Posts belonging to Category Monterey

This heat wave have sapped tBoW’s strength. It is all we can do to pull corks and take notes. Nowatisane? So here they are. Fortunately, all wines tasted were deliciously notable.

2011 Regusci Chardonnay Stags Leap District Mary’s Cuvee $40 online: The power of an AVA in full glory! Stags Leap baby. Regusci is about as down home as it gets in Napa and especially Stags Leap. Authentic Napa juice. Some might say “legit.” Purchased at the winery couple years back. We raved about the Burgundian nature then. Poop. This is pure California Chardonnay juice. Gets 14 mos American oak. Serve it cold. Bracing feral flavors. If I was up there I am sure I would buy this bottle again. 14.2%

2013 Château Ollieux Romanis Corbières Rosé $16: Cuts through the spicy tuna poke. Good match. Acid and fruit makes a formidable combo. Melon flavor but what kind? Must be tangelo [ed. uh, not a melon]. Corbieres is Cab Franc country. This is 28% Cinsault and 35% Grenache Gris 35%. Yes. We think the balance of 37% is Grenache Noir. Love the Languedoc. Must return soon! U20 alert.

2012 Cambíata Albariño Monterey $18: Not like a New World wine. Honeydew melon rind flavor. Bit of clove [ed. he stole that]. Perfect on a late summer evening outside. Label says “Albariño: Bold As Love.” Cool. Jimi. Another U20 winna. 14.5%

At 2:49 of this revered and underrated Hendrix composition he takes off on a riff that makes me misty every time every time every time I hear it.

tBoW is aware we have many LA readers and they are ALL Dodger fans. We respect their fiendish loyalty however this blog is about – if N-O-T-H-I-N-G else – truthdom. The Dodgers will lose to the Cardinals…

for the reasons encrypted in the wines reviewed. Wait til next year! Hail to the Tigers World Series champs.

2009 Gérard Mugneret Bourgogne Passetoutgrain $20: A controversial wine that cleaves Burgundy loyalties right down the middle because it is a hybrid wine. This wine blends Pinot Noir with Gamay [ed. NOOOO WAAAAAY!]. There are multiple producers of Passetoutgrain. Mugneret is good as producers get in Burgundy. Goldun picked it because it is NOT like Yasiel Puig: full of vibrant energy, spectacular blunders and unpredictable heroics. Well, Puig’s heroic are not entirely unpredictable. You know they will occur just not sure if this is the time. This Passetoutgrain breaks the mold of grainy barnyard chicken lickin’ wine. The wine comes out with all the acid of Jim Harbaugh [ed. hello – he’s a football coach] then settles into a balanced sweet spot where the acid settles down and the Pinot Noir is surprisingly tasty. Unexpectedly capable… like Don Mattingly. A Becky Wassserman Selection available at Steve Goldun’s Eno Fine Wine site. U20 steal deal! 12%

2010 Wente Reliz Creek Pinot Noir Arroyo Seco Monterey $17: Purchased from Costco on a field trip with Young ‘Un PT88Y. tBoW pointed out all the MOR internationals which Costco strives to discover which used to be how Dodger GM Doug Colletti has to find ballplayers under the former Dodger owner. Now Colletti can pay a bit more for quality like Hanley Ramirez and Zach Grienke. This wine has a lot going against it like Ramirez: from a tarnished franchise (Marlins) with a rep for being a wimp. Wente bills itself as California’s oldest family winery (it is… but so what?). Reliz Creek runs through the property (who cares?) [ed. enuff with the Pauley Pavilion cheers] in a cool weather zone (now we’re listening). Bottom line is Ramirez had a smashing summer and took a shot to play in Game 3 after the Boys in Blue dropped two in St Louis. Baseball is such a slow game with a season so long players can grow 8 beards. Wente has been around so long they have to unload their mixed up brand – old school, legacy with family values? – to any takers. Enter Costco. This Pinot Noir is light weight, ruby red and does not taste at all like an extracted giant catfish from River Monsters – I mean Santa Rita Hills. Another U20 value we can recommend. 14.5%

2006 Thévenet Morgon “Vielles Vignes” $23: Drink it up. This wine is a couple years past its prime, like Clayton Kershaw will be in 5 more years. Thévenet is a prized winemaker and his Beaujolais labels are equally prized. Kershaw is often confused with Sandy Koufax. He gets rocked more than Koufax did. For now the better comparison is to Hershiser. Pinpoint pitching accuracy. Bulldog attitude. Power. Smarts. These are intense times. Gratify me now…before things get worse. Patience went a bit long with this bottle however it did not lose any of its character. Fruit is there. It is tiring without losing vitality. Like Carl Crawford. Not as fast as he once was but the instincts are there to go for home even though he is a step slower… and beat the tag by the length of a split cork [ed. photo at top!]. A winner. Balanced. Pleasing. Beaujolais at its best. Here is a site for learning more about GOOD Beaujolais. 13%

Let’s pull for Los Doyers. Pray for more Puig at bats and fielding opportunities. Cards in 6. Wait until 2014. With one more season Puig will be the monster.

The name is Ruxin, James Ruxin. Jim has been selling the most collectible wines to a select clientele for decades. Getting on his customer list was once a bit like getting the unlisted phone number for Ma Maison. Except, what Ruxin has to offer is much different than what you got at the old A-list venue. Today it is easier to see what he has to sell. Just email him – jumruxin@yahoo.com – and asked to be put on his Village Wine of Brentwood mail list. (more…)

Independence Day produces the usual parties, BBQs and libations. July 4th is not necessarily a wine event like, for example, Thanksgiving. Burgers, dogs and potato salad call for robust reds so tBoW expects to see plenty of Cabernets while hoping to encounter some Rhone style wines as well. And if someone should pop the cork on some frothy fruity high acid white wines, well, that makes blowing off fireworks even better. Here is what we tasted over the holiday. (more…)

Some might say the wines reviewed below are wonderfully diverse covering the world of wine tasting. Let’s get real. These wines are from unusual places, even off the beaten path. tBoW hopes that is one of the reasons you visit this blahg. (more…)