TNs--FALLTACULAR 2018

I was working the door for the first 1 1/2 hours so I was scratching out a few notes in the down time. I’ll have a few more. FMIII and Mike G at it too.

  • 2014 Model Farm Syrah - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/17/2018)
    Similar to the 2015 except a more pungent pepper note. Excellent black fruit. Reserve in style. Graceful.
  • 2015 Cabot Vineyards Pinot Noir Lost Coast - USA, California, North Coast, Humboldt County (2/17/2018)
    Fragrant nose of crushed berries. Stem and light toast. Rhubarb, tart raspberries, and medium plus acidity. Good stuff.
  • 2015 Ladd Cellars Chardonnay - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/17/2018)
    Wow, might be my favorite chardonnay of the day. Tasty. Nice lemon rind and green apple and yellow apple. Throw in some baking spice and cinnamon. Bingo.
  • 2015 Model Farm Syrah - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/17/2018)
    Good Crimson color. Blackberry and cherry flavors and aromas. Light baking spice and pepper.
  • 2015 Rhys Pinot Noir Alpine Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (2/17/2018)
    Awesome aromas. Beautiful wine. Tons of minerals. Perfect balance. Delicious.
  • 2015 Rhys Pinot Noir Bearwallow Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley (2/17/2018)
    Very herbal nose, dried leaves and red fruit. Rich red berry. More weight than the Alpine which is expected. Very good.
  • 2016 Halcon Vineyards Pinot Noir Bearwallow Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley (2/17/2018)
    Has a cranberry and purple hue. Would like to compare with the Rhys version for giggles. Light bodied and elegant. Hint of cherry and then Raspberry rhubarb. Light pepper note at finish. Well done for Syrah guys. LOL
  • 2016 Kutch Chardonnay Sonoma Coast - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/17/2018)
    Perfectly balancedon my planet. I like the acid and not afraid of the yellow tree and tropical fruit. The nose comes across as European with a flint aroma.
  • 2016 Kutch Pinot Noir Bohan Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/17/2018)
    This is very light bodied, not thin, just feminine. On the tart end of cranberry and chalk. Very nice sipping wine.
  • 2016 Rivers-Marie Pinot Noir Bearwallow Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley (2/17/2018)
    Darn this vineyard is killing it. Great fruit in the hands of great winemakers. Love the strong mineral notes and the tart berries. Lovely.

Posted from CellarTracker

Beer . . . :slight_smile:

Yes

The weather (unlike last year) dawned perfectly for what had to be my best of my 8 experiences at this very special event. Every year for me, the beacon of FallTacular and the power that comes out of wine lovers coming together in this unique way for this unique cause just grows brighter. How much everyone looked forward to seeing each other. Jodi’s compelling story. How much the winemakers (thank you all for coming) look forward to talking with all of us here. I think this year, I enjoyed the most the effect this event had on first-time attendees—highlighted by one of the winemakers exponentially raising the stakes on her donated auction item after hearing Jodi speak.

This was extra special for me as my close friend Heather decided to accompany me down and experience this for the first time. I think I’ve made a convert :slight_smile:

Almost as important—to give big hugs to Dana and Mike Stoneking and see their smiling faces in the face of what’s happened to their house. To hear Mike speak was almost as inspirational as Jodi’s talk----these are the people I hope I can be every once in a while.

OK, enough gushing. I got to about 41 wines with a couple more to try today. The notes:

2014 Boheme English Hill Pinot Noir

I went after these first because there were only single bottles of each. Potpourri and some cinnamon swirls, plenty of red fruit. Adds some coffee notes in the mouth, fairly lush. Strawberry, with a nice feel. Good way to start.

2014 Boheme Stuller Pinot Noir

Leans more towards the spicy, racy side in nostrils. Tighter—kinetic with raspberry and currant, needs time, quite different from the English Hill

2014 Boheme Taylor Ridge Pinot Noir

Bits of cola and root beer in the nostrils. A little coffee around dark cherry. Dans la bouche, tight but expressive fruit. Also needs time, but might be the best of the 3 in that time.

2013 Boheme Old Mancini Ranch Zin

Blue & black fruit and plenty of roasted herbs. Very suave, showing the worth of a bit of ageing. Quite balanced and just-right sweet plum and cherry. Not over-authoritative, but a nice zin.

2016 Kutch Sonoma Chard

Plenty of nut and lemon and aromatic drive here. Some toast, but it fits. I found this lighter than the last 2 years, but quite clear and with a nice middle lemon-based palate. I would have liked to come back to this without some chill, as I think it would have benefitted the wine, but the purity is plain to see.

2016 Rivers-Marie Thieriot Chard

Rich nose with some cream and melon notes around citrus & pear, and Heather makes a good catch of sweet corn. Has good body and yellow plum and tropical fruit, but plenty of backing and balancing carry. A good one of these. #13

2016 Rivers-Marie Bearwallow Chard

Quite composed bouquet, lilting floral and pear. Just getting started–salinity and minerality are present with lime and some toast. This should evolve very well.

2014 Boheme English Hill Chard

Lemon candy, some star fruit to sniff at, very “sunny”. Now that’s good. It has some force to it with a mustardy side to apple and citrus. A very interesting drink and a great surprise. #10

2015 Liquid Farm Bien Bien Chard

Fine scents of butter tart and apple here. Focused and good feel in the mouth with some lime add to aromatic replays. Not sure if it will be an ager though.

2015 Ladd Sonoma Chard

Alluring perfume and presence in the nuzzie, hints of lilac and pear. But this makes it on the tongue where it has such great flow from front to back. Acid and sugar are lovely and balanced with great, fresh fruit. Bravo, Eric–#7 and second-best of the whites today.

2014 Ladd Cuvee Voile Chard

He did this Jura-style, and the aroma has touches of banana and toffee around yellow fruit. This is a very different style to taste, leans to nutty and a bit oxidative, but plenty of interest and again good carry here. Very good.

2015 Cabot Humboldt County Pinot Noir

/;These are John’s first PNs and he made an impression with everyone today. Elevated cherry and bits of nutmeg for me here. On palate, it’s not shy but it is controlled with some cedar and sarsaparilla beside cherry fruit. Solid.

2015 Cabot Lost Coast Pinot Noir

I like the bouquet a bit more here–strawberry, cherry and mocha-woodsy all combining. I like the taste a little less, kind of striated and on the lean side, though raspberry and strawberry are in play.

2015 Cabot Elk Prairie Pinot Noir

Very evocative, both in the bouquet and on the taste. So much perfume and pure red fruit. Has some zip and shows its youth but promises a long life with plenty of verve and carry. Give 4 years, this has a ton of potential.

2016 Rivers-Marie Bearwallow Pinot Noir

Nice, pure red and black cherry with earth and cocoa tones. And to taste, this is smooth as silk already, really complete wine. Great texture combined with lively berry and hints of a lot more. This is a terrific bottle that stays in my memory bank and was my WOTD. #1

2015 Rhys Bearwallow Pinot Noir

Snappy red berry and crabapple scents waft up the glass. This was surprisingly approachable for my experience with Rhys, a good combo of bright red fruit and some minerals, but still has lots of room to grow.

2017 Tercero Mourvedre Rose

Larry saved the last pour of this for me—it’s to be bottled in a few weeks, I believe. This has what I’d want in terms of structure and bracing tart red fruit already. It should benefit greatly from its year in bottle but is promising already.

2016 Tercero Mourvedre Rose

Raspberries with tinges of watermelon on the aromatics. To taste, racy yet light. Very refreshing stuff, with framing crispness. Wonderful for a warm summer’s day.

A quick note that I only had a very small taste of Larry’s first Pinot, a barrel sample, but even this early it seems to show warm, sunny red fruit and yet with a promised focus. I look forward to its evolution.

2015 Sojourn Beckstoffer Georges III Cab

I wasn’t going to miss this one this year. Only a little broody on the bouquet. A lot of stuff going on underneath, with really voluptuous spiced black cherry and plum. Ohhhh, how I love this. Tremendous but appropriate richness of red and black plum pie, the whole is so very harmonious and yet grabs your attention at the same time. #2

2015 Ladd Musick Primitivo

Neat aromatics of coffee, sour cherry and a touch of barnyard—kinda reminds me of a pinotage, funny enough. Narrow, lean and focused right now with lots of acid and length. Give time, a very different wine to try.

2016 Halcon Bearwallow Pinot Noir

Breath of fresh air, strawberry blossoms if there were such a thing. Cinnamon glints as well. On palate, still young but graceful lines of sweet raspberry fruit with light cherry and cocoa accents. Quite yummy.

2015 Betwixt Pinot Noir

Some wild strawberry, the nose finds some leafiness too. Good, sinewy presentation. I like the rootiness here with plenty of red fruit. One to age for a bit.

2016 Kutch Bohan Pinot Noir

Plenty of forest scents to buttress black cherry and light backside strawberry. Very, very young, this is–has much to come into and may always be a bit on the burly and rugged side, but good components.

2016 Kutch McDougall Pinot Noir

Bones–lots of good bones in the schnozz—red fruit, citrus and baking spices all have their say. Yum in mouth–tickly small berry, just a little bramble and a small citrus backhit. Curl of smooth strawberry at the end. A wine with a lot to say and future development is certain. #11

2016 Kutch Falstaff Pinot Noir

Fragrant bright berry, plum and cherry. Alternates between forceful and graceful dans la bouche, always stays very tasty and has red fruit replays. Will be a long-lived Falstaff and a very good example of the vineyard. Good work! #12

2014 Big Basin Coastview Syrah

Bits of sweetmeat and chocolate around cherry pie. Lush but certainly not overboard, has fine presence with cassis leading the way and some meaty behind. Quietly open, if that makes sense

2015 Big Basin Alfaro Pinot Noir

Bit of smoke (though that could have been from the tri-tip on the BBQ too!) but plenty of vibrant cherry. Very Cali to me, quite sweet and forthright cherry with sugarplum.

2015 Campesino Las Madres Syrah

Tart blueberry and blackcurrant scents on the aroma. To taste, much on the meat side, plenty of smoky add but acid carries this too. Some time in bottle will be all to the good.

2013 Tercero Mourvedre

It is a blessing/curse of this day that you just can’t get to everything. This was the only one of Larry’s non-pinot reds I was able to get to, but wasn’t going to miss it. Touches of motor oil add interest to red plum and whiffs of cumin and nutmeg as well. This is round and delicious to taste–so nice to have this expressive plum and boysenberry-filled delight. It does have structure and fine length as well. One of Larry’s best Mourvedres, #3 today. Lovely.

2014 DV8 Eau Rouge GSM

Quite bouncy bouquet with lots of plum and a sidebar of pomegranate. Yes, there’s the sweetness of Grenache, but it fits very smoothly into the palate blend of cherry, plum and a trace of licorice. Good, even with the Grenache :slight_smile:

2015 Calluna Merlot Aux Raynauds

Melted chocolate and baked plum are what seem to come up the nose. Replays on this with decent feel and a blackberry twist at the end.

2016 Loring Chard

Lifted lilac and some neat citrus tint here in the aroma. Tight but tasty with pink grapefruit and a bit of orange poking through.

2016 Fogline Flora RRV

A cross between Gewurtz and Sem, yeah, this is difficult—does it want to be lychee, or lemon? Swatches of both in the bouquet. Has some crispness and business to it, but identity crisis is still in play here. I’d like to try it again with a couple years’ age.

2016 Fogline Zephyr’s Block Chard

Honeydew and some green kiwi sniffs. Tarter on taste, interesting contrast, lime joins the kiwi. I do like this for its verve.

2016 Loring Clos Pepe Pinot Noir

Spice merchant stuff does thread through cherry and strawberry base. Open and plenty of happy here, though with a slightly hot and bitter end note. But a bundle of fruit and very food-friendly stuff.

2016 Loring Rosellas Pinot Noir

Sweet berries and bits of cocoa and baking spice. Open and forthright, not complicated but talky red fruit and kind of sneaks up on you with the tasty. Sneakily good, #9

2014 Model Farm Syrah

Another year has seen some further refinement to this, almost toasted nuts added to dark but likeable fruit bouquet. Boy, still a youngster on the tongue–lots of structure and red and black fruit balance, but with carrying acid. You want cool climate Syrah? This is your baby, then. #8

2016 Betwixt Chard

The aroma is really something–lemon zest and tons of mineral. Man. this is good-plus on the palate. Pear and key lime but with a kiwi slash and more than a little mineral. It has a great conversation in the mouth and that is something I’m looking for from a wine always. #4 and best of the whites.

2016 Sandler Boer Pinot Noir

Cherries jubilee with mocha and twist of citrus. Tangy, tasty cherry and a bit of blackberry compote. Lots of interest here and I like the promised additional complexity.

2011 Cabot Kimberly’s Syrah

Touch of motor oil, aniseed, wealth of meat and black fruit. And tons of replay action dans la bouche, full of black fruit. All in balance and lasts a long, long time. Exemplary Syrah, #5 for me today.

2016 Tablas Creek Clairette Blanc

Certainly a different nose–custard a bit, swatch of maltiness about it. Neat orange blossom too. In the mouth, hard to put my finger on where to be with this–it has some creamy and zip at the same time and good body, but missing a definable flavour component. To be fair, this was open for the day.

I’ll try to post on the remaining wines I grabbed later. So much thanks to Frank and Jill and to everyone for making this a day to remember!

EDITED I missed commenting on the William & Mary cab which was super juice, marrying a powerful black-fruit-based nose and palate with bridled control and fitting tannins, possibly the biggest surprise and my #6 overall wine.

2015 Grimm’s Bluff Sauv Blanc

A quick note on this one, genuine grassy and herbal notes with decent freshness. To taste, a bit limpid, though not too sweet, with some sweet corn. Note it’s a day later and no vacuum-seal or anything on the bottle.

2015 Model Farm Syrah

The nose is of cassis and some mincemeat. Boy oh boy—a day later, this is still raw and racy stuff. It does spark all through the mouth with plum and bits of currant, lingonberry and rhubarb fruit. Don’t touch it for 5 years.

2015 Foursight Charles Vineyard Zero Pinot Noir

Some AV dirt here, with blackberry, currant and even some smoked meat in aromatics. Palate a day later is still kinda tight, but there’s a real character here. Sort of hard to pin down descriptors, but it’s impressively different as a whole.

2013 Matthiasson Red Hen Merlot

Almost peanut/almondy thing, with rhubarb and black plum nuzzie. Good, punchy merlot on the tongue, brazil-nut-tinged red and black fruit. Has a nice snap at the back.

Cabot Lost Coast was my WOTD

Thanks for the note. The pics on FB look like it was a lot of fun.

It truly was a spectacular and moving day for all of us. I truly hope that everyone understands all that is involved in putting on the event - and how much ‘emotional currency’ is spent and should be applauded as well.

Mike G said it so well above - it is always truly moving to hear a survivor’s story - and Jodi did a great job illuminating hers. I’m sure it was not easy for her to do it, but l hope she knows how much her words touched others, and as Margaret pointed out, there are so many out there that are either directly or indirectly affected by domestic abuse that chances are it is one degree of separation for all of us.

The generosity of this community was truly on stage all weekend long with money being raised for Laura’s House starting Friday evening. On Saturday, those in attendance had about 140 wines to taste, all donated by winemakers throughout the state of CA. There were two bottles of each wine there - nearly 300 bottles - happily donated by wineries willing to do what they can for the cause.

The silent auction was ‘off the hook’ this year, with many bottles and other memorabilia donated by those in attendance and even WBers who could not make it. It was impressive - and I believe set a record.

To all of the winemakers who donated wines but are not seeing notes on them, please note that they were all well received and consumed :slight_smile: Frank and his crew assembled them throughout the house and they were all lovingly cared for for everyone to enjoy. It was a bit of an ‘embarrassment of riches’ with so many wines there - but it’s always great to be able to have 5+ hours to slowly taste through them at your own pace - and just as importantly to me, to see how many of them open up throughout the day.

The generosity of those in attendance to bring food was awesome as well - from appetizers to plenty of Flannery meat to desserts, no one left hungry :slight_smile:

One thing that I saw this year that I had not in the past were people walking around with quite large pours of certain wines. On the surface, it’s not a bid deal - but I noticed this year that both bottles of many wines were poured through with a few hours to go in the tasting. To me, that’s not cool - it used to be that there were ‘monitors’ who would pour wines at each station to make sure that stuff like this didn’t happen. I’d hate to think we have to go back to that and that instead, we could ‘self police’ each other . . .

I really enjoyed the variety of wines that were there, but the highlights for me of this day are always the hugs and smiley faces that I encountered all day. From the annual ‘sweater boy’ bear hug to seeing those reading glasses up on Dietz’s forehead to hugging and not letting go of FMIII for as long as I could, to signing the Mag of Rose that I donated to the daughter of an attendee who just graduated from graduate school to talking with Ted Erfer about his upbringing to meeting and talking with Jill Matthiason . . . what a day . . .

And I wasn’t prepared for the ‘beer geekiness’ that took over that evening - absolutely wonderful and scary at the same time.

I’m looking forward to seeing more notes posted - and more impressions from those in attendance.

Cheers!

The Friday night dinner at Sol Agave was fantastic. Some of the best Mexican food I have ever eaten with the Crab stuffed Prawn Tacquitos being my favorite. Great story too about how he started out as a food truck, opened a strip mall tacqueria and 7 months later moved into a large restaurant space and has expanded even that. A true success story.
The Old Fashioned from the bar… OMFG! I can still smell the aromas from them smoking the glass iwth lavender and rosemary before mixing the drink.

A freaking free for all in there. Being a rookie I’ll have a better game plan next year. Nice to see Rob Pavlovich who made an appearance after he finished his work day. Loads of great wines that I didn’t even begin to scratch the surface.
Paul Hiyake poured me a Clos Vougeot that I didn’t catch the producer or vintage that was ethereal. There was an older Valdicava Brunello that may have been my WOTN.

Saturday
The 2017 Tercero Rosé had some off the hook aromatics that just sung to me. Loved it.
We really enjoyed noth the Rivers-Marie Chardonnays with the Bearwallow slightly edging out the Thieriot.
This wasn’t a good Pinot day for me/my palate. Forgot about the office bottles until late and missed out on the Rivers Marie and Kutch although we tasted throught the ‘15 Kutch lineup last time FMIII was up here. The Ladd Cuvee Abigail stuck out for me. Many of the others just came across sweet. Like I said it wasn’t a good Pinot day for me.
Tasted through all the Syrahs with the top 4 being the Halcon, Campesino, Riverain and Cabot Kimberly’s.
Upstairs I grabbed a taste of the Calluna Estate to go with some food and it was nicely structured, aromatic and lean. Came back later for some Switchback, William and Mary etal and all the bottles were drained. When the biggest wines drain first it makes me smh.

Being a guy who gets up qt 5am every day all this staying up and afterpartying every night was not in my wheelhouse. Not sure how you all pull this off but kudos for your stamina. Awesome time and putting faces to all the namesand/or finally metting all these people I’ve been online friends with for years in itself was worth the trip. Can’t wait till next year.

champagne.gif [cheers.gif] [thankyou.gif] grouphug

It’s something I noticed as well, Larry. More than in the past, bottles people told me I should try were drained when I went to try them. As a practical matter, I was at the grill from about 2 to 4pm, so I knew
some bottles would be gone. But there were several things I wanted to try that were hoovered. Still plenty of food and wine otherwise, though…

Bruce

Brian–Glad you were able to make it down this year.

Bruce

  • 2017 Tercero Pinot Noir - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Maria Valley (2/19/2018)
    I know, right? A Rhone ranger making Pinot Noir… Not only that but excellent Pinot Noir. This is a barrel sample and it’s delicious stuff. I don’t detail barrel samples because it’s not fair but I’m very excited.

Posted from CellarTracker

Another spectacular event hosted by Frank and Jill Murray. Generosity, warmth, spirit, kindness, it all surrounded you everywhere you turned. The detailed story from domestic violence survivor Lori was haunting, moving, and something I’ll never forget, and God bless Laura’s House and all its volunteers and donors for helping her, her daughter, and many like her

I only took partial notes, and the notes don’t necessarily reflect what were the best or most interesting wines I got to taste in all cases, but better something than nothing, right?


FRIDAY PRE-FALLTACULAR DINNER


1983 Groth Reserve Cabernet. Incredible intensity of red fruit, almost searing acid, mineral. Really jumps out of the glass.

1997 Valdicava Brunello. These wines have such concentration and intensity of fruit in their young and middle ages, that they are often mistaken for having new oak or being spooky, neither of which they are. But with enough patience, the wines eventually open out to something great, and this wine, while still deep and dark, was starting to do that. Very fine.

2010 Arnot Roberts Vare Cabernet. Very restrained red fruit, chalky, understated. Nice wine.

2007 Bodega Rancho Syrah Que Syrah Vineyard. Red fruited, no noticeable oak, still moderately tannic, mineral. Not overly complex, but quite balanced and tasty.

2010 Dunn Howell Mountain. Tannic, but not fierce or difficult to enjoy at this age. More presence of new oak in a chocolate and mocha way than I would have expected. Loads of dark fruit with some mint. Good wine, certainly the pedigree would suggest it will improve for a long time, but I wonder how similar this wine is to the old classic Dunns.

2007 Chateau Canon St. Emilion. Good classic Bordeaux, dark fruits with little sweetness. This drinks well now, but should improve with more time.

2011 Saxum Broken Stones. Pretty restrained and fresh purple berry fruit, chalky mineral and good tannic structure. Likely has room to gain complexity with age. The oak is quite modest. I’ve only had Saxum wines a few times, and this is definitely my favorite that I’ve tried. I have tended to love modern/bigger styled zins and rhones from California in the very cool 2011 vintage, it just seems like a good combination of things.

2001 Arcadian Pinot Noir Sleepy Hollow Vineyard. Great wine probably about at peak maturity. Caressing red fruit, cinnamon, nutmeg and other warm fall spices, good acid structure, just lovely, you could drink this every night and love it.

FALLTACULAR MAIN EVENT

2015 Liquid Farm Bien Bien Chardonnay. Light, pretty, soft white spices and flowers, hints of sea breeze, sneaky long finish. A very feminine, understated wine, definitely for contemplation rather than guzzling. My guess would be to drink these this year, I don’t see aging upside.

2015 Big Basin Coastview Chardonnay. Quite lean, little fruit here, definitely going for a savory experience of mineral and spice.

2016 Kutch Chardonnay. Intense lemon and lemon rind flavor, a bit of hazelnut, very long acidic finish. One of the few small downsides of Falltacular is that the whites sit in ice buckets, and this probably isn’t a wine to have served at nearly that temperature. Very fine wine, though, I’m glad to have a bunch of these in my cellar. Good aging potential.
2016 Rivers Marie Theriot Chardonnay. A very complete chardonnay, something that would appeal to a wide range of serious wine aficionados. Good fruit and acid in balance, little oak.

2016 Rivers Marie Bearwallow Chardonnay. My favorite white from Falltacular, at least in terms of how it showed at this age and under these conditions. Like the Theriot, it’s a really complete wine that works on all levels – tropical fruit, pear/apple fruit, mineral, acids, balance. I was quite excited to win a pair of these two Rivers Marie chardonnays in the silent auction.

2017 Tercero Grenache Blanc. One of the most consistent great values in sub $30 California white wine. Fresh, tasty, goes alone or with almost any food, will be appreciated by your wine geek friends as well as your civilian friends. These hold up well, too, no need to finish them in the first year or two.

2015 Rhys Alpine Vineyard Pinot Noir. At this age, pretty lean, piney, with a lot of stem showing. Better on the nose than the palate at this too-young age. Give it several years at least.

2015 Rhys Bearwallow Pinot Noir. A much friendlier and more open wine than the Alpine at this age, though still a youngster. More bright cherry fruit, minerals, herbs. You could definitely enjoy this with some air now, but it will probably improve in the next few years as well.

2016 Liquid Farm Pinot Noir Santa Rita Hills. One of my favorite wines of the tasting. This has an AFWE spirit but a generous, inclusive heart. Pretty red cherry, cherry pit, citrus rind, very complete at his young age.

2014 Switchback Ridge Merlot. Big, black fruit, chocolate, mint, oak. Tasty at the outer edges of that style for me. Would be a good post-dinner capper for a party.

2014 Switchback Ridge Cabernet. More balanced and interesting than the Merlot at this age. Some restraint to the dark fruits and some interesting menthol type notes.

2015 Riverain Cabernet. Tougher to judge this wine at such a young age and without decanting. There are loads of big dark fruits, the oak is pretty prominent now with vanilla and chocolate layered on, and some hints of rosemary peeking through. I think this is one to put away for a few years, then decant a few hours, and then you’d get to see the range of what this high quality wine can offer.

2015 Calluna Merlot Aux Reynaud. Very lean and savory. Lean black fruit, some oak still showing, leather, olive. If some fruit and a bit of sweetness were to appear with age, this could be quite lovely, but I’m not sure where it’s going to go.

2014 Calluna CVC. Lean cabernet with a significant green and herb dimension. An interesting wine. I think this probably goes below my personal need for some fruit ripeness, but this will definitely have its fans.

2013 Matthiasson Red Wine. One of the most enjoyable discoveries for me in the tasting. This is a playful wine with bright red fruit, nice layers of spice and herbs, great balance.

2016 Kutch Pinot Noir MacDougall. Way too young, but the shows the potential for great balance of fruit, the stemmy savory qualities, and acids. I’d give this a few years at least, and I think it will be a very good one.

2016 Cabot Elk Prairie Pinot Noir. Wow. I think this is the first Humboldt pinot I’ve tried from Cabot, and John has hit it out of the park. I had heard several comments about what a standout this wine was before I got to it, and it lived up to the advance billing. Great nose, intensity of red fruit, lots of energy and lift. I went back to this a few times later on as one of my favorites to just drink that day.

2013/2014 Ladd Cellars Pinot Noir Pratt. Okay, I confess, my wife was quite excited about the Ladd wines and went and got these for me, but I didn’t keep track of the 13 versus the 14. Anyway, Ladd Cellars was our favorite new producer discovery of 2018 Falltacular. These pinots were very well made, with some earthiness, lively red fruit, hints of leather, just a delight. It was also a pleasure to meet Eric, who is quite a gentle giant of a man.

After realizing how good the Ladd pinots were, we doubled back and found the 2015 Ladd Cellars Chardonnay in the whites section. This was really good, as well, tart apple and pear, subtle oak influence, great balance.

2013 Tercero Varner Syrah. Great intensity to the purple berry fruit, with violets, lavender, graphite. Has a bit of a Spanish vibe to it. Very good.

2016 Sandler Bien Nacido Pinot Noir. Sandler hits a home run with every vintage of Bien Nacido pinot. Ripe red and black cherry, autumn spices, citrus rind, very pretty and well knit together, even at this young age.

I am humbled by this past weekend. So many of you turned out, buying tickets, spending money in the garage for the silent auction and doing your part to donate and invest in this cause for Laura’s House. Some of you may know that this is the same charity that is behind my annual donation that is based on your TNs and photos you post during Thanksgiving week. So, through the WB community, we find continued ways to help Laura’s House in their campaign and devoted work to confront domestic violence, save families who are fleeing their abuser (and in some cases would be harmed and or worse, killed without a place to flee).

Many to thank, then some numbers to share and then I’ll close with some assorted TNs.

First, thank you to the wineries. For 12 years we have done this event, and without the wineries, there is NO event. Everything we pour at Falltacular is winery donated. So, if your buying budget is helped by knowing wineries that invest in their communities, to the extent they invest in social charity, then please know the following wineries did that this past weekend, and many of these have been with me for many of the 12 years, some all 12 years. Support them, please.

AUGUST WEST
BETWIXT
BIG BASIN
BOHEME
CABOT
CALLUNA
CAMPESINO CELLARS
CARLISLE
DARK HOLLOW
DUNSTAN
DV8 CELLARS
FOGLINE
FOURSIGHT
GRIMM’S BLUFF
HALCON
KUTCH
LADD CELLARS
LIQUID FARM
LORING WINE COMPANY
LUCIA
MATTHIASSION
MODEL FARM
PEAKE RANCH
RASI
RHYS
RIVERAIN
RIVERS-MARIE
SOJOURN
SWITCHBACK RIDGE
TABLAS CREEK
TERCERO
VELVET BEE
WILLIAM and MARY

For all of you who attended, who communed with us on this past Saturday to run the event, to again refresh all of these important relationships built over so many years, in support of the Laura’s House work and mission, thank you. I am moved and grateful for all of you, for the warmth and kind words. Like the wineries who donate, we cannot do the event without YOUR financial support.

So, to some metrics about this past weekend’s event. These numbers are not exact but are close to final. Really inspiring for me:

FRIDAY BYOB DINNER DONATIONS (via stemware you bought)–$750
TOTAL DONATED WINES POURED–135 (which is really close to 275, as we always pour doubles)
FRONT DOOR TICKETS–$15,500
SILENT AUCTION LOTS–126, with just over 250 items which is mainly all donated wine, from the guests and the wineries)
SILENT AUCTION PAYMENTS–$22,600
TOTAL COLLECTED–$38,850, an all-time record for us by more than $6,000.

Totally amazing. And to think this all started more than a decade ago, with some of you having attended all 12 years without a break. And for all the guests you have brought into the event, who now also keep attending, which is what I fondly call the attendance “trees” several of you have built.

Finally, some TNs. I tasted about 1/2 dozen wines right at the start of the event, which are the first set below. These are wines I buy so selfishly I want a view into them when I can taste them like this. The remaining group was wines that I ran through yesterday after I cleaned the house. I sat at my bar and did them all in sequence. These were wines that were leftover from the event, as the Saturday crowd damn near polished off everything. Yet, inside of what was left, I found lots to like.

Thank you all for making this event what it has turned into. It is my honor and privilege to steward it on our behalf, for the good it does, the lives it saves and changes. You all own that honor, too.

FALLTACULAR 2018–SOME TNS - My House In The South OC (2/18/2018)

A few select wines tasted right at the start of the event
These were not decanted and saw maybe 30-60 mins of air.

  • 2016 Rivers-Marie Pinot Noir Bearwallow Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
    I opened this about 30 mins ago and right to the glass with a perfect drinking temp of about 60f. Lightly toasty and graphite aromatics. Red apple, raspberry, plum and some tannin that is seeming to soften with air. I’m dropping this TN here early, as I’d prefer to give this a few more hours of air but I simply wont have time to revisit it. I will say that this is drinking terrific, showing the terroir of what I say is very similar to Kiser (which is next door).
  • 2016 Kutch Pinot Noir Bohan Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
    Labeled at 11.3% ABV. I opened this about 30 mins ago, it has been sitting in the glass breathing. This is light, elegant. Can taste the minerality here. Light in the glass, a rose colored hue. Cherry, raspberry, both subtle. This is an elegant PN drinkers wine. Lovely.
  • 2016 Rhys Pinot Noir Bearwallow Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
    This saw about 30 mins of air. Juicy, cherry, with a nice rocky quality, alongside the acidity that is present. There is tension, energy in this wine and with all the parts here, this will come together well with more air. Delicious.
  • 2016 Rhys Pinot Noir Alpine Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
    I opened this about an hour ago and let it remain in the bottle. This wine has stuffing. Notes of soil, light herbals, tannin on the tongue, strawberry, citrus. A lot going on. If I can make it back around later to retry this, I will update my note. Potential is the word here with a lot of depth.
  • 2016 Kutch Chardonnay Sonoma Coast - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
    There is a lot of pear in this year’s chard, along with apple. Flinty like the past 2 years, with a gentle finish. Plenty of acidity here to also add some energy. And finally, this isn’t as loaded up as the past couple years, more gentle is my view.

A few wines tasted the following day after the event
These all saw around 24 hours of slow ox air and in sequence.

  • 2016 Fogline Vineyards Gewürztraminer Russian River Valley Spring Hills Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. This is a blend of Gewurz and Semillon, and both seem to be working to add their presence to the wine. The Gewurz contributes a spicy, honeyed, lime, peach note and the Semillon adds lemongrass, lemon and some anise. Of course, these are my guesses but in total, these are the notes in the wine I perceive. This is medium plus weighted, with that honeyed, lime profile adding a slick, kind of coating texture.
  • 2014 Velvet Bee Chardonnay Rita’s Crown - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. Light flint on the nose, even a little of that sea air quality which is cool. Palate has viscosity, on the custard-like side for me with golden apple, spice, honey, lemongrass. Good finish.
  • 2015 Peake Ranch Chardonnay Santa Maria Valley - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Maria Valley
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. I like this wine on one hand, as it has a green apple, spicy, anise core that is cool. But, on the other hand, there is (at least for me and my fragile palate) too much oak/wood applied to the wine, as it shows a toasty/marshmallow quality on the nose and around the fruit of the wine. I’d like to try this wine with less oak applied and see how that lovely apple fruit could come forward.
  • 2014 Tercero Grenache Blanc - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened screw cap. Dig the light petrol in the aromatic. Pure, balanced, solid fruit core of what seems like a mix of melon, kiwi and some vivid acidity that lengthens the finish of the wine. The finish has the same spicy kiwi note that tingles for several seconds. This is medium weighted, with the edges lightly polished. Good stuff.
  • 2014 Sandlands Chenin Blanc Napa Valley - USA, California, Napa Valley
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. Squarely medium weighted here, nothing heavy, no density getting in the way. Nicely balanced, touch of mineral, spicy pear, lemon, lime, peach and spicy, balanced finish. Very good.
  • 2016 Betwixt Chardonnay Steiner Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Mountain
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. This is uniquely decadent, kind of intoxicating. A mix of some vanilla bean, lemon peel, cinnamon, spicy golden apple and long, lemony, spicy finish. There is something about this wine that grabs me, and it’s not the barrel inflection but the underlying acid, the citrusy, lemony core that is here. I bet that when this wine sheds off some of the youth (as I believe it was just bottled this week) that something very cool is going to take shape. A watch and see wine.
  • 2016 Loring Wine Company Pinot Noir Clos Pepe Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened screwcap. Brian has been making this wine for a long time, and it’s been a while since I have sat down and tasted it, especially with some air. Black cherry, ripe/juicy blackberry, dark raspberry, cinnamon, cedar and a finishing citrusy note of blood orange/grapefruit. More modern and forward for PN than what I usually drink but it’s squarely spot-on for what Brian has done so well now for well over a decade. I love this guy Loring and his commitment to make wines in the style he believes in and does so well.
  • 2016 Loring Wine Company Pinot Noir Kessler-Haak Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened screwcap. Wow, this is a ripely styled big CA PN. I tasted this next to the 2016 Loring Clos Pepe and that wine has better definition and depth for me than this one at this stage. I find this Kessler-Haak to be much like a barrel sample, very young and rich. Dark fruit, and in the center of it a citrusy edge that reminds me a lot of something like Rosella’s, with the SLH citrus. Dark coffee, jammy raspberry and blackberry. My thought is that when some of the primary, oaky baby fat qualities can fade into the wine, then that citrus can come forward and put some edges on this wine.
  • 2015 Peake Ranch Pinot Noir - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. This has a distinct red fruit core, mainly cherry that has quite a bit of spine to reinforce the fruit. There is also some herbal here, and I wonder whether some stems/whole cluster was added to give it that extra push of spice and spine? Whatever the case, the cherry core of this is really attractive and gets my attention. There is some oak here that seasons the edges and texture so I’d say to wait on this wine, age it for another 2-3 years before opening and let that cherry and acid push forward and beautifully express itself.
  • 2016 Lucia Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. This has the Jeff Pisoni touch. Jeff’s zone in my view is a richer styled wine, that is polished, more plush, with a mix of red and black fruit and acidity in the background for support. This is already approachable, expressive and delicious. The oak here, whatever Jeff put against it, has worked its way into the wine and so what is here now is a polished, seductive kind CA PN.
  • 2016 Betwixt Grenache Boer Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Chalone
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. I believe this was just bottled within the last week, too. Lightly red, rose colored. This tastes like a barrel sample to me, with the wood (?) giving the wine a new barrel astringence. I am unsure whether Tim uses new wood on this so take my comment as a guess, not fact. Red fruits of cherry and strawberry, seeming to me candied at this stage.
  • 2016 Tercero Cabernet Franc aberration - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under screwcap. Inky and dark. I gotta hand it to Brig, as his remark about beet is brilliant. There is a note of that here, a roasted beet quality that is cool. Juicy, approachable now and as Brig said, unique.
  • 2014 Calluna Vineyards Calluna Estate - USA, California, Sonoma County, Chalk Hill
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. This is a classic 5 varietal Bdx blend, mainly Cab Sauv at almost 60%, with Cab Franc and Merlot being another roughly 20% each, joined by a little Malbec and PV. Aromatics are Bdx influenced, a mix of tobacco leaf and cigar box. There is an intensity in this wine. Some oak is influencing the texture, giving it a plush, tannic edge. Inside of that texture is charry cherry, cedar, currant and some of the cool herbal giving this a light seasoning. Finishes with some astringence, alongside the dark cherry tones. This has been open a full day so this wine is going to age a good long time and if you drink it now, decant it well.
  • 2014 Calluna Vineyards Cuvée “CVC” - USA, California, Sonoma County, Chalk Hill
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. This is a Bdx blend. I tasted this next to the 2014 Calluna Estate, both saw the same amount of air and tasting setting. The aromatics here are more rustic. The depth here as compared to the Estate is not as intense. More subtle is the CVC, juicier, lighter styled with juicy dark cherry and dark cocoa. And one other thing…I find the 2014 Estate to have a significant aging potential, whereas this CVC seems pretty well ready to go and approachable.
  • 2013 Matthiasson Red Wine - USA, California, Napa Valley
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. I tasted this yesterday during Falltacular, and even mentioned how the wine showed to Jill Matthiasson, who attended yesterday in person. I told her that we should have decanted the wine, as it was pretty well structured and tight. So, at least I got to add a full day of air to this wine before I wrote it up. This has unfolded more, it’s showing the red fruited, currant, cedar and juicy, herbal qualities. Yet, there is still some cool astringence here, framing the finish with chewy tannin. This wine is going to need some bottle age is you want to edges to smooth out, as right now it’s still coiled, with a medium weighted cherry frame.
  • 2015 Campesino Syrah Las Madres - USA, California, Napa / Sonoma, Carneros
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. Pours pretty dark, with aromatics of steak sauce and light olive. Juicy, with more black olive, garrigue, some bacon fat, spicy red and black fruit. finishing with cooked meat, pepper and some astringence. A mix of blue and red fruit. This wine is packed, for me tasting very much in the style of northern Rhone.
  • 2015 Halcon Vineyards Syrah Alturas - USA, California, North Coast, Yorkville Highlands
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. Medium weighted, herbal with some olive and juicy blueberry. The stems season this nicely and they take the wine in a direction that is more Rhone than CA. This tastes as delicious as the bottle from 2 months ago, some of the CA sunshine mixing with the old world style that is applied here. Lovely.
  • 2015 Fogline Vineyards Syrah Grist Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. Pours fairly dark, it’s noticeable as it hits the glass. Floral, in the potpourri style that would suggest some whole cluster (not sure though if Evan uses any?). This is plush, generous, with a graham cracker note (oak here?) and blue fruit. This hit me with a flashy edge, I suspect because of the wood and the moderately decadent blue tones, as well as some of the purple flower kind of thing. This is good, with some modern, new world qualities that I enjoy.
  • 2014 Switchback Ridge Petite Sirah Peterson Family Vineyard - USA, California, Napa Valley
    Opened yesterday, kept cool overnight under opened cork. I spent a part of my Sunday afternoon tasting through a # of the remnant wines from yesterday and I put this as the last bottle to taste. I know this wine pretty well so I thought I should end with it. It pours pitch dark–no surprise there. Has the SR nose that shows all the dark berry aromatics. Wow, like a bulldozer of flavor across my palate. Dark chocolate, dark berry, gingerbread, iron, espresso. I’d never start a tasting or meal with this wine, but for sure, I’ve ended a # of evenings with a glass of SR and this is right there with the house style. I also want to point out that I swirled the hell out of this and I didn’t get any booze or heat on this at all. It is labeled at 15.5% and there is no trace of that here. This is just stacked with flavor, color and tannin. Hell, I am going to sit this on the counter and finish the last glass tomorrow and end that last glass with a big 'ol stained teeth smile that only SR can do. Thank you, Kelly.

Posted from CellarTracker

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UH OH! A Berserker first…I am agreeing with Larry!!! (J/K) He brings up a good point about the pours as many wines were waaaay overpoured early in the event. I am not sure if it was “newbies”, which might be an unfair statement, or just folks unclear on the concept. There are over 150 people at this event and drinking a “glass” of certain wines is not particularly cool. This is not a real cabernet heavy event but those bottles were often drained long before the majority of folks got a chance to “taste.”

Other than that, another fantastic event and a real testament to Frank & Jill****! grouphug grouphug


Cheers!
Marshall [berserker.gif]

I don’t think I’ve ever gotten my notes from a tasting posted before Frank – I did it by a whopping two minutes. I feel like I should get to stand atop a podium while someone plays the national anthem.

Wish I could have been there. Our Spring club party was this weekend. Hopefully I’ll plan better next year.

Gold medal!

Hopefully we’ll see you again. My wife and I really enjoyed talking with you a few years ago.

First off, thanks to Frank, Jill, contributing wineries, the Laura’s House team and all involved for another fantastic day! Hopefully a record-setter.

I noticed a few large pours as well and was frustrated to miss a few wines, but the more I thought about it, the less it bothered me. I realized that for every one of us that tries to taste as many different wines as we can (about 20-30 for me, although it used to be 50+ in the early years), there is at least 1 if not 1.5 folks who are there for the social aspects of the day rather than as a hardcore taster. Hopefully no “full” glasses, but I know some who probably poured 3oz rather than 1 oz and then took that glass outside to chat and eat for 30-45 min, rather than to taste. My better half was likely in that group, as the one time she asked me to go back inside and pour something for her I got the stink eye when I came back outside and handed her a 1oz pour.

Not sure if going back to designated pourers would be beneficial. I helped pour for several years, and it was frustrating for people to have to wait for the one person (sometimes two) at a station to get to each person with the specific wine they were waiting for, particularly in the busy early hours of the event…and, some bottles still poured out much earlier than others in that scenario. Perhaps some continued education or “reminder” signs at the stations would help a bit, but even with strict 1oz pours, 2-3 bottles of a particular wine will only support a pour to 1/3 to 1/2 of the people present. I know I would be happy to contribute (and I presume others as well) a couple of decent bottles to place on a table outside for people who would prefer to socialize rather than taste. Would certainly not want to take away from the generous contributions of the participating wineries, but that may help for those who just want to sit for an hour with a glass and chat/eat.

Cheers!

Steve