Finally, a post about wine

It has taken me a while, hasn't it?  OK, I have two items of interest:

I popped into this month's Chill on Thursday night.  For those of you who don't know, Chill is a monthly wine / spirit tasting event for sommeliers, wine buyers, chefs and restaurant GMs (and no, I don't know why I'm still invited to them, other than the fact that lots of random people show up anyway).  In any case, I was pleased to see, after my unfortunately wineless trip to the Niagara Peninsula, that they were pouring Inniskillin at Chill.  Still awesome.  The Vidal Icewine is magnificent - sweet, yet balanced by a refreshing acidity.  The Cab Franc adds flavors of red berries and a touch of earthiness.

Up until the Toronto trip, however, I had been unaware of Inniskillin's Sparkling Vidal Icewine.  And they were pouring it at Chill, too.  Dangerous.  Very Dangerous.  That's really all I can say about it.  Let's just say that I'm very glad we bought a bottle of it in duty-free coming home.

The main event, however, was Trade Tasting Day at Williams Selyem on Wednesday.  There's a lot of wine to talk about, so let's get to it, going in pretty much the same order I tasted it.

2004 Allen Vyd. Chardonnay Russian River Valley - Creamy, with baking spice and pear notes.  Nicely ripe, though I prefer a bit more acidity.  Probably a 91 point wine according to James Laube at the Spectator.

2004 Heintz Vyd. Chardonnay Russian River Valley - A little bit of cream balanced by a nice, crisp acidity.  More tropical fruit than the Allen and more my speed in general.

2004 Hawk Hill Vyd. Chardonnay Russian River Valley - My favorite of the three.  Crisp, vibrant acidity, stone fruits with a touch of floral notes and a nice, stony minerality.  Great food wine that cries out for seafood.  I'm thinking seared scallops myself.

2004 Bucher Vyd. Pinot Noir Russian River Valley - Classic RRV PN.  Cherries, cola, loamy earth, floral notes, and enough tannin to keep the fruit honest.

2004 Weir Vyd. Pinot Noir Yorkville Highlands - A little more red fruit, some baking spice, and more stony than earthy minerality.  The wine I'd want to drink with a lightly spiced pork tenderloin.

2004 Flax Vyd. Pinot Noir Russian River Valley - I typically like wine from this vineyard, but I must admit that this vintage left me a little flat.  Seems a bit too ripe, with black, rather than red, fruits and a bit less acidity than I'd like.  Still very good, just a bit unfocused.

2004 Vista Verde Vyd. Pinot Noir San Benito County - Getting back to a more restrained style.  Red fruit, violets, and earth.  Nicely balanced.

2004 Ferrington Vyd. Pinot Noir Anderson Valley - Lots of fruit and baking spice.  A touch of earth and noticable tannins.  This could pair well with light BBQ or pork served with fruit sauce / salsa.

2004 Allen Vyd. Pinot Noir Russian River Valley - Probably went a little out of order here, as Rochioli properties typically make large, firmly structured wines.  Oh well, still tasted good.  Vibrant red fruits, a touch of rose, and tannins that make you sit up and notice.  Not overly tannic, but definitely a big wine.

2004 Rochioli Riverblock Vyd. Pinot Noir Russian River Valley - A little riper than the Allen, with a touch more black cherry.  Some nice notes of sassafras and roses, lending complexity.  However, more pronounced stoniness in concert with a towering wall of tannin (for Pinot) make for quite a mouthful.  However, it's not Pinot masquerading as Syrah.  It's not thick and overextracted, just big.  Excellent wine, but not for the faint of heart.

2004 Coastlands Vyd. Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast - Yes, I did have some bread and cheese before jumping from the Rochioli to this.  Here we encounter our first pronounced notes of mushroom, in addition to dark fruit and baking spice tannins.  Nicely concentrated but not syrupy.

2004 Peay Vyd. Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast - Lots going on upfront here.  Mix of red and black fruit, some cocoa, and a bit of stone.  Not the most complex wine, but enjoyable.

2004 Hirsch Vyd. Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast - A little spicier than the Coastlands and Peay, with similar dark fruits.  A little more tannin, too.  A very nice wine that I would have no problem drinking on its own or with some nice cheese.

2004 Precious Mountain Vyd. Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast - Almost always my favorite of the single-vineyard Pinot bottlings (and at $85 / bottle, why wouldn't it be?).  Complex, well-balanced and on the big side.  You can easily suss out fruit, florals, earth, spice, mushroom and a firm, underlying tannin that pulls you through the finish.  Yummy.

2004 Forchini Vyd. Zinfandel Russian River Valley - Damn good zin.  Ripe without being too jammy.  Rich without being cloying.  I suspect the zippy acidity does a lot to balance all the ripe fruit.

2002 Mistral Vyd. Port Central Coast - Winemaker Bob Cabral has Portuguese roots, so this isn't too much of a stretch.  And you can't argue with the results.  A lovely, drink-now port with dense, dark fruit and chocolate.  Nice bit of spice on the palate.  For those of you into pedigree, the port is fortified with spirits from Germain-Robin, arguably the finest craft distiller in the U.S.

OK, hope that wasn't too much for you.  It certainly ended up being bigger than I thought it would.  Not bad for a first wine entry, huh?

Comments welcome.