Had an icredible chance to try the entire lines of Three Saints, Dierberg and Star Lane wines.
STAR LANE 2008 SAUVINGNON BLANC - Super acidity with an interesting almost metallic finish. Completely different from any other S.B. I have ever had. Would be great with a great big pot of Crab Legs and Lobster with all the potatoes and corn you could eat.
STAR LANE 2007 CABERNET SAUVIGNON - Full of red fruit and berries. Very austere and comfortable in the glass. Santa Barbara fruit was quite impressive and solid.
STAR LANE "ASTRAL VINEYARD" CABERNET SAUVIGNON - Amazing, Amazing, Amazing. This huge Cabernet jumped out of the glass on just the nose. Enter into the mouth and it exploded all over my pallate. Quite a bottle of wine for it's $78 cost. But was well worth it if we could have pryed it from Greg's hands for the second glass.
THREE SAINTS 2008 CABERNET SAUVIGNON - A definite Cab drinkers Cab. Full of red fruits and tannins. Won't bite to hard fresh out of the bottle. Needs a few minutes to open up and commit to being a Cabernet.
THREE SAINTS CHARDONNAY - Full of oak and summer blossoms. Delicous the more it warmed up in my glass. Tropical notes and a few mineral hints. Nicely oaked without overwhelming the pallate.
THREE SAINTS PINOT NOIR 2007 - Rustico at its best. Full of flavors of mineral and spice as well as raspberry, blueberry and a slight hint of strawberry leading to an amazingly long finish.
DIERBERG PINOT NOIR - A lot pricey for such a splendid bottle of wine. Could have used a few more months in wood but was quite nice. The $45 price point is a little steep. I can find ten more that are ten less.
DIERBERG SYRAH - Great bottle of wine. Syrah's are just not selling very well. I can't put my finger on what the deal is but I believe it is fear.
Friday, March 11, 2011
HEALTH AND SPRINGTIME WINES
Here’s to your health with a couple of great bottles of wine from our amazing selection at County Line! I will introduce you to our best selling Pinot Grigio from Mendoza as well as a couple of California Pinot Noirs that are new to the market. Saving the best for last is an interesting Chardonnay from the Dundee Hills of Oregon showing floral characteristics and soft subtlety in the glass. These wines are sure to make you laugh with enthusiasm and drink with gusto as you await the spring flowers in quiet earnestness.
INACAYAL VINEYARDS, 2009 PINOT GRIGIO, MENDOZA - $13.98 – Inacayal’s vineyards benefit from variations in both temperature and an altitude of 3,000 feet above sea level. These factors both play an important role in the ripeness of the grapes, allowing natural acidity and fruit retention as they reach full maturity. The perfect balance between sugar and acidity make this wine outstanding. It has a rich, round and vivacious mouth feel. It is fresh and floral, with citrus notes mixed with white fruits and delicate traces of licorice. Our best selling Pinot Grigio.
FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA, 2009 VOLTRE SANTE PINOT NOIR, SONOMA COUNTY - $11.57 – Maria Zasa, Francis Coppola’s mother, with each sip of wine would offer a toast, "À votre Santé" – to your health. Profusely aromatic and elegantly textured, this Pinot Noir offers a nose redolent of cherries, spices and tea. Bright, vibrant flavors of raspberries, cloves and cranberries are accentuated by light notes of smoky minerals. Lively, structured, and long on the finish. Soft floral notes round out the base of this well structured Pinot. What a bargain from such a prestigious winery.
BLOCK NINE, 2009 CAIDENS VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, CALIFORNIA - $13.48 –Caiden’s Vineyard’s Block Nine is a small production winery focused solely on Pinot Noir. Their niche: quality Pinot Noir at an affordable price. If you aren’t particular where your Pinot grapes come from, this non-AVA California Pinot Noir based in St. Helena, Napa Valley encompasses all of the bright red fruit and toasted oak that we have come to expect from a California Pinot. Flavorful and silky in the mouth with good body, this wine shows wild strawberries, raspberry and a hints and wood to complete its complex finish.
DOMAINE SERENE, 2006 COTE SUD VINEYARD CHARDONNAY, WILLAMETTE VALLEY - $40.31 –True to the prevailing Oregon penchant for Chardonnays of subtlety and understatement, this energetic, faintly flowery wine brings together green-apple fruit, a light infusion of lemons and very noticeable hardwood spice in a well-balanced package. Propagated from the Dijon Chardonnay Clone this amazing wine is ripe and ready for the onslaught of spring.
You should be able to find a definitive wine out of these four that you can ring in the new spring season with revelry, exciting the neighbors and friends into a spring time sampling of great wines out on the front porch. Here is to our health and well being in the Spring 2011 season. I can be found at County Line Tuesday through Saturday for any of your entertaining or wine related questions. All Riedel Stemware is 20% off for the Month of April.
Enjoy!
Mark Hatwig
mark@slausa.com
479.750.7575
Here’s to your health with a couple of great bottles of wine from our amazing selection at County Line! I will introduce you to our best selling Pinot Grigio from Mendoza as well as a couple of California Pinot Noirs that are new to the market. Saving the best for last is an interesting Chardonnay from the Dundee Hills of Oregon showing floral characteristics and soft subtlety in the glass. These wines are sure to make you laugh with enthusiasm and drink with gusto as you await the spring flowers in quiet earnestness.
INACAYAL VINEYARDS, 2009 PINOT GRIGIO, MENDOZA - $13.98 – Inacayal’s vineyards benefit from variations in both temperature and an altitude of 3,000 feet above sea level. These factors both play an important role in the ripeness of the grapes, allowing natural acidity and fruit retention as they reach full maturity. The perfect balance between sugar and acidity make this wine outstanding. It has a rich, round and vivacious mouth feel. It is fresh and floral, with citrus notes mixed with white fruits and delicate traces of licorice. Our best selling Pinot Grigio.
FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA, 2009 VOLTRE SANTE PINOT NOIR, SONOMA COUNTY - $11.57 – Maria Zasa, Francis Coppola’s mother, with each sip of wine would offer a toast, "À votre Santé" – to your health. Profusely aromatic and elegantly textured, this Pinot Noir offers a nose redolent of cherries, spices and tea. Bright, vibrant flavors of raspberries, cloves and cranberries are accentuated by light notes of smoky minerals. Lively, structured, and long on the finish. Soft floral notes round out the base of this well structured Pinot. What a bargain from such a prestigious winery.
BLOCK NINE, 2009 CAIDENS VINEYARD PINOT NOIR, CALIFORNIA - $13.48 –Caiden’s Vineyard’s Block Nine is a small production winery focused solely on Pinot Noir. Their niche: quality Pinot Noir at an affordable price. If you aren’t particular where your Pinot grapes come from, this non-AVA California Pinot Noir based in St. Helena, Napa Valley encompasses all of the bright red fruit and toasted oak that we have come to expect from a California Pinot. Flavorful and silky in the mouth with good body, this wine shows wild strawberries, raspberry and a hints and wood to complete its complex finish.
DOMAINE SERENE, 2006 COTE SUD VINEYARD CHARDONNAY, WILLAMETTE VALLEY - $40.31 –True to the prevailing Oregon penchant for Chardonnays of subtlety and understatement, this energetic, faintly flowery wine brings together green-apple fruit, a light infusion of lemons and very noticeable hardwood spice in a well-balanced package. Propagated from the Dijon Chardonnay Clone this amazing wine is ripe and ready for the onslaught of spring.
You should be able to find a definitive wine out of these four that you can ring in the new spring season with revelry, exciting the neighbors and friends into a spring time sampling of great wines out on the front porch. Here is to our health and well being in the Spring 2011 season. I can be found at County Line Tuesday through Saturday for any of your entertaining or wine related questions. All Riedel Stemware is 20% off for the Month of April.
Enjoy!
Mark Hatwig
mark@slausa.com
479.750.7575
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