Featured Wines - April 2014

The 2011 Cervantes Mountain Cuvee is dark purple in color, and with just a bit of aeration this young Bordeaux blend gushes black currant fruit, chocolate, and just the right touch of earthiness that many other California Cabernet based wines seem to lack. Amazingly, this Mountain Cuvee is already enjoyable now, as the wine’s tannins are ripe and well-integrated. Bold but not brash, the wine continues to unfold in the glass with aeration, revealing plenty of appealing fruit and finesse along with ample structure to allow it to evolve further for at least several more years.

This big, brooding Cabernet offers an exceedingly deep, dark color and plenty to chew on, as well as a wealth of complex flavors that can evolve in the glass for hours. The aroma is entrancing: deep berry fruits entwined with clove, cinnamon, cardamom, a dash of Angostura bitters and a hint of freshly roasted coffee. Expansive on the mid palate, it quickly reveals a core of deep down black currant flavors with deft touches of exotic spices. On the finish, the wine’s well integrated tannins let you know there’s plenty of life ahead of it – enjoy now through 2020 and beyond.

The 2012 Antonio Caggiano Devon Greco di Tufo graciously offers up a fresh, captivating bouquet of soft round fruit flavors tempered by a fresh splash of sea spray. Add in deft touches of acacia flower, dried honey, and quince and you’re ready to take the first sip. Caggiano’s 2012 Greco di Tufo fills the mouth with clean, lingering flavors that enliven the senses. Full-flavored, but not unctuous, this Greco offers beautiful balance and superb texture – and unlike lesser white wines, Greco di Tufo evolves in the glass for up to an hour or more, much like a fine red wine.

Sherwood’s 2012 Estate Waipara Pinot Noir offers an elegant medium body and beautiful aromatics. It’s also positively easy to drink. In short, this sleek and balanced wine provides all the attributes one can desire from well-made, cool weather Pinot Noir. It offers a haunting aroma of ripe strawberry, cherry and sweet plum notes interlaced with delicate spice before lavishing the palate with a wonderful mélange of fruit, earth, and Asian spice. Fine grained tannins frame this round, fruit forward Pinot Noir and give the wine a refreshing, graceful finish.

Bersano’s 2011 Gavi embodies the ideal balance for which the Cortese grape of Gavi is renowned. From the wine’s bright sun-kissed robe to the last savory sip, the 2011 Bersano Gavi offers a harmony that can’t help but bring forth a smile. Fragrant with the scents of summer fruits, most notably apple, apricot and pear, the wine continues to delight in the mouth where a welcome draught of the Cortese grape offers soft, perfectly textured fruit and a clean, crisp finish. It’s hard to find something not to like about the 2011 Bersano Gavi.

Endrizzi’s 2011 Serpaiolo offers the opportunity to enjoy a “Super Tuscan” at a price that most of us can afford. Newly released “Super Tuscans” can easily cost $60.00, $80.00, and even $200.00+ per bottle, making the 2011 Serpaiolo Rosso a veritable bargain. A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Sangiovese, it offers an intense aroma of cassis, tobacco, and fine grained leather. In the mouth, the wine is rich, round and layered. It offers ripe, refined tannins and a harmonious structure that should carry it forward for at least several more years.

The gracious 2012 Cellaro Lumà Inzolia-Chardonnay exudes an airy aromatic perfume that reveals the soft, sensual, often surprising side of Sicilian wine. Fragrant, subtle, and faintly spicy, this Inzolia-Chardonnay delivers a deep layer of fruit, spice and stone that captures the radiance of the sun and the formidable light that illuminates the enchanted island of Sicily. This dry white wine captivates the palate and refreshes the senses with a combination of ripe gentle fruit, a hint of cinnamon, and a touch of exotica that makes the wine of Sicily so alluring.