HERE AT LAST – BEYOND 100 POINTS – NIRVANA!

Well, it was bound to happen. In fact, I have been predicting it for years. And now it looks like that day is about to arrive. This should be music to the ears of all the folks who drink numbers. They have dreamed, lusted, and drooled for something beyond the 100 point wines that, in recent years, have been cropping up like wild flowers and weeds after a spring rain. This is, to my knowledge, the first wine ever anointed with a score above 100.

A Pair To Draw From – Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard and Quinta Cruz

This is the story of two wineries, one is the remains of a winery that was established in the early days of the California wine boom and the other is only a few years old. But they have a lot in common. They are now united in one winery facility. They have a common proprietor/winemaker with a long history of making balanced, harmonious, and flavorful wines without excessive oak or alcohol.

FLASH! BIG NUMBERS WINE CRITIC ISSUES REPORT ON 2009 BEAUJOLAIS

Last week it seems one of the “big” numbers wine critics sent out a notice entitled “The 2009 Beaujolais Hysteria: Is it Justified?” Forget the fact that most 2009 Beaujolais has been on the market since last summer/fall (see our reports beginning last summer). Forget the fact that the question posed is never answered. And most of all, forget some of the absurd comments. How about “freakishly large-scaled” or “fruit bombs?” Hah! This is a joke!

Champagne — Any Time Is Time For Champagne

We did our first review of Champagne in December 1979 (see Volume 1, Number 3 Underground Wine Letter Retrospective Issue). Interestingly, back then many wine drinkers paid little attention to Champagne. In those days a lot of Champagne had been poorly stored and were not at their best. But, to use a Yogi Berraism, then […]

AND THE BEAT GOES ON…

Wine prices have been really volatile for some time and a real topic of conversation among wine lovers. But, it looks like there is no end in sight. Consider the following:

The price of 2008 Mouton Rothschild has soared from $200 to $1000 per bottle literally overnight. What would cause such an increase you ask?

STORAGE, STORAGE, STORAGE!

In real estate, it’s location, location, location. In wine it’s storage, storage, storage. You see in real estate, for no matter how bad the building, location wins over development because a better building can always be built. Whereas, a poor location will not support a great building, and may not support a building at all. In wine it’s storage where even mediocre wine will be better if stored properly. And, even great wine will be ruined by poor storage.

LA TACHE TASTING NOTES AS WELL AS TASTING NOTES ON OTHER DOMAINE DE LA ROMANÉE CONTI WINES

Following are my comments on a vertical tasting of La Tache, Monopole du Domaine de la Romanee Conti 1966-1988, which I organized in Vancouver on September 14th, 2010, as well as a handful of other DRC wines tasted several days before and after this event (all in September). With the exception of the La Tache 1987 (contributed by a participant at this event), all the wines were from my cellar.

TIME TO GET INTO BEAUJOLAIS!

For some time I have been posting reviews of 2009 Beaujolais. And I will have a few more as the last of the wines arrive in the next month or so. However, I cannot emphasize enough how Cru Beaujolais is one of the most under appreciated wines in the world.

VINOUS DRIVE-BY — IT’S THE DRIVE-BY SIP AND SPIT!

Vinous Drive-By — It’s The Drive-By Sip and Spit!
As crazy as it sounds this actually happened. It was reported in a column by wine writer Dennis Schaefer in our local newspaper, The Santa Barbara News Press, On October 7, 2010. It seems that wine critic Robert Parker comes to our area once a year to taste local wines.

More 2009 Beaujolais

As I have been saying, 2009 is a superb year for Beaujolais. Is it the vintage of the century? Who knows and who cares? The point is that the wines are absolutely delicious. They have been arriving for the last few months and more will be arriving soon. Don’t miss them! Here are notes on some recent arrivals. The quality across the range of wines is outstanding and nearly all are Best Buys with prices from $12 to $25. These are wines you can drink now (remember Thanksgiving is not far off and Beaujolais is one of my favorite wines to serve with Thanksgiving turkey). But, you should also lay some away for the future. You’ll be glad you did.