To say that life has been hectic would be an understatement, so while wine was enjoyed the real joy of writing about them had to be put on hold. Well, things are still hectic, but we now have enough time to sit down and write these up. Over the past month I have had the opportunity to taste some very experimental wine (not written about here), some really wonderful and standout wines that will be available soon, and some wines that are still not available, but was given the chance to enjoy it early on. Of course, we enjoyed some bottles that really impressed us, while others were just – ok.

So I hope these notes bring you some insight into what wines are coming soon, what wines are out there that are enjoyable, and which ones you should really start drinking up soon.

The wine notes follow below:

2009 Borgo Reale Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie – Score: B
The 2009 Borgo Reale Pinot Grigio is a nice simple white wine that is clearly a wine built for enjoyment with our without food. The nose on this straw-colored wine is striking with rich peach, intense lemon, apricot, grapefruit, light floral notes, green apple, lemon rind, and mineral. The mouth on this light to medium-bodied wine is nice and bright, with lemon, green apple, and peach. The mid palate is packed with bright acidity, lemon, something that can only be explained as vanilla, lemon rind, and floral notes. The finish is spicy and medium long with more rich lemon, apple, mineral, peach, and lemon rind. Green apple, lemon, floral notes, and mineral linger long.

2006 Covenant Cabernet Sauvignon Red C (Kosher) –  Score: A-
I must admit that the last time we had this bottle it was down right DOA, this one differs greatly, and it was a much appreciated surprise.

The nose on this purple to black colored wine is smoky and screams with tobacco, chocolate, tar, alcohol (to start), graphite, rich cedar, blackberry, ripe plum, raspberry, fig, mint, and herbs. The mouth on the medium to full-bodied wine is rich and layered with mouth coating integrated tannins, blackberry, plum, raspberry, fig, mint, and cedar. The mid palate follows the mouth with balanced acidity, chocolate, tobacco, tar, more cedar, and black pepper. The finish is super long and spicy with rich blackberry, plum, vanilla, herbs, chocolate, tar, tobacco, black pepper, and salty celery. The tar, tobacco, plum, black pepper, and salt rise on the finish and linger long.

N.V. Four Gates Pinot Noir Kosher – Score: B++ to A-
The nose on this dark ruby colored wine explodes with cloves, spice, dirt, celery, chicken cherry cola, raspberry, plum, herbs, coffee, and menthol. The mouth on this medium bodied wine is rich and layered nice chicken cherry cola, plum, and raspberry, along with heavy spice, and mouth coating tannin. The mid palate, like all four gates wine is balanced with bracing acidity, more dirt, nice tannin, crushed herbs, eucalyptus, and oak. The finish is long with chicken cherry cola, crushed herbs, dirt, celery, spice, raspberry, oak, coffee, and vanilla. Chicken Cherry Cola, crushed herbs, and vanilla rise on the finish.

2007 Alexander Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve – Score: A-
When you smell this wine the first thing that hits you is the ripe fruit, the lovely black nose, the crazy ripe blackberry, in your face cassis, plum, and insane rich and almost incense like oak. The nose on this black colored wine is screaming with rich and aromatic oak, super rich and ripe blackberry, cassis, vanilla, chocolate, tobacco, high alcohol, an almost oxidized nose from extra ripe fruit, plum, herbs, cloves, and mint.

When you taste this wine it reminds of the saying, “oh yeah’ you and what army”! This wine can take on all comers, including my slathered slab of barbecued rib eye steak, which was nicely seared. This wine handled it with ease and panache.

The mouth on this full-bodied and brooding wine is rich with oak, ripe blackberry, ripe cassis, plum, fig, herbs, and mint. It comes at you in layers, but still smooth and with a mouth feel that can only be described as sensual. The mid palate is balanced, but just, and would clearly not make Craig Winchell happy for its lack of bracing acid, along with black pepper, chocolate, and tobacco. The finish is long, spicy, and rich with sweet oak, chocolate, vanilla, tobacco, graphite, mint, herbs, and rich ripe blackberry and cassis. Vanilla, cassis, sweet oak, chocolate, and tobacco linger long after the wine is gone.

2004 Four Gates Chardonnay Kosher – Score: B++ to A-
This bottle is once again changing on me and moving in a more consistent direction, one that I have been sued to in the past from Four Gate Chardonnays. Instead of intense toasted oak, the wine showed characteristics very much in line with our tasting from 2008, except without the green flavors. The nose on this vibrant gold colored wine is filled with ripe fruit, peach, lemon, melon, guava, lychee, butterscotch, and oak. The mouth on this medium to full-bodied and very rich Chardonnay is powered by rich oak, guava, peach, melon, and citrus flavors. The mid palate is a still crisp with core acidity, slight sweetness, and nice rich (but not too toasty) oak. The finish is a long crisp and refreshing stroll with rich wood as a partner, along with butterscotch, and ripe melon. The wine is now a bit past its peak, drink up within the year!

2009 HaSod Cabernet Sauvignon – Score: B+ to B++
The nose on this vibrant dark garnet to black colored wine is hopping with loamy dirt, crushed herbs, cranberry, blackcurrant, and plum. The mouth on this medium to full-bodied wine is rich, dense, and spicy with nice mouth feel, black currant, cranberry, plum, dirt, and heavy tannin to start. The tannins clam down a bit and add to the mouth feel. The mid palate is balanced with acid, tannin, and more dirt. The finish is long and spicy with more dirt, crushed herbs, acid, cranberry, blackcurrant, and tannin that lingers. Overtime the tannins calm and dark chocolate, black cherry, and earth mingle nicely and give way to a rich round mouth.