Below are a couple photos from last night and my notes. Some lessons learned:
–this was a lot of wine. It takes a helluva palate to be able to stay with nuance doing this many wines and I couldn’t keep us as much as I would like.
–I now prefer the Horseshoe chard over the Alpine. Last night brought that home for me, and based on the Rhys style with the wood treatment, the 'Shoe remains far ahead and the Alpine, at least in the context of the fruit and wood program, doesn’t work for me. 'Shoe rules.
–Swan Terrace is a helluva plot and it deserves the credit is earns.
–I still think Home is a killer plot, and given its proximity so close to Family Farm, it truly shows how much better the soil and land is to these 2 wines. Home rules.
–The 2007 vintage is a bit ripe for me. I like the 2010 vintage a lot.
RHYS TASTING WITH THE GANG - My House (10/11/2014)
14 of us around my table, bringing together their passion to understand the Rhys wines and share the strength of our collective cellars. A thank you also out to Kevin @ Rhys for providing the 2012s. Great evening, I learned a lot more about the vintages and the sites.
Mix of cheeses, fruits, breads from Whole Foods
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2002 Claude Cazals Champagne Blanc de Blancs Clos Cazals - France, Champagne, Le Mesnil Sur Oger, Champagne
This drank solid. Yeasty, lively and maybe a touch of age coming through with what a few of us thought was a little bit of a sherry note.
Mixed green organic salad of kale, spinach, mint and arugula with a lemon juice, mandarin orange olive oil dressing
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2010 Rhys Chardonnay Alpine Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Opened and poured in prep for the Rhys dinner here at the house tonight. Perfect chill, right stem. There is a distinct pineapple note here, along with a light coconut. The lime skin note adds the zip of acidity and I can sense this is going to be pretty fruit focused and sexy in tone style. Will retaste later in about 3 hours…this seemed to show the oak more over dinner, with the coconut and vanilla barrel tones, which also adds a creaminess. Good acidity, just a fatter feel. We tasted this next to the 2010 Horseshoe chard, which I preferred very much over this Alpine. In the end, as just one Rhys drinker, I wish the oak on this wine would get pulled back. -
2010 Rhys Chardonnay Horseshoe Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
This was tasted next to the 2010 Alpine chard, and for me, this beats the Alpine by a big distance. Why? For one, the 'Shoe fruit is brighter, the lemon peel adds energy whereas the Alpine has too muck oak and tropical tones for my palate. There is a touch of honey here in the 'Shoe, with a long presence/finish. The oak is much lighter touched, too. All in, this 'Shoe reminds me of the fantastic bottle I tasted this past June, showing terrific again. I’ve simply now come to the point where I enjoy and appreciate the 'Shoe fruit and makeup. -
2010 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Champs-Gain - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
I liked the stony feature in this wine, the green apple, lemon and medium weight. Great energy and acidity.
Chicken spring rolls
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2006 Rhys Pinot Noir Alpine Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
I like the wine this time better than when I had it back in Dec 2011. Last night, it showed a bright cherry, intense fruit, a hint of red apple and some herbal tonmes. Even with decanting ahead of time (I think 4 hours), it was still tight. My view here is, much like the Alpine Hillside and Swan Terrace (both 2006) we tasted alongside this Alpine, these wines all have a lot of structure and plenty of time left to go. -
2006 Rhys Pinot Noir Alpine Hillside - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Drank alongside the Alpine and Swan Terrace (also 2006s). This Hillside I liked the least of the three wines, as it came off a bit syrupy for me, the riper cherry and black cherry tones were less in balance than the other 2 wines. Stemmy still too and a bit rough overall. Like the other 2006s, this will need time and overall, it doesn’t have the balance of the Alpine or the overall quality and impression level of the lovely Swan Terrace. -
2006 Rhys Pinot Noir Swan Terrace Alpine Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
This was fantastic, drank alongside the Alpine and Alpine Hillside (both 2006s). This Swan beat those other 2 by a good margin. The stems add a potpourri note, and while there is some density here, maybe a little liqueur-like, it shows a polished, juicy black cherry core and as it sits in the glass, shows a rocky quality. Like the other two 2006s above, there is plenty of life left here and this is already for me a beautiful wine, one that I see advancing and becoming even moreso. Bravo. -
2009 Maison Ilan Charmes-Chambertin Aux Charmes Hautes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru
This was poured blind alongside some 2006 Rhys pinots, notably the Swan Terrace. This MI showed jammy to me, with blue and red fruit, some funk and seemed a bit too ripe for my tastes. Some at the table said they got some spritz, although I didn’t pick up on it. FWIW, the Swan Terrace was much better than this MI.
Chicken and beef koobideh with hummus and must o’ khiyar
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2007 Rhys Pinot Noir Family Farm Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County
Tasted alongside the 2007 Home, as well. Both of these wines show a riper style, a vintage similarity I suppose. The FF here had the bigger fruit of raspberry, strawberry and black cherry, with solid structure and light stem. This to me will need more time to let some of that stucture relax. -
2007 Rhys Pinot Noir Home Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay
Tasted alongside the 2007 Family Farm. The Home is more burly in tone than the FF, and to me the Home shows better depth. My notes say "darker’ and I believe that was reference to the fruit profile, as the fruit here was more roasted cherry and a hard candy note. -
2007 Domaine Marquis d’Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Champans - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
Mixed reactions to this wine, which I had pulled last minute to be used as a blind foil against some Rhys Skyline pinots. We splashed this wine and tried to get some air into it, and it showed some barnyard/brett type of character. Lots of leaner cherry and a bottle I should have aired out more prior to letting it rip. -
2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Family Farm Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County
Tasted alongside the 2010 Home, and also thrown in as a blind wine, the 2010 Copain Kiser En Bas. This FF has a pronounced stemmy aromatic, far more than the 2010 Home. Lively cherry, tight palate and finish and will need some time. For me, the fruit here and the expression of this 2010 was far better than that of the 2007, which I had tasted in the flight that preceded this one. -
2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Home Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay
Tasted with 2010 Family Farm. In this instance, the Home outshined it. For one thing, the Home is less stemmy aromatically and for me what shows instead is a herb note, than the stem signature of the FF. Juicy here, maybe a touch riper than the FF. Also here is a real depth, with stony raspberry and black cherry, with a terrific, leaner styled finish. One of my best WsOTN. -
2010 Copain Pinot Noir “En Bas” Kiser - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
Pulled this last minute to go as a blind selection, included alongside the 2010 Rhys Family Farm and Home pinots (not poured blind). All I could give this was a splash decant and poured from the decanter. Lean strawberry, red apple skin, light and stony. Nothing to retaste today. -
2012 Rhys Pinot Noir Family Farm Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County
Poured alongside the 2012 Home. Like the other FF wines of the evening (07 and 09), this too shows a riper quality of fruit. Strawberry and kiwi, seeming a bit candied with some light mineral. -
2012 Rhys Pinot Noir Home Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay
Once again, as with the previous flights, we paired this wine against the same vintage of Family Farm. And, like those other flights, the Home here beats the FF for my palate. The Home is earthier, leaner, brighter, red fruited with strawberry, a touch of blue fruit, too. Spicy, terrific acidity. Very nice. -
2012 Rhys Pinot Noir Swan Terrace Alpine Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Drank alongside the 2012 Family Farm and Home. I really dig this fruit, as it’s stony, juicy and has cool red tones to it. The acidity here is spot on, too. Much like the 2006 Swan Terrace we had earlier in the evening, this wine shined like that one.
Chicken and beef koobideh with hummus and must o’ khiyar
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2007 Rhys Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Tasted alongside the 2008 Skyline, and for kicks and giggles, the 2007 D’Angerville Champans that I had pulled from the cellar on the fly to join the flight. This 2007 Skyline is dark, intense and tannic with a peppery, stemmy aromatic. And to think this was opened the night before last…shows the structure that is here. Juicy raspberry and strawberry fruit. And an interesting note, one I have not previously cited for pinot, there was a tasting marker here that reminded me of the red berry intensity of a really fine shot of espresso. Not the coffee aspect but the deep, roasted berry signature that infuses a good shot. Really caught my attention. -
2008 Rhys Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Tasted alongside the 2007. My notes in comparing the two say that the 2008 was more approachable, with the word juicy underlined. The strawberry fruit is distinctly more red, also perhaps a bit richer. Also a light chalk note to this wine, the tannin here feeling a little different than the 2007, more open textured. -
2009 Rhys Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Tasted alongside the 2010 and 2011 Skyline. This 2009 is sexy, a bit candied of red fruits with lots of blue fruit woven in, juicy and expressive. -
2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
This was spicy, with dark cherry, herbal and tangy, zesty. Tart. So little of this made and my only bottle, not sure if I will have the opportunity to taste this again in the future. -
2011 Rhys Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Of the three Skylines in the flight (2009 and 2010), I liked the 2011 best. It does have an herbal component, which also adds some light pepper. Spicy cherry, leaner in tone, with some blue fruit, depth and minerality.
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