by Tom Hill

A self-admitted wine geek, Tom lives in Northern New Mexico and works as a computational physicist at Los Alamos National Laboratory doing numerical neutron transport & large scale code development. He has been tasting wines since 1971, participates locally with a couple of large tasting groups in his area, and is practically a fixture at most California wine festivals, such as the Hospice du Rhône, Rhône Rangers, and ZAP. Other interests: Tom is heavily into competitive sport fencing (foil & epee), biking, cooking, basketball, skiing, backpacking, mountain climbing.

 

California, French and Australian Rhones
Tasted last night a few Calif/Fr/Oz Rhones:
Steele Sonoma Valley Syrah Parmlee-Hill Vnyd (13%) '96: Med.dark color; slight meaty/gamey/Syrah fairly pencilly/Fr.oaked rather elegant nose; tart rather pencilly/oaked bit meaty/gamey/Syrah light fruit flavor; tart lean pencilly/ oaked light meaty/gamey finish w/ light tannins; like most Steele wines, this speaks more of Jed Steele winemaking than varietal character; a rather Pinot- style Syrah; pleasant but just that; not worth $24.50.
Zaca Mesa Santa Barbara County Syrah Silver Selection (13.2%) '96: Med.dark color; light blackberry/Syrah perfumed talc bit chocolaty/licorice some oaked/fragrant nose; soft perfumed talc/oaked/pencilly light blackberry/Syrah bit thin flavor; med.short light spicy/minty/pencilly/oaked light blackberry finish w/ some tannins; a bit on the light side & more like SB Pinot than Syrah.
Lane Tanner San Luis ObispoCnty Syrah (13.8%) '97: Very dark color; rather toasty/ Burgundian/oaked some funky/Rhonish-like light Syrah/gamey nose; very tart/lean spicy/funky/Rhonish some toasty/charred/oak very spicy/strawberry flavor; long bit funky/Rhonish toasty/oaked spicy/strawberry/cherry finish w/ light tannins; lots of PasoRobles Syrah character, reminds me of the early EstrellaRiver Syrahs Gary Eberle made; tastes like a Syrah made by a Pinot producer; rather atypical Syrah but a very interesting wine w/ lots of Rhone character.
Ojai Vineyard Calif Syrah (14.5%) '97: Very dark color; intense licorice/pungent/ smokey/oaked some meaty/gamey/Syrah/blackberry nose; soft spicy/gamey/Syrah/ blackberry bit floral/strawberry light pungent/toasty flavor; med.long spicy/ strawberry/blackberry/Syrah/gamey finish w/ light tannins; not quite as big & rich as the '95/'96 version & seems to have more PasoRobles Syrah character; still a good value at $18.00
Tim Adams Clare Valley Shiraz (13.5%) '96: Dark color; rather minty/menthol/eucalyptus intense blackberry/cassis/liquer dusty/peppery nose; soft very lush intense blackberry/cassis/Syrah some eucalyptus/oaked flavor; long soft very strong cassis/liquer/Syrah/blackberry/peppery dusty eucalyptus/oaked finish w/ light tannins; not overwhelmed w/ oak; lots of intenses cassis character; good value at $20.50.
Jim Barry McCrae Wood Clare Valley Shiraz (13.5%) '95: Very dark color; very strong vanilla/Am.oaked dusty/licorice/chocolaty/blackberry/Syrah nose; soft rather smokey/vanilla/Am.oaked ripe blackberry/Syrah/dusty flavor; long some licorice/ pungent/smokey/vanilla/Am.oaked dusty/blackberry/Syrah finish w/ fair tannins; needs 2-5 yrs; good balance of oak w/ lots of pungent/blackberry Syrah.
Domaine de Gachon St.Joseph (12.5%) '95: Dark color; lovely spicy/earthy/complex slight roasted/smokey nose; soft bit metallic/tight spicy/earthy/dusty light roasted/bacon fat bit volatile flavor; tight bit lean/volatile rather spicy/ dusty lighht roasted/Rhone finish w/ some tannins; a great drinking bit lean Rhone w/ nice roasted character.
Andrew Murray Esperance (45% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 25% Mourvedre; 13.5%) '97: Very dark color; beautiful toasty/pungent/tobaccoy/oaked/vanilla very fragrant perfumed/strawberry/Grenache complex nose; rich very intense strawberry/Grenache/ blackberry/loads of fruit strong vanilla/oaked/pungent/smokey very lush flavor; very rich long strawberry/blackberry/gamey some minty/vanilla/oaked/toasty/ pungent finish w/ some tannins; needs several yrs; loads of intense fruit w/ good balance of oak; rather Aussie in style; killer red at a great price of $18.00.
Dalwhinnie Victoria Shiraz (14.0%) '95: Very dark color; some menthol/oaked/ eucalyptus aromatic/perfumed/spicy/perfumed talc light blackberry/Syrah nose; tart/lean some tannic/earthy light blackberry/Syrah/earthy some menthol/oaked flavor; med.long tart/lean/earthy light Syrah/blackberry bit menthol/oaked finish w/ some tannins; pretty interesting nose but a bit muddled & unfocused on the palate; very overpriced at $40.00
Chateau de Fonsalette Cotes du Rhone Syrah (14%) '96: Very dark color; very strong dusty/earthy/rather walnutty almost green/herbal/vegetal light blackberry/ Syrah nose; tart lean bit thin very hard/dusty/earthy/ bit herbal/walnutty low fruit flavor; long hard/lean/tannic underripe/walnutty some roasted/Syrah/ blackberry finish; a pretty tannic/extracted wine but not much fruit there; needs age but a big gamble; blows away the wussy Rayas '96 and a rather good $20 Rhone, but way overpriced at $47.50.
Michel Ogier Cote-Rotie (12%) '95: Dark color; lovely/beautiful calssic/roasted/ espresso/smokey/C-R complex/fragrant nose; elegant/lovely/complex/roasted/coffee/ espresso/smokey very spicy some blackberry flavor; very long/lingering complex classic roasted/smokey/espresso light gamey/Syrah/blackberry finish w/ some tannins; needs some age; beautiful/classic Cote-Rotie; fairly priced at $40.00.
M. Sorrel Hermitage LeGreal (12.8%) '96: Med.color; strong H2S/reduced/metallic/ creasote/tarry/diesel fuel pretty stinky little fruit nose; tart/metallic/lean/ creasote/dirty diaper pail/fecal/earthy no fruit flavor; unattractive metallic/ dirty diaper pail/stinky finish w/ some tannins; dreadful wine at $47.00. The next day the nosed had cleared up to rather classic/smokey/light raosted Northern Rhone nose. Clearly needs age but not sure it's worth the gamble.
H. Sorrel Hermitage LeGreal '88: Med.color; rather dusty/earthy/aged Rhone/low fruit cocoa/fragrant/walnutty complex nose; bit dried out lovely/complex/cocoa/ dusty/earthy/some roasted/espresso low fruit flavor; long delicate/aged Rhone fragrant/cocoa/light roasted complex finish w/ little tannins; a bit beyond its peak but a lovely/complex/fully mature Rhone.
Sine Qua Non Calif RedWine "Against the Wall" (Syrah/Grenache; 14.5%) '96: Black color; very intense smokey/pungent/toasty/charred oak intense blackberry/gamey/ meaty some strawberry complex nose; very intense toasty/charred/pungent/oaked/ tarry/smokey/coffee/toasted coconut intense gamey/blackberry/Syrah/strawberry complex flavor; very long extracted intense coffee/toasted coconut/pungent/ charred/oaked very strong strawberry/Grenache/blackberry/Syrah/gamey/meaty w/ fair tannins; needs 3-8 yrs; killer killer wine.
Jean-Michel Alquier Nos Derniers Raisins d'Automne WhiteTableWine (Late Harvest Viognier; 14%) '95: Med.dark gold color; slight volatile very intense grapey/ honeyed/peachy slight tobaccoy/oaked very complex/honeyed/fragrant nose; very intense honeysuckle/peachy/honeyed/graham cracker light smokey complex flavor; incredibly long honeyed/honeysuckle/peachy very lush light tobaccoy/oak very complex finish; stunning wine at a great price. $27.50/500ml
Andrew Murray Santa Barbara County Syrah Late Hrvst (13.5%; RS:10%) '97: Black color; some volatile very intense blackberry/cassis/overripe/liquer-like nose; very sweet/overripe very intense blackberry/boysenberry/cassis slightly hot flavor; very long very intense blackberry/cassis/boysenberry/cola finish w/ some tannins under there; a terrific intense dessert red very much like the Ridge PasoRobles/ Dusi Ranch Essence '93. Good price at $16.00/hlf.

And the usual less-than-profound pronouncements from the bloody pulpit:
Andrew Murray: His new Esperance is terrific red wine, rather in the Aussie style; killer stuff. His '97 Grenache was world-class, nearly as good as the Alban Grenache; making those two head & shoulders above any others in Calif. I've heard nothing but good reports on Andrew's '97 Syrahs; 2 of which were released yesterday. I've followed Andrew's wines from the very start (heard that refrain before??). I first met him at the '96 WineCask futures tasting. His pouring table was right next to the AuBonClimat table. There was this mob (for a WC Futures tasting, anyway) around that table milling about. And then there was this tall, lanky kid (they're ALL getting to be "kids" anymore, it seems!) in a baseball hat standing there all alone; his first showing of his wine ('94 Syrah) to the public. Since I didn't recognize the name, I made a bee-line for that table to find about him and his wine. Tasted that Syrah & was immediately impressed; black color; loads of intense blackberry/cassis fruit; bit stinky/reduced nose; huge mouthfilling flavor with fierce tannins, one of the most tannic Calif wines I've had. As I visited w/ Andrew; I was quite struck by his passion for Rhone-style wines, his intelligence, and his vision for making world-class Rhones there in Santa Barbara, and his quiet, low-key demeanor. Took an instant liking to the guy and his wine. His wines have been very consistent in style; the reds pretty big extracted & tannic. I figured that once he got the tannin management down, w/o making the wines light or eviscerated; he would become among the top tier of the Calif/ Rhone producers. Based on this '97 Esperance and his '97 Grenache, I would say Andrew Murray has achieved that status. Keep your eye on this guy and his wines.
Ogier: I've always loved the Cote-Roties from this producer. They're not particularly big/extracted C-Rs but more on the elegant/racy side of the spectrum. This terrific '95 is one of the best of his I've had. Worth tracking down.
The '88 Sorrel Hermitage was Howard & Rhoda's mystery wine. Howard didn't know I was having the '96, so it was an incredible coincidence they brought it.
SineQuaNon: Another stunning wine from manfred & elaine krankl. Though it's loaded w/ charred/toasty/oak, it has all the fruit you need to balance out the oak. Tasting it was much like Ridge Geyserville or MonteBello Cab.... I'd keep going back to it and finding different things... truly a complex young red wine that'll be fun to watch evolve. One of the best Rhone reds from Calif of this vintage, if not the best.
Alquier LateHrvst Viognier: An incredible dessert wine; some like the Cuvee Madame, only better. The group had a big discussion (that eventually devolved into fisticuffs between Howard and I, but the issue was settled when I pulled out my epee) on this wine as to if botrytis was involved or not. Because of it's cleanliness & lack of browning & raisining & lack of volatility and because of the growing area (somewhere in Southern France, I presume); I thought no botrytis was involved. Because of its peachy/honeyed character; many thought there was botrytis present. In fact, I suspect it could even be an icebox ice wine. But, whatever; amazing dessert wine.