Is this the weirest blend of varieties (not varietals) you h

WINE TALK
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This is what it looks like- The % of whites is about 10%

Going to be in ATL that weekend for the HIGH WIne Auction. I’ll be down your way a few times this Spring hanging w/ Kate’s family- I’ll have some in tow.

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Hardy,

Looking forward to it!

Cheers!

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[rofl.gif]

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I seem to recall a thread a few years ago about what two varieties should never be blended together and I suggested Pinot and Zin

Jay - I’m glad to see that people are getting over their small-minded, neo-conservative Taliban hang-ups and they’re increasingly blending Pinot Noir with other grapes. Personally I like a little Pinot Noir blended with my Aglianico just to give it some heft.

[cheers.gif]

Now if they could just get Riesling into the blend and give it sufficient barrel time . . .

Anyhow, this one from Mas de Daumas Gassac MAY have been the most unusual - I don’t actually know because I don’t know what the hell was in the wine, but this is what they say:

“20% Viognier – 20% Chardonnay – 20% Petit Manseng – 20% Chenin Blanc & 20% rare grape varieties from all over the world. 25-30 years old vines.”

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Here’s a candidate, especially if we knew what else was included, I suspect. Had this last night. Very nice; a bit lighter than I expected but with a nose that constantly changed and evolved.

Sean Thackrey Pleiades XIX Old Vine Red Blend
“This nineteenth edition bottled in June of 2010, includes Sangiovese, Viognier, Mourvedre, Syrah, and Petite Sirah, to name but a few.”

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No politics allowed in Wine Talk!

I thought there was riesling in the Zind-Humbrecht Zind vin be table (no vintage because the French version of the Taliban won’t allow it because of the blend) but it turns out it is Auxerrois, Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc. A very nice wine with an “illegal” blend, but no riesling. However, there are some who argue that Auxerrois is a sibling of riesling, so it’s close.

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Justin Christoph once bottled a mix of Pennsylvania Riesling and Pinot Noir.

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Forgot about this one. Makes me look forward to Summer.

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Really? Never heard that one. DNA analysis says it’s a sibling of Chardonnay, according to this: Auxerrois blanc - Wikipedia

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I have never seen a wine with Valdiguié, nor had I necessarily heard of it until know. But Linne Calodo’s Cherry Red, Outsider and Problem Child all blend Zin with Syrah and Mourvedre.

Stefania’s Haut Tubee is a varying blend. Per the website, the 2008, which I haven’t tried yet, is: Cabernet Sauvignon 37%/Syrah 36%/Merlot 15%/Zinfandel 10%/Grenache 2%/Mourvedre, Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot, and Pinot Gris (all trace).

The 2007, which I enjoyed a ton last weekend, was “just over 50% Syrah in 2007, with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Zinfandel, Grenache and Mourvedre also in the blend.” Maybe someone else knows the specific %s. I lost four bottles in an unfortunate negligent racking incident, and in the middle of the one last weekend, it became apparent that this was even more tragic than initially understood.

The 2006 (which predates my Stefania buying) was

…55 % Uvas Creek Cabernet Sauvignon, foot stomped at our harvest party and fermented in a 1/2 ton bin. 20% Syrah, Grenache and 5 clusters of Mourvedre from our yard. 20% Zinfandel from the Elandrich Vineyard. 4% Cabernet Sauvignon from Chaine D 'Or. 2% Syrah and Mourvedre from the OttiGurr Vineyard in San Jose. The lots were mostly fermented separately unless there wasn’t enough of something, then it got thrown in together, and everything was pressed in our old basket press as it finished, then was transferred to stainless steel until everything was complete and could be moved in to barrel.

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F Teldeschi in Dry Creek Valley does a couple of blends with Valdiguie; most interestingly their Terrnova which is Carignane, Valdigue, Zin and Petite Sirah.

They also make an intersting blend called Cinque Terre, which includes Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Syrah, Carignane, and Petite Sirah.

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The 2009 ‘base’ is:

Syrah 28%
Cabernet Sauvignon 26%
Zinfandel 24%
Pinot Noir 9%
Merlot 9%
Grenache 2%
Pinot Gris 2%
Mourvedre 1%

I’ll be blending in some SCM Cabernet this weekend after barrel trials which will bring Cab Franc and Petite Verdot to the blend. That will make it 10 grape types and push up the percentage of Cabernet to about 50%.

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Here’s an odd one from Cypher (formerly 4 vines):
Cypher Eclectic Red, Paso Robles
22% Carignane, 17% Touriga Nacional, 17% Teroldego, 12% Tinta Cao, 11% Souzao, 8% Zinfandel, 6% Tinta Roriz, 6% Petite Verdot, 1% Petite Sirah.

My first thought was where the heck did they find some of these grapes?

Matt

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Did they actually grow all those grapes in CA? Wow. Who’s growing Teraldego or Souzao?

And did Sean Thackeray know? Must have slipped by him because one would think he would have thrown some of that into his mixes over the years.

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Clendenon has tome Teroldego as does Mosby and I bet that Ficklin and Quady have Sousão…

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The Sine Qua Non Hoodoo Man (39% Roussanne, 31% Viognier and 30% Chardonnay) isn’t as weird as most of the blends mentioned in this thread, but it may be one of the more unusual blends in the world of $100+ wines.

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IANAW (I Am Not A Winemaker, so please correct me as needed) but could there be a “what’s left over” effect here? Ie, esp if you grow a number of varieties, you will always be stuck with not quite enough for a whole barrel of something or other. Necessity is the mother of invention…

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http://www.nallewinery.com/zinotnoir08.html

Zinot Noir.

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Me like at the price point

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Ficklin grows quite a few Portuguese varieties.