2016 L'Esprit De Chevalier Pessac-Léognan

Happy Sunday!  It's been a rainy afternoon, so I decided to dispense with the yard work and focus on some indoor projects, like replacing the backing on a new painting I bought at the thrift store, fixing my live trap to catch the second groundhog that roamed into my yard on Friday and other assorted household chores.  So, now I'm ready for a nice dinner and a glass or few of wine.  Tonight, I've opened a magnum of 2016 L'Esprit De Chevalier Pessac-Léognan that I bought a month or two ago during the Wines Till Sold Out magnum event.  This wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (45%), Merlot (45%) and Petit Verdot (10%), making this a classic Bordeaux blend.  I'm going to need some of this wine for the red wine demi that I'm making for my main course, so if there's enough extra for another glass or two that seems fine to me!  So, let's see how this wine is tasting.

The wine is an inky black at the center with just a touch of ruby along the edges.  The nose is a lovely presentation of leather, ripe black fruit and hints of anise and pepper.  Take a sip and you're greeted with a rush of cool black fruit that's a bit tart at first, before transitioning into some blackberry and cherry sweetness.  The tannins are refined and well structured, which works well with the spicy dry finish with just a hint of acidity at the end. 

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as it's just a great example of the old world styling and craft of Bordeaux.  This wine would pair well with a range of dishes, from grilled steaks to braised short ribs, hearty beef stew to wild mushroom risotto.  Tonight, I am enjoying this wine with a Sunday dinner of herb crusted rack of lamb with red wine demi, potato puree and some grilled asparagus.  Cheers!

2016 Lasorda Family Wines Cabernet Sauvignon

Happy Sunday!  I've spent the afternoon wrapping presents and getting ready for my first neighborhood Christmas party this evening.  But first I need to cook dinner and enjoy a nice glass of wine.  Tonight I've opened a bottle of wine I bought a couple years ago at a local wine shop, the 2016 Lasorda Family Wines Cabernet Sauvignon from Paso Robles, so let's see how it's tasting!

The wine is a deep ruby color in the glass, just as you might expect from a nice Cabernet.  A gentle swirl of the glass reveals aromas of prune, boysenberry and toasted oak, with just a hint of mint underneath.  Take a sip and you're blasted with a rush of ripe black fruit, blackberry, currant and cassis that transitions nicely to some notes of dark chocolate and mocha midpalate.  The tannins are refined, providing the base for a very long, smooth dry finish that lingers for a minute or more.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as it's a pleasant drinking everyday Cabernet that would pair well with a variety of big beef dishes, from steaks to prime rib to braised short ribs.  Tonight, I am enjoying this wine with a rare grilled Kansas City strip along with some bacon roasted white asparagus and a big baked potato.  Cheers!

2015 L'Ecole No. 41 Estate Ferguson

Happy Monday!  It's been an uneventful start to the week, though it was in the mid-70s today which means I need to grill and enjoy a glass of wine on the patio, and not necessarily in that order.  Tonight I've decided to open a bottle of 2015 L'Ecole No. 41 Estate Ferguson, which is officially last year's vintage as I just got a few bottles of the 2016  in my recent wine club shipment.  This wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (56%), Merlot (30%), Cabernet Franc (7%) and Malbec (7%) from the Ferguson Vineyard in Walla Walla.  So let's see how this vintage stacks up!

The wine is a deep purple color at the center, with bright garnet along the edges, a testament to the concentrations of Cabernet and Merlot.  The nose presents aromas of dusty basalt, with hints of leather, mocha and blueberries throughout.  The taste is a rush of black cherry with a bit of tartness that transitions to notes of tobacco, espresso and dark chocolate midpalate.  There is quite a bit of minerality in this wine, a testament to the varietals in this Bordeaux style blend.  The tannins are refined and well structured, providing for a lingering dry finish that holds the mouth for a minute or more.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, it's quite impressive, but just a bit short of the 2014 vintage in my view.  In any case this is still a fantastic wine and perfect for a big honkin' steak, which is a good thing since tonight I'm enjoying this wine with a gigantic cowboy cut bone-in ribeye grilled Pittsburgh rare along with some bacon roasted Brussels sprouts and grilled leeks.  And no, I could not finish the whole steak but there's always tomorrow!  Cheers!

2015 Stave and Steel Cabernet Sauvignon

So today I went to my local supermarket for my usual grocery shopping endeavor, and to my surprise they were having a special on wine with all bottles 15% off, so although I seldom shop for wine at the supermarket this gave me a motivation to explore.  I ended up finding five bottles, two were Charles Shaw wines from Washington, which are usually a good bet for supermarket wine, but then I saw this 2015 Stave and Steel Cabernet Sauvignon from California and I was fascinated, as it it was "bourbon barrel aged."  Now apparently aging alcoholic beverages in used bourbon barrels is all the rage right now, with beer makers doing it, and now apparently wine makers as well.  To be fair, the wine was aged in these barrels for just four months, so it wasn't like they spent years in there, but I'm willing to give it a try, so let's see how it tastes!

The wine is a lovely garnet color in the glass, with nice clarity, somewhat lighter than you might expect from a big California Cabernet.  The nose is quite nice, with sophisticated aromas of leather, tobacco, dried herbs, certainly the nose portrays a wine of quality well beyond the price I paid.  The taste is a rush of ripe blueberries, cherry and plum at the outset, that evolves into an almost prune or raisin flavor mixed with vanilla and smoky pepper spice midpalate.  In many ways the wine reminded me a lot of a nice Amarone with the flavor profile.  The tannins were refined, yet somewhat soft, leading to a long, smooth and dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as the bourbon barrel aging certainly adds something to this wine as it's tasting well beyond its weight class for a wine I just bought for $19!  This is certainly an interesting one, and not your traditional big fruit bomb Cabernet, but more like an old world Cabernet, or as I mentioned an Amarone with the fruit and spice concentration.  In any case, this wine is practically begging to be paired with a nice big steak or some barbecue.  Tonight I am enjoying this wine with a rare grilled coffee-rubbed prime filet mignon over a bed of grilled leeks, with some Brussels sprouts grilled with bacon and corn on the cob.  Cheers!

2014 L'Ecole No. 41 Perigee

What a day, full of gathering leaves and getting them up to the street for the city to take in a few weeks.  This is the time of year when we work outside in the cold, then come in to a nice warm meal and a glass of wine.  Tonight I've decided to open up a bottle from one of my long-time favorite wineries in Walla Walla, L'Ecole No. 41, and in particular, one of my perennial favorite blends, the Perigee.  The 2014 vintage is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (60%), Merlot (20%), Cabernet Franc (12%), Petit Verdot (5%) and Malbec (3%).  I brought this bottle back with me from my trip to Walla Walla back in August, so let's see how it tastes!

The wine is a deep ruby color in the glass, with nice clarity.  The nose is an elegant blend of leather, blueberry and smoky oak, that exudes richness and thoughtfulness in the blending.  The taste is a rush of ripe black fruit, blackberry and plum that evolve into dark chocolate and tobacco.  The tannins are youthful but refined providing an ideal base for the long, smooth and well structured finish that seems to last a minute or more.

Overall, I'd rate this wine a solid 9, as the Perigee is still one of my all time favorites.  This wine would be fairly versatile with food, but it really deserves to be paired with a nice steak, whether a prime filet mignon or as I'm enjoying tonight, an Angus Porterhouse with baked potato and grilled leeks.  Cheers!

2013 Castlebank "Vivian's Vineyard" Dry Creek Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

It's Sunday afternoon, and of course I didn't get nearly what I wanted to accomplish around the house done today, but at least I did laundry and prepped for dinner...it's the little things!  So since I'm already disappointed in my weekend accomplishments, why not open a bottle of wine and enjoy my evening?  Tonight I've decided to open a bottle of 2013 Castlebank "Vivian's Vineyard" Dry Creek Valley Cabernet Sauvignon that I got a couple weeks ago from Wines Till Sold Out.  Now a little over a year ago I tasted the 2012 vintage (which you can see here), so let's see how the new one stacks up.

The wine is a lovely deep ruby color in the glass, with a dark indigo at the center.  The nose presents aromas of leather, blackberry and plum, with just a hint of smoke.  The taste is just what you'd expect from a nice Cabernet, blended with just enough Bordeaux varietals to take the edge off.  At first you have a rush of ripe fruit, that transitions effortlessly to some mineral notes, mocha and dark chocolate midpalate.  The tannins are refined and well integrated, providing the foundation for the long, smooth and very dry finish.

This is a very nice Cabernet that I would rate a solid 8, and it's a terrific value as well at just $14!  Tonight I am pairing this with a rare Angus porterhouse along with some oven roasted fingerling potatoes with cajun spices and some steamed broccoli.  The dark fruit and minerality of this wine make it perfect for steak.  Cheers!

2011 BTR Cellars The Chief

Well, another busy Saturday, filled with grocery shopping, laundry, the gym and now it's time to relax a bit with a glass of wine and some dinner!  Tonight I've decided to open a bottle of wine from a producer I discovered on my last tasting trip to Walla Walla, the Mark Ryan Winery which is actually based in Woodinville, Wash., though they opened a tasting room in Walla Walla and I was impressed.  So tonight I'm opening a bottle from their second label, Board Track Racer (BTR) Cellars, the 2011 The Chief, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (70%) and Merlot (30%).

The color is a deep, brooding indigo in the glass, somewhat opaque.  The nose is a lovely combination of ripe black fruit, cherry, plum and blackberry, over hints of tobacco, limestone and oak.  The taste is wonderful, with some ripe cherry and blackberry that transitions easily to some complex mineral and spice notes midpalate.  The tannins are somewhat refined, supporting a velvety mouthfeel and a lush, long, dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8 with some opportunity for improvement with another couple years in the bottle, and it's a pretty good value at $25 from the winery, but I bought this bottle at G.B. Russo's in Grand Rapids for $28.  Tonight I am enjoying this wine with a classic pairing of rare grilled Angus NY Strip, grilled Brussels sprouts and a baked potato.  And then after dinner, I might just enjoy sipping another glass on the patio, cheers!

2003 Scala Dei Priorat

Another fine "Cellar Saturday" and today I've opened a 2003 Scala Dei Priorat, a lovely decade old blend from Spain, made from Grenache (69%), Cabernet Sauvignon (24%) and Syrah (11%), and a blend that I've chosen specifically for the lovely dinner I have planned for this evening!

The wine is absolutely lovely in the glass, with deep purple colors, and a nose that just exudes dark fruit, with ample aromas of ripe plum, blackberry and cassis overlaying a hint of leather and cedar.  The taste is wonderfully complex, with a burst of fruit up front, lovely ripe plum, black cherry, and sweet blackberry that transition to some wonderful herb notes, along with some earthy notes of limestone and forest floor.  The finish is just wonderful, as the refined tannins support a long, lush and dry finish (I know those seem like contradictory terms, but really they aren't!).

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8, as it's just a great example of this Spanish blend, and one which really supports a variety of dishes. Tonight I have prepared a dinner which I believe perfectly compliments the beauty of this wine, some lovely grilled lamb chops marinated in chipotle olive oil, some linguine in pesto sauce and a wonderful spinach salad with bleu cheese, cranberries and white balsamic vinaigrette, so delicious!  Cheers!