2001 Pride Mountain Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon – USA, California, Napa Valley (3/28/2010)
Full throttle, big, syrupy blueberry, milk chocolate, new oak. Cloyingly sweet. I found it overbearing and rather one-dimensional though I know this style is (or at least has been) very popular among some critics and collectors. I bought these wines early in my collecting “career” and now am disappointed more often than not. My opinion is that this style is unbalanced. Checking in on the wine on Day 2, it is all prune flavor. (85 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker on GrapeStories.com

2006 Piron-Lameloise, Domaine Chénas Quartz – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Chénas (3/22/2010)
Sour, unripe plum with — perhaps only by the power of suggestion — a quartz, stony line. Unpleasant by itself, but worked “okay” once the meal of flank steak marinated in BBQ sauce started. Pass at prices greater than a couple of bucks. (79 pts.)

2005 Domaine Ruet Brouilly – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Brouilly (3/24/2010)
Lovely dark color to this medium bodied wine. Long, slow legs. Initial grapey flavor develops nicely with air to cherry, sweet balsamic vinegar, and pine needles. Good value at ~$18 from a local grocer. Respectable daily drinker and party wine for guests. (88 pts.)

2008 Domaine de Colette Régnié Sélection Vieilles Vignes – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Régnié (3/23/2010)
Thin, not much flavor. Tart cherry, hot alcohol. Simple and forgettable. (75 pts.)

2006 Dominique Piron Brouilly Domaine de Combiaty – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Brouilly (3/22/2010)
Brett. NR (flawed)

2006 Dominique Piron Morgon Côte du Py – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon (3/21/2010)
Tart black cherry, fig, crushed mint leaves, and a touch of black pepper. Light to Medium bodied, silky texture. Nice wine with no sharp edges. Excellent QPR for $17.99 from Whole Foods (Oakland). (85 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker on GrapeStories.com

1998 Raymond Vineyard & Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve – USA, California, Napa Valley (4/5/2010)
This was one of my favorite wines from the 98 Napa vintage. It seriously over-performed for most of its life, but, like an aging rock star, the live concert isn’t quite as good as it once was and depends on nostalgia to make up for the shortcomings of overage. Initial notes were promising — deep cherry, raspberry, wood smoke, and saddle leather but grew too astringent within 30 minutes of opening. Flavors continued to thin out leaving just a stemmy, cherry shell of its former self. Drink up if you still have them.

Posted from CellarTracker on GrapeStories.com

1989 Philip Togni Cabernet Sauvignon – USA, California, Napa Valley, Spring Mountain District (4/29/2010)
Although I own a few bottles of various vintages from Togni, this is the first I’ve opened. They are known to be notoriously slow agers, needing far more time in the cellar than most Napa Cabs. If you are turned off by green pepper and veggie flavors in your wine, this wine is not for you. My wife didn’t like it at all, but I did, especially once the NY Strip arrived. It is remarkably youthful in appearance. The nose initially screams Jalapeno but as the wine opens up a bit, lovely currant came through as well. In the mouth the fruit is bright with a heavy dose of bell pepper. Secondary flavors of tobacco, espresso, and sage complement. Acid is high and tart, tannins are smooth, and the fruit is big. The green element plays a too forward a role for me. I would hope with even more time in the cellar, this characteristic will back off giving a chance for this wine to bump up a point or two. Like most 20 year olds, this one needs to mature. (88 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker on GrapeStories.com

2004 Kathryn Kennedy Syrah – USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (4/28/2010)
Cranberry fruit cocktail, mint leaves, crushed cooking herbs, just a touch of char-grill. Very nice, but turns a bit sour in the middle. Drink over the next 3-4 years. (87 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker on GrapeStories.com

2005 Shibumi Knoll Chardonnay Buena Tierra Vineyard – USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley (3/20/2010)
Tropical fruit, a banana pina colada with some sweetness. River rock. Every once in a while I’d get some buttered popcorn notes but this is not a stereotypical buttery chard. Big, unctuous, but balanced with good acidity. Much more impressive than I recall my first bottle being back in 2008. I think this wine has upside potential until at least 2014. (91 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker on GrapeStories.com

Good read: short essay on life as an SR-71 Blackbird pilot

Baconbrook 4/20/10

Butterdragon Hill 4/22/10. Notice how much more growth this vineyard has than Baconbrook

The 21st Amendment to the Constitution says that the “transportation or importation into any State, Territory, or possession of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating liquors, in violation of the laws thereof, is hereby prohibited.” The Commerce Clause of the US Constitution says that Congress has the power to regulate trade between the states. Through many decisions over the years, the Commerce Clause has also been interpreted to mean that states are not allowed to establish anti-competitive practices: states were not allowed to discriminate against products or trade from another state. In 2005, the Supreme Court ruled in Granholm v Heald that states which allowed direct shipments to consumers from their own in-state wineries and in-state retailers could not prohibit out-of-state wineries and retailers from shipping to consumers. This decision opened the door for direct shipping of wine to many states where before it had never been possible. State legislatures had to choose to either restrict their own in-state industry or allow out-of-state wineries and retailers to fairly participate in their market.
Now, bill H.R. 5034 has been introduced to the US House of Representatives with the direct backing of the National Beer Wholesalers Association. It would prohibit wineries from bringing legal action against states who violate this provision of the Constitution’s Commerce Clause.
We believe that whether you ever order wine from out-of-state or even whether you ever drink alcoholic beverages, it is vital to our country’s economic health that free trade be allowed between states. Please contact your representative and let them know that you oppose HR 5034.

---

PRESS RELEASE FROM NAPA VALLEY VINTNERS:
In an effort to turn back the clock on the direct shipment of wine to consumers, a bill has been introduced in Congress recently that would, in effect, overturn the 2005 “Granholm v. Heald” U.S. Supreme Court decision that helped pave the way for wineries to ship wine directly to many more consumers around the country.
H.R. 5034, crafted by the National Beer Wholesalers Association would make it practically impossible to bring legal action against states’ wine shipping laws that violate the Constitution’s Commerce Clause by prohibiting wine shipment from out of state, while permitting their own in-state wineries to ship direct. The end result would be a return to discriminatory wine shipping laws within the states, creating economic hardship for wineries that consider direct shipment and important sales channel and greatly restricting choice among wine consumers nationwide.
The NVV believes that consumers in all 50 states should have the ability to directly purchase fine wine. Many medium to small wineries have very limited distribution and garner little attention from the large distributors. These wineries survive by selling wine through mailing lists, wine clubs, and over the internet.
Napa Valley Vintners agree that the existing three-tier system should be augmented, not eliminated, and should provide controls and regulations necessary to respect local laws, avoid underage access and provide provisions to make tax payments. It is not the intent of any winery to sell alcohol to minors or to avoid payment of local, state or federal taxes on their wines.

2001 Darioush Cabernet Sauvignon Signature – USA, California, Napa Valley (3/12/2010)
One of my better Darioush experiences: I still think the wine is overoaked, but the monster has been tamed a bit by time. Cassis, stewed fruit, espresso, toasted oak, with a long finish of dusty tannins. Bottle opened at 2PM, decanted at 6, drank at 8. This wine needs significantly more time in the cellar. (88 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker on GrapeStories.com