EnRoute was founded in 2007 by the partners behind Far Niente Winery thanks to their passion for Pinot Noir. Since they stick to Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon at their Far Niente estate, the owners decided it best to create EnRoute in the Russian River Valley, an AVA within Sonoma County known for their Pinot Noir. While EnRoute produces one blended Pinot Noir under the name Les Pommiers, their current releases focus on four single vineyard bottlings from Amber Ridge Vineyard, Bucher Vineyard, Marty’s Vineyard, and Northern Spy Vineyard. The first single vineyard offerings came in the 2013 vintage from Amber Ridge and Northern Spy. Also in 2013, EnRoute released their first Chardonnay under the name Brumaire for the morning fog. To check out some details about the EnRoute vineyards including maps, check out the website here.
The 2014 Northern Spy Pinot Noir is deep ruby in color and actually almost purple at its core while being nearly fully opaque. Once this opens up, the nose showcases aromas of cranberry, black cherry, dried raspberry, leather, bergamot, mint, cola, sweet tobacco, and rose. In the mouth, this wine offers notes of blackberry, strawberry rhubarb, ripe cherry, black tea leaf, baking spice, earth, tar, peppery spice, and oak. This Pinot is medium-bodied with mouthwatering high acidity, medium (-) tannins, and a medium length finish which is shorter than hoped.
Price: $85. Not my favorite single vineyard bottling from EnRoute, though this could be a vintage story. I’ve heard good things about the 2014 Hop Kiln Vineyard though, but have yet to pop it. Check out their Les Pommiers for $60 if you’re interested in exploring the brand. Pair this with roasted chicken, smoked salmon, or pork loin.
Chateau Montelena traces its roots back to 1882 when Alfred L. Tubbs purchased 254 acres of rugged land with the dream of turning it into vineyards. Tubbs first planted his vineyards before constructing the chateau in 1886 and bringing in a winemaker from France, and by 1896 the A.L. Tubbs Winery was the seventh-largest in the Napa Valley. This prowess was short-lived, however, when winemaking shut down during Prohibition. With its repeal in 1933, Alfred’s grandson Chapin Tubbs continued harvesting the vineyards to make some wine and started selling fruit to others. He rechristened the winery to Chateau Montelena Winery in 1940 with the name derived from a contraction of Mount St. Helena.
In 1947, Chapin unfortunately passed away and winemaking at Chateau Montelena ceased again two years later. The Tubbs family sold this magnificent estate in 1958 to Yort and Jeanie Frank, a couple who emigrated from Hong Kong after WWII and were then seeking a peaceful place to retire. The Franks did not resume winemaking but rather worked to transform some of the overgrown grounds into a lake and landscaping reminiscent of their native gardens back home. Jade Lake on the property still provides evidence of this today and remains a beautiful and peaceful sanctuary.
The renaissance of this great winemaking estate, however, came about in the early 1970s under the leadership of Jim Barrett. Barrett quickly cleared and replanted the vineyards and brought in modern winemaking equipment alongside a team to oversee the vineyards and production. In 1972, winemaking resumed at Chateau Montelena and within years it would become one of the most important wineries in all of California and at that time even throughout the world. Chateau Montelena today thrives under the watchful eyes of Jim’s son, Bo Barrett.
Arguably the most important event in Chateau Montelena’s history occurred in 1976, though halfway around the world in France. Steven Spurrier, a British wine merchant, sought to put the best Californian wines head to head with the best French wines and assembled the Paris Wine Tasting of 1976 (known as the Judgment of Paris). There were an assortment of red wines and an assortment of white wines, with the Chateau Montelena Chardonnay being one of six Californian whites going against four greats from France’s Burgundy region. The 1973 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay beat all of the other white wines in a blind tasting and shocked not only the panel and those in attendance but the entire world, cementing California as a winemaking region demanding respect. Funny enough, Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars also in Napa Valley won for the red wines with their 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon.
I reviewed the 2011 Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon in my first ever blog post here if you would like to read tasting notes for a red offering in their portfolio. Further, if you’d like to learn more independently about Chateau Montelena’s winemaking process check out the website here. If you’d like something a bit more “fun” to learn about Chateau Montelena, watch the movie Bottle Shock starring Alan Rickman, Bill Pullman, and Chris Pine.
Today’s Wine: 2009 Chardonnay
100% Chardonnay; 13.6% ABV
The 2009 Chardonnay is a beautiful deep gold in color while being fully transparent. On the nose, this showcases aromas of green apple, stone fruit, golden pear, white lily florals, lemon citrus, cream, honey, refreshing minerality, dried straw, and a hint of toast. Once in the mouth, this beauty displays notes of dried apricot, white peach, pear, lemon zest, dry gravel, grass, light caramel, white pepper, and shaved hazelnut. This is drinking incredibly well right now while being full-bodied with vibrant medium (+) acidity and a fully rounded finish that lingers with you for quite some time.
Price: $80 direct from winery after visiting last September. Montelena Chardonnay is always one of my favorites, and you can typically find current release vintages in the $55 price range at a wide range of stores. You must try this wine of historic origin at least once. Pair this with shellfish, a lobster roll, roasted chicken, or assorted cheeses.
Paserene is a relatively new, small, and family operated winery founded by Martin Smith and Ndabe Mareda with the first vintage in 2013. The winery gets its name from the Latin word “Passeriformes”which is used to describe traveling birds including swifts and swallows, and Martin chose this name in homage of his winemaking ventures that took him around the world before ultimately returning home to start his own winery. Martin is a third generation winemaker from the small town of Ashton, and from an early age grew a passion for wine and knew becoming a winemaker was his dream. He first “worked” in the wine industry during a week-long study at Nuy Winery during school and traveled to Portugal to learn at Amorim Cork, though his broader experiences followed after graduating from Elsenburg Agricultural College with studies in viticulture and winemaking. Post-graduation, Martin worked briefly at Vriesenhof Vineyards before spending five years at Cosentino Winery in the Napa Valley. In 2006 Martin moved to Caldwell Winery and worked alongside renowned winemakers including Tim Mondavi and Philippe Melka, though around 2011 he received an offer to become the winemaker at Vilafonte back in South Africa and returned home.
Today’s Wine: 2016 Marathon
53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Petit Verdot, 5% Carménère; 14% ABV
The 2016 Marathon is medium ruby red in color and moderately transparent. This requires some time to breathe, but once it opens up the nose showcases aromas of blackberry, plum, blueberry, licorice, olive, tobacco, volcanic soil, crushed rock, green herbs, and underbrush. Once in the mouth, this wine displays notes of blackberry, blackcurrant, black cherry, red florals, loamy earth, mushroom, black pepper, cigar box, and dried cooking herbs. This is full-bodied with medium (+) acidity, medium tannins, and a medium (+) length finish.
Price: $40 (though this is tough to get in the US and online shows a fairly broad range from $27-55 overseas). This is a high-quality South African wine that is both delicious and offered at a fair price. The bottle today is shared with me by two great friends who recently visited the winery. Pair this with grilled steak, game, veal, or spicy pork.
Belle Glos was established in 2001 by Joe Wagner, a fifth generation Napa Valley winemaker who grew up in the vineyards and worked alongside his father at Caymus Vineyards. With great admiration for Lorna Belle Glos Wagner, his grandmother and co-founder of Caymus Vineyards, Joe named his new endeavor in her honor. Though his family previously produced Pinot Noir from Napa Valley fruit between 1972 and 1990, the wines did not display what they thought possible out of the variety and began searching for cooler coastal appellations suited for Pinot Noir. Joe soon thereafter produced his first vintage at Belle Glos from the Taylor Lane and Clark & Telephone Vineyards, the first of several vineyard-designated wines Belle Glos would create. By 2004, Belle Glos added the Las Alturas vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands to their portfolio and 2011 marked the first vintage from the Dairyman Vineyard in the Russian River Valley appellation of Sonoma County. Each year, Belle Glos releases the Clark & Telephone, Las Alturas, and Dairyman bottlings in accordance with their initial goal of producing single-vineyard Pinot Noir, however occasionally they offer limited release wines when vintage conditions allow.
Today’s Wine: 2017 Clark & Telephone Pinot Noir
100% Pinot Noir; 14.6% ABV
The 2017 Clark & Telephone is opaque and rather deep ruby in color, actually almost purple. Given 30 minutes or so to open up, the nose showcases aromas of black raspberry, cranberry, licorice, red and blue florals, leather, cedar, baking spice, and mild chocolate. There is also some heat thanks to the ABV that is unfortunately a bit off-putting. Once in the mouth, the wine offers notes of cherry, strawberry jam, blackberry, sweet tobacco, damp earth, white pepper, cinnamon, coconut, and vanilla. This is medium- to full-bodied with high acidity, medium (-) tannins, and a medium length finish. No doubt this needs a few more years of aging.
Price: $55. This is high for what it is, in my opinion, and seems too heavy-handed by the winemaker. While I’m sure this boozy fruit-bomb would have wide appeal (I nicknamed this the Caymus of Pinot Noir, which is funny because it’s also in the Wagner family), I would skip it for quality options in the $30-40 range. Pair this with grilled chicken, pork, or pasta.
Stags’ Leap Winery was established in 1893 by Horace Chase and his wife Mary (Minnie) following Horace’s partnership with his uncle W. W. Thompson on procuring the land. Grapes were first planted on this property in 1872 by T.L. Grigsby of Occidental Winery (today it is known as Regusci Winery), however the Chase family took ownership during the late 1880s and started building their manor house in 1888 after Horace and Mary were married. Around this time, the Stags’ Leap name came about and takes inspiration from native Wappo legends telling the tale of stags leaping to escape their hunters. When the manor house was completed in 1890/1891, the Chase family truly started living up to their reputation as lavish hosts to San Francisco high society and other features of the property soon thereafter included wine caves, a swimming pool, cabanas, gardens, a golf range, tennis courts, and 100 acres of vineyards. Though the first vintage and label bear 1893, there is evidence Horace produced wine from the estate shortly after taking ownership and utilized facilities at Occidental Winery to do so.
Though production of wine ramped up at the estate and Stags’ Leap was producing 40,000 gallons by 1895, several years later in 1908 winemaking ceased and, thanks to Prohibition shortly thereafter, did not resume for quite some time. Though Stags’ Leap was later established as a resort and refuge for San Franciscans escaping the cold Bay Area fogs, wine grapes continued to grow on the property and were sold to other wineries in the area. As decades passed, Stags’ Leap is drenched in rumors of bootleggers, mobsters, ghosts, and gypsies with the manor house and cottages even used as a reunion and rest destination for US naval officers under lease by the US Navy in 1944. In 1972, wine production resumed at the estate under Carl Doumani and winemaking has not stopped again. A new era dawned for the estate at this point, advancing with replanting of the vineyards in 1988, the establishment of Stags Leap District in 1989, and the restoration of the manor house in 2016. Today, Stags’ Leap produces elegant wines that display the fruit of this unique AVA and many of them do not break the bank.
The Stags’ Leap estate as it exists today consists of 85 acres broken into 23 unique blocks by soil type and exposure to the sun. Backing up to the rocky Stags Leap Palisades, the vineyards contain large amounts of volcanic rhyolite and tuff blended with subsoil of Bale loam formed by ancient riverbed sediment. An interesting note when thinking of all the rock in this soil is that when the Napa Valley chills at night, heat radiates from the rock and projects this stored warmth on the grapes until the cool evenings dissipate it. Essentially this feature prolongs the ripening process of the Cabernet Sauvignon and produces wines with good sugar and acidity balance. With all of the fruit from this estate hand-picked and hand-sorted, the winemaker Christophe Paubert believes in a meticulous and hands-on approach to winemaking. Christophe attempts to create balanced wines that are both intense yet characterized by soft tannins, allowing Stags’ Leap to appeal to a broad range of today’s Cabernet Sauvignon lovers but lacking on some of that terroir-driven character I look for.
Note: Stags’ Leap Winery is not to be confused with Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars (note the apostrophe placement). Though both wineries are incredibly historical when it comes to Californian winemaking, Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars produced the wine present in the 1976 Judgment of Paris and placed 1st for the red wines (Chateau Montelena, which I reviewed previously, placed 1st for the whites with their Chardonnay). Adding more apostrophe confusion for you, the Stags Leap District where both wineries are located does not contain an apostrophe. Check it out next time you’re in a store with wine from both estates!
The 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon is medium to deep ruby in color and almost entirely opaque. Once this opens up, the nose offers aromas of jammy blackberry, blackcurrant, plum, black cherry, violet, graphite, loamy earth, baking spice, chocolate, and cedar. The nose also displays some heat that I think needs a bit more time to burn off. Once in the mouth, the wine showcases notes of blackberry, blueberry, cassis, licorice, bold tobacco, leather, crushed rock, damp earth, smoke, red and purple florals, and oak. This Cab is full-bodied with medium (+) acidity, supple and rather velvety medium tannins, and a long finish to cap off an overall very bold and fruit-forward drinking experience.
Price: $45. This is always a great value Cab in my opinion and drinks incredibly well compared to other “people pleasing” wines in the same price range or higher. Though this is not my particular style of Cab, I am confident in saying the majority of today’s Cab drinkers would enjoy this bottle. Pair this with steak au poivre, herb roasted lamb, or a quality burger.
Teso la Monja was founded in 2007 by Marcos and Miguel Angel Eguren, however the history of their family in Spanish winemaking stretches much deeper. The Eguren family has been cultivating vines and producing wine in Rioja Alavesa since 1870 and today carries their culminated knowledge down five generations. The Eguren family, alongside Jorge Ordóñez, have been instrumental in the revitalization of the Toro DO and were the original founders of Bodegas Numanthia in the region. When the family sold Numanthia in 2007, they did not want to abandon their projects in Toro and Teso la Monja was born. With Marcos as winemaker and his son Eduardo assisting, we have the fourth and fifth generations of this family once again continuing their tradition of passing along knowledge of crafting exquisite wines.
Teso la Monja is one of six wineries the family operates under the Viñedos y Bodegas Sierra Cantabria umbrella. If you have an interest in exploring their other labels, check out the website here.
Today’s Wine: 2012 Almirez Toro
100% Tinta de Toro (Tempranillo); 14.5% ABV
The 2012 Almirez is opaque deep purple in color. I decanted this for about 30-45 minutes before trying the wine and the nose opens to reveal aromas of cherry, plum, figs, red licorice, tobacco, earth, shoe leather, and oak. Once in the mouth, the wine displays notes of blackberry, black cherry, bay leaf, dried fig, chocolate, forest floor, dried herbs, and nutmeg. This Tinta de Toro is full-bodied with medium (+) acidity, medium (+) tannins, and a long finish.
Price: $20. Typically a price-point for some great value Toro wines, however this one is a bit unbalanced and either needs more time in the cellar or I would suggest trying a different wine. Pair this with pizza, barbecue chicken, or tomato sauce pasta.
Beaulieu Vineyard is one of the most historic wineries in Napa Valley, founded in 1900 by Georges de Latour and his wife Fernande. I wrote about them previously in A Winery Synonymous with Napa Valley Itself when I reviewed the 2014 Tapestry Reserve, as well as in The Maestro when I reviewed the 2010 Maestro Collection Ranch No. 1. If you are not familiar with the history of BV, I highly suggest reading my first post linked above or checking out their website. Today, I will provide you with a little background on their famous Clone wines.
BV produces two highly limited wines with a clone designation, the Clone 4 and Clone 6. BV selected both clones after a 14-year series of trials with UC Davis that began in 1980 because they wanted to determine which clones best suited the terroir for their Rutherford vineyards. The Clone 6 (aka Jackson clone) was first planted during the 1880s by UC Davis professor Eugene Hilgard at the field station at Jackson in the Sierra Foothills, however it was abandoned until the past several decades. Clone 6 is characterized by small loose clusters and small berries that yield concentrated flavors and muscular tannins. The Clone 4 (aka Mendoza clone), meanwhile, was identified and isolated in Argentina before coming to the United States and is characterized by tight clusters of large berries that yield lush and opulent wines. Both Clone 4 and Clone 6 are components for the Georges de Latour and other reserve Cabernet Sauvignon bottlings.
Today’s Wine: 2008 Clone 6
100% Cabernet Sauvignon; 14.9% ABV
The 2008 Clone 6 is opaque deep ruby in color with purple hues at its core. I let this open up in a decanter and the nose showcases aromas of blackberry, blackcurrant, anise, ripe red fruit, forest floor, earthy mushroom, tar, smoke, tobacco, and some oaky spice. Once in the mouth, this wine displays notes of blackberry, blueberry, black cherry, prune, redcurrant, black licorice, coffee bean, cigar box, scorched earth, dried underbrush, black pepper, and oak. This utterly complex and gorgeous wine is full-bodied with medium (+) acidity, medium refined tannins, and a long finish with some inky black fruit notes. The 2008 Clone 6 is not slowing down anytime soon, still full of fruit character and not taking on a ton of tertiary notes or any sediment in the bottle.
Price: $225 on BV’s website (though we purchased this from them in 2015 for ~$150). This is a great special celebration Cabernet Sauvignon, though their less-expensive Georges de Latour ($145-175 depending on vintage) is just as good if not better. Pair this with steak, lamb, or pepper-crusted ahi tuna.
Merry Edwards Winery was established in 1997 by Merry Edwards and her husband Ken Coopersmith. However, Merry experienced quite a successful career before creating her namesake winery starting with her master’s degree in Food Science with an emphasis in Enology from UC Davis in 1973. After graduation, Merry fought to become a winemaker (not a lab technician like many women in the field during that time) and she was ultimately hired by Mount Eden Vineyards in February 1974 as winemaker. Merry spent three vintages with Mount Eden and during 1975 selected some of their Pinot Noir cuttings to send to UC Davis for heat treatment and propagation which resulted in UCD clone 37 (the “Merry Edwards selection”) that is planted in the Georganne Vineyard which sources fruit for the wine I am reviewing today.
In 1977, Merry Edwards spent time in France studying clone research at the University of Beaune and later moved to Sonoma County to become the founding winemaker of Matanzas Creek Winery. Shortly thereafter, Merry purchased property in the Russian River Valley in 1981 with plans for a family winery and built Merry Vintners Winery (focused on Chardonnay) in 1984 alongside her consulting business. Several years later, in 1996, Merry purchased 24 acres of what would become the Meredith Estate Vineyard and, in 1997 after meeting her would-be husband Ken, co-founded Merry Edwards Winery and produced her first namesake Pinot Noir.
Over time, Merry and Ken grew their holdings through vineyard purchases and leasing agreements and today produce Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc. The Sauvignon Blanc is Merry’s favorite white wine from what I’ve heard, and it is indeed a must-try for any Sauvignon Blanc fan particularly those made in a Bordeaux Blanc style. This being said, Merry’s winemaking career that almost spans 50 years is dominated by her being a self-proclaimed perfectionist with a goal of producing wines that reflect the terroir rather than her own hand. Coupled with her winemaking philosophy, Merry also believes in sustainable farming and energy practices that help prolong both her own land and the environment around it. For more on Merry Edwards, check out the very extensive website here, as I could surely write an entire novel on this blog post and bog down your emails.
Today’s Wine: 2015 Georganne Pinot Noir
100% Pinot Noir; 14.2% ABV
The 2015 Georganne Pinot Noir is medium to deep purple/ruby in color and almost entirely opaque. I simply let this open up in the glass for 15-30 minutes to reveal aromas of black cherry, black raspberry, blueberry, acai, charred cedar, damp forest floor, wet gravel, blue and purple florals, and a hint of wild herbs mingled with peppery spice. Once in the mouth, this wine displays notes of cherry, dried raspberry, tart wild blueberry, red florals, sweet tobacco, loamy soil, mushroom, chocolate, clove, and oak. The wine is medium- to full-bodied with high acidity, medium (-) tannins, and a long finish dominated by herbaceous and cranberry tones.
Price: $63 upon release (I’m now seeing closer to $85 average online). Georganne is one of Merry Edwards’ newest vineyards and I am surprised by the elegance and finesse this wine displays as compared to some of her other vineyard designated wines that take more time in the bottle to blossom. Pair this with salmon, duck, or Panko-crusted rack of lamb.
Cenyth was established in 2009 as a collaboration between winemaker Hélène Seillan and musician/artist Julia Jackson (daughter of Jess Jackson and Barbara Banke). Hélène Seillan is the daughter of renowned winemaker Pierre Seillan, the man behind Vérité winemaking and their micro-cru philosophy, and the two of them work together at Vérité as well. If you recall, I wrote about Vérité in Both Complexity and Elegance from Sonoma County when I reviewed the 2008 Le Désir and you can read a bit more about the winemaking style and history of the Seillan family there. While Hélène handles the wine at Cenyth, Julia created the label art and selected her palette in homage to Sonoma County: “blue for the Pacific Ocean, yellow for the mustard flowers, gray for the fog, and green for the vineyards.” While Cenyth represents the knowledge and mentorship Hélène gathered from her father over the years, it also represents the friendship between Hélène and Julia who grew up together in the vineyards of Sonoma County and France.
The 2009 Proprietary Red (Cenyth’s inaugural release) is deep purple in color with deep ruby variation near the rim. Once this opens up, the nose showcases aromas of blackberry, black cherry, redcurrant, licorice, tomato paste, green herbs, mint, tobacco, cedar, and a hint of vanilla. On the palate, I get notes of blackberry, blueberry, plum, cherry, mild forest floor, cigar box, black pepper, dried cooking herbs, rocky minerality, smoke, and oak. This wine is medium- to full-bodied with vibrant medium (+) acidity, medium tannins, and a long finish dominated by sappy red and black fruit alongside notes of iron.
Price: $60. Very solid value Bordeaux blend from Sonoma County, offering both complexity and the structure to go the distance. I am curious to try more recent vintages to see how style developed over the years. Pair this with ribeye steak, lamb, duck breast, or a good burger.
Domaine Comte Armand (also known as Domaine des Epeneaux) was established in the late 18th century when Nicolas Marey took ownership of the 5 hectare monopole Clos des Epeneaux. In 1828, the property came into the Comte Armand family and Clos des Epeneaux remained the only source of their fruit until 1994 when the domaine expanded and purchased property in Volnay. Today the domaine consists of roughly 9 hectares and is under supervision of Vicomte Gabriel Armand, a Parisian lawyer. The family, however, has relied on resident-managers throughout the domaine’s history to manage the estate’s affairs and Vicomte Gabriel Armand continues this tradition today. Benjamin Leroux became winemaker at Comte Armand in 1999 at the age of 23 and he completed the transition to biodynamic farming shortly thereafter. Benjamin transitioned to his own projects in 2014, however, handing the reigns to Paul Zinetti. Comte Armand produces Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Aligoté and vinifies their wines 100% de-stemmed, uses 20-30% new oak for aging, and bottles the reds unfined and unfiltered but the whites fined and lightly filtered.
Today’s Wine: 2009 Volnay
100% Pinot Noir; 13% ABV
The 2009 Volnay is medium to deep garnet in color and moderately transparent. I did not decant this wine but let it open up in the glass to reveal aromas of ripe red cherry, pomegranate, dried strawberry, forest floor, leather, rose petal, green herbs, cinnamon, and sandalwood. Once in the mouth, this wine offers notes of cranberry, tart cherry, raspberry, tobacco, black pepper, charred earth, black truffle, mineral, and a hint of vanilla. This is medium-bodied with medium (+) acidity, medium (-) tannins, and a long finish. Not the best red I’ve had from Volnay, but certainly not the worst as this is very easy drinking and should be pleasing to most palates. Typically about 460 cases produced.
Price: $90. Not a bad price-point for this regional Burgundy, though since it’s nothing to write home about I would suggest exploring 1er Cru options or sampling something else at a slightly lower price to begin exploring Volnay. Pair this with salmon, roasted chicken, or duck.
JB's Wine Talk 