The Grape Crusader

Winery: Stolpman Vineyards

Bottling: 2005 La Coppa Syrah

Region: California

Sub-Region: Santa Ynez Valley

Estimated Retail Price: $19 (Winery price)

Purchase Details: Purchased for approximately $16 at Arlequin Wine Merchant in the Hayes Valley neighborhood of San Francisco, California.

Tasting Notes: Blackberry and boysenberry flavors with an herbal, rosemary like finish.  There was a grainy textural quality that I find very appealing and more often than not, I find this quality in wines that also possess a “delicious” quality, the kind that makes you just want to go back to the well over and over again.

I haven’t had a wine like this in awhile and it was exciting to be drinking it.  I’ve tasted many wonderful wines that were well-crafted, impressive and downright outstanding.  There are few wines I’ve tasted though, that had the same quality this syrah had to make me want to drink it in the same voracious manner in which I would eat a can of Pringles.  Was there MSG in this wine, I wonder?
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Winery: Lioco

Bottling: 2008 Sonoma County Chardonnay

Region: California

Sub-Region: Sonoma

Estimated Retail Price: $20

Purchase Details: A good buddy of mine with whom I used to work with procured this bottle for me.  Based on the many conversations we had about wine, he felt strongly that I would really like Lioco’s wines, so he bought it for me from the company his wife works for.  Thanks Mark, Lioco can now count me as a lifetime fan.

Tasting Notes: On the nose, the Lioco chardonnay gave off very fresh floral and tropical notes.  In the mouth, I loved the play and intensity of the tropical fruit flavors with the creamy mouth feel along with the fresh finish from the underlying acidity.   Although utterly delicious on its own, I just know that if this chardonnay were drunk alongside food from India or Thailand, a wine and food pairing nirvana would be attained.
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Winery: Bonny Doon Vineyards

Bottling: 2004 Le Cigare Volant (35% Syrah, 38% Grenache, 12% Mourvedre, 8% Carignane, 7% Cinsault)

Region: California

Sub-Region: Santa Cruz Mountains

Estimated Retail Price: $30 – $35

Purchase Details: Purchased for $44 off the wine menu at Spork SF in the Mission District neighborhood of San Francisco.  A great deal considering restaurant pricing.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, pretty violet hues.  On the nose, spices and wild berries.  In the mouth, flavors of cherry, blueberry, pepper and dried herbs.  Tightly wound and taut tannins and a fairly long finish.  I think this wine has a nice blend of savory and sweet flavor components.  The sweet kirsch flavors are very apparent as well as the spiciness and meatiness of the wine and they work very well together to balance out the wine and give it a little yin and yang flavor dance.

This is a new world wine with an old-world sensibility that can easily age for several more years.  I think its worth having several bottles lying around the home cellar.

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Winery: Palmina Wines

Bottling: 2007 Barbera Santa Barbara County

Region: California

Sub-Region: Santa Barbara

Estimated Retail Price: $22

Purchase Details: Purchased for $20 plus tax from Blackwell’s Wines & Spirits in the Richmond District neighborhood of San Francisco, California.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, I’m staring at a pretty dark and opaque ruby red hue.  On the nose, the wine smells fresh and alive.  Aromatic scents of lavender, dried thyme, red fruits and raspberries.  In the mouth, wow!  Again the wine just feels alive.  Flavors of red and blue fruits like pomegranate, raspberries and blueberries tango in my mouth. (geez that was cheesy).  A tart, but fleshy finish ends the ride.

A well-balanced wine that really drinks well now, but could definitely cellar for a few years.  Absolutely delicious!  That’s the best way to sum up the flavor experience with the 2007 Palmina Barbera.

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Winery: Vineyard 29

Bottling: 2006 “Cru” Cabernet Sauvignon

Region: California

Sub-Region: Napa Valley

Estimated Retail Price: $50 – $60

Purchase Details: Purchased for $51.99 plus tax at K&L Wine Merchants in San Francisco, California.

Tasting Notes: A beautiful dark, pure garnet with some blue hues.  On the nose, sweet pencil lead, cherries, berries and herb.  In the mouth, this wine is unbelievably lush, dense chewy and concentrated.  A creamy, creme de cassis undertone, with minty herb on the extremely long finish.  The wine has a firm structure, with tannins that definitely signal that the wine could use some cellaring, but they are also velvety enough to allow for early drinking.  This is a very well-made, clean and polished wine.  A little much for me, but still a delicious and balanced effort.

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Winery: Pali Wine Co.

Bottling: 2007 “Huntington” Pinot Noir, AVA Blend

Region: California

Sub-Region: Santa Barbara, California Central Coast

Estimated Retail Price: $20

Purchase Details: Purchased from the San Francisco Wine Trading Company in the Sunset neighborhood of San Francisco, California for $19.95 plus tax.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, ruby red hues.  On the nose aromas of plum, spice and dark berries.  In the mouth, flavors of red plum, dusty cherries and raspberries and a slight tinge of mineral.  The Huntington is juicy, lush and a lot more fruit driven than the Pali “Bluffs” Russian River blend which shows much more of an earthy, damp earth profile.

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Winery: Tricycle Wine Co.

Bottling: 2006 Obsidian Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon

Region: California

Sub-Region: Red Hills Lake County, Northern California Coast

Estimated Retail Price: $28

Purchase Details: Purchased this bottle for $24.95 plus tax at San Francisco Wine Trading Company in the Sunset neighborhood of San Francisco, California.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, ominous opaque red hues.  On the nose, dark red berries, cherries, mint and cocoa.  In the mouth, intense flavors of dried cherries, dried berries, herbs, chocolate, clove and cocoa.  Chocolate covered cherries rolled in edible graphite.  How about that?  This wine has tremendous structure, balance, elegance and power all rolled up in one 750 ml bottle.  Winemaker Michael Terrien states that you can easily age this wine for 10, even 15 years.  One taste, and like me, you’ll surely agree.

This cabernet sauvignon is just as good if not better than the first vintage I ever tried, the 2003.  At that point it retailed for around $20 which made it an absolute steal.  This wine seriously crushes and outperforms any cabernet in this price range and even those in the $40-$50 range.

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Winery: Cartlidge & Browne Winery

Bottling: 2007 Pinot Noir

Region: California

Sub-Regions: Fruit source breakdown — Monterey(56%), Solano(18%), Mendocino(15%), San Luis Obispo(6%) and Sonoma County(5%)

Estimated Retail Price: $12

Purchase Details: Purchased for $13.99 plus tax at Beverages & More on Geary Avenue in San Francisco, California.

Tasting Notes: A medium light ruby hue in the glass.  On the nose, aromas of wild berries, cherries and spice.  In the mouth, flavors of red cherries, red plum, fennel, baking spices and cola on the finish.  Light-bodied, juicy fruit and non-existent tannins allow for supreme gulping pleasure.

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Winery: De Loach Vineyards and Winery

Bottling: 2007 Russian River Pinot Noir

Region: California

Sub-Region: Russian River Valley, Sonoma

Estimated Retail Price: $16 – $25

Purchase Details: I paid $23 for this at Safeway and realized that after checking the winery’s website out, that I got severely ripped off, even with my Safeway Club Card.  $16 on the DeLoach website.  (Correction – 8/4/09 – I made an error in quoting prices for this bottle. On the De Loach website, the 07 bottling is $24, not $16 like I stated here. Thanks Larry The Wine Guy for pointing this error out)

Tasting Notes: In the glass, a medium-dark ruby hue.  On the nose, classic pinot smells of cola, sassafras and cherry.  In the mouth lush fruit flavors of black cherries framed by warm baking spice flavors of clove, anise and cinnamon.  Fine grained tannins a medium body and a fairly long finish of cherry cola complete the wine.

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Yes I realize the label is a little small, but I threw the bottle away by accident and couldn't take a picture. I also couldn't find a very good label size on the web.

Winery: Eberle Winery

Bottling: 2006 Barbera

Region: California

Sub-Region: Paso Robles, Central California Coast

Estimated Retail Price: $20-$25

Purchase Details: Friend who shared this with us purchased this directly from the winery for $25.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, a deep ruby color accented by a pink rim.  On the nose, vanilla spice and berries.  On the palate , more vanillin spice, cloves, cherries and red plum.  This is a medium to full-bodied wine with lots of fruit framed by toasty oak, a firm structure and decent acidity.

A little more oak than I like, but still a crowd pleasing, mass appeal effort.  I think this will appeal to a wide range of drinkers.

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