Emily Kresie-Harrington

9.0

2020 vintage. Orange sparkling Pinot Gris-Muscat. Medium-bodied, mild funk and leesiness. Dried apricot, dried mango, green tea, dried chamomile, straw, dustiness. — 2 years ago

Sarah

9.5

Eistee mit Sprudel — 4 years ago

Louis Martin

9.2

Like a tea “Champagne”. Crisp notes of citrus and green tea, with a white tea aftertaste, pairs perfectly with sushi. — 5 years ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

Happy Australian Christmas! 🎄🎁🦌🎅🤶⛄️❄️

After bringing this Rockford Black Barossa Sparkling Shiraz back from Australia and holding It for nearly two years as was recommended by their Winemaker, it’s finally ready for Christmas breakfast as is traditional in Australia. What a beauty she has turned out to be! Much softer and intergraded than it was in their tasting room.

It’s hard to find Sparkling Shiraz in the US, let alone a good one!!! This one is quite tasty.

It’s a beautiful sunny Christmas morning with Nat King Cole singing, “White Christmas” in the background.

The nose reveals; black currants, blackberries, black plum, olallieberries, mix dark berry liqueur notes, sweet tar, whiff of white and black pepper, saddle-wood, wafting vanillin, soft limestone minerals, dry crushed rocks, black licorice, steeped fruit tea, light herbaceous notes, dark withering flowers, violets and a shade of lavender.

The body is full & rich. The fruits are beautifully ripe. The structure, tension, length and balance are finding their way but, will still benefit from a few years in the cellar. It also has a sound tannin structure, which is not found in champagnes and most sparkling wines. Black currants, blackberries, black plum, olallieberries, black cherry, plum, mix dark berry liqueur notes, whiff of white and black pepper, dark spice with some palate heat, saddle-wood, a leathery quality, wafting vanillin, soft limestone minerals, dry crushed rocks, black licorice, steeped fruit tea, light herbaceous notes, dark withering flowers, violets and a shade of lavender. The acidity is round and well executed. The well polished finish is a nice balance of dark fruit & earthiness and is persistent for minutes.

Merry Christmas everyone!!! 🎄🎁🤶🎅🦌⛄️❄️🍾🍷🎶

@Bob McDonald Delicious!!! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! — 5 years ago

with James and Christina

David Kline

9.1

Motor oil monicker is apt for this black beauty. Big top springs into action in latte tones, and is pulled back to the viscous tar. Tea leaves lacing slide slowly to obscurity. Licorice and chai nose flecked with sparkling candies ginger and an array of mints. Medium heavy mouthfeel lifted by ethereal spices flaunts cardamom, clove, allspice, nutmeg and citrus oils, dark sugar and coffee notes framed by oak and buried vanilla. Sticky finish lingers; pair with ginger snaps. Must be fall.
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#hiwire #hiwirebrewing #hiwire10w40 #hiwireimperialstout #chaibeer #abv #stout #imperialstout #ncbeer #beer #bier #biere #birra #cerveza #cerveja #darkbeer #motoroil #chai #10w40 — 2 years ago

with Courtney

Connor Smith

9.4

The 17th century saw an explosion of beverage options in Europe. Spirits were coming into their own, flavoring with hops was finally the standard for beer, and chocolate, coffee, and tea began flowing from overseas. Wine was no longer the only kid on the block, and had to offer something new to stay on top.

Sparkles in wine due to second fermentations were nothing new, but it was the leap in English glassmaking technology in the 1620s with coal-firing that allowed them to be harnessed. No longer would there be constant risk of bottles exploding from pressure, and bubbles came ever more into vogue - much to the chagrin of the great advocates of still blanc de noirs Champagne, Dom Perignon and the Marquis de Saint-Evremond. But there was no holding back the tide, and by the end of the century sparkling Champagne was the drink of choice for high courts across Europe.

(This is adapted from notes for Le Dû’s Wines ‘History of Wine 1453AD-Present’ seminar, where this wine was poured.) — 5 years ago

David Kline

9.1

Began as black olives for miles but betrayed its fruit roots quickly enough, with baked black cherry, and a black plum mash; black currant and gingerbread-mocha notes sparkling on its grainy veneer. Torn violet petals. Lots of sediment, or pigmented tartaric crystals. Super elegant and fleshy mouthfeel is perhaps its most compelling nuance. Black currant, soft leather, smoke, a scribble of pencil, snuffed wick, teak, and black tea. Bittersweet chocolate remains like a cloud, suspended while most aspects fade. Leather friction.
#cabernetsauvignon #cab #Walton #Egelhoff #StHelena #sthelenacab #napacabs #napa #cabsauv #newworld — 6 years ago

with Courtney

Norman Gennaro

8.9

Different. Carbonated mix of vacuum-distilled beet molasses and Belgian saison yeast spirit, sour cherry, black currant buds, young pine cones, walnut wood, keemun black tea and macaw pepper. Made on Copenhagen, Denmark. — 4 years ago

Matt Perlman

9.1

Alpine sparkling goodness. No dosage. Floral elements abound, some tropical fruit, white tea and biscuit dough. One of the more distinctive sparklers I’ve tried outside of champagne — 4 years ago

David Kline

9.3

Offering a color between iced tea and cream soda and a cottony head with active wellsprings, and adhesion like shaving soap that slowly unravels to spun sugar pile linings. A nose of raspberries, dried and plump, balsamic peppers, a yeasty barnya. rd echo, blood orange entwined with cherries atop a cedar plank. There is a grilled brackish eel skin, pepper and bright citrus keeping it all diurnal. Grape leaves around peeled, ripe, white grapefruit, bing cherry, blood orange, tangerine, lime seeds, bay leaf, lemon verbena and broken orange pekoe. — 5 years ago