Six of us enjoyed a fun, casual dining room dinner at Brinam Wood Golf Club with the challenge of the evening being which wines to open and pour blind as 4 of us brought 2 bottles each and that initially seemed like too many wines.
We deferred to our friendly Sommelier who welcomed the opportunity and graced us with his expertise by selecting the order as well as the individual wines which initially included 2 whites and 2 reds, but after a flawed white, another one was added plus a 3rd red.
As it turned out, one red wine did not get opened and it was one I brought that would have been the only one I would have opened had we had to chose just one bottle, a 1997 Williams Selyem Allen Pinot Noir, one of my all time favorite wines.
We started out with the only bubbly brought and it was a fabulous bring that served the purpose of getting is off on the right track:
2008 TAITTINGER COMTES des CHAMPAGNE BRUT ROSE- blind; composed of 30% Chardonnay (Grands Crus from Côtes de Blancs), 70% Pinot Noir (Grands Crus from Montagne de Reims, including 15% Pinot Noir from Bouzy, vinified as red wine); the color was a medium hued blood orange and the nose had strawberry and burnt red cherry which continued on throughout the taste profile as well as additional accents of honey and ginger; it was rich and delightful and held a steady course for over an hour and then just took off and went into another dimension with more complexity, density and pizzaz; it was nice and nicely balanced and mindful to me of the 2007 Comtes Rose which is what I eventually called it until the surprise of the 2008 was revealed.
Our first white poured blind had a brown/ gray color suggesting a flaw and the nose confirmed its oxidative state with Sherry like nutty almond most prevalent. This was a wine I’ve had many a great bottle of and was surprised to find an off bottle variation:
1999 AU BON CLIMAT LA BOUGE D’a COTE SANTA MARIA VALLEY CHARDONNAY
Next up, 2 white served blind:
2019 AVENUE 8 NAPA VALLEY CHARDONNAY- blind; according to the back label, 120 cases produced; 14.6% abv; the fruit is sourced from 2,000 old Wente clone chardonnay vines that are situated on an eastward facing hillside comprised of mostly Haire Loam soil; the rootstock (3309c) was planted in spring of 2015 and the Old Wente Chardonnay bud wood (FPS 072) was grafted spring 2016; the site is just East of the Oak Knoll AVA, North of the Coombsville AVA, South of the Atlas Peak AVA.
Following its yellow toward gold color came aromas of coconut accented yellow apple with a hint of mint; the taste also included some minerals and oak wood notes while being delivered in a super smooth textured medium; even though it came off initially as a CA Chard, I thought it might even be a Spanish white Rioja or even an Albarino with American oak providing the coconut notes.
2018 CHATEAU MONTELENA NAPA VALLEY CHARDONNAY- blind; this had a light yellow color and a mild nose of steely, minerality laced citrus and apple which made up a good portion of the taste with more expression; it had a pleasing oily texture and finished with everything coming together for a wonderful grand finale; I thought it was old world and an older vintage as in a 2010 or so.
We moved on to 3 reds, all served blind:
2004 BOND PLURIBUS NAPA RED WINE- blind; this Cabernet based wine also contains small amounts of Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Merlot; 639 cases made; this had a youthful, vibrant dark purple color; the nose had some funky metallic notes that another identified as balsamic vinegar; it also contained some mint, oregano, thyme, coffee, leather and mocha notes intermingled with the black current and blackberry fruit; it was full bodied with serious depth; the funk never dissipated, but one could get enough redemption from the other notes.
2018 INDULGENCE NAPA CABERNET SAUVIGNON- blind; 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from their estate Heritage School Vineyards in Calistoga; the color was a youthful, bright red purple and the nose offered lots of red fruit with red cherry and red plum most prominent only to be replaced by black current, blueberry and blue plum on the palate; this was a big wine with big aspirations that will require many years to develop and mature as the strong tannic backbone seems to suggest.
2005 RUDD OAKVILLE ESTATE NAPA VALLEY RED WINE- blind; 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc and the rest Malbec, Merlot, and Petit Verdot; the color was a serious dark red purple and the nose had aromas of cedar and dark chocolate laced blackberry which continued on to the back end while being delivered in a soft, smooth textured medium; this was full bodied, very concentrated with layered complexity and suggestive of a serious wine that needs more time albeit giving up some treasures early on.
It was a delightful evening, especially with the presence of a dear friend and our host who returned to our area for another brief visit after having moved away recently.
Cheers,
Blake