Dusty cherry and spice on the nose. This wine is a bit young but still shows nice blackberry and plumb fruit across the palate with hints of spice and tobacco. The finish is moderately tannic and lingering. An excellent value at $28. The fruit for this red wine comes from the Wahluke Slope AVA around Yakima, Washington. It’s one of the warmest climate growing regions in Washington state. Gravelly, rocky soil, combined with a dry, warm climate, make Wahluke Slope one of the best places in Washington to grow wine grapes.

We attended the Euphoria Grand Wine Tasting event in downtown Greenville today. We were impressed with some very fine wines and a few that were great values. Some of the outstanding wines we sampled were the 2006 Buehler Napa Cabernet Sauvignon, 2006 Chono Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon, 1987 Spring Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon and the 2004 Elivette,  and the Eagle Eye Voluptuous. Some of the surprise values were the 2006 TEIRA Sonoma County Zinfandel, 2006 Magellan Ponant, the 2006 Cucao Cabernet Syrah, and the Saxon Brown Flora Ranch Syrah.

The best of the best went to the 2005 Burly Napa Cabernet Sauvignon which edged out the 2004 Xtant Napa Valley Red Wine. More about all of these wines soon.

Overall this Pinot is good but not great. It’s silky smooth but is slightly lacking in fruit. There are hints of tart red berry flavors and a touch of spice. The finish is short and the tannins are still heavy on the end. The Botella vineyard has rich, well-drained clay loam soil.  The site features southern exposure and the cool microclimate of the Santa Ynez River canyon which is in the Santa Rite Hills AVA.

The nose has glass filling notes of wild berry, spice and oak. Across the palate currant dominates the profile with shadings of vanilla, plum and an ending mineral edge. The tannins arestill a little aggressive but may soften with more bottle time. This producers is very consistent and is one of the better “value” Napa Cabernet Sauvignons today. I say ”value” because it’s rare to find a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon of this quality for $55.  Excellent.

Abundant aromas of wild berry and spice. In the mouth the wild berry continues and adds tart cherry, a nutty flavor and a hit of spice and tannin that firm up on the finish. Really stands up to hot and spicy food. Needs a little more time in the bottle.  A blend of 76% Zinfandel, 8% Petite Sirah, 7% Syrah, 6% Grenache and 3% Carignane. The grapes are sourced from nine different vineyards throughout Sonoma County. The Three Valleys in the name refer to the Alexander Valley, Dry Creek Valley and the Russian River Valley. The wine is aged in 100% American oak barrels for nine months.

Deep purple in color. Aromas of sandalwood, currant and plumb stew. A nice balanceof mineralityand black fruit on the palate. The tannins are present on the long finish but not in the way. Classic Italian Super Tucsan blend. 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot, 10% Sangiovese.

Beautiful currant and plumb notes on the nose. The currant and plumb hang on throuhg the palatte with some spice and cherry notes on top. The finish is long and balanced with the oaky note hanging on till the end. This red wine blend consists of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Petit Verdot and 12% Merlot. The fruit for tis wine was sourced from vineyards in Oakville, Yountville, St. Helena, and Coombsville and aged in 100% French Oak. Excellent.

Beautiful ruby red color. The nose shows oaky-woody spice notes as well as red red raspberry flavors. The mouth feel is in a sense lush which adds to the complexity because I found the fruit notes crisp and bright. Red, cherry, raspberry and spice hang on through the long finish that adds a hint of mineralitiy. This Ponot Nior seems more elegan that the Russian River botttling from the 2007 vintage. It is a blend of four vineyards. Two of the vineyards, Dutton Manzana and Kanzler are located near the southern end of the Russian River Valley appellation at the upper end of the Petaluma Gap. The remaining two, Gap’s Crown and Terra de Promissio, are located in the southern portion of the Sonoma Coast appellation lying directly in the path of the Petaluma Gap’s cooling influence. Kosta Browne continues it’s string of excellent Pinot Nior’s from Sonoma.

I reached into the back of the cellar and found this terrific red wine blend from the 2004 vintage. Deep, dark purple in color. The nose gave hints of currant, esprasso, and damp earth. The mouth feel was velvety, with currant, black cherry, and cedar flavors bursting forth. Extremely complex and well put together. It’s a fruit foward blend that workes very well together. Outstanding still. This is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, and Merlot.