NOTES FROM RRV BARREL TASTING 2010 - (3/15/2010)
A terrific weekend for the Russian River Barrel tasting, bright and sunny, mid-60s temperatures, and some really nice winery visits.
Visit to Boheme wines
Our first stop was out to the west of Occidental on Taylor Lane, visiting Kurt Beitler of Boheme wines. Kurt farms several vineyards in the area, including the famed cool climate Que Syrah. He is in some pretty high end company, with vineyards like Summa, Thieriot, and others in the area. No winery or tasting room here, we tasted bottles on Kurt’s deck, overlooking the dairy farmlands of western Sonoma County, with a crystal clear view to the Pacific, and even the Farallon Islands in the far distance. The wines were fabulous, with great concentration, restraint and elegance. A producer I highly recommend for those looking for this style. In 2007 Kurt has decided to create another label, called Bodega Rancho (after the original Spanish land grant of 1844), under which his Syrah will be bottled, and I assume other non Pinot/Chardonnay wines. http://www.bohemewine.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
-
2007 Bohème Wines Chardonnay Taylor Ridge Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Fresh and crisp, showing good intensity, some interesting complexities, some higher toned lemon oil notes, a touch of sweetness. (90 pts.) -
2007 Bohème Wines Pinot Noir Taylor Ridge Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Gorgeous deep, dark red flavors of plum and dark berry, fabulous concentration and balance, finishes long and complex. Really an outstanding wine, one of my favorites of the vintage so far. (93 pts.) -
2007 Bohème Wines Pinot Noir Stuller Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Next to the Taylor Lane vineyard pinot this is a bit darker in color, which also describes the palate, a bit softer as well. There is good depth, nice acidity, a touch of orange peel for interest. Very nice Pinot. (92 pts.) -
2005 Bohème Wines Syrah Que Syrah Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Gorgeous deep, dark fruit, though it has a bright side that keeps it light on its toes; fairly high acidity bringing some citrus notes. From one of the coolest syrah vineyards in California, this is a truly fine rendition. (93 pts.) -
2004 Bohème Wines Syrah Que Syrah Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Plenty of dark fruit, with raspberry and black cherry compote notes, good balance. Excellent concentration, one wonders how such a cool climate vineyard produced a wine at this level of ripeness. Quite nice, would drink this on the earlier side. (91 pts.) -
2007 Bodega Rancho Syrah Que Syrah - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Very nice medium dark fruit, bright acidity, excellent balance. This is definitely a cooler climate wine, though with plenty of intensity and concentration. Really nice. (92 pts.)
Dehlinger Syrah tasting
Tom Dehlinger chose this weekend to open the winery to mailing list customers, and pour a sampling of 6 Syrahs from recent vintages. I have been lucky enough to be buying and drinking Dehlinger wines since the 97 vintage, and have learned that Tom’s syrahs are classic wines that develop beautifully if given the chance. I can’t think of a wine that hasn’t been better with at least 10 years of age, and most will easily go 15-20 with ease. This collection did much to reinforce that experience even more. A wonderful vertical of wines.
-
2007 Dehlinger Syrah Goldridge - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Deep, dark red fruits, full bodied but not overly ripe, nice balance. Shows great promise at this young age. (92 pts.) -
2006 Dehlinger Syrah Estate - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Dark, deep fruit, nice acidity, good finish with a touch of fresh tartness for focus. A beauty in the making. (93 pts.) -
2006 Dehlinger Syrah Estate East Face - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Even darker and denser than the regular Estate, showing a bit higher tannin levels. Quite deep and brooding, this is a bigger, deeper wine than the Estate, though I’m not sure it will necessarily be better. Give it some time, at least 5 years before thinking about opening one. (93 pts.) -
2005 Dehlinger Syrah Estate East Face - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Dark, deep and dense, brooding, sulking, but and outstanding syrah. Needs time, at least 5 years, then probably a 10 year drinking window. (93 pts.) -
2002 Dehlinger Syrah Goldridge - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Beautiful dark red plum fruit, bright acidity, excellent depth and balance. Still very young, but starting to drink well. Leave this for a few more years, then drink over the next decade. (93 pts.) -
2002 Dehlinger Syrah Estate - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Concentrated deep red fruit, starting to show some nice complexities, great acidity and overall balance. In the past year this has really started to unfurl its wings, still very youthful, I’d expect this to be drinking great for at least another 10 years, developing more and more interest with time. (94 pts.)
Two Ceritas beauties
John Raytek, who along with his wife Phoebe Bass owns and produces Ceritas wines, gave us the nice opportunity to sample his two 2008 wines. Though recently bottled, they showed beautifully. Production is down quite a bit in 2008, but 2009 was good to Ceritas, and there should be a bit more to go around. John’s “day job” is assistant winemaker at Copain, another of my favorite producers, so there is no surprise that John’s own Ceritas wines follow a similar style. John has worked hard to find vineyards that produce wines of intensity, depth, elegance and finesse.
-
2008 Ceritas Chardonnay Porter-Bass Vineyards - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Only recently bottled, but drinking very well. This is concentrated and intense, without being ripe in any way. Low oak presence, great acidity, fabulous complexity. The ultra-low yields in 08 brought some exceptional depth to this and the Pinot, in some ways almost painfully intense. Some time in the bottle will do this good, and smooth out the sharp profile. An exceptional California Chardonnay in the making, should be one to live for many years. (93 pts.) -
2008 Ceritas Pinot Noir Escarpa Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Only recently bottled. Fairly dark, very intense deep fruit, but not in an overripe sense in any way, nice spice, orange peel, great acidity, long finish; this needs a few years to tame the concentration and meld the various components, and should be a fabulous example of California Pinot for years to come. (93 pts.)
The Holdredge “Experience”
We’ve been to Holdredge a couple of times, but it is always so packed on barrel tasting weekend that it’s hard to spend any time with John. This year we headed over there first thing Sunday morning, so the crowds were still asleep, and we were able to take time to sample what turned out to be some fabulous wines John has produced in 2009. A highly recommended stop, just on the edge of the town of Healdsburg. Some of the 09s were being offered at fantastic futures prices, not sure if this is still available, but I’d give them a call and find out. Thanks again to John for a truly entertaining visit, and some great wines.
-
2009 Holdredge Pinot Noir Bucher - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Barrel sample. Nice dark black cherry profile, good acidity, very nice wine. (92 pts.) -
2009 Holdredge Pinot Noir Selection Massale - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Barrel sample. Nice bright medium cherry, touch of black tea, excellent overall structure. A good one in the making. (92 pts.) -
2009 Holdredge Pinot Noir “Shaken Not Stirred” - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Barrel sample. Very nice concentrated medium cherry and raspberry fruits, fairly high acidity, lovely wine. (92 pts.) -
2009 Holdredge Pinot Noir “Rolling Thunder” - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Barrel sample. Deep, rich, dark berries, lush but not ripe, medium acidity, really nice. (92 pts.) -
2008 Holdredge Pinot Noir Old School - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
100% whole cluster fermentation, low 13.2 alcohol, even for a taster like me who prefers a leaner profile those numbers sounded a little close to the edge, but boy does this work: beautiful dark fruit, brilliant acidity, very structured, really nice wine, and definitely “old school” in a good way. A great example of Cali Pinot that should last and develop for quite a few years. (93 pts.)
Last stop Rochioli
Had to make the traditional annual stop at Rochioli. Though they don’t participate in the Barrel Tasting festivities, they always have the next vintage of Estate wines on the bar. Maybe it was the incredible quality of all the wines that came before, but this year’s Rochioli wines seemed just a little more tame and ordinary. Very good, but not attention grabbing.
-
2009 J. Rochioli Sauvignon Blanc - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Intense nose of cut grass and grapefruit, deep, intense flavors, bit of sweetness, similar in many ways to the Grey Stack SB, a little too over the top for me. Those that prefer this style will love this wine. (88 pts.) -
2008 J. Rochioli Chardonnay - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Straightforward chard, good flavors, but a bit ripe with some sweetness. Well made, but lacks any real interest. (88 pts.) -
2008 J. Rochioli Pinot Noir - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Nice medium cherry fruit, a bit ripe and touch soft, good but lacks much interest (89 pts.)
Posted from CellarTracker
