Jason's Wine Blog

Price: $12.99 @ K&L Wines

What They Said:

Per K&L Wines “Rocky Top Tennessee may be home sweet home to Lynn Anderson, but Rocky Top in Amador is home to some fine old Zinfandel vines, and that’s good news for all of us! A very shy producing vineyard with soils of volcanic ash and boulders, this site produces old vine Zinfandel of immense proportions. The very floral, vanilla and raspberry jam aromas are very forward and inviting. The flavors match the aromas, with a rich juicy component. The finish is long and velvety-rich.”

What I Think:

For those that say twitter doesn’t sell wine like Steve Heimoff, here is a firm example of where it does. After coming across @sobonwine hearing about their wines my curiosity was piqued. This led me to K&L Wines where I paid for this bottle of Rocky Top with money. Wow a real example of selling something on twitter… Oh, by the way Dell also made a little bit of money via twitter. But I digress, let’s get to the wine.

This wine is 92% Zinfandel, 4% Petite Syrah, 2% Carignane and 2% Barbera. K&L nicely describes the terroir of this wine above. On the nose you are greeted with rich aromas of dark berries and dusty mocha chocolate. On the palate you are greeted with more purple fruits; plums and blackberries, with a slightly tart cherry component that along with the tannins keeps this wine in perfect balance. The finish was long, velvety and delightful. This is the best Zinfandel I have been introduced to in a while and another reminder that I need to get out and visit Amador County (and Lodi too!) soon. There are a ton of interesting wines coming out of the area that are friendly on the pocketbook. This one is a great example of that and I highly recommend it for Zindependence Day. What are you drinking tomorrow?

Rating: Wow!

Price: $11.99 @ K&L Wines imported by Old Bridge Cellars

What They Said:

Per wine.com “Expressive aromatics of lime and lemon with peaches, pears and apricot stone jumping out of the glass and spicy, floral notes in the background. Great balance on the palate, the luscious stone fruit and ginger spices harmonized by savory nuty characters from the Marsanne. Wonderful combination of freshness, complexity and balance between fruit flavour, acid and alcohol.”

What I Think:

I am a long time fan of d’Arnberg; in fact the Stump Jump Red was my first case purchase at Cost Plus World Market ages ago. Having long wanted to try this one a recent episode of wine library tv brought it top of mind and I grabbed a bottle on my recent visit to K&L Wines. Not familiar with Marsanne I learned that it hails from France and is widely planted in the Hermitage AOC. In fact, the Hermit Crab naming of this wine is an ode to these historical ties. Appellation America had a humorous write-up where I learned that Marsanne is most commonly blended and married with Roussanne. From that article this combination with Viognier is described as one of the “few incidents of infidelity forgiven.” One thing Marsanne does share with Viognier is that both are blended in small percentages into red wines. The Marsanne can serve as up to 15% of red blends of the Hermitage and the Viognier with Shiraz in Australia. Now let’s get to the wine…

This one is a blend of 72% Viognier and 28% Marsanne and comes with a long record of accolades. As you can see from the graphic this one consistently rates in the 90’s which is remarkable given the price point. With a grilled shrimp salad on the table we poured the wine in the glass. The nose is a load of fruits and minerals with floral notes interweaved. On the palate it starts with citrus, lemon and lime, before turning to peach and fading to a stony finish. This wine is certainly well made and the acid is very well balanced but to me it seems that one component hasn’t integrated and is disrupting the “flow” of this wine towards the end of the mid-palate. You would think I could identify it but honestly I can’t. I’m thinking it is an oily/kerosene/petroleum like component. Other thoughts were the amount of oak used or a bitter, nut flavor. As I mentioned on twitter; I am surprisingly not a fan. Perhaps it’s Marsanne, I intend to seek out a varietal offering to get some more experience here and see if that might be the issue. The nutty qualities leave me wondering if this could have used some more time in the bottle, could this one improve over the years? Don’t let me opinion sway you here, if you intended to try this I urge you to do so. Then let me know what you think… If you have trouble tracking this one down it is available on wine.com.

Rating: Pricey

As mentioned in my visiting the Mosel post, a few weeks back I was lucky enough to be invited to a “trade” only event sponsored by Wines of Germany previewing the 2008 Riesling vintage. The event featured 21 German wine exhibitors showcasing their offerings. With a hundred plus wines on offer I made my decision to focus early on. With that there were five highlights I wanted to share:

• Tasting Weingut St. Urbans-Hof – If there is one winery where I was going to taste everything they had to offer it was Weingut St. Urbans-Hof . And taste I did. One thing I learned while at this event, though I intuitively had an idea, was the low alcohol percentage of Rieslings. The offerings here were between 7.5-9.5%. You may want to check refresh your memory on Riesling classifications and check out the 2008 vintage report before getting to some quick notes tasting notes on their offerings:
  • 2008 Riesling QbA ($13) – sweet on the nose, not as much on the palate. Lemon flavors with a nice mineral component coming through. A typical light and refreshing example from the Mosel.
  • 2008 Ockfener Bockstein Riesling Kabinett ($16) – more floral notes and higher in acidity. You are going to want food for this one.
  • 2008 Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Kabinett ($19) – Much more depth here. Sweeter and more full bodied on the palate this one shows some nice fruit.
  • 2008 Ockfener Bockstein Riesling Spätlese ($25) – surprisingly not much on the nose. Lemony tart with a great mineral background and abundant floral notes, my favorite of the bunch.
  • 2008 Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Spätlese ($30) – Described this one as funky on the nose. The palate doesn’t match. Sweet, savory and juicy with a hint of bubbles.
  • 2007 Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Auslese ($45) – Faint on the nose but rich and full on the palate. Overpowering with taste of honey, nuts and candied golden green apples. Guessing this one would last forever and a day.

• Learning about Silvaner – My first encounter with this grape which is sometimes referred to as the “King Riesling’s Queen”. Silvaner is celebrating its 350th anniversary in Germany this year and was being showcased at the event. These wines traditionally come in a Bocksbeutel , a rounded, flattend brown or green bottle, and were minerally, lemony and high in acid. Glad I was able to experience them but I am not going out to hunt down a bottle anytime soon.

• Comparing an ’07 and a ‘98 Auselese from Weingut Rappenhof – This winery offered a nice array of Riesling, Gewurztraminer and Spätburgunder (see more below) but the opportunity to sample these two Auselese offerings with roughly a decade in between them easily overshadowed the rest. Not often you get to do these comparisons. Here are my notes:
  • 2007 Niersteiner Pettenthal – Full bodied and peachy. Certainly sweet, comes off as syrupy which overpowers some juicy apple flavors that struggle to breakthrough on the palate.
  • 1998 Niersteiner Pettenthal – The age is immediate apparent on the nose with aromas of nut. What was once perhaps syrupy now delivers a carmel flavor on the palate that is accompanied by honey, nuts and apples. Layers of complexity and this one could easily age another decade or three.

• German value wines and Pinot Noir – In talking with Seb from Megawine while sampling some offerings from Dr. ZenZen and Peter Brum he mentioned that most of the wines retailed in the $7-$10 value range. Of course my curiosity was piqued, doubly so given that a Pinot Noir was included in the tasting. This lead me to wonder if Germany, like Chile, may be somewhere to start looking for a deal on some nice Pinots. My tasting here was inconclusive.

• Spätburgunder vs. Pinot Noir: Did you know that Spätburgunder is Pinot Noir? I learned this on my recent tasting trip in Germany. In talking with Claus Burmeister, the CEO and winemaker of Weingueter Heitlinger and Burg Ravensburg, I asked why he had labeled his as Pinot Noir while others chose Spätburgunder. His take was two-fold: 1) Pinot Noir is the universal term and no one outside of Germany has heard of Spätburgunder so 2) if you are making your wines in an international style for an international market you should label it as Pinot. If you are making a wine for the domestic market in the traditional style it makes sense to use Spätburgunder. I thought this was an interesting dilemma that he framed quite succinctly. By the way, I was very impressed by all the wines Claus had on offer, none sweet, all dry and crisp with lemon, lime and mineral notes backed up with varying levels of acidity. To top it off these wines all retail for less than 10€. I know he was seeking an importer, I’m hoping he found one!

As you can tell I learned a lot. This was a great event. Thanks to my friends at RF Binder for the invite. I look forward to attending more of these in the future. On a closing note, just in case anyone thinks that life as an owner of a small winery is living a dream (like me!) you should see the travel schedule these folks had for this event alone. 14 stops, 9 countries and 3 continents. Ouch! Hope they have enough energy to get back to San Francisco next year…

Price: $3.99 @ Trader Joe’s

What They Said:

Per Trader Joe’s Fearless Flyer “Blue Fin Pinot Noir, a new addition to the Blue Fin family, is a vibrant, ruby-colored wine with rich, fresh berry and currant flavors and a velvety smooth finish. This wine is priced at the ridiculously low $3.99 a bottle – a perfect example of our favorite equation: quality + price = value.”

What I Think:

The counterpart to the Chardonnay this is a $4 Pinot Noir which violates my sensibilities given the struggles I have finding good Pinots under $10. But given the story line here includes Fred Franzia and Bronco Wine Co. I am intrigued to see if this could be the Two Buck Chuck of the Pinot world. In short, it might be.

My initial impression was not good. My first notes were thin, hot with a hint of fruit notes. Over the next few days the nose revealed some faint strawberry aromas and even showed the slightest hint of varietal characteristics but the heat and tannins remained. Guessing this one includes a lot of stems. That thought got me wondering; what is the minimum percentage required by law to label something as Pinot? Would including the stems make it easier to get to that number? Guessing it can’t get better than this at $4 otherwise Fred would know how. Not worth it to me, I’ll still be dropping a ten spot on the Castle Rock.

And that is how my review would have ended had it not been for so many people defending the Blue Fin both on twitter and in the comments here on the blog. Did I miss something that everyone else is getting? Was my bottle bad? This is only the 2nd time I’ve felt this way. For Exhibit 1a see: Sparkling ,Albero. Next shopping trip I’ll grab another bottle of each and give both a do over. I know Bob Dwyer is working on a review for this wine over on The Wellesley Wine Press but in the mean time here is what he had to say on Cellar Tracker:

“A very simple, straightforward and drinkable wine. Mild strawberry and cherry aromas on the nose. Perhaps limited aromatically. Really tasty on the initial attack (with a surprising amount of flavor), but fades extremely quickly and is gone in a flash (both the finish and the bottle). An intriguing play at $3.99.”

Stay tuned for more on this one…

Rating: Skip It (for now)

Being a wine lover and a native son it is somewhat surprising that tasting the wines of my birthplace has yet to occur. On the other hand we are known for our beer and cheese and I personally didn’t even realize that this chasm existed. But like a good parent my mother was aware and chose to rectify by lugging a number of bottles to the Bay Area on her last visit. Among those was this Botham Vineyards Riesling. Before we get to the bottle, let’s do a 30 second version on Wine and Wisconsin to provide some perspective.

Wisconsin was the original American home of Agoston Haraszthy, a pioneer, who is sometimes referred to as the “Father of California Viticulture” having introduced more than three hundred varieties of European grapes to the region. Needless to say it didn’t take him long to figure out Wisconsin wasn’t the promised land for winemakers. That said, others would step in to continue his quest and today Bob Wollersheim is recognized by many as the father of the Wisconsin wine industry”. A pioneer as well, Bob began his work in 1972 and experimented 1972 with hundreds of varieties of grapevines to see which would suit the colder climates. Today Wisconsin is home to one AVA (Lake Wisconsin) and some forty wineries. Typically most wineries import grapes (from California, Washington, and New York States) and do the production here in the state. Others mix imported grapes with estate-grown grapes while only a few producers actually make wine entirely from locally grown grapes. I couldn’t find any statistics on how much wine the state is producing but I did keep finding one sentence that appears to be a local favorite. I will use it here to summarize my findings: “The Wisconsin River Valley isn’t the Napa Valley. But it also doesn’t have a shred of snobbery.”

NV Botham Vineyards Riesling

Price: $9.50 @ Friend/Gift

What They Said:

Per Botham Vineyards “Crafted in the Johannesburg style for gentle sweetness, our Riesling is smooth, rich, mouth-filling pleasure. Imagine drinking velvet and you’ll understand the essence of this wine’s deep and beautifully balanced character.”

What I Think:

Botham Vineyards is located 110 miles due west of my hometown Milwaukee or 30 miles from the state capital of Madison. Their story begins around 1990 when Peter Botham, after dabbling with vines in Maryland, decided to return to Wisconsin and begin a winery of his own. The inaugural vintage was a thousand cases (if my conversion from gallons is correct) in 1993 and today they produce roughly 12,000 cases annually. When asked about his winemaking style Peter said he tries to create a regional flavor in his wines by growing 10 percent to 15 percent of his grapes and buying the rest from New York’s Finger Lakes region, which has a similar but slightly more moderate climate. In addition to a passion for wine Peter shares the same for vintage cars. The winery holds an annual Vintage Celebration to merge these two passions with a car show at the winery with the vineyards just at the peak of its growing season. Knowing Wisconsin as I do I can imagine this is a well attended and a huge hit!

So, finally to the juice, what did I think? For starters; semi dry can mean a lot of different things to different people. In this case for me it meant semi sweet, given my preference for Rieslings made in a dry style. This one had floral notes on the nose, a great mouth feel and a unique mineral, flintiness that kept the sweetness in check (just barely). If you want to taste something local or want to explore different regions and/or interpretations of a varietal this one is worth a try. Interesting enough for me I have wanted to explore the wines of the Finger Lakes in New York. Looks like in a roundabout way I got a head start with this one.

Rating: 12th Bottle

Price: $4.99 @ Trader Joe’s

What They Said:

Per Jim Neal “The Chariot Gypsy 2007 is a delicious blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Zinfandel and Sangiovese from great vineyards in the Napa Valley, and Sonoma, and Monterey Counties. Winemaker Jeff Hunsaker describes the wine like this: “The 2007 ‘Gypsy’ displays a dark garnet color with a clear violet edge. It shows mixed fresh berry aromas — raspberry and strawberry, with hints of white pepper and pastry. Very clean and lively with juicy berry fruit, firm acidity and a touch of smooth tannin. Excellent and versatile food wine particularly well suited for pork chops and poultry”. We think it is the perfect everyday red wine!”

What I Think:

For those that missed the shockwave heard around the Trader Joe’s world the Gypsy is back. After falling in love with the ’05 vintage and completely missing the ’06 I wasn’t going to allow myself to be short changed again. So when it began showing up in the wine aisle in early June I began my aimless search around the bay area for my beloved Gypsy. On my fifth stop, in San Rafael, I finally scored and two cases went into the cart (+1 extra so we didn’t have to open to scan). Whew, what a relief.

Now onto the wine itself. The ’07 is a blend of 37% Cabernet, 33% Zinfandel, 10% Petite Sirah, 10% Syrah and 10% Sangoviese which is quite different than the previous vintages. Curious and hopeful I pour the wine in the glass, what’s the verdict? On the nose I get wet wood and faint floral and spice notes. On the palate it is lively, bright and juicy with loads of fruit. Raspberries that are a tad under ripe add acidity that is balanced by a subtle sweetness. This is followed by nice fruity, peppery, spicy finish. A fruit forward (some may say bomb instead) effort best served with food, you name it pizza, burgers, bbq. Any kind will work. If you’ve never experienced the Chariot Gypsy before this is a delightful $5 super value wine.

Those that have experienced this wine before have a bit more of a conundrum. This effort is much simpler, not complex and lacks the depth of previous vintages. I compared the ’05 to the Rosenblum Heritage Clone Petite Sirah and felt it compared favorably with many $20 bottles. Yes, the label, retailer and price remain the same but given the changes in blend percentage and a new winemaker it is best not to compare this to previous vintages. Take it for what it is; “what you see is what you get” and that would be an easy drinking, summer BBQ wine. Enjoy!

Rating: Buy It (with a caveat, if you like this one treat it as a Bulk Buy as when it is gone, it is gone for good. Wondering if it is available at your local TJ’s? Check here

Price: $3.99 @ Trader Joe’s imported by Evaki

What They Said:

Per the bottle “This complex, elegant white combines the crisp, fresh citrus flavours of Chardonnay with the rich apricot and honeysuckle character of Viogier to produce a smooth, ripe, vibrantly fruity wine. Delicious on its own, this wine is the perfect partner to seafood, fish, chicken, pasta dishes and salads.”

What I Think:

Had a few tips on this wine, that is 80% Chardonnay and 20% Viognier, from readers and wanted to give it a try. This one reminded me of a boxing match. In the first round the underdog, viognier, coated the mouth with full bodied yellow fruit flavors. Round 2, in the mid-palate , was taken by the Chardonnay showing some a lighter frame and some more vibrant fruit. The finish was a slugfest with each wine competing to rise above the other. Overall these two grapes more clashed than integrated but in a pleasant way. The result is a draw. At $4 you get what you pay for. I’m drinking these bottles to find those that I think are worth double that so I’ll pass on grabbing another bottle. That said, you should feel free to do so if it sounds of interest.

Rating: Skip It

I wanted to quickly cover some of the Trader Joe’s wines I’ve had in the last few weeks. Given I am not so excited about these offerings the chances of them making it into a standalone post are somewhere between slim and non. Some of these are worth trying should the fancy strike you but I can’t recommend any of them at this point. With that, let’s get to it…

2007 Chateau des Cleons Muscadet Sevre et Maine “Sur Lie” ($6) – This one is a wine I’ve had before and quite enjoyed. Have an early lunch and an early summer day I was expecting a repeat of the last go round when I found this one to be “light, surprisingly crisp and refreshing. A nice dry, tart beginning gives way to a nice long lemon, citrusy finish.” This time it was overly tart throughout and left you with a slight pucker face on the finish. I still have another bottle left but for the time being I am downgrading this one.

2007 La Ferme Julien Rose ($5) – On the nose you get a typical, crisp refreshing nose. This one is 50% Cinsault, 40% Grenache and 10% Syrah. Full bodied but lacks acidity and/or crispness that I am looking for a rose to deliver. Perhaps this needs a meal to compliment it but it is not rose as I intended to be. Will I give it another go? Maybe…

2003 Roza Ridge Yakima Valley Merlot ($6) – This is a prodcut, based on their site guessing a very young one, of Hyatt Vineyards in Washington. Once in the glass you find an herbal spicy nose. On the palate it is surprisingly dry in nature despite a healthy dose of red fruit. Nice with with pasta bolognese. Still have the Rattlesnake Hills version at home so until then I’ll reserve judgement. That said for now I prefer the Columbia Crest Two Vines Merlot

2008 Vin-Koru Sauvignon Blanc ($6) – Dip dug this ones while Danny begged to differ. Given it was from the same importers as the similiarly named Kono and I was sure to cast the deciding vote. In the glass the color is typical, golden and promising. The nose delivers stainless steel notes and a hint of crisp lemon. On the palate it is overly lemon a component even showing a hint of sweetness at the top of the palate. The balance seems off throughout and the the end is overly tart and acidic. It lacks the backbone of minerality that I like to see. It declines even further with food. Perhaps best solo or with appetizers as fuller flavors shut down the tasting profile. This review is certainly over harsh as the quality if likewise priced New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc at Trader Joe’s is excellent, this bottle is not robbing you for your six bones. That said, having to cast a vote between two of my long time readers I’ll opt once again for the King Shag which ranked #3 in my latest Top 10.

NV Espiral Vinho Verde ($4) – On the nose, well nothing… Same on the front of the palate, a bit of fizz but otherwise cool, balanced liquid. This one is not typical, I’ve had others that are truer to the region; braching and refreshing. This one is neither, it is effervescent with lemon at the back of the palate with a tart, citrusy bubbly finish. The only people I would recommend this to is those that like white but have yet to appreciate sparkling wines,; it seems to straddle the middle ground. If that is you, for $4 give it a try and you’ll know if you like it or hate it on the first sip. Somehow I’m stuck in the middle, perhaps fortuitous given I have another bottle in the rack.

2007 Clay Station Viognier ($4) – Another repeat bottle, this one has the body and structure one might expect from viognier but the tartness leaves you wanting more. At the same price point the Honeymoon Viognier is a much more pleasing option.

2005 Black Mountain Malbec ($4) – Yet another Bronco Wine Co. offering, this one was a back channel recommendation led me to this one and while fruity and juicy it was no where near varietally correct. The spice and dark fruit were there on the nose but it turned overly sour on the palate and could not correct itself. Drinkable yes, but there are much better options available.

That’s a wrap, hope you found the format helpful. Let me know if you have any particular thoughts. If not, cheers until next time!

Price: $3.99 @ Trader Joe’s

What They Said:

Per Trader Joe’s Fearless Flyer “For a number of years, we sold a great-tasting Chardonnay called Blue Fin that was made for us by one of Napa’s oldest wineries. And then they decided to “retire” the label. Bad. Then, fortuitously, one of our long-term wine partners bought the label, and offered us a great deal on Blue Fin Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Good. As we mentioned, this is a label we (and you) know and love, so quality and consistency are key. After all, what good is a low price if the wine doesn’t taste good? We guarantee Blue Fin Wines taste as good as ever. Blue Fin Chardonnay features elegant flavors of fig, tropical fruit and spice, with just a hint of vanilla. This is a truly refreshing wine.”

What I Think:

An unnamed long-term wine partner? Do tell… it has now proven to be yet another offering from Bronco Wine Co. most famously known for lavishing the world in Two Buck Chuck. With that out of the way let me try to remain objective. Couple that with the fact that I usually don’t get along with Chardonnay and that may be a difficult task. With the wine in the glass I was greeted with a bouquet of nectarines. On the palate the wine was fresh and crisp. At this end of the price scale the only oak you get is toasted chips which they thankfully passed on for this offering. The palate is filled with white apple flavors leading to a steely balance on the finish. This one brings an old saying to mind; “Simple is as simple does.” Chalk this one up as a surprise, a nice, easy going picnic wine.

Rating: 12th Bottle

Price: $6.99 @ Trader Joe’s

What They Said:

Per the bottle “San Greal the French word for “Holy Grail” is derived from the ancient words sang real, translated to mean “royal blood”. Our “San Greal” Red Supper Wine is produced from our estate vineyards using sustainable farming practices. This wine displays brillant berry aromas with medium astringency and a long expansive finish.”

What I Think:

I hit it off with this wine as soon as I saw it on the shelf. Anytime a new label appears in the Trader Joe’s Wine aisle you know I am going to give it a look. So what did we have here? A red blend from Mendocino (everyone knows I am a big fan, right?) that is humble enough to call itself a “Red Supper Wine”. In the cart it goes. Landing on the San Greal Winery site the good vibes continued. It turns out that the San Greal label is under the Jeriko Estate umbrella which is owned and run by Danny Fetzer. Fetzer? Mendocino? Ring any bells? Danny’s brother Jim, as part of Ceago Vinegarden, was responsible for the 2006 Dynamic Mendocino Red Table Wine which was #1 on the Trader Joe’s Top 10 Wine List while it lasted. It appears Danny is taking a page out of his big brothers book. Actually, I have no idea who is the older brother but both are also fans of sustainable farming and have had their vineyards Demeter certified as biodynamic.

So what about the juice in the bottle? This one is a blend of 55% Syrah, 23% Merlot and 22% Sangiovese. The nose greets you with inviting dark red fruit and spices. On the palate I am immediately reminded of a Cote du Rhone offering. This one took a bit to open up, it was bottled in late February, but grew on me more and more with each sip over the four days I sampled it. Cherries mixed with blackberries coat the the palate while a proper dose of tannins keeps this perfectly balanced, that said it may be too acidic for some. This one has Top 10 potential and has at minimum joined my CdR rotation with the Perrin and J. Vidal-Fleury. Grab one of these and be on the lookout for other varietals from this label. Their website mentions a Pinot Noir and Cabernet as coming soon, hopefully they make it to Trader Joe’s! The Wine Traveler who had an inside scoop on this one, seems to think they may. Let me know if anyone sees them…

Rating: Buy It