Clear, medium-deep intensity, bright ruby red with purple tones. Clean on the nose with medium-full intensity aromas of tobacco, dried herbs, licorice, molasses, black fruit, plum, and boysenberry. Dry on the palate, full bodied, medium-high acidity, medium-high tannin, and medium to medium-high alcohol. Flavors of blackberry jam, dried black fruit,
Very light violet aromas float over blueberries and vanilla on a slightly reticent nose. There is no reticence on the palate, as this opens with lush berries, blueberry and elderberry, vanilla, cloves, and violets. Vanilla and cloves show more on the mid-palate, with fruit sweetening to pure blueberry. A bit
Joie Farm is certainly one of the most delightful wineries in the Okanagan. Their crisp whites and easy-drinking rosé and Passetoutgrain, evoking the Burgundian blend of gamay and pinot noir) are consistently some of the most pleasant wines in British Columbia’s wine country. Careful and well-controlled in their approach –
An off-dry Riesling from the Hattenheimer Nussbrunnen vineyard, aromas are soft and sweet, pear, honey, and white flowers, perhaps peonies. Honey and pears dominate on the attack, adding apples, florals, and hints of dried apricot and Meyer lemon on the mid-palate. Ripe, even bruised, rather than tart, apples linger on
Cavas can be inexpensive, easy-going bubbly, but it can also be more than that. It’s worth checking out the higher-end cuvées from good producers to get a sense of that : far from being strictly creamy, with substantial pastry notes, they can also offer freshness, fine bubbles and a crisp
Dubuoef shows why it is such a dominating presence in Beaujolais. Medium purple color and nose of violets,anise, and blackberry with oak accents in the background. Tastes of dark cherry and toast on the palate with good tannic structure holding it up. Finishes well, but is not terribly lingering. A
The 2007 vintage Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is the inaugural wine from Guarachi Family Vineyards. Great choice. The wine showcases what a great winemaker, Paul Hobbs, can do in one of Napa's best years. The color is opaque, nearly black. The eighteen months it spent in new French oak show
The nose is very deep, rich with figs and espresso, with a background of cedar. The nose was only a hint of the depth of the palate. It opens with blackberries and black pepper, then opens broadly to add licorice, coffee, unsweetened chocolate, and sweeter blueberry. The wine is well-structured,