Marguet 16 Extra Brut; 18` Croix Ritchie 12 Rows Chard; 05` Whitcraft Bien Nacido N Block Pinot; 02` BV Clone 6 Cab

Wines while enjoying a dinner out with dear friends:

NV MARGUET SHAMAN 16 EXTRA BRUT- this lovely no dosed bubbly, disgorged in 11/17, comes from a 5th generation “new breed” winemaker, Benoit Marguet, who sourced the fruit from organic and biodynamically farmed grand cru Ambonnay vineyards; it is comprised of a blend of 86% Pinot Noir and 14% Chardonnay with a base wine from 2016 and it’s fermented in neutral oak plus going through full ML; the straw yellow color is deceiving in that I tend to think of white and yellow fruit when in fact, this had some distinct red cherry/ berry notes plus orange blossom, apple and pear; it was medium bodied and had a nice mildly frothy mousse; I found it to be very pleasing throughout and it gained energy and momentum in the glass.

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2018 CROIX ESTATE RITHCIE VINEYARD 12 ROWS RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY CHARDONNAY- this was a first time exposure for me, it was a splendid wine and a real treat as it gave generous amounts of tasty ripe apple, pear and citrus fruit with nice accents of spice, honeysuckle and butterscotch all the while being delivered in a creamy texture; the fruit is sourced from a much heralded 48 year old vineyard and made by Kirk Venge who employed a whole cluster press and 50% new and used oak barrel for the fermentation; the wine undergoes full ML and is aged sur lie for 3 months, 15 months in all.

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2005 WHITCRAFT WINERY BIEN NACIDO VINEYARD N BLOCK SANTA MARIA VALLY PINOT NOIR- a really fine Pinot from dear friend, Chris Whitcraft, who passed 7 years ago; he would have been proud as this wine exemplified the true essence of this vineyard`s N Block character which has always featured spicy, peppery notes to compliment the mature blueberry and red cherry fruit; as it ages, blackberry and black currant also is showing up and it is simply delightful and ready to give up its treasures now.

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2002 BEAULIEU VINEYARD CLONE 6 RUTHERFORD NAPA CABERNET SAUVIGNON- this inky, dark ruby colored, big, super rich and full bodied Cab is so nicely varietally correct and perfectly balanced with its cedar laced black currant, blackberry, blueberry and black cherry and integrated oak; it’s still maturing and has the matrix from which to age gracefully for another 10 years or so before reaching its apogee; this is the 2nd release of this clone and has to be reassuring to those who made the decision to add the Clone 4 and 6 into their repertoire; they have to be elated with the resulting product which was previously a component of the revered BV Private Reserve Cab.

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Cheers,
Blake