Cardiff Cellars
Alban Vineyards
Reva Alban Estate Vineyard Syrah 2004
It is my belief & I don’t think I am far from the mark that Alban profiled their wines from Rostaing. Rostaing started in 1971 & Alban in 1985.
Both have the roasted slope & roasted chestnut profile. The Alban is a better single terroir than the old world 7-8 vineyard blend of the Rostaing Ampodium. It’s riper & beefier. The fruits are roasted & ripe. The length, balance, tension & length are near its peak.
The nose reveals; roasted chestnuts, stewed/baked/candied; blackberries, black raspberries, dark cherries, raspberries, mulberries, expresso roast, dark, steeped, fruit teas anise to black licorice, dry, crushed rocks, dry top soils, clay, some bacon fat, juicy, savory meats, dark, moist forest floor, limestone, dark spice with fresh; purple florals in a field of violets & lavender.
The palate is; gorgeous, sexy, rich, lush & in perfect form. Roasted chestnuts. Stewed/baked/candied; blackberries, black raspberries, dark cherries, raspberries, mulberries, expresso roast, dark, steeped, fruit teas, anise to black licorice, dry, crushed rocks, dry top soils, clay, some bacon fat, juicy, savory meats, dark, moist forest floor, limestone, dark heated spice with fresh; purple florals in a field of violets & lavender. In perfect form. Tannins are rounded, sweetly tarry. The acidity is perfect. The finish is very round & new world. It is a perfect balance of fruit & earth. It glides on the palate & persists endlessly.
Paired with the Cardiff Chipotle Tri-tip. The best Tri-tip we’ve had. You can order at CardiffCrack.com. Not inexpensive though. The best never is!
Photos of; John Alban, two of their single vineyards and their barrel room. — 4 years ago
Urbina
Gran Reserva Especial Rioja Tempranillo 1994
1994 vintage in Asador 44 Cardiff, Wales. All the table enjoyed — 5 years ago
R. López de Heredia
Viña Bosconia Reserva Rioja Tempranillo Blend 2011
Leaner than the El Puntido. This is more classic Tempranillo. Drier & earthier.
Beautiful wine. Ripe, juicy & slightly candied & floral fruits of; mid to dark cherries, black raspberries, black raspberries, dry blue berries. Cherry cola, dry tobacco w/ ash, dry leathery, barrel staves, muddy herb mix, dark, dry spices, steeped, sun tea, mid; clove, nutmeg, vanilla, limestone minerals, crushed limestone/dry rocks, dry flowers that are black, red w/ dry lavender, round, high acidity with a high, dry tannin finish that falls on to the wild, dry, earthy, wildest finish that is balanced for many minutes.
Paired this with/ a dry rub tri-tip and a burgundy marinaded Cardiff Crack tri-tip. Both very different and enjoyable, but liked the dry rub with the Rioja.
Photos of, my visit to the Bodega, old oak vats that are decades old, neutral wood that is still used as of 2015 when I visited & been repaired endlessly, old wood press and tasting room outside their cellar/tasting room. — 6 months ago
Rene Rostaing
Ampodium Côte-Rôtie Syrah 2010
For all of you that drink; SQN, Cayuse & Horsepower, if you haven’t tried a well aged Rostaing, you are missing the best aspect of Syrah.
Côte de Rôtie translates in English into Roasted Slope. That’s exactly what this wine defines.
The Ampodium is a blend of 7-8 different Rhône vineyards. 2010 a dynamic vintage in Northern Rhône.
I bought this recently at auction and it has been decently stored but not quite ideally stored.
The nose reveals; roasted chestnut, stewed; blackberries, black raspberries, black plum, raspberries, dark cherries, strawberries on the high nose & backend of the fruit, used coffee grounds, soft leather, dry tobacco, savory meats, dark, moist soils, anise to black licorice, fresh sage & bay leaf with candied; dark, red, blue, purple florals in a field of lavender.
The palate is; fresh, ripe, juicy, elegant and nicely resolved. The structure, tension, balance and length are perfect. It is for the palates that love elegance & beauty, not brawn & ABV. Roasted chestnut, stewed; blackberries, black raspberries, black plum, raspberries, dark cherries, juicy, ripe strawberries backend of the fruit, used coffee grounds, soft leather, dry tobacco, savory meats, smoke, dark, moist soils, anise to black licorice, light purple cola, fresh sage & bay leaf with candied; dark, red, blue, purple florals in a field of lavender. The acidity is round & stream like. The finish is in perfect balance, harmony that settled softy yet speaks volumes.
Paired with the Cardiff Chipotle Tri-tip. The best Tri-tip we’ve had. You can order at CardiffCrack.com. Not inexpensive though. The best never is!
Photos of; me in the La Landonne Vineyard, Rene Rostaing and our tour with Pierre Rostaing in their La Landonne Vineyard. What an afternoon!
Producer notes, Pierre (son of Rene & now Winemaker) uses up to 100% of the stems - believing they contribute to Côte Rôtie’s ineffable perfume. Macerations last from 7 to 20+ days, and the wines enjoy a long élevage in a mix of barrels and time-honored pièce for aging, so that no more than 15% of a given vintage sees new wood. — 4 years ago
Cardiff Cellars
California Cabernet Sauvignon
A cheap house wine for $30. Palatable but not very exciting. 13% alcohol so lots of water added to dilute. Thai restaurant in Fort Lauderdale. — 9 months ago
Borgo del Mandorlo
Appassimento Puglia Red Blend
At Daffodil in Cardiff with Matt — 2 years ago
Two Hands
Bella's Garden Barossa Valley Shiraz 2010
Our friends also brought Tri-tip to cook on the Green Egg. Not just any Tri-tip. This is the Cardiff. On the packaging, it refers to a website called CardiffCrack.com and can be ordered from https://order.seasidemarket.com/ @Paul T- Huntington Beach you are going to want to try this without question or hesitation and have some older Shiraz with it.
This is the most tender & flavorful Tri-tip I’ve had...all of us. For me, most are too seasoned/salty and not all that tender. You could almost cut it with a fork. I’ll be making this again & again. This is Goldilocks third porridge...just right.
I find Two Hands to be in the conversation of upper echelon Barossa producers.
I thought this would be a good classic pairing for Tri-tip. This slid into the perfect pairing for the style of the Cardiff. They hugged each other nicely. Really good.
For me as it is with may other big red wine regions, this wine needs 10 years plus to start showing how incredible they can be and has another 7 plus years of good drinking ahead of it.
This was smooth, elegant with round supple tannins. Broad spectrum of ripe, black, purple & blue fruits. It’s core dark with sweet tarriness, expresso roast, pepper, fresh tobacco, dark spices & limestone minerals. Dark; red, purple, blue florals framed in a field of violets & lavender. The acidity is excellent and the wine wire to wire is supple, has great balance, elegance with long staying power & persistence.
Photos of our 2017 visit toTwo Hands. Tasting room approach, fountain on the back grounds and view from their tasting patio. — 5 years ago
Cardiff Cellars
Merlot 2017
A new favorite weeknight red — 5 years ago
David T
Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator
Beautiful. Young Tempranillo is rough & rugged Wild West tumble weed. This is soft, ruby, lush falling onto minerality and dry brush.
The fruits are dryish to ripe, creamy and rich; blackberries, black raspberries, black plum into black plum pudding, dark cheries, blueberries hues on the long set, dry tobacco, sandalwood to cedar, dry herb-sage & thyme driven, limestone/sandstone minerals, black pepper, anise to black licorice, dark chocolate, caramel, mocha, moist, grey, volcanic clay, withering, dark red, flowers, round acidity, balance, softened tensioned, nicely structured and polish for days that lasts two-minutes.
Paired this with/ a dry rub tri-tip and a burgundy marinaded Cardiff Crack tri-tip. Both very different and enjoyable, but this was a slightly more enjoyable with the Cardiff Crack burgundy marinate.
Photos of; two of their different seasonal vinyards, cave entrance & large cellar vats. — 6 months ago