2009 Congruence 2009 Congruence Zinfandel (USA, California, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley) County, Dry Creek Valley)

Everything I love in a zin, without the over extracted jamminess! Gorgeous ruby red garnet color in the glass, and a nice fruity nose of strawberry, cherry, and other red fruits.  There are also some nice spice elements of black pepper, and tobacco leaf rounding out the nose.  

On the palate, the red fruits seem to be the shining star here.  This is not your typical in your face zin.  This is elegant, much lighter than I expected it to be, with perfect balance.  Some more red fruits on the palata, similar to the nose, with some raspberry, and just a hint of clove and charcoal perhaps.  If I remember correctly, there is just a splash of Petit Sirah added to this, which I think adds some nice structure and minerality to this wine. 

Nice elegant finish, and drinking well from the get go.  All in all, this is a well made zin, in my opinion made in the style of something from Ridge.  Drink over the next 5 years, but no reason not to pop and pour one of these bad boys now.  Amazing from the get go! Great job Steve!

2006 Rodney Strong Chardonnay Sonoma County

I ordered a glass of this off the menu tonight at the Inn at the Hawke in Lambertville as I was craving a chardonnay. Nothing complex about this wine, but what do you want for $6 at a restaurant? Nice pale straw color in the glass, with some hints of pear and must on the nose. On the palate, this was a pretty basic chard, with creamy textures and citrus, with a bit of honey, and very faint hints of oak. Not your typical, over buttery chardonnay that is over oaked. Pleasant and easy to drink. 84 points. Cheers!

1992 Kistler Pinot Noir McCrea Vineyard

Who would have thought that this bottle had any fruit left in it whatsoever? I surely did not, but what a pleasant surprise. This was popped and poured tonight at Oliver - A Bistro in Bordentown. Upon opening, I cannot tell you how worried I was that this bottle was not going to be pleasant in the least. The cork came out in about 30 pieces, but regardless of how many pieces it was in, and how long it took to get it out, the cork did it's job, and the wine was still a pleasure to drink. Upon first pour, it looked as though there was a little bricking in the glass. I've never seen this in a pinot, but it is more common in older Bordeaux. Upon first smell, the nose was pretty muted, and I expected the worst. I thought for sure there would be some vinegar on the nose, with no fruit, but I was wrong. The nose had some floral notes, and was predominantly cherry. Tiny hints of blackberry and raspberry were there, but you really had to concentrate hard to pull them out of the mix.

The palate was a little muted at first, but by the time we finished the first half pour, this wine was in its perfect drinking window...at least for this particular wine a this particular moment. Ideally, I would guess that the perfect drinking window for this would have been sometime between 1999 and 2003. There was however a lot of cherry on the palate, and this wine really reminded me us of a cross between the 2004 Sanford, and the Benton Lane pinot noir. Seeing as this is a Kistler, that is not necessarily a good thing, but we were really expecting the worst.

Regardless, this was a very enjoyable wine, and the most aged pinot noir we have had to date. It had a smooth finish, with no tannin whatsoever, and a very pleasant after taste making it worthy of 92 points. This wine just proves that Kistler is produced for the long haul. Cheers!

2006 Frei Brothers Pinot Noir

This was a nice birthday gift from K-Fed and M-Dog next door, and was a treat. had prior vintages of this, but can't ever remember having an '05. 2005 however was not one of my favorite vintages for California pinot noir, but this wine didn't disappoint. Typical raspberry, strawberry, and cherry on the nose, but not as fruit forward smelling as pinot from the Santa Rita Hills. On the palate, lots of red berries, and the slightest touch or forest floor and moss. Nice finish, with very little tannin make this a good wine and a good QPR garnering 88 points. Cheers!

2006 Siduri Pinot Noir Sonoma County

We opened this tonight "on the bistro" before Todd and Michelle's wedding. This is a great price point pinot, and I really don't want to say that it is an entry level wine for Siduri, but they do make some much better wines that this one in my humble opinion. Regardless, this is still a great wine in the $20 price point!

First thing you will notice is the screw top, but as I've said before, don't let this fool you. There are some awesome wines out there with screw tops on them.

This wine is definitely on the young side, but it is still drinking well now. I think it will drink better with another year or two in the bottle, and I would guess it would hold up well even past that. This wine has a nice garnet ruby color in the glass, and on the nose, it has the typical California pinot qualities with lots of cherry, dark fruits, and earth, with hints of strawberry as well. On the palate, you will get more of the cherry, but not as dark as it smells in my opinion, as well as a bit of spice and oak. The wine has a creamy, almost silky texture, and the finish lasts a good 30 seconds.

All in all, this is a great wine for the price, and worthy of 88 points in my opinion, possibly getting a higher rating with more time in the bottle. We have one more on hand, so we'll see! Cheers!