ComfortWinery.com

Apple seemed to really like my Hawk Hill Vineyard label!

I licensed this image from Getty Images two years before Apple bought it as an icon for the "Mail" feature on the Apple toolbar -- could they have fallen in love with the Comfort Pinot Noir label?!?

2009 Andeluna Malbec, Mendoza

Michel Rolland, one of the industry's most controversial winemaking consultants, collaborated on the production of this Andeluna bottling with Silvio Alberto.   Malbecs can be difficult to distinguish from one another -- it's the predominant red varietal in Argentina but is a minor player (a "blending" grape) that is only used in Bordeaux blends in small proportions (typically less than 5%).  

The wine shows hot alcohol on the nose and is pretty difficult to distinguish from other low-end Malbecs from Mendoza (or the west of France for that matter) -- but it's appropriately priced at $10.   86 points

1964 Chateau Pape Clement, Graves

This bottle of Pape Clement was a gift to Kevin G, who was kind enough to share it with me on a special occassion.   I purchased it at a Bonhams & Butterfield auction in 2001.  The cork was still in decent shape after 47 years (thankfully)!   The wine is well past its prime, but the fruit has faded into red roses, with the oak contributing white pepper and pencil lead.   After it was open for about an hour, the red roses turned to candy-apple, with a caramel finish (typical in older wines).  88 points; $200

1990 Chateau Pontet-Canet, Pauillac

1990 was a monster vintage in Bordeaux, but especially in Pauillac-St.Estephe-St.Julien...   This was one of the vintages that helped put Pontet-Canet back on the map -- after 21 years this wine is still relatively tightly-wound and it has a long life ahead.   The acids are high and the dense black fruit is approaching maturity but not there yet...   Pontet-Canet sometimes has descriptors like "tar" and "rubber" attached to it, and traces of those elements are here too -- but they're far in the background.   This wine will likely last another 20-30 years without difficulty.

I enjoyed the bottle with my friend Kevin Gottesman at Bourbon Steak, Michael Mina's high-end steakhouse off Union Square in San Francisco.   $120 (retail); 93 points

2007 Auguste Bessac Crozes-Hermitage

This bottling from Auguste Bessac is an easy-drinking blend that is nice to drink on its own on a hot summer day but also pairs well with Mediterranean food.   It has a light body conveys young red fruit flavor with little obvious oak interplay.

 

1998 Rosemount Estate 'Mountain Blue' Mudgee

This Shiraz & Cab blend from Rosemount Estate is a product of the massive 1998 vintage, which provided all the heat and extraction that Australian winemakers love.   This wine is starting to collapse on itself after thirteen years (it's not meant for long cellaring), but it still shows rich blackberry pie fruit with some vanilla and heavy tannin.   89 points; $45

2004 Burgess Syrah, Napa Valley

I have always been a fan of Burgess because they favor nuance over extraction in their red wines (they are most known for this with their Cabernet Sauvignon).   This Syrah is fruit-forward but nicely balanced, with good acid levels intact after seven years and soft edges on the finish.  89 points; $25

Laurent Perrier Cuvee Rose and Jacquesson, Champagne (NV)

John Durham is simply known as "Mr. Champagne" to many of us here in San Francisco.   The guy has enough of the stuff to last through another prohibition, but thankfully he's super-generous with it!   He got our tasting off to a fun start with two magnums of excellent non-vintage champagne:  Jacquesson and Laurent Perrier Cuvee Rose.

1998 Parker Coonawarra Estate 'Terra Rosa' First Growth

This Cabernet blend is

2006 Strong Arms Shiraz

Our host, Scot McLernon, pulled this out of his cellar for the "Down Under" tasting.

2005 Casa Lapostolle 'Clos Apalta', Carmanere, Colchegua Valley

Don Davis decided to bring a previous "Wine of the Year" selection to Scot McLernon's "Down Under" tasting, and damn if it didn't win (it got my vote)!   If there was ever a poster child for Carmanere, Casa Lapostolle would have to be it (yes, about 20% of the blend is Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, but it is overwhelmingly Carmanere).   Layers and layers of fruit, amazing oak integration and lively but harmonious acidity -- wow!