Spear a Moment / WeeksEnd wine

B"SD
A spear can be a powerfull instrument.
An item that's spare when not needed seems unimportant.
But the right one at the right time can be priceless.
Have a good one; h

Hi Harry - I'm back!

Here's what we'll be drinking this Shabbat:

Friday night: I'm looking forward to tasting the Weiss Brothers' 2010 Shirah Bro Deux
Shabbat lunch: Odem Mountain Volcanic Chardonnay 2010 - This is quickly becoming one of my favorite Chardonnays, along with the Hagafen Oak Knoll and Yarden Odem

Shabbat Shalom,
Robert

2007 Yarden Blancs de Blanc and 2011 Covenant Lavan (AKA the JT #7 special)

Also Herzog Jeunesse from a 3L for a communal lunch

Bringing galil mt viogner '11 and ugav cabshiraz.have as of yet not tasted any ugav but Yehoshua and if I remember correctly GG gave a thumbs up..

Hi Harry, shavua tov!

Friday night:

Segal's, Unfiltered, Cabernet Sauvignon 2007: Made from 90% Cabernet Sauvignon from the fame Dishon Vineyard (Flam also source their CabSav from there) and 10% Merlot from the Dovev Vineyard and aged 20 months in mostly french oak but also some american and eastern european casks. Dark garnet towards purple with on the nose black and red fruit as well as warm spices such as red (hot ) chili pepper and cloves and a hint of pecan nuts. Full-bodied with a concentration of lush black and red berry fruit as well as olives, nutmeg, roasted almonds, bracing acid (I was really surprised) that balanced out the sweet dates and prunes that would otherwise be a bit cloying with a touch of spicy red pepper and cedar that linger with bittersweet chocolate on a very long and mouth-filling finish with integrating tannins. Very nice and plush!

Shabbat Lunch:

Barkan, Assemblage, Tzafit 2009: Beware, shmitta wine! (OBD) as this was blended with 5% wine from the 2008 vintage. Otherwise, my favorite wine ever from the Assemblage series. A mediterranean and interesting blend of Carignan, Pinotage, Caladoc and Marselan that was aged 14 months in french oak barrels. This is a bottle that I've purchased only a few days after having tasted it for the first time at the Sommelier wine exhibition in Tel Aviv in November 2011. It created so much buzz that the winery pre-released a few cases to some shops with a temporary label that didn't even have the hechsher on it, that made me call the winery back then who assured me that the wine was kosher but didn't mention its shmitta status! Dark purple with on the nose figs, cinnamon, chocolate and cassis and a touch of licorice. Full-bodied with on the palate layers of juicy cassis and cherries as well as ripe strawberries, plums, black licorice, cinnamon, spicy-sweet cedar wood, vanilla pipe tobacco and chocolate covered candied orange peels on the long finish well balanced by very good acidity with slightly chewy tannins that seem to be well integrating at this point. Lovely.

Have all an excellent week!

GG

Hi, Harry, shavu'a tov,

Friday night: 2010 Dalton Petite Sirah. Lovely as ever.
Shabbat lunch:
2012 Vignoble David, le Mourre de l'Isle, Tavel, Rose
2010 Vignoble David, le Mourre de l'Isle, Cotes du Rhone

The rose started out with some sharpness, possibly from being over-chilled in the refrigerator, but then settled down. Perfect for a hot day, followed by the medium bodied Cotes du Rhone for the main course. Just the ticket for a lovely lunch with friends.

A good week to all,

Isaac

2008 Beaver Creek Dry Creek Valley zinfandel. Young but still ready to drink.

Not posted for ages, but here we go!

Friday night:
Served with a salmon starter: Castel Rose - great for the summer, a hit with everyone.
Served with medium-rare Roast Beef: Yarden Cabernet 2007 / Carmel Kayoumi Cabernet 2007. Two very different wines, both very well made, with preferences being very personal (my own clear favourite was the Kayoumi though).
Dessert: Herzog LH Riesling Botrytis 2009.
Post-dessert: Porto Cordovero LBV 2004.

Shabbos day:
Served with a beef carpaccio: Gvaot Gofna Pinot Noir 2010 - fabulous!
Served with assorted cold and hot meats (but no chulent for us in the summer): Yarden Merlot Organic 2006 / Yarden Ortal Syrah 2004
Dessert: Binyamina LH Gewurztraminer 2010

Gut Voch!
Michoel

Shabbos evening, Agua Dulce 2010 Zin. Shabbos Morning, Agua Dulce 2010 Syrah. Not anywhere near their peak, but tasting lovely now for their stage of development. Before Shabbos, I opened a bottle each of the 2010 Cab and Syrah at my office to serve to guests from Northern California, and they were tasting wonderful (the wine at my office, in the cellar, is tasting better than the wine I brought home, served in the mid-70s). I'm going to start selling them this week. Happy to take orders (hint-hint). Shipping during the summer, though, remains a significant problem to be overcome. So come purchase at the winery, by appointment with me!

Dalton petite Sirah 2011

Good week to all

Unfortunately, not such great wines this week:

'11 Domaine Lamartin Cotes du Rhone: F. Watery and dull. Another bottle of mevushal plonk from France. After trying a few bottles of the Mas Noir (also imported by River) I was optimistic, but alas, my optimism was misplaced.

'10 Livni Shani Shiraz/Cabernet Blend: F. This is the polar opposite of the previous wine. If the Lamartin is a perfect specimen of a bland, watery Old World plonk wine, the Livni is a caricature of a big, bold New World wine. Overripe, over extracted, over oaked, too sweet, and worst of all, searing heat in the 14.7% alcohol. Undrinkable.

'10 Capcanes Peraj Petita: B/** A very poor vintage of what is usually one of my favorite wines, consistently scoring A- year after year. The '10 lacks the balance and finesse typical of Capcanes wines. A bit too hot and on the dull side. Plenty of acid, but lacks the structure to carry it. Seems like the fruit on this wasn't quite ripe enough. Either stick to the '08 or '09 or skip straight to the '11.

After all those misses, I switched to beer, but for dessert I took out some Kinor Dovid K'Port 8 year: A-/** Yummy! Delicious cherry and raspberry, without being too sweet. Great pairing with fresh Black figs. Cheered me up!

Ella Valley Cabernet Franc 2009 - AWESOME! Full bodied with tons of plum and dark fruit. Long finish. Paired that with Short Rib Beef Carpaccio, followed by Duck Confit over an Asian Salad, and then Garlic Rosemary Pan Seared Veal Chops. For dessert I had the last pour of the Yarden T2 2008 (opened 2 months ago) with Tart aux Pommes and Marsala Zabalgione / Ice Cream.

Hi Harry,

Hagafen Cuvee De Noir 2007 - This sparkling wine is produced in the methode' Champenoise, and is made of 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Chardonnay. The nose is dominated by strawberry, that is complemented on the palate by bitter orange rind and yeast, and a persistent mousse. There is something about it, that makes me think of it as a Rose' with bubbles, which is perhaps brought about by a feeling that the fruit was harvested very early. I don't sense any residual sugar, and, I must add, that the color is a lovely pink-salmon. 12.5% AbV and $36 from the winery. B-/**/Y

Flam Classico 2011 - The blend in this vintage is 63% Cabernet Sauvingon, 25% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot. The wine opens with a whiff of green olives that does not persist, its flavors turning to cranberry and cherry, and then on the finish developing notes of bakers chocolate. It is a rather pleasant wine, very much held in check, with a lean body, silky tannins, and subtle oak influences. Those wanting their wines big and bold, should not bother having this. 14% AbV B-/**/Y

Best,
-> Pinchas

Grading for quality: A - marvelous, B - good/intriguing, C - mediocre/uninspiring, D - subjectively flawed, F - objectively flawed
Grading for value: *** - it's a steal, ** - it's a reasonable deal, * - you've been robbed
Indication of further interest: Y - would purchase again, N - no desire to purchase more

2 superb wines that were drinking lights-out:

1. Covenant Lavan Chardonnay 2010- nothing new here but lordy was this in the zone Friday night.
2. Four Gates Cabernet Sauvignon 2009- with apologies to Elie, I also opened this to avoid the temptation of selling it. One bottle left and not selling that one either. The nose alone is worth the price of admission.

Shavua Tov and Happy 4th for those in the US!!

2 superb wines that were drinking lights-out:

1. Covenant Lavan Chardonnay 2010- nothing new here but lordy was this in the zone Friday night.
2. Four Gates Cabernet Sauvignon 2009- with apologies to Elie, I also opened this to avoid the temptation of selling it. One bottle left and not selling that one either. The nose alone is worth the price of admission.

Shavua Tov and Happy 4th for those in the US!!

I'm down to two bottles myself!

This opast shabbos we had a 2007 Barkan Altitude 624 Cab - drink soon:

http://kosherwinemusings.com/2013/07/01 ... de-series/

David

Hi Harry,

2010 Tzuba Metzuda Syrah

Fri Night - Terrenal Malbec 2012, like munching on a bouquet of flowers
Sat Lunch - Damm Inedit - the wine-iest of beers, very good with food

Shabbos night (Friday Night) we ate out and I didn't feel like venturing into the unknown so I stuck with some balvenie doublewood 12 yr.
Shabbos day (Saturday noon) 2011 Recanati Reserve PSZ. Was a good bottle but I had too many guests over and there was too much going on to think about it so I will have to get this one again for a pre-fireworks show possibly...

No red wine this week. Fish and chicken, so something new: Domaine Netofa 2010. Saturday lunch: Galil Mountain Chardonnay 2011.

2010 Pacifica Meritage. Not good. Thought it would get better with a year or so and only got worse. Too bad....

Quiet week at home with Herzog, Eagles Landing Cabernet Sauvignon 2008, Hagafen Prix LH Chard 2006, Hagafen Prix Melange 2005 and some Vignobles David Tavel Rose - rapidly becoming a favorite! Shockingly - not an Israeli wine to be found...