![]() ![]() He had also baked a raspberry and pistachio torte which was the perfect match for the beautiful red fruits in the Merlot. My friend Wayne had long been wanting to open this special bottle and with his parents visiting from France this presented the perfect opportunity. This was now the second time in the past year that I had the chance to sample the absolutely epic 2010 Chateau Angelus. ‘No signs of smoke impact’ I said to them. Unctuous and buttery with insanely good flavor range, Travis admitted that he was exceedingly proud of this effort. I savored this wine very slow and made sure that it was warm enough to consume, as this wine drinks considerably better at a warmer temperature. Travis has a deft hand over Marsanne and he is no longer crafting a 100% Marsanne bottling - rather he blends in a touch of Roussanne to add flavor complexity and more finesse. Sitting next to Travis and Mario Allen, we tasted through their lineup of wines and this one was enjoyed early on in the lineup. This was nothing short of perfection in the bottle. Pillowy and soft, yet extremely powerful, words made it difficult to define how good this wine really was. My first sip of the ‘Rainin’ was utterly extraordinary. I was blown away with their overall lineup and the last two wines were from their Platinum Collection. This year I did not have the chance to taste at HALL and instead spent three with the HALL director of winemaking via Zoom. Now if I can only find more!Ħ) 2018 HALL ‘Rainin Vineyard’ Cabernet Sauvignon It was a hot August day which made this beautifully textured champagne even more enjoyable. Back at the hotel we enjoyed every last sip of this exquisite champagne. While picking out several top Chablis bottles, I spotted an older bottle of ‘Rare’ Champagne. Sitting in our hotel room in Paris, we ventured out to one of the town’s best wine shops, Le Caves Auge. ![]() Salty and rich, try to snag a bottle of this if you can!Ģ002 was an epic vintage in Champage. Now fully at its peak, the 2002 shows beautiful honey and stony character with amazing weight and tension. None of them come close to what D’YQuem was able to accomplish in this vintage. 2002 as a vintage was less than heralded in sauternes and I have tried many top producers from 2002. ![]() For years I have cellared the 2002 Chateau D’Yqyem which was a San Diego Costco purchase when I was back in graduate school. Turning 41 during the pandemic was not the most fun, although it might have been a bit more fun than May 2020. Surely at peak, this beauty was a treasure to consume now. There was still a remarkable amount of black fruits present. We had reserved a room with a gorgeous view of the Puget Sound and as we sat together and tasted this wine it became more and more Burgundian with wild mushrooms, peat moss and shades of pine needles. It was a beautiful occasion for such a bottle with friends gathering at Aerlume in Seattle. I think his face said it all as he was quite literally grinning from ear to ear. My friend Tim was celebrating his birthday and generously opened a bottle of near perfectly stored 1990 Chateau Lafitte-Rothchild. This effort is nothing short of a world-class winemaking adventure and I hope you will have a chance to try this beautiful style of Cristal champagne. I’ll never forget my smile after savoring my first sip of this wine. It might not be as weighty and big as the 2012 bottling but this champagne is full of finesse with very bright citrus fruit flavors. Nonetheless, the team at Louis Roererer did a flat out phenomenal job with crafting their 2013 ‘Cristal’ bottling. 2013 was a vintage that plagued much of France, including champagne. It is not easy to make top champagne in a less than easy vintage. I had to share this brilliant wine even though it fell outside the Top 10. What were some of your favorite wines of 2021? Here are mine.ġ1) 2013 Louis Roederer ‘Cristal’ Champagne I hope you all enjoy a wonderful holiday season making many more memories with special wines and cherished relationships. Despite the pandemic, I wanted to share with you some of the most special moments with the incredible wines that I was able to taste over the course of 2021. Nonetheless, I hope this year has brought you wonderful prosperity and many memorable moments with sharing wine with your loved ones whenever possible. Coming out of 2020, 2021 has brought further challenges. Friends, there is arguably no better feeling than experiencing special moments with special wines. ![]()
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