A bunch of TNs from the past few months

2009 Foreau Domaine du Clos Naudin Vouvray Moelleux Réserve - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray (3/17/2014)
New to this producer. On day one, this wine moves like a Sauternes in the glass. The nose is all honey and apricot, as is the thick, sticky palate. It was warmer than I intended so on to day two. Ahh…the nose is intoxicating with pineapple, honey, white flowers, nutmeg, apricot, followed by a cristaline palate with just enough acidity to make it clean. Still on the sweet side but I expected that. Better colder as it returns to the Sauternes like wine when it warms. On day three the wine has not changed at all. Delicious, long and complex just a bit too sweet. In several years this wine should be epic. Glad I bought more.

2005 Robert Foley Claret - USA, California, Napa Valley (3/14/2014)
Overwhelmingly fig and mint nose. I can’t smell anything else. The palate is medium weight and the tannins jump out almost immediately. Beyond them there is more fig and a little beef. It’s good but it still needs time. Sadly, my last bottle.

2005 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select - USA, California, Napa Valley, Stags Leap District (3/14/2014)
Black pepper, hints of citrus, mint, white chocolate. What a nose. The palate is just as amazing with bright raspberries, a hint of chocolate, a tinge of citrus and still some grippy tannins. Amazingly long finish. All one could hope for in a cab.

2012 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Golden Slope - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills (3/13/2014)
Pineapple, lychee, white flowers and even a hint of cardamom on the nose. Medium weight with pineapple, peach pit, a notion of candied lemon and great acid. Both mouth coating and bright. Nice lemony finish. I like it.

2012 Liquid Farm Chardonnay Four - USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills (3/9/2014)
My first LF. Quince and candied lemon on the nose with just a hint of vanilla like oak. A whiff of smoke in there too. Fairly thickly textured with some lemon and pineapple hints on the palate. Long finish and delicious start to finish.

2006 Marcassin Pinot Noir Blue-Slide Ridge Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (3/8/2014)
Bright cherries, baking spices and some orange rind in the nose. The palate is very interesting in that it moves slickly in the mouth with great lift and citrus flavors. It doesnt feel heavy at all yet there is a candied note to the cherry flavors. Finishes bright and clean again. Interesting and a pleasure to drink.

2009 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena (3/8/2014)
Its been a while since ive had a wine make me do a double take. The nose on this is intense and attention grabbing with big berry notes, vanilla, beef and smoke. The palate is full bodied and mouth coating. Intense and ever expanding from attack to finish with sharply delineated flavors of bright blackberries, cassis, a little charcoal and teeth gripping tannins. Great wine in its infancy.

NV Billecart-Salmon Champagne Brut Rosé - France, Champagne (3/7/2014)
Yellow fruit nose. Barely any yeast. Some citrus peel. The palate is bright and lively with a mild mousse and some passion fruit, bright underripe raspberries and citrus. Clean and delicious. (87 pts.)

2000 Château Monbousquet - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru (3/7/2014)
Smoke, oak, and red berries on the nose. Medium palate with some plums and earth. A hint of citrus. Nice wine. Not great.

2005 Lewis Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve - USA, California, Napa Valley (3/7/2014)
Sweaty nose with cassis smoke And beef. The palate is Medium with some grittiness and slate. Good. Not great.

2009 Alban Vineyards Syrah Reva Alban Estate Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Edna Valley (3/7/2014)
Slightly reductive with raspberries, smoke, some vegetables in a good way. The palate is medium to full with ripe berries, plums, butter chocolate and charred notes. Some significant tannins.

NV Janisson Baradon & Fils Champagne Brut Séléction - France, Champagne, Vallée de la Marne, Champagne (3/7/2014)
A little cat piss, yeast, quince, and other yellow fruits. The palate is bright and fresh with more quince some lychee, lemon seeds and a hint of salt. Clean acidic finish. Love it.

2010 Saunter Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Swagger - USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain (3/5/2014)
Boy is this young. Cranberries, dark berries, baking spices. The palate is bright, almost tart with some coffee notes, dust and wood. This needs to settle down but there’s a lot going on here.

1998 Château d’Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (3/3/2014)
Outshown by the Sqn tonight but a great nose of citrus peel, honey and almonds, the palate is medium in weight with honey and clovers. Some vanillin and apricot. Long and delicious.

2003 Sine Qua Non Chardonnay Mr. K The Noble Man - USA, California, Central Coast, Edna Valley (3/3/2014)
Nose of honey and creme brûlée. Some mint and vanilla. Amazing nose. The palate is thick and viscous with clover honey, vanilla bean and the crust on a creme brûlée with its bitter caramel. Amazing, with and eternally long finish.

2008 Domaine Huet Vouvray Demi-Sec Le Haut-Lieu - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray (3/3/2014)
Honey and melon rind on the nose with a crisp palate including more honey notes and some citrus. Medium sweetness that slides into the clean, sweet finish. Great wine.

2010 Saunter Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Swagger - USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain (3/3/2014)
Same as last note but has developed some green pepper and black pepper nuance that I really like. Developing nicely.

NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée - France, Champagne (3/3/2014)
From half bottle. A ton of yeast and citrus on the nose. The palate is light and crisp, with lemon rind, lime and oyster shell. Delicious and long. I love this.

2008 Donelan Syrah Obsidian Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Knights Valley (2/28/2014)
Olives, beef and a notion of dark berries on the nose. The palate is not as mouth coating as the old pax version and it feels a bit leaner. There are blackberries and some beef but it’s missing something. Hard to put my finger on it. Ok wine.

2006 Marcassin Pinot Noir Marcassin Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/25/2014)
Some citrus, baking spices and ripe cherries on the nose. Either I caught it awkward or there is something not perfect about this bottle. The midpalate never popped and the finish was a little clipped. Ive had this wine before several times, including recently and it has always been amazing. Today, just ok.

2010 Hirsch Vineyards Pinot Noir San Andreas Fault - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/25/2014)
Had this at Palme D’or with their tasting menu. On the AFWE side of the spectrum :wink: Cherries, a hint of cola, some herbs on the nose. Young feeling palate all coiled up and with lots of acidity. The fruit is barely evident with some crunchy berry and citrus hints. Over the meal ir revealed some warmer, redder fruit but it just needs time. Not bad.

2002 Pol Roger Champagne Blanc de Blancs - France, Champagne (2/21/2014)
Big dollop of yeast on the nose followed by some caramelized pinapple and lime notes. The palate is fresh and lively with citrus zest, a hint of pineapple and a soft mousse. The pineapple note lingers. Very nice champer.

2006 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select - USA, California, Napa Valley, Stags Leap District (2/21/2014)
Year in and year out one of the most consistent wines in California (my last note not withstanding :wink: A bit of camphor, some cigar box, bitter chocolate. The palate is delicious with a hint of mint, currants, and a hint of citrus.
A bit clipped on the finish but otherwise great.

2008 Domaine Huet Vouvray Demi-Sec Le Haut-Lieu - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray (2/21/2014)
All their recent dumb decisions aside, I continue to love Huet wines. This was just like the last bottle. Delicious deep and interesting. Too bad, as I think I am done buying them.

2009 Jones Family Cabernet Sauvignon - USA, California, Napa Valley (2/21/2014)
wow this was tight last time and now its even tighter. huge fruit loads of tannins and all kinds of structure but so young its almost too much to drink. Let them sleep.

2010 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape (2/21/2014)
Slightly awkward. The nose is interesting with chocolate, blackberry liqueur, and fresh rasberries. Changes a lot over two days. The palate is clean and fresh with white raspberry, some raw beef and chocolate. I think this will regain weigth and get deeper and fuller, as have other Chaupins for me.

1998 Château d’Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (2/18/2014)
Man I love Yquem. This is not the most deliniated or complex of them but a great nose of some mint, dried pineapple, apricots and honey. The palate is mouth coating and delicious with great acidic lift and clean yellow fruits and honey. Delicious wine.

2012 Loring Wine Company Pinot Noir Graham Family Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Green Valley (2/18/2014)
Nose of dark cherries and oddly enough graham crackers. Drank and fruity on the nose. The palate is subdued for a loring, ripe but not intense. Fair ammount of acid. A bit of graham cracker on the palate as well. Maybe it subliminal on my part but my buddy who is not a wino and who had no idea what was in the glass mentioned graham crackers as well. Weird. Good wine though.

2002 Pride Mountain Vineyards Merlot - USA, California, North Coast, Napa / Sonoma (2/15/2014)
Chocolate and cherries on the oh so pleasant nose. The palate follows through with velvety tannins and a great, mature mouthfeel. Firing on all cylinders right now. Delicious.

2009 Vineyard 29 Cabernet Sauvignon Cru - USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena (2/15/2014)
Big cab nose of cassis, cranberries and a hint of oak. The oalate is loaded with red fruit and it has very nice acid but man these are brutally tannic. Give them 5 years, try again :slight_smile:

2011 Aubert Pinot Noir UV-SL Vineyard Sonoma Coast - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/12/2014)
Cassis, blackberry liqueur, smoke and a little booze on the nose. The palate is medium to full in weight with hints of orange peel, cherries, white chocolate and some drying tannins. Very interesting and very young obviously. Hopefully it’ll develop a little fuller on the fruit.

2011 Rivers-Marie Pinot Noir Gioia Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/12/2014)
I’m neutral on this. The nose is nice enough with cola, cherries and rhubarb. The palate, however is a lot lighter than usual. Very bright acid but lacking fruit for me. Nice enough drink but not up to snuff IMHO.

2011 Alpha Omega Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras - USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena (2/10/2014)
Killing babies. Drank this over three days. Deep, rich nose of creosote, fresh plums, black berries and flowers. The palate is medium to full with bright blackberries, a bit of chalk and some more plums. Softish tannins and a medium lenght finish. Needs a lot of time but delicious wine.

2011 Sine Qua Non The Moment - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County (2/6/2014)
Citrus elements with a hint of butter on the nose. Some lychee notes as well. The palate is unctuous and mouth coating. Apricot pit and more butter on the palate with just a hint of herbs. Not the most complex Sqn white I’ve had but delicious. Goes on forever.

2010 Rhys Pinot Noir San Mateo County - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County (2/1/2014)
It smells like stems and seeds. Even on day two. The palate, however, is pleasant and very drinkable. Stemmy notes are there but there is nice ripe fruit with fair tartness. The issue is that there is not much beyond that. Pleasant but simple.

2010 Saxum Terry Hoage Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles (2/1/2014)
The nose is somewhat muted, even after 24 hours. Some notes of coffee, blackberries, flowers and baking spices. The palate is full bodied but with nice acid. Sharp, bright raspberries, and a slightly gritty feel. The finish is shy. It feels like this wine needs time.

2009 Antonin Guyon Corton-Clos du Roi - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru (1/31/2014)
Opened by accident :wink:
Nose of grilled meats, mint, and herbs. The palate is light on its feet with good tart cherries and some orange zest notes. Obviously too early but a noce drink no less.

2009 Black Sears Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain (1/26/2014)
Big brawny nose with hints of charcoal, ripe blackberries and beef. The palate is bright on the attack with mouthwatering raspberry and rhubarb flavors. A flash of oak here in there. Clips off a bit in the finish. Good.

2009 Charles Smith Syrah Royal City - USA, Washington, Columbia Valley (1/26/2014)
The nose is not terribly expressive but there are some faint veers in there and some blackberry as well. The palate is surprisingly light in taste with mild fruit flavors reminiscent of ripe cherries minus the sweetness. The mouthfeel is almost full which makes it feel odd given the lightness of the fruit. Some black pepper notions. Interesting to drink.

2008 Domaine Huet Vouvray Demi-Sec Le Haut-Lieu - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray (1/25/2014)
Leaner than usual. The nose has nice honey and a hint of butter. The palate is viscous but has less sweetness by far than I expected. Stone fruits and honey comb but more on the waxy than honey side. Long and nice to drink but not what I expected.

2007 Altamura Cabernet Sauvignon - USA, California, Napa Valley (1/24/2014)
Crushed rocks, flint, mint and raw beef. The palate is big and brawny with chocolate, beef and biting tannins. Ive seen notes saying that this is an overblown flabby wine but I think it is very structured and might turn into something much better over the next few years. Nice.

2011 Aubert Chardonnay Lauren Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (1/24/2014)
Very interesting nose. At first the nose is very buttery and I thought I would get an oak bomb. Quickly it turned to what I can only describe at warm, ripe pears. Some match stick and yellow stone fruits as well. A nose that makes me want to jump in the glass. The palate is amazing. Loaded with pear, nectarine and a hint of citrus. Long and viscous. Delicious. Loved this wine.

2005 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage (1/21/2014)
The nose on this is beguiling. Crushed bright raspberries, pomegranate juice, dried violets, and just a hint of camphor. The palate is concentrated but light on its feet with pomegranate seed, a touch of animal skin, dried beef and slightly tart acid. A touch of bitterness in the finish leading to drying tannins. I really like this.

1993 Domaine des Baumard Quarts de Chaume - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Quarts de Chaume (1/18/2014)
Smells of brie rind, and honey. The palate is dense with buckwheat honey, lime and a hint of toffee. Long finish that hints at sweetness though the wine is more salty than sweet.

1999 M. Chapoutier Ermitage Le Pavillon - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage (1/18/2014)
Nose of dark fruits, chalk, rocks, and spices. The palate carries much of the same. There’s a concrete? (Grandpa owned a quarry and there was a concrete producer on site…it reminded me of that powdered concrete smell and taste in the air.) This might be cool climate but it has every big of the body and mouthfeel of new world Syrah just not the sweet notes. Charcoal and beef notes there as well. Good, interesting wine.

2002 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne - France, Champagne (1/18/2014)
Bready nose. Drank this next to cristal which made is seem round and soft. More like a still chard. Mild citrus notes. Round stone fruit palate. Mousse is moderate and softens quickly. Good not great.

2003 Château Pape Clément - France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan (1/18/2014)
The nose has coffee grounds, soy, tobacco leaves, and a hint of mint. The pate is mouth coating with bright cherries, ash, a hint pg raw beef and moderate tannins. Im not a huge Bordeaux fan but I could drink this every day.

2005 Louis Roederer Champagne Cristal Brut - France, Champagne (1/18/2014)
Yeasty creamy nose. Lots of flowery notes. Citrus as well. The palate is bright and lemony with just a touch of sweet. Long and delicious. Only complaint the mousse dissipated quicker that i expected.

2005 Sine Qua Non Pinot Noir Over & Out - USA, California (1/18/2014)
Big pinot nose with some dust, olives, oak, and smoke. The palate is full with pomegranate, ripe cherries, cinnamon and candied orange rind. Long finish. Still youthful and full throttle.

2009 Rhys Pinot Noir Alpine Hillside - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (1/18/2014)
Fire works. Decanted for two hours. Poured back in the bottle and drank an hour later. Amazing aromatics. Violets, mint, leather. The palate is already doing a great balance dance with bright cherries, pomegranate and that leathery quality. Great wine. Young as hell but already so compelling.

2010 Hamilton Russell Pinot Noir Hemel-en-Aarde Valley - South Africa, Walker Bay, Hemel-en-Aarde Valley (1/18/2014)
Not impressed. Oily, stinky nose. The palate is also a little oily. Not much fruit. Drinkable but juet barely.

2011 Schrader Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon RBS Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard - USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville (1/18/2014)
Big brawny nose very undifferentiated. The palate is delicious but really tannic. Loads of dark young fruit. I was hoping the 11s would be good for early drinking. Wrong. Great acidity ps.

2007 Hourglass Cabernet Franc Blueline - USA, California, Napa Valley (1/11/2014)
Same as before but I didn’t not get the huge caramel note this time. Might have been a bit corked as I get whiffs of cardboard but it’s just as intense as before? Who knows. Still good. Still not cab franc like.

2005 Lillian Winery Syrah - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County (1/8/2014)
Nice wine. Nose of blackberries and plums. The palate is thick and viscous still but the fruit has settled into velvety purpleness. Mild meatiness, less than I would like and not a ton of complexity but a good wine no less.

2003 Vineyard 29 Cabernet Sauvignon 29 Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena (1/3/2014)
Good, not great. Loads of cassis and dark berries but a little on the overdone side surprisingly. Charcoal, caramel and roasted plums. A bit disjointed. Might have been poorly stored at one point in its life.

2009 Bedrock Wine Co. Cuvée Caritas - USA, California, Sonoma County (1/3/2014)
Generally I don’t mind oak in whites but this is a bit too oaky even for me. The tropical fruits make it seem worse as stone fruit in chard for instance doesn’t clash with oak as much as the fruit here. I liked this a lot better younger. Go figure.

2003 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon - France, Champagne (1/2/2014)
Nose of brioche and citrus. This is young for me. Solid mousse and great acidity and salinity dominated by citrus notes. Clean and sharp but I like my champagne a little rounder. If you like glass cutting precision this might be for you. Mine will sleep.

2009 Fairchild Estate Cabernet Sauvignon G III - USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena (12/27/2013)
Drank over three days. Awesome nose with plums, coffee, mint, and berries. The palate is striking for its clean acidity and bright red, juicy fruit. Seamless and mouthwatering. I am partial to the deeper, darker fruit of the sigaro but I really like this as well.

2002 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection - USA, California, Napa Valley (12/25/2013)
It took about an hour for this to fill out but once it did the nose showed chocolate, blackberries, cinnamon and some oak. The palate is mouth coating with chocolate and berries as well as some tobacco. The finish is long and sweet. I like this wine a lot and it’s drinking very well now.

2005 Mollydooker Shiraz Carnival of Love - Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, McLaren Vale (12/25/2013)
Dark and brooding nose with lots of oak, not promising. The palate is big and juicy, however, and full of blackberries and vanilla notes. Smooth and juicy throughout. Delicious. It has mellowed significantly.

2007 Mollydooker Cabernet Sauvignon Gigglepot - Australia, South Australia (12/25/2013)
The nose offers some vanilla and bright red berries. The palate has some baking spices, ripe raspberries, some cherries and a little oak. Bright and clean. This used to be candied, no longer. Enjoyable though not great.

2009 Orin Swift Papillon - USA, California, Napa Valley (12/25/2013)
Meh. The nose is pleasant enough with some berries and coffee. The palate is thin to me, the fruit just doesn’t go anywhere and it’s unidimensional. Not bad, just didn’t do anything for me.

2011 Carlisle Syrah Papa’s Block - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley (9/16/2013)
Two bottles, one great one not so good. Not corked, just not quite right. On the good one the nose is big and brawny with meat, smoke, wood and some vanilla. The palate is big but smooth with loads of ripe dark berries and game. Long and delicious.

2005 Dolce Winery Late Harvest - USA, California, Napa Valley (11/26/2012)
Honey, vanilla, caramel, candied nuts. Talk about dessert in a glass. Viscous and delicious. Could use more acid but delicious.

Posted from CellarTracker

Humberto! Long time no see man. That is quite the list. Funny that you only posted one score, thus forcing me to read, the horror! It looks like you have been drinking well. From what I recall you liked big wines like Clio but this list shows that perhaps there is another side of Humberto?! I also like the Krug NV, well I guess I actually like any Krug. Cheers to you! [cheers.gif]

HOLY CRAP, Humberto!!!

I can’t believe you babykilled so many wines, like '05 Chave Hermitage

Kim!!! :slight_smile: Over time Ive started drinking things other than purple drank. Lately Champagne, chenins, and white bourgs have caught my attention.
I still prefer purple drank when push comes to shove :wink:

Todd…yeah…I know. The PLCB closed out the 05 Chave for some reason at a ridiculous price which I cant recall right now. They did the same thing with 01 Grange. The Granges were all cooked to shit but the Chaves were in good shape so it doesnt hurt much to kill one here and there. As for the rest of the baby killin’…here’s the thing. I have bought and insane amount of wine in the past year, overflowing my cellar capacity by more than 1000 bottles. Monday starts the construction in the expanded cellar (4500!!) so hopefully I wont run out of space again. In the mean time, for the past few months wine has been boxed and stacked in a very cool corner of the basement, lots of boxes. Essentially I cant reach my older wine right now, or I dont know where it is :wink:

You’re drinking well my friend. Any plans to come out this way?

Lot’s of good stuff there.

Anytime youre ready Loren. Im getting 2 weekends off a month so we could work something out :slight_smile: