Event: Cold Heaven Cellars @ Wine Gallery

Although I really enjoy my “road trips” and larger wine events, I also love to attend as many smaller, local events as I can. As I mentioned before, though, I live in an area that doesn’t have a lot of nice wine shops, so I usually have to drive a fair bit of distance to attend events. Combine that fact with my pure hatred of battling traffic, and it is a rare day that you will see me drive 40 miles (one-way) to attend ANY weekday event.

So, what exactly enticed me to drive all the way down to Corona del Mar (peak traffic time) for a Tuesday evening tasting? Several things: 1) new releases from one of my favorite Central Coast wineries (Cold Heaven Cellars), 2) a second event (Frog’s Leap) scheduled at another nearby wine shop (Hi-Time Wine Cellars), and 3) an opportunity to visit a wine shop that I’ve never visited (Wine Gallery). A triple whammy for rationalizing the hellacious drive!

To make the drive/outing even more enjoyable, I invited my friend, Norma. Norma has been my partner-in-crime on many a “Hell’s Kitchen” and “Top Chef” nights, and her love of Cali wines probably equals my own. I enjoyed the playful banter with Norma, as always, and she really enjoyed the wines.

If I remember, correctly, the two wine events partially overlapped, time-wise, but I chose to go to the Cold Heaven Cellars tasting, first. I had no idea what they would be pouring for Frog’s Leap, but I KNEW that Morgan Clendenen (Owner/Winemaker, Cold Heaven Cellars) would be pouring at-least a few of her lovely Viogniers. I didn’t want to end-up drinking a flight of big, Napa red wines, then have to shift my palate to white wines. Truth-be-told, I also didn’t want to show-up to Morgan’s tasting feeling too merry, as she is one of my 2 winemaker “crushes” (DARE I mention the other?), and I didn’t want to drool, in-public, while I was tasting…

Norma and I got to Wine Gallery a tad early for the tasting, so we took a quick look-see around the shop before bellying-up to their beautiful tasting bar. Although it was a quick walk-through, I saw a large number of intriguing wines, enough to make that 40-mile drive, again, to take a better look (and to buy some more Cold Heaven!) (note: watch for another blog entry on Wine Gallery, in the future).


Cold Heaven Wines tasted (Note: Tasting notes, in quotations, are from Wine Gallery’s tasting sheet. Some of my comments are posted, in brackets, after WG’s comments):

1. 2008 Strangelove Sauvignon Blanc: “This is crisp, racy, and refreshing, offering a lively mouthful of peach-accented grapefruit and mineral flavors, all hanging on effortlessly through the long, graceful finish. This is the initial showing of this Sauv Blanc! Enjoy it on this warm summer day…” (I might post a TN on this wine, later, as I picked-up a bottle on my first return-trip to Wine Gallery).

2. 2007 Cold Heaven ‘Le Bon Climat’ Viognier: “This wine is a treat. Delicate aromas of peach, guava and honey-suckle with hints of straw and springtime orchard flowers. In the mouth, it is soft (butter, Crème Fraiche) and racy (zesty acidity lively on the palate, and crisp like cold green grapes) at the same time. Even worldly pundits rave that it is “one of the most luscious, intense, complex wines one could ever hope to taste” (Parker) and “its scent and flavor have no parallel.” (Johnson).” ( I might also post a separate TN on this one as I ALSO picked-up a bottle of this on my return trip to Wine Gallery).

3. 2008 Cold Heaven ‘Vogelzang’ Viognier: “Lush tropical fruits and exotic white flowers overlay an invigorating acidity that keeps the wine fresh and lively. Morgan is very careful with her Viognier havesting, at just that paradoxical moment when both a sylph-like sleekness and a siren’s seductiveness share center stage. A lovely wine.” (Morgan’s Vogelzang VY Vio is the wine of her’s that I drink the most. My notes for that day say “stand on it’s own wine, apricot-fest”.)

4. 2004 Cold Heaven ‘Second Sin’ Syrah: “This is Cold Heaven’s Rhone red and the future of Syrah in California. It has been said when you don’t follow fashion and remain true to the subject, then you create something timeless. This wine embodies these words. This is a syrah with elegance, finesse, and a bit of youth to create something with longevitiy.” (Again, this is ANOTHER wine that I bought a bottle of when I returned to Wine Gallery, and I will eventually do a post on cold climate vs. warm/hot climate Syrah. If you want to do your OWN side-by-side comparison [for domestic, Cali wines], I recommend this Syrah vs. the 2005 James David Cellars ‘Eaglepoint Ranch’ Syrah]).

5. 2005 Cold Heaven Late Harvest Viognier: “Smooth and mouthwatering, with a delicious array of orange blossom, fig, apricot, peach, citrus and tangerine scents; a rich, opulent, succulent Viognier with a long, expansive finish.” ( I don’t drink a lot of dessert wines, but I liked this one. This is 1 of only 2 domestic dessert wines that I purchased, this year. The other being the 2006 Chateau St. Jean Riesling, Special Select Late Harvest, Belle Terre Vineyard (Alexander Valley)).

In addition to the above wines, Morgan also gave Norma and I a sneak-peek of her 2008 Cold Heaven ‘Le Bon Climat’ Viognier. I’ll tell you, I’ve had almost ALL of Morgan’s wines over the past few years, including her wonderful collaborations with Condrieu-master, Yves Cuilleron, but this 2008 ‘Le Bon Climat’ Viognier is my favorite wine that she has ever made. If you have no other wine from Morgan, make sure that you get your hands on a bottle of ‘08 Le Bon Climat. It can stand on-its-own, but it’s a great food-wine, too.

Special “thanks” to Morgan, the humble-and-charming Jeff Schroeder (& staff) from Wine Gallery, and my friend, Norma, for joining me. Again, watch for a few more posts on some of these wines, and also on Wine Gallery.

Value Wine of The Week: 2007 Snap Dragon Chardonnay (California) ~$7

Why am highlighting this wine? Simply because I think some of my friends would really like it…

I, myself, have never met a varietal that I haven’t liked, but I am a tad picky when it comes to a few…I can drink a 2nd rate South American Cab, and I can drink a sub-par Zinfandel, but I really struggle choking down lower-end Chardonnays or Pinot Noirs.


This Chardonnay is no Kistler. This Chardonnay is no Marcassin. This Chardonnay IS a very easy-drinking, palatable, “value” wine for about $7 ($6.68 at Sam‘s Club, COI, “One Time Buy“; $6.99 L.A. Wine Company; $7.97 Cost Plus World Market inWhittier, CA).


According to a display at my local Cost Plus, this wine got 89 pts from Beverage Dynamics, and the display at my local Sam’s Club shows that it got 87 pts (“Best Buy”) from Wine Spectator. Combine it’s decent scores with it’s price, and you have what I consider a worth-a-try wine….

Tasting notes:

Color: Light to medium gold.

Nose/aroma: Mild, sweet vanillin, ripe pear, tropical fruit (Pineapple? Mild coconut?).

Taste: Ripe Pippin apples intermingle with notes of exotic fruit (lychees, pineapple). Misc. spice, mid-palate. Dried pineapple, mild stone fruit on finish. Fairly simple Chardonnay, but it would be a great domestic alternative for anyone who drinks Yellowtail.

Big fun at "The Big Crush"

There are several “harvest celebrations” throughout California, this time of year, but one of my favorites has always been Amador County’s “The Big Crush” (Oct. 3-4, 2009). 30+ wineries will be pouring their latest releases, there’s always tasty food, and most places also have live entertainment. Combine all of that for the mere price of $30 (for 2 days)/ $20 (Sunday only), and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a funner, tastier , better bang-for-your-buck event!

My perennial favorites to visit during “The Big Crush” include Dobra Zemlja, Terra D’Oro (Montevina), Domaine De La Tierre Rouge/Easton Wines, Story Winery, Vino Noceto, and Karly (including their sister winery, Bantam Cellars). Last year, I also discovered two other wineries that had some impressive wines: Wilderotter Vineyard (nice Mourvedre) and Cooper Vineyards (loved ALL of their wines!).

If you are a big fan of “old vine” Zinfandel, Barbera, or would like to taste some of the tastiest domestic Sangiovese, DEFINITELY check-out this event. See you there!

New Releases from Petito Wines

This past January, I had the opportunity to try 3 of Petito Wine’s then-current releases, and I’m glad that I did. Both the 2007 Matteo Mari Marsanne-Roussanne (Russian River Valley) and the 2007 Petito Pinot Noir, Split Rock Vineyard (Sonoma Coast) , were solid food-wines, and the 2006 Petito Cabernet Sauvignon , To-Kalon Vineyard (Oakville) was 1 of my 2 top Cabernet Sauvignons of this year (so far).

Recently, Petito Wines just released 3 more wines under the Sueños and Matteo-Mary labels, and since they are (again) limited production wines, I wanted to give ye the heads-up on them before they sell-out. I’ll post my own tasting notes on these wines after I try them (sometime within the next month). Here are the pre-release notes from Petito Wines:

Matteo-Mary Marsanne-Roussanne – Saralee's Vineyard, Russian River Valley, 2008 This well-balanced Marsanne-Roussanne blend has a pale golden color and aromas of stone fruit, orange blossom, honey and mineral. This medium-bodied white is rounded out with bright acidity and a lovely hint of apricot.

Sueños Chardonnay - Alder Springs Vineyard Mendocino County, 2008
Alder Springs is planted in the higher elevations of Mendocino county, which makes this Chardonnay more suitable to design Burgundian, in style, then Californian. This Chardonnay is about finesse, subtlety, and elegance. This lean and racy wine with great acid properties is a direct result of Stu Bewley's farming efforts and a brilliant trellising system that is used on these steep hillsides of decomposing sand stone soils.

Sueños Chardonnay - Split Rock Vineyard Sonoma Coast, 2008
This Sonoma Coast vineyard nestled on the western hillsides of Sonoma Mountain is just a site to be seen. Gaps Crown, "Split Rock", vineyard is exposed to the cool ocean breezes that funnel through the Petaluma Gap, which gives this whole cluster chardonnay a lot of very elegant and crisp features. It has the influences and the characteristics of a true Thomas Petito wine. It styles out way more Burgundian then California.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho... It's Off To Sam's We Go!

Another week, another stop at Sam’s Club for food and wine!

I picked-up 3 wines this week, but I think that I’ve already reviewed 2 of them:

2007 Estancia Pinot Noir, Pinnacles Ranches (Monterey County):

When it comes to Pinot Noir at my local Sam’s, it’s slim pickin’s! They have the 06 and 07 Cambria, Julia’s Vineyard (both nice PN’s, $17.32), a few vintages of Kim Crawford ($14.48), this Estancia ($12.23), and the Kendall-Jackson Vintner’s Reserve ($14.81). I’ve had this Estancia several times, and it’s a bit bold, but I like it, especially for the price.

2006 Cambria Chardonnay, Katherine’s Vineyard (Santa Maria Valley):

I gave this wine as a gift wine a few weeks ago, so I wanted to re-visit it, and have a bottle for me-self! I think that the 2005 received 95 pts from Wine Enthusiast, and Wine Enthusiast gave the 2006 90 pts. $15.67

2007 Red Knot Cabernet Sauvignon (South Australia):

The 2004 Red Knot Cabernet Sauvignon was the first wine that I had ever purchased that had the Zork closure on it. I’ll also always remember that wine as it was my favorite value-Cabernet Sauvignon for the year. It was more of a red fruit-driven Cab, but it was a fantastic wine for less than $10. I was disappointed with the 2005 CS, so I thought I’d try-out the 2007, and I hope it’s as good as (or better than) the 2004. $9.78

TN: 2007 Canard Sauvage Zinfandel (Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County)

With only $11 in my pocket, a choice had to be made: Go to Cost Plus World Market and get some foreign, $7-$10 wine that garnered 89+ pts from some critic, or go to Trader Joe’s and choose some funky, domestic label that will never be seen again, in-the-future? Today, I chose Trader Joe’s…

I’m still amazed when I go to TJ‘s and see the prices of some of the wines….You can STILL find the 03 Lorca Pinot Noir, and the 06 Howell Mountain Vineyard Beatty Ranch (or Black Sears) for only $14.99 at my local store. Those should have been gone, by now, just like all of the Fife Vineyard wines that they had for only $6.99 per bottle…Economic reboound? As far as wine is concerned, it’s STILL a buyer’s market!….

This afternoon, I picked-up the 2007 Canard Sauvage Zinfandel (Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County). I have NEVER heard to f the winery, nor did I really care, as I just wanted something that was off-the-charts. I LOVE finding (good) unheard of wines, and I hate reviewing wines that everybody-and-his-brother has reviewed….Many of these (dare I say) fly-by-night labels have almost zero information posted on them on The Web, so it’s nice to be somewhat of a frontiersman, and post on something that a million others haven’t….Sometimes, it’s a great coup (especially when you post about the wine(s), IMMEDIATELY, instead of waiting 5 weeks when EVERYONE ELSE knows about them)…

So, what background can be given on this wine?? Well, from me, not much! I did some minor searching, as I looked-up the URL on the wine’s cork . The URL listed on-the-cork (canardsauvage.com) actually takes you to some esoteric website that is about music & photography. Is this a winery goofing on us, or did someone actually label a cork without getting the internet domain, first? God (and maybe a few others) only know….

I must say, I DO actually like the verbage on the wine’s label, and I also have to agree with the motto shown: “better than most at this price”. Here is the rest of the label. I don’t see any copyright infringement warnings, and I give full-credit to Canard Sauvage (whomever they truly are), so here it is!:

“They say a duck isn’t as moody as a swan. Not true. A lot gets on a duck’s nerves. People. Cheap wine glasses. Over-oaked wine. Our favorite duck is very protective of our wine barrels and his fragile ego. He staggers around in circles…raging at the world around him. He never seems to actually go anywhere, preferring to spend his time pretending to be a mini-hovercraft. We love him, though, for who he is. Watch him waddle…watch him fly…’round and ‘round in circles…quacking in rage! Why does he maneuvor in circles all the time? Because he can.”

Oh, my! I don’t know whether to laugh-or-cry, as this label could be MY epitath!! I need to find-out who made this wine, drafted the label, and put this wine in my headlights-to-try….I’m guessing that GOD is behind-it-all!….

Color: ruby red; Nose: dust, mild oak, 15.5% alcohol, but not “hot” (again, on the nose…spice/alcohol hit the tummy, a bit). Misc. spice, ripe red/black fruit (raspberry, black raspberry, wild blackberries). Taste: briary raspberry, with a distinct stone fruit (ripe nectarine?) punch on-the-finish. Decent body, consistent, straight-forward and proud! Not some mama’s-boy wine!

Paired with mahi-mahi tacos, black beans, and rice [take-out: California Grill, Whittier, CA].

Bottom line, a huge, hedonistic Zinfandel, big-and-brawny, and tasty at the same time. This would be the wine-of-choice at a party of Maryann Forrester’s, NOT Mary Ann Summer’s….For $9.99, I would almost defy you to find a better in-your-face Zin than this!…

Memories of Mendocino: Scharffenberger & Eaglepoint Ranch

Last week at “Salon Thursdays at Wally’s”, our first “bubbly” of-the-evening was the NV Scharffenberger Brut Rosé . When I saw the name “Scharffenberger“, 3 things popped into my mind: chocolate, Pacific Echo, and Mendocino. I also associate the name Scharffenberger with Eaglepoint Ranch in Mendocino, and that reminded me that I never posted on the Eaglepoint Ranch Syrah that my friend, David Cole (James David Cellars) had sent me. Apologies, Dave!




The last time that I toured the wineries of Mendocino County, I visited several wineries including Fife, Claudia Springs, Navarro, and Roederer Estate. Back then, Scharffenberger Cellars was called Pacific Echo. Since my last visit, Pacific Echo has reverted back to calling itself Scharffenberger Cellars, and the winery was sold to Maisons Marques & Domaines. I think that I also recall Scharffen-Berger Chocolate Maker being sold to Hershey about 4 or 5 years ago.

As for Eaglepoint Ranch (also Scharffenberger-owned, back then), I have no idea who owns it, now, nor how it is being operated. I think that John Scharffenberger still has at-least some interest in-the-land, as I think that he and Casey Hartlip are still producing wines under the Eaglepoint Ranch Winery label. I also think I’m way overdue to re-visit Mendocino (do I hear “road trip”?) ;)

So, why all of the rambling over Eaglepoint Ranch? Well, back when I was a diehard Zinfandel-fanatic (circa 1998-2003), Eaglepoint Ranch was the source for some of my favorite Zinfandels from Mendocino. My all-time favorite vineyard from that area would probably be Rhodes Vineyard, but I remember Eaglepoint Ranch, too. (Note: If you get time, read-up on Eaglepoint Ranch--the vineyard, as opposed to simply the winery).

When David Cole asked me to try his 2 new Syrah releases (the 2005 James David Cellars Syrah, Central Coast, and the 2005 James David Cellars Syrah, Eaglepoint Ranch), I told him that I would. I rarely accept gift wines from vintners, but David’s tenacity and his effort in marketing his wines really impress me. Between the 2 Syrahs, David produces less than 500 cases of Syrah. Between his live-tastings and his social networking presence, I have never seen ANY individual work so passionately to promote their wines. Combine David’s zeal with an opportunity to revisit an old favorite (wines from Eaglepoint Ranch), how could I refuse?

Tasting notes: 2005 James David Cellars Syrah, Eaglepoint Ranch (Mendocino County).

Color: very dark garnet, almost purple. Nose: misc. dark fruit (blackberry, plum), misc. spice, mild leather, mild graphite. Taste: briary black raspberry, blackberry, very ripe blueberry, misc. spice, hint of cedar, touch of stone fruit, with some maple, toffee on-finish. Firm body without any sharp edges, well-integrated oak. With time, my empty glass almost had a forest-like aroma (as in pine trees, not musty) . 15.5% alcohol, but didn’t seem hot, at-all. Still a bit young and a bit tight (opens with time), so definitely decant it, if you plan on drinking it in the near future. A good expression of the wonders of mountain-grown fruit (style-wise, think Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignons or Zinfandels).


Paired with beef brisket (roast-style with carrots, onions, mushrooms, and potatoes) and organic baby spring mix salad with ranch dressing.

Note: The winemaker for James David Cellars is Larry Roberts (former owner/winemaker of Redline Wines). James David Cellars actually acquired Redline Wines, recently, and Larry Roberts stayed-on as winemaker. Redline’s 2004 Eaglepoint Ranch Syrah received nice kudos from Wine Enthusiast (91 points), so, hopefully, Larry’s successes will continue under the James David Cellars label. With only 120 cases of this wine made, you might want to get some before it disappears…