tasting thoughts from a Sunday tour

[CtznCane]

On Sunday we decided to make an impromptu run up to the wine country. Part of our trip was in our continuation of trying to visit as many of the wineries that produce sparklers as possible. Our main destinations for the day were Frank Family Vineyards (recommended from Sonomawines here), S Anderson/Cliff Lede, and also to stop by and see Carolyn at GunBun where we had not been before.

I remembered the old Hans Kornell though I had never been there and wasn't aware of the change. Heck it's only been 10 years or more! The only 2 sparkiling wines they had were their Blanc de Noir and also a rouge Champagne made from 100% pinot Noir. I wasn't taking specific notes so my comments here will be fairly general. Their Blanc de Noir was nice. Nothing spectacular but very pleasant. The rouge was interesting with its berry flavors. They also showed the rouge off nicely in a Mimosa which my SO really liked. Both their sparklers were $27.50 each. A bit more than I felt they were worth though still a reasonable enough cost to value wise that we got a bottle of each. While their sparklers were nice, I was thoroughly impressed with their still wines. Especially their Chardonnay and Zin. Their Chard, which they served at room temp was extremely rich and full bodied. Filled with butterscotch, fruit and a fine finish. Not your typical Chard but one we thoroughly enjoyed. Being more of a Red wine fan myself, it is not too often I'll fork out over 20-25 for a Chardonnay but this one at $28.75 had me asking myself how many I could afford. Their Zin, was big, jammy, and fruit forward yet had a silky smootheness to it. One of the most enjoyable Zins I've had. $32.50 to me is on the high price for Zins. Typically the only ones I'll buy in the over$30 range are ZinAlley and Ridge, but this one joins the club.

Frank Family Vineyards was also pouring their Sangiovese $32.50, 2000 ALexander Valley Cab $40.00, and 2000 Reserve Cab (Rutherford) $65. I liked the Sangiovese and will consider getting that one in the future. Frankly I think most Napa Cabs are overpriced. Not only that, I tend to like the Alexander Valley Cabs better. These were good but the Cabs just don't float my boat too often. All in all though I liked their wines a lot.

From there we stopped at Charles Krug. For 20 something years I've always passed by and not stopped there. The only good thing I can say is at least I know I didn't miss anything. Not only were they over priced, the only one I cared for was their bordeaux style blend and at $38, it too was overpriced.

On the way to try the S Anderson we stopped at Mumms. We aren't Mumm's fans but thought we'd try again. All we tried was their 25th Anniversary Cuvee and the M Cuvee. These were pleasant enough. The M Cuvee enough so that we bought ($20) a bottle. Their lower end sparklers are reasonable, I still though don't think their DVX is that good much less worth the price.

The S Anderson sparklers were a total disappointment. They were pouring the brut and a Reserve. Neither had much character. Even at half their price ($28 and $36) I'd pass. Tried a couple of their other wines. The Pinot Noir was decent/pleasant but not worth pursuing. Their Claret Stags Leap (I think it was their 2001) was nice. That is the only wine of the ones we tried there I would consider buying.

From there it was on to GunBun where we hand not been before where we went on a tour of the winery with Carolyn from the list here. We ejoyed the tour of GunBun as well as their wines. I thought the GunBun wines were consistantly good across the board. Nothing spectacular but good solid values. I diid particularly like their 2002 Morse Vineyard Zinfandel. I have since verirfied that fact by enjoying that wine last night. The Morse Vineyard Zin is on the jammy side of Zins. Very pleasant and at $20 it is a good value.

As we left the Valley to head home we did stop at Domaine Carneros. As always theirs are good sparklers. Good not great. We are most fond of their Brut Rose. Or at least we feel that one is a good value at its price point of $34. The La Reve, Blanc de Blanc, while being a very nice sparkler I feel is overpriced at $55 per bottle.

[Carolyn Tillie]

Thanks for the kind word -- and for visiting! It was great to meet new eG'ers and hope we can all get together soon....

Maybe another NoCal potluck is in order?!?!?!

[CtznCane]

A pot luck sounds like a great idea. Do they do those here? How? Where? We'd be up for that.

[melkor]

A pot luck sounds like a great idea. Do they do those here? How? Where? We'd be up for that.

We're working on putting together another Northern California potluck - the last one was in Napa, the next will be in San Francisco. We will post more details in the appropriate forum when they are available.

[Craig Camp]

Yikes! Wine prices are brutal in California!