Shay A

9.2

My last of a 3-pack purchased from a winery visit in 2021. While the prices of their wines have gone beyond my personal threshold (and Julie is no longer there), it remains one of my favorite winery experiences after 10+ visits to the valley.

I don’t often drink Sauvignon Blanc, but this has consistently been a favorite (though Mowe’s SB now holds that title). Structure and profile wise, this 2019 is still quite fresh. While acidity has always been there, my favorite quality of this wine on release was the more ripe/rounded profile (which is still prevalent today). Citrus, honeysuckle and mineral aromatics with a fresh vein of acidity. Herb crusted underripe tropical fruits with a nice waxy profile. Powerful. Enjoy now or in the semi-near future. — 2 days ago

Shay A

9.3

Another tasty JSchram. While the prices keep climbing, these are very consistent US sparklers with a big house feel (vs the grower profile sparkling wines like Westborn, Haliotide, older Ultramarine, etc).

81% Pinot noir, 19% Chardonnay; 8g/l dosage

I’ve been enjoying the JSchram wines for a long time and a character I always get from them is a distinct cheesy/leesy aromatic. Roasted honey nut cashews, spiced apple, pear, and toasty vanilla. Richly balanced on the palate with honeyed tropical fruit, sea salt, and finishes slightly yeasty with a truffle note. The dosage, while on the high side for what I enjoy, brings out nice texture and length. Well made and ready to go.

I enjoy the JSchram Noir (formerly Schramsberg Reserve) on the younger side and the JSchram Blanc with a little age. — a month ago

Shay A

9.1

First time with this producer.

100% grand cru Chardonnay (Cramant, Avize, Chouilly); 80% 2017 vintage (base), 20% from Solera dating back to 1998; 3.5g/l dosage; disgorged January 2022

I was fortunate to get this bottle that was already three+ years past disgorgement so this champagne was in a good window. Bright lemon and citrus-forward aromatics; floral too (honeysuckle). Took some time for any sort of yeasty/brioche to come around, but a little bit began to appear after the first glass. The time on lees helped give this some depth to avoid the harsh/overly intense profile some young grower BdB champagnes can posses. Chiseled but all things in their correct place. An elegant style with classical mineral/chalky limestone, lemon cream and added citrus. This leans on the lighter-side, so the use of dosage here likely helps broaden the palate in texture and length to prevent an overly-light (and/or austere) profile. — 2 months ago

Shay A

9.3

One of my bottles from my annual WWC hosting. Part of a Grenache flight (including ‘19 Rotie Cellars “Big G”, ‘19 Saint-Damien Souteyrades Gigondas, ‘18 Andremily Grenache).

80% Grenache/ 20% Mourvèdre

I’m a fan of this Gigondas producer and think the wines exhibit an excellent value. After the first two Grenache wines, we take a dark (profile) turn here. Classical garrigue, dark potpurri, and spiced blackberries aromatically, with some leather and tobacco as well. Dark black fruits dominate the palate surrounded by bitter dark chocolate, black pepper, hint of charcoal and mineral. Concentrated but not sweet. In a delicious window now but benefitted from the air it got…no rush. — 2 months ago

Shay A

9.4

Anytime an older Heitz Martha’s is open, it’s a treat. I’ve tried to acquire a few random bottles over the years and they have consistently impressed (‘78 and ‘01, specifically). My first early ‘90s vintage.

Quick double decant to simply get the wine off sediment as it wouldn’t be consumed from a decanter at the location I would be at.

In my experience, the distinct and typical eucalyptus notes jump right at pop, but this bottle was a little subdued early on. After an hour with the cork out, the eucalyptus, herbs, cedar and red fruit made their entrance. Compared to the ‘91 Hartwell I opened a few months ago, this was more elegant and less dense on the mid-palate. If not for the eucalyptus, I could see this being called left bank Bordeaux with 30yrs on it. Gained some darker red/underripe black fruit notes the longer it was open. Beautiful length at the finish. Bright acidity and tannin. Not getting better, but a wonderful drinking window to enjoy now. — 4 days ago

Shay A

9.2

I’ve enjoyed this producer for a few years (specifically the Felseneck GG) but this is my first experience with their Spatlese Riesling from 2013. Followed over two days.

Next to a ‘22 Clemens Busch Auslese and a ‘22 Kloster Eberbach Baiken Erste Lage Trocken, the richness here was Goldilocks…right down the middle. Not a dynamite vintage, yet I’ve found I traditionally enjoy the Spatlese-level and above sweet wines from cooler vintages as the acid and sweetness play nicely together. Exhibit A. Ripe nectarine and white peach aromatically but also plenty of citrus notes. Lemon-lime and limestone grit dance on the mid-palate before a mineral + honeyed profile bring about an elegantly rich profile complemented by both the classical mineral and sweet Spatlese notes. Crushable at 7.5 ABV!

Enjoyable now and I’m not sure it gets better from here, just different. Consistent over both nights. — a month ago

Shay A

9.4

My contribution to a large Rhône dinner. Standouts were ‘07 Chapoutier Le Meal Blanc, ‘89 and ‘90 Jaboulet La Chappelle, ‘11 Guigal La Mouline.

An over-generalization, but what I love about Cornas is the rusticity and sometimes feral nature of the wines (which I don’t find in Hermitage or CR) and this ‘05 is in that vein. I followed this from pop (after all, we are at the almost 20yr mark) and over the course of three hours.

Interplay of red and black berry fruits, black pepper, slightly herbal (maybe closer to potpurri floral) aromatically. Bright and nimble on the palate, nothing about this is ripe or soft. Energetic acidity all the way through surrounded by notes of iron (sanguine-like) and rocky minerality. Crunchy red and black fruits (whole-cluster?), hint of gaminess but not in the meaty-style I semi-expected. Clean and pure style of Syrah. Big structure at the finish…hard to imagine drinking this 10+yrs ago. Acidity and tannin will carry this a long time, but I think this is peak window for getting depth of fruit and complexity. — 2 months ago

Shay A

9.2

I’m a bubbles nerd, and even with that in mind, the color profile here was crazy! I brought this to accompany some TX brisket (dynamite pairing).

100% Pinot noir; 72hrs on the skins; 1g/l dosage; disgorged March ‘22; back label says (in French) to open 20mins in advance

At first pour it reminded me of some Lambrusco's I’ve had…deep red/purple! While there is a powerful core of fruit here, it is packaged nicely and not too extreme (though the color wants to take you there). Had a small pour right at pop to calibrate and then (impatiently) waited 20mins…slightly more expressive and the fruit came to the front (cran-raspberry, underripe blueberries) with herbal and floral notes at the finish. The limited dosage seemed appropriate as the texture was nice with good length and nothing was austere or bracing. Definitely has a “crunchy” profile. If poured in a black glass, rosé bubbles would be the call but you would never guess the color would be what it is. Fun. — 8 days ago

Shay A

Not sure I’ve had a 43-44yr old Cali Zinfandel before, but this was a fun pull alongside a friend’s ‘75 Montelena Zinfandel.

Muddled and faded ruby color. Aromatically, it’s mostly herbal, old fig and some tobacco, but there is a little dirty and old red fruit on the palate. The most surprising aspect was that there was still a decent amount of tannin on the finish. Comparatively, the ‘75 showed much more youthful in color and palate (still retaining a red and black juicy profile). Presented both wines blind to a few people and all called old California between 30-40yrs old. Cerebral and unique at this point! — a month ago

Shay A

9.3

One of my bottles from my annual WWC hosting.

“Carcavelos is the smallest wine appellation in Portugal and is amongst the rarest of wines. Vinho generoso. Oxidative in character.”

My last of three bottles. Always enjoy opening a birth year bottle around my birthday and these can age indefinitely. Profile wise, this is a bit like an Oloroso + Madeira. The sharp and tangy sherry profile is evident from first smell, and the oxidative notes carry to some toffee and a slightly more rich profile bringing out familiar Madeira notes. The interplay of the tangy and rich toffee is unique and delicious. A fun dessert wine to sit back and enjoy. — 2 months ago