Various Wines -

Notes and impressions from a tasting of various wines - Saturday, July 7, 2001, at the Wine Exchange in Orange, CA. Seventeen wines were poured.

Overall impressions: a very wide selection of wines here, including a few I've seldom seen. The big hits for me were the Turley Tofanelli Zin, and the Glen Fiona Syrah. Beyond that, the Atalon was a brawny chewy wine in Merlot-colored clothing. The Mt. Eden Chard was excellent, but it's gonna cost you.

Biggest bargains: the Turley Juvenile and the Sobon Reserve Grenache. Disappointments include: the Flowers Chard, Panther Creek Pinot, and the Dalla Valle Sangiovese. The Flowers had a seriously funky nose; the Panter Creek just didn't seem very together; and the Dalla Valle didn't seem to know whether it wanted to be from Italy or California.

Individual Tasting Notes, in Order Tasted:

2000 Vinum Cellars Chenin Blanc - California. $7.99. Light yellow color. Nose that is very fresh and smelling like a fruity bisquit. Tasty and crisp mouthfeel; nice fruit, long finish.
Aroma score: B Taste score: B Overall score: B

2000 St. Innocent Pinot Gris - O'Connor Vnyd, Willamette Valley. $11.99. Light yellow color. Slightly sweaty and swampy, but has a fresh fruit quality throughout. Tasty mouthfeel, lightly pineapple is taste, with a crisp and fruity finish.
Aroma score: B Taste score: B+ Overall score: B

1999 Flowers Chardonnay - Sonoma Coast. $34.99. Light-medium yellow color. Skunky and gamey, with a fleshy stemmy quality in the background. Flavors of green apple, pineapple, and a touch of lemon and smoke on the palate, with little of the skunkiness apparent in the nose. Didn't appear to be corked, so maybe this will blow off.
Aroma score: C+ Taste score: B Overall score: B

1998 Mount Eden Chardonnay Estate - Santa Cruz Mtns. $43.99. Light-medium yellow color. Nose of pineapple, apple, oak, and toast. Sweet chewy mouthfeel, with nicely integrated flavors of apple, lemon-lime peel and toast, with a long finish.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: A- Overall score: B+

1999 Dalla Valle Sangiovese Pietre Rosse - Napa Valley. $32.99. medium-dark ruby color. Racy and spicy in the nose, with oak, black cherry, and a hint of licorice. Slightly astringent mouthfeel, spicy, with some rubber and and oak flavors, and a long finish.
Aroma score: B Taste score: B Overall score: B

1997 Altamura Sangiovese Affinity - 70% Napa Valley, 30% Monterey. $29.99. Medium-dark ruby color. Nose of spicy sweet black and bing cherry, anise, and clove/mint. Spicy mouthfeel, excellent balance, sweet and somewhat chewy consistency, with a long finish. Definitely California style.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1999 Panther Creek Pinot Noir - Shea Vnyd, Willamette Valley. $38.99. Medium-dark ruby color. Seems a bit corky and stemmy in the nose, with notes of oak, anise, and black cherry. Off-sweet tasty fruit, somewhat astringent and oaky in mouthfeel, very long finish.
Aroma score: B Taste score: B Overall score: B

1995 Teldeschi Terranova - Dry Creek Valley. $12.99. Dark ruby color. Nose of chocolate-covered cherries, with floral, licorice, and plummy notes. Sweet and slightly overripe mouthfeel, with flavors of chocolate and ripe bing cherry, with a nice cherry aftertaste and long finish. Blend of Carignane, Zinfandel and Petite Sirah.
Aroma score: B Taste score: B Overall score: B

1999 Andrew Murray Espérance - Santa Barbara Co. $17.99. Dark ruby color. Sweet, lush and floral nose. Seems very concentrated, with aromas of dark berry, shoe polish, and stemmy notes. Fleshy and spicy mouthfeel, chewy consistency, and a nice grip to the long finish. Blend of Syrah, Grenache, and Mourvedre.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1999 Sobon Grenache Rezerve - Shenandoah Valley. $18.99. Medium-dark ruby garnet color. Ripe and slightly stemmy nose, with aromas of raspberry, buttered toast, and anise. Sweet chewy mouthfeel, very ripe raspberry/strawberry fruit, lsightly coarse mouthfeel, but with integrated tannins and long finish.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

Favorites, in Order of Preference:
1999 Turley Zinfandel - Tofanelli Vnyd, Dry Creek Valley. $27.99.
1998 Glen Fiona Syrah - Walla Walla Valley. $35.99.
1997 Atalon Merlot Mountain Estates - Napa Valley. $54.99.
1998 Mount Eden Chardonnay Estate - Santa Cruz Mtns. $43.99.
1999 Turley Zinfandel Juvenile - California. $19.99.
1997 Altamura Sangiovese Affinity - 70% Napa Valley, 30% Monterey. $29.99.
1999 Sobon Grenache Estate - Shenandoah Valley. $18.99.
1999 Andrew Murray Esperance - Santa Barbara Co. $17.99.
1999 Turley Zinfandel - Grist Vnyd, Napa Valley. $37.99.
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2000 St. Innocent Pinot Gris - O'Connor Vnyd, Willamette Valley. $11.99.
1999 Rosenblum Petite Sirah Pickett Road - Napa Valley. $19.99.
1999 Dalla Valle Sangiovese Pietre Rosse - Napa Valley. $32.99.
1995 Teldeschi Terranova - Dry Creek Valley. $12.99.
2000 Vinum Cellars Chenin Blanc - California. $7.99.
1999 Panther Creek Pinot Noir - Shea Vnyd, Willamette Valley. $38.99.
1999 Bonny Doon Muscat Vin de Glaciere - California. $12.99.
1999 Flowers Chardonnay - Sonoma Coast. $34.99.

1998 Glen Fiona Syrah - Walla Walla Valley. $35.99. Dark ruby color. Dead ringer for an high-end Languedoc, with lots of tarry, cheese toast, floral and licorice aromas. Ripe tar-like flavors, with cheese, sweet oak, and blackberry through long finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1997 Atalon Merlot Mountain Estates - Napa Valley. $54.99. Dark ruby color. Nose of dark cherry, meat, stem, and tar-like, with a background herbaceous quality resembling Cab Franc. Huge off-sweet mouthfeel, black cherry and cassis flavors, with a bit of tar and licorice leading to the well-oaked long finish. So much for plush and plummy!
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1999 Rosenblum Petite Sirah Pickett Road - Napa Valley. $19.99. Black purple ruby color. Nose has tons of tar, black cherry, and shoe polish. Huge chewy off-sweet mouthfeel, that while tasty, aso seems a bit austere.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: B Overall score: B

1999 Turley Zinfandel Juvenile - California. $19.99. Very dark ruby color. Floral and fruity in the nose, with a big dense boysenberry/blackberry aroma. Very chewy and concentrated in mouthfeel, with a delicious ready-to-drink taste and long finish.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1999 Turley Zinfandel - Tofanelli Vnyd, Dry Creek Valley. $27.99. Very dark ruby purple color. Big, dense, floral and fruity nose, with tar, brown sugar and shoe polish complimenting the boysenberry fruit. Chewy and concentrated, with a nice sweet toasty long finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: A- Overall score: A-

1999 Turley Zinfandel - Grist Vnyd, Napa Valley. $37.99. Very dark ruby color. Slightly stemmy nose, with olive and oak accenting the raspbberry/boysenberry fruit. Rich chewy mouthfeel, lots of boysenberry flavor, very nice balance, and long finish.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1999 Bonny Doon Muscat Vin de Glaciere - California. $12.99. Medium-dark yellow amber color. Sweet orange rind and pineapple in the nose, with a decent mouthfilling concentration of fruit - or the perception of fruit.
Aroma score: B Taste score: B Overall score: B


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