Pacific Crest Wine Co. 2015 Centennial Trail Chardonnay

   So the other day I was relaxing around the house waiting for my Tempranilo vines to arrive in the mail when I received an E-Mail from Mr. Mark Feinberg who is the Senior Account Executive for Balzac Communications & Marketing (http://balzac.com/) located in Napa California inquiring as to whether I was interested in sampling (without charge) three of the wines from two of the wine accounts they represent which are Oregon Trails Wine Co which is located in the Willamette Valley Oregon & the Pacific Crest Wine Company which is located in the Columbia Valley in Washington State. I told him that I would be delighted to and a few days later I received a box in the mail containing three wines, one of which is our review wine the Pacific Crest Wine Co. 2015 Centennial Trail Chardonnay (https://pacificcrestwineco.com/wine-info/). So today happens to be a beautiful day here in the Las Vegas Valley and all my work is done is the Vineyard (yeah right) so I brought my Laptop outside by the pool along with some music (70's & 80's only) and of course the wine and here we are. Let's start off this review with the following information. This wine is 100% Chardonnay and comes in at 14.8% Alcohol, it is also kept for four (4) months in French Oak as well. The Winemaker for this wine is winemaker Linda Trotta and the wine retails for $16.99. Let's now dig into this wine and see what I think about it.

Winemaker Linda Trotta

   The first thing I can tell you is that this wine is sealed with a Cork and not a Screw Cap, that in itself earned this wine points in my book right off the bat. The graphics on the bottle itself were designed really nicely and with thought. The wine inside was presented nicely as I liked the semi see through bottle that contained it.
   Moving to the nose of this wine I will tell you that the minute the wine was opened I was able to pick up it's Bouquet as the bottle sat on the counter waiting for me to get a glass. Notes of Peach, Nectarine and floral notes announced themselves immediately and I actually was confused as to whether it was the Peaches that were in the tray in front of me on the Kitchen counter or whether it was actually the wine. Taking the wine outside settled that confusion as there were no peaches outside, it really was the wine, nice.
   Let's talk for a minute about how the wine presented itself in my glass. I was immediately impressed by the medium Golden in color liquid that was sat my glass. The Sun was out and shined brightly on the wine and it sparkled and enticed me to try it right now. As you can probably imagine I am dying to taste this wine anyway so I gave in and did indeed take a sip, hopefully it will not disappoint. Ar this point, judging solely by the wonderful Bouquet and the incredible appearance of the wine in my glass, I am anticipating a super nice wine. let's find out if my hopes do indeed become a reality.

   Moving to the Palette now I will tell you first off that this wine does indeed have slight Barrel Tannins (or Polyphenols) that are actually rather nice (I love Tannins) and that you will notice. These Barrel Tannins really become an integral part of the wine and your tasting experience of it without being anywhere near the point of approaching dominance or being overpowering, they simply present what comes across as acidity. I will tell you that there is Apple (or Malic Acid) note on the Palette but that would be an understatement. I am talking about an Apple (Malic Acid) that brings a sort of semi brightness and slight tanginess to the wine and also presents itself nicely as does the other notes present such as medium Lemon that sat at an absolutely perfect level and because of that there certainly is no puckering of the mouth nor anything even close going on. Yes, there is indeed a tropical semi-tartness to the wine but once again nothing in the way of offensiveness only pure brightness and liveliness which I thought was outstanding. Let's discuss the note of creaminess that the varietal is sometimes known for. I would not say that this Chardonnay is "creamy" as it really brings with it that sense of zest in the form of Lemon that really tries it's best to exclude or eliminate any creaminess. Guys, let me stop for a second and tell you right now that it is hard for me to continue this review as all I want to do is sit back and enjoy this wine. I will not allow myself to do that however because I want...no need to go on and tell you what you are missing out on. As the varietal is known for as well, there is a note of  Limestone here that brings a moderate mineral quality to the wine that is simply outstanding and yeah, I said outstanding folks.There is also plenty of fruit on the palette as well. As on the nose there are tropical notes of Peach and Nectarine although these notes are not overpowering they begin on the front palette and last through the finish rather nicely. I know that you are wondering now whether or not this is a fruit forward White, have no worries, it is not. The fruit is more on the moderate side and very enjoyable without being overpowering. As I previously mentioned, the wine is aged in French Oak for 4 months yet again no worries as this is not an overly oaked (Malolactic Fermentation) type wine by any means.  For those of you who are tired of the overly oaked interpretation of this varietal you have found your Chardonnay. Before leaving the discussion of the Oak however, I will tell you that the French Oak is noticeable and if you are completely turned off by an Oaked Chardonnay I would recommend that you look for another wine as you will certainly taste the Oak. Having said that I want to let you know that there is some nice White Pepper on the Palette which actually flatters the fruitier side of this wine and keeps it in check. This wine is not done folks, there is more to it and I am enjoying this wine tremendously. The wine has note of fairly decent minerality and semi racy acidity that it gladly places on display for the taster to enjoy. Let me say as well that this is somewhat a combination of warm weather and cool weather Chardonnay, sort of a best of both worlds actually. Perhaps it would be better explained as a blending of Old World and New World together. One thing to mention is that the wine is lacking a buttery note that the varietal is known for however there is a slightly oily note that can be mistaken for it. Once again as with all the other notes, this particular one does not attempt to overpower or cover any of the other notes and each note is expressed fully, allowing for a full bodied and somewhat complex white wine. Well, it is time to wrap this review up so let's move on and do just that.

Washington State AVA's

   In my opinion the wine has a lot to offer for loves of the varietal grown in hot as well as cooler climates. Although this particular wine is grown in a hot region it exhibits the characteristics of both and I am loving it, I couldn't ask for more in a Chardonnay. Folks I am super upset that I only have 1 bottle because I easily could have enjoyed another. The wine is that incredible. I have one last thing to say before I give my rating. I have had many people send me free wine and I have bombed a lot of free wine. I say this because I do not want you, the reader to think that I am giving this wine rave reviews simply because I was given it for free. This wine is outstanding because the winemaker did a great job with great grapes, that is it. Mrs. Trotta my hat is off to you. Having said that I give this wine 93 points and it earned every point.
                                                                                                                The Desert Wine Guy
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The Desert Wine Guy - 2011 Estate Bottled, Lava Cap Zinfandel

2011 Lava Cap Estate Bottled Zinfandel

  Hello everyone. Today I would like to begin this review by letting you know that there is a new edition to The Desert Wine Guy family. I would like you guys to meet Max, he is an 11 week old German Shepherd puppy. Max will be guarding the Vineyards in the future when he gets older and hopefully not eating the grapes along the way. Max also has everything to do with how I came across the wine that I am reviewing. You see about three weeks ago we took a 9 hour drive to Oroville California to pick up Max from the breeder and had the delight of passing through some of the most beautiful country side along the way.  We made the long trip up and spent that night in nice hotel room in Paradise California. While I had heard that there were wineries in the general area I had promised Mrs. Desert Wine Girl that we were only going up to get Max because she was concerned about getting back home so the kids would be able to get sleep for school (I know huh) for school so we did not have time to stop at any of them. On the way back we stopped at a Gas Station in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and while the family was using the rest room I started wondering if this place sold any wines made in the area. Well, guess what I found while I was looking around? Yep, a few bottles of our review wine, the 2011 Estate Bottled, Lava Cap Zinfandel. Here was now my opportunity to try one of those wines and keep my promise at the same time. The price of the wine was $18.45 and so I bought a bottle and we headed home. Almost as soon as we got in the car a little voice in my head told me to get at least two bottles. I even told Mrs. Desert Wine Girl "watch, the wine will be great and I won't be able to find it anywhere". Here is a spoiler alert, I was right on both counts. I just figured we had spent enough money on the trip and that one bottle would simply have to do. So we get home and a couple of days later I open this wine to review it and after about 10 minutes tasting it I immediately knew that I was going to need to buy more of this wine. I later punched it up in a search engine and found that it is no longer available.....anywhere...except for a little Gas Station 9 hours away. I started kicking myself for not buying the last two bottles. Well, it's too late now i'll just have to move on so let's now learn a little about the Vineyard.

Max - The Vineyard Protector

  The Lava Cap Winery ( http://www.lavacap.com/) is located in Placerville California high in the Sierra Nevada foothills which to my surprise is also an American Viticultural Area (AVA). The lava Cap (named for the volcanic debris flow) Winery is located along what is called the Apple Hill Wine Trail (http://applehill.com/wineries/) and includes 7 wineries. It is my understanding that the Lava Cap Winery is very dog friendly as well. Who knows Max might even visit one day. The winery was founded by the Husband and Wife team of David & Jeanne Jones. Although David unfortunately passed away in 2008 the winery is still in the Jones family with Charlie & Noreen Jones at the Helm. Vines were first planted in 1981 while the winery itself opened in 1986. Today the estate vineyards are comprised of 60 acres of vines and over 11 different wine-grape varietals. The property sits at an elevation of 2,400 to 2,800 feet above sea level. Now that we have learned a little about the Vineyard, lets get into the heart of this review and see what the wine is all about.

Jones Family

 

  On the pour the wine was rather light in color to the eye, almost like a Cherry soft drink only not thick with nasty High Fructose Corn Syrup. The wine also sat in the glass the same way as well, very light Red in color. Now, I have had many great Zins in the past that showed in the glass the same way this wine is and so the color did not put me off in the least bit as these wines ended up being really great wines in the end. I was rather excited to taste this wine and I hoped that this would be one that I would enjoy as well. As is customery with the varietal, this wine came in at fairly high Alcohol level of 14.9%. Let's move ahead now and talk about the Bouquet and what I thought of it.
  Bringing the wine to my nose I picked up the moderate sense of Black Pepper as there should be in this varietal. There was also a pretty decent note of Cocoa as well as a nice light note of Raspberries that were on the end of the Bouquet. There was also a small note of Oak mid Palette but nothing to dominate the other notes as this is not an oakey style wine. So.....now on to the tasting of this gas station bought wine.

  Moving onto the Palette and how this wine came across, or presented itself to me. I must say right off the bat that having already tasted this wine I will jump forward for a moment and lead off this section with the following three words....."oh my gosh". Going backwards now I will tell you that Black Pepper is certainly the first thing that you will taste when drinking this wine. As on the nose however, don't worry because on one hand this Black pepper is not overpowering but on the other hand it is on the front Palette and is ultimately super pleasant. This is a Zinfandel for people who like varietals such as the Tempranillo & Syrah. There are also semi soft yet distinctly noticeable Tannins that are just perfect and the wine is certainly ready to drink in that aspect. Following up on these Tannins I will tell you that they are are actually at a level that they are neither too soft nor too heavy nor are they overdone. What a super clean, polished wine and also one that is not overly soft rither. Moving on now to other notes let's talk about Blackberry. A deep Blackberry is picked up on the

Lava Cap Vineyards

Tongue and again is not domination as it is in some wines. Along with the Blackberry comes a rich Black Cherry fruit that comes across rather dark and deep. As I previously said, while the Oak is not dominating this wine that is not to say that it doesn't impact the Palette because it really does. There is a sort of warmth that comes from this Oak as the wine did sit in American and French oak barrels for 20 months and could not help but be noticed. There is also a nice semi dark note of Tobacco that I really enjoyed and found to not be overpowering but again just powerful enough to make an impact. Topping this wine off is ripe Jammy notes that express themselves on the palette in the form of a slighty fruity (jammy) but not offensive sugar note and that also seems to help in developing a contrast between the Tobacco and mellowing out of the Black pepper and oak as the notes come across the palette. It is now time guys to place a wrap on this review and give you some last thoughts as well as my rating of this wine so let's go ahead and do just that.
  Well......here we are wrapping this review up. Can a simple gas station bought wine excel in the taste and quality department? I don't know about these places sell some questionable wines (Yellow Tail) as a general rule of thimb but in my humble opinion this particular wine absouletely was an exception to that rule. I give the winemaker big props for putting this wine together. This wine was well thought out and it is apparent that a lot of knowledge and effort was put into the growing of the grapes and the making of this wine. On The Desert Wine Guy rating scale I happily give this wine 91 points.

Lava Cap Tasting Room

P.S - Before leaving I feel that I need to point two items of interest out. The first thing is I need to issue a word to the wise here. This is a powerful wine in the sense of Alcohol content and it really hit me hard. I ate a decent Lunch yet about 3/4 of the way through the bottle I had a fairly decent "buzz" and had to finish this review prior to finishing the bottle as I usually do.Point number two is that I contacted the Lava Cap winery on February 25th and requested assistance from them in purchasing some more of this wine. As of  the publishing (March 7th) of this article I have not had any response at all from the winery. This is a large strike in the area of Customer Service as far as I am concerned.
 
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