TNs--FALLTACULAR 2014

Hey—I’m up watching the Canada gold-medal-winning performance, so I might as well multi-task, right?

Well, it won’t be short, that I can promise you. I am so grateful to Frank and Jill for this event. I can’t believe how much I’ve missed everyone and it was an enormous pleasure to meet some new faces too. Even with all the chatting and munching from the grill and such, I still found time to taste about 60 wines from the nearly 150 wines available. I may not have matched Brigger, but at least I can think I came close.

The speeches were particularly moving this year, from Frank and especially Jill and one of the volunteers. Knowing we help make the kind of difference that matters…well, that matters.

And yes, the tauntwear remained on full display yesterday (anyone who took pics, please PM me to send them on!)

2012 Rivers-Marie Summa Vineyard Pinot Noir

Fine, fine strawberry, pomegranate and watermelon. Young, but very promising, with good acidity, real spice-side midpalate and enjoyable woodsy finish. Even this young, a pretty harmonious and class-filled effort. #8

2012 Rivers-Marie Sonoma Coast

More rootiness and raspberry here. To taste, some of what the Summa has, but not as much sophistication. It does drink easily, though.

2012 Kutch Falstaff Vineyard Pinot Noir

Shows lots of potential already, with all manner of hinted baking spices, red berries and plum. The structure is there, a just-bridled acidity but fine purity of red and black raspberry fruit. Fine bones indeed.

2011 Ceritas Hellenthal Pinot Noir

Has some savage and sweet combo to sniff, tiny cola but lots of red fruit and some herbs. Mmm–lovely, I really like the pink grapefruit edge to earthy currant an raspberry. Fantastically balanced mouthfeel, this ended up #3 and the best of the Pinots

2012 Knez Winery Demuth Pinot Noir

Candied cherry here, it does present quite sweet. Le gout is smooth, has some chocolate to go with some blue and black fruit. Some balance, but all on a just-too-big scale for my own preferences.

2012 Anthill Farms Tina Marie Pinot Noir

Big-time coffee and mocha hit on the bouquet, cherry too. Lots of zap, sharp but with interest—blackberries and prunes.

2011 Alesia Alder Springs Pinot Noir

Smoky and earthy and merde a bit. Very dark cherry and plum, and roasted chestnut also waft up the glass. Gee whiz—it’s rocky and lashing acidity. Not much fruit yet. Some burgundian nuances, but it’s still Cali.

2012 Anthill Farms Campbell Ranch Pinot Noir

Touches of hot pepper roll around a pretty nutmeg style and dark strawberry. Palate finds it tangy with raspberry and strawberry, but not a lot of staying power

2012 Small Vines Estate Cuvee RRV Pinot Noir

It was a great pleasure to see both Paul and Kathryn, and we had some good chances to talk. Paul did this 25% whole cluster. Yummy scents of light cloves, cumin and strawberry pie. Lovely and juicy and memorable with cola-and-earth tinged small red berry fruit and the knowledge that it will continue to grow. #10

2012 Small Vines Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

Fragrant with more citrus here, around bright red berries. This is a more transparent wine and needs lots of time, has more acidity and structure, I think, than the estate cuvee, but not nearly the charm.

2012 Small Vines MK Vineyard Pinot Noir

Coffee, cocoa and black cherry intermix. Mmm, delish, great mouthfeel and lots of spices, cherry, raspberry and backhit of chocolate. Yummylicious, #7

2012 Small Vines Baranoff Vineyard Pinot Noir

40% whole cluster here. Brooding and peppery, with dark sweet raspberry. That IS good----deep and full of pepper-infused dark black berries.

2011 Big Basin Coastview Chardonnay

Fair splash of oak, butter is here, pear mostly. In the mouth, the oak continues but it is well-judged and the toffee here is very likeably light. A tiny hit of pineapple underneath completes the picture. The lightness of being of this is extremely attractive.

2012 Fogline Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

apple nucleus weaves in and out with some gingerbread notes. Zippy—apple and apple peel, maybe a hair over-sharp at the back.

2012 Lioco RRV Chardonnay

I quite like this bouquet, lots of pineapple, tropical fruit and citrus. A little on the lean side, but continues with the apple and tangerine theme, apricot here too. Very flavourful.

2012 Cowan Cellars Ribolla Gialla RRV

It does have the slightly oxidative lanolin and nougat tones. And dans la bouche, this doesn’t have the presence of the Italians, but does have the mineral and steel-tinged flavour around very crisp apple. Almost, I’d say, grape seed at the back.


2012 Alina Grenache Blanc/Roussanne

50% of each. Sort of muskiness around the aroma. Star fruit maybe? Sweet side, as I might expect with this blend, works in a small, small aniseed component around pear, star-fruit and lemon.

2012 Wilde Farm Brousseau Chardonnay

Scents of apple and very light mint leaf. On the tongue, plenty of carry, good acidity, pear fruit mostly and I pick up a dash of orange peel. Not bad.

2011 Jean Edwards Napa Cabernet

Uhmm, smiles all round for the milk chocolate covered plums and gentle berry fruit. Cinnamon and a li’l graham cracker too. It is awfully seductive. Still very young, but plenty of grip with cracked black pepper and black currant framed with some cedar. Very good.

2011 Switchback Ridge Merlot

Aromatics of cocoa, baked cherry pie and bits of smoke. Still very gangly, cherries, plums and a nice mouthfeel and sweetness promises good development. Kahlua at the back.

2011 Riverain Oakville Cabernet

Christmascake first, small dab of meat around dark, unripe cherry. Palate has layers and I like the carry and purity of fruit. Very nice already.

2012 Tercero White Hawk Viognier

Quiet nose, but some peach and florals do come up. Lime too. Good flavour follow-through, perhaps some more acidity would be welcome, but the mouthfeel at the middle and back is very good, with neat mix of citrus and nectarine.

2012 Jemrose Viognier

Power bouquet of acacia, orange blossom and peach. Touch of guava too. Lots to taste, including poached pear and melon. Maybe a little turbo-charged, but I wouldn’t kick it out of bed

2013 Le P’tit Paysan Rose

Mourvedre-based. And this is somethin’ different! Almost pipe smoke wrapped around red raspberry. Unusual–has a smoke and baked note…maybe even bacon…around tart berry fruit. Not sure the mix truly works, but intriguing.

2012 Liquid Farm Golden Slope Chardonnay

Very balanced with light butterscotch glints around pear, lime and tangerine. Good, yes. Needs time, yes. But this has authority with pear and lime replays playing very nicely. Particularly lively–and layered—with some ginger and snap peas secondaries. Chance to be great.

2012 Liquid Farm White Hill Chardonnay

Oh. OK. Now I understand the flurry of ecstatic tasting notes about this winery. Sparks flying in the schnozz–nougat and gingerbread infused with orange blossom and Bartlett pear. And this, in the mouth, is great. It’s full of life, full of apple, yellow plum, yellow raspberry and pear. It’s full of joy and it asks to be loved. Fantastic and #1, WOTD. And I’m not just saying that because Nikki presented me with a red headband to match my Canada gear.

2012 Liquid Farm #4 Chardonnay

The oak is much more in play here. Almost masks the coconut and sweetish lemon. Sterner stuff here, lots of energy but the oak is a touch aggressive for now.

2011 Idlewild Cortese

Hum—candy apple and perfume. Not boring. Gentle with sweet herbs edging a white berry profile. A tiny bit grassy.

2011 Lucia Soberanes Pinot Noir

Solid scents of cherry, strawberry, coriander and a lovely cedarbox side. Round, but with black raspberry interlaced with lots of spicy flashes. Good stuff.

2012 Wilde Farm Donnelly Creek Pinot Noir

Cherry, earth and small cocoa, but something distracting…VA maybe? Just OK, basic red fruit, but no real identity for me.

2011 Fogline Sun Chase Pinot Noir

Like what swirls up the glass, potpourri, red cherry and small notes of baked cinnamon and cola. Very prominent on front of tongue, bursting raspberries and citrus, but doesn’t stay balanced.

2012 Fogline Sun Chase Pinot Noir

More intrigue in this one, baking spices, blueberries, plums. Also a touch on the unsubtle side, but declares itself with cranberry, currant and raspberry.

2011 Kessler-Haak Pommard Clone Pinot Noir

Very plum and what I’d characterize as ripe blackberry here. Nice entry with good feel and more juicy berry fruit.

2013 Liquid Farms Rose

Sense of spiced watermelon on the nose. A nice light snack here, raspberry and flashes of acid play out.

2012 Small Vines Chardonnay

Subtle notes of pear and star fruit weave through this. Good wine here—balance, carry, length, decent feel. Pear and citrus notes with coconut dust at the end. Nothing outstanding, but everything good.

2011 Switchback Ridge Peterson Petite Syrah

Whee—this is BIG, cracked sweet black pepper and huge plum…a lovely rosemary thread too. Coats your mouth and the tannins are chewy, but really good with chocolate and cherry. A long happy life ahead. #6

2011 Fogline Dry Creek Zinfandel

Ripe fruity bouquet, plum, raisins and prunes a bit. But not my style preference, grapes and sharp cassis just don’t mix that well for me.

2010 Tercero Mourvedre

Larry told me this spent 30 months in neutral oak and that he pulled the grapes from 5 locations. Well, the results are in, and the results are positive. Finely subtle, all sorts of faint cocoa and noisette notes around pretty red fruit. Cool, almost refreshing on entry, le gout picks up weight and is full of lovable red plum and dips of crabapple. Cocoa shows up again at the back and this has room to develop further. Excellent,#5

2010 Big Basin Rattlesnake Syrah

Bigger and riper than I remember this wine being in the past. Sweetened ripe dark fruit backed by herbs and chickoree. Dans la bouche, almost tangy. Maybe rangy is a better word, since game is mixed with plum. This needs many years.

2012 Point Concepcion Merlot

Bouquet of coffee grounds mixed with black fruits and a sweetmeats sidebar. Doesn’t have the staying power on palate to match the nose, a bit hot and mostly front-loaded with plum and some blueberry pie.

2011 Alesia Alder Springs Syrah

Definitely doesn’t suck. Marvelous depth and balance aromatically, with dark chocolate sparks through blackberry, black plum and, I want to say, a hint of pistachio. Still a baby, a scratching, clawing baby—but will grow up to be a star. The acidity, tannins and structure are all there for a great wine in 5 years. Fruit isn’t sweet, but fits this profile very well. To-be-outstanding, #12

2012 Carlisle 2 Acres

I was walking to get food and stopped dead in my tracks. Almost mouthwatering aromas of black forest cake and cinnamon-dusted plums. Amazingly, already locked in, very amourous expression of wine, with plum, ripe raspberry, mocha and back-end of chickoree. Totally licklicious, #2 today.

2012 Loring Parmalee Hill Chardonnay

Sniffs of ripe lemon and apple, attractive in its way. Taste is sweet-sweet, with honeydew being called to mind. It’s heavy, and while the style is consistent with the nose, it’s not my speed.

2012 Loring Rosella’s Chardonnay

More balance for me here, with pear, apple, toffee and some of that melon. Here too, more vivacity and nice lemony framing to the wine. l like this a good deal more.

2011 Clos Pepe Chardonnay

Perfumed, floral, pear and wood. Fair carry and acidity, still needs years to grow up.

2012 Bluxome Street Ballinard Pinot Noir

Spiced cherry, some other mixed berry fruits in aroma. Very fresh, lovely strawberry and redcurrant mix. Just want more on the nose.

2012 August West Rosella’s Pinot Noir

I was thrilled that Ed made it down and wish I’d been able to spend more time with him, but he looked well, all smiles. This is very fine, as usual. Alluring raspberry and earthy side, spiced cappuccino. Initial sweet entry but levels out quickly to raspberry with more mocha and a small hit of chickoree at the back. Very good. #9

2012 August West Sierra Mar Pinot Noir

Less expressive at this stage than the Rosella’s, still crunchy berry, mid-dark chocolate shows out too. It’s tasty, with replays of everything, but not quite finished. Give it another 2 years.

2011 Amelle Pratt Pinot Noir

Smoky here, juicy red fruit. Lean, with currants, raspberries and herbs. Needs time, but I like the structure.

2012 Sojourn Rodgers Creek Pinot Noir

Nose contains a pretty cumin-laced berry mix, tinge of earthiness. Erich’s signature rich feel is here, very nicely controlled with good acidity allowing the purity of cherry and strawberry fruit to shine. Nice, nice, #4

2012 Sojourn Sangiacomo Pinot Noir

More wildness on this bouquet, I get some sage and game here. Yes, more primal in the mouth too, leans towards bilberry and raspberry, but plenty of promising elements.

2010 Ladd Cellars Cuvee Abigail Pinot Noir

Not the best in nuzzie–bit of tomato side…VA is a possibility. There is a dollop of ripe strawberry under there, though. Hum. The “sharpness” follows onto the palate, acidity and sour cherries that doesn’t work for me.

2011 Ladd Cellars Moore Vineyard Pinot Noir

Pleasant forest scents swirl in and out of lots of sweet roasted herbs and blackberry fruit. Good balance dans la bouche, carries its raspberry and black strawberry very nicely. Good wine.

2012 Loring Durell Pinot Noir

Plum and Christmascake aromatics, with baking spices and cherry pie underneath. Palate is OK—maybe more than OK, straightforward dark strawberry and light touch of currant, but it flows seamlessly down the throat.

2012 Loring Garys’ Pinot Noir

Aroma speaks of a good nutmeg-based spiciness. Nips of pomegranate underneath. Quite smooth and expressive with ripe red and black berries and a tick of oak at the back. Probably not a long ager.

2012 Loring Cargasacchi Pinot Noir

Brian was missed, for sure. This presents with scents of cherries, meats and spices. Interesting. But on the tongue, bit of burnt and roasted but spicy fruit. Berries and cherries. Just OK.

2012 Sandler Keefer Pinot Noir

Oh-mmm—this has some mystery to it–plums, berries and a touch of rhubarb. Surprised at how jumpy this is, raspberry coulee an a little baked, but has levels. I wonder how it’ll age.

2010 Tercero White Hawk Syrah

Mix of coffee, plum, blueberry and pepper. This is still unsettled to me on taste, but I can admire the spice-driven currant fruit here. Check back on it in a year.

2010 Cabot Humboldt Syrah

For me, a definite Kahlua side paired with seductive plummy sniffs. Structured and suave, this feels like a very surefooted wine, very much within its frame, showing plum and blackberry. I liked this a lot and told John so. #11

2009 Tercero Cuvee Loco

75% Grenache, 25% Syrah. Larry keeps doggedly trying to convert me to Grenache This is OK, dark fruit and bits of sweet here and there. I want to love it, but it jangles in my mouth, with some grapiness and chewy plum. Ah, well…

2012 Tablas Creek Picpoul Blanc

Sweet corn—that’s what I get here in the bouquet. It’s been open all day, so I think some oxidation has set in. Mmm, yes, fizzy now, I’m sorry I didn’t get to it early, as there seems to be good interest in there.

We also had a few other wines with dinner and nibbles

1995 Louis Carillon Puligny Montrachet Les Referts

I toted this along to have as an after-wine. Hurrah–not premoxed. Mineral and pretty greens combine with crisp apple scents. This is lovely and lilting still—Frank is dead-on with poached pear—and it develops in the glass, with a fine vein of minerality and lemon and citrus sides. It may not be authoritative in nature the way one would expect from Puligny, but I don’t find myself spitting any of this out.

2010 Francois Chidaine Montlouis-sur-Loire Les Choiselles

Frank let me pick from his cellar. This presents light grassy notes to go with gingered pear and lemon. Lilting is a good descriptor, it has a lemoncandy tang and an unripe melon finish, but all extremely gentle. Very pleasant.

2010 Louis Michel Chablis Montee de Tonnere

Frank chose to open this too, from magnum. Awash with lilac and floral, seashell, lemon and limestone all in there. Palate is still fairly stiff, but filled with stones, flint, lemon and grapefruit. Promising.

Frank generously opened a few champagnes too. I didn’t take notes, but the Billecart-Salmon Rose was the expected nice drink.

Post of the year? Tasting note wise, I think so! Good job there Mike.

Mike,

I can only speak for myself, but in addition to the fabulous and heartwarming speeches from Frank, Jill and the folks at Laura’s House and the banter among folks all day and night long, two of my biggest highlights were the first whaffs of bbq coming from the grill mid-afternoon (I’m not a ‘points’ guy but man o man, I would have given that 100 points WITH an asterisk!!!) and seeing your smiling face! Soooooooo great to see and hang out with you - thanks for making the effort to come on down and believe me when I say the feelings you have for the folks there and event are mutual, my friend! Safe travels and hope to see you sooner than a year from now!

And I want to give a shout out to others who traveled far and wide to be there - and what a pleasure to put names with Berserker ‘personas’ - Jay and Rebecca Hack and Ted and Joanne Erfer (and there are plenty of others that will pop into my head later for sure . . .).

For those who did not go, there were well over 100 wines present yesterday - and that does NOT include the dozens of craft beers brought and opened by a few noble souls and seemingly dozens of wines Frank kept pulling out of the wine fridge as the evening progresses (how many chompers were opened?!?!? And why was G3 gonna aim that cork at me?!?!?).

The wines were, in general, outstanding. Loved Ian’s Mourvedre Rose - did you blend anything else into that puppy besides Mourvedre? Loved the color and aromatics - picked up almost a sauv blanc pine-needle nose, which I dug, but have not gotten before. Truly a stand out wine to me! And I dug the Alina white blend that Mike noted above as well. Didn’t spend much time at the pinot table (surprised?!?!?) but did manage to hobble upstairs a few times to check out the domestic rhones + tables a number of times and was just pleasantly pleased to smell and taste those wines in general!!! (Perhaps next year we can move THOSE downstairs and put pinots upstairs?!?!?).

All in all, a simply incredible day and night that continues to confirm that wine geeks are 1) geeky and 2) incredibly warm and generous folks in general!!!

Can’t wait for 2015 already!!!

Great notes Mike. Sounds like another awesome event. I’m disappointed I missed it this year but family duties interceded.

I’ve haven’t seen the tomato/VA you mentioned on the Abigail tho (va was tested and isn’t an issue). Agree with the rest: tart red fruits with spice and some fresh herbs on day one…and the structure is somewhat high. On day two the palate gains density, complexity and some dark fruits…and the structure resolves itself. I figure this day one/two gap will close in a few years.

Great notes as usual, Mike!

First, kudos to Jill and Frank for a great event and for suffering us to invade their beautiful home until late into the night. I did not take notes and tried fewer wines than Mike, but here are some impressions. I skipped almost all wineries that are already well represented in my cellar, except for Cabot because we drank it by accident, so here goes.

Riverain Syrah. Rebecca and I both really enjoyed this. TRB hits another home run with Jemrose fruit.

Cabot 2010 Klamath Cuvée. Very nice and surprisingly expressive despite its youth. Cherry fruit, some plum, light spice. Meaty back end. I drank this while talking to John Cabot without either of us realizing it was his. Found out later from Ted, who poured it. Very smooth and easy to drink.

Tercero. We had the 2007 Grenache at the pizza party on Friday. I really liked it. Raspberry fruit predominates. Starting to taste mature without any negatives of premature age. The 2012 Viognier was interesting. I liked it and would gladly drink it, but I did not swoon over it. The 2010 Petite Syrah was very nice. Dark and brooding meatiness. Way too young, of course.

2010 Harrington Nebbiolo. Expressive violet nose and earthy forest floor with mushrooms but no creosote. Tannins are extremely fierce and this needs many years of age, but I think it has great possibilities.

More later. Gotta get back on the road.

Thanks, everyone, and I especially appreciate you weighing in, Eric—I was quite puzzled by the impression the wine gave me and glad you tested for it. I did have my sample near the end of the day, so I would surmise the bottle had been open for 2 hours at least.

I’m kinda sorry I didn’t get to taste one of the Harrington wines–I’ll have to make that a priority next year. And I think a great many of us were sorry not to see Samantha and the Poe wines—hope you’re OK if you’re reading, Sam, we were/are worried!

Keep the other notes coming, folks…and I hope the picture-takers won’t be shy about posting those

Mike

FALLTACULAR 2014 - FMIII in the OC (2/23/2014)

Did you ever think about the logistics of putting on a tasting of this size together? Here’s some of the wine as it piles up in the front room. More boxes showed up later, too.

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2012 California Pinot Noir - An Early Look
I didn’t get to all of them but most so here are a few thoughts on my findings.

1. There seems to be a wider profile of fruit flavors in 2012 versus 2011. I love 2011 as they are on the tart berry and rhubarb spectrum. 2012 covers the spectrum from sweet cherry to tart raspberry.

2. Small Vines makes great Pinot Noir. They don’t need me telling them that but I told them and everybody else anyway.

3. Ed Kurtzman is a Pinot wizard. The Sandler wines are amazing and superbly priced. The August West label is completely different tasting wines, even from the same vineyard like Peterson.

4. Liquid Farm brought lots of extra bottles, Nikki rolls with a big “Barney cooler”, and due to popular demand they were all consumed.

5. The whites continue to increase in quality and quantity at Falltacular.

• 2012 Fogline Vineyards Pinot Noir Hillside Block (Estate) - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Cherry colored. Nose is a bit muted and there’s spicy red fruit hiding in there. This was just opened and not decanted. Palate is light red fruit, rhubarb and slight tartness. Very delicate mouthfeel. Medium finish and strawberry showing more now. Feminine wine.
• 2012 Fogline Vineyards Pinot Noir Sun Chase Vineyard (Petaluma Gap) - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Color is a little darker than the hillside, some purple appears on the rim. Nose is muted, a little tight at this young age. Flavors of tart raspberry ride a feather light mouthfeel. This is right in the wheelhouse for the AFWE crew.
• 2012 Ceritas Pinot Noir Hellenthal Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Medium garnet color. Nose one this one is great. Graceful wine with a light toast, tart cherry and raspberry. Medium finish. Good good balance. Super wine.
• 2012 Anthill Farms Pinot Noir Tina Marie Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
  This one of the top five in the tasting for me. Looked a little cloudy in the glass but the nose immediately rips you away, fantastic. Aroma and flavors of sweet strawberry backed with tart cherry and a spicy cinnamon thread. Medium plus finish. Liked it better than the Campbell ranch which is nice too.
• 2012 Anthill Farms Pinot Noir Campbell Ranch Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Garnet color. This shows a nice Pinot funk and muted red fruit. Cherry palate with a slight tartness. Medium acid shows well and results in a lighter, nimble mouthfeel compared to Tina Marie. Medium finish and very good balance.
• 2012 Kutch Pinot Noir Falstaff Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Back up the truck on this wine. Top 5 for me and probably WOTN and serious candidate for WOTY. Slightly darker than a few of the previous 2012 tasted before this wine. Purple hue radiates. Nose has the combination of wood chips and earthy quality. Palate is excellent with the dark fruit mingled with a chalky limestone note. Long finish. No problem throwing 96 points at this one.
• 2012 Lucia Pinot Noir Soberanes Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands
  Darker than other PN which is frequently the case with this producer. Nose is awesome as the oak is showing as a whiff of maple syrup. Palate is very full, big cherry, oak spice, and raspberry. Medium plus finish. As you probably already concluded, everything counts n large amounts.
• 2012 Rivers-Marie Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  On the QPR leaderboard for the tasting with the Sandlers at $25, great price and better wine. Unique maroon color. Crushed dark berry and a touch of earthy funk. Tart raspberry with a gentle feel on the palate. Finishes medium and nicely balance with a swish of acid.
• 2012 Rivers-Marie Pinot Noir Summa Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Purple tints in a garnet base. Fruit is bright red fruit and tannins are noticeable but they’re fine grained. Medium finish. While enjoyable at this point it’ll really show its stuff with a couple of years in the cellar. Hold.
• 2012 August West Pinot Noir Peterson Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands
  Wow, nothing in the tasting resembled this wine, not even the Sandler version from the same vineyard. Very distinctive. Extremely light color, like an aged burg with washed out red and orange colors. It looks like it might be oxidized but it’s certainly not. Nose is sweet cherry and orange. Very light mouthfeel and tannins are full resolved with a strawberry taste. Medium/short finish. A popular conversation piece.
• 2012 August West Pinot Noir Sierra Mar Santa Lucia Highlands - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands
  On the darker side for what is a fairly light colored lineup from August West in 2012. I liked this one best as the dark cherry and caramel flavors work nicely together. Medium plus finish.
• 2012 August West Pinot Noir Graham Family Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
  Interesting, the shows dark plum and a bit of prune but not overtly. Medium short finish and a light tart note.
• 2012 August West Pinot Noir Rosella’s Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands
  Dark cherry aromas with sweet cherry flavors. Fine tannins and decent amount of structure. Medium finish. This only improve as the fruit and structure integrate.
• 2012 Small Vines Wines Pinot Noir Estate Cuvée - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
  Top 5 of the tasting for me and wrestling with Kutch Falstaff of WOTN. Awesome wine. Dark garnet color. There’s a unique perfume note on the nose. Light strawberry with noticeable acid and chalk. Long finish. Stems adds to the complexity. Thinks this is 25% whole cluster.
• 2012 Small Vines Wines Pinot Noir MK Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  This too made the Top 5 from the tasting, two wines from one producer. Garnet color and lighter fruit in the nose. This shows more oak and the tannins are grippy at this point in time. Stems are adding to the complexity LONG finish. Wish I could afford to drink Small Vines regularly.
• 2012 Small Vines Wines Pinot Noir - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Garnet color. Beautiful nose which is the sweet oak, I’m a sucker for that aroma. Lighter fruit than the other bottlings from Small Vine but the stem notes and tannins are in full bloom here. A bit green. Medium finish. This just needs time.
• 2012 Small Vines Wines Pinot Noir Baranoff Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
  Dark colored with purple edges. Cherry and ripe raspberry with fine tannins providing a nice framework. Big long finish, great.
• 2012 Sandler Wine Company Pinot Noir Bien Nacido Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Maria Valley
  Light red color. Red fruit and berries in the glass. Palate is bright strawberry. Medium plus finish and perfect balance. Good lord, this was only $25.
• 2012 Sandler Wine Company Pinot Noir Keefer Ranch - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
  Violet color. Sweet strawberry and light oak nose, very entertaining. Palate shows sandlewood and crushed red berries with a spicy backbone. Excellent balance and finish.
• 2012 Sandler Wine Company Pinot Noir Boer Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Chalone
  Wine is dark violet color. Nose is muted. Muddled berry and a big dose of rough tannins providing for a very grippy finish. This wine has the most structure of all the pinots and is wrapped around the axle. Hold, hold, and hold to find the pot of gold.
• 2012 Sandler Wine Company Pinot Noir Peterson Vineyard Santa Lucia Highlands - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands
  This is completely different than the August West version. Light red color. Nose is a bit muted with red fruit sneaking out. Medium tannins with strawberry showing at the end. Excellent balance and a medium finish.

Miscellaneous

• 2011 Cabot Vineyards Pinot Noir Nash Mill - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
  Very light color, even a bit of orange at the rim. Fruit is red berries and a beautiful fresh cut cedar presence. Medium finish.
• 2011 Cabot Vineyards Pinot Noir Anderson Valley - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
  I enjoyed this more than the Nash which was nice too. Light burg colored. Nose is complex with sandlewood and spice. Palate is driven with cedar and sandlewood wrapped around a strawberry core. Medium plus finish.
• 2012 Matthiasson White Wine - USA, California, Napa Valley
  Top 5 of the tasting and my favorite white of the tasting. Muted yellow color. Ripe pear and sweet honey aromas. Palate is pear with a medium plus weight. Beautiful. Long finish and medium plus acid.
• 2012 Tercero Roussanne Camp 4 Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
  Top 5 of the tasting. I really like all of the Tercero whites and this is at the top of the list with the Viognier. Gold color. Aromas of yellow apple and honeysuckle, and fresh flowers. Awesome palate. Medium plus weight and yellow apple and pear flavors with baking source. Medium plus finish.
• 2012 Point Concepción Pinot Grigio Celestina - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
  Orange colored Pinot Grigio? Go figure. Tree fruit and medium plus acid. Light and crisp. Medium finish.
• 2011 Comptche Ridge Vineyards Pinot Noir - USA, California, North Coast, Mendocino County
  Medium plus opaqueness for 2011. Spice box nose and muted berry.palate is dark plum, berry, and strawberry. Feminine and beautiful. Medium plus finish.

It’s all over.

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Posted from CellarTracker

Here you go Mike. great outfit. sorry i didn’t get a pic of the famous Sweater!

Crackface!

Did someone mention Mike’s sweater?

Drinking the leftovers of this from Falltacular. really enjoyed it yesterday ,so grabed the rest for today.pretty red fruit ,spicy aromatics.silky lush fruit ,nice acid.pretty pinot the way it should be!
Don’t have a clue about this winery ,but guess I’ll have to check them out.

Brig,

Great seeing you and the ‘jersey girls’ last night - lots of fun as usual!

Gotta question and wonder about something - and yep, I DO have a chip on my shoulder, but do you think it might be time to move the wines that were upstairs to downstairs and then put all of the pinots upstairs? Just wondering - because ‘we’ (and I speak collectively here) only made it into your ‘miscellaneous’ group . . .

Take care and hope to see you guys soon!!!

Thanks Brig, I am glad it showed… I was concerned as the wine had just been bottled just two weeks prior. On another note, my opinion is that the wine has a LOT of upside so while I suggest people check in on a bottle, my hopes are that most bottles will be cellared. Thanks to both you and Mike for sharing and making me feel like I was there! Also to Frank for pulling off what sounds like an amazing event.

We’re not bitter, are we?

The seriously likely real problem is that there’s so much of the pinot that the dining room area is the only staging area that works effectively.

Great additional pics, guys.

Jamie—the wine was good and cellaring would certainly be my call on it.

Mike

What a day. It’s hard to convey what the event has come to mean to me in a post. Let me offer this:

Friendship–the true friends that I have made, that the group has made over the years since 2006. The coming together of the people, both old friends and new made inspires me. Friends.

Generosity–seeing my garage at just short of 5PM packed with so many people bidding on all the items. The winemakers we honored for their constant years of service, missing Brian Loring (thank you Rachel for being here and taking about the wines) and Wes Hagen (thank you Andrew for coming down to represent the winery), who have been with us since the beginning. To have Ed Kurtzman here, his gentle heart and kindness, humility. Few people I have met show these qualities, he embodies them. All of three of these wineries have been here every year since 2006, never wavering in their support. So many others too that are creating a legacy like Siduri, Sojourn, Tercero, Switchback Ridge, Carlisle, Big Basin, Cargasacchi and Jemrose. We honored them all yesterday, their commitment to do this work. Giving.

Healing–to hear every year the stories, my wife’s story, Rhonda’s stories, your stories. Violence, fear, shame and humiliation, all tools of violence of one over another, yet healing taking place when all of us get together, raise this money and then hand it over to Laura’s House to do their healing work. Healed.

Fun–I have to say the after-party has become something that is truly close to my heart. Our kitchen at 7PM was packed, loud, joy. All the beer, champagne and laughs. The BBQ starting again with Marshall and Gregg behind it. Then Marshall, telling me let’s get the Thai food so another wave of food comes in an hour later. Seeing Rob Winn’s face, then Jim Salvito’s, Francine’s, Dietz, Mike G, so many to appreciate. This kind of joy and coming together, if only I could live every day in this way, yet feeling fortunate to have had another after-party evening of Falltacular. Joy.

To all who came, who continue to come, and those like Arnie Caplan, Mark Jones, so many of you who are the advocates of this event, bringing in all the new people, thank you. In the end, we do this for all the things above, thank you all for another fantastic, emotional and blessed year.

I probably failed to mention a key fact, humbling. The totals for the event were well in excess of $19,000, and I think when I get the final #s from Laura’s House, we will be over $20,000. I’m thrilled and humbled too about what you all did yesterday so wanted you to know that. This amount is $5,000 more than our best year to date so to have that kind of final sum heading to LH for their work is VIP!

As a final note, I have a couple of left overs here, both of the Jemrose 2012 barrel samples–the merlot and syrah so sitting here with a little dinner making a theoretical blend of the Jemrose Gloria’s Jem cuvee. Now, I am going to have you call me the master wine blender–I’ll be in such high demand, you’ll need to make an appointment with my assistant if you wish to talk to me.

I was about to ask for a tabulation. I’m sure I said this 2 years ago, but without YOU, Frank, this doesn’t happen—without your amazing personality and generosity. I’m the one who feels privileged to have been a part of another special day.

What—no mention of Frenchenstein?

And Larry—your words mean much to me, it is my privilege to have met and formed my friendship with you as well. I hope that continues and strengthens for many years to come.

This, along with Pinot Days and a summer weekend in Atlanta, is the only wine-related event that I make my best effort to fly out to every year.

M.

Hey, I just call them as I see them. LOL

I know that showing a wine so young can be a challenge and a number of the winemakers are nervously watching as berserkers pillage through the babies. Very nice job on the wine and thank you for supporting the efforts of Laura’s House. Hopefully we’ll have the chance to meet at a future falltacular.

Larry,

I agree with your observation and my wife made the same comment. Frank is open to all options to improve falltacular so how about this?

We create a “newly released vintage Pinot area” which would be the 2013’s next year upstairs, thereby freeing up a 25-30 bottle space downstairs. We put a theme of red rhone, syrah, or whatever as a featured table downstairs. Frank could let the long time supporting wineries of Falltacular decide the theme and wines in the specially designated table downstairs. It would be the “spotlight dance” area.

Maybe we should have a roussanne focus.

That stuff is GOOD.