2007 Renteria Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

2007 Renteria Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
Varietal:  Cabernet
Cost per bottle: $23+


"This Cabernet is a blend of grapes from two very different Napa Valley vineyards that complement each other well. The Steltzner Vineyard in Stags Leap produces a very pretty, elegant wine with dark fruit aromas, soft, velvety tannins, and an abundance of acidity. The Shooting Star Vineyard in Pope Valley produces a much firmer wine with big, bold tannins and raspberry, herbal aromatics. The resulting wines have a rich depth of aromas, both from the fruit and barrel aging, and a full but soft palate with concentrated flavors."

This one was a disappointment.  I usually like Cabernet Sauvignon, but not this one.  It's too sharp in smell and taste.  That must be what they meant by 'an abundance of acidity'.  It is too acidic to be able to taste any fruity notes, and it leaves your tongue dry after you swallow.  There is nothing soft or velvety about it.

2008 Locati Cellars Columbia Valley Barbera

2008 Locati Cellars Columbia Valley Barbera
Varietal:  Barbera
Cost per bottle: $26


"This Barbera, a variety originating in northwest Italy's Piedmont region, finds a beautiful expression in the Lonesome Springs Vineyard. Jumping from the glass are bright aromatics of huckleberries, allspice and lemon rind. Bridging the best of the old and new worlds, the palate combines an earthy character and lively acidity with ripe red cherries and raspberries. "

This wine is so smooth!  It rolls into your mouth and leaves no trace when swallowed.  It looks and smells like red berries while having a grown-up wine flavor.  I think this is the first time I've had Barbera, and now I wonder where it has been all my life.

This one is meant to be sipped and savored.  Probably great for sharing too, but I'm not sure that I like any of you enough to give up a glass. My precccioussss! I feel sad that the wine sample bottle is so tiny.

Shirt.Woot is awesome

I ordered this shirt a little over a week ago.  It is called Mort-Vivant (Living Dead).  It is in the style of Alphonse Mucha's work.

It arrived today and I thought they had sent me a Mens size shirt.  They didn't.

It turns out that the sizing had changed and I didn't notice.  Woot's Womens shirts had been a straight-down cut in Juniors-like sizing, so I had been ordering an WXL which was still pretty snug over my chest.  The new shirts are supposed to have room for a little curve in the bust and hips.

To be honest, I don't usually read the shirt descriptions. They always make up a little story to go with the design and I don't care enough to read them.  Because of my tl;dr attitude, I missed the bright gold box at the bottom announcing the size/style changes.  In the new style of shirt, I needed a Medium.

Woot does not do returns/exchanges, but they are taking pity on me and sending the size I really need even though it was my own fault for not reading the description.

They don't want me to return the shirt I already received, so I need to find a new home for it.


Womens XL - Chest 23" (46" around) - Length 28".  It is 100% cotton and likely to shrink a little.

Mort-vivant

Lava Cap '07 Reserve El Dorado Merlot

Lava Cap '07 Reserve El Dorado Merlot
Varietal:  92% Merlot, 8% Sangiovese
Cost per bottle: $20


"The grapes for Lava Cap’s '07 "Reserve" Merlot were grown exclusively in their estate vineyard and hand-harvested. Cold soaked for 72 hours, the juice was then inoculated with specially selected cultured yeast strains. The wine was aged for 15 months in small French Oak barrels. Final blending included 8% Sangiovese for a sleek, velvety, full-bodied finish. This elegant, well-structured wine has clean notes of ripe cherry, anise, green apple and chocolate balanced with juicy tannins."

Interesting color - it looks like blood that has been out just long enough to begin oxidizing.  It even gives the illusion of plasma separation when you tilt the glass.  I'm not saying that as a negative.

It is tart, but not sour or bitter.  I'm not fond of anise or green apple, so this Merlot wouldn't be my very first choice but I wouldn't turn it down either.  It is a good one for those that do like those flavors.  The finish is very smooth, no aftertaste.

Peterson Winery bust, Tasting Room steps up

Something is clearly wrong with the whole case of samples from Peterson Winery.  Each one has been terrible.  The Sauvignon Blanc tasted like watery bitter beer, the Zinfandel had an 'old' flavor.  Not liked aged wine, but like moldy socks.  It is possible that the case was subjected to very high or low temperatures.  Maybe there was a problem with the bottling process that day.

It isn't even worth continuing to review them, because you can't accurately review a damaged product.

I contacted Tasting Room to let them know, in case other people were having similar issues with this batch.  They've offered to send out a new set of samples from a different source as a replacement.  I did not ask for a replacement, so this is extra nice of them.  They are sending this one: A Taste Adventure-Red Essentials