Wine Tasting: 2014 Crowdsource Cabernet Sauvignon

My shippment of 2014 Crowdsource Cabernet Sauvignon came in not long ago.  I recieved three bottles of it.  With three bottles, I figured it was worth opening one early and let the other two age.

Tasting Notes:
Dark ink in color, with scents of black cherry, plum, and licorice.  Powerful flavors of a tart plum, fig, potting soil, and tobacco.  Fully bodied though not as full as some and semi-smooth which I expect will improve with a little more time.

Final thoughts:
A quality wine with a very pronounced and juicy flavor profile.  It's definitely an interesting wine and of course it's a discussion wine with it's bold flavor and the fact that it's a history making wine being the first publicly crowdsourced wine!

Wine Tasting: 2012 Domaine de la Janasse Côtes du Rhône Villages Terre d'Argile

Time to practice my French!  Well, French wine drinking anyhow!  Tonight's fare is 2012 Domaine de la Janasse Côtes du Rhône Villages Terre d'Argile.

Tasting Notes:
Dark garnet in color with a medium plus body.  Licorice, red fruit, with a light minerality in the aromas.   Juicy and smooth sporting black cherry, red plum, and cranberry on the palate.  Nice acidic balance.

Final thoughts:
Not too bad.  French wine is gaining a stigma where you have to spend a lot to get a decent French wine.  Given that France is supposed to make lots of great wine you would expect to find decently priced wine that is very good.  Thought it seems many French wines come with bloated price tags that do not match their quality.  This one I'm happy to say is well worth it's price tag coming in at under $20US.

Wine Tasting: 2013 Honey Bee Sweet Riesling

Tonight's wine is Honey Bee Sweet Riesling.  I was looking for a new wine at my local shop to pair with the Cajun dishes I make often.  I generally prefer semi-sweet with my Cajun dishes, but I decided to go ahead and try their recommendation.

Tasting Notes:
Blonde in color with light rubber and citrus aromas. Fully bodied and sweet, but not overpoweringly so. Pineapple, vanilla, and honey with also some lemon citrus notes.

Final Thoughts:
I like it.  Quite tasty and while slightly sweeter than I prefer with my Cajun dishes, it still worked nicely enough.

On a side note, this is the first wine that I ever had to add to CellarTracker.com. I've added new vintages, but never an entirely new wine.

Wine Tasting: 2010 Terre di Bo Amarone della Valpolicella Classico

Tonight is a trip to Italy.  One of my favorite places to visit!  Of course, Italy's best wines can compete on any vino stage.

Amarone is usually a dry wine, but this one is more semi-sweet.

Tasting Notes:
Black cherry in color.  Full bodied with slow legs.  Luscious red fruit and eucalyptus on the nose.  Deep velvety raspberry and black cherry with smoky overtones.

Final Thoughts:
Not overly complex, but enough to be a beautiful bouquet of thick rich fruit and body that grabs your attention.  Needless to say.  I am enjoying this wine.

Wine Tasting: 2014 Andrew Rich Pinot Noir

Tonight's wine is an oregonian wine from the Willamette Valley.  More specifically, 2014 Andrew Rich's Heart's Gate Pinot Noir.

Tasting Notes:
A nice ruby color.  Pomegranate and cherry on the nose.   Flavors of blueberry, red plum, dried fruit with a touch of vanilla.  A slight bit tart, medium bodied, with a late acidic pinch at the end that burns off with a little time to breath.

Final Thoughts:
A decent drinkable Pinot Noir.  Very little pizzazz and really nothing special.  Definitely a negative QPR. I would say it’s priced about $3-$6 above what it should be. ($22US)

Wine Tasting: 2013 Tin Barn Zinfandel - Los Chamizal Vineyards

This evening we are going with 2013 Tin Barn Zinfandel from the Los Chamizal Vineyard in Sonoma California. The winemaker is Michael Lancaster.

Tasting Notes:
Inky maroon in color, with a peppery black currant on the nose. On the palate, cranberry, red plum, and smoky leather. Smooth with a late propulsive bite from the semi-stout ABV. (15.8%)

Final Thoughts:
The wine is good, but not "great". The semi-stout ABV is unobtrusive as does not detract from this wine at all. I would say this is a drinking Zinfandel rather than a pairing one.

Wine Tasting: 2011 Stag's Leap Hands of Time

Given I'm making a Stag's Leap Merlot in my home winemaking, I wanted to give a try to Stag's Leap Hands of Time red blend.  The friends I've made in winemaking, gave great reviews to the Merlot kit, so I had high expectations for this wine.  (well, higher than expected)

Tasting Notes:
Dark crimson in color with red fruits and all-spice on the nose. Sour plum, cranberry and radish on the palette. The sour verges on slightly bitter. Medium legs, A smooth base, but thrown off a bit by the sour and acidity.

Final Thoughts:
Not really a fan.  I checked the bottle/cork.  The bottle was fine.  2011 was a bad year for Napa, so I expect it was definitely part of the issue.  I still would have expected better of Stag's Leap.

Vin de ce soir 2011 Château Cormeil-Figeac Saint-Emilion Grand Cru.   I picked this up at a really nice wine shop near my house.  The shop owner commented when I was checking out that it was a good choice.

Tasting Notes:
Luscious red fruit along with an earthen potting soil and wet gravely aromas.   On the palate, more red fruit just more flat than the aromas were.  Again, more earthen flavors this time more volcanic rock than wet gravel.  I expected more, but am not getting it.

Final Thoughts:
Not bad, but more plain that good.  I wonder if maybe something is off about the bottle since I expected better with the recommendation from the owner who I know is a good judge of wine.  I did not taste anything off about it.  Just tasted like a rather plain jane red blended wine.