Wine Spectator

$20 Above: Shafer Relentless 2009

Shafer Relentless 2009

Date Tasted: 3/15/13

Price: Suggested Retail is $63.00 (Purchased for $62.00)

From The Winery: 15.8% Alcohol. 82% Syrah, 18% Petite Sirah. Napa Valley AVA.

Impressions/Notes: I picked up Shafer’s 2009 Relentless about a week after the 2008 vintage was named as Wine Spectator’s 2012 wine of the year. Good thing, too, because this wine was flying off the shelf. Given the ratings pedigree for the Relentless, Shafer could easily command more than the extremely reasonable price of $60ish. Let’s hope that they keep the price in that ballpark. The 2009 Relentless is one powerful wine. “Power” and “powerful” were repeatedly jotted down in my notes–not because I like to repeat myself, but more so that I’ve drank a lot of Syrah in the last few months and I haven’t tasted any that packed a punch like this one. It presents with a deep purple color. Big black and blue fruits, particularly plum and blueberry, are beautifully complimented with incense, saline, dark chocolate, expresso, pralines, and sweet spice. There’s a strong oak presence, but this wine is more than large enough to handle it. Full-bodied in the mouth, with big yet tamed tannins and an incredibly long finish. The ABV pushes 16%, but there is little to no heat on the back palate. It’s an incredible wine, and one of the better values in the Napa Valley.

Rating: Stellar (95), 4.5/5 Value 

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Posted on March 18, 2013 by Nick in $20 Above, California, Syrah 3 Comments

When Brett Meets Wine

I’ve had brett on the brain lately (not literally). I’m referring of course to brettanomyces, a yeast that can impart the dreaded barnyard or band-aid aromas into wine. This fascination started when tasting Rafanelli’s 2009 Zinfandel. As discussed in last week’s post, Wine Spectator’s Tim Fish noted the presence of brett in recent vintages of Rafanelli’s Zinfandels. I was definitely picking up a small degree of brett in the ’09 Zin. What I found most interesting was the contrast of reviews for this particular wine in CellarTracker. While some were gushing serious praise, others were basically calling the wine a brett-bomb. These conflicting accounts speak to the variety of palates out there and the sensitivities that some wine drinkers have to brett.

In the past year, I can think of two brett-bombs that I’ve tasted, blowing way past the level of “flawed” and into the category of “faulty”. One bottle was a Mendocino County Cabernet Sauvignon-based blend that wreaked of the unmistakable smell of horse manure. The other was a Dry Creek Valley Syrah that displayed enough band-aid to handle a serious case of road rash. I struggled through roughly a glass of each and poured the rest down the drain. For the record, I hate pouring wine down the drain. My palate seems to be sensitive to brett, but I can tolerate it in small amounts. These two bottles happened to be over my threshold.

While there are some that actually like the barnyard and/or band-aid component in a wine, I think that it’s safe to say that most of us do not. Robert Parker and Steven Tanzer have been noted for giving high scores to wines considered my many to be bretty. Are Parker and Tanzer not picking up on the brett, or are they just ignoring it? If it’s the latter, I have a problem with that. Whether a wine writer (big-time or peon blogger) feels that the level of brett is minimal or even agreeable to the wine, in my opinion it should still be disclosed. There are a large number of wine consumers sensitive to brett that would benefit from this info, and it just might save them from buying wine that they don’t enjoy, or even worse, end up pouring down the drain.

I’d like to share a few links that provide some excellent information, discussion, and perspective on the heated topic of brett.

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Posted on February 24, 2013 by Nick in Wine Column 4 Comments

$20 Above: Rafanelli Zinfandel 2009

Rafanelli Zinfandel 2009

Date Tasted: 2/17/13

Price: Suggested Retail is $53.00

From The Winery: 14.8% Alcohol. Dry Creek Valley AVA.

Impressions/Notes: A. Rafanelli Winery has been a staple in the Dry Creek Valley wine community since the early 1900s. Rafanelli’s wine lineup includes their famous and coveted Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Hillside Select, a reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. Most of their wines are sold via their hard-to-crack mailing list, but they also sell a limited quantity at the winery. My wife and I visited the winery in 2011, which is where I procured the ’09 Zin. The winery is open by appointment only and reservations typically need to be made well in advance. When it comes to the Rafanelli winery experience, visitors’ accounts vary greatly. We read the Yelp reviews (my favorite review is written by David G. on 8/24/09) and this very amusing letter posted on The Ferm prior to our visit, so we weren’t exactly sure what to expect. Our experience was great–we met owner David Rafanelli and his daughter Stacy and were treated with warm hospitality. Rafanelli is now one of my wife’s favorite wineries and I had to get special permission to open the ’09 Zin.

Tom Lee of Zinfandel Chronicles indicated that he had read notes of brettanomyces being detected in recent vintages of Rafanelli’s Zinfandels. Wine Spectator’s Tim Fish said as much to him on Twitter. Wines affected with “brett” can exhibit aromas that range from bacon fat, smoke, and spice (sounds ok to me) to band-aid, barnyard, and even horseshit (not so ok)–the aromas depend on the specific type of molecule that presents.  Fish gave Rafanelli’s ’09 Zin a lowly score of 83. After perusing Fish’s ratings for 2012 Zinfandels, I noted that we were in agreement on some Zins (Easton Amador County and Seghesio Sonoma County ’10) and in different area codes on others (he rated the ’09 Ridge Geyserville at an 85, I had it at around a 94). I hoped and expected Rafanelli’s ’09 Zin to be brett-free, if for no other reason than that I had paid over $50 for it. I sampled this wine at the winery and I didn’t remember any off aromas or flavors at the time, though I did not take notes on the visit.

Fish was right, according to my humble palate. There is a bit of a mulch/compost/barnyard aroma present in the wine. It did not overshadow the powerful black cherry and black currant fruit, which really came alive about four hours after opening, nor the dark chocolate or spice box notes in the background. The wine is smooth, with a great mouthfeel and a really strong acid backbone for a Zinfandel (Rafanelli’s Zins are built to age). I did shave a few points off of my rating for the slight presence of brett, as it did have an influence on my enjoyment of the wine.

Inevitably, as with any aroma, there are going to be some consumers that have an extra sensitivity to the barnyard aroma associated with brett (I suspect Tim Fish falls into this category, and would be curious to know exactly how many points he deducted solely due to the presence of brett). Take a look at the reviews of Rafanelli’s ’09 Zin posted on CellarTracker. There are some rave reviews of the wine and then there are reviews like the one from BEARCAVE, who states “I can’t believe that no one is talking about the fact that this wine is ridden with brettanomyces.” So who’s review is right? It depends on your palate. My palate appears to have a sensitivity to the barnyard aroma, but not to the level of being hypersensitive. For those who are brett-hypersensitive, this may not be the wine for you.

Rating: Recommended (88), 1.5/5 Value 

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Posted on February 18, 2013 by Nick in $20 Above, California, Zinfandel 4 Comments

A Shout-Out to Wine Enthusiast

I received a pleasant surprise while perusing the new November 2012 issue of Wine Enthusiast. A handful of wines made from native and French-American hybrid grapes appeared in the Buying Guide, most of them from Missouri wineries, with the highest scoring native/hybrid wines receiving an 86. Unfortunately, I don’t have a great deal of detail regarding the specific wines rated, as my Wine Enthusiast issue was trashed by accident. Trips to Barnes and Noble and the local King Soopers to retrieve a new Wine Enthusiast issue were fruitless, so I’ll add a comment when I finally get my hands on it to give these wines a mention. I do recall that there was a Norton, a Chambourcin, and a Vignoles listed.

Wines from native and hybrid grapes hold a special place in my heart, as they were the first wines that I drank and actually liked. After going several years without drinking these wines, I revisited them this past spring on a trip back to Illinois. A favorite wine of the trip was a Vignoles from Kite Hill Vineyards–I didn’t publish a score for this particular wine, but I would have put it somewhere in the 85-87 range.

I’m in my first subscription year of Wine Enthusiast and second of Wine Spectator and this is the first time that I’ve spotted native and hybrid wines in the back scoring sections. When it comes to U.S. wines, you’re typically going to find scores for your standard California, Washington, and Oregon reviews, with a smattering of Virginia, New Mexico, Texas, Idaho, and Colorado wines mixed in. Wines from Vitis vinifera grapes make up 99%+ of these reviews. It’s nice to see that native/hybrid wine producers are getting some well deserved attention. Kudos to Wine Enthusiast for recognizing an under-appreciated segment of U.S. wine producers.

2012 has been one of the hottest and driest years in recent memory, particularly in the Midwest. While corn and soybeans have suffered, the area’s grape growers will get the rare chance to see how a long, hot, and dry growing season will influence the 2012 vintage. I’m excited to try these wines in the new few years from what could be the area’s vintage of a lifetime.

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Posted on October 15, 2012 by Nick in Wine Column 2 Comments

Blood Into Wine: No BS

I’m not too big on documentaries. This distaste probably stems from over-exposure as a youngster. My mother is a huge Civil War buff and was especially fond of Ken Burns’ aptly named documentary “The Civil War”. I can’t begin to approximate how many times this film played in our household. Needless to say, when it was my turn to pick the movie, documentaries were out of the question.

With the right subject matter, however, I can be swayed. This morning I watched Blood Into Wine, a documentary released in 2010 which focuses on Maynard James Keenan’s entry into the Arizona wine industry. For those who don’t know who the heck Maynard James Keenan is, he’s the lead singer of Tool and A Perfect Circle, both successful American rock bands. I used to listen to Tool a lot, particularly around the years 2003-2007. Keenan has an amazing voice that really captures the emotion of the lyrics that he’s singing, whether it be anger bordering on rage or sadness. I was certainly intrigued when I heard that he was starting a winery.

Obviously, Keenan is not the first celebrity to start a winery. Athletes (i.e. Ernie Els, Greg Norman, etc.), musicians (i.e. Train), a NASCAR driver (i.e. Jeff Gordon), and movie directors (i.e. Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, etc.) have all ventured into the wine business. I’m a bit skeptical when celebrity-types start a winery. Why? It’s my dream to start a winery. For me, it’s not about the money or prestige–it’s about making wine because that’s what you love to do. Sometimes, I think that wineries are started for the wrong reasons. Take Yao Family Wines, a Napa winery started by the former NBA star Yao Ming. Ming is no doubt looking to use his celebrity and the growing popularity of wine in China, his homeland, to cash in. His cheapest release sells for $289 a bottle, while his reserve wine is priced at a whopping $625. I could be wrong, but I just don’t see Ming putting in a lot of time in the vineyard or working the harvest.

Sorry for the mini-rant and back to Blood Into Wine, a film that I recommend to anyone with even a remote interest in wine. Much of the film takes place near Jerome, Arizona, the unlikely spot where Keenan decided to start his winery, Caduceus. Keenan, his mentor (winemaker Eric Glomski) and several members of the Northern Arizona Wine Industry discuss the Verde Valley, their love of wine, and the challenges faced in growing grapes in such a challenging landscape–if you think bunch rot is bad, try dealing with a pack of javelinas! It’s certainly not your run-of-the-mill documentary. At times it was zany (the “Focus on Interesting Things” bits), spiritual (clips of a Shaman and a vortex specialist), and touching (Keenan becomes very emotional when speaking of the wine made after his mother Judith). My favorite scene is when James Suckling of Wine Spectator is tasting Caduceus wines with Keenan and Glomski. Suckling takes a sip of a Syrah/Malvasia Bianca Blend and states he’s “not sure that the wine works 100%” and that Keenan’s “trying too hard on this wine.”  Keenan’s response? “Not at all. I love this wine. I make what I like.”

Very early in the film, Keenan is seen planting in the vineyard. The cynic in me was wondering if this was just an act for the camera and if this guy was for real. Ironically, at the end of the movie, Keenan coyly notes that it’s possible that the portrayal of him on film as laboring in the vineyards may be “bullshit”. After watching the whole film, I’m convinced that Keenan is in the wine business for all of the right reasons, that no vineyard chore is above him, and that none of what I saw is bullshit.

Naturally, after watching the film I headed to a local wine shop to see if I could locate some Caduceus and some Arizona Stronghold wines (Arizona Stronghold wines are a collaboration between Glomski and Keenan). It would have been great to do a tasting today and include some tasting notes on these wines. Unfortunately, there were no Keenan or Glomski wines to be had. I’ll keep looking–I hope to do a follow up post on these wines in the near future.

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Posted on August 19, 2012 by Nick in Arizona, Wine Column 2 Comments
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