A few years ago, I connected with some Orange County folks who I knew to be good people just by reading their comments and wine notes on WineBeserkers forums.
It was obvious we had many of the same wine preferences and an equaled passion for learning and sharing; so, I proposed driving down to join them for one of their outings and thanks to the organizer from heaven, Chris Seiber, it happened. It was so much fun and extremely educational and meeting everyone in person confirmed my read on them being righteously good people. This just had to happen again and it just did.
Now, there have been 5 of these stellar occasions and this one set the standard for excellence.
Eleven of us, Chris and Joanne Seiber, Andrew Christensen, Brig Campbell, Carol Schrader, Steve Nordhoff, Frank Murray III, Todd French, Sean and Kathy Kennedy and me, enjoyed some great wines. It appears from the photos I took, I did not taste every bottle, but my best estimate is that we had at least 20 wines in all. I had 5 champagnes, 4 whites and 10 reds and my notes below reflect that.
The Seiber`s hosted us in their wonderful home and newly renovated and classy outdoor patio. They secured a local catering friend who prepared and served us extremely well.
The yummy menu:
Appetizers with Champagne:
Ā· Assorted cheeses, prosciutto, olives, cashews
Ā· Shrimp and crab Chile and lime tartlets
Ā· Baba ganoush feta endive
Salad course with still whites:
Grilled asparagus shaved Serrano ham and fava bean salad sherry vinaigrette
Salmon course with lighter bodied reds:
Cedar roasted salmon with tomato and endive
Steak course with full bodied reds:
Hangar steak in Cabernet sauce with crispy shallots and blue cheese crumbles roasted grapes whipped mashed potatoes
Dessert:
Summer stone fruit tart with fresh lemon curd
And hereās the spectacular lineup of wines:
2011 LARMANDIER-BERNIER VIEILLE VIGNES du LEVANT BLANC de BLANC EXTRA BRUT- dosed at 2 gpl; the fruit is sourced from Grand Cru vineyards; this cuvee was first created in 1988 under the name, Vieille Vigne de Cramant, but due to confusion with the winemaking style of ācremantā, it now carries the above name; this was a great bottle to get us off on the right track; having bright acidity and loads of flavors while being delivered in a creamy mousse like texture, it hit all of the sensory receptors perfectly; I got chalk, ginger and hazelnut accented orange zest and baked apples all the way through; it was super rich and full bodied. Yes!
2008 CEDRIC BOUCHARD COTE de BECHALIN ROSES de JEANE BLANC de NOIR- label: disgorged 4/15, V 08; 100% organic, single vineyard Pinot Noir; no dosage; in a nut shell, this was a ātangerine dreamā; with aromas and tastes of tropical fruit including mango, thereās nice toasted apple, red berry and citrus notes that expanded over time with tangerine most prominent; the final taste was the most pleasant with its richness and underlying acid backbone clearly showcased; loved it.
2008 LOUIS ROEDERER CRISTAL BRUT- I sipped through the first 2 small pours of the above wines and was kind of waiting for the next one up, but no one moved, so I fished this out of the ice chest to keep up the pace; itās my 5th bottle of this marvelous treasure and the best one yet as this powerhouse of a champagne is opening up and sharing a lot more of its goodies that were significantly suppressed previously; this is comprised of 60% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir; disgorged in 2018; the first nose was a WOW factor as it just reeked of class and royalty with an invitation to come on in; and I did; aromas of ginger and honeyed lemon, lime and golden delicious apple continued on once tasted to be joined by white peach, strawberry and an underlying streak of minerals and saline; the initial hallmark was the one trait that persisted throughout the entire evening and that was its RICHNESS; yes, it was full bodied and had wondrous layered depth and complexity, but the richness factor prevailed above and beyond all other aspects although almost as equally impressive was its amazing balance; each sip lasted for minutes at the back end of the palate and it served to lengthen the experience and enhance my gratitude for having such a marvelous champagne.
Itās been my custom to bring a Cristal and a Burt Williams made Pinot Noir to most of these events and I discovered Steve/ Cristal and Brig/ WS were quite fond of these, so it was an easy call.
We had 2 more bottles that were served blind:
2014 LAHERT FRERES LES EMPREINTES EXTRA BRUT- this is made of 50% Pinot Noir "Les Rouges Maisonsā and 50% Chardonnay and Chardonnay MuscatĆ© "Les Chemins dāEpernayā; dosed at 4 gpl and disgorged Jan. 2020; initially, I got some musty, nutty aromas, but in time, they dissipated in favor of nicely buttered and honeyed baked apple and citrus notes; it was medium to full bodied with noticeable weight adding to the pleasant mouthfeel.
2015 LARMANDIER-BERNIER TERRE de VERTUS BLANC de BLANC 1er Cru- no dosage; once revealed, I recognized Iād had the 2013 version and when checking my notes, there was similarity in that both had a saline and mineral accent to the stone fruit notes which on the palate were more easily identified as being peach, lychee and mango as well as some lemon, pear and green apple; the cream like mousse gave it body and texture and as it warmed up, the flavor profile just expanded nicely.
And there was one more champagne, but I missed it:
2013 Frederic Savart Le Mont Benoit Extra Brut.
Next up, 4 whites:
2019 SANDAR & HEM BRUZZONE VINEYARD SANTA CRUZ MOUNTAINS CHARDONNAY- new to me, this is really nice cool climate Chardonnay that is very approachable early on with promises to get even better with time; it has a bounty of tropical and orchard fruit flavors, especially grapefruit, pear and apple with an underlying touch of minerals; it has a viscous texture and crescendos paste mid palate for an impressive finish.
2007 DOMAINE HUET LE MONT SEC- a Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley that was severely oxidized. {no photo}
2008 DOMAINE VINCENT DAUVISSAT {RENE & VINCENT} LA FOREST CHABLIS 1er Cru- following its gold yellow color came aromas of minerals and flint to accompany the tastes of honeyed citrus fruit while being delivered in a high-grade oily texture; it seemed to epitomize the essence of fine Chablis especially with the requisite flint and minerality.
2018 DOMAINE BELARGUS RONCERAY ANJOU- and we get another Chenin here, this time one that is more than approachable; it had a golden yellow color and the nose offered inviting aromas of ginger accented stone fruit which on the palate was recognized as nectarine and embellished by lemon, pear and honeydew melon, all with a bit of sweetness; it had a creamy mouthfeel and a climatic finish. {photo borrowed}
Next up, some flights of great reds:
1994 WILLIAMS SELYEM SONOMA COAST PINOT NOIR- 13.2% abv; hereās another gem from Burt who blended some of the best fruit from 3 of the finest Sonoma Coast vineyards for this vintage, Summa, Hirsch and Coastlands, all of which he designated individually; this bottle initially had a bit of funk in the nose that included smoke and dried red fruit, but it blew off and gave way to some nice and more typical notes of spice, sandalwood/ talc and cinnamon laced red raspberry, strawberry and red cherry; Iāll even add on Brig`s great pickup descriptor, rhubarb, as it is to be found in many of these wines; I usually decant these bottles, but did not do so and believe it would have been much better out of the gate, but it came around and the bottle was empty by the end of the night. Iām guilty.
1995 WILLIAMS SELYEM ROCHIOLI RIVERBLOCK VINEYARD RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY PINOT NOIR- thanks to Steve, we got another wondrous Pinot from Burt that showcased an entirely different profile than the 94` Sonoma Coast; this was much more fruit forward with wonderful spicy, fresh and ripe blueberry and red and black cherry that was nicely accented with a touch of allspice; this was perfectly balanced and from the more youthful red purple color to the lasting impression on the palate, indicative of having approximated its apogee at age 27 and most likely able to hold this place for another couple of years; fabulous wine.
1990 WILLIAMS SELYEM LENO MARTINELLI RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY ZINFANDEL- thanks to Chris, this was the consummate cap after the 2 Pinots; Burt did this many times after we had an entire evening of his Chards and Pinots; he would pull out a Zin or 2, decant them as Chris did for this bottle; they always showed beautifully to the amazement of some of the folks who were not all that enamored with Zinfandel; this bottle was fabulous and at 15.6% abv, one would expect some heat, but all we got was blueberry pie in liquid form; the color was a remarkable dark purple and the nose had violets and blueberry; the taste profile held a steady course over the next hour or so giving up its treasures generously and gracefully, yes, this Zin actually had grace and charm and if one sipped it in small portions, it even had elegance.
{photo borrowed}
A special thanks to Steve and Chris for their Williams Selyem contributions. At this point in the evening, Iām already placated and satiated and yet thereās a lot more stars glittering in the background.
This next flight of 2 was served blind and it was a tricky call as to the varietal on the first one:
1999 RAVENSWOOD ICON RED BLEND SONOMA COUNTY- I do a lot of blind formats and always learn something and often struggle to ID the varietal when it gets outside of some basics and this one was a serious challenge; well, who did come up with a blended wine that consist of 73% Syrah, 16% MourvĆØdre and 11% Grenache? Regardless, it was an interesting wine that offered some nice red and dark fruit along with an accent of smoke, leather and mineral laden red and black cherry, plum and black raspberry; it was medium to full bodied, had a soft texture and finished on an upbeat; I suspect this is in its wheelhouse now; it certainly was on this night.
2012 CLOS PEPE ESTATE SANTA RITA HILLS PINOT NOIR- I get to use my childhood theater candy treat for the main descriptor here= jujube, the purple kind; it was somewhat fruit forward from the nose on with that jujube note, cherry cola, red plum and cranberry most prominent; it was medium bodied, had a a smooth texture and a hint of rosemary in the background.
1997 DEHLINGER ESTATE RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY PINOT NOIR- I was happy to see this show up as it reminded me of when Burt used to talk about a group of winemakers that got together from time to time to share and discuss all things wine and Tom Dehlinger (DAY-leen-ger) was in that group; lo and behold, this had a lot of similar characteristics to some of Burtās wines from the grainy, cinnamon red color to the spicy, sandalwood, red raspberry notes {I did not get any rhubarb}; I loved it and this is not even the reserve wine that was also made.
BTW, the fruit for this wine came from the original vines Tom planted on AxR1 rootstock using 10ā x 8ā spacing which was in vogue in 1975. This 4-acre Pinot Noir block consisted of two acres of Swan selection and two acres of mixed clonal origin, part Pommard and part Martini. After a few years, it was evident to Tom that the 3 clonal types were quite different in their growth patterns and therefore were eventually picked and processed separately which positioned Tom as an early champion of this process and something that Burt also did with some of his vineyard sources.
Here comes another blind wine:
2014 SWITCHBACK RIDGE PETERSON FAMILY VINEYARD NAPA MERLOT- 90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon; 15% abv; I did not know what it was, but for sure, it was big and bold and serious and mindful of a Napa Cab; all was explained once revealed although Iāve had some other vintages of Merlot from this producer that were more charming and easier on the palate, even in their youth; actually, this softened a bit with time and eased up while giving pencil lead, milk chocolate and candied cherry notes throughout; a nice touch of mint came in late; it had a serious tannic backbone that supports long term cellaring; give it about more 20 years; a long decant may have helped. {photo borrowed}
Not blind:
2014 CLOS SAINT-MARTIN GRAND CRU CLASSE SAINT.- EMILION- earth, smoke and tobacco aromas joined plum, blackberry and red and black cherry on the palate in this medium bodied Merlot based wine.
And the final thrust and a grand climax to a wondrous evening, thanks to Carol, who brought and properly prepared both wines with a 3 hour decant, evidenced by how ready they were:
2007 SCHRADER CELLARS BECKSTOFFER TO KALON VINEYARD NAPA CABERNET SAUVIGNON- 14.7% abv; sourced from clone 4 and clone 6, two separate blocks; aged in 100% new French oak, mostly Darnajou barrels with a bit of Taransaud; wow! this was beautifully balanced and so awesome from the nose through the tail; it had layered depth and complexity with new nuances unfolding with each sip; I got dark chocolate and oak spiced black currant and blackberry fruit while being delivered in a soft and smooth textured medium that enhanced the finished with everything just gracefully exploding on the back palate. Amazing wine.
2013 SCHRADER CELLARS BECKSTOFFER TO KALON VINEYARD NAPA CABERNET SAUVIGNON- 14.7% abv; such a treat to get an earlier, highly acclaimed version of the last stellar wine and it was amazingly approachable for being less than 10 years old; I got a touch of methoxypyrazine in the nose= bell pepper plus a nice hit of talc, cedar, tobacco and leather accented black currant, plum, blackberry and black cherry and there was even more to explore for the more discerning of palates; it was seamless, full bodied with some weight, had serious depth and a long finish that just confirmed superb excellence. Memorable and deeply appreciated.
What a stupendous evening. We were all blessed to enjoy a combination of great food, the fellowship of righteously good people, spectacular wines, shared enthusiasm and passion and a classy backyard ambience on a bluebird day/ evening.
I am so grateful for knowing each and every one in this group and very thankful for all of their fantastic wine contributions they brought to share. It was apparent each person put some thought into what they brought and Chris organized in such a way as to create balance and ideal food pairing.
Again, thanks to Joanne and Chris for being the consummate hosts.
Cheers,
Blake