Moderately intense aromas of sweet, oak-enriched cherries and decently concentrated flavors of similarly sweet ad slightly spicy fruit make for lots appeal. The wine is smooth, fleshy and somewhat lush in palatefeel and comes with a persistant, fairly open finish.
Although suggesting a wine of size and fruity extract in the nose, this young, medium-full-bodied working is not quite so generous in the mouth, yet its cherry-like qualities provide a clear and inviting varietal stamp.
A light and simple riesling, its peach flavors touched by smoke, this is a clean, fresh white to chill as an aperitiff.
There's a firm sense of cool ripened fruit, a touch of apricot and light floral Notes, but the wine expresses little at the moment. It's cold closed off, needing time to evolve in the bottle. It may take a year or three, but when the wine does open it's clean balance should serve well.
A heavy wine, atypical of the appellation, which usually produces light-bodied and elegant Pinots. There's something earthy & thick about this one, almost rustic. The flavors are fruity but it lacks the delicacy an Anderson Vly Pinot Noir ought to have, and there's an unpleasant sting of acidity.
Supple, generous & round, its black cherry & floral flavors pick up a hint of chocolate on the finish. With the dish, the Zin loses a little of its youthful ebullience but becomes a bit classier. Tannins, often abundant in young, red wines, won't seem so harsh if paired with foods having fat or protein. Below: Spicy Pork works perfectly with Edmeads Zinfandel Mendocino '97.
Forward tropical fruit; round, lush flavors, tropical fruit notes, juicy with crisp acidity; good finish. Nice as a cocktail wine...
Challenging, with lots of stuff. Smooth yet deep. You don't drink it, you experience it, and it rewards you.
Challenging with lots of stuff. Smooth yet deep. You don't drink it, you experience it, and it rewards you.
shows overt & inviting red fruit aromas immediately upon opening & its cherry fruit flavors, with just a trace of underbrush for complexity, are light but not simple, balanced but not big.
if you find an Edmeades zinfandel, take a gamble on it and you're likely to be rewarded. The '96 zin has the typically varietal briary nose; the concentration of dark fruit flavors are obvious, but it's not overdone nor overshadowed by high alcohol levels, as many zins are; subtle, almost elegant. Check out the single vineyard zins for a real treat.
is strikingly similar to Santa Barbara versions; the cool climate grapes get long hangtime resulting in a chard that's full of tropical fruit & green apples with a buttery finish.
Ripe fruit, soft blackberry and plum. A touch tart, some harsh oak. Undertones of vanilla.
Dry and gamy, with intense leathery flavors; tannic and earthy, with herb, tobacco and modest dried berry and currant flavors.
Firm and spicy, with cola, mustard seed, earth and black cherry flavors, finishing with a touch of bitterness from tannins. A solid effort.
Deep raspberry and cherry fruit buttressed by creamy vanillin oak and an earthy, animal element opens this dark, tangy wine. More of the same follows in the mouth where licorice, cocoa and espresso accents adds interest. Rich and burly, it closes with full but supple tannins.
With great fruit from the Russian River Valley, this pinot is deeply colored and has a rich black cherry fruit.
There are 3900 cases of the prodigious 1997 Cardinale, comprised primarily of Cabernet Sauvignon with a tiny dollop of Merlot. The whine has an opaque bluish black/purple color, a knockout nose of black cherry liqueur intermixed with cassis, lead pencil, mineral, and smoky oak. The glorious richness in the mouth is backed up by a full-bodied, opulently-textured, super-extracted wine that is neither heavy nor ponderous. Stunning purity, a fabulous multi-layered impression & a finish that goes on for nearly a minute make this the most exciting Cardinale to date. For statisticians, this is a blend of 91% Cabernet Sauvignon & 9% Merlot, of which 79% of the grapes came from Napa & 21% from Sonoma. It spent 22 months in 100% new French oak before being bottled with neither fining nor filtration. It tips the scale at 14.2% alcohol. Anticipated maturity: 2004-2030.
The most opulent, sexy, & immediately charming of this admirable quartet of 1997 Lokoya Cabernets is the 1997 Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain (1100 cases). It exhibits a saturated purple color in addition to an explosive nose of licorice, cedar, roasted herbs, & black plums and currants. Full-bodied, with a voluptuous texture, low acidity, & heady alcohol, this offering possesses considerable tannin, but it is beautifully submerged by the wine's depth of extract & high glycerin. Impressive, with a flamboyant personality, this '97 should drink well for 18-20 years.
The talented winemaker, Dan Klick, has produced a 1999 Chardonnay that spent much of its life on its lees in 50% new French oak, primarily from Francois Freres and Damy. Grown in decomposed granite and loamy soils, this wine has an almost Coche-Dury-like liquid minerality, intermixed with sumptuous levels of orange marmalade, lemon oil, and citrus. Full-bodied, impressively delineated, yet powerfully concentrated as well as elegant, this looks to be a profound Chardonnay that should age well for 4-5 years.
The tiny cuvee of 1998 Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder (132 cases) actually is the only 1998 that needs another 2-3 years of cellaring. It also will probably last 20-25 years, but will it achieve the greatness of the Diamond Mountain or the suppleness of the Rutherford? With a dense purple color, notes of scorched earth, liquid minerals, black fruits, cedar & licorice, this full-bodied, powerful, muscular wine has some tannin to shed,but it is loaded with extract & richness. To reiterate, these are amazing achievements in 1998.
The opaque purple-colored '97 Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder (220 cases) from an elevation of 1500 ft., reveals classic crème de cassis/mineral aromas, a superb mid-palate, and a full-bodied peersonality with impressive length & purity. It is not for readers desiring immediate gratification as it requires 4-5 years of cellaring. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2025.
More mineral, blueberry, plum, & earthy characteristics can be found in the dark puple-colored 1997 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain (700 cases). Softer in the mouth, but full-bodied, dense, and rich, it is an immensely impressive effort. Anticipated maturity: 2002-2020.
Exhibits buttery popcorn notes, rich full-bodied, powerful purity, and the longest finish, with the most intensity and nuances. It is a fabulous Chardonnay capable of lasting 4-5 years. These are all handsomely rendered Chardonnays.