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July 1, 2000
17/20 points. 1997 Sobon Estate, Shenandoah Valley, Rocky Top Vineyard Zinfandel. Price $4.50 (per glass at a local area restaurant). Excellent nose of raspberries, blackberries, and cassis. I was able to taste wonderful flavors of classic Zinfandel fruit and berries. Smooth tannins. This wine has a long finish with just a touch of hotness at the end. This is a very good full throttle Zinfandel.

July 1, 2000
11/20 points. 1997 Roberto Stucchi, Coltibuono, Chianti Classico. Price $13.99 at Costco. While the nose on this wine promised a good wine tasting experience, it fell flat in the mouth. This wine lacked any body and had very drying tannins, a short finish, and ended slightly hot. After an hour in the glass, it began to fall apart, losing most of it's character. Definitely not worth the money.

July 2, 2000
13/20 points. 1998 Beodga Montecillo, Vina Cumbrero (White Rioja),  Spain. Price $8.95 at Creekside Cellars, Chico, CA. This is a nice summer wine. Light nose of stone fruits followed through on palate. Somewhat simple wine. Good acid & body. This would be a great wine to have with tuna fish sandwiches on a hot summer afternoon. Very nice.

July 2, 2000
16/20 points. 1997 Ironstone Vineyards, California Cabernet Sauvignon. Price $ 7.86 at Winco Foods. Very good nose of cassis, Rutherford dust?. On palate excellent flavors of ripe berries ( Classic Cab, raspberries, blackberries, I know I use these descriptions quite a bit but they fit). This is quite a bit of "Cab" for the money. I would buy this by the case and enjoy it over the next two years plus. Excellent value! (***wife's note: This is an ASTOUNDING wine for the money.***)

July 3, 2000
15/20 points. 1998 Domaine De Pouilly (Andre Besson), Pouilly- Fuisse. Price $16.50 at Creekside Cellars. Good nose of lychee and nectarine. Very good mouth feel, followed by crisp acid. Nectarine, Peach, and slight lemon zest flavors. This wine needs and deserves food! We had Italian baked chicken breasts with this wine and they complemented each other well. This wine is a little pricey for me, but is an excellent introduction to White Burgundy.

July 5, 2000
14/20 points. Indian Springs Vineyards, 1999 Nevada County Chardonnay. Price about $15.00 (This was a quarterly Wine Club Selection from Indian Springs Vineyard 1-800-375-9311). Good nose of tropical fruit, pineapple, and vanilla. Very nice ripe, tropical fruit character on palate, with a healthy wallop of oak. Finishes slightly astringent. Would go well with any poultry dish.

July 6, 2000
14/20 points. Indian Springs Vineyards,  1998 Cabernet Franc, Nevada County. Price about $15.00 (This was a quarterly Wine Club Selection from Indian Springs Vineyard 1-800-375-9311). Medium ruby color, medium light body. Very nice bouquet of cassis, berries, and earth. Nice and peppery, fruity with nuances of plum. Finishes with dusty tannins. Give this wine about 1/2 hour to air before drinking.

July 9, 2000
15/20 points. 1998 Chateau Saint-Roch, Lirac. Price $7.00. This was a monthly Wine Club Selection from K & L Wines. Very good nose of black fruits and currants. Cherries, currants, and raspberries continue on the palate and finishes off with mild tannins. Slightly hot at the end. This wine went well with homemade spaghetti. A very good value.

July 10, 2000
12/20 points. Ironstone Vineyards, 1998 California Chardonnay. Price $ 7.86 at Winco Foods. Nice nose of lemon zest and citrus. Grapefruit with good Chardonnay flavors that follow. Finishes off with bracing acidity. About 1 hour after opening this wine, it began to lose some flavors and became rather simple.

July 11, 2000
14/20 points. Kalinda 1998 Napa Valley Chardonnay, White Table Wine. Price $7.00. This was a monthly Wine Club Selection from K & L Wines. Good bouquet of grapefruit & a dollop of oak. Nice body followed by flavors of stone fruits & vanilla (oak). Firm acid on the finish. (This wine is bottled for K & L Wines by Round Hill Vineyards. Round Hill Vineyards [also Rutherford Ranch label] is a good value priced winery. Their wines are well worth looking for and I highly recommend them).

July 16, 2000
14/20 points. 1997 Chateau De Reignac, Bordeaux Superieur. Price $9.99 at Costco. This wine had medium body and the color of dark garnet. Very distinct nose of dusty Merlot and berries. Very nice mouth feel. Starts off with hard tannins, which quickly get out of the way of the raspberry, berry, and finishes with a nuance of tobacco. This wine is a good introduction to "cheap" Bordeaux. Went very well with a "take and bake" combo pizza.

July 21, 2000
15/20 points. 1997 B.V. Coastal Cabernet. Price $7.99 at Winco Foods. Medium dark ruby color, becoming clear near rim. Nice nose of berries and tar. Medium body. Classic flavors of cassis, blackberries, and strawberries, humm? Finishes with medium tannins and acid. Slightly bitter at the end. Very good value. Almost as good as the Ironstone Cabernet, though not as supple.

July 22, 2000
16/20 points. 1996 Chateau La Cardonne, Medoc. Price $11.99 at Costco. Dark ruby color with great legs. Very nice nose of plum and crushed berries. Medium body with fairly high acid. Berries, plums, dusty merlot/cabernet fruit and tar finish. Another excellent introduction to "cheap" Bordeaux. Air for an hour or more. This wine could stand a few years of cellaring to smooth out.

July 23, 2000
15/20 points. 1999 Groth, Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc. Price $9.99 at Costco. Almost clear minus a slight yellow tinge. Very good nose of stone fruits, nectarine, peach, and a pinch of lemon. The stone fruits follow through on the palate with nice acids and a medium finish of kiwi and wet stone (mineral like quality). This is a wonderful example of a non-herbaceous Sauvignon Blanc. This will go well with any chicken or fish dish or just by itself. A great summer wine. The Slob loves it!

July 24, 2000
15/20 points. 1996 Argiolas, Perdera, Isola Dei Nurayhi (Red). Price $7.99 at Creekside Cellars. Good medium ruby color. Interesting nose of Raspberries, dusty prunes (not pruney!). Plums and cherry flavors finish off with a nice balance of acids and tannins. This is another wine that needs food! With a tomato based meal, a very nice buttery mouth feel came out and the acids were a welcome palate cleanser. Another excellent value for the money.

July 27, 2000
10/20 points. 1997 Flora Springs, Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc Reserve. Price $9.99 at Costco. Straw yellow color, intriguing? Nose of grapefruit and limes. Decent lime, nectarine, and grassy flavors are wiped out by almost extraordinary amounts of acid. It then finishes bitter. About an hour after opening, the acids have completely obliterated all other aspects of this wine. Even food couldn't save it.

July 28, 2000
13/30 points. 1997 Gabbiano Chianti Classico. Price $7.99 at Costco. Dark ruby color, nose comes through with crushed red berries and cassis. Sweet fruit (no sugar) comes through on the palate with berries, cassis and cherries. Finishes off with a good balance of dusty tannins and bright acids. The finish was a little short and not complex, but went perfectly with a take and bake pizza.