Edmeades 2010 Zinfandel

This bottle of Edmeades 2010 Zinfandel, from the Samrock Vineyard, in Mendocino County, was sourced on our latest trip to Mendocino County.  We visited many wineries while we were up there and had a good time.  Edmeades is on a hill off the main drag and they had a few good bottles of wine.  We were tasting toward the later part of the day, so we were ready to be done for the day.  The tasting room was pretty interesting, because of the views and we were the only people in it.  The winery was well worth the visit and I do recommend dropping in for a tasting.

To the wine:

Nose:  The nose on this Mendocino Zinfandel was very lite, with spice notes.  I had to swirl vigorously to get a full sampling of the nose and the spice notes were interesting, in a good way.

Tasting Phase:  During the tasting phase I received a very lite strawberry notes and and a huge spice notes.  The spice notes were strong.  This created a very nice combination.

Finish:  The finish had a lite fruit notes, but the spice notes continue and stay with you.

Conclusion:  This was a pretty good bottle of wine.  When Sandra and I make it back up to Mendocino County, we will be stopping by for another tasting.  We will buy this wine again.

Husch Old Vine Zinfandel 2012

Sandra and I picked up this bottle of Husch Estate Bottled Old Vine Zinfandel 2012 on our last trip to Anderson Valley.  This was our first visit to the Husch winery.  The grounds were very well kept, but the tasting room was under construction, while we were there.  We tasted in the actual winery (barn) and it added to the wine tasting experience.

This Old Vine Zinfandel was the Ukiah Valey and was aged in French and American oak for 9 months.  The mixture of the different woods, added depth to the wine.

The nose of the wine is full of cinnamon spice and berries.  The nose smelt warm, if that works for you.  The wine had a very interesting nose to it.  The tasting phase was a combination berry, cherry, and spice.  There was a lite pulling off the back of my tongue.  The finish was warm and spicy and falls off nicely.  This is not a typical old vine zinfandel.  There is no jamminess or sweetness to this wine.  The wine has a cherry red color with very good clarity.  I would consider this a lite zinfandel.

I would purchase this wine again.

Brutocao 2010 Quadriga, Hopland Ranches, Estate Bottled

Brutocao Cellars has been reviewed several times on this wine blog.  They produce some very good wine and they have never disappointed me.  Sandra and I picked up this bottle of Brutocao 2010 Quadriga, the last time we were in Anderson Valley.  This wine is a blend of 45% Sangiovese, 33% Primitivo, 11% Barbera & 11% Dolcetto.  The wine is  quite a package and Sandra and I really enjoyed drinking this wine.

The nose of the wine was full berries and spice.  This was a full nose and you did not have to swirl hard to get the full experience.  The tasting was warm, strong and tangy.  This is not a sweet wine, but close to it.  There is a lite engagement of the tongue, that is not drastic.  The finish is warm and lingers.  There is a really nice falloff to the finish of this wine.  This is a very good quality wine.

I will be buying more of this wine.

 

Husch Reserve 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Mendocino

 

Sandra and I visited the Husch winery last April, on our trip to the Anderson Valley.  We wanted to go back to the Anderson Valley, as we love the Pinot Noir’s from Anderson Valley.  When we arrived at the Husch winery, we were surprised at the tasting room.  Its a barn or storage area.  We were tasting with the storage and fermentation tanks.  That was just OK with us.  We also did notice all the ribbons and awards the winery has earned.  That was impressive.  We liked a lot of what we tasted and took quite a few bottles home.

To the wine:  The nose of the Cabernet Sauvignon was muted and had berries aroma and a hint of strawberry.  When I tasted this wine at the winery had a stronger nose.  I am suggesting a tighter stemware.  The taste of the wine engages 2/3rds of the tongue, starting at the front.  The wine pulls hard from the tongue.  This wine is a dry wine, but pleasantly dry.   The wine has a lot of earthy tones.  The earth tones or terrior of Anderson Valley, is very distinctive.  This is why we love the Anderson Valley.  The finish is warm and lingers and continues to pull on the tongue.  The color of the wine was a very dark purple and the wine had no sediment.   The legs were very light.  We would buy the wine again.

Brutocao Sangiovese 2010

 

Brutocao Sangiovese from Mendocino, this is a wine experience.  Sandra and I stopped into the Brutocao winery, the last time we were in the Anderson Valley.  The winery is pretty rustic and has a great welcoming feel to it.  We purchased quite a few bottles from Brutocao because of the terrior and the lasting finishes of all their wines.

Now to the wine.  The nose on this Sangiovese was slight, sweet and full of strawberries.  The clarity of the wine was more like a Pinot Noir than a Sangiovese. The color of the wine was a beautiful light cherry red.  The finish was warm and got warmer as I drank.  The Sangiovese  pulls from the center of the tongue and was very enjoyable.

Conclusions:  As a Sangiovese, this was a very light and not typical Sangiovese.  There is a statement here and it has to do with a light growing season and grapes that did not ripen fully.  This was a very enjoyable wine, that I would purchase again, so I could lay it down for a few years.  This was very unique wine and I would like to taste it again in a few years.

Wine Tasting at Petra in NorthStar

While my wife and I were up at NorthStar, we ran across a wine bar named Petra .  We decided to stop in and have some dinner with some wine.  We took the option for the 3 glass flights and we doubled up on them.  We started with sparkling and Cuvee 20 from J Vineyards of Sonoma and the Brut Sparkling from Graham Beck from Robertson, South Africa.  My wife and I were split on this one, as I liked the Cuvee 20, but she liked the Graham Beck better.  It came down to preference.

Next came the Pinot’s.  We opted for the Pelerin 2009 from Monterey, Ca and the 2011 Cristom from Willamette Vally.  My wife and I love Pinot’s.  We were very surprised with the Pelerin.  I have done wine tasting in the Montrey and was not very impressed.  Their push for fruit forward wines pretty much turned me off.  To my surprise, I like the Monterey Pinot.  The Cristom was your typical Oregon Pinot.  It was of good quality and would be great with any light meal, but the Pelerin was very good for the area.

Now came the Grenache from Farmers Jane of Mendocino.  I am just starting to get into Grenache.  It was a medium bodied wine, with some nice spice.  We added a Blend Ridge 2011 Zinfandel.  This was a very strong and spicy wine, that would stand up to any meal.  We enjoyed both, but liked Zin stood out.

To wrap things up and our meal arrived, we went from sampling to our dinner wine.  I choose  a Felino Malbec 2010 and Sandra chose the Round Pond 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon.  We were both familiar with the Round Pond and loved it.  The Malbec was extremely good and stood up to my short ribs quite well.