Edinburgh Wine Club, Thursday 15 July 2010

California Dreamin’

Ten Californian wines plus one from Washington State.

Wine	Grape	Origin	Supplier	Price	Comments	Ranking
Domaine Ste. Michelle Brut NV 12%	Chardonnay	Columbia Valley Washington State	Hendersons	10.00	Very pleasant summer’s evening tipple. Good light fragrance.	Second equal.
Dancing Coyote 2007 13%	Albarino	Acampo California	Calistoga	8.00	Tangy and refreshing. Very drinkable. Seems lighter than 13%.	Second equal. Best white.
Smoking Loon 2007 13.5%	Viognier	Napa Valley California	Hendersons	8.50	Far fuller, heavier yet soft taste. Peaches.
Sonoma-Cutrer 2006 14%	Chardonnay	Sonoma Coast California	Waitrose	9.99	Butterscotch and peach flavours.
Loredona 2007 13.5%	Pinot Noir	Manteca California	Calistoga	12.50	More old world than new world taste but without the tannin. Full bouquet.	First
Wandering Bear 2008 13.5%	Merlot, Souzao, Ruby Cabernet	California	Calistoga	6.50	Tannin, port-like nose.	Best value.
Ironstone Vineyards 2004 13.5%	Cabernet Franc	Napa Valley California	Hendersons	8.50	Sharp initial taste followed by summer pudding.
Bonterra Organic 2007 14.5%	Zinfandel	Mendocino County California	Waitrose	7.32	Spicy (cloves, black peppers), dry taste.
First Press 2007 14.5%	Cabernet Sauvignon	Napa Valley California	Calistoga	16.00	Cherries, cassis.
Eberle Steinbeck Vineyard 2006 15%	Syrah	Paso Robles California	Hendersons	16.00	Benylin! Nice nose. Blueberry and cherry.
Zaca Mesa 2004 15%	Grenache, Mourverdre, Syrah, Cinsaut	Santa Ynez Valley California	Calistoga	17.00	Like all the reds, generally nose was better than the taste. Blackberry, cassis, espresso.

Additional note by host: the reds generally tasted better in the following days suggesting that they should have been opened (and possibly even decanted) far sooner!