Foxen, Santa Ynez Valley, Toasted Rope, Syrah 2006 There are raisins and freshly stewed fruits in the nose, like the smells you get when making a warm compote in the winter. The mouth is extremely supple and sweet appearing, with cocoa and brown spices. 85% Syrah and 15% Viognier. P&B in Santa Maria 15.8% $33.49 [...]

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Zaca Mesa, Santa Ynez Valley, Estate Grown and Bottled, Viognier 2007 This wine is peaches on steroids all the way through with a rich, very viscous mouthfeel that emphasizes fruit rather than oak or butter, as is seen in some of the heavier-handed approaches to this variety. And there is no hint of the whopping [...]

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Zaca Mesa Santa Ynez Valley Viognier 2007
This wine has been spot on over time from a winery that took up the cause of Rhone grapes before many others dared to in California. Fermented in stainless and finished in neutral French oak for 3 months. Winemaker Clay Brock. Estate Grown and Bottled in Los Olivos 15% [...]

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Le Clos du Caillou Cotes du Rhone Vielles Vignes Cuvee Unique 2005
This is a solid wine, balanced in medium weight with ripe fruits and structure. The ripeness is such that there are liquer-like black fruits. The alcohol is showing a bit in this chewy wine. Sourced from Chateauneuf-du-Pape, this wine is a blend of 90% [...]

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The red wines from the Southern Rhone follow a recipe that emphasizes Grenache. The wines of this flight highlight this underdog grape.
Unti Dry Creek Valley Grenache 2005
Pretty funky at first opening but after an hour, the smell improved to show the Grenache fruit. This wine is framed by a moderate level of tannin. [...]

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Verget du Sud Vin de Pays du Vaucluse Roussanne 2006 Jean-Marie Guffens’ impressive work with the grapes of Burgundy continues with grapes sourced further south, in this case from the Vaucluse, a department on the east side of the river Rhone which encompasses the great town of Avignon. In April ‘08 a bottle was off [...]

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