1979 Lytton Springs Zinfandel and 73 Heitz Martha’s Vineyard cabernet

3/7/13-First off, an update on the previous Post: I failed to mention the Heitz cabernet; Gary Rose nailed it, having detected eucalyptus, which is a typical flavor in Martha’s wines (some people suspect she tossed a few berries in the grape truck as it left the vineyard).  In addition, Ann Vik correctly noted that the picture of the 1984 Ch. Montelena was actually a 1982 wine (I failed to take a picture of the 1984-sorry about that!).

The 79 Zinfandel was the brown bag wine for the night, and was amazingly youthful and fruity.  As with most older zinfandels, most guessed it to be a merlot or cabernet.  The wine won a multitude of blind tastings when originally released.

Lake Forest Wine Tastings

2/28/13-The Folsom Wine Group meets at the Folsom Lake Forest Wine Store for Thursday wine tastings, and have recently enjoyed a brown bag tasting of older wines.  The 1983 Caymus cabernet was quite youthful and some thought it to be a Bordeaux.  The 79 Pichon Lalande was also very youthful and enjoyable.  The 1984 Ch. Montelena chardonnay was the most enjoyed and many returned for seconds. 

1976 Sausal Zinfandel

2/13/13-The Wednesday Knitters was hosted by Keith and Helen Faust.  Dinner featured baked spaghetti, tossed salad, garlic bread and ricotta cheese cake for dessert.  The brown bag wine of the night was a 1976 Sausal Zinfandel that was incredibly youthful and fruity.

Black and White Champagne Tasting

1/12/13-Gary Rose and Laura Laskowski hosted their annual Champagne blind tasting.  The edibles provided by the hosts and participants provided a feast fit for a King (or Queen).  The desserts included a really dark chocolate cake with black food coloring.... Anyone who ate it had black tongues, teeth & lips.

Here is the Champagne results with 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th place votes:
1. De Margerie Brut                              5 2 2 1
2. Louis Roederer Brut                          3 2 0 5
3. Perrier-Jouet Grand Brut                   3 2 1 3
4. Bollinger Brut                                    1 2 0 5
5. Pommery Brut                                   1 0 3 1
6. Franck Bonville "Avize" Brut           0 5 0 1
7. Robert Moncuit Brut                          0 1 2 0
8. Kirkland Brut                                     0 1 2 0

 

 

1978 Santa Cruz Mountain Duriff

1/9/13-Carl and Kathy hosted the Wednesday Knitters and provided a dinner of Sheppard Pie and Knitters salad.  The brown bag wine of the night was a very healthy and fruity 1978 Durif.  The grape is known as Petite Sirah in North and South America.  In the rest of the World it is generally known as Durif, named after its discoverer, Dr. Francois Durif.  The high tannins and acidity present in Petite Sirah make it an excellent candidate for ageing.

Ch. Domaine du Caillou Quartz Rhone wines

1/1/13-The Hennige’s celebrated the Stanford win at the Rose Bowl with the Faust and Curtis couples, and indulged in a small vertical of Ch. Domaine du Caillou Quartz Rhone wines.  The Stanford win over Wisconsin was celebrated with a 2008 Ridge cabernet bottled for the Stanford alumni.  The 2000 and 2004 wines were essentially tied for first place and all participants had the 2001 in third place (Parkers favorite of the three).  The 2000 exhibited red currants and coffee, and was smoother and softer than the younger 2004, which had intense berry fruit.  All wines had a very long finish.

1980 Clos du Val Pinot Noir

12/12/12-The Wednesday Knitters was hosted by Ross and Donna McGuire, providing a dinner menu of herb pork loin roast, pumpkin ravioli with brown butter sauce, and salad.  The brown bag wine was a healthy, fruity, and enjoyable 1980 Clos du Val pinot noir.