Silver Oak open house 2009/02/07

2004 Silver Oak, Napa Valley. $100. ****½

blackberry, red currant, sometimes tannic, sage, american oak, playing cards, bottle variance is very wide, from lean to full, soft to astringent, sometimes really good - so - ws

1999 Silver Oak, Napa Valley. $100. *****

raspberry jam, cocoa, chocolate, integrated, aroma is jammy but flavor is very well balanced, long finish - so - ws

2005 Twomey Merlot, Napa Valley. $50. ****

licorise, fennel seed, chinese herbs, plum, tannic, earth - so - ws

2006 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay, Napa Valley. $42. *****

little hint of butter, mineral, lime, fine herbs, acidic, nice oak, long finish - so - ws

2005 Chateau Montelena Estate Zinfandel, Napa Valley. $30. ****½

pomegranate, fig, lively but very concentrated, a hint of tca, long finish, very different from warm weather zin - so - ws

2005 Chateau Montelena Cabernet, Napa Valley. $45. ***½

cedar, blackcurrant, green pepper, hint of berry jam, simple but pleasant, Bordeaux like - so - ws

2004 Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley. $125. ****

paint, cedar, acidic, tight, licorice, astringent, raspberry, bitter, velvety, long finish. Great wine but masked with paint aroma. I have no doubt James Laube is right: systematic tca taint in the winery (source WS James Laube blog November 2004, "Recently, I found noticeable off flavors in two new Cabernet Sauvignons from Chateau Montelena: the Napa Valley and the estate bottlings. After independent laboratory tests confirmed the presence of TCA in these wines, I felt I couldn't recommend them to Wine Spectator readers.") - so - ws

2005 Duckhorn Estate Merlot, Napa Valley. $85. ***½

Ka Shun See soap, blackcherry, soft - so - ws

2005 Duckhorn Estate Cabernet, Napa Valley. $95. ****½

sage, plum, chocolate, powerful, integrated, everything is now $90, $100, etc... - so - ws

2005 Duckhorn Patzimaro Vineyard Cabernet, Napa Valley. $95. ****

cedar, bacon, mint, chocolate, soft, med finish, black currant, violet - so - ws

2005 Duckhorn Three Palms Vineyard Merlot, Napa Valley. $85. ****½

chalky, plum, vanilla, choclate, coffee, cinnamon - so - ws

2004 Duckhorn Howell Mountain Red, Napa Valley. $75. *****

mostly merlot, grilled potato, balanced, tannic, sage, cedar, black currant, tight and lean but long finish, good representation of Howell Mountain appellation. - so - ws

2005 Duckhorn Estate Cabernet Franc, Napa Valley. $50. ****

floral, sandalwood, dried plum, milk chocolate, interesting - so - ws

2006 Migration Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $30. ***½

raspberry jam, strong, one dimension - so - ws

2007 Duckhorn Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley. $27. ***

Obama's Inaugural Luncheon wine. Not sure how they got this honor? There are so many good value wineries around, Duckhorn/Golden Eye is not one. Melon, honeydew, sweet, floral, parsley, hollow - so - ws

2003 Freemark Abbey Bootleg Cabernet, Napa Valley. $45. ****

cherry, plum, eucalyptus, chocolate, cassis, mint - so - ws

2003 Freemark Abbey Sycamore Cabernet, Napa Valley. $55. *****

Medoc earth, rosemary, blackcherry, raspberry, lavender, very long finish - so - ws

2004 Freemark Abbey Bosche Cabernet, Napa Valley. $65. *****

deep, cherry, menthol, chocolate, astringent, nutmeg, spicy, long finish - so - ws

1995 Freemark Abbey Sycamore Cabernet, Napa Valley. $95. *****

Medoc earth, milk chocolate, plum, concentrated, long finish - so - ws

2004 Freemark Abbey Josephyn, Napa Valley. $n/a. n/a

mildly corked. The host didn't know and unable to detect the taint. She checked with a big guy and he agreed with me ("very very little hint of tca" said he) then all acted as if this is something absolutely normal. Very strange experience. - so - ws