Lucas & Lewellen Pinot Noir Goodchild-High 9 2013
4 bottles with free shipping for: $130.00
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| Country: | United States |
| Region: | California |
| Grape Type: | Pinot Noir |
| Winery: | Lucas & Lewellen |
This is a limited vintage from the highest nine acre block of the Goodchild Vineyard, where the cool climate produces highly concentrated clone 667 grapes. This wine was aged sur lees for 11 months in French oak, bringing forth the natural flavors of lively red fruit with smooth tannins and a lingering finish.
Reviews:
Juicy strawberries, raspberries and plums are balanced by wet slate on the nose of this wine from grape growing pioneer Louis Lucas and his vintner-partner, Judge Royce Lewellen. The palate shows more raspberry and a bit of boysenberry along with an orange rind tartness and woody herbs like juniper and black sage. - Wine Enthusiast 93 Points
Louis Lucas, a third generation grape grower, and Superior Court Judge Royce Lewellen met in 1975 through the Santa Maria Wine & Food Society . Louis was a well respected grower who had been supplying premium wine grapes for reputable Napa and Sonoma wineries for decades. Royce Lewellen was a passionate wine enthusiast with a vision for the future of the Santa Barbara County wine industry.
Over the next twenty-five years, the Lucas and Lewellen families would grow in a deep friendship that would serve as the foundation for Lucas & Lewellen Vineyards, a Solvang, California based winery with four hundred estate acres situated among three of Santa Barbara County’s separate and distinct climate zones, three major wine labels, two popular tasting rooms in downtown Solvang, and a state of the art winery.
Lucas & Lewellen Vineyards has a distributor presence in 25 states and 14 countries
Amaren Rioja Crianza is made from 85% Tempranillo and 15% Garnacha
The wine is truly attractive, transmitting the finesse and elegance of the Tempranillo and the fresh, delicate fruitiness of the Garnacha. A balanced combination which is far from an excessive complexity, corpulence or over extraction to achieve the goal set by the bodega: to make a “RICH” wine in capital letters. With a nose in which the fruit character with floral nuances and strawberry toffees will stay with you all through its passage through the mouth, where you can sense its power, but with an elegance, enchanting you with its great balance until the long finish with heady notes of red fruit typical of the best garnachas from the Rioja Alavesa.
Only the perfect grapes are used to produce this wine. Amaren Crianza is the pursuit of perfection in all areas: the vineyard, the selection process, winemaking method and ageing.
Made from 85% tempranillo and 15% garnacha from vines with an average age of 35 years, the grapes are selected on a dual sorting table, first a manual check of the clusters and then individual berries.
Both varieties are harvested, vinified and aged separately to extract their optimum potential and obtain aromatic complexity.
After vinification the wine is cask aged for 12 months in 50% new, American-oak barrels and 50% in French-oak barrels used for a second vintage.
Tempranillo brings to the wine typical finesse, elegance and true expression of the characteristics of the best soils of Rioja Alavesa. Garnacha is the ideal complement that brings notes of red fruits, freshness and delicacy.
Review:
"Deep ruby. Oak-spiced cherry and blackberry aromas and flavors are complemented by a suggestion of mocha that gains strength as the wine opens up. Plush and seamless in style and showing no rough edges. Rich yet lively; a peppery note adds a spicy kick on the back half. Gentle tannins shape the impressively persistent finish, which leaves a hint of bitter chocolate behind. - Josh Raynolds"
- Antonio Galloni's Vinous (May 2017), 91 pts
Dark in the glass. A powerful nose of blackberry evokes the garrigue and spices aromas. Rounded with a silky texture. Ripe and extracted, with soft vanilla nuances are carried by a good length. A good combination of power, elegance and finesse.
Chakana Estate Red Mendoza is made from 75% Malbec, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc
Deep red color with violet hints. Dark fruits and exotic spices with tobacco and mocha hints. Elegant, well balanced, harmonious, long persistence with chocolate flavors.
Vineyard: Gualtallary in Valle de Uco.
2 days maceration on skins in temperature controlled steel vats; 12 days fermentation with selected yeasts allowed to rise to a maximum of 28°C.
The 60% Malbec part of the blend is placed in 3,000 & 5,000-liter foudres and concrete vats, then this same wine is aged in old French oak barrels for 9 months ; While the 40% Cabernet Sauvignon part of the blend is all aged in new wood.
Reviews
"The blend of this wine used to change every year, but has now settled on Malbec with 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, combining elements from Paraje Altamira, Gualtallary and Chacayes. Fresh, elegant and beautifully balanced, it’s another triumph from Chakana. 2018-25."
- Tim Atkin, Argentina 2017 Special Report, 94 pts
"Bright, dark red with ruby highlights. Pure but subdued scents of dark raspberry, pepper, chocolate and menthol. Fine-grained, savory and fresh; an alluring, delineated midweight with spicy and floral high notes to its raspberry and currant fruit flavors. The peppery quality carries through the wine and perks up the finish. The tannins are firm but harmonious. This impeccably balanced, structured wine finishes with firm but harmonious tannins and subtly palate-staining spicy length. - Stephen Tanzer"
- Antonio Galloni's Vinous (July 2017), 92 pts
ALBADA Garnacha is a young wine from very-old Grenache vines. Stress on the fruit intensity to express a true Garnacha and the terroir of origin. This is a young and fun yet very complex wine. The wine spent eight months in contact with its own lees in American Oak Barrels.
Intense ruby color with garnet and purple hues. The aromas are intense with a great varietal expression. We have a lot of red and black berries, with some notes of spice, well integrated with vanilla and leather components coming from the barrel aging in American Oak. The wine is structured and has a very nice mouthfeel, but the tannins are soft and the finish is long.
Review:
Violet color. Fruity, inviting aromas and flavors of vanilla toffee, chocolate cherry bon bons, strawberry jam on toast, and bacon with a satiny, tangy, fruity medium-to-full body and a compelling, medium-length dark roasted nuts, borscht, cacao nibs, and cedar finish. A rock solid garnacha with appealing fruit flavors. 90 Point Beverage Tasting Institute
Made from 100% Barbera d'Asti.
"Bricca" means the top part of the hill. (see picture of the vineyards)
The soil is calcareous with tufa layers.
The average age of the vines is 30 years.
Vinification in stainless steel at 30 C° under temperature controlled conditions. There is a 5-6 days maceration period on the skins to extract as much color as possible. After the malolactic fermentation is completed, the wine is aged for about 8 months in new barriques of 225 liters before bottling.
La Bricca is a deep ruby red colored wine with violet hues. The bouquet is vinous and intense with ethereal aromas (typical of the Barbera grape) and scents of ripe fruit and spices. The wine is full bodied with very pleasant silky tannins. Long and harmonious with a good ageing potential.
Food pairing: meat dishes, cheese and charcuterie.
Serving temperature: to appreciate the wine at its best, the bottle should be left at least 24 hours at room temperature and opened 1 hour before serving.
Mordoree Lirac Rouge Reine des Bois equal parts Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre
Color : deep dark red, with blueish hints.
Aromas : highly fruity ( raspberry, billberry, blackberry ), floral (violet) and intense with a grilled touch ( coffee ).
Palate : melted and concentrated tannins, full bodied, very long fresh finish.
Ageing potential : 8 to 10 years
Grilled meats, sauce meats, game birds, game rabbits and semi-mature cheeses.
Review:
"The 2014 Lirac Cuvee de La Reine des Bois is an incredible effort that transcends the vintage and is easily the wine of the vintage from Lirac. Possessing fabulous purity and elegance, with medium to full-bodied richness, classic notes of crème de cassis, caramelized meats, violets and licorice, sweet tannin and a great finish, I doubt it will be the longest lived example of this cuvée, but man, hats off to the team for this killer wine in a difficult vintage! - Jeb Dunnuck"
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Issue 227, October 28th 2016), 93 pts
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What this vineyard captures, more so than any other Pinot Noir site that I have tasted, is both power and elegance. Bright and forceful Bing cherries and dark berries along with the slightest hue of roasted coffee bean on the nose. Immediate and broad textured tannins cover the palate as flavors of black raspberries, licorice and black tea leaves unravel. Oak-inspired overtones of crispy charred marshmellows and fall spice with balance acids elongate a finish that reverbs for hours.
What this vineyard captures, more so than any other Pinot Noir site that I have tasted, is both power and elegance. Bright and forceful Bing cherries and dark berries along with the slightest hue of roasted coffee bean on the nose. Immediate and broad textured tannins cover the palate as flavors of black raspberries, licorice and black tea leaves unravel. Oak-inspired overtones of crispy charred marshmellows and fall spice with balance acids elongate a finish that reverbs for hours.
The Soberanes Vineyard is the latest exciting joint venture between the Pisoni and Franscioni Families. The site features tightly spaced vines and is planted to 33 acres of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah and sits on the Santa Lucia Highlands Bench adjacent to the Garys' Vineyard. The clonal material planted in the loamy, rocky soil is very diverse and features over a dozen of the most renowned heritage selections from California and Burgundy in pursuit of the finest wine quality.
Review:
The vineyard is famous for producing ripe, luscious Pinots stuffed with massive fruit. Many wineries have dipped into it over the years. Krutz’s rendition is dry, balanced and full-bodied, with relatively high alcohol framing raspberry, cherry, cola, red plum, exotic spice and sandalwood flavors. It should age well through 2020–2022.
- Wine Enthusiast 92 Points
Marcassin Sonoma Coast Chardonnay is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
The 2013 Chardonnay Marcassin Vineyard may be even better. Notes of caramelized citrus, hazelnut, apple blossom, lemon oil and orange marmalade are all present in this wine of dazzling aromatic and flavor dimension. It is full-bodied, again shows some wet pebbles (which I equate with minerality), vibrant acidity, and no real evidence of any oak. Much like the 2012, the finish goes on for 45+ seconds. This is another killer Chardonnay from Helen Turley and John Wetlaufer. -Wine Advocate 100 Points
What an extraordinary tasting this was at the Marcassin winery just north of Santa Rosa in Sonoma County. Just when you think the duo of Helen Turley and John Wetlaufer can’t make greater wines, they bowl over the taster with an array of exquisite quality that really must be tasted to be believed. Marcassin was probably California’s greatest Chardonnay after the famous Chalone winery fell from the pinnacle and onto hard times in the 1980s (and it has yet to rebound). Moreover, Marcassin set the bar for great Pinot Noir as well. And while both their Chardonnay and Pinot Noir have many competitors these days (from the likes of Harford Court, Mark Aubert, Kistler, Kongsgaard, DuMol, Thomas Brown, Peter Michael, Martinelli and Luc Morlet, to name a few), John Wetlaufer and Helen Turley remain the reigning geniuses of these two varietals in California. Certainly, their meticulous attention to detail in both the vineyard and in the winemaking and élevage account for the quality, but they were among the pioneers who saw the unlimited potential from the Sonoma Coast, now a relatively crowded neighborhood. This was a remarkable tasting that simply blew me away, and I have been following their wines since the first Marcassins were made in the early 1990s. By the way, any doubts about aging potential should be crushed immediately, as even in the most challenging vintages in California, Marcassin Chardonnays and Pinots have aged as well as, if not better than just about any grand cru white Burgundy. For example, 1995 and 1996 Chardonnays, particularly those from the Lorenzo Vineyard, are incredibly youthful and dynamic, and the Marcassin Estate Pinot Noir, even from vintages such as 1998, is simply amazing.
The three Chardonnays tasted include two perfect wines. Perhaps the closest comparison is not to anything made in California, but a Corton-Charlemagne in a top vintage from the famous Jean François Coche-Dury.
