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December 2000

December 1, 2000
7/20 points. 1998 Forestville White Merlot, California. Price $2.99 at Winco Foods. This being my first foray into White Merlot, I am going to set my sights a bit higher before I try another one. Clear pink color, no color at the rim. Faint nose of Welch's white grape juice. Odd flavors of dirt and golden raisins. No acids to speak of, faint tannins, and finishes sugar sweet. I can't tell that this was made from Merlot grapes! Not a wine I could recommend, so I will try some better ones in the future.

December 5, 2000
14/20 points. Amberhill 1998 California Chardonnay. Price $4.99 at Costco Foods. Light flaxen color, good nose of pears and vanilla. The same follows on the palate with the addition of crisp nectarine and white peach. Finishes slightly sweet. Much better than the '96 or '97. This is a very good Chardonnay for the money. It's not over oaked and the acids are just tart enough to make this good with a variety of lighter foods. Oh! By the way, it even came with a napkin ring. Wow!

December 8, 2000
As a side note, my wife and I had a 1996 Marcelina Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon at a local restaurant. It was just a wonderful mouthful of wine. Juicy cassis and berry flavors, medium bodied and a long finish. Very nice indeed. It was $24.00 at the restaurant so it should be $10-12 retail price. Oh, if you've had the Gallo of Sonoma Cabernet and this tastes somewhat familiar, it is because Gina Gallo is involved as the winemaker.

December 9, 2000
15/20 points. 1998 Valley of the Moon Chardonnay. Price $7.00 through K&L Wine Club. Pale gold color, very slight green tinge. Very pleasant nose of nectarines, lychee, and vanilla. The same follows on the palate, but the oak does not dominate. Very crisp acids give it good food compatibility. Finishes with a slight wet stone flavor. A very good wine for the money. I've seen this wine at a local grocery store, so it is not limited to the wine club. Happy hunting!

December 12, 2000
First, let me apologize for being behind in the reviews. With all the holiday activities, we've been bushed. On top of that, we found out yesterday that Homepage.com is not going to continue free websites much longer. I am looking for another site as I write, and I will post the new web page address as soon as I find one. If you want to be informed directly, email me and I will send you the new web address as soon as I have it.

December 12, 2000
15/20 points. 1999 Guardian Peak, Cabernet Syrah, South Africa. Price $7.00 at K& L Wine Club. Medium dark garnet, bright red at the rim. Good nose of plums, berries, earth, and spice. Very strong Syrah flavors continue on the palate with a deft balance between acid/tannin levels. Even though it is medium bodied, it had enough stuffing to go with cajun pork roast, no problem! A very good wine for the money.

December 17, 2000
15/20 points. 1997 Viu Manent Cabernet Reserve (from Chile). Price about $13.00, it was bought wholesale so I am guessing at what it would retail for. Very dark red, almost black turning blood red at the rim. Doesn't have a strong nose, but what it does have is classic Cabernet fruit. The palate is another matter. Very strong flavors of cassis, dried cherries, and licorice prevail. The tannins kick in very nicely with good acids to balance it out. Finishes on a nice earthy note. One note, I bought this through someone that got it to me at wholesale. So if you can find it, it will most likely be in the $12.00-$15.00 range but still a good value.

December 20, 2000
I'd like to apologize for there not being many reviews this month. With having to change homepages and with the holidays so close, I just haven't had much free time. I apologize to those I also still owe email responses to as well. I will get to them as soon as I get back. We will be in Yosemite attending the Bracebridge Dinner so we will be gone until close to the near year. In the meantime, feel free to read my old reviews or check out some of the links I have to other great wine sites. Happy Holidays!

December 29, 2000
First, let me apologize for the lack of reviews this month, but it's been quite busy for the slob and family during the past two weeks. But! I do have something extraordinary to share with all of you. On December 22nd, we were able to attend the Bracebridge Dinner at the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite Valley. Begun in the 1920's the "dinner" is an absolute 5 star plus! My wife and I chose our wines for the dinner the day before, a 1999 Chateau St Michelle Sauvignon Blanc and a 1996 Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet.

As luck would have it, at our same table sat a very generous wine collector who had brought his own bottles of wine.

We started with the Sauvignon Blanc which was very crisp and grassy, very good indeed. (Oh, ok. We started with champagne first). We then tried the 1996 Silver Oak. Oh! What a wine! Tons of fruit with a very long and beautifully integrated finish, absolutely superb!

Our collector "friend" then broke out a 1994 Rochioli Pinot Noir Reserve. This wine did not taste like a pinot I have ever had. Incredibly extracted flavors of fruit, it was almost like a Bordeaux? Thick bodied with a super long finish. Nirvana! He then was gracious enough to open a 1990 Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet where the Pinot was thick and very full bodied, this wine was the epitome of elegance. Absolutely gorgeous flavors of cassis and crushed red fruits melded seamlessly with the sweet tannins, and the finish seemed to go on forever! Surprisingly the least attractive of the wines was the last and the most expensive bottle to be opened.

The 1991 Araujo Napa Valley, Eisele Vineyard Cabernet was not a bad wine, just not in the same league as the others. Even though it is somewhat thin and hot on the finish, it would still be considered a very good wine, again it's just not as good as the other wines.

This was definitely a once in a lifetime event, and my wife and I feel very lucky to have sat at the same table with someone so generous and knowledgeable.

If you would like to know more about the dinner, the Yosemite (California) website has plenty of information about it. They have a lottery every year to choose who is able to attend. To say the least the dinner itself was unforgettable! Many thanks go out to my aunt who was gracious enough to pay for the whole thing as a Christmas gift. We are indebted forever to her!

To all of you who have written me, I will get back to you! See you all after the New Year!