Like, Oh Mah Gawd, we're drinking wine!

 

About a week ago, I attended a premium tasting at my happy place with Huneeus Vintners.

Now, I didn't know anything about Huneeus or Quintessa or even Faust.

It was all.... wait for it....

 

GREEK

to me!

 

(The owners of my happy place are Greek. ha! Ok, so I won't quit my day job.)

 

The names that were familiar to me were The Prisoner, Blindfold and Saldo (which to our dismay was not available this evening). THOSE are the wines that made me run around crazy at work all day like a chicken with its head cut off so I wouldn't have to miss this event.

 

The "Valleygirl-esque" representative for the night was pleasant enough but definitely lacking her pom poms to go with her white lace dress. White lace dress? Did I just say that? Yep, she was wearing a white lace dress. Oh and no one is genuinely THAT happy either. They just can't be.

She was rather knowledgable though and that was impressive, or helpful at least.

 

Agustin Huneeus, born in Santiago, Chile, is one of the few vintners who has dedicated his entire professional life to wine.  Over 50 years, he has produced wine in more than 15 countries.  He is recognized as a driving force in how fine wine is produced, recognized, sold and marketed in the U.S.

The philosophy that great vineyards make great wine is his guiding principle.

 

I did not come to the realization until after this event, that Huneeus could be referred to as somewhat of a wine monopolizer. 

(He owned Concannon at one point, sold it, owned two others (I forget which ones) and then the one that was most interesting to me was Franciscan Estate. Funny thing is I'd take Franciscan Cab or Magnificat over any of his pride and joy Quintessa wines.)

Webster's dictionary's definition of monopoly: complete control of the entire supply of a good in a certain area or market; complete ownership or control of something. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not mad at him. Just wish I was a descendant or something.

 

Ms. Valley Girl also told us that the 81 year old makes the DosEquis dude seem boring! Hmmmm.....

 

 

 2013 Quintessa Illumination Sauvignon Blanc

 

 

If anyone knows me or has paid attention to any of my blog posts, you won't be surprised when I say that this Sauvignon Blanc smelled like GRAPEFRUIT. Again, the main reason why I do not like Sav Blanc - I HATE grapefruit. Sav Blancs always smell and taste like I bit into a grapefruit.

Why would I want to drink something that smells and tastes like something I don't like to eat?

 

Illumination shocked me though because while it smelled like grapefruit, it didn't taste nearly as bad as most Sauvignon Blancs. Perhaps it is because it also has Semillion and Sauvignon Musque grapes blended in which added a bit of honey flavor to temper the typical tanginess. However, it was still rather boring to me and looked like foggy water in a wine glass. This wine, from Napa/Sonoma is priced at $50 and Agustin's flagship wine.

 

 

 

One thing interesting about Illumination, though is that the winemaker pioneered the return of concrete egg fermentation to Napa Valley.  In 2003, this winemaker was the first to use concrete eggs in this area.  Concrete egg fermentation tanks add richness in the mouth similar to barrel fermentation, but without any oak components. The wine retains fresh aromas and clarity of fruit expression in concrete, and develops a broad mouth feel and complexity on the palate.

 

 Imagine the look on my face when Valley Girl said the words "concrete egg". I wasn't sure whether to believe her or not.

 

2012 Flowers Chardonnay

 

 

In 1989, after many trips to Napa and Sonoma, a husband/wife pair of nursery owners from Pennsylvania - yes - a flower shop for lack of a better word - purchased 321 acres, including a ridge top high above the Pacific Ocean on the northern Sonoma Coast.  Did I also mention that these nursery owners also had the last name of Flowers?  Ok, I'm not making this up.
 They had a long-time dream of combining their passion for agriculture with wine and today they produce Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from two estate properties in the coolest regions of the Sonoma Coast.

 

Valley Girl told us that the Flowers couple does biodynamic farming, is less than two miles from the ocean and she refers to it as VooDoo Farming. Ok, totally rad dude.

 

Ms. Valley Girl then proceeds to state that she is not a "Chardonnay girl" but loves this wine. One of the best quotes of the night though is when Connor (one of my absolutely favorite guys on staff at Winestyles) nonchalantly, under his breath, as he's pouring wine at our table exclaims,
"I'm not a Chardonnay girl either" as if it was the most natural thing for him to say.

Now I love a good Cali Chardonnay, no doubt. In fact a good Chard is one of my favorite wines ever but this did not taste anything like a Chardonnay to me. In fact, others must have thought the same thing because non-Chardonnay fans were loving this wine. Well, of course they were because it is simply a Pinot Grigio masquerading as a Chardonnay!

 

"Shame on you, Flowers!"


2012 Blindfold White Blend

Label look familiar? It should because I blogged about this back in March.
 Interestingly enough, this time I wasn't as fond of it as I was the first time I ever tried it. It had a sort of salty taste. The Valley Girl told us we should taste an intense baking spice because of the French and Hungarian oak barrels, but I didn't get that so much. I really wish this wine was creamier.  It has a tartness at the end and a distinct (and not necessarily pleasant) taste that the Evil Red Genius and I just couldn't place.
 Perhaps if the Prisoner Wine Company focused on making this wine better instead of trying to replicate Orin Swift labels it would benefit them. (oops, did I say that out loud?)

 

 

 

 

 2012 Flowers Pinot Noir

 

The other varietal that Flowers produces is a Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. It is not as overwhelmingly cherry as most Cali Pinots but it still doesn't compare to the smooth, earthy Oregon pinots that I favor.  My first reaction to this was that it tasted like a "flat" soda; like someone had shaken up a soda and then let it go flat.

Oh well! Next......

 

 

 

2012 Prisoner Red Blend

 

Right as the Valley Girl was beginning to speak of The Prisoner, I shook our bistro table just a tad making the wine glasses on the table clink. The Prisoner is the reason the Evil Red Genius and I were looking forward to this event. Bring it on!

 In 2009, The Prisoner Wine Company took ownership of this wine (and Saldo) from Orin Swift. Knowing how important of a team they needed to continue this wine that was known as "one of a kind" since 2003, Jen Beloz became the ideal person to take the lead with a decade more of winemaking experience and crafting Zinfandel at Ravenswood. Jen wanted to stay true to The Prisoner's original style and vision so she worked alongside Dave Phinney, the founder of The Prisoner, for its first two vintages.

 

The Prisoner is a blend of Zinfandel (46%), Cab (22%), Syrah, Petit Syrah and Grenache. It's smell entices you upon first sniff with coffee notes and dark berries followed by an absolutely ravashing flavor of wild berries for a smooth and luscious finish. I have been fond of The Prisoner for many years, naturally because it used to be an Orin Swift wine......I still have three bottles of the Orin Swift vintage at home and I am super excited about it!

 

By the time we got to The Prisoner, I asked the Evil Red Genius what she smelled and tasted - my usual game when it comes to tasting wine. She responded, "After the Pina Colada, I was done!"

She was frustrated with Blindfold, can you tell? ha!

 

 

 

Now, things were starting to get good. I had my Prisoner, the Evil Red Genius liked it and it could only get better from here, right? Well, if Valley Girl would "hold her horses" as my mother would say and slow down just a moment. Let's not rush through the best wines; let's savor them. I would have taken more pictures but I was being rushed again. What is wrong with these people!? 

 

As you can see from below, I still had The Prisoner in one glass when the next wine was poured!

So, what did we decide to do? Take our time. The Velvet Devil does not like to be rushed!

 

 

 

 

Here's what we had left to try:

 

 

 

 

2011 Faust Cabernet Sauvignon

 

 

Agustin Huneeus created Faust Cab which holds his desire to produce a wine that emodies the most seductive characteristics of a Napa Cab. The Faust vineyard is located in Coombsville, Napa Valley's newest appellation located in the eastern foothills south of Atlas Peak, and consists of 110 acres of mature Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot vines.  It is distinguished from other parts of the Napa Valley by its slightly cooler climate and soil conditions. Coombsville’s climate allows for even ripening, retained acidity, excellent structure and results in layered complexity with rich, ripe fruit, earth and mineral flavors.

 

What is cool is the story of Faust which, evidently, everyone in the room knew but me.

Its inspiration comes from German poet, Goethe's, most famous work. The aging scholar, Dr. Faust, sells his soul to the Devil for eternal youth. He gets his chance but ultimately his soul is saved by love.

 

Agstin Huneeus' passion for fruit was supposedly renewed with Faust. The underlying premise for all of the wines he has ever produced has been that great wines must be a reflection of a great vineyard. But Faust is, instead, his tribute to Napa Valley’s noblest grape – Cabernet Sauvignon.

The Valley Girl called Faust the "little black dress" of Napa Cabs. It smelled like dirty feet and manure. Yep, THAT made me happy; however, it smelled better than it tasted in my opinion. It was good and easily drinkable but it's not the best Cab I've ever had. When asking if it would "get better" if I laid it down, I was told probably no more than two or three years. At almost $70, it's not worth it to me. Hey, Agustin! Go back to that old winery you used to own - Franciscan. Yeah, that one. THAT is a good cab at half the price! Glad I got that out of my system....

 

 

2010 Quintessa Red Blend

When introducing our last wine, the Valley Girl emphatically expressed,

"Now THIS is the reason you all came!" 

The Evil Red Genius and I looked at each other with perplexed looks and said, "It is?"

 

(If only someone had taken a picture of our faces! Classic, I'm sure)

 

Faust and this Red Blend are both crafted at the Quintessa winery in Rutherford, CA, a state-of-the-art winery with the most modern technologies.

 

In 1989, Agustin and his wife, Valeria, found the property that would become Quintessa,  One of the last great undeveloped properties in Napa - 280 acres of what they believed were the characterisics of a great wine estate - a valley, a lake, a river, five hills, four microclimates, and numerous different soil types. This was prime land in Napa Valley and "everyone" wanted to purchase it. It seemed as if everytime someone would get close to buying it, sabotage would occur.

 

That is, until Valeria, also known as "the earth momma" got involved.  The story goes that Valeria shared her vision with the owners of the property and she won their trust and their property in 1990.

She truly believed it was destiny that this property became hers after so many people had tried to acquire it and to no avail.

At this point in the evening, my table roared with subtle comments and giggles.

Most humorous of all was my friend with the New England accent stating,

"Suuuuure that's alllllll she did! Earth Momma got DOWN!" 

 

 

This wine is a blend of Cab, Merlot, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot and Carmenere with 20 months in 100% French Oak.  With warm spice aromas and cola, this wine has nutmeg, floral and dark fruit flavors.

Quintessa was definitely the smoothest of the wines and while it was decent, I definitely would express that this is NOT the reason we came.
 

 I'd still take The Prisoner (and at least 3 other Orin Swift wines) over this red blend. But again, that's why we all have so many different tastes and there are so many different wines out there. There's something for everyone!

 

 

“Accept what life offers you and try to drink from every cup.

All wines should be tasted; some should only be sipped, but with others, drink the whole bottle.”

― Paulo Coelho