2020 Luke Wines Cabernet Sauvignon, USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Wahluke Slope, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2020
Score: 
90
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$25.00USD

This is 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot, 5% Malbec and 2% Petite Verdot from Washington state.  Deep garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, char and slight dark chocolate.  Full bodied.  Silky tannins.  On the palate, black cherries, cassis, slight chocolate and a bit of spice.  Some minty and bitter cherry notes on the finish.  There is some depth here and it may improve a bit with short term cellaring.  It is nice on its own, but seemed better with food.  Of course, a burger would do, but it worked great with Felafel.  Drink over the next five to eight years.  

2020 Luke Wines The Companion Red Blend, USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2020
Score: 
91
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$25.00USD

This is a blend of  54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 14% Syrah, 3% Petite Verdot, 1% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Malbec from Washington State.  Deep garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is nice; dusty with black raspberries, plums, spice, slight black cherries and a hint of vanilla.  Soft texture with medium tannins.  On the palate, black raspberries, cassis with underlying spice and slight char.  Long finish.  This is an easy drinking red that has some backbone and depth.  Drink over the next five to seven years.  Very nice on its own, this will work great with a brisket out

2022 Luke Wines Sauvignon Blanc, USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Wahluke Slope, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2022
Score: 
90
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$20.00USD

From Washington state, this comes in at 13.2%abv.  Green/gold in color, clear and bright.  The nose is nice with lemon/lime, minerality and a touch of grassiness.  Medium bodied with a nice, slightly oily texture.  Good acidity.  On the palate, limes with a slight gooseberry note and underlying minerality.  Long finish.  Overall, a very nice Sauvignon Blanc for a very fair price.  This is lovely on its own and will work nicely with lighter foods.  A great choice with a fruit salad for lunch.  

NV Villa Sandi Il Fresco Rosé, Italy, Wine Review

Score: 
89
Grade: 
B+
Current Price: 
$17.00USD

 This is labelled Spumante on the back label but otherwise there is no indication of where it is from.  The wine is a blend of 90% Glera and 10% Pinot Nero.  11.5%abv.  Pale salmon pink in color with lots of larger bubbles.  The nose is nice with cherries and strawberries.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, this is dry with pleasant cherry fruit.  A bit of bitter cherries on the finish.  It drinks well on its own, and should be very food friendly as well.  It should go well with pork.  Drink now.  

Cuvaison 2021 Estate Pinot Noir

Vintage: 
2021
Score: 
91
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$42.00USD

This estate Pinot is a lively compilation of black cherry, strawberry, plum, blackberry compote, with back notes of rhubarb, huckleberry and black tea. The acidity drives the fruit. This is not a shy Pinot, but an overt celebration of expressive fruit. The wine spent 10 months aging in French oak, 33% of which was new, therefore the fruit is more dominant. Using a variety of Pinot Noir clones, winemaker Steve Rogstad, has decades of experience working with his vineyards, and knowing how best to use the excellent fruit that grows on their property. ORIGIN: Napa Valley, Los Carneros.

MacRostie 2021 Nightwing Chardonnay

Vintage: 
2021
Score: 
95
Grade: 
A+
Current Price: 
$52.00USD

MacRostie has long preferred high elevation vineyards where the vines are totally exposed. In this case, Nightwing vineyard sits at 1,200 feet, open to long sunny days and cool ocean breezes. This Chardonnay is in the vein of classic California Chardonnays - a wine that straddles all the elements of excellent fruit, malo-lactic, oak aging, stainless steel fermentation, and proper acidity. All these things come together seamlessly, which allows this to be an ideal expression of how good Chardonnay can be.

2021 Crooked Tree Vineyard Island Blossom White Sweet Traminette, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2021
Score: 
82
Grade: 
B-

The Traminette grape is a hybrid grape with ties to Gewurztraminer.  Pale golden with some green hues, clear and bright.  The nose has some lemon-lime notes.  Light bodied.  On the palate, this is sweet.  Some acidity to help cut it.  Moderate finish.  This is easy drinking and nice to sit outside on a warm late summer afternoon.  It would work well with fried foods.  Drink now.  

2021 Crooked Tree Vineyard Whitecaps Dry Tramintette, USA, Lake Erie, Kellys Island, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2021
Score: 
86
Grade: 
B

The Traminette is a hybrid grape with some resemblance (by design) to Gewurztraminer.  Very pale gold in color, clear and bright.  The nose is clean with slight lemon-lime.  Light to medium bodied.  12% abv.  On the palate, this is refreshing.  Easy drinking.  Light lemon-lime notes.  Good finish.  Nice balance.  A nice afternoon at the winery kind of wine.  Drink now.  This is very food friendly with lighter foods.  It would go well with fried chicken.  

2022 Crooked Tree Vineyard Wind Chime semi-dry Chardonnay, USA, Kelly's Island Ohio, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2022
Score: 
85
Grade: 
B
Current Price: 
$28.00USD

The label lists this as 12% abv.  Silvery/green/gold in color, clear and bright.  The nose is clean with some lemony notes.  Light bodied.  On the palate, the label calls this  semi-dry but there isn't really a lot of sweetness going on.  It is refreshing with some lemon-lime qualities.  Easy to drink.  This is food friendly and would work well with fried foods or popcorn.  A fun wine for sitting outside at a winery listening to live music.  Drink now.  

2022 Crooked Tree Vineyard Cabernet Franc, USA, Ohio, Kelly's Island, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2022
Score: 
87
Grade: 
B+

Kelly's Island is part of a group of islands in the south western section of Lake Erie just off the Ohio coast.  Back in the mid-1800's this was one of the leading wine areas of the country.  Now it is kind of a summer resort escape area.  It is always difficult to make reds in Ohio due to late and early frosts and lots of thunderstorms and hail and very hot temperatures.  Yields were apparently way down in 2022, but luckily a friend lives right next to the winery and was able to snag a bottle for us.  This wine seems to be somewhere between a very serious rosé and a lighter red wine.  11.5

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