Loren Sonkin
Loren Sonkin
Last night, for the second night in a row, I tasted a bunch of Cal Syrahs and Rhone blends. My friend Mike Posk organized this tasting to showcase some wines he bought this summer while in CA. Dave B. added some wines to the lineup as well. Jim Lester, in town on personal business, provided some of his Wyncroft wines as well. Everyone else brought something and voila! Plenty of food was served. All wines were served blind but had some time to breather in the bottle.
We started with a toast for the holidays:
2000 Milan Champagne Brut Cuvee Terres de Noel BdB. My first time trying this wine. Pale gold/green in color. A nice mousse with tiny bubble. A nose with slightly burnt toast and lemons. Nice. Full bodied. On the palate, this is a bit soft with a lemon soda quality. Just enough acidity to keep it from being flabby but a little more would be nice. Still, this was very nice and a great way to start.
Some whites:
2007 Herman Story TomBoy
40% Marsanne, 40% Rousanne, 20% Vionier. I was not a fan of this wine. Blind, I thought it was an oxidized Cal Chard. Deep golden in color. Nots of oak and medicinal lemons on the nose. On the palate, it seemed disjointed and hot. 16% Alc. I have like very few Cal Rhone Whites so, I am not a good judge perhaps. I went back later in the night and felt the same. A few thought Viognier, and I see what they saw. I still cant get past that lovely floral note from the Rhone that I so rarely see in these monster wines from Cal.
2005 Wyncroft Chardonnay (Michigan)
Golden in color, clear and bright. This had sulfur on the nose which blew off over a couple of hours. Some lemon scents and lanolin and oak. Full bodied. On the palate, more oak than I would like but drinkable. I would like to revisit this in 5 years. It has potential.
2005 Black Bart The Bride
Again, I thought this was a Chardonnay or at least a blend but was told it was all Rhone varietals. I liked this better than the Herman Story though. Lots of lemons and pineapple on the nose. Big wine with lots of alcohol and lots of oak. On the palate, burnt sugar, pineapples and lemons. Not my style. Also seemed a bit old.
Some reds:
Flight 1:
2002 Porter Creek Syrah RRV Timbervine Ranch
Purple in color, slightly flat with some ruby hues. Opaque. The nose has raspberries and chocolate. Also some tart apples. Medium bodied. On the palate, this raspberries. Heat on the finish.
2006 Terry Hoage Vineyards Syrah The Hedge
One of my favorite producers, this was WOTF and maybe of the night. I did not know this was in the tasting. Inky purple in color, ruby at rim, opaque and bright. The nose has smoke, spice, black raspberries and black pepper. Full bodied. Silky texture with black raspberries. Some initial heat that blew off. Long finish. Got better all night long.
2003 Mayo Family Wines Page/Nord Vineyard Syrah Napa valley
Ruby/purple in color, shimmering bright. The nose has cherries and raspberries. Fruit is understated. Blind I thought Napa in profile as the palate had more red fruits than purple and lacked body despite its 14.9% alcohol. Not bad but not great.
2006 Lone Madrone Syrah Paso Robles
Made by the Tablas Creek winemaker. Purple/ruby in color, mostly opaque and bright. The nose has some heat and seems reduced with clay and raspberries. Better on the palate. Slightly tannic with black raspberries and blueberries. OK finish.
2006 Herman Story Nuts & Bolts Syrah
16.1% Alc. Purple/ruby in color, opaque and bright. Slight barnyard on the nose with black raspberries. Full bodied. On the palate, black raspberries, graphite. Slight heat and a bit pruney on the finish. There was another bottle of this in the second flight. Drunk side by side, I preferred the second bottle, but this was very good too.
2007 Sunce Winery Syrah
Ruby with slight purple hues, mostly clear and bright. The nose is vacant at first with slight cherry notes. It never really showed more. Very soft on the palate with cherry flavors turning candied on the finish. This had been recently bottled but was easily the weakest wine in the lineup.
2005 Preston of Dry Creek Syrah-Sirah
A blend of 55% Syrah and 45% Petite Sirah. Purple/ruby in color, opaque and bright. Barnyard on the nose with black raspberries. Slightly soft in texture and complex on the palate, perhaps from blending? This quickly shut down after pouring showing nothing but tannins and a clipped finish. Not sure what was going on but this was a disappointing wine.
2006 McPrice Myers Les Galets
Purple/ruby in color, shimmering bright. The nose shows some mercaptans at first which blew off. Then raspberries and grilled meats. Also some chocolate covered cherries. Full bodied. On the palate, this is slightly sweet (probably from the fruit) with black raspberries. Very nice but not complex. Easy to drink. My WOTF.
Flight 2:
2003 Alban Reva
Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is meaty with black raspberries and iodine. Also what my wife would call burnt brisket or my friend George O calls charred oak. I was pretty sure this was an 03 Alban just from the nose. On the palate, this is big with earthiness and black raspberries. Also some black pepper. This is not for the faint of heart, but I found it delicious.
2005 Saxum Broke Stones
Inky purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose is tight and gives off little. Black raspberries. On the palate, this is smooth and easy to drink, but I never even thought it might be a Saxum. Off bottle? Shut down? I am not sure but this was not representative. If I was scoring it was an 88-90 point experience. Not bad, but still.
2006 Pax Cuvee Moriah
Always one of my favorite Pax wines because of the Grenache. Ruby in color with some purple hues. On the palate, red and black raspberries and cherries. Very clean nose. On the palate, this has some complexity (blend?) with black raspberries and blueberries. This is quite young and needs some time, but still a nice wine.
2004 Carlisle Syrah Pelican Ranch
Inky purple, ruby at the rim. The nose is complex, slightly earth with black raspberries and graphite. On the palate, this has juicy texture that is very cool. Lots of black raspberries. Very fresh taste. Excellent wine.
2007 Barrel sample
This was made in Michigan by Jim Lester from Russell Ranch grapes in Russian River. Clearly an outlier in this tasting, this wine is not ready and in a different place. Gamey nose with cherry cough syrup on the nose. The cough syrup carries over to the palate. Slight tannins. I am not sure if this is through Malo or not but it seemed a bit milky. I am curious to see how this develops.
1998 Alban Reva
Nice to have this in the tasting alongside the 03. Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose as a lot of barnyard with some black cherries. Full bodied. On the palate, this has sweet black raspberries and some plums. Very smooth. Nice texture. No hint that this was 10 years old.
2006 Herman Story Nuts & Bolts Syrah
This was also in the first flight and I thought this bottle showed better. The nose has iodine and black raspberries. Also some black pepper and grilled meat. Full bodied. On the palate, this is slightly jammy with black raspberries slight heat on the finish. The groups WOTF.
2003 Carlisle Russian River Valley
Inky purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose is slightly yeasty with black raspberries. On the palate, tannic with black raspberries. Nice and smooth. Easy to drink.
We started with a toast for the holidays:
2000 Milan Champagne Brut Cuvee Terres de Noel BdB. My first time trying this wine. Pale gold/green in color. A nice mousse with tiny bubble. A nose with slightly burnt toast and lemons. Nice. Full bodied. On the palate, this is a bit soft with a lemon soda quality. Just enough acidity to keep it from being flabby but a little more would be nice. Still, this was very nice and a great way to start.
Some whites:
2007 Herman Story TomBoy
40% Marsanne, 40% Rousanne, 20% Vionier. I was not a fan of this wine. Blind, I thought it was an oxidized Cal Chard. Deep golden in color. Nots of oak and medicinal lemons on the nose. On the palate, it seemed disjointed and hot. 16% Alc. I have like very few Cal Rhone Whites so, I am not a good judge perhaps. I went back later in the night and felt the same. A few thought Viognier, and I see what they saw. I still cant get past that lovely floral note from the Rhone that I so rarely see in these monster wines from Cal.
2005 Wyncroft Chardonnay (Michigan)
Golden in color, clear and bright. This had sulfur on the nose which blew off over a couple of hours. Some lemon scents and lanolin and oak. Full bodied. On the palate, more oak than I would like but drinkable. I would like to revisit this in 5 years. It has potential.
2005 Black Bart The Bride
Again, I thought this was a Chardonnay or at least a blend but was told it was all Rhone varietals. I liked this better than the Herman Story though. Lots of lemons and pineapple on the nose. Big wine with lots of alcohol and lots of oak. On the palate, burnt sugar, pineapples and lemons. Not my style. Also seemed a bit old.
Some reds:
Flight 1:
2002 Porter Creek Syrah RRV Timbervine Ranch
Purple in color, slightly flat with some ruby hues. Opaque. The nose has raspberries and chocolate. Also some tart apples. Medium bodied. On the palate, this raspberries. Heat on the finish.
2006 Terry Hoage Vineyards Syrah The Hedge
One of my favorite producers, this was WOTF and maybe of the night. I did not know this was in the tasting. Inky purple in color, ruby at rim, opaque and bright. The nose has smoke, spice, black raspberries and black pepper. Full bodied. Silky texture with black raspberries. Some initial heat that blew off. Long finish. Got better all night long.
2003 Mayo Family Wines Page/Nord Vineyard Syrah Napa valley
Ruby/purple in color, shimmering bright. The nose has cherries and raspberries. Fruit is understated. Blind I thought Napa in profile as the palate had more red fruits than purple and lacked body despite its 14.9% alcohol. Not bad but not great.
2006 Lone Madrone Syrah Paso Robles
Made by the Tablas Creek winemaker. Purple/ruby in color, mostly opaque and bright. The nose has some heat and seems reduced with clay and raspberries. Better on the palate. Slightly tannic with black raspberries and blueberries. OK finish.
2006 Herman Story Nuts & Bolts Syrah
16.1% Alc. Purple/ruby in color, opaque and bright. Slight barnyard on the nose with black raspberries. Full bodied. On the palate, black raspberries, graphite. Slight heat and a bit pruney on the finish. There was another bottle of this in the second flight. Drunk side by side, I preferred the second bottle, but this was very good too.
2007 Sunce Winery Syrah
Ruby with slight purple hues, mostly clear and bright. The nose is vacant at first with slight cherry notes. It never really showed more. Very soft on the palate with cherry flavors turning candied on the finish. This had been recently bottled but was easily the weakest wine in the lineup.
2005 Preston of Dry Creek Syrah-Sirah
A blend of 55% Syrah and 45% Petite Sirah. Purple/ruby in color, opaque and bright. Barnyard on the nose with black raspberries. Slightly soft in texture and complex on the palate, perhaps from blending? This quickly shut down after pouring showing nothing but tannins and a clipped finish. Not sure what was going on but this was a disappointing wine.
2006 McPrice Myers Les Galets
Purple/ruby in color, shimmering bright. The nose shows some mercaptans at first which blew off. Then raspberries and grilled meats. Also some chocolate covered cherries. Full bodied. On the palate, this is slightly sweet (probably from the fruit) with black raspberries. Very nice but not complex. Easy to drink. My WOTF.
Flight 2:
2003 Alban Reva
Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is meaty with black raspberries and iodine. Also what my wife would call burnt brisket or my friend George O calls charred oak. I was pretty sure this was an 03 Alban just from the nose. On the palate, this is big with earthiness and black raspberries. Also some black pepper. This is not for the faint of heart, but I found it delicious.
2005 Saxum Broke Stones
Inky purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose is tight and gives off little. Black raspberries. On the palate, this is smooth and easy to drink, but I never even thought it might be a Saxum. Off bottle? Shut down? I am not sure but this was not representative. If I was scoring it was an 88-90 point experience. Not bad, but still.
2006 Pax Cuvee Moriah
Always one of my favorite Pax wines because of the Grenache. Ruby in color with some purple hues. On the palate, red and black raspberries and cherries. Very clean nose. On the palate, this has some complexity (blend?) with black raspberries and blueberries. This is quite young and needs some time, but still a nice wine.
2004 Carlisle Syrah Pelican Ranch
Inky purple, ruby at the rim. The nose is complex, slightly earth with black raspberries and graphite. On the palate, this has juicy texture that is very cool. Lots of black raspberries. Very fresh taste. Excellent wine.
2007 Barrel sample
This was made in Michigan by Jim Lester from Russell Ranch grapes in Russian River. Clearly an outlier in this tasting, this wine is not ready and in a different place. Gamey nose with cherry cough syrup on the nose. The cough syrup carries over to the palate. Slight tannins. I am not sure if this is through Malo or not but it seemed a bit milky. I am curious to see how this develops.
1998 Alban Reva
Nice to have this in the tasting alongside the 03. Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose as a lot of barnyard with some black cherries. Full bodied. On the palate, this has sweet black raspberries and some plums. Very smooth. Nice texture. No hint that this was 10 years old.
2006 Herman Story Nuts & Bolts Syrah
This was also in the first flight and I thought this bottle showed better. The nose has iodine and black raspberries. Also some black pepper and grilled meat. Full bodied. On the palate, this is slightly jammy with black raspberries slight heat on the finish. The groups WOTF.
2003 Carlisle Russian River Valley
Inky purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose is slightly yeasty with black raspberries. On the palate, tannic with black raspberries. Nice and smooth. Easy to drink.