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Drank a '16 Papera Zin a few nights ago. Good but I will wait a year or two for next bottle.

11 Sonoma Co. Zin - just shaking my head, this is my early drinking go to Carlisle yet this was so alive and fresh after 8 years. As this bottle was stolen from my dads cellar (I'll make it up to him - trust me) but I need to find a way not to drink my stash of these so quickly after release, is th...

I did not see them mentioned above but CA Cabs like Ridge Monte Bello, Chateau Montelena, Seavey and Togni will go the distance. I have never really tried to buy wines for my son but as a matter of course there is a large percentage of my cellar that will likely go to my son. I would focus on buying...

I had one in April '18 that was excellent. Have three more in the cellar. Guess I better pop one to see if they are going down hill.

Had a really good bottle of O' Shaughessey Cab last night. 2005 O'Shaughnessy Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain - USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain (9/2/2019) Drank my next to last bottle last evening with Osso bucco. Opened about one hour before drinking. Delicious mature cab. Very ele...

I was surprised by the relative positions or Merlot and Syrah. I would have been believable to me if their positions were reversed.

Had an '08 Dry Creek Syrah last night. WOW! 2008 Carlisle Syrah Dry Creek Valley - USA, California, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley (9/1/2019) This is my first bottle of this delicious Syrah. Drank with slow cooker pot roast. The color was very inky. This mature Syrah was well balanced and concentra...

Did Okay in August. Case purchase of Cayuse wines my biggest add.

Consume Purchase Net
August 28 15 -13
Year to date 229 120 -109

Reds:
Rhone Blends
Cabernet
Pinot
Zin

Whites:
Rhone Blends
Chardonnay
Champagne Blends
Voignier

The red selection is rather arbitrary. Bordeaux Blends and Syrah could easily be substituted.

I would check your local Costco. The usually carry wine glasses in this price range. I have used them for everyday glasses for a long time.

Drank my last bottle of '10 Old Vines Zin yesterday at a barbecue. Still going strong.

My only issue with MB is that my stash may not be anywhere near ready in my lifetime. My son will enjoy them. I have bought them since 2007 and the only bottle I opened so far (an '07 several years ago) was still pretty primary. Dan, I’m with you on this concern. But I have tried the 2006 and 2007 ...

My only issue with MB is that my stash may not be anywhere near ready in my lifetime. My son will enjoy them.

I have bought them since 2007 and the only bottle I opened so far (an '07 several years ago) was still pretty primary.

I have always found that it is hard to beat Chateau Ste. Michelle/Columbia Crest for inexpensive quaffers.

I bought these from '04 thru '07. I would say they over deliver for a $20 wine. Similar values from L. Martini, Berringer, Sebastiani and others in good vintages.

Bought my Cayuse allocation today: Bionic Frog, Camaspelo, Armada, and God only Knows

Drank my last bottle of a case last evening. This wine has been consistently good through the years. 2005 Tablas Creek Esprit de Beaucastel - USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles (8/20/2019) My last bottle of this wine. Still drinking well with grilled pork loin chop. Best with an hour of air...

Many great visits to be had in or around Healdsberg. Since you like Pinot and Chardonnay I would put a tasting at Ramey high on my list. It is right in Healdsberg. You will need to make a reservation.

I've had a passive cellar in my crawl space for almost 25 years. The temps vary form 53 to 65 (rarely). It has performed well and I have some bottles that have been stored for over 20 years.

Scott, since you are on cellar tracker you can get a good ball park of a desirable cellar size by looking at your consumption history by variety. If you add your preferences for aging each variety the optimal cellar size becomes a math problem. e.g. I drink 30 Cabs per year and I like them with an a...

Forget clubs. Get on lists where you choose what and how many to buy.

I do share allocations with local friends and they share with me. The obvious benefit is to make bottlings available from producers with long waiting lists. A secondary benefit and an important one when living in Alaska is the economy of full case shipments.

I was routinely over a hundred for years but have winnowed it down to 55. Yea!!

Another good month for me:

Consumed Purchased Net
July 35 15 -20
YTD 202 105 -97

Mark Golodetz wrote: ↑
July 25th, 2019, 10:32 am
Unless the restaurant has an amazing cellar, I bring my own. I like older wine, and 99% of all restaurants have young wines with horrible mark ups. Happy to pay a reasonable corkage

+1

I use WA and Cellar Tracker plus the reviews provided by internet retailers. Lots of reviews available free. The trick is discovering how to gauge a reviewer to your palate.

My order in for my favorite producer. Although I don't take my full allocation anymore it is still my biggest buy each year. My cellar is deep and wide with vintages back to '05.

Knock on wood... In all my years of handling bottles in and out of a crawl space cellar I have only broken two bottles of relatively inexpensive zin when I dropped a case. I take it as proof the God approves of wine as the chosen beverage.

Chris H. wrote: ↑
July 15th, 2019, 3:17 pm
Great notes!! Much appreciated.

+1

Misleading information is common. Your merchants actions uncommon and commendable.

A '13 Carlisle Dupratt Zin went well with July 4th picnic fare. Also opened a '17 Tablas Creek Patelin de Tablas Blanc because it was 90 F%^*#g degrees in Anchorage, AK.

If you like Syrah I would certainly get on the Carlisle waiting list. It will take a while but you will be rewarded with a long list of fairly priced premium wines.

Another good month for me: Consumed 32 and only purchased 3 for a reduction of 29. My year to date reduction is 78 and I am down about 600 bottles since beginning this "rightsizing" effort about 5 years ago.

etomasi wrote: ↑
June 28th, 2019, 9:20 am
Given there are 5 people my initial thoughts are .. bring 2 bottles, a red and a white.

+1

Congratulations to your son.

I have enjoyed the Ramey Cabs that I have drank but I too normally take my own bottles to restaurants. Wine list rarely have the aged wines that I prefer. And if they do they are usually expensive.

The wife and I normally share a bottle with dinner. However in the summer we frequently pop a white wine in the late afternoon to enjoy on the deck. This is usually a second bottle.

I drank one of my 4 LB's in '11 and it was way too young. Hopefully your bottle was an exception.

No budget just realistic limits on the size cellar I want (current target is 2000 bottles); how much I am willing to pay for any given wine (this number has continually crept up over the past 20 years); and the "deals" that keep popping up in my inbox. My peak buying years were 2007-2010 and I am cu...

I am a big fan of this producer, especially some of their very affordable Rhone white wines.

I am with James, it appears that your cellar is preforming admirably. My passive cellar is in my crawl space in Alaska and I get approximately the same temperature ranges that you are seeing. I have had my cellar for 20 years and I have noticed no ill effects from small daily fluctuation in temperat...

I have very much enjoyed the few Pisoni pinots that i have had. So many good pinots out there.

So many great Syrah's out there. It's hard to narrow to only five. I list the ones I have most experience with. I factor in value in my list. Carlisle Betz Dehlinger Lagier Meridith Cayuse As an aside I had a bottle of '05 Carlisle Sonoma a few weeks ago that was amazing. This was a $20 bottle that ...

I actually had a bottle of '04 Carlisle Mondeuse Noir that I drank in 2017. I enjoyed the bottle but it is something you rarely see. Yup....that was a year that Mike was able to make a barrel of Mondeuse off of TwoAcres. I thought it spoke more of Mike's winemaking and only quietly of Mondeuse vari...

Bud Carey wrote: ↑
June 16th, 2019, 11:03 am
2014 Compagni Portis... stunningly good.

I've liked each vintage but I believe that the '12 Compagni Portis was my favorite Carlisle white wine to date.

I have a few in the cellar and have noticed that the '15 and '16's seem to get nearly universal rave reviews. Have not drunk any of mine yet.

I actually had a bottle of '04 Carlisle Mondeuse Noir that I drank in 2017. I enjoyed the bottle but it is something you rarely see.

2016 Pegau Reservee. Not buying much these days but I really like this producer and have several vintages in the cellar.

Brian Tuite wrote: ↑
June 7th, 2019, 10:00 am

Anton D wrote: ↑
June 7th, 2019, 9:44 am
Vintage of the century!
This

This is like the 4th one in the last 5 years right

Welcome aboard. Lots to be learned here. Lots of knowledgeable posters with diverse interests and tastes.

My pick at $25 would be the Walter Hansel Estate Chard.

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