Sabelli-Frisch Wines

Was hoping that an influencer would open a thread in winetalk, but I happy to get this discussion started.
General observation on the labels; Adam is listing alc, brix, RS, and pH. I’m happy to report that the first three numbers are all very modest and that last not too low. Nothing stands out as being out of place. Very old school. The only one I haven’t tried yet is the Mission, but the three others definitely live up to expectations. Adam is clearly on to something and it is potentially very exciting.
I popped the Flame Tokay for a few other nerds (real nerds, not winos) not long after Adam dropped my case. My first thought was that this should not be served too cold and probably in a larger Burgundy glass. My second observation was that the wine got better and better and probably at peak 3 hrs after being opened. Everyone loved it, and it was competing with and winning against a St Julien and a Margaret River Cab.
Slightly dusty spicy aromas. Excellent volume but not at all heavy and a lingering finish. This is not a Rosé, probably a little more serious, but a wine I really want to drink again. Sorry not to be more specific, but all that really matters is: like or not like, and this was definitely a LIKE for all.
A few days later it was time for the Alicante Bouschet (Gordon W). Starts out like an old school Spanish wines. Becomes broader in flavors and on the palate with air. Definitely a mouthful, but every thing is in check to keep the exciting. I’m not a huge fan of this grape as it is often monolithic. This wine does not fall in to that category. This was served with a Greek casserole dish (chicken, tomatoes, spigarello and a few potatoes).
Finally the Marsanne which I popped last night. Not having read the label I was a bit surprised and the savory spiciness and interesting grip on the palate. It’s an amphora wine! Also improves with air and a great wine with our cheese and salami dinner with olive bread from Lodge. There are definitely some of classic elements of Marsanne (Hermitage Blanc), but they are complemented by other structural elements that were great with the food.

Thanks for the notes. Looking forward to getting my bottles soon.

Thanks for the reviews, Peter! [cheers.gif]

Finished the Marsanne tonight. At first the aromas were somewhat wild, but it settled down and was probably better than yesterday. The whole cluster comes through in a good way, but then I do like reds that are whole cluster fermented as well. Served with homemade minestrone.
Also popped the Mission. This is very interesting.
As far as I recall, SoCal had a lot of Mission plated long before Napa and Sonoma became the premium wine growing regions. Wonder if that is part of the disdain people have for this grape, because, face it, the only people who have anything nice to say about LA probably already live here. I’ve read some nice things about Pais but never felt I needed to try it since I’m an “OK boomer”.
Getting back to the wine, enticing spicy aromas, the spiciness comes through on the palate and maybe some tannins. Hard to associate this with some other variety, maybe Trousseau? It does have that lightness and is very refreshing as well. Not served with food.
Will finish this tomorrow, but my preliminary judgement is that this is definitely the winner of the four wines. Final comment, this is at 13.6% by some margin the wine with the highest alc!!

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Thanks for the notes. I went back and forth on these on BD, wishing I would have went for it now.

I think Peter you are right, the Mission grapes were basically all that was grown in CA before Napa took over. Just read about the entire history in the Tangled Vines book (which is about the wine fire on Mare Island, but half the book is a CA wine history lesson)

Angelica was a major export product from the LA basin, so Mission was widely planted there. (Fortified wine ships well.) I think part of the bad reputation is from people trying to make a table wine from the mostly too warm places it was planted, which were great for making Angelica. The other issue is it does require understanding and some guidance to make an interesting wine. (That’s kind of a truism for any grape to some degree or another.)

Regarding Trousseau, it can be light if grown in a cooler climate or intentionally over-cropped. It can also be fairly intense. It’s weight range is comparable to Pinot Noir.

All sound very interesting - wish I had bit on the 5 pack BD offer now.

Same. These wines sound great.

I’d love to try these.
Alas, no shipping to TN. :frowning:

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Just got my shipment in today. Really looking forward to opening these. I noticed that my Marsanne bottle is numbered 0001, if this is correct it’s a bit silly but pretty cool to have this of the initial release.

Thanks so much Adam, I’m excited about my first berserkerday purchase and trying out your wines!

Thank you Jake! Yes, unfortunately it’s a screw up from printer. I explain here:

Well dang, it’s just a number anyways. What I’ve read about that’s inside is what has me looking forward to it.

Arrived today … lovely bottles … it will be wonderful to explore them! And lovely note with the shipment btw

Agreed on the packaging - Adam, these bottles are beautiful. My wife’s eyes widened when I took them out of the box. They are resting for now but we are excited to try them later in the year! Definitely saving the Flame Tokay for a nerd gathering.

Would love to try these - any plans on shipping to MA in the near future?

It’s on the top of list of states to add after these. Going to try to add MA, NH, NM, SC, OK, TN next.

Excellent. Thanks.

Mine arrived yesterday. Agree with the comments above. Funny, my wife immediately said the same things about the labels, and then she says, “Oh look, you got bottle #1.”

Marketing genius

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and I thought I was special :slight_smile: