Winery - Rancho Arroyo Grande
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This is a very fruity wine that’s enormously rich in tropical papaya and nectarine flavors. With a smoky, slightly caramelly edge, it finishes in a tremendous fireworks of oriental spices.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Grown in the warmest part of the appellation, this Chard is soft and without the acidity you find closer to the ocean. But it’s a very tasty wine brimming with tropical fruit, honeysuckle, buttered toast and vanilla flavors.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Soft, full-bodied and stuffed with baked blackberry, cherry, raspberry and chocolate flavors, this big, rather hot wine has a bit of superripe sweetness in the finish. Yet it pulls it all off with aplomb and manages to stay balanced.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
You’ll find strong flavors of grilled blackberries and black cherries, tobacco, unsweetened baker’s chocolate and black pepper in this dry, tannic wine. Made from Syrah, Mourvèdre and Counoise, it’s rustic and high in alcohol. Makes you think of beef tacos.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Grown well inland, in a hot, arid part of the county, this Zin got superripe in the ’07 vintage. It bursts with deep, rich flavors of blackberry pie filling, dark chocolate, anise and black pepper. The alcohol is extraordinarily high, approaching 16%, but there’s really very little heat.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Hard to tell if the dry farming had anything to do with the success of this wine, but it’s one of the better Mourvèdres in California. Dry and softly tannic, it offers comforting and complex flavors of berries, cherries, cocoa, pepper and cedar, with exotic notes of roasted coconut, tamari-sautéed wild mushrooms and balsamic. Drink now.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
What’s so nice about this wine is its balance. All the parts come together, but it is also a big bruiser of a Syrah. Opens with a blast of white pepper, blackberries, coffee and sweet charred oak, then turns richly fruity in the mouth. But that fruit is accompanied by wonderfully thick tannins and bright acidity.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
How dark this wine is, and how youthful in brash tannins and acids. In fact, tannins dominate from entry to firm, tough finish. Way down deep is blackberry that may emerge with age. The winemaker added a small amount of Viognier to add brightness and fruit.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This Rhône-style blend is very dark and dense in flavor and texture, and not offering a whole lot of taste in its youth. Tannins and acids dominate, making for a firm, unyielding mouthfeel. Seems crafted for aging, although with no history, it’s a gamble. A blend of Syrah, Mourvèdre, Grenache and Counoise.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Likable for its delicate mouthfeel, dryness and complex flavors, this blush wine shows raspberries and vanilla with nuances of apricot skin, thyme, cream-thinned mocha and sweet pie crust. Easy to drink, and elegant, too.
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