 10
I compiled a list of the 50+ different wines that I tasted at the Cleveland International Wine show. Here are my top 10:
- Faust Cabernet Sauvignon, 2005, Napa, 97, $52
- Quintessa 2005, 2005, Napa, 95, $151
- Yalumba “The Signature” Cabernet/Shiraz, 2003, Australia, 94, $50
- Luna Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, 2004, Napa, 93, $100
- Henschke “Keystone Estate”, 2005, Barossa, 92, $45
- Debonné Ice Wine, 2005, Ohio, 91, $33
- Dead Letter Office Shiraz, 2005, Australia, 91, $29
- Château Roc de Candale Saint-Émillion Grand Cru, 2005, Bordeaux, 90, ??
- Morgan Tondre Grapefield Pinot Noir, 2006, Monterry, 90, $45
- Jim Barry “McCrae Wood” Shiraz, 2005, Australia, 90, $42
I’m new to Shiraz and meritage blend wines, but I had tons of them at the tasting and most of them proved to be pretty good. The best classic Shiraz I had was the Dead Letter Office Shiraz. Very rich and interesting. I’ve heard that the Velvet Glove Shiraz is good, but at $175 a bottle I’ll have to pass on that one. Overall good stuff. The 2005 Bordeaux region wines were good, but overall I was most impressed by the Napa Valley and Aussie wines.