I am sitting at the first US Wine Bloggers Conference in Santa Rosa, CA and we are about to do a live blogging wine tasting.  You could call this speed tasting.  We get 5 minutes with each wine.  Many of these wines are over the price range we typically do here.

Disclaimer: My normal process for reviewing wines takes 20-30 minutes per wine.  The results in this post are quick impressions and were not evaluated with the same vigor as most ratings on this site.  Here are the results.

Bonterra – The McNab

60% Merlot 26% Cab, 14% old vine Petite Syrah.  Made with biodynamic wines.  Strong raspberry, cherry and cedar, plus a bit of leather on the nose. It is very dry on the palate with loads of blackberry and raspberry fruit, plus there is loads of spice. The finish is loooong.

Wine: Bonterra – The McNab
Varietal: Red Blend
Vintage: 2004
Rating: 89
Price: $45

Weir Vineyards – Bink

Soft and earthy nose that I would describe as cherry and straw.  It comes alive on the palate with cherry and strawberry flavors.  It is hot and spicy with a bit of black pepper.  The finish is medium in length, but very interesting.  I like the structure in this wine.

Wine: Weir Vineyards – Bink
Varietal: Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2005
Rating: 89
Price: $40

Clos LaChance – Estate Cabernet Sauvignon

Blackberry and bramble on the nose.  Rich and velvety on the palate.  Great structure.  Blackberry, black pepper, cherry.  Outstanding chocolate on the mid-palate and long finish.  There’s quite a bit of heat in this one too.

Wine: Clos LaChance – Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2005
Rating: 91
Price: $30

Boho Chardonnay

This is a boxed wine and there’s the equivalent of 4 bottles of wine per box-3 liters.  Wine stays fresh for weeks after opening.  Lots of banana on the nose, which is in general rather tropical.  There’s also a strong oak quality.  The palate has a good acidity, but the structure is a bit weak.

Wine: Boho
Varietal: Chardonnay
Vintage: 2006
Rating: 80
Price: $24 (3 liters)

James David – Muscat Blanc

Bright tropical fruits on the nose–pineapple, citrus, pear (I know that’s not tropical).  Great acidity.  The tropical flavors continue on the palate with mango, pineapple, pear also.  But it is not too sweet.  This is a very refreshing wine.

Wine: James David – Muscat Blanc
Varietal: Muscat
Vintage: 2006
Rating: 87
Price: $18

Twisted Oak – The Spaniard

This is a blend of… you guessed it, Spanish varieties. Earthy and complex nose.  Cherry, blackberry, and bramble.  Awesome palate.  Big raspberry and blackberry flavors and earthy oak, black pepper.  In the picture is winemaker (and wine blogger) Jeff Stai, proudly holding the bottle.

Wine: Twisted Oak – The Spaniard
Varietal: Red Blend
Vintage: 2006
Rating: 92
Price: $49

Dark Horse

The rep called this a cowboy wine and appropriately so with a smoky nose like a campfire.  Along with blackberry aromas.  A bit jammy on the palate.  Not too spicy for a zin.

Wine: Dark Horse
Varietal: Zinfandel
Vintage: 2006
Rating: 87
Price: $34

Small Vines Wines

This wine is produced from biodynamic vineyards.  Raspberry and bramble with a hint of black pepper.  It’s a little tight on the nose.  But the palate is bright and lively.  Big raspberry and great black pepper spice.

Wine: Small Vines Wines
Varietal: Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2006
Rating: 93
Price: $65

Cupcake Chardonnay

Apple, lemon aromas on an oaky palate.  It’s like mild apple cider on the palate. Decent acidity.  Rather quick finish. Decent for the price but not great.

Wine: Cupcake
Varietal: Chardonnay
Vintage: 2007
Rating: 85
Price: $11.99

Kanzler

This wine was a treat.  It has not been bottled yet, but we got an early taste.  Cedar, vanilla, cherry, coffee on the nose.  The nose is a bit tight when it was poured, but will be better if decanted. Very lively on the palate.  Raspberry, cherry, and black pepper.  Nice cocoa in the mid-palate and finish.

Wine: Kanzler
Varietal: Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2007
Rating: 92
Price: $48

Lionheart Wines

Banana, peach and tropical aromas.   Nice crisp acidity and good roundness from malolactic fermentation–giving it a creamy mouth feel.  Nice long finish with a touch of minerality.  (Is that a word?)

Wine: Lionheart Wines
Varietal: Roussanne
Vintage: 2007
Rating: 89
Price: $30

Sean Minor – Four Bears

Lively and exciting nose.  Raspberry and spice.  Hints of cocoa.  Big spicy raspberry flavors.  This is an excellent wine for the price.  All their wines are under $20.  This is an exceptional wine for the price.  I am a new fan.

Wine: Sean Minor – Four Bears
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2006
Rating: 92
Price: $17

Yellow and Blue

Organic grapes in a tetra pak.  I’ll admit it, I’m not a fan of the tetra-pak yet, but this is probably the best red I’ve had from one.  Rather tight on the nose for a Malbec, but the aromas are good: Plum, coffee, cocoa and cherry.  Good cherry, blackberry, cocoa and black pepper on the palate.  Medium finish.

Wine: Yellow and Blue
Varietal: Malbec
Vintage: 2007
Rating: 86
Price: $11

My bags are packed and tomorrow morning I will head to Sonoma, CA to attend the first Wine Blogger Conference.  This conference will bring together over 100 wine bloggers, as well as attendees from the wine industry.

Over the next few days you’ll see updates from me at the conference as I explore ideas from other bloggers and taste an inconcievable number of wines.  The first event at this conference is live blogging, which will challenge me to review wines at a quick tempo.  My typical approach to reviewing wines is quite time consuming.  I usually spend a half hour or more studying a wine and taking notes on the characteristics.  In the live blogging, I’ll have about 5 minutes per wine to do my reviews.  It should be interesting.

Check here throughout the weekend for my updates. You can also follow me on Twitter for even more frequent play by play.

Cheers.

A few weeks ago I shared a review of Cuvée Sommelongue from Domaine André Brunel and it was a so-so bottle of wine.  But I wanted to share another wine from André Brunel with you that impressed me quite a bit.  Indeed, it’s a tasty bottle of wine.

But first, let’s get to know André Brunel.  The Brunel family started producing wine in France in 1919.  Like many vintners in the Rhone valley region, the Brunel estate, Les Cailloux at Chemin du Bois de la Ville, is most famous for its Châteauneuf du Pape wines.  I kind of feel like a broken record mentioning that a producer in the Rhone valley is known for their Châteauneuf du Pape.  (By the way, for you 20-something readers… back in the old days we played music on things called records which sometimes would get stuck and repeat a line over and over, hence the expression “broken record.”)  Nonetheless, the Les Cailloux Châteauneuf du Pape is renowned.

André joined the family wine business in 1971 and progressively worked toward improving the quality of the wines from the estate.  For the past 20 years, the name André Brunel has been one that’s recognized as a dependable, high-quality producer.

The wine I’m sharing with you today is the 2005 André Brunel Cuvée Sabrine, which is a Côtes du Rhône Villages.  As I’ve mentioned in the past, the Côtes du Rhône Villages designation is considered a step up in quality and value from Côtes du Rhône.  And this proves to be the case with this bottle, as it was the same price as the Cuvée Sommelongue but significantly better.

This wine is a simple blend of 80% Grenache and 20% Syrah.  The nose is a bit tight at first, but is very nice once it opens up.  Cedar is the dominant characteristic on the nose.  There is also cherry, vanilla and a little bit of barnyard.  The palate is full but not too fruity.  There is some cherry and some strawberry with a super silky mouth feel.  The finish is phenomenal.  It starts out with an acidic, spicy bite and mellows out to a lingering dark chocolate aftertaste.

This is a very good wine, especially for the price… if you can find it.  The one thing I don’t like about sharing this review is that I purchased the last bottle at one of my local wine shops.  I’m sure there’s more of it out there somewhere.  If you’re lucky enough to come across it, snag it.

Wine: Domaine André Brunel Cuvée Sabrine
Variety: Côtes du Rhône Villages
Vintage: 2005
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 90
Price Paid: $14.99

Find Domaine André Brunel Cuvée Sabrine on Snooth

Before I get into this review, I have a quick announcement to bring to your attention.  I, along with Michelle Lentz from My Wine Education, been invited to present the wine tastings this weekend at both Liquor Direct locations in Northern Kentucky.  On Friday, September 26, I will be at the Fort Thomas location from 4-8pm and on Saturday I’ll be at the Covington location from 2-6pm.  I’ll be presenting value wines from Southern France, including a couple whites and a few Côtes du Rhône reds.  Michelle will be opposite me at the Covington location on Friday and in Fort Thomas on Saturday with a “Michelle’s Favorites” theme.  Stop on by to try some wine.  One of the selections will be this one I’m reviewing today from Kermit Lynch.

Kermit Lynch got into the wine business as a retailer in California and later ventured into importing and distribution.  As an importer, Kermit Lynch is one name that I trust.  Many of the wines they import don’t fall into my under $20 price range, but when I find ones that do I snatch them up.  They are typically very selective about the wines they import and I have high a level of assurance that I won’t be disappointed with the quality when I see the Lynch name on the label.

This is an example of a Kermit Lynch import that is a good bargain.  It’s worth the price, although I would approach this as an everyday wine versus something for special occasions.

I wasn’t able to find out a whole lot about the exact variety blend or the vineyard locations for this one, so all I can offer you are my tasting notes.

Smokey oak, barnyard, and black cherry make up the bouquet.  I was really surprised to get an oak quality in the nose since I don’t believe this wine has ever touched oak.  Côtes du Rhône wines are typically “drink now” style wines and are fermented in cement vats and are not aged in oak.  I would say that aroma is indicative of the earthiness you find in French wines.

The palate is very well balanced.  There is a decent amount of fruit with plum and black cherry, complemented by a crisp acidity, chocolate on the mid-palate and velvety tannins throughout.  It’s a little bit spicy on the finish and a little bit smokey/earthy too.  This is a decent wine now, but will be better in a couple more years.

Wine: Cuvée Sélectionée par Kermit Lynch
Varietal: Côtes du Rhône
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol: 14%
Rating: 86
Price Paid: $14.98