Wine & Spirits - April 2018 - 136

US NEW RELEASES
purchased in 2007. This blend includes 13
percent merlot from Rossi, which fills out
the wine and polishes the bitter, earthy tannins of cabernet, making this a fat, luscious
vintage to serve with filet mignon.

weight. This earthy wine carries the coolness
into its flavors of dark plums and black cherries, the tannins supple, soft and cushioned.
Its racy fruit sweetness will enliven roast duck
with cherries. (4,900 cases)

ness of semillon and the honeysuckle scent
of botrytis. It's draped with honeyed flavor,
then finishes clean. For hazelnut biscotti.

PETITE SIRAH

CHARDONNAY

511042

92 | Francis Coppola

510908
$42

2014 Rockpile I Mille Petite Sirah ^ This
juicy red offers a powerful blast of flavor
without feeling hot or alcoholic. Instead, it
tastes fresh and bright, with meaty cherry
flavors that last on floral tension. It's a rocky
Rockpile wine built to age. (697 cases)

SYRAH

510821

90 | Bella Union

510327
$85

2015 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ^
This is the newest project from the team at
Far Niente, a blend focused on cabernet sauvignon with a small portion of franc and petit
verdot. It's made by Megan Melief, formerly
the assistant winemaker at Nickel & Nickel.
It starts off hiding behind a wall of oak, with
black-walnut scents and mineral-inflected
tannins. That oak integrates with air, adding
richness to the tannins and bringing out a
tapenade scent. Substantial, bold and smoky,
this is a cabernet for aged beef. (3,700 cases)
511136

88 | Brea

$25

2014 Paso Robles Margarita Vineyard
Cabernet Sauvignon (Best Buy) ^ There's a
well-grown cabernet here, hiding behind its
bottling sulfur, needing lots of air, or several
years in the cellar, to allow its finely textured
baked-cherry flavors to come forward. Forget
it in a decanter for the afternoon, then serve
at dinner with grilled lamb. (1,100 cases)

MERLOT

91 | Westwood Wine Co.

$58

2015 Sonoma Valley Annadel Gap Vineyard Syrah ^ Located in the gap between
Mount Hood and Sonoma Mountain, this
vineyard receives morning fog and potent
afternoon wind. It's been farmed under biodynamics since 2012 (certified in 2017). That
farming may contribute to this wine's persistence of flavor, which mimics old vines
in its intensity and depth. The fruit is dark
and umami-black, the warm aromas of floral
spice adding complexity to a sleek, cushioned
red wine. An intriguing red to serve with
roast boar or other wild game. (190 cases)

VALDIGUIE
510888

91 | Broc Cellars

$24

$40

2014 Coombsville Napa Valley Mt. George
Vineyard Merlot ^ Silverado's vineyard in
Coombsville is a cool site where merlot can
ripen without blaring alcohol and powerful
136

WINE & SPIRITS

APRIL 2018

$100

2015 Eola-Amity Hills Summum Seven
Springs Estate Chardonnay ^ A volcanic
spine runs through the center of Seven
Springs Vineyard. In winter, with the vines
bare, it is easy to see-a little ridge where
the soils are unnervingly shallow. The rows
in that block regularly contribute to the Summum chardonnay, and no matter how warm
the vintage, its structure stands as if tethered
to that spine. This 2015 is ample, smelling of
golden apples and lees, and while the flavors
are no less substantial, the wine remains texturally lean and focused, with vibrant acidity
and a stony grip. This will reward patient cellaring. (201 cases)
510997

91 | Elton

$75

2015 Eola-Amity Hills Chardonnay ^ This
small-production chardonnay comes from
Elton Vineyard, a source for vineyard-designated wines since the early '90s, primarily
from Willamette Valley Vineyards and, more
recently, Lavinea. Isabelle Meunier makes
this wine, a languorous and succulent chardonnay with scents of biscuits and golden
pear. The flavors are more lactic, the texture
rich, with a sneaky acidity that would make
it a good pairing with butter-poached halibut. (142 cases)

2015 Dundee Hills Melon de Bourgogne ^
This melon is drawn from one of the older
plantings of the variety in Oregon, the vines
now pushing 20 years old. Its lemony, saltspray scent and citrusy, saline flavors are
invigorating, rippling with acid, and call for
shellfish-particularly oysters. (1,100 cases)

CA L IFORNIA DESSERT

PINOT GRIS

91 | Dolce
92 | Silverado

95 | Evening Land Vyds.

2016 Solano County Valdiguie (Best Buy) ^
Chris Brockway sources this fruit from two
vineyards where valdiguie was planted more
than 65 years ago, one on steep slopes with
iron-rich soils, the other near the valley floor.
He ferments it with partial carbonic maceration (as whole berries) and without additions,
other than a little sulfur prior to bottling.
The old vines give a complexity that's more
umami than fruity, hinting at mushrooms
and pine. Lean and juicy, it's a pretty wine
to serve lightly chilled with a plate of charcuterie. (308 cases)

510820

510269

OREGON WHITE

MELON DE BOURGOGNE
510004

91 | De Ponte

$25

510979
$85

2012 Napa Valley Late Harvest ^ The team
at Far Niente farms 20 acres of semillon and
sauvignon blanc in the southwestern corner
of Napa Valley, and built a separate winery to
produce this botrytised wine. It ferments in
new oak barrels for six months, then ages for
three years before the top barrels are selected
for the blend. The 2012 has the wheaty rich-

88 | Winter's Hill

$17

2016 Dundee Hills Watershed Pinot Gris
(Best Buy) ^ An ample gris, this starts off
generous and bright, with scents of Granny
Smith apples and Weetabix. With air, a
lemon-drop tartness puts an edge on that
richness, the phenolics a good foil for a quinoa and lentil salad. (600 cases)

https://shop.farniente.com/product/2015-Bella-Union-Cabernet-Sauvignon--Napa-Valley?pageID=D7E286C4-CBFC-4978-A989-8A60B4796B00&sortBy=DisplayOrder&maxRows=12&&productListName=Cabernet%20Sauvignon&position=1 http://www.silveradovineyards.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - April 2018