Saw a pretty lengthy thread here from last year, but haven’t heard a lot since. I got the email this week about the upcoming release and was considering ordering a few bottles to try em out.
From the email:
“Morgan and I are thrilled to (finally) be releasing the 2012 Alder Springs Vineyard and 2012 Brosseau Vineyard sparkling wines! It’s been nearly three years since we picked the grapes, and while we’re quite proud of our first vintage, these two unique and delicious sparkling Chardonnays from 2012 are on another level.”
At $50 ea it seems pricy, but I’m still intrigued.
I have 2 left, and while I thought they were drinking pretty well 6 months ago…IMHO they still have a ways to go before they’re showing everything they’ve got, and should come together nicely in a couple years.
Of course that’s assuming I have the willpower to keep my hands off of them for that long to find out…which history has shown, will probably not be the case.
I’ve got one of the Bedrock zin’s left, and while I agree it was drinking much better right out of the gate compared to the Brosseau, I’m kinda curious how it will age over the near-term.
Anyone else holding onto any of these…or is the general consensus that it’s better to pop the cork sooner than later?
Chris told me last year that the zin is ready but the Brosseau will age for a few. I’m sure he might “terrorize” this thread and tell us. If you do Chris, what makes these new releases a level up from last year, as you said? Thanks can’t wait!
I haven’t cracked any of my bottles from the first offering, but I’m all in again this year because of my confidence in Morgan and Chris. And the lavish praise from Brad Baker. He raves about the Brosseau, calling it “the wine that will start a revolution”.
I’ll be curious to try to calibrate myself to Brad if I get a chance to taste the Brosseau. I found the 2010 Ultramarine Heintz BdB to be stunning, where Brad did not. I think it’s the first time that I’ve had such an opposite opinion of a wine from him. Clearly, I appreciate Brad’s work as I’m a subscriber, and of course I love a great deal of sparkling wine.
Not sure where I read this, but I understood Morgan’s instructions with the last release were to pop, recap and put back into the frig for two hours before consumption. I followed that with both bottles I had and was very pleased with the results.
It probably depends on what you want. The Zin has lost some of its exuberant fruit, and taken on more of a mineral profile. I wouldn’t worry either way about drinking or holding. Really all guessing at this point though.
Thanks Larry! I’ll probably pop my Bedrock in the near-term then…and will definitely try the cap/fridge method if needed (appreciate the tip - don’t think I’ve seen that reco before for the first UTW release)
I’ll pop the Brousseau early, taste, close, and stuff it back in the fridge unless higher powers tell me not to.
It’ll be served with a peach/prosciutto salad tonight, as we are now getting great tasting peaches from the market.
I still have all my original bottles (2) I think it was.
My problem is I am the only sparking drinker in my house, so I wait till I have people over who appreciate nice sparkling before I open any of my wines.
I dont store a great deal of champagne or sparking, I suspect less than 20 bottles total.
I do plan on buying these however. Its fun to follow along with Morgan’s journey.
Morgan and I both find the 11 Brosseau and 12 Bedrock Zin benefit from some air. I agree with Larry that the 11 Brosseau has opened up since release but it’s still pretty young and likes at least an hour or two of air. We don’t drink the Zin often because we have so little of it in the cellar but it’s a tasty drink right now with some charcuterie. No rush on it but unlike the Brosseau, I am cautious about encouraging long term aging as I have no baseline for aging old vine sparkling Zinfandel!
As to David’s question about 11 versus 12, I think the reason is a combination of vintage and dialing in the wine making.
Also our costs were a little less in 2012 so we are going to be offering the two Chards for $45/bottle rather than $50.