Wine Focus for July 2017: The USA!

[Jenise]

2013 Kelley Fox Wines Pinot Noir Mirabai McMinnville
Watermelon, rhubarb fruit and tomato fruit dominated by a pleasantly herbal greenness like tomato leaf. Refreshing and enjoyable, though more reminiscent of central coastal California than Oregon.

2010 Beaulieu Beaurouge, Napa Valley
I was dismayed to find three bottles of this not-inventoried wine in my cellar. Hopes weren't high for them to be anything exciting at this point, though the vintage might have delivered the tannins to save it. Don't think it did--was just earthy and rather stodgy

2015 Owen Roe Chardonnay Sharecropper's Columbia Valley
Owen Roe is one of those Oregon/Washington wineries. Good Oregon pinot and interesting other things drawing from both sides of the River that divides us. Modern style, always, but well-made and pleasing in ways that always pull me in. Didn't work out with this one: it's liquid green bananas. And I mean, that's about all there is to it. Drinkable but monotonous. Would not seek it out.

Ridge 2012 Paso Robles Zinfandel, Dusi Ranch.

Opened this while Andrea's traveling because I feared disappointment -- the last couple of Dusis I've had have been overripe and hot -- but this is really quite good. It's 15.3% but doesn't show heat, and it has a ripe figgy signature that I think of as characteristic of Paso Zins, and which immediately summons fond memories of a tasting trip there many years ago. The figgy, berry fruit is framed by black pepper and a modest touch of wood spice, and there's also something bright and lively in the wine too, almost like citrus zest. Delicious. Sorry-not sorry, Andrea!

Peirano Estate Vineyards Merlot The Heritage Collection "Six Clones" 2014
Lodi, California

This was on the tasting counter at Majestic. I poured a glass while browsing and was most impressed, so I bought some and also added a couple of bottles of their Old Vine Zinfandel 2014.

Not a wimpy Merlot, it is deep coloured, richly flavoured, full bodied and rewarding... It went down so easily with dinner. Delicious berry flavours.

The label doesn't elucidate what the clones are, but Peirano's website says it's produced from 6 different clones, or sub-varieties, of Merlot grown on the estate, including two rare French clones (#181 and #314), as well as the very rare Italian clone #9. Peirano Estate was the first commercial winery to grow and produce wine from these rare Merlot clones.

[Robin Garr]

Au Bon Climat 2016 Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir ($25.99)

Dark ruby red with scarlet glints against the light. Red berries, a hint of plum and a whiff of fennel carry over intact on the palate in a full-bodied, red-berry flavor that's ripe but bone-dry and tart, mouth-watering and palate-cleansing. Alcohol at 13.5% is sufficient to fill it out but not so high-octane as to bring the heat. Soft, palatable tannins in a nicely balanced Pinot Noir that's distinctly California yet reaches across the Atlantic to bring in a touch of Burgundy. Excellent wine. (July 13, 2017)

FOOD MATCH: This classic Pinot goes seamlessly with just about any red meat, mushrooms, sharp cheese, wild salmon and more.

WHEN TO DRINK: It's delicious and certainly won't go around the bend in a year or two, but I don't see it as a wine made for cellaring. Enjoy it in the next few years but save Au Bon Climat's more upscale bottlings for laying down.

VALUE: Wine-Searcher.com reports a $23 average U.S. retail, which is in line with its $24 winery price and not far under my $26 local price. This excellent Pinot is certainly worth its toll in this mid-$20s range.

WEB LINK Read about Au Bon Climat, its vineyards, its wines and its people, at this link.

FIND THIS WINE ONLINE: Check prices and find vendors for Au Bon Climat Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir on Wine-Searcher.com.

You can also buy the 2016 vintage direct from the winery for $24 at this link.

[Robin Garr]

Sokol-Blosser 2016 Dundee Hills Estate Cuvée Rosé of Pinot Noir ($19.99)

Pretty, clear light rosy pink color. Red berry and subtle wildflower scent, fresh, a touch of strawberries on the palate, perhaps the one clear signal of its Pinot Noir provenance. The winery claims a small amount of residual sugar, but it appears bone-dry and faintly prickly, with 12% alcohol; an intriguing hint of "rainwater" minerality in the background. Crisp and tart, red berries and subtle lemon-lime in a very long finish. (July 10, 2017)

FOOD MATCH: Great with a Caprese salad of ripe garden tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and garden basil with fine olive oil. Also a delicious summer sipper on its own or turned into a light, quenching spritzer with equal portions of rosé and sparkling water over ice in a tall glass with lemon.

WHEN TO DRINK: There's no reason why you couldn't keep it on its side in a cool place for a year or two, but rosé is really made to enjoy, not lay down. Buy it, drink it, buy some more.

VALUE:
You might say that $20 is getting up there by traditional standards for rosé, but perhaps it's time for rosé to take equal place alongside white and red. My local price is in line with the $20 U.S. average on Wine-Searcher.com.

WEB LINK
Here's a winery fact sheet on Sokol-Blosser 2016 Dundee Hills Estate Cuvée Rosé of Pinot Noir.

FIND THIS WINE ONLINE:
Compare prices and fine vendors for Sokol-Blosser Dundee Hills Estate Cuvée Rosé of Pinot Noir on Wine-Searcher.com.

Buy this wine from the winery for $22/bottle.

2012 Ceritas Pinot Noir Hellenthal Vineyard, Sonoma Coast, CA. 12.5% abv. This was a dark crimson color and semi-opaque. On the nose I am picking up woody fragrance, cola and bitter cherry. My first impression is that this has herbal notes overriding the fruity aspects. I do find a little cranberry. It finishes with a tannic note. Not my favorite wine from Ceritas; I gravitate more to their Chardonnays. I am going on current impression; it may improve with one to three more years. I would rate it slightly above the next wine.

2013 District 3 Sonoma County Growers Reserve Pinot Noir, CA. 14.9% abv. From multi-generational Sonoma grape growers. Deep purple color with semi-opaque depth and fuzzy mild tannins. In this wine the fruit and herbs seem better balanced though the finish is rather tannic and spicy (pepper.) Full-throttle with a high alcohol content but tempting to drink.

2008 Shea Vineyards Pinot Noir Shea Estate, Willamette Valley, Oregon. 14.2% abv. This beats both the California Pinots in my estimation. I purchased this from a District of Columbia wine shop where the price had been reduced about $16.00. Medium garnet color; nearly opaque. The wine is quite fragrant with heady cherry and floral notes. Cherry fruit and herbs on the palate. It is well integrated and may be peaking. The finish is lengthy. A pleasure to drink. I'm undergoing treatment for a leg injury and I'm tethered to an intravenous pump for administration of antibiotics so am resorting to frozen dinners and takeout. I had this with a frozen turkey and dressing dinner one evening and with takeout Chinese food including orange chicken and a vegetable egg roll another evening. It was versatile. I could see it with roast chicken, Cornish hen, other fowl or pork (possibly salmon also.) I regret that I didn't buy additional bottles on sale.

Lang & Reed 2012 North Coast Cabernet Franc. $27.00. This vintage is equal parts Lake County (High Valley) and Sonoma (Alexander Valley) fruit, topped off with a little Napa and Suisun. The bottle says 14.1%, the tech sheet says 14.41%. Ripe but not overripe red and black berry fruit, with a narrow band of perceptible graphite, as well as an enticing nose of flowers that becomes more intense with time. A few years has sanded off whatever sharp edges this once had, and there's no greenness to speak of, nor much in the way of wood; this is very pure and transparent. I don't think this is built for significant aging but it's balanced enough that it should glide comfortably into early middle age rather than crash abruptly. I continue to think that this is silly-good value. It's a ripe, sunny, California wine but it's not overdone; you can tell it's Cab Franc; it's good with a meal (we had it with Andrea's chicken tagine with prunes and green olives); and it's lively and complex. As good or better than many things that sell for two or three times its price.

[Jenise]

Patchen, I think I've had that Cab Franc in the past. It's kind of all that winery does, if I'm not mistaken. Very unusual in California to be so single-grape focussed, and very unusual for their intent to make a pure, precise style of it too.

Yup, they're pretty much all Cab Franc, I think. They do at least a few different cuvees -- I know I've had one single-vineyard bottling that's all from a specific Loire clone -- delicious, but almost twice the price -- but the North Coast is the one you'll see the most. IIRC, their web page has a bunch of pictures of them hanging out with the Baudry family in Chinon.

[Robin Garr]

Willamette Valley Vineyards 2016 "Whole Cluster" Willamette Valley Rosé of Pinot Noir ($16.99)

Clear, vibrant pink, with good aromas of strawberries and a hint of fresh green herbs. Red berries on the palate, too, plus a distinct touch of honeydew melon, framed with 13.4% alcohol and zippy, mouth-watering acidity that adds a touch of citrus as it lingers in a medium-long finish. (July 22, 2017)

FOOD MATCH: Fine with one of my favorite pink-wine pairings, Caprese salad of tomatoes, basil and mozzarella dressed with excellent olive oil. The winery suggests charcuterie or entrees like ahi tuna, chicken curry, and salmon with dill pesto sauce. Enjoy it also as an aperitif, or with seafood, fish or light chicken or pork dishes.

WHEN TO DRINK: The winery suggests "peak drinkability" between this year and 2019, and that makes sense to me: Rosé isn't for long-term aging and can't be expected to improve with age, but flavor and balance and the character of good Pinot Noir will hold it for two or three years.

VALUE:
My local price looks good alongside Wine-Searcher.com's $20 average retail; the winery, which does not sell this rosé online, says a more typical retail price is $15 to $17. It's certainly a very good value in the middle teens.

WEB LINK
Here's a detailed fact sheet and technical report on the Willamette Valley Vineyard web page.

FIND THIS WINE ONLINE:
Find vendors and compare prices for Willamette Valley Vineyards "Whole Cluster" Willamette Valley Rosé of Pinot Noir on Wine-Searcher.com.

2013 Sueno Profundo Reserve Napa Cabernet; since I have a case of the 2014 coming soon I thought I'd try a bottle of their 2013. Very black in color with a great nose of herbs, black fruit and black olives. The palate started out as black currents and then evolved into plum. Only moderate tannins so quite drinkable with a few (in this case 6) hrs. of breath time in the bottle , not decanted. Nicely balanced and with a lot of potential I would guess. In ten years this could be marvelous. abv of 14.9%

This is my first and probably only post in this month's WF because there were only 7 bottles of US wine left in my cellar and because other decent US wines are almost unavailable here except by mail order at high prices from Paris. The Gallo plonks in supermarkets do not tempt me even on a one-off experimental basis. As for those in my cellar, they were purchased during business trips to the States or London in the late 90s and are all in the "special occasion" category being bottles like this one, Diamond Creek, Ridge Montebello.... I would love to investigate "everyday" wines being produced in the US but that awaits another visit which at my mature age may never happen.


1992 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection - USA, California, Napa Valley (7/29/2017)
This is a big polished wine showing little signs of age in its colour and flavours. Quite full bodied showing showing rich rose and berry tinted fruit, suave texture, by now well integrated oak patina, moderate acidity and ripe firmness on a quite long finish. I was surprised to read on the back label that this comes 100% from Cabernet Sauvignon; my Bordeaux trained palate could have taken it for a modern right bank Bordeaux blend. What is missing for greater enthusiasm? I think greater finesse and secondary development combined with freshness. Nevertheless very good.

Posted from CellarTracker

I found a note from late May that did not get posted. It was a 2010 Lioco Chardonnay Hanzell Vineyard, Sonoma Valley, CA. 13.4% abv. This seemed to have bottle variation from the same wine consumed in April. I liked it better in April for its crispness and precision and purity. This bottle may have been slightly oxidized as I was tasting pineapple, guava and nutty notes--much more tropical than the April experience. Gold color and an opulent richness.