FargleSnargle.com

2000 Robert Young Alexander Valley Scion

2000 Robert Young Alexander Valley Scion $50

In January, I took my first wine trip to Sonoma. The night before I left, I talked to a friend who had gone many times.

February 19th, 2005 Posted by Dave | Wine | no comments

2000 Quivira Dry Creek Cuvee

2000 Quivira Dry Creek Cuvee $5

Yep, it was five bucks, and I bought it at Trader Joe’s. It is probably the soon to dry up wine glut that brought us the likes of “Two-buck Chuck” in recent years. All I can say is given the choice between the two for something to drink with pizza or spaghetti, choose this one. For the price, it is a nice blend of Grenache, Mourvedre, Syrah and Zinfandel.

According to this page, one of the big wine magazines gave this one 91 points.

February 19th, 2005 Posted by Dave | Wine | no comments

2001 Robert Biale Black Chicken Zinfandel

2001 Robert Biale Black Chicken Zinfandel $34

Have I mentioned that I really like the Robert Biale Black Chicken Zinfandel? I probably did, but just in case, assume that I do!

I like the nice spicy finish with no raisin or prune flavor. There is some plum flavor, but it is not over-ripe. The 2001 Black Chicken is simply a great Zinfandel in my book!

They are currently selling the 2002 version of this one, and I’m a bit worried about the description, because they use the words “jam” and “jammy” in the same sentence to describe it. Well I hope they haven’t changed it much from this one, as this one is very nice as it is.

February 19th, 2005 Posted by Dave | Wine | no comments

2000 Sartori di Verona Amarone della Valpolicella Classico

2000 Sartori di Verona Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOC about $30

I like this one a lot!

If I didn’t have the label to look at, I’d say this was a nice Napa wine. Nice dark red color with dark fruit or perhaps a bit of cherry aroma. There is just a touch of chocolate in the taste, and the wine is very well balance from beginning to end.

February 19th, 2005 Posted by Dave | Wine | 2 comments

Castell de Falset ’98

So this is a very nice blend from Spain; 45% Grenache, 35% Cab, and 20% Tempranillo. The label reports that the grapes are from 50 year old hillside vines (or older) — love those hillsides. I cannot remember exactly what we paid for it, but I want to say it was under $10.

A dark ruby color and 13.5% alchohol, this one exudes raspberry, cherry, and rose on the nose with plum, cherry, and a hint of spices and tobacco on the palate. We enjoyed it with roast chicken one evening and London Broil the next. Have gone thru 3-4 bottles and still have one in the cellar. Looking for an inexpensive red blend to go with your next Bar-B-Q meal?? You cannot go wrong with this one.

February 10th, 2005 Posted by Jim | Wine | no comments

1999 Antinori Tignanello $80

This is one of those wines that was so good that you don’t want to throw away the bottle after you’ve finished it. I may have let it sit on the mantle for a while.

I had three of these in the cooler, so of course I thought that I could safely open one. I remember when I first tasted it, that I thought that it could sit for a while.

This wine is huge! In fact I think that I’ll keep the other two bottles for two or three more years. They would easily last longer.

The color is very dark red. The aroma contains a little red fruit, perhaps plums. I noticed that after an hour it opened up quite nicely. I would definitely say to decant this one and let it sit for a little while.

As for the taste, it has a perfectly balanced taste curve. Everything about it is perfect. Very nice tannins. Great finish.

Here is what Antinori has to say about the 1999 Tignanello.

February 6th, 2005 Posted by Dave | Wine | one comment