Any thoughts on the upcoming Cirq offering?

WINE TALK
21

So any idea from what vineyard(s) this wine is sourced ?

22

Bootlegger’s and Treehouse. And maybe some others as suggested up thread.

23

Any thoughts on the upcoming 2018 release? Maybe if the price drops $50 I’m in.

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24

I still buy KB but have passed on Cirq lately based on the price. Waiting for the CHEV offering.

25

Seems unlikely. I dropped after the $20 increase last year. Unless that rolls back I’ll stay out.

Anyone tried the CHEV from last year?

26

I did about a month ago and it’s right in the Michael Brown style, yummy and lush.

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27

+1

28

How much was the Chev?

29

$80+shipping last year.

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30

$150 again this year. Grape sources are all over the place. Easy pass for me (but may be a great wine).

31

Odd - didn’t get the email saying “it’s open” but do have an allocation. I will likewise pass at $150. Enjoyed in the past, but the stratospheric prices are beyond where I want to be. The private equity guys that got it to this place can enjoy.

32

just a quick clarification: the PE guys are not involved in Cirq, at least they were not a few years ago. Michael owns it and IIRC there’s another friend that’s invested in Cirq. I won’t say the PE money from KB didn’t fund Cirq, a few of us happened to be with Michael the day he got paid out after the first PE sold KB to the second PE and fully vested him. It was a good day. [wow.gif]

33

No plans to do single vineyard, at least the last I heard. The strategy is to allow the flexibility to blend to make the house style. Michael is incredible at blending and if you get the chance to barrel taste with him hang on!

the cirq I’ve tasted, from friend’s cellars, are remarkably consistent.

34

I guess I am a sucker for big, plush, juicy Pinot as I ordered my allocation. I like his style. Bought six of the Chev and they are good wines too. Not as nuanced as the Cirq (from private tastings) as admittedly I have not opened any from the last few vintages.

35

I’m not enamored with the price, but I love his wines. Tasted there with Michael in November 2019 and had a really enjoyable experience. He is quite the host, and really went out of his way for us. That night, at the KB Top Chef dinner we sat with the KB winemaker who sang Michael’s praises as second to none when it comes to blending.

Long way of saying I bought 6 yesterday.

36

This reminds me of the thread about wine lists we have been priced out of. This is the case for Cirq me.

37

I loved KB Pinot until a few years ago and have passed the past 2 years. The more I read it seems Cirq is more in the style of the old KB style. I only got wish request and I wished for 3. Let’s see.

38

At a dinner last night with FMIII and one of the other guests brought the Chev and said “I just purchased my Cirq allocation today”.

Frank said “I’d like to try these two wines side by side blind”

The host jumps up and comes back in with a Cirq. That a baby!

Others liked the Cirq better but I preferred the Chev but the difference was a nit. See Frank’s notes. These were not blind. The Chev was his WOTN and there was a handful of great grower bubbles and even a Kutch Falstaff!

Yeah, I was surprised :hushed:

2017 Cirq Pinot Noir Russian River Valley
7/18/2021 - FRANK MURRAY III WROTE:
Served alongside the 2018 Chev, which I preferred. There is definitely a level of concentration and depth in the Cirq that is more subtle in the Chev. We didn’t aerate the Cirq so it didn’t get the advantage of the aeration that the Chev received so my note here is disadvantaged by that inequality.


2018 CHEV Pinot Noir Russian River Valley
7/18/2021 - FRANK MURRAY III WROTE:
We served this alongside the 2017 Cirq. I gotta say I preferred the Chev. While there is more concentration and wood playing the dominant role now in the 2017 Cirq, the Chev just drinks with a juicier expression, lighter weighted. The Chev is really drinking superb right now. And as a complement to Michael B, the way he fashions a blend is a remarkable skill. For all the years I known him, and tasted with him during the KB days, he was absolutely driven by his ideas around making sure that the compositions he built hit all the parts of the palate. This to me is the beauty of the Chev here, as it has a composition, a build of flavor and balance that is superb.

39

Yeah, so I was offered a “wish list” offering of a 3-pak and after much hand wringing, I decided to take it. I’m really not sure why I struggle with 3 digit domestic Pinot, but my rational was that if I don’t like the '18, then it’s not for me.

40

With the move away from Bootlegger’s Hill and Treehouse yet into the RRV appellation blend, we passed on the 2018 release after purchasing the 2017’s. Say what you will, but at $150 you better deliver something exceptional and IMHO CIRQ hasn’t since 2013.