Wine Berserkers - international wine social media, online community, and forums

Welcome, Mark. I still subscribe to the WA and post on their BB on occasion, but the traffic there is very sparse. I continue to enjoy the reviewers there, especially William, Monica, and Luis. And Mark does a very good job with Portugal.

Ed

My condolences to you and your family over the loss of your father, Victor. I hope the '59 LMHB is a spectacular bottle tonight.

Ed

Frank Murray III wrote: Folks, aside from Dale this past December, has anyone took the plunge into the 2016 Alicante Bouschet? I have just two of them and I remember drinking it from barrel. It may be the darkest wine I have ever seen, even darker than the Mending Wall Palisades Petite, which is da...

Our last 2012 Carlisle Vineyard Zinfandel. A beautifully crafted wine that was drinking very well last night.

Ed

Wes Barton wrote: As a club member, I buy Monte Bello every year - it's a no-brainer. The closest this question goes to that is if I buy more. Have done so with a couple particularly strong vintages, when priced right (like '05s) and under-rated personal faves (like '07), which should be drinking w...

I had earlier recommended California reds such as Shafer Hillside and Dunn HM. Did not get the Shafer, but bought some Dunn and a lot of Ridge. The Monte Bello is outstanding (bought on futures), and the Estate Cab is, IMO, tremendous for the price.

Ed

2015 Chateau Lilian Ladouys for $18.99. Easy purchase!

Ed

Total Wine opened some stores in the Bay Area within the last 3 years, and I agree with the comments regarding the Bordeaux and the coupons. In the past, they have had coupons that gave 20% off for a purchase of 6 or more, or $20 off for every $100 you spent, and that made wines such as 2014 Domaine...

We have been buying the Monte Bello futures for several years now. We buy 4 750's each year, and they are worth every penny for us. Part of the reason is that we go up to the Santa Cruz Mountains or Lytton location at least 4-6 times a year for tastings or just to drop in, and the tasting fees are u...

Mark Golodetz wrote: Glad to see this thread revived. We opened at Christmas a few 1994 Vintage Ports, and realized how much I like them. It is my son’s birth year, so bought quite a few. As they have aged, they seem to have become less a product of this plush vintage and more, showing the characte...

Jurgen Steinke wrote:
Slightly off topic but I tasted the 2016 normale recently and was very impressed. Amongst the best CC I had. And I had many.

We had a bottle of this last evening and completed agree. This is a great value for $20.

Ed

Another vote for the Forman and Dunn Howell Mountain.

Ed

I saw this in the SF Chronicle this morning and also saw it online. I know this is a popular dish with many on the Board. Cheers!

Ed

https://www.sfgate.com/recipes/article/ ... c04fbfffcc

We have been buying from Ridge, Rafanelli, Carlisle and Turley for at least 15 years, if not more. Ridge is for the Monte Bello futures primarily, and to receive an occasional discount on other wine, while the others are to be able to secure allocations that are difficult to find at retail. An added...

For those of you in the East Bay, the Danville Draeger's is now carrying Pliny and the rest of the RRBC beer portfolio. Picked up a Pliny and a Blind Pig last night and had the Pliny while watching the Warriors-Lakers game.

Ed

I do not have a lot of experience with Chateau Palmer, but a bottle of the 1990 a few years ago was one of the best bottles of Bordeaux I have had. It was truly exceptional.

Ed

Frank, we bought a six-pack of the 2016's. We tried our first one a few weeks ago, and these also stay true to form. Lots of dark chocolate and red fruits on the profile. We are going to probably have one a year going forward. Cheers!

Ed

Mark Golodetz wrote: I also think his website is a wonderful resource, and does not get the appreciation it deserves. I agree 100% with this. Jeff's website has an abundance of information about Bordeaux and it is a nice resource, especially considering that there is currently no charge to access i...

We had the 2001 Gruard Larose last year and it was excellent and not quite at its peak. I would not hesitate to open it. Enjoy your wife's birthday!

+1 on the 2014 de Landaris. We bought two cases for less than $15 per bottle. Coufran is a good value for around $20, and if you go up to $25, the 2015 Lilian Ladouys is excellent.

Ed

I went to the Danville Costco this weekend and they had a few magnums of 2010 Valdicava for $219.97.

Nick F wrote:
Which are your go to domestic, Shramsberg?

My domestic pick is Roederer Brut for around $20. It is always a crowd-pleaser.

Ed

I have not had either in the last 2-3 years, but always thought the 1994 would have a longer drinking window than the 1993. Both were excellent every time we had them. Enjoy!

Ed

Neal.Mollen wrote:
Too late baby now, it's too late

I agree the 2014 GPL is going to be a great wine one of these days, based on what we tasted at the UGC 2 years ago. BTW, nice Carole King reference.

Ed

Red: Ridge
White: Mount Eden

1996 Dom Perignon to celebrate my wife's birthday.

Rory K wrote: Given how few of my family now drink, my list is for the whole holiday week, Dagueneau Silex 2014 Big Table Farm Chardonnay 2016 Melville Sandy's Pinot Noir 2015 Arcadian Pisoni Pinot Noir 2005 A. Rafanelli Cabernet 2012 Silver Oak Napa Cabernet 2006 Diznoko 5 Puttonyos Tokaji 2008 We...

Pat Martin wrote:
97 Monty better than the awesome 91?

For my palate, the '91 is a little better than the '97. I put the '87, '94 and '97 just under the '91 from the bottles that I have had. But I would not turn down a taste of any of them!

Ed

Thanks for the notes, Jim. The '97 Montelena is one of my favorite California Cabs. I have never had a bottle that was less than outstanding.

Ed

In the Danville store the 2016 Sette Ponti Oreno is in stock for $55.89. There were about a dozen of them on Sunday when I was there. There were also magnums of 2012 Smith Haut Lafitte for $130.

Ed

I have only gone to the San Francisco tastings, and I would highly recommend. The biggest risk of arriving late is missing out on some wine. We have been to several in San Francisco and have enjoyed them all.

Ed

Based on what we have in the cellar, and excluding the Firsts:

Pichon Lalande
Pichon Baron
Domaine de Chavalier
Pontet Canet
Haut Bailly
GPL
Cos
Leoville Barton
Lynch Bages
Ducru

We have been fortunate to have bought most of these several years ago.

Ed

A couple of others that have not been mentioned are the Vintner's Collective on Main St. and Clinton, and Oxbow Wine Merchant on 1st Street has wines and beers to taste. Not sure of the hours of each.

Ed

David Glasser wrote:
Wonderful report Blake. I have a few of these wines and really enjoy your perspective.

+1. I always enjoy your notes, pictures and enthusiasm, Blake. Thanks for posting!

Ed

Ridge is currently pouring the 2015 at their tasting room up at Lytton Springs. We were in the area this weekend and tried it again. Definitely a 'wow' wine and one that I am confident that will be drinking well in 20+ years.

Ed

H Bongiovi wrote:
dark and spicy with an Old World charm, kind of like a Sicilian grandmother; a real treat

Love that. That is exactly the way our son and daughter would describe my mother's pasta! Great notes and love reading your notes, Henry.

Cheers,
Ed

A few thoughts..... 1. Champagne. Moving more in that direction. My wife likes having splits in the house, in case someone wants to have a glass before red wine. We do not have too many 750's of champagne but are moving to increase that percentage. 2. Cellar space. +/- 600 bottles and holding. No pl...

Thanks for the note. I am looking forward to trying the 2016 vintage. We have a few remaining of each vintage going back to 2013, and I agree with Peter that they do get better with a few years of age.

Ed

If you are choosing one Pichon, I would say the '89 over the '86. I had them both earlier this year, and the '89 was the clear winner to me and the others in the group. Given those choices, I would choose this with another '89 for comparison. Have fun and enjoy the dinner!

Ed

I went to a friend's birthday party last summer in St. George, Utah. He has been good friends with Dick Steltzner for many years, and had a 15-litre bottle of their 1997 Cabernet opened for the party. The cork took half an hour to take out, and another friend built a wooden cradle to help with the p...

Mark Y wrote: Was this a ticketed event? Or open to all customers?? If ticketed how much was the entrance fee? Mark, this was a ticketed event, and limited to 50 in each of the stores. I believe that the tickets were $75. They host a 'grand' tasting late in the year, usually one for Bordeaux, one f...

Here are some short notes from a tasting that K&L hosted in San Francisco earlier this month. All of the wines were decanted for 2-3 hours, and every wine showed well. My favorites were the 2015 d'Yquem, the 2005 Cos, and then the trio of 2015's. The 2015 d'Yquem is a special wine. We also tasted a ...

A few that I would recommend from Bordeaux would be Grand Puy Lacoste, Domaine de Chevalier, Beau Sejour Becot and Coutet. I tried all of them at the UGC tasting early last year and enjoyed them.

Ed

We enjoy Tito's. A good vodka and an even better price! However, I would not turn down Grey Goose, Belvedere, Chopin or Ketel One if it was offered.

Thanks,
Ed

Nice note, Steven. We went long on both the '94 and '97 Montelena Estate, as they are birth-year wines in our family. We opened a '97 several weeks ago and it was stunning, with years of life ahead. One of the best of the decade from Montelena, in my opinion.

Thanks,
Ed

C. Mc Cart wrote: Drink the birth year wines WITH your children, don't just give it to them. I bought a bunch of 2000 & 2002 wines for the kids, assuming I would give them a cellar starter someday (1st home, wedding, 1st career job, etc), but I'm pretty sure the idea of pulling bottles for dinners ...

There are a lot of reds that have been mentioned that I cellar. Ridge MB, Forman, Dunn, Beringer, Montelena, to name a few. I know you did not specifically mention red or white wine, Alan, but you can buy 2 bottles of Mount Eden Estate Chardonnay within that price range. IMO, they are among the lead...

Howard Cooper wrote: Togni - 1991 and 1994 Ridge - 1984, 1991, 1996, 1999 Montelena - 1978, 1985, 1991, 1994, 1996 I agree that these are great choices. I would also say the majority of these are going to be north of your $200 price maximum. If you can find them for under $200, assuming good storag...

Neal.Mollen wrote: Setting aside the geography issues, did someone do a Monte Bello retrospective? If so, who wrote it? Yes, William wrote a retrospective that was mainly Monte Bello, and also had some Monte Bello Chardonnay as well as Jimsomare Zinfandel. The oldest red Monte Bello was from 1964. ...

From Esther Mobley in the SF Chronicle.

https://www.sfgate.com/wine/article/Nap ... fa34c34e4a

Ed

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