TN: Liquid Farm Tasting - let's try everything you make and barrel samples!

Huge thanks to Nikki and Jeff for driving down to OC with Gregg in tow sporting a giant ice chest full of wines, some with labels, some with masking tape and pen lettering, and some with nothing at all but a story of what’s to come in the future. I’ll add much more to the tasting story with pictures, food critique, and general commentary but here are my tasting notes. If you were here then I’m certain you had as much fun as I did, Jeff had me rolling on the floor at the end. Please add your thoughts and comments on the wines and the evening.

LIQUID FARM TASTING - Chris and Brig’s House (11/10/2013)

Big story to go here
Bubbles

• 2001 Napa DVX Rosé - USA, California, Napa Valley
  Faint peach color. There’s a light brioche and toasted oak aromas. Does this bubbly see new oak? Fine, gentle bubbles wrapped with a small zip of acid. Fruit is very muted, lingering in the background.
  Finish is a bonus as it hangs around.
• 2012 Henriot Champagne Brut Souverain - France, Champagne
  Jeff brought this as a mystery wine and quite the treat. This is the base still wine used to create the champagne, just no bubbles since it hasn’t seen the final dosage which is the step and puts the “bubbles in bubbly”.

Light pear color. Nose is very gentle fruit but the palate comes on strong with lime, rind, and crispy acidity. Fantastic.

Liquid Farm backs up the truck!

• 2012 Liquid Farm Mourvedre Rosé Vogelzang - USA, California, Central Coast, Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara
  Super light peach color. Honey scent is pouring out of the glass after it’s poured. More honey on the palate with a dusty foundation. Fruit is running in third place here. Medium finish and good acid.
• 2013 Liquid Farm Mourvedre Rosé Vogelzang - USA, California, Central Coast, Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara
  Barrel sample and not the final blend as this is pure mourvedre at this point. In fact, still cloudy, but excellent components of acid, minerals, and a sauvignon blanc like flavors. Should be exciting to taste the final assembly.
• 2012 Liquid Farm Chardonnay White Hill - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
  Light yellow color. Aromas of very clean pear and red apple. Medium level if acidity with a good cut. Again, the fruit flavors are very clean. Medium plus finishing with a crisp snap. Slightly more fruit forward than the '11 but still maintains the angular attribute. Very nice.
• 2011 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Golden Slope - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
  Big, expressive tree fruit nose. Slightly more color than the white hill and less than the four, must be the difference in the level of new oak. Medium weight and silky mouthfeel. There wet stone leading into a medium plus finish. There’s also an added level of complexity. This is right in Chris’ wheelhouse, she went back for more.
• 2011 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Four - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
  Completely understand why people go bonkers for this wine. This is the heavyweight champ of the lineup based on its weight, glycerin mouthfeel, and intense richness and complexity. More cinnamon baked apple and lime versus the leaner razor sharp white hill.
• 2013 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Old Vine Bien Nacido Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Maria Valley
  This is a barrel sample of the single vineyard from 40 year old vines and I’m not sure if this will be bottle as such or blended into the white hill, golden slope, and four. Damn good on its own right now. Strong grapefruit flavor and obviously lip smacking acid. I have the remains of this bottle and it’s being paired with mussels swimming in a buttery broth. Heaven.
• 2010 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Golden Slope - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
  Light yellow color. Aromas blasting out of the glass screams huge complexity. Flavors of honey, sweet tree fruit, maybe some residual sugar, spice, apple, and clove. Crazy finish with taste buds firing on all cylinders. This is the prefect holiday dinner wine. It smells like the holidays. Not much of this floating around, in fact, winery owners said they’re buying this up on the open market for their personal cellar. How great is that! If you see Nikki on winebid then you’ll know.

Big Reds

• 1992 Foxen Pinot Noir Santa Maria Valley - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Maria Valley
  Double blind. I guessed an older Grenache and possibly southern rhone. Buzz. Color gave away the age as it had faded, cloudy, and kicking off a little chunky sediment. Nose was red berry which rolled right over into the palate a leather note and light spice. The fruit tasted very candied, even at this age which gave me pause as to whether this really was old world. Nice treat by FMIII as Foxen Pinot was one of the first wines to began expanding my interest in wine.
• 2002 Sanford Pinot Noir Sanford & Benedict - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
  Double blind. GuessEd Pinot noir but completely lost after that. Spice notes could have led me to SRH but I failed. Still quite opaque, dark crimson. Muted berry nose. Red berry and crushed rock followed by a spicy undercurrent. Medium finish. The mineral aspect was intriguing.
• 2008 Rhys Pinot Noir Family Farm Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County
  Double blind. Medium garnet color. I’m getting strawberry nose which immediately floats “2011 Cali PN” to the top of my list. Strawberry and light cherry flavors with excellent balance. Hint of suede through a medium finish. This wine doesn’t need food, pop it and let it be the main course. Not surprised when Rhys was revealed.
• 2007 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Dark plum color. Nose shows spice and dark berry. Dark blackberry and dark cherry flavors, fruit driven and a touch sweet. Medium finish with toasted oak note. Easy to see why this is a crowd pleaser but it needs a little acid to balance the fruit.
• 2009 Lucia Syrah Susan’s Hill - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands
  Super dark color, mortor oil in the lightly lit room. I’m pulling lots of black olive and stems from the nose. Palate is like a petite sirah with berry, firm tannins, and with pepper and smoked jerky. Medium plus finish and more jerky at the end. Big fun wine.
• 2009 Pierre Gonon St. Joseph - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, St. Joseph
  Crimson color and nice clarity as it sparkles in the candle light. More tapenade and mineral aromas than anything else. There’s a beautiful chalk and blackberry flavor with the chalk effecting the mouthfeel with almost a grittiness. Long finish. Super wine.
• 2005 Pax Syrah Castelli-Knight Ranch - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
  Great syrah. Extremely dark color. Nose shows a Carmel liquor type aroma. The stems show on this backed with slightly edgy tannins. Long finish is a lingering mouthfeel.
• 2008 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Russian River Valley - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
  Dark cherry color with a Carmel look to the edges. Lots of toasty raspberry aromas and a silky mouthfeel surrounding a spicy oak flavor. Medium plus finish.
• 2009 A Tribute to Grace Wine Company Grenache Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
  Good clarity on this wine. I guess Grenache and there is some whole cluster in there, I’m betting. Its a gentle wine even with the stem presence. Impressive finish in length.

Dessert

• 2006 Stags’ Leap Winery Ne Cede Malis - USA, California, Napa Valley
  Mild TCA taint. Wet newspaper nose. Dumped it into a decanter with plastic wrap for a couple of hours then bottle up. Should be salvageable, we’ll see. NR (flawed)
• 2008 Carlisle Petite Sirah Yorkville Highlands - USA, California, North Coast, Yorkville Highlands
  Getting towards the end of the night so the notes are becoming shorter and less informative. Typically dark PS with a black licorice, dark berry fruit, chalk, and gritty tannins. Medium plus finish. Wish I had more…
• 2003 Royal Tokaji Wine Co. Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos - Hungary, Hegyalja, Tokaji
  Wow, has this put on some color. Incredibly dark Carmel color heading towards dark brown. Sweet apricot flavor with syrupy mouthfeel. I love this wine.

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OMG… Are you kidding me?!

I am crying…

Great notes on a super night Brig!

I agree with all your notes and envy the forethought and effort to be able to keep everything straight. The Liquid Farm lineup was terrific! All the whites were excellent in their own way but the star for me was the Four with 25% new and the rest neutral oak. It had just enough oak influence to fill out the body and enhance the palate without ever being able to actually taste oak. The 2010 Golden Slope was a real winner as well. It was a very enjoyable evening all around.

Brig, you and Chris did a terrific job building out and steering the event last night. I really enjoyed the evening and thanks to you both. Nice to meet the Callahans for the first time, too.

Hey, a shout out to Niki the Ned and Jeff. I admire the passion and commitment you are investing in your project, as much your philosophy of making top notch chardonnay. Getting the oak away from the wines, figuring out site and from what I could hear and see in your comments and sharing with the group last night, a pursuit of getting better each time. I tell you what, the wine shows this effort and you can see by the reaction of many inside of the CT notes on your three cuvees, it’s paying off. The best people in any pursuit, whatever is in focus, marry together a relentless effort to be better and engage people in a personal way. Keep doing this, don’t stop doing this.

My notes on last evening are below. I admittedly spent less time on notes and simply had some fun talking more and just enjoying the company. Brig did his thing in capturing all of them above. In sum, I am a White Hill guy, and while I like the Golden Slope and the Four, I’d rather drink the WH cuvee for the cut and precision, albeit less so in 12 than what I found in 11. Was also cool to see the predominance of the Clos Pepe fruit in the Four, and how that anchored the wine.

Thanks for a great evening last night everyone.

• 1992 Foxen Pinot Noir Santa Maria Valley - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Maria Valley (11/10/2013)
  Picked up via Wine Bid over the summer for about 25 bucks. Thought this would be a fun old-era CA pinot to drink with the OC gang so having that opportunity last night, I bagged it and served it during the Liquid Farm dinner. At 20-ish years old, this is still fresh. Sure, some old bones aromatic but the fruit inside is still lively, even a bit ‘fruit punch’ in tone to me. Doesn’t show any sign of going down hill yet.
• 2010 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Golden Slope - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills (11/10/2013)
  Tasted alongside the 2011 and 2012 GS cuvees. I found in the 2010 the same ‘spicy’ note, which to me seems to reflect a consistent expression of terroir from Rita’s Crown. This vintage seems more forward to me, shown in the hazelnut and coconut flavors. However, like with all the LF chardonnays, there is acid and cut, through lime and for this cuvee, some notes of lemon, too.
• 2011 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Four - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills (11/10/2013)
  The fruit here reminds me some of the Golden Slope, with the yellow apple flavor. Where this differs from that wine, perhaps being pumped up a bit more by the new oak from one of the four barrels, is there is more tropical to this wine–banana and mango are the notes that came to mind. In addition, this wine has the highest alc level of the three cuvees, at 14.1%, and where I see this at play is in the lime flavor, which for me gets into a lime chew candy note in the finish. I remember as a kid at Chanukah having those green lime wedge candies on the table with the sprinkled sugar crystals on top. It’s akin to that. Also in the finish, to help counter this candied note, is the White Hill-like slate note, joined by some pippin apple. An interesting combination of flavors but knowing my palate now, I’m squarely a White Hill guy for the higher precision but where some may prefer a wine of more texture and power, than the Four will do it.
• 2011 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Golden Slope - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills (11/10/2013)
  Tasted alongside the other Liquid Farm cuvees, with this being the middle wine, sandwiched by the 2012 White Hill and 2012 Four. The GS is made mainly from Rita’s Crown and a bit of new wood at 20%. The apple component in this cuvee leans more to the yellow, versus green (pippin) of the White Hill. And one thematic note I found in the 2010 and 2012 GS, which we tasted later in the evening, is a ‘spicy’ note. Not heat or alcohol but this same spice hits the palate and is present in all three vintages. I enjoyed this aspect and for me, it’s attributable to the Liquid Farm gang seeking to reflect site and ‘typicity’. Also lime skin and good acidity.
• 2012 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Golden Slope - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills (11/10/2013)
  Like the 2011 GS that was part of the same dinner event, this 2012 carries the same ‘spicy’ note that is part of the 2010 and 2011. There is intensity in this vintage of GS, as I underscored that in my notes. Glossy palate. Of note, this is not a bottled cuvee yet, was instead a final composition blend that was made for our dinner by Niki and Jeff.
• 2012 Liquid Farm Chardonnay White Hill - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills (11/10/2013)
  Having really fell for the 2011 recently, I was wondering what the 2012 would show. What I learned last night during the visit from Niki and Jeff Nelson of Liquid Farm, is that this cuvee is done with all neutral wood and aged a portion in stainless. Probably explains why I recently went nuts for the 2011, combining the positive impact of the vintage with a vinification approach I appreciate. So what about this 2012? Lots of lime, good depth and chablis-like in the slate tones of the core of the wine. Tangerine zest and a spearmint quality, the latter shading the fruit that in tone seems a bit bigger than the 2011.
• 2012 Liquid Farm Mourvedre Rosé Vogelzang - USA, California, Central Coast, Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara (11/10/2013)
  I enjoyed the refreshing aspect of this, the astringence and drying tone of the finish. Nice red fruits and good supporting acidity. Terrific.
• 2008 Rhys Pinot Noir Family Farm Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County (11/9/2013)
  I bought 2 of these back in 2010 off the list, paying $49 for these and looking at the after-market now, these are 90 bucks–wow. This is the first I have opened, and is my first look at the 2008s. I opened this about an hour ago, gave it no additional air so simply a pull and pour slow ox. Aromatically the stems make a presence, but the impact is light, accenting. Squarely in the leaner side of the spectrum, with lots of pure red cherry, some light strawberry and some earth. Finishes clean with a good lift of crisp acidity, tart edges and some mineral and iron-like notes. This will be served blind over dinner later and so we’ll see how that feedback runs but I’ll offer now, sitting quietly and drinking this without food and a clean palate, this is very good and right up my alley for where I look for CA pinot now.
• 2009 Lucia Syrah Susan’s Hill - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (11/8/2013)
  I seem to have an 18 month cadence between bottles, as the one I opened tonight is pretty close to the spacing of the last two I had tried. Opened and poured, pretty dark stuff, classic Jeff Pisoni style. Aromas too of what I would expect from this bottling–smoke, incense, purple flower. some whole cluster…what good CA syrah smells like to me. Texture? Lots of plush, but also some complexity showing in some acid running a streak through it. Dark berry, creosote, some tar, and with that leaner streak in mind, some juicy acidity. With air, it begins to tighten some, too. Tomorrow, will re-try again but as always, I remain enamored with this plot and Jeff’s style with it…tasting the next day, preceded by a 2008 Rhys Family Farm (true polish/finesse versus color/power!), overnight, this came together nicely. It’s richer, more power in the core of the wine but what a deep core it shows–licorice, dark berry, a hint of crunchy red fruit, tar and whole cluster herb to really keep it lively. The whole cluster acts as a counter to the dark color and flavors and I really enjoy this. Taking this to a dinner later to be served blind so I will let any remaining feedback on the wine be driven by that group. Drink window? This is lively and delicious now and knowing 2009’s tendency to produce bigger wines, I’d say the whole package here is best drank now through 2017.

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Great notes! Who’s writing the blog/article for the content pages? (this is more for the ‘public’, so more pics, less words

Great notes. Was so bummed to have missed this event. Looking forward to the next gathering.

I planned on writing this up on the plane yesterday but had issues, sat next to a 450 pounder in the middle seat after giving up my window seat to a 8 year old so he could sit next to his grandma. No good deed goes unpunished. I did get the photos organized last night.

Here’s another note on a 13 barrel sample.

• 2013 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Random Blend - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills (11/10/2013)
  Liquid Farm Tasting (Chris and Brig’s House): This must have just finished fermentation in the last week? Liquid Farm team brought this first blend barrel sample of SRH vineyards for fun. The bottle label was masking tape with “13 SRH Random blend” scribbled across it. Probably nothing like what the final blend will be but it’s the first step in the process and art of wine making. Quite cloudy, as expected without fining yet, looks like fresh squeezed lemonade. Abundant citrus, lime rind, and very sharp mouthfeel. Will this see stainless, mostly neutral oak, or new oak? Is its ultimate destiny white hill, golden slope, or four?

This is why winemakers are artist. We’ll just have to wait and see!

Posted from CellarTracker

This was a terrific gathering (many thanks to Brig and his lovely wife Chris).

The thought I kept having as I tasted the Liquid Farms wines is that “it’s as though someone custom made a set of wines exactly for what I like.” Like I have my own personal winery. And Jeff and Nikki are a hell of a fun winemaking duo.

I’ve been horribly sick since then and am tardy on typing in my notes, but I’ll try to get them in later today.

Okay, so my tasting notes from the evening, for those ones or possibly even tens of you who might be interested.

2012 Liquid Farm Mourvedre Rosé Vogelzang. I thought this struck a perfect balance between some red fruits, mineral and a crisp finish.

So I’m usually the last person to use the Burgundy comparisons for California wines. But, at least this once, it seemed to fit, so off I go (note, the comparisons are more to recent vintages of white Burgundy, say the last decade or so, which I think are riper and fuller and more capable of early drinking than 1990s and earlier vintages):
2012 Liquid Farm Chardonnay White Hill. This is Chablis. All seashell and ocean breeze on the nose, then it gracefully eases into some tart citrus fruit, a touch of honey, and a long, tart, cleansing finish. A terrific chardonnay that should age beautifully as well. Also great value at $38 minus club discounts. This is a real go-to wine for me in the future.
2011 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Golden Slope. This is like a Premier Cru Chassagne Montrachet or Meursault. Considerably bigger than the White Hill, but with ample restraint. Concentrated citrus, pineapple and other tropical fruits, with a bit of hazelnut and white pepper. All without excess weight from oak and with considerable supporting acidity. This is clearly the closest thing to a crowd-pleasing style for Liquid Farm; possibly a bit more voluminous than the more ardent devotee of lean and racy chardonnays might prefer.

2011 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Four. This is like a Cote de Beaune Grand Cru. This combines the concentration and intensity of the Golden Slope with the tension and nerve of the White Hill. The wine is still brooding and yet to fully reveal itself, but it has a great future.

2012 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Golden Slope. A noticeably smoky dimension to the nose, followed by some pineapple and mango fruit. Not released yet, and I think not quite ready to go yet, but it shows great promise.

2010 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Golden Slope. The best of the three Golden Slope chardonnays that night to me. I don’t know how much was the different vintage versus just some additional age, but this had a funky, earthy and truffly nose, with exotic apricot and hazelnut flavors, all cleaned up with a lemony finish.

I didn’t get notes on some of the barrel samples and other goodies that were floating around later on, though the one that really stood out to me was the 2013 Chardonnay Old Vine Bien Nacido. Obviously still has a ways to go, but the jasmine, lychee and orange flavors really popped.

A few notes on the overabundance of reds that were served later on:

2009 A Tribute to Grace Wine Company Grenache Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard. A remarkably light colored and feminine expression of California grenache. Pretty cherry and strawberry fruit, mineral, and ample spice, with a long orange finish. My only quibble is that the fruit on the nose and at the front of the palate is a bit sweet and confected, maybe the result of the warm 2009 vintage, or maybe just needing more age to settle back – I think the surrounding vintages of this wine show better balance, at least as of now. Anyway, to me, one of the more distinctive and original wines made in the state these days.

2008 Rhys Pinot Noir Family Farm Vineyard. A blast of fresh strawberry fruit, which starts out boldly but pulls back hard on the finish to end in a savory mix of mint, mineral, iron and acids. I had guessed a 2010 Copain pinot when tasting it blind (though aided by the knowledge that Frank had donated the bottle); I guess I wasn’t all that far off. This is an impressive, cerebral pinot with a long future ahead.

2002 Sanford Pinot Noir Sanford & Benedict Vineyard. Great herbs, rocky mineral, pine, dark cherry fruit and a bit of iron. A beautifully complex pinot from one of the great vineyards in the state, and with room to improve further with more age. This was the last vintage from Richard Sanford and Bruno D’Alfonso.

As I said in a prior post, Liquid Farm seems eerily dialed into what I want from Chardonnay; it’s what I would want chardonnay to taste like if I made it myself. It belongs in (and perhaps towards the front of) the subcategory of California chardonnays that I seek out – Mayacamas, Montelena, Mount Eden, Rhys, Copain, Arcadian, Anthill, and a few others I’m not remembering at this hour. I eagerly joined their wine club the next day after the tasting.

If nothing else, keep an eye out, maybe you’ll see it in a specialty shop or on a restaurant list, and if you like the kinds of Chardonnays that I do, you might be smitten as well.

I had a friend in the country a couple of weeks ago-a Brit who now works in Zurich. He’s a big Burg guy. Anyway, we had Liquid Farm and he said it changed his entire perception of California wines. We did a day of tasting in St. Rita Valley that confirmed that, but the LF just blew him away.

Question: Is LF only available through Wine Club?

Very cool of Nikki and Jeff to do this, but then again them doing fun stuff like this is pretty much the norm.

I’m familiar with most of the wines tasted, and can remember the '10 LF Golden Slope really blowing me away on release, along with my previous perception of Chardonnay. Haven’t been disappointed with any of the releases since. Better yet, when the '11 White Hill came out I opened one at home right away and couldn’t stop smiling. Ditto earlier this spring when I got my first look at the Rose.

MD - Check wine-searcher if you want to pick up a bottle at retail. There is some distribution, and that’s actually where I discovered L-F. It’s all CA and NY for now but hopefully we can change that ; )

OK, glass…

Thanks to Brig and Chris for a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

Thanks to Jeff and Nikki of Liquid Farm for sharing wines and stories. Since this is a family board…I’ll simply say my cheeks were hurting on the drive home from laughing.

Thanks to Leslie for the Google Glass test run. Who knows what video/photo evidence she collected?

FMIII brought the oldest bottle of the night, by far! The 1992 Foxen had me guessing completely against my instincts, since I didn’t think he had any older bottles other than a late 90s Allemand. I am a terrible blind taster.

Standouts? Really enjoyed the LF Chards. Perhaps at the edge of my comfort zone for CA Chardonnay, but delicious nonetheless.

The LF Four would be the popular choice, but I found a lot of consistency over the three bottles and between the 2011/2012 vintages. Can’t go wrong here. The 2013 random blend, sort of a Chardonnay Nouveau, was fun, and surprisingly enjoyable despite being just an embryo. I will look to retail or the pseudo club to find a few more bottles.

2008 Rhys FF had changed in the couple of years since I tried it, in a good way, with a bit more acidity and structure present to complement with the youthful fruit.

Also enjoyed the 2005 Castelli Knight, the Carlisle Petite Syrah, and the LF Rose.

Looking forward to the next event!

A little bit gets out into retail. I bought some bottles of 2011 White Hill at Hi Time a couple of months ago, but I think they’re sold through. At a glance on WSPro, K&L, Wine Club, BestWinesOnline and Wades seem to have the White Hill, and Wine House, K&L and Woodland Hills have the Golden Slope. I see that Woodland Hills even has the Four.

If you like minimal oak, higher acid, more seashell / ocean / lemon character, you should definitely get a couple of bottles of White Hill and try it for yourself. For a wine still on that side of the stylistic spectrum, but with more fruit, weight and crossover appeal, try the Golden Slope.

So….still dreaming about that damn cheesecake your wife made Brig…oy! been trying to work that and Julie’s dinner off ever since though - humph!

Wanted to thank you guys again for being there and for all the great notes, feedback and impressions as well! LURV’ing it!

Also, to note: if anyone ever needs to know where to find any LF retail wise, feel free to email me - we sell directly in Southern CA and throughout the Central Coast so those cases are personally sold to our peeps at WHWC/Wally’s, K&L, etc - all hand presented and hand delivered for the most part too. We have known them for a long time via the distributor / supplier side that I was on (and Jefe still is on). Happy to help anyone find some or for that matter offer an intrigued WB’er a trial order to check things out

Loved that Brig and FMIII were taking intense notes - I used to take them like a freak on ALL wines, its actually how I really realized my passion for wine and switched my major to it when I was 22. With the whirlwind that has been the last few years I have in much part gotten away from it unless its barrel tastings/monitoring or here and there as able and as we moved into the reds I was inspired to get on the train and to jot down some very brief notes and stabs at the blinds in between blabbing and noshing and sipping. Will note those below

But, firstly - some of you nerdy fellow note takers (you all know who you are…) will have to come up for a marathon barrel tasting as we get closer to making the calls for the '13 WH vs. GS/FOUR - the notes I have for those tastings go pages and pages and pages. You spit everything just about but, you’re still a little toasty by the end. Each individual barrel is oogled over for 1-5 minutes each - we typically don’t start tasting with any serious fate for them in mind until around June - it seems that is when most the “personalities” have come into their own from the various stages that take place from pressing Sept/early Oct, till then. We bottle the White Hill in August and have to rack the wine off to cold stabilize a month prior, so sometime in July the decision is made on which will make their way to WH - and which will kick back awhile longer in barrel for another 4 or so months before another call has to be made on which of those remaining will become Golden Slope or FOUR. The easy part with the WH is that any small amount aged in Stainless is only going there and any non-neutral barrels are automatically only GS/FOUR candidates… Barrels that have more of innate “White Hill-y-ness”; intense tension, leaner/lazer like fresh citrus fruits, iodine, overall Chablis-like, loads of minerality dominating, etc - get a big “WH” chalked on the barrel - if its maybe showing more WH overall but, also has some GS qualities maybe we chalk it WH+/GS-. What are GS typical qualities? Lemon curd, musky earthiness, peach pith, stunning texture, marzipan, salinity more Beaune than Chablis - and what is that makes us say “F*&%!” and chalk a “4” on or GS/FOUR on there? My notes from the tasting we did last month to finalize the GS/FOUR blends (we’re bottling next Friday (22nd / 2+2=FOUR) for barrels that will be our '12 FOUR: “silky, crazy power with delicacy, magic, nuggaty, earl grey, mineral purity, truffle pheramone goodness, the Librarian”…

Brief Red Notes:

WINE E:
black fruits, meaty undertones, smoky bacon fat, framboise - screams to me New World Syrah
——> 2009 Lucia Syran, Susan’s Hill

WINE G:
red currant, cold, black cherry, mocha, coffee, on the nose / palate: high toned, red fruits, higher alcohol - little amp’ed up for my personal palate but, obviously not a “Mark West” price point by far - internationally crafted in this style - gotta be new world - noted high toned Pinot from Cali
——> 2007 Kosta Browne Family Farm Vineyard

WINE B:
black currant, sandalwood, white pepper on the nose, on the palate: great grip w/ killer tannins, either young or possibly manipulated (capitalized/acidulated), definitely cool climate and possibly mountain fruit - I was torn between old world Rhone or new world Bordeaux blend from somewhere like Mt. Veeder or Santa Cruz.
——> 2009 Pierre Gonon St. Joseph

WINE - forgot to note the letters at this point
tiramisu - coffee creaminess/lady fingers situation, some nice stony/mineral lift to it, plum / palate: chocolate truffles with nice balance of tension but overall lacking enough backbone and structure/completeness - I said new world Syrah or rhone blend
———> 2005 Pax Syrah, Castelli-Knight Ranch

NEXT WINE
red fruits, almost a candied raspberry koolaid sort of thing going on, or maybe POM juice…was sort of lackluster on the palate although soft and overall nice - I stopped noting my conclusions at this point - hey! - it was a back to back WB marathon! to note: I dig what they do and have really liked other bottlings very much
——> 2008 Rhys Pinot Noir (**corrected - had originally listed the '02 Sanford by mistake)

NEXT WINE…ok so I don’t have much left here expect that the 1992 Foxen was giving up some cinnamon…and band-aid. Cinnamon-Band-aid. do those exist yet? Prob a small amount of Brett here (which I am not wholly opposed to I dig some funk.
———> 1992 Foxen Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley

Missed notes on the Tokay - but, it was really pretty - the cheesecake stole the end of the show though - hands down. But, if you are in the freaky dorky mood you can memorize the 3 varietals allowed in all aszu wines: Fumrint, Harslevelu and Muscat de Lunel…that is the kind of crap I had to know for monthly Wine Exams given by MS/MW Peter Neptune when I worked for Henry Winey Group…and if you want to read up on the painstaking way this viscous liquid is made - check this out

And, so I shall start and end this post w/ book end nods to the stupendously delicious desert ala Chez Campbell.

CIN!
Nik

PS: I just remember my “brilliant” next tasting/dinner theme that I came up with at our dinner… last night - SHERRY!! let’s get on it. trust me, nay sayers will be in love by the end of the evening. so rad to take the time to roll through the various styles and w/ tapas.

WINE G:
red currant, cold, black cherry, mocha, coffee, on the nose / palate: high toned, red fruits, higher alcohol - little amp’ed up for my personal palate but, obviously not a “Mark West” price point by far - internationally crafted in this style - gotta be new world - noted high toned Pinot from Cali
——> 2007 Kosta Browne Family Farm Vineyard

WOW! There’s a collaboration I never saw coming.

intentionally crafted

• spell check correct-she-oh-ness

Nikki, you are a cork dork! Nice notes and remind me never to play “Hungarian wine trivia” against you.

I was just proud of myself because I knew it was made from furmint…

Also - if anyone is interested in checking out the recent Tanzer reviews by Josh Raynolds would be happy to post his LF notes where appropriate I love Josh’s style and TN’s!!

(and, I corrected a mistake in my typing last night - the notes that had 2002 Sanford were my Rhys PN notes - whooops!) The Sanford had no notes which sometimes is a really good thing as I was just enjoying it