Month: September 2020

Join An Exclusive Club?

2015 Brasas Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, 95 points

Available only to club members, this Cabernet got this frugal, non-joiner’s attention.

Unlike many club “exclusives,” this one is not a leftover or a teaser. It was not made in tiny quantities. It is beautifully finished. The complete deal!

It is a true 95 point quality Cabernet.

It is from Palmaz Vineyards, an ultra-high tech family winery in Southern Napa. A blend of Cabernet and Malbec, this 2015 is concentrated with lovely ripe fruit and refined oak notes. It was aged in new oak, but shows restraint, silky tannins and flavors that unfold ever so slowly. Multi-layered, beautifully structured, it is more like a Bordeaux than your typical pricey, juicy Napa Cab. This one sells to member for $115. Sightly over 1,000 cases were made. 

Mia Klein, a super winemaker with a special knack for Cabernet, is the consultant.

The family also owns a cattle ranch which explains the Gaucho image on the label. And they sell products other than wine, meaning steaks and stuff.

Check out www.palmazvineyards.com or  www.brasasclub.com

Full disclosures:

My source: gift from a family member.

I’m not an affilate on a commission or looking for a freebie.

If I weren’t such a cheap SOB, I’d join this club.

Over and Under Albarino

Wine Discovery of the Week

The 2019 Abacela Winery Albarino is an over-achiever in many ways. It offers the desirable aromas of ripe apricot and tangerine with some citrus. All very fresh and lively.

But the flavors are rich and complex with hints of honeysuckle and spice. Yet, and this is the added bonus, it finishes with the expected tang and zest you associate with Albarino.

Though it has been making first-class wines from Spanish varieties for 25 years, Abacela flies under the radar, mainly enjoying a hard-earned reputation among local wine lovers in Southern Oregon. It is in the Umpqua Valley which ironically led the way in the Oregon wine revival.

If you are tired of simple commercial Pinot Grigio or find most Sauvignon Blancs a little too grassy and thin, you might consider or re-consider Albarino.

And begin with this one from Abacela which sells it direct to consumers. It is priced around $20. I bought this one at Margo’s Wine Bar in Medford for $16.99.