2018 Chateau Ste. Michelle, Merlot - Columbia Valley

 

2018 Chateau Ste. Michelle, Merlot - Columbia Valley

   

   When I first began reading wine magazines and reviewing wines, I never saw those wines I would review in any of those magazines. True most of the wines I reviewed were small label, inexpensive wines but some of them were also very good and stood out above the rest of the pack no matter how small and inexpensive they were. Why I asked, would wine magazines skip over these wines? I never got the answer to that question although I have my suspicions. Thankfully today, that is changing as these big wine magazines have decided to allow small label, inexpensive wins to finally not only grace their pages, but also rate pretty well. This delay is one of the reasons why I have major doubts concerning the legitimacy of these wine magazines reviews as far as being on the "up & up" so to speak. Another reason is that a few years ago, Mrs. Desert Wine Girl and I actually had a fancy wine dinner with a well known winemaker from the Napa Valley and while the girls (my wife & his handler) went to the bathroom, him and I had a chance to really talk and one thing we talked about was Wine Spectator magazine. This winemakers opinion of that magazine was shall we say, less then flattering.

Beautiful Chateau Ste. Michelle

Overall in my opinion, what it all boils down to is that when money (advertising and relationships) is involved no matter how much, there is nothing and no one above reproach, this by the way applies to the medical industry as well but I will leave that thought there. Yes folks, with the average wine today selling for a little over $13 and people being less willing or able to afford high priced wine which the majority of the time is no better, I guess the snooty wine "pros" have woken up and realized they still need money for their empire to exist so in comes you and I, the average wine lover. So with this being said, today I will be reviewing a wine that is priced perfectly for us lowly, average wine lovers :)

   Today I will be reviewing the 2018 Chateau Ste. Michelle, Merlot - Columbia Valley. I have seen this wine on clearance the last few times I went to my local grocery store and decided today to take a chance, it needed to finally be adopted, taken home, as it looked rather lonely just sitting on the shelf. The wine was priced at $9.56 which was reduced from the normal $12.95 the store usually sells it for. The wine comes in at 13.5% alcohol and the bottle is cork (real) sealed. As for the makeup of the wine, it is my understanding that there is an unknown bit of Syrah added to the Merlot.

   Taking a look at the label now, it is a typical Chateau Ste. Michelle label. While it is true that I have never been what you would call "crazy" about the wineries basic label, I have always felt that it did a decent job of conveying a sense of semi-seriousness to that particular lineup of offerings. I also really like the back label and the way it starts off with the script/font that the words "Chateau Ste. Michelle" are written in. I also like how they put some general information of the sugar content there as well which is not common. 

    Moving on now to the nose characterization of the wine, I am immediately picking up a spiced mocha that starts the nose off here and I have to say that it is very nice as it provides almost a sense of warmth to the bouquet. The nose also offers up a possibly dangerous perceived sense of perhaps a slight richness being present in the wine and also hints at a possible bit of depth to the wine as well.

Merlot Grapes Hanging On The Vine

 Topping off the nose is a peppery note here and by the way it all comes across, I hope it translates over nicely to the palate presentation, let's find out.  

   As I move to the palate now I want to tell you that earlier in the day, before I bought the wine, I read a few reviews on it and they showed the wine to be a very nicely made Merlot, people were impressed. Whether I feel the same way or not, remains to be seen so let's go ahead and taste the wine now and find out. Okay, so having taken my first sip of the wine now, I have to very early on in this review tell you that the wine is in reality.....oh darn, I almost did it again, I almost gave away the ending and I simply can't do that so let me back up a bit. Luckily that spiced mocha note that I got on the nose transfers right over to here and it is.....well....incredibly to say the least. Everything I assumed I would (or could) get here from the nose is delivered up on the palate just as expected. The perceived bit of a slight richness shows up here as well just as I guessed it would on the nose. Both the notes of that spiced mocha and that bit of richness  amazingly really work well together and actually elevate one another. Together this combo note ends up being a sort of roadmap that the wine continues forward on. There is a juiciness to the wine that is right up there and yet doesn't try to fight those first few notes which is good as it works out so super well for the wine (and you) in its totality. There is a bit of a smoke note to the wine as well but just a bit. This smoke note really adds to the wine overall and the fact that it is on the light side is a good thing. I am also picking up a sweet and juicy cherry note here as well however that "sweet" is ultra well controlled by the rest of the wine, only allowing enough of it to come forward as needed. A hint of darkness is expressed here also and it comes across as almost a note more interested in effecting the mid-palate then anything else but its well placed nonetheless. Effectively, that bit of darkness works its magic, not looking to overpower any other note and being very comfortable right where and how it is. There is a woodsy, peppery spice to the wine also which is awesome....like....awesome. This woodsy, peppery spice appears to be another note that finds its joy in working alongside the other notes and not trying to have the wine deviate from the path it is already walking. The slightest hint of raspberry is here also and once again guys, it loves being right where it is which is intermixed with everything else. If this weren't enough guys, how about a bit of dark chocolate? Yeah, guys, it's here and it's (again) good. I am not talking about a dark chocolate that wants to take control, no way this dark chocolate is content on coming in on the mid-palate and seems focused on being present just enough to have you notice it is there without needing to be front stage.

Chateau Ste. Michelle Tasting Room

Acidity to the wine is slightly bracing but nothing that will have you sitting back in your chair. This acidity is showing that there is certainly a good possibility that the wine has some aging potential. Another factor and one which can reflect the wines ability to age as well is that of tannins. In this wine, tannins are ever so slightly more then on the dusty side but show no signs of being ready to weaken. I would like to say that I have indeed told you all about this wine but every time I take a short break and come back, there is more to talk about. How about a sense of leather in this $13 Merlot, would that surprise you because yes, it is here and yes, it is good ? Folks, everything about this wine surprises me so I guess this particular note being present shouldn't. Continuing on, there is a bright black cherry present here and it plays so nicely with the rest of the wine guys. This black cherry really livens up the palate and only compounds the fact that this Merlot is performing well above its pay grade. Closing this review out (finally) is the fact that the wine does offer up a bit of jamminess however, this is the rare instance that jamminess does not ruin a wine. To me, in my opinion, one of the worst things a red wine can present is jamminess so keep that in mind when you read my thoughts on it. The jamminess present here plays right into the hands of everything the wine is trying to present, every hope it had since its inception of being a very serious wine. In short, this is a serious wine. Guys, I actually could go on but I do believe that I have said enough. I will see you in the next paragraph.

Barrels In The Chateau Ste. Michell Tasting Room

   

   If you are looking for a Merlot for the backyard or to sip at the pool, this is not that Merlot. If you are looking for a duplication of Cupcake or Barefoot, again, this is not that wine. If however, you are looking to impress your wine educated friends or guests, pour this wine into their glass without them seeing the bottle and your party will be the one to go to in the future. I guess the gamble I took of purchasing a wine on clearance was worth it, the wine is a winner. Yes, there is a bit of jamminess to the wine but in the end it just works. On The Desert Wine Guy rating scale I am giving this wine a cellar worthy rating of 94 points. As I said earlier, the wine can age for another 7-8 years as it has the right amount of both acidity and tannins to stand up nicely for at least that long.

 

                                                                                                The Desert Wine Guy

 

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2020 Benjamin Denault, Picpoul De Pinet

 

      I wonder how many wine reviewers actually go back in private and re-taste a wine they already reviewed. If they do take a second look, I wonder if that second look has them rating that wine the same score as the first tasting did. I for one am not ashamed to admit that I occasionally do a second look of wines I have already reviewed. As always, I am going to keep it real and tell you that 99% of these second looks end up coming in at the original rating and at no time has a wine gone from being what I consider to be cellar worthy to not being cellar worthy or a bad wine to a good wine. I really enjoy doing those second look reviews as it is a challenge to see just how consistent my palate is. The only think I take from the older review is the actual specific (tech sheet) information on the wine that I already researched. Well guys, Today I will be doing a second look of a wine I reviewed a few months ago because I am really curious to see if the original tasting score still holds up.

   Let's begin by talking about the grape varietal I am reviewing which is named Picpoul De Pinet (Piquepoul Blanc) which means "stings the lip" in English. It turns out that there are many varieties of Picpoul grapes aside from the white version, including the Piquepoul Noir variety which is black or red in color. The grape is also of the Vitis Viniferia species as are almost all grapes used for wine. The grape originated in Rome actually in 125 BC outside the Roman colony of Narbo (Narbonne) however it has made a new and successful home in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France. In France the varietal is mostly used as a blending grape however there is some experimenting going on in the Wilcox AVA of Arizona and California (Sonoma) as well as Texas in the Texas Hill Country AVA & the Texas High Plains AVA as well. 

   Today I am reviewing the 2020 Benjamin Denault, Picpoul De Pinet. This wine cost me $11.99 and its alcohol percentage comes in at 13%. The bottle is cork (real) sealed and the grapes for the wine come from the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France. As for residual sugar, the winemaker Benjamin Denault informed me that there is none which is awesome.

   Let's begin as I usually do and that is by talking about the label first. This is the first thing that catches the consumers eye after all so to me, next to the wines palate presentation, this is the most important thing concerning a wine. I really like this label guys.

To me the label screams a small chateau somewhere in some small foreign country and in some small town that few tourists ever go to. I have visions in my mind of sheep roaming the streets or goats being herded from pasture to pasture. With the grape originating in France, the label works nicely.

   Let's talk about the nose of this wine now? Bringing the glass to my nose the wine offers up notes of oak, a bit of butteriness, white flowers and pear. The nose is showing off a wine that appears to be tropical but hopefully it won't be an overly fruity, sweet, sugar bomb.

   Okay, now for the palate characteristics of the wine. A well controlled dual/combo note of oak & butteriness is present on the wines opening and while that combo note is a forward one, before you go saying that you aren't going to buy the wine because of this, please hear me out. Straight off I will tell you that I do not like an oakey/buttery Chardonnay or white wine in general and I promise you, this is not that wine. There are other notes here which control that combo note successfully and in a way, even supersedes it very successfully. There is a simply wonderful dryness to the wine guys and I would even go so far as to say that to me, that dryness here is the key to what makes the wine great. Did I say great? Oh yeah, I guess I did. A melon note is here as well, an ultra ripe honeydew melon note intermixes with everything else here and...... WOW! Ripe green apple is really making its presence known and this apple is juicy and fresh for sure and it really does show itself here. Bosch Pear is an underlying note here yet it manages to make its presence known as well and it is well placed and yummy. Guys, before I go on I have to tell you that this is not a sweet wine however there is a bit of fresh and ripe fruit sweetness present. The sweetness most definitely does not dominate the wine but it is something that is needed in order to make this wine what it is. Another note here is of honeysuckle, fresh, outdoor, honeysuckle that you smell as you walk past the plant outside and only imagine you can taste.

As for acidity, it is moderate and interacts incredibly well with the dryness aspect of the wine. The acidity itself comes on really fast but quickly fades leaving that mentioned dryness to go by itself which turns out to be just perfect. A saline note is here as well but it meshes incredibly well with everything in general. Lastly, there is a flinty note here as well guys and it is a note which really helps in elevating this wine for sure. Well there you have it guys, my review of a very impressive and ultra enjoyable wine. I will go on ahead now and wrap this review, see you in the next paragraph.

   Okay, the moment of truth, what are my final feelings on the wine? Let's begin with my rating of the wine. On The Desert Wine Guy rating scale I am giving this wine 95 points, I loved it. I will tell you this though, keep the wine very cold because as it warms, the sweetness increases and that is never a good thing, at least in my book anyway. Guys, I am going to go right now and check out my past review draft of this wine and see what I rated this wine, I will be right back. Okay, I am back and in that review I rated this wine at.....95 points. Oh yeah, party dance, getting down, totally.......righteous.....ahhh....yeah...okay. As of now, the 2022 vintage of this wine is available and if it is anything like this wine, it is going to be amazing. I highly recommend that you go out and buy three bottles of this wine just as I am going to do because I know you will love the heck out of it.

                                                                                               The Desert Wine Guy

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2021 Chateau Ste Michelle, Dry Riesling

   Guys, have you ever gotten on a particular wine varietal kick? I mean like all of a sudden you are drinking four Sauvignon Blancs in a row or four Rieslings in a row and your cool with it because you suddenly have a crazy attachment to that particular varietal. Well if you've ever been there and done that, you know where I am right now. I guess as long as we are comfortable with the wine we are drinking, who can tell us we are wrong....right? Wine is about enjoyment so why not drink what you enjoy and in my case, and at this particular time, I have been liking Riesling. Now many of you might find this weird because as I am writing this review, it is the end of December and Central Florida is experiencing some of the coldest temperatures at night that they have experienced in many years at 23 degrees. Oh well, I also wear white after Labor Day so I guess I am a rebel :) Speaking of Riesling, that is what I just so happen to be reviewing today so let's check this wine out.
   Okay guys, today I am going to be taking a look at the 2021 Chateau Ste Michelle, Dry Riesling. I paid $9.99 for this wine and I bought it at my local grocery store. The bottle is cork sealed and, with a real cork as well. The wine comes in at 13% alcohol and its grapes are 100% Riesling and come from the Columbia Valley in Washington State.

   Okay, it is time to take a look at the label on the bottle. For those of you who follow this blog, you already know that I think the label on a wine bottle is very important because it is the first thing that catches the consumers eye on a shelf. Do you want a serious Riesling or do you want a Riesling that is meant for playtime at the pool? I have always liked the label that Chateau Ste Michell puts on their wines as I feel it offers up a sense of a semi seriousness or at least the thought of a well thought out wine being inside the bottle. I really like the size & font of the winery name and the way it provides an offset to the other fonts used. While the wine is available everywhere including some gas stations, it still presents the appearance at least of holding its own and setting itself apart from a lot of other very common wines thanks to the label.
   As I check out the nose of the wine I am getting some light stone fruit in the form of a Yellow Peach here. Following this up is an almost hidden bit of honeysuckle. I am also getting the slightest bit of white flowers as well and it is right in line with that Yellow peach and  honeysuckle as far as presentation goes. Overall, the nose is fairly on the tropical side but is overall rather light. Just going by the nose now, I would guess this wine is probably not an over the top, tropical one on the palate but I will soon see if I am right..
   Now onto the palate presentation aspect of the wine. First up I am getting the belief after tasting just a couple of sips that the wine is true to its name, it is dry. Now, when I say dry, I am not talking over the top, screaming dry. Yes, there is a nicely regulated amount of tropical fruit presented here that provides sufficient fruit sweetness and energy in order to keep your mouth from puckering up or thinking you have stuffed a dry rag into it. There is also a bit of a zippyiness to the wine, an ever so slightest bit of a carbonation to it. I have to keep it real guys, whenever I taste that note in a wine it kind of throws me off. Here in this wine it was no exception and it really did just that for the first two sips however very quickly it became a note that I found rather enjoyable.

The wine offed up some nice lemon, almost with a Nestea type taste in a slight way which I thought was offered up in a way that took any possible twang away but added a slight softness and slight brilliance as well in it's place. A background Yellow Peach note is present as well and I like where it is placed and the palate feel it presents. I also like the fact that I can enjoy the tropicalness here without thinking I am reviewing some badly made white wine that relies on sugar or sweetness to get its likes. Minerality is definitely present although not overwhelming by any means. There is a note of almost like...tannins to the wine guys and although weird as it is a white wine, I am actually enjoying it. This feeling of tannin's certainly isn't crazy but the fact that it is a white wine really makes it rather unique. There is a honeysuckle note to the wine but it is well controlled by the acidity of the wine which is also very nice. This acidity is what I would consider to be at a medium presentation and is certainly sufficient to be doing what it does best which is keeping the wine a very lively and dry one indeed. Okay guys, there you have it, this review is done so I will see you in the next paragraph where I will wrap this all up.

   Folks, I enjoyed the wine. See you later, goodbye. I'm just kidding, lets talk about how I feel concerning this wine. The first thing is, as a reminder, this wine cost me $10 but even if the wine was more expensive, I would still what I am about to say. The wine was very enjoyable and I thought, well made. To me, this is a multi use wine meaning it will impress at a dinner party as well as at the pool. In short, this is a wine you can break out anytime and impress your guests. Overall, the wine is medium as far as tropicalness goes but is really geared more towards being a dry and minerality driven Riesling. On The Desert Wine Guy rating scale I am giving this wine 92 points. I do recommend you buy the wine as there is nothing offensive about it at all, it is very well made and, the true definition of a crowd pleaser. 

                                                                                               The Desert Wine Guy

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2021 F. Stephen Millier, Viognier

 

   What's up everyone? As I write today's wine review it is a Sunday and the beginning of January, 2023. I hope you all got a chance to relax today and do whatever it is you wanted or needed to do. Here in "Freedom" Florida it is 75 beautiful degrees and while a lot of the country is digging out from snow or wrapping themselves up in jackets or blankets, I began to break out the garden stuff as in a couple of days I will be planting (still indoors) some seeds for this years tomatoes and vegetables. I really get excited this time of year because it means the beginning of me being in the garden and that is always relaxing. Today I even trimmed up my banana plant that is believe it or not, still growing a bunch of bananas from last year and which I do hope to eat eventually. Today, I am also in the mood to celebrate the coming Spring/Summer seasons by reviewing a wine varietal that is made for the Sun, I will see you in the next paragraph and you will find out which varietal I chose. 

   Today guys, I will be taking a look at the 2021 F.Stephen Millier, Viognier. I bought this wine from the on line wine club, Naked Wines which by the way, I have belonged to for about four years now. I paid $12.99 for this wine and the bottle is cork (real) sealed. The wine comes in at 14% alcohol and its grapes come from a single vineyard in Calaveras County which is located in the High Sierra of California. 

   Let's move on now and talk about the label on the bottle.

Viognier Taste Profile

 Most wine reviewers for whatever reason, don't understand the importance of the wine label. I have always contended that the label being the first thing the consumer sees, is vitally important to selling a wine. Are you looking for a serious wine? If so, is does the label come across as serious? Are you looking for a Summer pool wine? Is the label bright and filled with color? I hope you see where I am coming from here. As far as this particular label goes, I am not a lover of it at all. To me, the label is dark and conveys the winter months rather then what it should be celebrating which is the Spring/Summertime. Pushing that aside, I just am not a lover of the fonts used either.

   Okay, now let's move onto the nose of this wine. As I bring the wine to my nose I am getting a nice bit of a honeydew melon as well as light baked apple.

   As for the palate presentation of the wine, the first thing I get is oak. I unfortunetly find the the oak to be a good bit overdone and I find it also to be a note that also unfortunately dominates the wine. There is melon note to the wine which is very nice though but try as it might, it really can't over power that oak. A baked apple note is present here as well but it really seems to latch on to that oak in a way and...yeah...it's just not my favorite. I am getting some nectarine but by its nature, it seems to just play into the oak/baked apple thing and try as it might, it can't pull itself away. Acidity is high which is nice and is one of the positive notes to the wine. Okay so....I am sitting out back by my pool in some beautiful weather, sipping on this wine.

Viognier Grapes on the Vine

I want you to know this so you get my mindset. Keeping this in mind and knowing what I am tasting, I have to ask, are ya smelling what the rock is cooking as an old wrestler would say? Now go ahead and add a bit of a butteriness note to the wine and for me, that is more than enough to shut this review down. This butteriness just pushes the knife even deeper into the heart of the wine and really finishes it off. So there you have it guys, this review while rather short, is done and I will see you in the next paragraph to wrap it all up.

   Alright so the wine is bad. I can't say it any more blunt, I do not recommend you buy it. Oak and baked apple just dominate the wine and that is not good in my book. I have three quarters of a bottle left and it is going down the drain. On The Desert Wine Guy rating scale, I am giving the wine 84 points and getting my money back from Naked Wines.

 

                                                                        The Desert Wine Guy

 

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2020 Matt Parish, Cabernet Sauvignon - Reserve

 

2020 Matt Parish, Cabernet Sauvignon - Reserve

    

   What's up everyone, today I want to open up this wine review by talking about an incredible winemaker named Matt Parish. Just how do I know Matt is an incredible winemaker? Well guys, that's easy, I have tasted many of his wines and thought they were all not simply good, but amazing, that's how. Matt not only is an incredible winemaker, he has an amazing history in the wine industry as well. Taking a look at Matt's career he has been vice president and chief winemaker for the Americas at Treasury Wine Estates (https://www.tweglobal.com/) whose portfolio includes such prestigious wineries as Beringer, Stags’ Leap, Chateau St. Jean, and Etude just to name a few. Matt has also worked for Constellation Wines US (https://www.cbrands.com/) and was also chief winemaker for Naked Wines (https://us.nakedwines.com/) which he left in 2016 however he still works together with Naked Wines in pushing independent winemakers and wineries around the world. Since 2017 Matt has been the winemaker for Lula Cellars (https://www.lulacellars.com/) and also works with Parras Wines (https://parras.wine/en/) which is located in Portugal. As if all of this didn't keep Matt busy enough, he also has a consulting business named Vinture LLC (https://venture-consult.com/consulting).

Napa Valley Winery Map

Now as if this still wasn't enough, in February of 2020 it was also announced that he joined Azur Associates (https://www.azur-associates.com/) as the Managing Director as well as the winemaker and, is in charge of production as well. As I am sure Matt himself will tell you, most importantly and above all, Matt is a Husband as well as the father of two children and in an article written by Elizabeth Smith (https://easmith.net/) writing for the Napa Valley register, Matt puts it all together in one sentence which is "Family, the kids’ schoolwork, clients, Zoom tastings, bottling, vineyard checks, harvest preparation, and everything and anything else, depending on the day.” While Matt's wines are I believe the highest priced wines on Naked Wines I can promise you, they are well worth it. As a last note here, you should know that I am not someone who normally jumps on a bandwagon and the ones I do jump on, I have done a lot of research on so in Matt's case, that jumping was justified. Now let's get into todays wine.
   Today I am going to be reviewing the 2020 Matt Parish, Cabernet Sauvignon - Reserve. I paid $40.99 for this wine and while that  certainly does exceed the normal price of wines I review, it is after all from Matt so I just had to make an exception to that norm. The bottle is sealed with a real cork as expected and the wine comes in at 15% alcohol. The grapes for this wine come from the Oakville, Rutherford, St Helena AVA's as well as Napa's newest AVA which is the Coombsville AVA. The wine sat in 50% new French Oak for 18 months and was fermented in stainless steel with the skins for post fermentation.
  Now it is time to check out the label on the wine bottle. Let me begin by saying that if the wine inside the bottle is anything as beautiful as the label outside the bottle is, this is going to be a stunner of a wine. The Charcoal Blue color of this label is without a doubt, just crazy amazing.

Pure Delight

The simplicity of the wording along with the placement of those words and the fonts chosen are really nothing short of striking. Whomever is in charge of creating this label is truly talented. Guys, the gold color of the words layed on top of that Charcoal Blue really stands out so nicely. This label strikes me as having to be created for the best steakhouse in existence. This is a bottle of wine that you would expect to see at a dinner for heads of state or at a prestigious dinner of executives for some world wide conglomerate.
    As for the nose of the wine now, I am getting a wonderful cedar note here which is presented in such a way that it alone has me craving to taste the wine. If that wasn't enough though, I am also picking up some fresh dark blackberry and some nice, expensive smelling cocoa as well. Simply sitting here and just smelling this Cab has me really jonesing for that first sip.
   Now, the moment I have been waiting for, let's talk palate. Okay, from the very onset of the tasting portion of this review I must tell you that this wine is very serious indeed and thankfully, those notes from the nose translate on over to here as well. That cedar note is just lovely and offered up by the wine in a delicate yet certainly present and enjoyable manner. While this note appears as more of a background type note here, don't let that have you thinking that it is an after thought type note because it is one of many notes which is certainly very instrumental in the steering of this wine. That dark blackberry I got on the nose is also translating on over to the palate and while it is a bit more striking (okay, it is really nice and deep) then the cedar, it too is not overdone but it is representing quality dark fruit very nicely. Adding to this is a note of blackcurrant and it also is pretty nice here guys so you had better love this note in your Cabs because the wine really embraces it and hopefully your palate will as well.

Cabernet Sauvignon Grapes Hanging On The Vine

As I said earlier, this is a serious Cabernet Sauvignon and not one you will find at your local grocery store, even on the top shelf. Getting back to the notes transferring over from the nose of the wine for a minute, there is a cocoa note here as well and it comes into play about three seconds after the wine hits your tongue, guys......it is really super good. On one hand the wine is amazing at keeping this cocoa note on the moderate side yet at the same time, offering that note up very flavor fully to be enjoyed. Another very nicely done note here is that of a slightly sweet and smoky spice note that the wine is in love with and honestly, so am I. This slightly sweet and smoky spice seems to carry everything else on it's back and therefore, through the entire wines palate presentation as well, it is very simply....yummy. As for tannin's, there are some but I totally and completely enjoyed them. I personally have no complaints here as these tannin's to me are almost dusty in presentation yet can be considered to be what a lot of people would say are not quite "there" yet and that this is one reason that the wine should age a bit still. If you are like me though and enjoy tannin's in your wine, they are awesome right now. Guys, the wine has a lot of black fruit but it also is so very super well balanced which is a testament to the talent of the winemaker and the ingredients he was able to gather. Black cherry is here as well but it is not a sweet, artificially doctored up black cherry, here in this wine the fruit is obviously fresh and beautifully extracted. I have to return to that blackberry note here for a minute because the more I taste the wine, the more important it becomes as it seems to pair up with that smoky spice. Together both notes are just lush without going crazy or trying to overtake everything else the wine is offering up. Yet another note here in the wine is of a really nice bit of sweet oak and this is just another area where the wine insists on showing itself off. This sweet oak is perfectly balanced and is well within line with the rest of the wine.

Lula Vineyards Tasting Room

When I say the word "sweet" here guys please understand something. I am not talking about some uncontrolled, let's cover wine-making flaws sweet. I am instead speaking of just a hair bit of sweetness that is dominated by oak which itself is not overpowering. Speaking of the oak, you can taste the presence of that 50% new French Oak and in the end, it is a very important and very enjoyable aspect of the wine as it is tasty and yet another one which works hand in hand with every component of the wine. Particular mention should be made in reference to a combo note of blackberry and oak. This combo note is slightly on the forward side but neither aspect of it is crazy in what they are doing and I think the word "delicious" is well suited here. Adding to all of this is an earthy note as well that is yet another area where the wine shows itself off. I do not believe that I have ever tasted too many Cabs with this type of an earthy note but when I have, it really pushed that particular wine upwards in my overall review just as it does here. In reference to this particular wine the note is right where it needs to be.  So.......there you have it, my review of the much anticipated, 2020 Matt Parish, Cabernet Sauvignon - Reserve. As you can tell, I am in love with the wine but what is my rating on the wine, should you buy it? To find out the answers to these questions you will have to check out the next paragraph, I will see you there.   

   Welcome folks to the conclusion paragraph. This is where I warp the review up and give you The Desert Wine Guy rating on the wine you just read about.

Matt In The Vineyard

As far as that tightly bound comment goes, I guess I should address that first. Having tasted this wine now I can definitely tell you that the wine needs some time to cellar. This is confirmed by the fact that Matt himself recommends that you don't even try this wine until at least 2023 (it's 2022 right now). There are aspects of the wine which lead me to say that the wine is tightly bound. The wine needs some time to loosen up a bit as it is just tightly packed with energy and it really shows here on the palate. I think another year to uncoil itself will only benefit it as there is so much going on in this wine that it does need to calm down a bit in order for you to experience everything it has to offer which I can tell you, is a tremendous amount. When you do open the wine he suggests that you decant it for at least 2 hours. Matt also says that the  drinking window for this wine is until 2028 but I myself think he might indeed wish to add 10 years years on top of that. Guys,as you sip on this wine, you need to just sit back and allow your mouth to explore it as you will find that the wine is really a complex one. The wine has a lot that it wants to say but at this time just can't find the words to say it and that's also where the cellaring will allow it to find those words. This wine is just now beginning to slowly move towards what it is going to eventually become but if what I just tasted is any indication of what it is going to become, it will absolutely be a 98 point in the future.

Lula Cellars

As it is, on The Desert Wine Guy rating scale, I am giving this wine 97 amazing points. 

   Folks, before I close this review out I feel the need to again remind you that this is a very serious Cabernet Sauvignon, a classic Bordeaux style Cab. If that is not what you are after, I certainly get it but save yourself some money, don't buy the wine. If however, you are looking for a deep, classic Cabernet Sauvignon, the kind you never thought you could afford, this is that wine. I highly recommend that if you can, you buy three bottles of the wine as you will be drinking one as soon as you get it. The other two are going to scream for the cellar and you are going to want to oblige. 

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The Desert Wine Guy - 2019 Textbook, Cabernet Sauvignon

   Do you guys look for specific areas or AVA's when you buy wine? As much as I love to explore all wine areas, I do have to admit that I have my favorite areas or AVA's that I like to stick to. I wonder though, is there any science behind this preference or is it just that we have fallen into a marketing ploy? I don't know about you but when I see a Tempranillo from anywhere other then Spain, I kind of move on. I am not quite as bad when it comes to a Cabernet Sauvignon but I would prefer to have one from the Napa Valley, preferably the Rutherford AVA as I am in love with that "Rutherford Dust" note which some argue really doesn't exist but those in the know, know :) When it comes to Sauvignon Blanc I usually head over to Marlborough, New Zealand (not literally) for that varietal but there are times in which California is visited as well when I want to change things up a bit. I think these places know that people come to them for a specific reason and they in turn price their wine accordingly. My final question to you before I move on is, what percentage of the time is it worth spending that extra money?

   So guys, today I will be taking a look at the 2019 Textbook, Cabernet Sauvignon (https://textbookvineyards.com/) from the Napa Valley. I paid $25 for this wine and the bottle is cork (real) sealed. The alcohol percentage of this wine comes in at 13.3% and the winemaker of this wine is Abi Horstman. The wine is a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 2.5% Petite Verdot & 2.5% Cabernet Franc. For those out there who love the tech stuff (me), the wine sat in 90% French Oak with 35% being new as well as 10% American Oak for 18 months. All of the grapes for this wine come from the Napa Valley in the form of four sub-AVAs which are Oak Knoll, Yountville, Rutherford, and Calistoga. One last note here of interest is that the wine is part of the Kirin Holdings Company (https://www.kirinholdings.com/en/)

   Let's talk label now. Ya know, there are times when plain, or simple, is a good thing provided it's done right that is. Folks, this label is in a way, plain & simple and is a perfect representation of what I am talking about as well. This label doesn't have any fancy colors or bright, eye catching graphics yet it just works and I think it is well done. I love the border around the label, both the front as well as the back actually. The fonts used are not what I would consider to be fancy or over the top but they definitely presents a very classic type wine imagery. Clean and certainly sophisticated, this label is one which you wouldn't be surprised to see in a photo of some dignitaries at a dinner party or even on the table of some degenerate housewives on T.V.

Let me go ahead and check out the nose of this Cabernet Sauvignon now and see what it has to say for itself. Spiced, sweet smelling French Oak is being thrown out here and let me tell you, it smells absolutely amazing. Nice blueberry is here as well but doesn't give off the impression the note will be crazy or over the top on the palate. Dark cherry follows up here and it appears to add a sense of a lovely plushness to the nose of the wine.

 Okay, so far so good but how does the wine taste? Let's find out. Okay so, first up here is that same spiced/sweet French Oak that I picked up on the nose and Ladies & Gentlemen, let me tell you, it is just as nice here as was portrayed to be on that nose. Not overpowering in the least bit, this Spiced/sweet French Oak really knows how to come forward and show itself off just beautifully. While not acting as if it needs to be the Oak Monster (thank you Gary Vee) and certainly not pushing itself on you, the oak also doesn't come across as if it was added into the wine as an afterthought either. This spiced/sweet French Oak understands that its role is strictly to impress which it certainly does in a big way. Next up here is a very adequate and delicious note of Rutherford Dust folks, yes, Rutherford Dust. If I didn't already know that some of the wines grapes came from the Rutherford AVA, I definitely would have no problem letting you know they did. This dust is certainly picked up and makes a beautiful impact on the wine overall as well. This dust adds like an earthy sense to the overall palate and boy is it good. As far as the acidity goes in the wine, The wine has an acidity presentation which is very nice as well and without causing you to sit back in you chair. As far as the acidity being just as effective as that oak and dust, yeah, it is right up there. In my humble opinion, all three notes together are elevating this wine into a category that it should not be in at this price point. If you were to me you paid $100 for this wine, I would believe you without question. The wine is also throwing out a smoke note and while it is not overpowering, it is flavorful and intermixes with everything else the wine is pushing out. Here with this note which I was not expecting but am glad is here the overall texture of the wine is elevated and balance in the wine is continued. Next up is a note which I have to be carefully telling some of you about and that note is of Plum and it is fresh and juicy. This plum adds just a hair bit of jamminess but I still hate to say that word because 99% of the time when I say it, it is followed by the following words, "......it flat out killed the wine", thankfully that is not the case here. Folks, in this particular case that plum is perfect and I don't use that word lightly guys, I do mean perfect. So if you thought I was done with this review, you would be wrong because tobacco is present here as well and it is fresh like if you just opened a bag of fresh leaves and smelled them.

To me, one sign of a serious Cabernet Sauvignon is a note of tobacco. This tobacco is not only fresh and pretty robust but I have to say, adds complexity to the wine. As far as tannin's go, they are present and on the softer yet crumbly side but they do add to the other notes which help in elevating the wine into (again) another price point. After taking a sip of the wine my mouth is left with a deliciously light coating of those tannin's which keeps telling me that the wine is both young as well as still there helping it to have a fairly long finish. Guys, I am sorry, the wine is half done but it is time to end this written review as I am saving the other half of the bottle for my YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@TheDesertWineGuy/featured) as the wine truly deserves more coverage. I will see you in the next paragraph to wrap this all up.

   What else can I say except for the fact that this wine is structured, phenomenal and I enjoyed it very much. Between that spiced sweet, French Oak, the beautiful tobacco, the plum and everything else, this wine is rocking it for sure. There is nothing about the wine that I would change other then perhaps it being perhaps a little more full bodied. On The Desert Wine Guy rating scale I am giving this wine a strong 94 (cellar worthy) points. Right about now I am going to go ask Mrs. Desert Wine Girl if she can hook me up with some wonderful lamb as I seem to have that stuck in my mind...thank you Notebook :) My recommendation to you is that you go out and buy a couple of bottles of the wine because if you love old school Napa Cabs, I know you will enjoy it.

 

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The Desert Wine Guy - 2021 Kungfu Girl, Riesling

2021 Kungfu Girl, Riesling

     

   What is a wine reviewer? I guess that's a strange topic to be opening up a wine review with especially since I am a wine reviewer huh? Really though guys, I ask you, what is a wine reviewer? I am going to tell you my opinion of what a wine reviewer is and it is a pretty basic definition actually and one which you probably already know. A wine reviewer tastes wine and lets you know what they are smelling and what they are tasting. While this may seem very easy (hint, it is) there are some wine reviewers who like to create a mystique about what they do, a sense of awe. It's as if they are saying, "you can't do what I am doing", I am special. While there is a sort of mystique to the job of a wine, it is all in reality, a facade. While it does takes some research and some experience in the form of developing a well rounded palate and nose, once you have these things (or at least a lot of these things) down, you simply expound on them, format your opinion and present that opinion in either written, audible or video form. As an example, let's say you taste a note of  "Shale" in a wine sample. Have you ever placed Shale into your mouth? Well neither have I but at the same time I still need to convey that note to you, the reader anyway. For the most part, we go by smell in order to relate what we taste so how do I do that? I think that so much of what we learn as people comes from experience and when someone tastes a "weird" note in a wine, while they may not identify it immediately, when it comes to the next wine, if they taste that same "weird" note in a wine and they read a review of that wine, they begin to put two and two together and now they can identify that note of shale for themselves in a wine. Okay guys, I hope you have had your eyes opened just a little bit to the world of wine reviewing and so now it is time to actually review a wine. I will see you in the next paragraph. 

   Today I will be taking a look at the 2021 Kungfu Girl, Riesling. I paid $11.99 for this wine and the bottle is screw cap sealed. The wine comes in at 12.5% alcohol and its grapes come from Washington State, the Columbia Valley. The wine is a slight blend of 93% Riesling, 4% Pinot Gris, 2% Sauvignon Blanc, 1% Muscat.
   As for the label, I like it and I think it's pretty cool actually. While I am not 100% sure where the label gets its name from, I do believe it is probably because the winemaker says the wine has "... been kicking a-s and taking names ever since" its inception. Whatever the reason, it works. Keeping in mind that his is a Riesling and that I don't take the varietal too seriously especially being from Charles Smith. Overall this label works very nicely and actually has me rather intrigued as to how the wine will taste.
   Bringing the glass to my nose now, I am getting notes of nectarine, yellow peach & green apple. While the bouquet is light, it does for some reason lead me to believe that the wine might be sweet and tropical in its presentation.
   Now that all of that is out of the way, I finally have the chance to taste this wine. The first thing I notice is that there is a zing to my tongue as I put the wine into my mouth. This zing is like a slight carbonation and too be honest as always, the note really throws me off as I do not take kindly to a white wine that throws this experience into the mix when it really has no business being there, if I wanted this experience I would buy a wine cooler. Okay so having said that, the wine is most definitely green apple dominated and seems to make no apologies for this. White Peach is up there as well and is pretty noticeable.

Both of these fruits are very tropical, very juicy and unfortunately, pretty sweet as well. As a matter of fact, the entire wine is seriously overly sweet.Yes, there is a decent amount of dryness to the wine overall which is nice however that darn sweetness overrides everything....as in....everything else that the wine is trying to offer up. By the way when it comes to the wine trying to offer things up, there really isn't much, the wine is pretty much one dimensional. Acidity is nice, really nice but unfortunately, it is of no use in positively effecting the wine as it doesn't have enough of an impact to alter its direction. As it does on the nose, apricot shows up here and while I did taste it and enjoy it, once again that darn sweetness just overrides that enjoyment and distracts from it. In the end, yes, there is a vibrancy to the wine  and yes, it is tropical but also, yes, it is sweet, way sweet and because of that, I will meet you in the conclusion paragraph rather early.
   Okay, yeah....I am DONE! I simply can't do this anymore, the wine is bad and not something I can even remotely recommend.  This wine is a sweet, tropical, fruity....mess. I really can't say anymore about it. I did not enjoy this wine as I felt as if I was eating a ton of sugar and if I was into that, I would rather have a piece of chocolate cake. The bottom line is if you want something like this wine, go grab a wine cooler, you'll save money and you'll enjoy it more.  

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The Desert Wine Guy - 2020 Edulis de Altanza, Sauvignon Blanc

       Guys, I have to begin this wine review by talking just a bit about a portable speaker. As I begin here, I want you guys to know that I am not getting any form of compensation from, nor do I know anyone who either works for or is affiliated with the company making the speaker in any way. With that being said, I have to ask. What is wine or beer for that matter without awesome music? My answer is that while they are both great by themselves, what makes the tasting experience even better is some awesome music. Whether I go out onto the back patio to review a wine or I am inside the house in my office, I have to have music which in my case is 80's music. As a matter of fact what I am listening to right now is some Lil Suzy which is of the 80's "Freestyle" genre. So, with this being said, I wanted to let you know about the desktop portable speaker that I use while I am outside which is the Sony SRS-XB33. Guys let me tell ya, this speaker rocks. I first heard this speaker at a relatives party in New Jersey and was so impressed with the sound that I had to ask about it and then buy it as soon as I got home. I'm talking fairly deep bass here with clear mids and crisp highs. The sound is super clean and without any muffled or shrill sounds. The speaker is available in red, grey, purple & blue (hello) and has Bluetooth (version 5) that picks up the originating signal from a very nice distance away. The speaker is waterproof (yep), has a type-C connector/USB and nice long battery life (24 hrs), this speaker has it all. Now guys, the speaker is expensive as it cost $178 at Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Sony-SRS-XB33-Wireless-Waterproof-BLUETOOTH/dp/B086D4JNGM) but, if you need (demand) amazing sound, this is the portable speaker to buy that's for sure. So, now that we have discussed the music end of enjoying wine, the next thing is to talk about the wine itself so let's get into that now.

   While I am sitting out back in the beautiful "Freedom" Florida weather today, I am going to be tasting the 2020 Edulis de Altanza, Sauvignon Blanc (https://bodegasaltanza.com/en/producto/altanza-blanco/). I paid $11.99 for this wine and it's alcohol percentage comes in at a nice 13%. The bottle is cork (real) sealed as well. What I find rather interesting about this wine is that it comes from a country which is not known for Sauvignon Blanc and that country is Spain. The country has actually been growing the grape varietal since 1974 but it never seemed to take off there so tasting this wine should be interesting.  
   Okay, label time now guys. Yeah, there is nothing here at all to talk about as the label is very simply, bland. The label certainly did not attract me or influence me into buying the wine that is for sure.
   As for the wines bouquet, it is nice, fruity and fresh smelling. As a matter of fact, the glass is about two feet from me as I am writing this and I am picking up some rather lively tropical fruit coming from it. Moving the glass much closer to my nose now I get notes of fresh and ripe yellow peach which comes forward rather nicely but is not over the top. I am also picking some juicy smelling nectarine here as well. Weirdly, I am getting a slight bit of vanilla as well I think which is really weird for the varietal but nothing that throws the wine off. Finishing the nose off, there is also what smells like oak as well and it really sets the wines bouquet off rather nicely.
   So, as far as the taste of the wine goes now yes, there is a slight bit of lemongrass but nothing like a New Zealand style Sauvignon Blanc (hello Whitehaven). This lemongrass is pretty nice and is presented in a way where it isn't trying to dominate the wine yet it does get its point across. As far as the other notes goes, I am getting nice lively and rather zippy acidity and this acidity really has the wine moving along nicely on the palate and tasting fresh for sure. This is an interesting wine as it seems to move rather quickly in the mouth while still being able to fully express itself. A White Peach is present here as well and it is nice as well, and it certainly does have some nice flavor to it. As with the nose, Nectarine is here as well and it comes across in the same way as that peach does. There is a minerality note here as well and it is right up there with the best white wines. This minerality works so well with this the acidity and it's really nice and makes you want more of the wine. So there you have my take on this Spanish, Sauvignon Blanc. Let's get to the conclusion paragraph now.

   Beginning off here, I have to say that even though the wine was rather low in alcohol and I did eat prior to doing this tasting, it, the wine did give me a buzz rather quickly for some reason. This is rather unusual as I review wine pretty often and this is never an issue so just be warned. In the end, I did really enjoy the wine and thought it was a fairly decent representation of the varietal overall. Would I say it was great? No, I would not but, it was definitely okay for sure. On The Desert Wine Guy rating scale, I am giving this wine 89 points. So, at $11.99 and the wine tasting as it does and with the ability for one to make certainly out that it is a Sauvignon Blanc, would I say it was good for the pool? Yeah, I would say that your guests would be happy with this wine. Do yourself a favor though, don't attempt to pass this wine off to your wine educated friends as being expensive or sought after as you will certainly make yourself look rather foolish. In the end, it was an interesting experience and I can see potential for the varietal in the country to expand if the industry out there can organize itself. I think the next time I am at the wine store, I will try to find a slightly higher priced bottle of the varietal from Spain and see just how it works out. 

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