FRIDAY’S THIRTEEN…

Posted on June 29, 2018 by Stan The Wine Man

A boatload of wine

A boatload of wine

In a weeks time, I taste a boatload of wine (seriously). I lot of my friends think I’m lucky. Well, they’re right, and I wouldn’t give this job up for the world. The only thing that makes my job hard, is my feeling of responsibility to taste the samples given to me as quickly as possible and to put my reviews either in my Moleskine, on my Youtube channel (Stan The Wine Man TV), or right here on Stanthewineman.com. Here for your reading pleasure, are thirteen wines that I have reviewed in my Moleskine (good or bad), this past week.

2015 Paul Hobbs Crossbarn Cabernet Sauvignon (Sonoma County, CA)… $50.

Aromas of dark cherries and currants mingled with toasted marshmallow and earth. Black currants with a red cherry edge on the palate, backed by structured tannins. Very savory on the mid-palate leading into a tobacco and earth driven finish with a kiss of red licorice. (B+/A-)

2015 Paul Hobbs Crossbarn Pinot Noir (Sonoma County, CA)… $40.

Earth and dark cherries on the nose with a touch of Asian spice and Root Beer. Smooth and polished on the palate with notes of dark cherries backed by Root Beer and spices. Licorice and spice notes sneak in on the back-end with spice notes lingering. A sexy Pinot Noir for sure. (A-/A)

2016 Domaine Saint Marie Des Crozes Cuvee` Hector & Juliette (Corbieres, France)… $19.

Aromas of baking spices, chocolate, currants, boysenberries and vanilla with a touch of tobacco. Smooth tannins support notes of chocolate, boysenberry, tobacco and spices. There’s a toasty element that rides underneath with a kiss of minerality and spice on the lingering finish. Good structure and balance. 90% Syrah, 10% Grenache (A-/A)

2015 Le Clos d’Augustine Pinot Noir (Burgundy, France)… $18.

Mushroom, cherries, cinnamon and Asian spice on the nose with a kiss of toast. Smooth, almost polished up front on the palate but then kicks into old world in high gear. Racy acidity backed by a fare dose of minerality. Notes of cherries and a big hit of bark, earth and a hit of cola. Acidity lingers with a hit of cranberries on the back-end. Give this 3-5 years to find itself. (B-)

2015 Lab Rouge (Lisboa, Portugal)… $9.

Aromas of plums and blackberries with a toasty edge. Hits of red flowers and licorice sneak in. Blackberries and cranberries on the palate front to finish on sweet tannins with a rustic edge to them. A touch of toast and earth lie underneath with a little orange peel element coming through front to finish where rust notes join the party. (C+)

2016 Bodegas Arzabro “Luzia De Ripa” (Arabako Txakolina, Spain)… $18.

Aromas of fig, melon and wet stone with hits of peach, apricot and beeswax. Bright and zesty on the palate with notes of citrus, peach, apricot and earth. Very steel-like cutting across the palate with citrus notes dominating going near tart but holding back. Made with the grape Hondarrabi Zuri (B+/A-)

Non-Vintage J. Laurens Cremant De Limoux Brut Rose` (Languedoc-Roussillon, France)… $17.

Aromas of bread dough, strawberries and oranges. Good acidity keeps it fresh on the palate with notes of strawberries and oranges. Solid bubbles and a clean, citrus driven finish that lingers. (B)

2017 Trere Lona Bona Sangiovese (Romagna, Italy)… $10.

Rusty cherries and currants on the nose with a little earth and toast thrown in. Cherries and raspberries on a bed of earth and rocks on soft tannins. A solid mid-palate leads into a clean, delicious, pleasing finish. Simple yet interesting. (C+/B-)

2014 Gota Bergamota Red (Dao, Portugal)… $12.

Dirt, currants and licorice on the nose with a kiss of tobacco, red flowers and raspberries. Currants, raspberries and tobacco on the palate supported by structured but easy tannins. Tobacco notes sneak in underneath on the mid-palate into the finish. 80% Touriga Nacional, 5% Tinta Roriz, 5% Jean, 5% Alfrocheiro (B/B+)

2016 Four Vines “The Biker” Zinfandel (Paso Robles, CA)… $20.

Aromas of black tea, dark currants and black raspberries. Jammy but not flabby on the palate. Ripe currant notes penetrate the palate with a spine of black tea and raspberries. Solid acidity keeps it fresh and structured. (B)

2017 Lab Rose` (Liboa, Portugal)… $9.

Strawberries, cherries and wet stone on the nose. Ripe strawberries and cherries on the palate with a good dose of granulated sugar notes coming through that lingers on the finish with a kiss of citrus. (C-/C)

2015 Dr. Burklin-Wolf Riesling (Pfalz, Germany)… $17.

Diesel notes all day on the nose mixed with white flowers, wet stone and melon. Laser sharp on the palate with notes of tart apple and wet stone with tangerine notes lying underneath. Diesel notes sneak in here and there with a lively bone dry, citrus driven finish. A Riesling geek’s Riesling. (A-)

2017 Domaine Preignes Le Vieux Grenache Rose` (Pays D’Oc, France)… $13.

Dried herbs, melon and watermelon on the nose. Very dry on the palate with watermelon notes dominating, backed by pink flower and crushed rock notes. Light and dusty. (C+)

Cheers!
Stan The Wine Man

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BITS & BOBS…

Posted on June 25, 2018 by Stan The Wine Man

Most of us from San Juan Island know that Mike Corliss, owner of Corliss Estate, Tranche Estate and Secret Squirrel wines bought San Juan Vineyards. Mike also is owner of Investco Financial Corp. Investico is involved in some huge real estate developments and purchasing. With his wife Lauri they have purchased land for vineyards in Red Mountain, the Blue Mountains and close to Red Mountain they own Black Rock Vineyard. In 2015 they purchased Celilo Vineyard which is famous for its white grape production. Some of the best Chardonnay I have ever tasted has come from this vineyard.

It’s obvious that Mike Corliss has deep pockets which is evidenced in what he has already accomplished at San Juan Vineyards. I drive by it nearly every day and the attention they are giving the vineyards is obvious. They have recently completed an extensive remodel of the tasting room which I have yet to see. I am sure we will see many more improvements in the coming years. They will focus on estate fruit which for now is Madeleine Angevine and Siegerrebe. Word on the street is they are looking to plant other varietals including another attempt at growing Pinot Noir. At one time, Yvonne had an acre of Pinot Noir planted out there which has since been pulled up. I certainly think planting it once again is a great idea considering the resources at Mikes disposal. I would like it if they considered planted some Gruner Veltliner which I feel would do quite well in this region.

I am very excited about what is going on at San Juan Vineyards. Chris Lawler who came on as wine maker for Yvonne just prior to the change of ownership has moved on, and I have yet to hear who Mike will replace him with. Chris had one vintage under his belt before he left, and he did a nice job with what he had. The Madeleine Angevine he was responsible for was one of the best I’ve tasted coming from that vineyard. It will be interesting to see what style of wine Mike and Lauri shoot for from the estate fruit. They certainly have proved themselves capable of making some great wines at Corliss Estates and Tranche. The Secret Squirrel wines are also very consumer friendly consisting of a GSM red and a Rhone style white. I hope to do a feature article on San Juan Vineyards and hopefully and interview with Mike and Lauri Corliss. We will see if they are game.

Joshua Maloney recently sent me four of his vineyard designate cabs hoping I would review them on You Tube which is exactly what I did. You can check them out in Part 1 & Part 2. The interesting part of the Maloney Wine review is something I couldn’t share with the audience. Over the next four days, I continued to check each of them out to see how they would do after being opened for a while. They simply got better each day. Only one of them seemed a little tired on the fourth day, but it was hardly noticeable. The structure of the cabs is amazing and it just goes to show that Josh is striving to create wines that will age. I emailed Josh to ask him some questions, and it looks like he is doing quite well since his abrupt departure from Milbrandt. He is working on a project to create Cabs that are appellation specific and at a lower cost. I am very excited for him and look forward to seeing what he has to offer in the future.

Cheers!
Stan The Wine Man

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STAN’S PICK FOR JUNE 2018

Posted on June 10, 2018 by Stan The Wine Man

Soave is fast becoming one of the most popular white wines out of Italy next to Pinot Grigio. Soave is an appellation found in the hillside vineyards east of Verona where they grow Garganega, Chardonnay and Trebbiano di Soave also known as Verdicchio. For years, Soave was associated with watered down white wine such as Bolla and the like. Quality levels are certainly not consistent today, but you can find some real gems such as my pick for June.

2016 La Cappuccina Soave

2017 La Cappuccina Soave… $10.

Made from 100% Garganega this white exhibits aromas of dusty stones, beeswax and lemon with hits of stainless steel and herbs in the background. Beeswax, melon and lemon notes combine nicely on the palate, backed by nicely integrated acidity and wet stone notes. There is a nice polished feel on the mid-palate with hits of beeswax leading into a finish with interesting white pepper notes joining up with melon and lemon that lingers. A most interesting white that helps new world wine drinkers enjoy a very old world style wine. Great for shellfish, salads, fowl or simply enjoying on the deck. The price is stupid for what you get…Just saying.

Cheers!
Stan The Wine Man

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BITS & BOBS…

Posted on June 4, 2018 by Stan The Wine Man

Back from South Africa for just over a month, and the trip is still fresh in our minds. I will never forget the kindness of the folks we met while we were there. I know that there is a lot going on in that country, but humans are inherently good with just a few bad ones sprinkled in the mix. Susie and I would love to go back, but there are so many other places to visit that it may be a long while. The next time we go, it will be to venture to some of the wine lands that we missed.

South Africa has come a long way with their wines since the end of apartheid in 1994. Although known for Pinotage (I believe the only country to produce this wine), wineries throughout South Africa are producing amazing Chardonnay, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and of course Chenin Blanc to name a few. While dining at Ryan’s Kitchen in Franschhoek, I ordered a Cabernet Sauvignon from Lynx Winery that blew my mind! It will be interesting to watch as more and more wine drinkers start to discover the many gems that are being produced in this part of the world. If you ever decide to go there yourselves, make sure you put a visit to Franschhoek in your itinerary. It is surrounded by wineries and the small town is really quaint. Wine shops and some of the best restaurants ever, are in this small town. They even have tour buses that will take you to many of the wineries throughout the area. It reminded me a bit of Napa without the mass of people.

I have not put up much on You Tube lately due to scheduling and other issues. I am back at it and will be posting a couple of canned wine episodes this week. After resisting this trend, I have come to realize that the quality of canned wine is getting better along with more selections. The area I live in almost demands that I have some choices at the store for campers, kayakers and cyclists. I have discovered two already and found some others I like as you will see in Part 1 & 2 of my review of wines in a can on You Tube.

Next week I will be posting part 1 and 2 on You Tube featuring the wines from Maloney. Josh Maloney started a project while he was head wine maker at Milbrandt Vineyards. They are single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon from selected areas throughout Washington State. The first was a 2012 Elephant Mountain Vineyard in the Rattlesnake Hills appellation. Josh has since left his position at Milbrandt, but is still pursuing his own brand. Recently he has released the 2015 Phinny Hill Vineyard (Horse Heaven Hills, WA) Cab and has lowered the price to $45. a bottle. I review two in part 1 and 2 in part 2. They will be on my You Tube channel next week and I will let you know when they are live. Josh is also starting a second label and I am very excited to see what he is up to.

Cheers!
Stan The Wine Man

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