Chateau de Fussignac Bordeaux Superieur 2003

J.F. Carrille “Chateau de Fussignac” Bordeaux Superieur 2003
Tasting Notes: Merlot and Cabernet Franc blend, 12% vol. Dark, ruby red hue, turning a bit brick red-ish near the edges. Still quite fresh on the nose with beautiful notes of black fruits, brambleberry and sweet vanilla and cinnamon spice. Velvety, smooth on the attack but then immediately transitioning into a very dark chocolaty texture and flavor on the mid-palate with the tannins at the forefront. Balanced pretty well by a juicy acidity and flavors of blackberries, black cherries and vanilla. This is definitely a food wine, no surprise there. This will pair perfectly, as planned, with Bordeaux’s hearty cuisine of confit de canard and fois gras.
Rating: 15/20 (89/100)
Price: ~US$20 @ Lionsbridge-Ebay

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Sartori di Verona “Regolo” Rosso Veronese 2006

Segway: This wine was enjoyed during my family’s Christmas Eve dinner, paired with my mom’s homemade lasagna! The bottle was hand-selected by Chuck, the main buyer at The Andersons market. Chuck’s task was to fill up one case for me for under $120. This local supermarket has one of the better selections in Columbus, by the way. One would never suspect this, however, by the store’s unassuming, small-town supermarket appearance. The bottle retails for $25-ish but was on sale for $12!

Winemaking: The vineyards are located in the hilly area of Valpolicella, north of Verona. Select clusters of Corvina grapes are carefully harvested. The maceration lasts for 8 to 10 days. Following maceration the wine goes through the “rispasso” process, where the wine rests on the lees left over from Amarone, enhancing the wine’s aromatics and aging potential. After the malolactic fermentation, the wine ages for 18 to 24 months in medium to large-sized oak casks. Before release the wine is aged in the bottle for at least 6 months.

Sartori di Verona “Regolo” Rosso Veronese 2006
Tasting Notes: 100% Corvina, 13.5% vol, unfiltered. Deep, dark, ruby red in the glass, with brick-red around the edges. Very herbal, spicy nose, opening up to beautiful violets and more subtle notes of rich, ripe black fruits. Smooth and juicy texture in the mouth, a tart acidity that is fairly well-balanced, a bit too sour but definitely not an over kill. There are flavors of black cherries and strawberries on the mid-palate and prunes and lingering sourness on the finish. A bit disjointed between the nose and the mouth. The nose definitely wins out with its pretty floral notes and complexity. An over-all pretty good wine.
Rating: 16/20 (90/100)
Price: $25 retail @ The Andersons

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William Kavney Cellars Napa Valley Cab

Segway: I first discovered this wine at the Brookside Golf & Country Club Open House Wine and Spirits Tasting, with my dad. It was all the rave and I remember thinking it was pretty good but not paying too much attention to it, since I was more focused on the socializing than I was the wine. I forget the details but the generalities behind the story of this wine are that William Kavney apparently bought the best wines that were left over from the production of some top Napa producers. He then blends them together to make his small production creation with a Bulldog logo on the clearly hand-crafted label.

The story behind the Hausfrau Haven wine store is pretty cool too. Hausfrau Haven is where I purchased the William Kavney Cellars bottle. I was asking around at the open house, trying to pinpoint who in Ohio distributed and/or retailed Guigal wines. I was a winemaking apprentice, A.K.A. Cellar Rat, at Guigal during the 2009 vintage and so naturally I’m deadset on getting my hands on one of the 2009 LaLas. I’m pretty damn proud to be able to say that I helped make those wines and was part of the EPIC 2009 vintage. By the way I was also part of spilling a few thousand dollars worth of wine on the cellar floor, after failing to properly fasten one of the pumps. I considered it an offering to the French wine gods. LaLa, by the way, is the nickname for Guigal’s top single-vineyard Cote-Roties (La Turque, La Mouline and La Landonne) that demand between 3 and 5 bills a bottle! But more importantly, these are some AMAZING wines!

So how the hell does Guigal have anything to do with this William Kavney Cellars tasting, other than me selfishly plugging my 2009 vintage? Well nothing yet, except that after asking around at the Open House, I was told that the top wine buyer in Columbus was Faye, owner of Hausfrau Haven wine store and “the best palate in Ohio”. And additionally, I was told that she would be the best bet for finding a bottle of a Guigal LaLa. So I dropped in for a visit to Hausfrau and sure enough they carried Guigal, including the LaLas! Now my name’s on the list for the 2009 vintage, which is still in the barrel btw, and won’t be in the shop for another 6 to 12 months. Some of the LaLas are aged for up to 4 years in barrel. Now that’s what I call barrel ageing!

Sorry I understand that I STILL haven’t got to the point of today’s tasting. So much buildup I know! Well the closing chapter of this saga is that after speaking to one of the wine reps and asking for his favorite bottle under $20, he immediately grabbed the William Kavney Cellar 2007 Cab, the exact same wine that was all the rave at the Brookside Open House. The End!

William Kavney Cellars “Cabernet Sauvignon” Napa Valley 2007
Tasting Notes: 100% cabernet sauvignon, 13.8% vol. Dark ruby red in the glass. A decent amount of alcohol on the nose, accompanied by pleasant and subtle notes of black fruits, cinnamon and vanilla spice. Silky-smooth texture up front, followed by strong fruit, black cherry jam, good balance of acidity and finishing with dry tannins and notes of dark chocolate and oak. Certainly nothing magical and not all the rave, BUT definitely an overall enjoyable wine.
Rating: 15/20 (89/100)
Price: US$20 @ Hausfrau Haven in German Village, Columbus, Ohio

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Argentine Torrontés Reserva from Valle de Cafayate

Finca el Origen “Reserva Torrontes” Valle de Cafayate 2009
Tasting Notes: 100% torrontes, 30-year-old vines, 14% vol. Pale, golden, honey-yellow in the glass. A fresh and bright nose with notes of sweet grass and a nice floral spiciness. There are also notes of fresh tropical fruits, in particular pineapple. Overall this wine has a relatively pleasant nose although there is a subtle chemical nuance, limiting the wine’s full integration. In the mouth this wine is very smooth, silky and full-bodied. The acidity is well-balanced and there are flavors of canned peaches, pineapple, and a grapefruit-like bitterness. Not bad for the price point but certainly nothing to write home to mom about.
Rating: 13/20 (84/100)
Price: $150 Mexican Pesos @ Tierra de Vinos (Mexico City)

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