http://dat.erobertparker.com/bboard/showthread.php?t=216779
Saw this thread while lurking and ultimately went out on a very short limb and ordered a case of the Cameron Hughes Lot 147 Sonoma Cab (all of $12.75/btl including shipping).
Two questions:
I had the 2007 Howell Mountain Cab last week (cannot remember lot number) that I got at Costco for $20. Stellar cab that mountain fruit fans should seek out at twice the price. Very primary and full of tannins, but it shows some serious promise for future consumption…or just hit it with a Waring Pro for a couple of seconds.
If you’re talking about Lot 143 for that Howell Mtn selection, then I agree completely. Terrific juice.
That’s the one.
The current CH Pinot (that landed in my IL Costco last month) that is about 14 or 15 bucks is a great value.
Had one and then went back for a case.
I’ve had several of the CH wines. Some have been very good, some have been OK. I can’t recall any that I would actually say were bad. It’s worth doing some research to find the good ones, but really, given the prices of these bottles, even the OK ones aren’t that disappointing.
I know I’ve seen Cameron posting on a bulletin board in the past, I can’t remember if it was here or over on the other board. I imagine he might scan the BBs once in a while, so he might chime in.
My store sells his wines. I had heard about him but they weren’t available in MD until about 3 months ago. We jumped in on a chard, a meritage, and an oak knoll cab. I can’t remember the lot numbers. They have been doing pretty well for us and people come back for more.
We also tasted a Pinot but didn’t buy it just because we didn’t need another one at that pricepoint. But it was good.
I’m interested to see what MD gets next cause I like the concept, and obviously right now is a great time to have a project like this.
I’d love to try the Howell Mt Cab!
I was pretty active in that thread.
I’ll repeat here what I said there to save you some reading:
Current juice is pretty damn good stuff for the $$.
I’ve talked with him on the phone before (I almost sold him some bulk Petite Sirah) and he’s a very nice fellow. I’ve also talked to people who have worked with him and nothing bad to say. I would PM him on the eBob board and invite him over.
I recently tasted many of the Cameron Hughes wines now on offer. The lot 147 was a very solid offering and offers great value but for my money Lot 149 Napa Valley, and Lot 143 Howell Mountain are remarkably good wines for the price. I was also very fond of the Lot 140 which had balance and precision and a very lean, yet seductive mouthfeel.
While not every Cameron Hughes wine is going to be great quality wise, they are almost always very good value for the money and some really overachieve. It’s easy to take a chance on just about any of the wines and then load up when you find one you really like. The worst that can happen is you get a bottle for a low price that is just “average and oaky”.
Timely. I am drinking a CH Lot 100 now (Stags Leap juice). I paid $29 retail (plus tax) and it is nice wine. I don’t think it will age a long time , but who cares. I need some house reds below $25 so I am getting a mixed case tomorrow (free shipping). I doubt I would pay above $30 like I did for this bottle, but sub $25, yeah easy buy. This will go nicely with Chateau Souverain Cab 06 when it releases out my way for dependable house reds that don’t cost $50+ yet perform close to that level.
I’ve only had two different Cameron Hughes Cabs and they both disappointed. I must be in the minority or I just had the wrong ones. With the deals I’m getting these days, these don’t compare.
I am with you, I have had only a few from AWFUL to not bad for the money! I will say that Cameron is great to deal with and he does care what his customers think! I posted an AWFUL TN on one of his wines on eBOOB and he read it and contacted me and sent me some wine as a way of sayin sorry!
not a critique on him, but of people he employs. Many moons ago I wrote a yelp post about CWH and how I liked one wine but really disliked on particular wine. I got a message berating me from a girl who worked for him about how much I didn’t know about wine…
It was actually your gf telling the truth
so mean. she is so right too.
I’ve enjoyed a number of CH syrahs (he had a Sonoma Mountain for <$10 that was outstanding), but haven’t been as impressed with the Cabs thus far. I always check them out and recently heard good buzz on the pinot, so I’m on the lookout for that as well.
sent CH a PM over on EB
had to use a tinyurl as the
normal link came up as
http://www.**************.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=15698" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Maybe he’ll stop by here?
Everybody’s welcome here on ************.com