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.

Wine Tasting: 2013 Rama Cabernet Sauvignon

Today we are going with a 2013 Rama Cabernet Sauvignon from the Napa Valley region.  The winemaker is Mario Bazán who immigrated from Oaxaca, Mexico back in 1973.

Tasting Notes:
Dark garnet in color with aromas of peppery red fruit and tar. On the palate its silky smooth with a red plum, slight sour cherry and damp peat moss. A medium minus acidity that keeps the wine well balanced.

Final Thoughts:
Very smooth, easy drinking.  Great everyday wine, but better than your average table wine.  I like it.

Wine Tasting: 2012 Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir

Delicious!  Well, I'm getting ahead of myself.  Today's wine is Goldeneye's 2012 Anderson Valley Pinot Noir.

Goldeneye is Duckhorn's upper echelon wine label and as I've clearly already stated.  This wine does not disappoint.  While I haven't yet visited Duckhorn's Vineyard in California.  It is supposed to be one of the more highly rated Vineyards to visit.  Keep that in mind if you plan a visit to Napa Valley.

Tasting Notes:
Caliginously garnet in color, medium bodied with a warming alcohol level. Fruit forward with strawberry and raspberry jam on the nose and cherries, strawberries, and rose petals on the tongue. Very juicy with a long finish and a potent acidity that blends well with the progressive fruit flavors.

Final Thoughts:  I believe I've already made this obvious.  This was in delicious and well worth it's price point. ($40-$45 US)

Wine Tasting: 2013 Alpha Omega II Chardonnay

Tonight's wine choice was about the dinner pairing.  So the meal selected the wine and that wine is Alpha Omega's "II" Chardonnay.  The meal was broiled Salmon in a Orange and Lime marinade over rice with fresh steamed green beans splashed with garlic and butter herb.

I would talk about the winery, but Alpha Omega is pretty popular due to it's Cabernet Sauvignon.  An introduction probably isn't needed.  If it is, I recommend you pick up a bottle of their Cabernet Sauvignon.  It's worthy of it's price point.

Tasting Notes:
This wine is a smooth medium bodied wine with good acidity that can cut through butter or cream with ease.  It smells of citrus and rubber hose.  On the palate, it shows a rubbery lemon and honeydew impressions with a buttery oak finish.  Very well balanced, this wine is prime structure now.

Final thoughts:  This is a very good Chardonnay.  It's price point is around a quarter of what it's big brother (Cab/Sauv) is and it's definitely a great value wine at around $24 US.  The pairing this citrus wine with a citrus marinated Salmon, hit the spot.

Wine Tasting: 2011 Louis M. Martini Cabernet Sauvignon

Tonight's wine was a gift from a co-worker of mine.  I haven't tried Louis Martini wine before, so I'm happy to have it.

Tasting Notes:
Dark garnet and full bodied.  On the nose and palate there is dark cherry and plum.  There is also nutmeg and other spices that give it a more earthen warmth in the flavors.

The wine is quite juicy and the texture feels lighter than you expect from a full bodied wine.  Less tannic.  The acidity is very good.

Final Thoughts:  I like it, though it's not a great wine.  Very easy drinking.  A great table wine.

Wine Tasting: 2013 Cakebread Cellars Chardonnay, Napa Valley

So, I've started my first foray into Winemaking.  It started off well and then ended terribly this morning losing the entire batch.  Ugh!  Well, the wine wasn't lost (I didn't know that at the time), but in hast to get to work and thinking it was ruined due to overnight exposure to the air.  I personally ruined it by dumping it down the drain.  That's another story though.  One I will probably document soon.

Anyway, because my morale was in the toilet after this mornings debacle.  I decided I would open a slightly more pricey bottle tonight to enjoy.  

Today's tasting is Cakebread Cellar's 2013 Napa Valley Chardonnay.  The Winemaker is Julianne Laks and it was aged sur lie in French oak barrels, 20% new with periodic stirring of the lees.  I note the aging for a reason which I will get to in the tasting notes.

Tasting Notes:
Citrus on the nose, though its quite faint.  On the palate there is grapefruit, lemon, and a zesty acidity that punches right through the buttery scampi sauce I had with dinner.  This Chardonnay boasts much more flavor than the aroma suggests which was a little surprising.  There is next to no oak or buttery flavoring within the wine itself which is why I choose to note the French oak aging.

Overall, it's a good Chardonnay, but I do not believe the value is there at its price point.  Cakebread Cellars has a higher end Chardonnay Reserve that I would like to try and compare.

Tasting: 2011 Alpha Omega Cabernet Sauvignon

The wine is barn red in color and the legs appear to be medium.  The aromas of blueberry, fig, and clove pervade the nose.  The tastes of cherry, clove, with a smoky tar and plum essence.  The body is medium/full. The wine beautifully polished with a medium plus finish and low acidity.

Pair with strip steak topped with Gorgonzola, rosemary potatoes, and steamed vegetables.  Everything about tonight's dinner was top notch.  Not just the incredible wine!

Tasting: 2013 T-Vine Petite Sirah, Napa Valley

This Petite Sirah is dark as ink and has slow legs.  It smells of plum, fig and generally of dried fruit.  It tastes of a smokey plum, passion fruit with hints of lavender.  Body is full and the wine has a sort of leathery texture.  Finish and acidity are both medium.

Decanted about 30 minutes before I started drinking it.  It got better as time passed.  Paired fairly well with pot roast.

Tasting: 2013 Napa Valley Chardonnay by Agnitio's Wines

Light and refreshing with pears, apples, and citrus flavors. Not very dry and only a little oak. Definitely a keeper at just under $20. 

A light fish or maybe a spicy pork would go great with it.