The Orphan

We opened a bottle of 2005 Justin The Orphan last night. It's a relatively new bottling for Justin ... it's the grapes that end up not getting put in their higher grade blends, such as Isosceles. Hence the name ... the orphan grapes that nobody wanted till now :) We had picked up two bottles a month or so ago pretty cheaply, they were about $15 each. I wasn't too impressed with the wine, it definitely wasn't bad, especially for the price. But I definitely think your money could buy a better bottle of something for right around the same price. However, it was pretty tannic so it could use a few more months of storage ... maybe the next bottle will blow me away.

Epiphany & Ampelos

Last night we enjoyed a couple different wines at home w/ a friend. We started in the back yard by finishing off a previously opened bottle of 2005 Henry's Drive Pillar Box Red, which holds up nicely for a day or two. But after that we went for the good stuff :)

Up first was a 2003 Epiphany Revelation. It's a red Rhone blend, and a sister winery to Fess Parker. Great stuff! A nice amount of oak provides the tannins to go along w/ the dark fruit. Color was medium red. Very nice.

After that we went for the 2004 Ampelos Syrache, sticking w/ the Rhone-style blends. If I remember correctly is was about 25% Grenache and 75% Syrah (hence the name). Again, another great bottle. This one had a good amount of spice provided by both varietals and slight tannins. Although my palate could've just been used to the amount of tannins in the Revelation. Deep dark color. Yummy.

dinner party

Last night we had a couple over for dinner. They brought the wine and dessert and we made dinner. While we were preparing dinner we enjoyed a glass of 2005 Henry's Drive Pillar Box Red that had been open for a couple days. It was actually still holding up nicely with a good balance of fruit and alcohol.

When they arrived we started w/ the bottle of 2004 Larson Family Winery Chardonnay, Carneros. Good stuff, tasted like it was 100% stainless steel and no ML fermentation. A good amount of crisp fruit but with the acidity of a Chardonnay to help it out. We finished that bottle just as dinner was about to be served (Filet Mignon and grilled artichokes). We opened the bottle of 2004 Millerick Road Petite Sirah, California. This is apparently the same winery as Larson Family, just a different name on the label, in fact the back label says Larson Family Winery on it ... Anyways, this was really good ... damn I love petite sirah. Tons of fruit, just jammy, big and beautiful.

We finished that bottle off just as we were finishing dessert (flourless chocolate cake w/ chocolate ganache). As I sat there w/ nothing in my glass an idea came to me. The 2001 Beckmen Vineyards Late Harvest Grenache! Damn this is good stuff. Not too sweet, as you can still tell it's wine you're drinking. But you get the rich raisiny flavor. The color on it was great ... clear, even, garnet. Really glad I got two bottle of this last time I was at Beckmen.

All in all, a great evening ... great people, great food, and great wine. It was the first proper "dinner party" we've had a the new place and it went perfectly. Although if you saw the kitchen before we cleaned up you would've guessed we had twelve people over. I love being able to start w/ fresh wine glasses for each wine :)

Edge Cab

Last week we opened a bottle of 2004 Edge Cabernet Sauvignon ... we purchased the bottle for a little under $20 after a long day of wine tasting up in Santa Ynez. Apparently it was a long day for my palate as well ... as there really wasn't much to this. I look to cabs to have a big mouthfeel and a decent amount of tannins. But this was not that. It was very well balanced with the oak and fruit, but it just wasn't big enough for me this particular time. The story behind Edge, if I remember correctly, is that they buy grapes from the best winegrowers in Napa with the understanding that they'll never say who they buy from ... this supposedly protects the winegrower because they don't want the public to know they're selling grapes ... even though everyone does it. They also wouldn't want their name on a lesser bottle of wine, for obvious reasons.

Also picked up a case of Pillar Box Red from Costco ... mmmmm .... jammy ....

2 frenchies and a cheap white

Last night we went to dinner for a friends birthday at a local BYOB pizza place. We brought along a bottle we had gotten as a gift, a 2004 Delas Freres Cotes du Ventoux, and there were two bottle others had broughten. A 2005 Blackstone Chardonnay Monterey County, which I didn't try, and a 2001 La Chapelle de Romanin Les Baux-de-Provence, which was a bottle we had given them as a gift when we got back from our France trip last summer.

The Cotes du Ventoux was a little weak ... just not much there. I believe it sells for less than $10 around town. Your money is better spent elsewhere. However, the Les Baux-de-Provence was fantastic. I was secretly pouring us only this wine through the dinner, and we probably had half the bottle, and there were 9 people at the table! :) I only wish I had tried it in Paris when I bought the bottle. I can only hope that the other two bottles (of different wines) we brought back are this good.

Torbreck

I have heard a little about this winery and the last time I was at K&L Wines I picked up a bottle of 2005 Torbreck Shiraz "Woodcutter's Shiraz." It was about $18 if I remember correctly. Torbreck bottles wines that sell upwards of $100 so this is definitely their low end product. And it tasted like it. Don't know if it was a slightly corked bottle or what, but it was sour and the acidity was overwhelming. Even after I recorked it and let it sit for a day. I may pick up another bottle down the road to give it another try, but as of right now I would stay away.

tangent

It's official. I am buying way more wine than I drink. We're all moved into the new house and there is no place to keep all the wine. Our small 36 bottle cellar/refrigerator thing is over-loaded and now there are wine cases stacked around full of wine. We've only got 60+ bottles, but I keep buying and/or wanting to buy more. We've got no room (or money) for a larger storage unit, but it's crazy that we have $50 bottles of wine just sitting in cardboard boxes, nowhere near the ideal 55 degrees. But maybe the 55˚ is just if I want to keep the wine for 20+ years ... it should be fine if it's around 70˚ for a year or so right? I try and put the good stuff in the cooler, but it doesn't fit as I buy more and more "good stuff" ... arghh ... the dilemma. I mean, I've got a 4 year vertical of Sunstone Syrah sitting in boxes ... that can't be good. There is no answer as I'm not about to stop buying wine. I just need to drink more.