Family Winemakers 2009
Cabot Vineyards
An absolute jewel in the rough. John and Kimberly Cabot have established this small vineyard in the far northern California reaches, about 20 miles inland from the Pacific, perched above the Klamath river at a latitude midway between Eureka and Crescent city. They grow several varieties, including Zin, and Cabernet, but Syrah is clearly the sweet spot. A nicer, more down to earth young couple you will not meet, and the wines they have produced are some of the best I tasted in the entire hall. I look forward to seeing what they’re able to accomplish as the vineyards gain more age, and they continue to fine tune things in both the vineyard and winemaking. These are truly cooler climate wines, made in a pure style that lets the terroir really come through, low percentages of new oak, moderate whole cluster fermentations, just terrific expressions of Syrah. A warning to lovers of ultra-ripe, manipulated wines like Sine Qua Non: you may find these too reserved and elegant.
2006 Syrah Kimberly’s - very nice medium fruit, some pepper, a nice lift from a bit of co-fermented viognier. 92
2006 Syrah Aria’s - 50% whole cluster, shows off a nose of smoked meat and white pepper, beautiful dark, reserved fruit, more on the red end of the spectrum than blue/black, plenty of spice and pepper, with excellent depth and structure. A fabulous wine. 93
2006 Syrah Humboldt County - priced as a lesser blend wine, it doesn’t drink that way, showing loads of deep, dark fruit, a bit more forward and lush than the Aria’s or Kimberly’s, very nice. 92
2006 Zinfandel Humboldt - medium body, nice, reserved fruit, fairly high acid, an unusual cool climate Zin, but quite nice! 88
2006 Zin Tributary - 80/20 zin/syrah, nice, smooth, lush, great balance, fun wine, great BBQ wine. 91
Carlisle
2007 Syrah Bennett Valley “Cardiac Hill” - deep, lush, shows some ripe character but has plenty of acidity and terrific complexities to carry it through, with a long finish. 92
2007 Zinfandel Papera - nose gives off a touch of ripe fruit, palate is just loaded with deep, lush, spicy, complex zin fruit, tremendous acidity, long finish. 93
Cavus Vineyards
2005 Cabernet - lush, sweet, bit short on the finish, lacks complexity and structure. Another poster child for the overripe, overpriced Napa Cab crowd. 86
Demetria Estate
2006 Cuvee Papou - Marsanne, viognier, grenache blanc, roussanne; an interesting white blend, showing on the ripe/lush side, but shored up by just enough minerality, would probably be great on a hot summer day. 88
2006 Pinot Cuvee Sandra - decent medium cherry, somewhat on the ripe side, medium body, good acidity. 88
2006 Syrah North Slope - medium body, bit ripe, not giving away much interest or complexity. 88
Gemstone
2006 “Facets” - nice fairly ripe fruit, good structure. 89
2006 Cabernet 10th Anniversary - dark, lush, moderate tannins, decent cali-style cab. 90
Grassi
2006 Cabernet - good, medium depth fruit, lush, fairly tannic finish. 90
Grey Stack
2008 Sauvignon Blanc - those that have liked previous versions of this wine will love this, a huge nose of ripe gooseberry, tropical melon, ripe grapefruit, deep, lush, vibrant wine. For my tastes, this is just a bit too “much”, but there is no doubt this is an impressive, unique wine. 93
2007 Grenache - very expressive nose of crushed red fruit and perfume, nice raspberry and dark cherry fruit, showing some ripe character but with excellent structure. 91
2007 Syrah/Grenache “The Folly” - very nice bright boysenberry/cherry/raspberry fruit, great acidity, good overall structure. 92
2006 Syrah Marie’s - deep, lush, slightly riper style this vintage, good overall balance. 90
Lagier Meredith
2007 Zinfandel “Chester’s Anvil” - medium body, very nice rich, dark zinberry, long finish. 91
2007 Syrah - deep boysenberry fruit, great acidity, fabulous wine, reminds me of the 98 vintage, which is now drinking superbly. 93
2006 Syrah - deep, rich, more black fruited, lush, good balance, give it 6-10 years and watch out. 92
2005 Syrah - dark, more reserved than 06, showing some nice dried herbs. This wine has gone through a phase where it wasn’t showing much over the past year, but is now emerging again with some great complexities. 92
Littorai
2007 Pinot Mays Canyon - beautiful medium bodied light cherry, good acidity. 91
2007 Pinot Savoy - light body, higher acidity, showing a lack of depth at the moment, hmm. 87
Mount Eden Vineyards
2006 Chardonnay Estate - nose shows off some oak, but doesn’t appear on the palate, bit ripe/lush, decent acid, seems fairly typical Cali-style Chard. 88
2006 Pinot Estate - lighter bodied, decent red fruit, good acidity, medium short finish. 88
O’Shaughnessy Estate
2006 Cabernet Howell Mountain - dark, lush, but showing some nice complexities, a bit of oak on the finish. 90
2006 Cabernet Mt. Veeder - nice dark fruit, good structure, with excellent structure and some nice complexities on the finish. 92
Outpost
2007 Zinfandel - quite ripe on entry, zingy acidity for balance, touch of raisin, good balance. 91
Paloma
2006 Merlot - beautiful medium body, lush, medium dark fruit, nice structure, good finish, not showing nearly as much chocolate oak as I’ve picked up in some earlier years. An excellent Paloma. 92
Pisoni
2007 Pinot Garys’ - nice mediuim fruit, bit on the riper side but good balance, showing a bit of the stem inclusion. 90
2007 Pinot Pisoni Estate - big, deep, dark wine, not overripe, nice tannic structure and some black tea on the finish, an excellent wine in the bigger Cali style. 91
Robert Biale
2007 Zinfandel Black Chicken - very nice dark fruit, not at all ripe or overly sweet, medium finish. 91
2007 Zinfandel Stagecoach - very nice medium dark zinberry fruit, slight sweetness, medium finish. 90
2007 Zinfandel Monte Rosso - quite dark, some sweetness but also more complexities to hold interest, excellent overall structure and a longer finish than the first two wines. 92
Storybook Mountain
2007 Zinfandel Mayacamas - nice deep fruit, medium body, slight sweetness, good balance. 88
2006 Zinfandel Estate “Eastern Exposure” - some viognier in the blend, very nice medium body, some nice crispness, quite a fresh and lively wine. 90
Tablas Creek
2007 Mourvedre - lush fruit, some good complexity and structure. 90
2007 Grenache - ripe strawberry/raspberry, finishes with some slightly raw tannins. 88
2005 Syrah - medium ripe, bit raisiny, almost a burnt note, tannic finish. 85
2006 Esprit de Beaucastel Rouge - deep, lush, nice complexities, balanced, bit ripe but nice. For the same price, I’d much rather drink the french Coudoulet. 90
Turley
2007 Zinfandel Howell Mountain - nice lush fruit, decent balance. 90