2017 Forgeron Anvil Boushey Vineyard Syrah

Happy Saturday!  It's been a long week and I'm happy to have a day to catch up around the house.  It was sunny and 55 degrees here today, ideal for the first lawn mowing of the year, but unfortunately the snow (!) didn't fully melt until this afternoon.  So instead I cleaned the gutters, another day in the life!  So tonight I'm planning a casual dinner with a nice bottle of wine, a recent wine club selection from Forgeron Cellars.  The 2017 Anvil Boushey Vineyard Syrah is a 100% Syrah from the Birdhouse Block of the Boushey Vineyard in the Yakima Valley of Washington.  This particular block has a thin layer of topsoil resulting in the vine roots reaching directly into a layer of basalt which provides some interesting character to the fruit.  So let's see how this wine is tasting!

The wine is a deep, inky purple in the glass, with bright ruby along the edges, a bit darker than some examples of the varietal.  The nose is a rich combination of leather, intertwined with green grass and tart cherry.  The taste is just a classic syrah, with a rush of ripe black fruit up front, cherry, blackberry and currant that transitions to some interesting warm spice notes midpalate, white pepper, oak and some stark minerality on the finish.  The tannins are well structured, and fully supportive of the lingering and very dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as it's near the top, if not at the top of the 2017 Syrahs I've had the pleasure to taste.  This wine would be fairly food friendly, pairing well with anything from barbecue and steaks, to salmon, pasta or tacos.  Tonight I am hankering for summer, so I'm enjoying this wine with a classic cheeseburger with some sweet potato fries.  Cheers!

2017 St. Sagnol Coteaux Varois en Provence Rose

It was sunny and 86 today, and very humid, which once again reminds me that we are in the heart of rose season!  Tonight I've opened a bottle that I picked up yesterday at Trader Joe's, the 2017 St. Sagnol Coteaux Varois en Provence Rose!  For those unfamiliar with Coteaux Varois en Provence, the area is in a more mountainous region, offering higher elevations and more protection from the impact of the Mediterranean, often resulting in wines with more continental character.  They typical varietals are dominated by Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre and Cinsault, which is to be expected in Provence.  So let's get to the wine!

The wine is a pale pink, almost peach color in the glass.  The nose presents aromas of peach, citrus and a marked floral motif amid hints of limestone minerality.  The taste is a subdued cascade of fruit, with pink grapefruit, hints of passion fruit and melon that gives way to some earthy notes of green grass and stark minerality midpalate.  The finish is crisp and clean, and very dry, a perfect wine for summer!

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8, as it's just a wonderfully crisp and dry rose to enjoy on the patio on those warm summer evenings.  This wine was also a terrific value at just $7!  This wine would pair very well with salad, fresh seafood and even some fresh fruit desserts, but tonight I am enjoying this wine with some fish tacos topped with sriracha slaw on white corn tortillas.  Cheers!

2012 Reininger Walla Walla Cabernet Sauvignon

Well, it's been a very busy day, so what better way to end it than with a nice glass of wine?  Tonight I've opened a bottle from one of my favorite Walla Walla producers, the 2012 Reininger Walla Walla Cabernet Sauvignon.  This wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (96%) and Petit Verdot (4%) from the Pepper Bridge and Seven Hills Vineyards in the Walla Walla Valley.  I've had this wine in the cellar for a few years, so I thought it was time to give it a try!

The wine is a deep, inky purple at the center, with bright ruby along the edges.  The nose is a glorious cascade of delightful floral notes of violets and roses, overlaying some rich black fruit, cherries, blackberries and currant.  The taste reminds me of what I love about Chuck Reininger's work, wonderful expression of terroir with wonderful stark minerality coursing over lovely vibrant fruit notes, with fine grain tannins supporting the long, smooth, voluptuous finish that seems to last a minute or more.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as you'd be hard pressed to find a better, more expressive Cabernet for the price.  This wine would be ideal with a variety of hearty dishes from steaks to braised short ribs to classic Italian sausage with onions and peppers.  But tonight I am going classic meat and potatoes, enjoying this wine with a rare grilled Kansas City style bone-in strip steak, with grilled leeks and rainbow carrots, along with some mashed potatoes and gravy.  Cheers!

1997 I Balzini White Label Super Tuscan Blend

All right!  It's the first Saturday of the month, and you know what that means, Cellar Saturday!  That day of the month where I raid the cellar for something a little more mature or out of the ordinary to taste and share with all of you.  Tonight it's a relatively recent acquisition, as I just bought a 4-year vertical of this wine from Wines Till Sold Out, and tonight I've opened the oldest, the 1997 I Balzini White Label Super Tuscan, a blend of Sangiovese (50%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (50%), two varietals that I know age quite well.  Given its age, I opened this wine and decanted it about an hour before tasting, so here goes nothing!

The wine is an inky, deep purple color in the glass with some ruby around the edges.  The nose is very earthy, with quite a bit of smoke, oak and cedar over a layer of leather and black pepper.  The taste is surprisingly fruit forward with rich flavors of blackberry and plum at the outset that quickly transitions to some stark mineral notes of limestone and iron midpalate.  The tannins are quite mellow after nearly two decades but they still give nice structure to the smooth and very dry finish.

Overall I would rate this wine a solid 8, as it's drinking quite nicely, but I believe it's somewhat on the downhill side of its life.  As for pairings, it would be very nice with a wide variety of steaks or spicy Italian dishes, but tonight I've gone the other direction and am enjoying it with a grilled wild Alaskan salmon steak served over a bed of baby greens with all sorts of picnic sides, including corn on the cob, cole slaw and potato salad with a bit of fresh dill.  The fruit of the wine and mild acidity offer a great complement to the rich fattiness of the salmon, the perfect summer fare!  Salut!

2009 Cliff Creek Cellars Merlot

I love travel don't you?  Even if it's just for work and you barely have time to think much less enjoy a glass of wine. But sometimes in your travels you discover some wonderful new wines that you just have to share, and this was the case on Friday as I was waiting for my flight home from Portland.  If you ever happen to find yourself in PDX, the Made in Oregon store has a lovely selection of Oregon wines, and since it's past Security, you can buy as much as you want and carry it on the plane with you! On Friday, they were having a tasting of Cliff Creek Wines, a producer from Southern Oregon located in Gold Hill, Ore. to be exact (about halfway between Grant's Pass and Medford along I-5).  At the tasting I was fortunate to sample the red wine, the Merlot, the Cabernet Sauvignon and the Syrah, and needless to say I fell in love with the Merlot!

The wine itself is a dark ruby leading to an inky black center, classic for a nice Merlot.  The nose is just chock full of ripe black fruit, blackberry, plum and cassis, that transitions effortlessly to some nice Asian spice and coffee notes.  The taste is classic, big bold Merlot, with bright fruit up front that transitions to some stark minerality mid palate, limestone, leather and cedar.  The finish is divine, with nicely structured tannins that provide the perfect foundation for the long, dry and velvet smooth finish.  This is the kind of Merlot I'm used to drinking from the Walla Walla Valley, but who knew they were producing wines this nice down in southern Oregon?

Overall I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as I really did fall in love with it on my first taste at PDX, and it's such a terrific value as well!  This wine was normally priced at $21.95, but with the 10% discount at the tasting it was under $20!  In fact when I bough 2 bottles of Merlot and a bottle of Syrah and the total was far less then I was expecting I added another bottle of the Merlot (which in hind sight was a real strain on my arms carrying that bag!).  Tonight I enjoyed this wine with a rare grilled porterhouse topped with some grilled leeks along with some mashed potatoes and green beans almondine.  Such a great wine for a big ol' steak!

2011 Shooting Star Canernet Sauvignon

You know, I can admit it, sometimes I'm a really shallow wine drinker.  Take tonight's wine for example, the 2011 Shooting Star Cabernet Sauvignon from Lake County California. Did I buy this wine based on recommendations? Reviews? Some technical specification?  Nope. I bought it because the label looked really cool with this retro sort of Art Deco look I love!  So there you have it, sometimes the marketing geniuses designing packaging win!

To the wine, it's a lit lighter in color than a typical big California Cabernet but it's still a lovely deep ruby color in the glass. The nose is very thick with ripe jammy fruit, raspberries, cherries, plum amid a background of oak. The taste is surprisingly not sweet or jammy as the nose would suggest but instead it's very austere.  You are greeted with a lovely combination of tart cherry, raspberries and fresh herbs that transitions to some stark minerality mid palate. The tannins are very nicely structured giving rise to a very smooth and dry finish.
 

 

Overall I would rate this wine a solid 7.5, as it's a lovely food friendly wine at a descent price (I found this bottle for $17). The lightness a structure of this wine make it much more versatile than a standard big Cabernet, so you don't feel as bad enjoying it with a meal that's not a big steak!  Tonight I am enjoying this wine with a classic northwest dinner of alder planked Alaska sockeye with some fresh asparagus and oven roasted fingerling potatoes. Delicious!