2010 Côtes du Rhône Rouge Adissat

Côtes du Rhône

 

This red wine is from the Southeastern part of France, in the Rhone region. I had a rather charming bottle of the 2010 Côtes du Rhône Rouge Adissat by Philippe Cambiea. Philippe, a jovial gentleman of imposing size, had a 15 year stint in the rugby world and I believe he brings the same passion and grit to his winemaking. His skills are usually on display with such stunning Châteauneuf-du-Pape as the 2010 Domaine Giraud "Gallimardes.” That 2010 vintage from the Rhone region was one for the ages, 97 points by Bob, and many believe it will produce some monumental bottles lasting more than three decades. However, this bottle is far more pedestrian and should be consumed in the near term, so I obliged.

 

On the nose: Lovely lavender laced licorice. Let’s liken this to a late lazy Saturday afternoon loafing in the Lily Rose patch. Very floral. For the price, the nose is fairly one dimensional, which is expected. Has a lot of the characteristics you’ve come to know and love from a sub $15 red….Oak, berries, and some more oak.

 

Palate: Sweet figs with beets. Razor focus on the entry. Like Razor Ramon and his crippling finishing move, The Razor’s Edge. I apologize for yet another WWF® (now WWE®) reference (let’s just say I bothered my parents into submission to purchase many pay-per-view events as a 8 year old), the Survivor Series was my favorite. Not the most profound wine I have had in the last 6 months, but I would not hesitate to give this up as a sacrificial bottle in defense of the greater good (your cellar).

 

Rating Scale (out of 5 +):

 

++½

 

Price: $12

 

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2010 Clos Blancheau James Berry Vineyard Chardonnay

Chardonnay

 

This white wine is from Paso Robles on the Central Coast of California. I guzzled the 2010 Clos Blancheau James Berry Vineyard Chardonnay a few nights ago. This wine has an interesting background as James Berry Vineyard is most commonly known for its prized Syrah, which is sold directly from such Vineyards as Saxum to a select few lucky oenophiles. This wine trades in the secondary market at prices well north of $150. So it comes as a surprise to me that a sub $25 chardonnay would be produced in the same area, when they can rip up the vines and replant some red grapes, charging six times the price for the resulting Syrah. However, let's not try to think too hard about why they are producing this white and dive right in.

 

On the nose: This could easily pass as being from France. Stone and rock. Minerality is at the forefront. Not much oak when you get your schnozz deep into the glass, which is a rather pleasant surprise with the new trend of added oakiness in Cali Chardonnays. Trace amounts of melon and butter get an honorable mention.

 

Palate: Star fruit and a hint of lime. Racy acidy that will cut through some fat and would be a darling match with some seafood. Take a nice red Caribbean crab called Sebastian from Disney®'s The Little Mermaid, dump him in a pot of boiling water, add some Old Bay® to your liking and call it a day. Yummy in my tummy. I apologize in advance to all the little 5 year old girls out there who haven't seen this animated classic yet.

 

Rating Scale (out of 5 +):

+++

 

Price: $20

 

Under the Sea…

 

2006 Dancing Hares Red

Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot/Cabernet Franc

 

This red wine is from the Napa Valley, at the bottom of Howell Mountain to be exact. I had a bottle of the 2006 Dancing Hares Red. The blend is made of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 17% Cabernet Franc, these varietal combinations are typically found in Bordeaux blend. The team that is involved with the creation of this project is a “who’s who” of Napa and the wine consulting world including Michel Rolland (known for turning around many French chateaus and guilty of Parkerizing many wines to gain big scores), Andy Ericson (ever hear of a small little vineyard called Screaming Eagle? Well he was the wine maker there…enough said) and David Abreu (the vineyard manager who has been associated with such respected Cali Cabs as Harlan Estate, Colgin Cellars, Bryant Family Vineyard, and Abreu’s eponymous Vineyard). Only 300 cases were made of this cuvee.

 

On the nose: Daddy likes. This is right up my alley. Very classic Napa fruit with aromas of chocolate shavings and smoke. I would imagine this is probably how a bottle of Inglenook would have smelled way back when. Not overly extracted. Really subtle smell of all the right things. Wood, leather and fresh dirt.

 

Palate: The bottle is very fancy, with little etched rabbits holding hands and looking like they are dancing around a Maypole or something … hence the name. Very, very dusty. Imagine Dusty "The American Dream" Rhodes (for whom polka dots were not very sliming) did a pile driver to some poor merlot grapes. Tannins are sweet and have some backbone. This will easily last 15+ years. Would be a nice addition to anyone’s cellar, if you don’t mind parting with a C-note.

 

Rating Scale (out of 5 +):

++++¼

 

Price: $100

 

Watch out for the Polka Dot Drop ...

 

2007 Phillips Hill Oppenlander Vineyard Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir

This wine is from Mendocino County near the northern coast of California.  Pinot Noir is best known for being the primary red grape in the wine region of Burgundy in France.  It gained great popularity in the past decade due to the movie “Sideways” and now it seems that every Tom, Dick & Harry are making a bottle of this varietal.  I had a bottle of the 2007 Phillips Hill Oppenlander Vineyard Pinot Noir.

On the nose: Cigar Smoke and baking Spice and everything nice, fir tree, did I say smoke – lots of it.  Picture this, throw a Norway Spruce into a bonfire and let it burn baby burn and for good measure throw some cinnamon and cloves in there.

Palate: Exceptionally Long finish, attack of red fruit, light color – can see through the wine in the glass, makes you salivate after each sip  - Think if a garden hose was spraying cherry juice and you took it and started to funnel that motha, “Frank the Tank” style.  Awesome flavor profile

Rating Scale (out of 5 +):

++++½

Price:

$30

2006 Clos Galena Galena

Priorat
 

This wine is from España.  Priorat is from the Catalonia region in Spain (Northeast).  This particular wine is made from 35% Garnacha, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, and 15% Carinen and aged for 12 months in French and American oak. I had the pleasure of quaffing the 2006 Clos Galena Galena.

On the nose: WOW, just plain wow. Thick and heavy dose of strawberry reduction – very sweet smell. Faint pipe smoke (Ron Jon Tweetable style).  Vanilla Bean, smells almost fake or concocted in a lab.  If it tastes like it smells we are in for a treat.  Imagine strawberry drenched vanilla beans being shot out of a cannon.

Palate: Medium to Long finish, good but not great, solid wine, wouldn’t kick it out of bed.  If you can find this for sub $20 a bottle it is an easy case buy. Strawberry definitely dominates.  Take some strawberries & 5 vanilla pods and put them in a Ziploc bag and run them over 2 times in your car.  Take them out of the bag and gobble them down like Pac Man (chomp, chomp)

Rating Scale (out of 5 +):

++++ (the nose alone is worth the price of admission)

Price:

$15

1999 Pierre Peters Les Chetillons Cuvee Speciale

Champagne 

This sparkling wine is from the Champagne region in the Northeast part of France. Most people call sparkling wine from other regions around the world “Champagne”, when the only sparkling wine that can be called this has to come from this region in France. This is known as a “Grower” champagne, very small production and not from one of the conglomerate houses in the region (Moet, Loius Roederer, to name a few).  I had a celebratory bottle of the 1999 Pierre Peters Les Chetillons Cuvee Speciale.

On the nose: Peaches, marzipan, & baked bread that just came out of the oven.  Very nice smelling sparkler, yeasty -  almost dough quality.  Imagine if the Pillsbury doughboy was chopping down a peach tree and all the peaches were hitting him and making a mess.

Palate: Dry mid palate. Really sweet after taste.  Almost cloying characteristics once in the mouth.  With a bottle of bubbly like this you’ll want to find something special to celebrate, not an everyday drinker.  P. Diddy would approve if he saw you poppn’ this in the club.

Rating Scale (out of 5 +):

++++½

Price:

$90

2005 Weinbach Pinot Gris Altenbourg Cuvee Laurence

Pinot Gris

This wine is from the Alsace wine region in northeast France on the boarder of Germany that is separated by the Rhine River.  Pinot Grigio is a very popular white varietal here in the U.S., with a large majority being imported from Italy. This wine, although the same varietal, is much different. The Alsace region climate and soil make this a more complex and powerful wine with a higher alcohol level. The wine is 14% alcohol (high for a white wine).  The word Pinot which comes from the word “pine cone” in French resembles the look of the grapes on the vine and “gris” means grey in French as that is the usual color when ripening. I guzzled a bottle of the Weinbach Pinot Gris Altenbourg Cuvee Laurence 2005

On the nose: Very special.  Has a very tropical beach/suntan lotion smell.  Fresh shaved coconut.  Underlying honey and blood oranges.  Imagine you reach into a bees nest to get some honey and a super model walks past all lotioned up for the beach.

Palate: Long finish, Exotic and complex.  Sweet ripened peaches picked by your Aunt Trudy in the garden.  Butter city here folks.  Begging for some foie gras. Take a stick of butter and melt it over a peach and then shove it down your dome piece.

Rating Scale (out of 5 +):

+++

Price:

$45

Check out these coconuts…