JAQK Comes Back With Sauvignon Blanc, It's Charmed!

Another wine from JAQK Cellars, who've produced a cabernet sauvignon, syrah, and a merlot that I have loved (and reviewed) already. The bottle of chardonnay they sent me turned out to be corked unfortunately, so that will not be reviewed. I say that not to blame the wine maker or winery, merely to point out the single biggest problem with cork closures.

The 2008 JAQK "Charmed" Sauvignon Blanc though, was delightful and much appreciated by my dinner guests last week. Since I cooked a hearty chicken and tomato dish, I chose a red wine to pair with it but needed a white wine to appease my friends Karen and Sabina. This was sitting in my wine fridge and I had wanted a chance to open it since last month, the result was wonderful.

To go down a different path for a moment, I really admire the JAQK Cellars packaging. Their labels are great to look at and unconventional, yet remain easy to decipher. For the non-wine-geek, making sense of all the letters and numbers on a label is intimidating and may lead to choosing generic, bland wines. I'm not saying that a flashy label makes up for shitty juice though, just that a fun but legible way to tell consumers what's in the bottle remains something the wine industry needs to work on. Honestly, what the hell does a bounding kangaroo tell me about what's inside the bottle?

Getting back on track, I tasted the sauvignon blanc at about 58 degrees F and made my tasting notes, then chilled it for my two friends. I'll also explain my impressions after the wine spent 30 minutes in an ice bucket and I tasted it again.

Bright tropical fruit and citrus on the nose, the subtlest hints of perfume and a dash of oak too. Smooth and crisp, I hit on guava, nectarine and grapefruit flavors along with a tiny bit of vanilla manifesting as a richer, deeper note on the finish. I liked the balance struck between a fresh, vibrant style and a lusher, more fleshy style. According to the JAQK website, their 2008 Charmed spent six months in oak, sur lie. Lees are leftover (dead) yeast cells and bits of grape skins, seeds and stems that float around in the wine after fermentation. If you leave the wine unfined, the intent is to give it a fleshier mouth-feel and texture, generally speaking of course. In some cases, this is done with sauvignon blanc to balance out the varietal's naturally high acidity. There was no malo-lactic fermentation on the 2008 JAQK Charmed, meaning that there was no buttery or buttered popcorn flavor to be found, much to my delight. While I do enjoy some malo-lactic treatment, in my opinion it's far overused in California.

Tasted after being chilled for 30 minutes, the acidity was much more pronounced, in addition to a stronger citrus and guava note, the perfume though had disappeared. I was still able to make out a bit of oak on the finish but that wasn't distracting and enhanced the experience.

My friends Karen and Sabina really enjoyed this wine, and used words like "bright", "dry", "fruity", and "really good!" to describe it. I asked them to guess the suggested retail price and both of them said "about $20". Since they aren't wine drinkers, I suspect they tried to game me since they know a bit about what I pay for wine. Then again the JAQK Charmed Sauvignon Blanc is listed at $19 but I've found it for a low as $13, which turns it into a QPR monster.

My friends and I enjoyed the wine, food, and conversation. They even tasted my red selections but found them to be "bitter", "strong", "rough"..Music to my wine-geek ears I suppose! Considering the JAQK offering, it's an easy B+ from me and if you see it, pick up a bottle or two. Some suggested pairings would be chicken and pasta, turkey burgers, pesto pizza and your loved ones.

This wine was a media sample.

Beau Carufel

2006 Chateau Lestrille Bordeaux Superieur - Superieur Indeed!

Another absolute gem from the people at Planet Bordeaux. This red blend is from Bordeaux Superieur, an appellation in the Bordeaux region of France. I know it may sound confusing but think of it this way, the geographic area of Bordeaux is the same as Bordeaux Superieur. The differences start with the age of the vines, and also includes the length of aging a wine receives and it's minimum alcohol content. Therefore it is safe to assume that if you see a label that says Bordeaux Superieur AOC, you're getting a more refined, ambitious wine. For a more detailed explanation, click here to visit the Bordeaux AOC website. Another good discussion of differences is found at the Planet-Bordeaux website.

(img copyright Beau Carufel 2011)

Great color, like a dark ruby with that quintessentially aged-wine look. Bordeaux can start dark, as evidenced in the Chateau Feret-Lambert that I tasted last week. The 2006 Chateau Lestrille on the other hand, has lost the almost purple color and moved towards something...searching for the word..classier! Merlot followed by cabernet sauvignon make up this blend, or at least that is what I was able to find out. There could of course be three other varietals mixed in.

I got whiffs of tobacco and leather, cassis and sweet black cherry. Ripe but restrained, lovely finish. Silky smooth tannins tell me this is drinking at its peak. Everything is so nicely integrated especially considering the price. Sure, this won't compare to a 2005 Chateau Leoville-Las Cases but let's be realistic. We're tasting inexpensive wines from Bordeaux that end up delivering in spades, more so than the typical $11 wine from California.

After spending about an hour open and being passed through my Vinturi, the Ch. Lestrille was loaded with darker flavors. Ever chewed on your baseball glove as a kid? Check! How about gnawing for a brief moment on a cinnamon stick because you thought it tasted as awesome as it smelled? There in spades! Have you been fortunate to taste freshly made plum jelly? There's that here too! Were you one of those kids who ate some bittersweet chocolate and hadn't developed a taste for it yet? I found a strong vein of that nearly-raw cocoa running right through this wine. Wonderfully complex with some silky but firm tannins creating the wine's backbone.

No flavor overwhelmed another, the balance was impressive considering you can find this wine for about $11 on the internet. 2006 was by most accounts a good year and with a bit of bottle age, I think the Chateau Lestrille shows how wines from Bordeaux start to mature. In its youth I can imagine a tannic monster loaded with clove, cinnamon and leather..And not much else. Now, flavors calm down, integrate, and balance out. Utterly delightful Bordeaux, one I give a B+ and a hearty BUY recommendation to. I'd suggest pairing with roast beef, glazed pork and/or ham, and cured meats like salami or sopressata. If you think of any fun, interesting pairings, be sure to post them in the comments section!

This wine was recieved as a sample from Planet Bordeaux via Balzac Communications

Beau Carufel

Birthday, Barolo, Beautiful! 2004 Colle Dei Venti

Last year I reviewed a Chianti Classico from WineChateau.com and this year they were kind enough to send another wine my way. The 2004 Colle Dei Venti Barolo, from the Piedmont region of Italy. Tucked way up at the top of the "boot" and bordered on three sides by the Alps, a few grapes grow quite well in the hilly region.

Perhaps the most famous is nebbiolo, producing the wines of Barolo. The Barolo wines of Piedmont are considered to be some of Italy's best and I count them among my favorites as well. Traditionally they are very intense, tannic reds that need at least ten years before they're suitable to drink. Some stuffy old English critic once declared that a Barolo must be at least 30 years old before it's ready to be consumed. Having tried a few 30+ year old Barolo wines once, I can say that with that much age, they take on the complexity of a great Bordeaux.

(img copyright Beau Carufel 2011)

However! There is a new movement afoot, one to produce Barolos that do not require a prohibitively long time before being ready to drink. Given the following evidence, I suspect that is what the 2004 Colle Dei Venti is aiming for. First the color is not what I was expecting. Next, upon a few whiffs, the aromatics didn't seem to be typical of the Barolos I had enjoyed previously. Finally, I tasted some somewhat subtle differences between what I expected of this Barolo and what was present. None of those factors should be construed as good or bad, just my observations regarding this particular wine.

Professionals describe Barolos as lightly colored, almost ruby-like when young. When looking at the Colle Dei Venti, I must disagree. It's far closer to a cabernet from California or even a Cotes du Rhone. Dark and opaque, not at all ruby-like. Truth be told, I was hoping for a wine with a lighter color because lately all the wines I have seem to be somewhat monochromatic.

Despite a lackluster or less-than-awe-inspiring color, the Colle Dei Venti does display complex aromas of spice, sour cherry, tar and rose petal. Some scents are stronger than others but what they combine to create is a wonderful bouquet. Consider me impressed.

Today I decided to take a somewhat different approach to tasting and opened the Barolo about three hours before I tasted it, then poured it through a vinturi to maximize the aeration. The wine makes an impressive entrance, bursting with spices and tannic structure. It's got pepper and a savory, almost jerky-like note too. But oh those tannins, so strong and dominant. I can easily picture this wine being far less imposing in another five years, maybe even ten. At 14% alcohol, there's a bit of heat right on the finish that perhaps will disappear with age, all the more reason to drink aged Barolo I suppose.

All of the above taken into account left me with the singular thought that I really enjoyed the 2004 Colle Dei Venti Barolo. It's complex, big, brawny, and has potential. Sure it's rough right now but with some mushroom/truffle ravioli with shaved Parmesan on top, I bet this would be a knockout. The classic pairing of tannin and protein (think red wine and steak) would also be beautiful and an exercise in the yin and yang of food and wine. B+ from me, a BUY recommendation if you see it anywhere. WineChateau.com looks to be sold out (for now?) but if this is any indication of the Barolos they procure, you need to check their site out.

This was received as a sample for review purposes.


Beau Carufel

Bordeaux Superieur, Hosted Tonight By Costes du Chateau Feret-Lambert

Planet Bordeaux strikes again! In my ongoing exploration of some not-so-incredibly-expensive wines made in the appellations of Bordeaux and Bordeaux-Superieur, tonight's choice is a 2006 Costes Du Chateau Feret-Lambert. This is a reasonably priced merlot/cabernet sauvignon blend from Chateau Costes.

For this and for most "Old World" wines, I deviate from my usual routine of opening a bottle about an hour before tasting, opting instead to open the wine about two hours prior to tasting. In my opinion, that extra hour can help immensely in letting the wine unfold, allowing me to perhaps sense some more subtle nuances that might be present.

So with this ritual complete, I was left sitting at my kitchen table with a glass of wine in hand and my laptop staring me in the face. Why not take a few sniffs, I reasoned. Oh wait the color! I wanted to mention that the color is very dark for a Bordeaux, it reminded me of young California merlot or even some of those classy Mendocino County zinfandels. Not the overbearing fruit bomb types, but the ones which express a sense of place, you know, terroir! Gotta love the fancy wine lingo..

Aromas can be tricky, as anyone who has smelled anything then tried to write about it will tell you. Right. My first few whiffs showed raspberries, red earth, hints of cedar, baking spices and a tickle of white pepper. The way the bouquet seemed to rush up out of the glass was impressive, and a testament to the complexity of the wine, relatively speaking. During the sniffy-sniff session (alliteration!) my mind was telling me the 2006 Feret-Lambert was probably about $20 a bottle, maybe a touch more. It wasn't until later that I found the "real" price by checking up on wine-searcher.com and the always-handy tech sheets that Balzac sent along with the samples.

Finally I get to taste the wine, as if the seemingly infinite swirls and sniffs were to suffice! Not so, a wine must be tasted to be fully explored. Grippy tannin, sour cherry, bittersweet chocolate and a kick of pepper right as the last traces of flavor leave your palate. While the flavors join together in a somewhat rustic manner, I did enjoy the complexity. That or perhaps I've been drinking some utter plonk from Bordeaux lately. No, this is more complex than the price would indicate, bringing a smile to my face.

The vintage is 2006, which seems to be heralded as a good year but is overshadowed by the critically-loved 2005 vintage. Five years is still a young wine for a Bordeaux, I'd love to taste this wine after five more years have passed, to see if it has improved at all. Right now though, this is a very food-friendly example of merlot-based Bordeaux. That finish, oh so French! It seems to gently fade away, like the last strains of music after the old vacuum tube radio is turned off.

My critics hat back on, I can easily recommend the 2006 Costes du Chateau Feret-Lambert with a BUY recommendation and a B-. Given that the wine can be found for about $15 at Bevmo.com, I think that's a steal. The folks at Planet Bordeaux have done well to feature this wine as an expression of something fun and accessible from the region. If you're a big fan of French wines, I recommend picking up a bottle or two to share at a dinner party, help your fellow wine loving friends learn a bit about Bordeaux Superieur.

This wine was provided as a media sample by Balzac Communications for Planet Bordeaux.

Beau Carufel

Surprise In a Glass, 2006 Waterstone Cabernet

You might be thinking "great, like the world needs another $25 Napa Valley cabernet"..There is no fault in such sentiment, because the market is awash with wines around this price. Unfortunately, a lot of those wines have quality issues, leaving the drinker disappointed. The flip side is that the economic downturn has reduced prices on wine (and grapes) allowing the wine drinker more choice at his or her desired price level.

Critics are gushing over the 2007 vintage up in Napa and Sonoma, well Bob Parker and Jim Laube are at least. Wines from that vintage don't seem to have much trouble moving, especially when the (sadly ignorant) consumer sees a 92 point Parker or Wine Speculator Spectator score. This is all relative to price and market segment, of course. Don't want any anal retentive readers frothing at the mouth just yet! A compelling argument against the "points are dead!!!!" crowd not withstanding.

A few weeks back I was sent a sample of 2006 Waterstone Cabernet Sauvignon, from Napa Valley. This isn't pure cabernet though, with 17% merlot and 4% cabernet franc rounding out the blend. While the alcohol varies from 14.5%-14.9% depending on whether you look at the bottle or the website, that's still too high in my opinion. My now-familiar refrain about lower alcohol levels is old hat, yet I will gladly continue to shout it from the rooftops.

(img via: http://www.brix26.com/images/products/waterstone_2006_cab.jpg)

Great cabernet color in my glass, very dark ruby that gets a touch pale at the outer edges. There isn't anything crazy or unique about the color, which might as well be taken as a good sign. That said, I've resolved to get better at examining color since red wines seem to me to be varying shades of purple or garnet/ruby, without much variation. Then again, such a generic color profile might be more indicative of the wines I've been drinking lately.

With that little evaluation out of the way I can focus on what this 2006 cabernet smells like. Lots of cedar, earth, sweet berries and some hints of baking chocolate slathered onto an oak plank. I like the complexity and effect of a few primary scents that tend to dominate, yet are in fact restrained by the secondary aromas.

A taste brings a rollicking good time with big tannins making the entrance, paving the way for herbs, cassis, a plummy vanilla note, and oak. Nice finish too, doesn't last too long and is only marred by some alcoholic heat that tickles the back of my throat. The 2006 Waterstone is one of the more food-friendly cabernets that I have tasted lately. Wonderful body across the entire range of flavors, I honestly believe the only knock against this wine is that alcoholic finish.

At a suggested retail of $26, the 2006 Waterstone is not bad at all and drinks a lot better than some $50+ cabs I have tasted in the past year. When I searched around on google, I was able to find this wine for less than $20, which makes it a real keeper. I'd like to pick up another bottle and taste it against some other Napa cabernets like the 2007 Franciscan, 2007 Chateau St. Jean, and 2007 JAQK Cellars. Seeing how a slightly-under-the-radar wine like this would do is the kind of thing that gets wine geeks all tingly. I give this wine a B and a BUY recommendation. Deliciously tasty juice at a very affordable price. I wish these guys much success down the road. Decant or open three hours before serving to let that alcohol blow off and then enjoy!

This wine was a media sample.

Beau Carufel