Golden Gate Wine Cellars
2337 Ocean Avenue (showroom to open soon)
San Francisco, CA 94127
Tel: 415.640.6611
Fax: 888.790.9463
frank@goldengatewinecellars.com
www.goldengatewinecellars.com
Our Motto: ALWAYS DRINK GOOD WINE™
Frank’s Wine Tasting Afternoon.
Yesterday I attended Napa Valley with “Altitude” a tasting symposium of wineries on the Western Hills of the Napa Valley, called the Maycamas Mountain Range. This range includes three California AVA’s – Mount Veeder, Spring Mountain and Diamond Mountain.
The mountain appellations are defined by vineyards that range from small to smaller, often hand-tilled on terraces and sloping meadows, and wineries hidden from view among dark forests and steep winding roads.
I tasted about 35 wines, and here is a list of the best ones of the day.
Diamond Mountain Range
Coho 2005 SummitVine Ranch Cabernet. Big burly, wine on both the nose and palate, loading with concentrated fruit. Tons of intensity and luscious fruit. Tannins are there, but not overly aggressive. A must have! $54.00
Coho 2005 Headwaters (Cabernet Blend). This latest release blend is delicious blend of Cabernet, Merlot, and Petit Verdot showcasing some of the best of Napa at an affordable price! This wine is lush and full in body, and loaded with pure black stone fruit, offering good complexity and acidity. Silky finish. Very Limited Release! $37.00
Dyer 2004 Cabernet. The blend is 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Cabernet Franc and 6% Petit Verdot. With one year of bottle age, the wine is open and accessible. The wine will age, but there is no need to wait. A nose of black cherry, ripe berries and violets with hints of anise and cocoa. An elegantly structured wine; full bodied and supple ripe tannins and great length. $69.99
Andrew Geoffrey 2004 Cabernet. An awesome follow-up to their 2002 and 2003 vintage. Again very limited. Intense nose of spicy berries, highlighted with bright blueberry and a touch of leather and coffee. Intense on impact, loaded with flavors and of viscous and ripe black fruit, good tannin structure. $69.99
Spring Mountain Range.
Barnett 2005 Cabernet. A typical stellar wine. Intense nose of anise, herb and spice. The wine is full in body, loaded with the same intense mountain-grown fruit, with layer after layer of complex flavors, good acidity and a long-lasting finish. $59.99
Fantesca 2004 Cabernet. This is Heidi Barrett’s latest venture, and it shows. I know that many of you liked the 2003, this follow-up is amazing. Guess what; the price stayed the same, even with Heidi on board! Another winner, this only the third release from this winery. It displays the finesse and opulent style that are the hallmarks of Spring Mountain District. When swirled, notes of spice and berries capture your attention. When tasted, its rich and supple body tantalizes the palate. $ TBA
Peacock 2004 Cabernet. This wine is reminiscent to the 1999 vintage, offering aromas of dark chocolate, hints of anise, and lots of dark stone fruit. Full in body, loaded with fruit. The tannins are there, but not overly aggressive, finish lingers for a long time. $69.99
Mount Veeder
Sage 2004 Cabernet. This might have been one of the revelations of the tasting. The wine is a blend of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec, of course all from the estate. The wine has lots of intensity on the nose with hints of black cherry, boysenberry and a touch of chocolate and spice. The wine is full in body with a touch of sweet earth, which is somewhat a-typical for Mt. Veeder AVA, lots of blackberry. The palate is smooth and the finish is silky and soft, and very long-lasting. 450 cases produced. $59.99
Sage 2005 Veeder Crest. This wine is partially from the estate (40% Cabernet), Merlot (30%) is from Gardner and Cabernet Franc (30%) from Dimate. This wine was equally pleasing, almost silky on approach. Not as full in body versus its Cabernet Big Brother, but still full enough, with lots of structure and flavor. Definitely a winner in my book. 1000 cases produced. $38.00
Paras 2005 Cabernet. Doug Danielak (winemaker) and I go way back. We first met in the 1990’s while he was the winemaker at White Rock. The 2005 Estate Paras is a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Petit Verdot and 8% Malbec. The nose reveals A hint of sexy perfume, sweet blackberry fruit and a touch of spicy vanilla. The wine is lush and intense with an emphasis on the concentrated black-stone fruit, followed by shaved chocolate flavors. The finish is long and intense with ample tannins. $ +/- 65.00
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
A few new wines
Golden Gate Wine Cellars
2337 Ocean Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94127
Tel: 415.640.6611Fax: 888.790.9463
frank@goldengatewinecellars.com
http://www.goldengatewinecellars.com
Our Motto: ALWAYS DRINK GOOD WINE™
I spend a good part of the morning tasting wine, yes someone has to do the dirty work! The highlights of the day were the Redmon Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (St. Helena, Napa) and the Bjornstad Cellars Chardonnay (Sonoma Coast) and Bjornstad Pinot Noir (Sonoma Mountain).
Greg Bjornstad and I go back some years. I first met him in the mid 1990's when he was working at Flowers.
His own venture is spectacular! I just tasted his two latest releases - This Bjornstad 2006 Chardonnay, Porter Bass Sonoma Coast and the Bjornstad 2006 Pinot Noir, Vanderkamp Sonoma Mountain.
The Bjornstad Porter Bass Chardonnay is initially smoky and meaty in the glass, the wine evolves and unfolds an amazing, delicate complexity of aromas and flavors. Subtle scents of lime and white flowers invoke sweet and spice from honeysuckle, jasmine, and freesia blossoms that resolve into flavors of lime, pear, green apple and pineapple. The texture is lean, crisp and full with a long finish of a lingering green apple, citrus and smoke. Only 160 cases produced. $46.50
The Bjornstad Vanderkamp Pinot Noir - from the first pour, the lifted aromatics of this wine are varied and intriguing, inviting another visit. There are the pretty red fruit aromas of cherry, raspberry and the mixed fragrances of a wild berry patch. Next are the subtle, smoky, meaty aromas that are inherent to the Vanderkamp Vineyard. Flavor follows fragrance seamlessly onto the round and rich palate, supporting these defined flavors with restrained oak and spice, ending with a firm finish. Only 220 cases produced! $46.50
---
Redmon Family Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon (St. Helena, Napa Valley) Awesome wine and an awesome family. Lisa and Scott (husband and wife, owners, winemakers) gave me the premier opportunity to taste and purchase this new release. I jumped on it like a hawk on his prey. This is one of those sleeper wines, that would leave many of the big-names in the dust when tasted side-by-side, which I do often. Grapes harvested from one of the last remaining dry-farms in the valley produces complex fruit flavors and rich deep color. The wine's aroma is very intense and intriguing. The palate is coated with luscious fruit and the finish does not seem to end. Each bottle is personalized with hand-numbering. Only 250 cases produced! $59.99
Your Wine Host
Frank Melis
2337 Ocean Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94127
Tel: 415.640.6611Fax: 888.790.9463
frank@goldengatewinecellars.com
http://www.goldengatewinecellars.com
Our Motto: ALWAYS DRINK GOOD WINE™
I spend a good part of the morning tasting wine, yes someone has to do the dirty work! The highlights of the day were the Redmon Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (St. Helena, Napa) and the Bjornstad Cellars Chardonnay (Sonoma Coast) and Bjornstad Pinot Noir (Sonoma Mountain).
Greg Bjornstad and I go back some years. I first met him in the mid 1990's when he was working at Flowers.
His own venture is spectacular! I just tasted his two latest releases - This Bjornstad 2006 Chardonnay, Porter Bass Sonoma Coast and the Bjornstad 2006 Pinot Noir, Vanderkamp Sonoma Mountain.
The Bjornstad Porter Bass Chardonnay is initially smoky and meaty in the glass, the wine evolves and unfolds an amazing, delicate complexity of aromas and flavors. Subtle scents of lime and white flowers invoke sweet and spice from honeysuckle, jasmine, and freesia blossoms that resolve into flavors of lime, pear, green apple and pineapple. The texture is lean, crisp and full with a long finish of a lingering green apple, citrus and smoke. Only 160 cases produced. $46.50
The Bjornstad Vanderkamp Pinot Noir - from the first pour, the lifted aromatics of this wine are varied and intriguing, inviting another visit. There are the pretty red fruit aromas of cherry, raspberry and the mixed fragrances of a wild berry patch. Next are the subtle, smoky, meaty aromas that are inherent to the Vanderkamp Vineyard. Flavor follows fragrance seamlessly onto the round and rich palate, supporting these defined flavors with restrained oak and spice, ending with a firm finish. Only 220 cases produced! $46.50
---
Redmon Family Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon (St. Helena, Napa Valley) Awesome wine and an awesome family. Lisa and Scott (husband and wife, owners, winemakers) gave me the premier opportunity to taste and purchase this new release. I jumped on it like a hawk on his prey. This is one of those sleeper wines, that would leave many of the big-names in the dust when tasted side-by-side, which I do often. Grapes harvested from one of the last remaining dry-farms in the valley produces complex fruit flavors and rich deep color. The wine's aroma is very intense and intriguing. The palate is coated with luscious fruit and the finish does not seem to end. Each bottle is personalized with hand-numbering. Only 250 cases produced! $59.99
Your Wine Host
Frank Melis
Monday, April 21, 2008
A very good Syrah
Last night I opened the 2005 Buoncristiani Syrah "Artistico" and W.A.W (What A Wine!)
The ‘05 blend was sourced from small lots harvested exclusively from the Caldwell Vineyard in Coombsville, the Stagecoach Vineyard in the Vaca Mountains above Oakville, and Larry Hyde’s vineyard in Oak Knoll.
These three vineyard sources are some of the most sought after in the Napa Valley, and it is no surprise that the final result was an amazing wine!
The Buoncristiani brothers created the series “Artistico” to fuse winemaking passion with other forms of art expression. The different vineyard and barrel components are blended in several phases creating optimum complexity while retaining balance, varietal character, and superior quality.
As always the Buoncristiani Boys only produce small quantities, so that means that this wine will sell out very fast.
Frank Melis
Golden Gate Wine Cellars
San Francisco
frank@goldengatewinecellars.com
www.goldengatewinecellars.com
Tel: 415 640 6611
The ‘05 blend was sourced from small lots harvested exclusively from the Caldwell Vineyard in Coombsville, the Stagecoach Vineyard in the Vaca Mountains above Oakville, and Larry Hyde’s vineyard in Oak Knoll.
These three vineyard sources are some of the most sought after in the Napa Valley, and it is no surprise that the final result was an amazing wine!
The Buoncristiani brothers created the series “Artistico” to fuse winemaking passion with other forms of art expression. The different vineyard and barrel components are blended in several phases creating optimum complexity while retaining balance, varietal character, and superior quality.
As always the Buoncristiani Boys only produce small quantities, so that means that this wine will sell out very fast.
Frank Melis
Golden Gate Wine Cellars
San Francisco
frank@goldengatewinecellars.com
www.goldengatewinecellars.com
Tel: 415 640 6611
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Showroom progress report
Golden Gate Wine Cellars
2337 Ocean Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94127
Tel: 415.640.6611
Fax: 888.790.9463
frank@goldengatewinecellars.com
www.goldengatewinecellars.com
As you know, we have been working very hard with the city of San Francisco to open up Golden Gate Wine Cellars' Showroom. It has been almost one year, and it looks like we are finally starting to see the end of the tunnel.
As soon as we get the final go ahead, which we anticipate will be within the next two weeks, we will announce an opening date of this long anticipated venture.
It is my goal to continue to work with hundreds of the great quality boutique wineries you have come to expect from us via our website.
I am also working on a tasting program, this in conjunction with two restaurants in the area (Lakeside Café and Pisces Restaurant), more on this over the next couple of weeks.
We plan to be in Minnesota in July, and New York City in October as a part of Frank's World-Wide-Wine-Tasting-Tour. Dates and locations TBA.
On a “real” wine note. I will start posting my weekly wine tasting reviews starting next week, so you do not need to wait for my newsletters or emails in order to find out what is “hot” and what is not.
Yours truly,
Frank Melis
2337 Ocean Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94127
Tel: 415.640.6611
Fax: 888.790.9463
frank@goldengatewinecellars.com
www.goldengatewinecellars.com
As you know, we have been working very hard with the city of San Francisco to open up Golden Gate Wine Cellars' Showroom. It has been almost one year, and it looks like we are finally starting to see the end of the tunnel.
As soon as we get the final go ahead, which we anticipate will be within the next two weeks, we will announce an opening date of this long anticipated venture.
It is my goal to continue to work with hundreds of the great quality boutique wineries you have come to expect from us via our website.
I am also working on a tasting program, this in conjunction with two restaurants in the area (Lakeside Café and Pisces Restaurant), more on this over the next couple of weeks.
We plan to be in Minnesota in July, and New York City in October as a part of Frank's World-Wide-Wine-Tasting-Tour. Dates and locations TBA.
On a “real” wine note. I will start posting my weekly wine tasting reviews starting next week, so you do not need to wait for my newsletters or emails in order to find out what is “hot” and what is not.
Yours truly,
Frank Melis
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