2022 Helix Petit Verdot

Happy Wine Wednesday!  It's been a busy week, but I have a break tonight, so why not make a post on the blog?  I had a few thoughts on what I would have for dinner tonight, and most importantly, I think I picked the right wine.  The 2022 Helix Petit Verdot is a 100% Petit Verdot sourced from the Stone Tree and Seven Hills Vineyards in the Wahluke Slope AVA of Washington.  Let's see how this wine is shaping up!

The wine is a deep ruby color in the glass, with a look of a nice Merlot.  The nose presents aromas of wild blueberry compote, green tea, hints of anise and lilac.  The first sip is a rush of ripe blacfook fruit, blackberry, cherry and currant that envelop your palate before transitioning to some warm Asian spice notes midpalate.  The finish is dry but has a nice note of vanilla caramel that will have you reaching for another sip.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as I think this is a relatively strong vintage (having reviewed the 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2020).  This wine would pair with a wide range of dishes as we head into summer grilling season, burgers and brats to kabobs and barbecued ribs as this food friendly wine is very versatile.  Tonight, I am enjoying this wine with a classic Polish dinner of roasted kielbasa, sour kraut and pierogis with grilled onions.  Cheers!

2021 Willamette Valley Vineyards Whole Cluster Pinot Noir

Happy Sunday!  As you may know, I've been a happy preferred shareholder of Willamette Valley Vineyards for a few years, so it's always a treat to review a wine that I have an equity interest in producing!  I previously reviewed the 2018 vintage here and the 2020 vintage here, so let's see what the current vintage has to offer!

The wine is a medium bodied ruby color in the glass with great clarity, just as you would expect from a nice Pinot Noir.  A swirl of the glass reveals aromas of strawberry, plum and a hint of mint, with undertones of earthy peat and mineral notes.  Take a sip and you're greeted with a rush of ripe, sweet fruit, strawberry, currant and marionberry, that transition easily to some notes of black pepper spice, green tea and the faintest hint of tar midpalate.  The tannins are well integrated and unobtrusive, providing for a wonderfully smooth dry finish, that lingers until your next sip.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, though I think this wine is just a bit better than the 2020 vintage.  This wine is very approachable and would pair well with a range of dishes, from barbecue to Asian, but tonight I am taking a traditional Pacific Northwest approach.  I am enjoying this wine with a baked steelhead filet with lemon dill cream sauce, along with rive and some oven roasted baby carrots and leeks.  Pinot and salmon, you can't go wrong, cheers!

2014 Cellier des Princes Reserve Chateaunneuf du Pape

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  This is always a challenging holiday for wine, what with all the green beer floating around, but I figured since this is a Catholic holiday I might as well go right to the top and try the wine of the pope on this St. Patty's Day!  Tonight I've opened a rather young bottle, the 2014 Cellier des Princes Reserve Chateaunneuf du Pape, a blend of Grenache (90%), Syrah (5%) and Mourvedre (5%) in this father of GSM blends.  So let's see how this one tastes!

The wine is a lighter ruby color in the glass with great clarity, just as you'd expect from a wine so heavy on Grenache.  The nose presents aromas of fresh strawberries, rhubarb, floral notes of violets and a bit of green grass.  The taste is mindblowingly different that what you'd expect from the nose, this is a rush of ripe red berries, currant, strawberries, raspberries and tart cherry that just envelop your palate before transitioning ever so gently to some mineral and green tea notes midpalate.  The tannins are soft, providing for a very smooth, dry finish with just a small reprise of tart cherry.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, it's drinking surprisingly well right now, but will no doubt improve with another few years in the cellar.  This wine would be ideal with many of those dishes that are so hard to pair with red wine, like chicken, turkey, milder fish and of course, corned beef and cabbage!  Given the holiday, this is my one day of the year to stink up the house with a crock pot full of corned beef, carrots, red potatoes and cabbage.  The fruit in this wine offers just the right amount of sweetness to counter the salty, fatty richness of the corned beef.  Cheers!

2012 Stella Reserve Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Happy Friday!  Yes, this has been a crazy month with me traveling a lot and crazy and unpredictable schedule, but I've made some time to enjoy a nice dinner at home tonight, so what shall I do?  I know, I'll open a bottle of wine!  Tonight I've decided to open a recent purchase from Wines Till Sold Out, the 2012 Stella Reserve Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon!  And yes, I know it's unbearably hot out, but I'm in the air conditioning so a Cabernet seems like an ideal choice!

The wine is a lovely deep purple color at the center with bright ruby along the edges.  The nose presents lovely aromas of ripe fruit, blueberries, cherries and blackberries, with an overlay of rich leather.  The taste is classic Napa Cabernet, with come lovely fruit up front that transitions to some wonderful notes of vanilla and green tea intermingled with some nice mineral notes midpalate.  The finish is exceptional, with some fine tannins supporting a long, dry and voluptuous finish that seems to last a minute or more.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as this is a wonderful Napa Cabernet from a strong vintage, and it was a great value at just $20!  Tonight I am enjoying this wonderful wine with a wonderful dinner of rare grilled prime filet mignon with grilled leeks, oven roasted fingerling potatoes and haricots verts almondine.  This is a great steak wine, with rich fruit and balanced mineral notes that are perfect for big meat!  Cheers!

2008 Domaine Thunevin-Calvet Cotes du Russillon-Villages

Happy New Year!  To celebrate 2016, I've decided to open a more mature bottle this evening to go with my special New Year's dinner.  Tonight I am enjoying the 2008 Domaine Thunevin-Calvet Cotes du Roussillon-Villages, a lovely blend of Grenache and Syrah from the Languedoc-Roussillon region of Southern France.  I bought this one a few months ago from Wines Till Sold Out, so let's see how I did!

The wine is a deep, inky indigo color at the center, with some brighter garnet along the edges.  The nose presents aromas of blackberry, licorice, green tea and toasted oak.  The taste is quite nice, with a rush of blackberry, cherry cola and mint at the outset that transition nicely to some mineral notes and dark chocolate midpalate.  The tannins are very smooth, providing a luxurious finish that is smooth and dry, with a pleasant reprise of mineral and spice notes.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, it's just a terrific example of the region but it would be even better with a few more years in the bottle.  As for pairing, it would be perfect with a nice Provencal menu, but tonight I am enjoying this wine with my traditional New Year's dinner of steamed Maine lobster, wild rice and broccoli.  The spice and minerality of the wine really make a nice contrast to the richness of the lobster.  Cheers!

2005 Rio Bom Douro Colheita

Tonight I've decided to try some new things, from the food I'm making for dinner to the wine I've decided to open!  I've seldom had the chance to enjoy a wine from Portugal, but tonight I've opened a bottle of 2005 Rio Bom Douro Colheita, a recent purchase from the Wines Till Sold Out cheapskate event.

The wine is a very nice ruby color in the glass, about the same color as a nice Spanish wine, like a Tempranillo.  The nose is very interesting, with a lot of bright fruit at first, blackberries, plum, black cherry, but as it opens up, it displays more rustic and earthy notes, forest floor and a classic barnyard.  The taste is fruit forward with some notes of cherry cola and some cocoa powder, which transitions to some fresh herbs, tarragon and green tea midpalate.  The finish is quite nice, with rather mild tannins supporting a rather abrupt finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 7.5, as it's a solid wine that could complement a variety of dishes and it was a good value at around $14.  Tonight I am enjoying this wine with a wonderful dinner of fresh rainbow trout stuffed with oranges and fresh thyme along with some pesto linguine and steamed asparagus.  The earthy notes and fruit flavors of the wine really strike a nice note with the richness of the trout, but I could see this going very well with a variety of dishes from grilled steak to a nice braised beef stew.  Cheers!

2008 Ravenswood Vintners Blend Zinfandel

Well, we've been enjoying a wonderful winter storm to start the new year, with all the trimmings, foot and a half of snow, and highs in the single digits!  So it's only natural to want to curl up by the fire and enjoy a glass of wine!  Tonight I am working in finishing a magnum of 2008 Ravenswood Vintners Blend Zinfandel, a nice everyday, easy drinking wine.

The wine is a nice ruby color in the glass with great clarity. The nose is classic Zinfandel, with rich sweet fruit notes of blackberry, cassis and prune accented by just a hint of fresh cut grass. The taste is a lovely combination of black fruit, green tea and black licorice transitioning to come lovely mineral notes mid palate. The tannins are very well structured supporting a long, smooth and very dry finish. 

 Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 7.5 as it's nothing spectacular, but a solid everyday wine and a terrific value, I think I bought this magnum from WTSO for only $10!  Tonight I'm enjoying this wine with a simple dinner of butternut squash ravioli topped with some Parma rosa sauce and a nice arugula salad with Tuscan olive oil and 25-year white balsamic, yum!

2005 Kunde Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon

So tonight I was perusing my cellar in an effort to find a bottle of wine to give to a colleague of mine who got a new job.  His girlfriend was looking through my cellar listing and came up with a choice, but I thought maybe I could find something that would be a good choice for a new job celebration, but I struck out on that front.  But what I didn't strike out on was finding a bottle I forgot I had that I could open and enjoy this evening, the 2005 Kunde Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon!  Now I like almost any Cabernet, but this one I always loved for the label, a representation of the California State Seal, which just looked to me like something from a nineteenth century stock certificate, great engraving and lovely allegorical figures.  So why not enjoy it tonight?

The color was pure Cabernet loveliness, a deep inky purple at the center and bright ruby along the edges. The nose is pure joy, lovely notes of leather and cassis, with a pure meatiness to it, accented by hints of anise and wonderful dark chocolate notes over the top.  The taste was just beautiful, with some dark fruit notes at the outset, ripe plum and black cherry, that gracefully transition to some black licorice, green tea and rich dark chocolate notes midpalate.  The mouthfeel is just all around lush, rich and velvety.  The finish is just perfect, well structured tannins supporting a long, exceptionally dry finish that seems to last for a minute or more.  The kind of wine that you don't give a second thought to sipping all evening long!

Overall I would rate this one a solid 8.5, as it's just a wonderful example of a Cabernet from Sonoma Valley.  I can't recall where I got this wine or how much I paid for it, so whether it was a good value is anyone's guess, I just know it was a really good wine!  Tonight I am enjoying it with some grilled steak fajitas with homemade guacamole, as the richness of the wine just melds perfectly with the strength of the steak and creaminess of the avocado!  So yummy!  Oh, and back to my original purpose in perusing my cellar, what bottle did my colleague Brad opt for?  The 2007 Stags Leap Artemis, a pretty darn nice bottle to help him celebrate, so cheers Brad and good luck on your new job!