Cellar Sleuthing

Cellar browsing turns up some very interesting finds—really good stuff, as well as wines I really should have pulled out and opened long before—like white Burgundies from 2005 that I was "saving" for the right occasion. What happened? Usually other choices intervened and I let them get away from me. Drat!

This section also includes other "discoveries," including restaurant wines, dinners with friends, wine list values and such. Also scroll down for wines from North Carolina and  the mid-Atlantic.

Results of cellar sleuthing…

Sanford 2007 Pinot Noir, Santa Rita! Hills, Santa Barbara Decanted 11-15-23. Luscious—at peak of flavors: concentrated, rich berry preserve fruit; smooth, seductive, sensuous and superb with roast loin of pork. Not the least hot (14.8!) to my surprise, but a smooth long fruit finish—central coast Pinot at its best!

Château Beauséjour 1985, St. Emilion Grand Cru, Bordeaux  Decanted. Quite lovely at 38 years! Mostly merlot, with cabernet franc. Appealing aromatics of ripe berries with accents of smoke and tar. Bloomed with air after 30-40 minutes but faded by meal’s end—a lesson in forgotten cellar treasures. Still, smooth and elegant with pleasing berry fruit and a treat to savor. The finest Bordeaux will easily go 30 years but best to decant just before serving and observe the nuances of flavor and aroma to emerge.  10/2023

Beringer 1989 Cabernet Sauvignon, Knight’s Valley  Decanted. Surprising! Knight’s Valley Cabs can be quite good but rarely exceptional. Rich, dark color, explosively aromatic of ripe berries. Smooth and round with rich berry flavors; balanced, long finish, very satisfying and delicious to drink—rewards of aging.  9-24-23

Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars 1983  SLV Decanted. Great color! Dark garnet, dense, slightly clear edges. Ripe but not overripe aromas of dark berries (13.5%). Lively and vibrant flavors of ripe berries, chocolate, cedar. Astonishing at 39 years! Breeding tells. Very smooth, soft tannins, long appealing finish; empty glass aromatic with sweet sun-dried-grape aromas.  2nd night even smoother but faded a bit. Lovely-a tribute to structure and balance. Kudos, Warren! 11/2022

Jordan 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon  Alexander Valley  Decanted10-16-22 .  Outstanding! Vibrant garnet color. Aromatic with spiced berry aromas, hint of oak, charming blackberry, black raspberry flavors. Perfectly ready to drink at age 10. Not as complex as 2007 or 2013 but very appealing for drinking now, probably at peak though should hold 5 years, longer if well-stored. 

Chateau Biltmore 1998 Cabernet Sauvignon  North Carolina  Decanted.  Quite good, summer berry flavors, smooth, rich; mellowed tannins; surprising balance and depth for NC Cabernet but then we are often underestimated! Lively fruit, not especially complex but appealing, likely at peak, or just past it.  Drink now if you have one. 10-14-22

Merry Edwards 2009 Pinot Noir Georgann Vyd, Russian River Valley  Decanted. It was good when I opened it--but dynamite the next night—a tribute to aeration!  Smooth, rich in texture, flavors of summer-ripe berries with a touch of smoke and cinnamon.  Lovely with roast cornish game hen. 11/2022

Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon 1983, Howell Mountain  At 11.2% alcohol, I thought this might be gone (after 37 years). A cool, rainy year. But No! Utterly smooth, with lively blackberry flavors and simply delicious. Winemaker Paul Draper noted on the back label, "...the grapes matured at lower sugars, an excellent formula for elegant, claret-style wines...accessible now but structure and balance should extend its aging over the next 5 or 6 years."  Right on!!!  Fine job, Mr. Draper!  11/2020

Villa Ragazzi 1998 Sangiovese, Napa Valley Visiting with Michaela and Greg Rodeno at their charming Italian house smack in the middle of Napa Valley this week, they had brought the '98 up from the cellar. A revelation--this vibrant red surprised us with its lively, still youthful mingle of red cherry-raspberry-cranberry fruit, grown richer in both flavor and texture after nearly 20 years in bottle, and from a vintage that was roundly bashed but this gem obviously overlooked. Decanted, it opened and bloomed in aroma and grew silkier in texture--a tribute to its excellent balance. It should easily hold at this plateau for some time yet, but it was a lovely moment to catch it. The 2014 VR Sangio may well do the same--a charmer now, but just as well-balanced. Thanks, guys!  8/2018

Hanzell 1993 Pinot Noir, Sonoma
I pulled this from my cellar for a holiday dinner, thinking Uh-oh -- maybe I waited too long. Twenty-five years for a Pinot Noir?  But no way; decanted (actually not a lot of sediment), its pedigree showed handsomely. Spicy aromas--cinnamon, a hint of smoke, very subtle, as well as subtle accents of butterscotch--billowed out of the glass. Very seductive. Flavors large and round and smooth on the palate, richly textured, same accents of spiced fruit made it a thrill to savor. Transcendental.  12/18

1991 California Cabernets  I selected a few of these from my cellar racks a while back and put them in a box labeled "pot roast wines"--in 2012, I think. Recently I decided I better pull a few and try them, decanted of course. Very rewarding so far. 1991 was an excellent vintage for California reds, especially cabernet sauvignon.

Clos du Val 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley  Surprised a few folks in Richmond recently by serving this one blind. No one guessed it, though I was only interested in how they liked it--and everyone did. Aromatic, vibrant and succulent, with spicy black currant flavors, subtle oak thoroughly integrated with the fruit, very well-balanced, smooth but lively and quite vivid for a 16-year old Cab--drinking extremely well now--so the Stag's Leap District and the Reserve must have years ahead of them. Wish I had more of this one. Kudos, Bernard!   2017