Featured Wines - February 2011

John Pedroncelli’s 2009 Dry Creek Valley East Side Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc may be the best value today in California Sauvignon Blanc. Bright, crisp and downright huggable it offers a wealth of fruit flavors and a subtle invigorating minerality, which speak favorably of the East Side Vineyards’ enviable terroir.

The 2009 Artesa Carneros Reserve Chardonnay makes a convincing statement about excellence at Artesa. Bold, mouth filling, and impeccably balanced, it is imbued with a golden hue and a glint of sunshine. The eye-popping color of this Reserve Chardonnay sets the tone for the goodness to follow.

Once again Spain’s “Master of Tempranillo” has fashioned in 2006 a Tinto Pesquera worthy of his name. Although a bit reticent upon release, the 2006 Tinto Pesquera has blossomed into a polished, sophisticated wine of grace and charm. Each time we taste this wine it reveals greater length and depth.

Although somewhat reminiscent of Grand Cru Morgon or a well made village Burgundy, the 2008 Zantho Zweigelt offers a great deal more flavor, generosity, and individual character than its aforementioned French counterparts. The 2008 Zantho Zweigelt stands and delivers in both aroma and flavor.

Sourced from two family vineyards, whose vines average more than 60 years of age, the 2007 Pedroncelli Dry Creek Valley Family Vineyards Petite Sirah is profoundly deep purple in color and delightfully aromatic. From start to finish juicy blackberry, dark cherry, chocolate, coffee, and Asian spice tones delight the nose and grace the thirsty palate with hedonistic pleasure.

The 2009 Tavignano Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore is a knock-out white wine from Italy’ Marches that comes across as a real crowd pleaser. Made from 100% Verdicchio, it truly raises the bar and further pushes the envelope on quality in the pretty Castelli di Jesi DOC, a pastoral green region of central Italy that sits beside the Adriatic Sea.

Domaine Raspail-Ay’s sophisticated style of winemaking is in full evidence in the 2007 vintage as Ay has fashioned a powerful, complex, long-lived Gigondas that is both richly fruity and highly polished. This is a wine that can surprisingly be drunk now with great pleasure or cellared for up to ten years.