2006 Tenuta San Guido Guidalberto Toscana Tuscany

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.

2006 Realm Cellars The Bard Napa Valley

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.

2005 Frank Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

The nose had very floral notes with violets showing most prominently. The mouth feel was balanced with ripe red fruit, cedar and a hint of currant in the mix. The finish was medium length and had a hit of the hefty tannins at the end but these should lay down some with additional bottle time. Very good and very interesting. The grapes for this Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon come from the S & J Vineyard which is east of the Vaca Mountain range in Napa’s Capell Valley.

 

2007 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast

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.

2004 Delectus Cuvée Julia Napa

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.

2005 OS R3 Columbia Valley

Dark inky purple color. The nose is rather closed but shows some wild dark fruit and mineral. This red wine blend of 45 % Carbenet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc has notes of dusty blackberry, dried anise, and pepper. Not bad but slightly flat. I was expecting more from this producer. R3 is blended from selected lots from Klipsun, Sheridan, Champoux, Ciel de Cheval, Dineen and Meek vineyards all from the Columbia Valley AVA.

2006 Realm Cellars The Tempest (Napa)

The nose had a distinct mineral aroma along with hints of wild red fruit. Across the palate there were notes of plumb, raspberry, wild red berries. The tannins are chunky and hang on through the finish. Rustic but enjoyable. This red blendconsists of 68% Merlot, 16% Petit Verdot, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Cabernet Franc. The fruit is sourced from vineyards in Yountville, St. Helena and Pope Valley and was aged in 100% new French Oak (mix of Taransaud, Darnajou and Sylvain).

2006 Sinanne Abondante

The nose has hints of blackberry and coffee. The fruit flavors are forward but refined and consist of cherry, blackberry and plumb. Just a touch of spice at the end of the medium length finish.  More “old world” in character than not. The wine is a mash up of wines made from grapes grown by Lonnie Wright in the Columbia Valley near The Dalles, Oregon. This red blend has an interesting mix of Syrah, Merlot, Grenache, Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon. Excellent for the price ($23).