Expensive wine with a screw cap. Youthful ruby. Compelling forest floor, bing cherry, and evergreen aromas. Powerful crushed berries with a lively acidic zing. I lived in Portland for 5 years and this is bringing me back home. According to my notes, I bought this for $60 in 2007 direct from Argyle. Its currently available for mid $40s. I wasn't a good shopper back then! At these prices I'd rather drink a premier cru burgundy, but I'm enjoying this. Grade: B+ 2005 Argyle Spirithouse Pinot Noir
Expensive wine with a screw cap. Youthful ruby. Compelling forest floor, bing cherry, and evergreen aromas. Powerful crushed berries with a lively acidic zing. I lived in Portland for 5 years and this is bringing me back home. According to my notes, I bought this for $60 in 2007 direct from Argyle. Its currently available for mid $40s. I wasn't a good shopper back then! At these prices I'd rather drink a premier cru burgundy, but I'm enjoying this. Grade: B+ 2009 Bouchard Beaune Teurons
Really dark- Looks more Californian. Fresh, juicy aromas of dripping sweet cherry candy. Ripe sugary sweet and very easy to drink. Would be a crowd pleaser, but not especially burgundian and the terrior isn't evident right now. Yet its tasty and the finish is long and smooth. Not a bad start to 2012! I love the 2005 version of this, and will hold my other bottles a few years and hope for more complexity to emerge. Retail $40, Grade: B+ 2003 Leoville Las Cases
Review #500! Dark ruby, just like a barrel sample. Classic cigar-box, plum aromas. Layer after layer of flavor, with some cherry tart, pencil, kick of jalapeno, and scorched earth. Ferociously tannic, but still smooth enough to drink now. Vibrating energy and hints at very dark fruits. Sleek and cool, but a little unforgiving. Great elegance, especially from an often over-ripe vintage. Great find by my friend Josh a few years ago for $99. Thanks Josh! I will hold my other bottle as long as my impatient ways allow. Grade: A 1999 Kistler Pinot Noir Kistler Vineyard
Seriously dark for a 13 year old wine. Looks like its just a few years old. Sticking sweet cherry nose. Like Cherry coke Palate is watermellon jolly rancher! One dimensional, but tasty. Could age another 5-10 more years I'd bet. Thanks again Don!
Grade: B+
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2007 Peter Michael Chardonnay Ma Belle-Fille
Pale gold. Great aromas of lemon, peaches and pineapple. Bold, oaky, huge wine, with an incredible balance and harmony. Some mint laced butter. The fairly high 14.8% alcohol really blends in. This is a monster, and very, very tasty. Very expensive, but worth it. Thanks Don!
Grade: A 2003 Bouchard Chambertin Clos De Beze
Smells like a magic enchanted forest, with wet evergreen, earth, and mushroom. With some smoked wild game. And a pot of highly spiced stewed cherries. Such an incredible nose I smell and smell and smell. Crystalline, dense and incredibly pure palate. Waves of Gevrey earth, spring flowers, and cured meats. Very long and harmonious finish, as if it stings the palate then slowly dissipates. Thankfully avoids the overripe 03 red burgundy pitfall. Jill and I are going nuts for this. It is singing now, but certainly not yet mature. Crush has some for $179, and it is a deal at that price. Grade: A/A+ 2007 Littorai Pinot Noir Cerise Vineyard
A very pretty deep ruby. Interesting aromas of wet bark, menthol, and mushroom. Like a block of rainy wood on the palate with some cranberry/ cherry juice and some persistent tannins. Long solid finish. A little unyielding on the palate, and I opened this 8 hours ago. I had a chardonnay from this producer once that blew me away. This one is less impressive, but still very good. Its got a real sense of place, but doesn't harmonize. Retail $65, grade: B+. 2009 Bouchard Volnay Caillerets Anciene Cuvee Carnot
Gorgeous color. Totally outrageous aromas with cinnamon, anise, and damp earth. A little sharp on the palate, but only because it is too young. Still closed after aggressive coaxing and 4 hours of being open, but I get hints of beef bouillon, cherry juice, and exotic spices like nutmeg and white pepper. A pleasure. I'm going to buy some to share with my vintage 2009 son when he's 21. Retail $50, grade: A. 2006 Stags Leap Artemis
Light ruby for a California cab. Really nice tobacco, roses and tar aromas. Graceful palate with a sleek, smooth long finish. Some still drying tannins. Not trendy, not flashy, just good. However for $50 its in tough company. I'd be a buyer for $25. Grade: B. 2009 Vietti Barbera D’Asti Tre Vigne
At first, not drinkable with a dirty palate. Becomes decent after a couple hours. Very dark purple. Baking chocolate, coffee grounds, and a huge tannic backbone. Along with the niceness, there's something unpleasant and unyielding, like overcooked meat. Vietti is a good producer, so this may get better in a few years . Long, but a little rough. Another sub $20 bottle from Whole Foods in Bonita Springs, Florida. Grade: C+.