maybe in a strange place this bottle exhibited little recognizable lychee/petrol notes i have come to expect from LC. wine was a beautiful deep golden color (dehydrated urine?) and the nose was a bit depressed making me question was this bottle flawed or just exhibiting variability? there was discernible citrus on the palate and maybe some pear. once the wine warmed the finish lengthened but never got to that petrol/diesel place i really hoped for. if not for the color i might have guessed this was a really clean, no oak Chard! this wine is barreled in “very old” French Oak - terminology i adore!
will check back in a year again as i have some more 05 left and some 2006 too.
Josh and Mary Beth Chandler sold this property to the Ferrari-Carano folks a year or two back and i haven’t tasted the wine since the change over.
had this with grilled swordfish and sauteed zucchini squash.
Glenn, my brother, did you use the special underwater lens when taking this pic?
Beautiful background, too…in this cool, sort of ‘wedding portraiture’ way.
The wine, however, sounds like a great match for the swordfish. I, too, had a nice white with fish last evening, but forgot to take out my underwater lens and shoot a pic! FAIL.
dined alfresco last evening and obviously this did effect my lowly camera phone in a negative way!
It’s actually perfect, Glenn. The whole setup - the dimming light shining through, the outdoor patio, the chair back, and a ‘Lazy Creek’ wine bottle - it’s pretty much an advertisement…
Above is the back label photo from my may be the best white wine of this summer. This bottle was a superb example with lychee and diesel dancing with some tropical fruits. Finish lengthy and really in that sweet spot. Better pairing this year with veggie Thai food take-out. Still that great, unique color. Mel and I fought over the last glass.
Such a kick ass back label.
Glenn,
This is a quirky performer - usually on the good side, but out of a case I had a couple of murky bottles. Miss the Pinot Blanc… 
Would you call this a ‘Burgundian Gewurztraminer’?
I have called my Johnson Burgundian when it has suited me.
Jim - all the 99s and 02s I had were so good. I think this wine just needs real time.
Opened a bottle of '05 Lazy Creek Gewurz a month or two back - it was really good. I was sorry to see Josh and Mary Beth sell the winery - I had a very good visit there with Josh in early '07 when I visited Anderson Valley with a few friends, and Mary Beth was extremely helpful in suggesting places to eat in the area. Josh felt their Gewurz would age well, and a taste of the '99 vintage confirmed it. Here are some notes of those wines from that visit in '07:
’05 Dry Gewürztraminer: classic Gewürz aromas – lychee, spice, nice mouthfeel, very good acidity, great finish (no bitterness as Gewürz often has in its finish). Josh notes this is meant to be aged, unlike nearly all other California Gewürztraminers, though it’s very tempting right now.
’99 Dry Gewürztraminer: an example of how well Lazy Creek Gewürz can age – this had a deeper color, honeysuckle aromas, still maintaining great acidity and mouth-coating viscosity. Josh feels his Gewürztraminers can age 10-15 years.
Could be. All the positive experiences I had certainly give them the benefit of the doubt from me.
This was also one of my favorite winery visits. I missed the proprietors back in early 2007, but tasted with their LAtin America vineyard manager (we overcame the language barrier!), bought a little wine, and I forced myself not to let their awesome dog come along for the ride when we left!
Anyone have any idea of whats going on here now? I LOVED their PN’s!
I have adored Lazy Creek for years, reds and whites. I was so sad to hear that the property changed hands. Hard to blame anyone for taking a well earned payday, just hope that the wines are not changed. It seems like a special spot, all their wines really seemed to show a sense of place.
+1, I had a splendid and engaging visit with Marybeth back in 2006 as part of a comprehensive 2-week California wine tour and was very impressed with the wines. I didn’t, of course, try the 05 at that time, but she had the 2004 version available. I fully agree with Benjamin’s note that the wines showed a sense of place—the 2004 estate Pinot was especially memorable in this respect.
" 2004 Estate Pinot Noir
This comes from all their fruit. I love the coffee grounds and port combination. It doesn’t get off that coffee and sour cream/coffee cake gets added.
Ahhh. Wonderful stuff. Wowstuff. Powerful, yet bridled, it absolutely hits my sweet spot. Intense, not with the elegance of the Londer, but in no way overblown, it’s very distinctive, authoritative and presumably representative of their wines. 1 bottle bought. Also would have made a “top 15” list."
" 2004 Lazy Creek Estates Gewurtztraminer
I mentioned that Navarro’s was pretty decent. This is more than pretty decent. This is quite something . A fantastic marriage of sweet pears, bit of apricot, spices and vanilla and maple fudge takes over your nuzzie. It is really captivating and very busy. On the palate, it’s much more acidic than the nose would suggest, but huge lemon. Lychee on the aftertaste and actually a bit of yeast. Tastier on 2nd sip. Needs a little time to settle down. Honestly? I really wish I had room for a bottle. The nose is astounding, I’m just a little unsure about the palate catching up. But great effort."
sante,
Prepare to be disappointed. The M.O. now across all varieties is to pick super late and over ripe and adjust with water and acid to the point where the wines taste dilute and created. Really sad to see F-C destroy a once pretty cool winery.