The Tasting Panel magazine

May 2014

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76  /  the tasting panel  /  may 2014 WINES Matchbook 2012 Old Head Chardonnay, Dunnigan Hills ($15) Lemon and apricot notes are drawn out—slowly, succulently—while vanilla spreads across the mouth in a syrupy sprawl. Big notes of apple, melon and the iconic crème brûlée complete the rounds for this viscous, alluring white. 92 CREW WINE COMPANY Adobe 2013 Pink, Paso Robles ($14) What I love about this rosé of 46% Syrah, 37% Grenache and 17% Mourvèdre is the candied water- melon/raspberry nose. The surprise of its gravitas comes to the fore on first sip: vanilla candle wax strikes a textured chord. A touch of stone dust dries the mid-palate, but the deep berry tartness on the finish makes it through with striking acidity. 92 MIDDLETON FAMILY WINES Napa Valley Cattle Company 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley ($49) The wine's label and name is a nod to the land before the grapes, where cattle roamed and grazed. The wine opens to a chorus of violets and cedar…raspberry chocolate truffles; rich and deep with the softest baby-step tannins. A dry wipe of licorice and blue flowers, shaded with depe purple fruit, gives an edginess to the finish. 94 PAT PAULSEN VINEYARDS Mariposa 2010 Tempranillo, Paso Robles ($23) A blend of 87% Tempranillo and 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, each wine received three punch downs a day until primary fermentation was complete—then was pressed off into 20% new/80% used French oak barrels for 20 months. Juicy, complex, deliciously pleasant with dark, sweet, red cherry, plum spice and even a hint of peach meat and tangerine peel. Wonderful natural acidity. 93 CRU WINE COMPANY Maryhill Winery 2009 Zinfandel, Columbia Valley ($22) This small-production wine, aged in French and American oak for 19 months, combines a brambly palate enveloped in redwood. Spice and sage, pepper and black-cherry cola is superbly revealed and eloquently delivered in this inky-dark animal red. Pomegranate, rhubarb and exotic spices keep the intrigue going, threaded by rich coffee mint on the finish. 93 Lake Sonoma Winery 2010 Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley ($35) Creamy and dense, this black- fruited, zesty Zin offers up cocoa, while black tea surfaces mid-palate. Wonderfully inviting, round and curvy, with good, solid tannins and balanced acidity. 90 V2 WINE GROUP PICKS In each issue THE TASTING PANEL's Publisher and Executive Editor, Meridith May, selects her favorite wines and spirits of the month. Check here for the latest arrivals in our offices, the hottest new brands on the market and an occasional revisited classic. Worthy of a smooch. French-style double bizou. Wildly infatuated. Seriously smitten. Head over heels in love. PHOTO: ROB BROWN Publisher's At Jim Allen's retirement party, Annette Alvarez of COSTCO, D'Shawn Kerrins of No. 209 Gin with Meridith May. See the story on page . TP0514_072-101.indd 76 4/24/14 11:00 PM 98

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