Sipping Fine Wine

9.3

Blend:78% Cab Sauv from Napa Valley and 22% Shiraz from Central Coast vineyards in the Camatta Hills, planted with Penfold cuttings from So Australia. Deep Ruby with aromas of ripe berry fruits, spice and herbs. On the palate flavors of ripe cherry and blackberry with notes of cinnamon and cacao. Medium+ finish, fine tannins, lively acidity ending with fruit, cedar and herb character. Very nice! — 2 months ago

Tree Kilpatrick

9.0

Funky and strange label. Color is good. Red, red wine. Aroma is nice. Herbs. Berries. Linseed oil maybe. But very subtle. Flavors are pungent and complex. Herbal. Fresh herbs like basil and marjoram. Also some star anise and a lovely fruit-driven streak. Balanced and lovely. Artfully made. — 3 years ago

Sipping Fine Wine

8.9

From two estate vineyards, aromas of fruit and floral spice, fermented in 600-liter casks. On the palate flavors of ripe apple, pear and nutty floral notes. Medium finish, lively acidity, ending with fruit and toasty spice. — 4 years ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.2

Founded by Cody and Marque Wright, yes that family of the great Ken Wright Pinot’s  very nice small production Pinot, 600 cases, from 115/777 clones. Medium+ Ruby, nose is a bit closed, with aromas of blue and red fruits with an array of spices, clove, tar and wet earth. On the palate flavors of blackberry and cranberry with notes of tobacco, citrus, floral and earthy tones. Fine tannins, lively acidity, long ending with fruit, spice, mineral and earthy notes. Will age a bit! Tasted twice! — 5 years ago

Kellie Dolan

8.9

Deep cherry notes with raspberry, cassis, cedar and vanilla. Silky finish with a hint of tannins. — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.3

Attended a Parallel Wines private tasting last night. Very nice and classic in style. Didn’t realize how small their production is...less than 600 total cases. This is their 20th year and Melka has been with them from the beginning.

This was in the zone. Classic ‘13 Napa cab. It’s flavor packed and loaded with structure. Sweet and ripe dark fruits up front with lots of juicy blackberries and blueberries wrapped in dark chocolate and baking spices on the nose. Nutmeg, cassis, baked mixed berry pie on the palate. It’s very compact with a dusty finish. A blend of different vineyards, with a lot of fruit coming from the backside of Howell Mtn. — 7 years ago

Devin Bostick

9.1

Blackberry blueberry brown sugar burlap smell, wet juicy, rolling acid with jam water that is syrupy and punchy at the end with a kind lingering acid, magenta purple color — 7 years ago

Carter White

9.6

Rich red fruit, so lush and deep — 2 months ago

Gary Nishimura

9.4

Excellent. Very smooth. — 2 years ago

"Odedi"

9.1

This is a delicious white blend from Napa Valley.

Medium plus in body and creamy.

Dry on the palate with medium plus acidity.

Showing green apples, grapefruits, gooseberries, light vegetables, herbs, minerals and white pepper.

Long tangy finish with limes and almonds.

Elegant and well balanced. Crisp, refreshing and easy drinking. An Interesting wine.

Good by itself or with food. A good sipping wine that I had by the lake. Paired nicely with Brie cheese.

A blend of 73% Sauvignon Blanc, 12% Chardonnay and 13% Malvasia. Aged for 7 months in used French oak barrels. A small production of 600 cases.

14.2% alcohol by volume.

91 points.

$60. — 4 years ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.0

Tried a new batch. Roederer Estate sparkling wines are crisp & fresh reflecting the cool, fog-shrouded Anderson Valley, home to estate's 600 acres of vineyards. Blend of 60% Pinot Noir & 40% Chardonnay. Light salmon color, good flow of bubbles, firm mousse, aromas of berry fruits and biscuit notes. On the palate flavors of strawberry, ripe apple and peach with a dash of pepper spice. Long finish, lively acidity ending a tad creamy with toasty yeasty tones. Very Nice! — 5 years ago

Martinez

9.0

Unfortified flor-aged 100% Palomino by Dirk Niepoort & Equipo Navazos, sourced from the historic Macharnudo vineyard in Jerez. Fermented in old, 600-liter oak casks with indigenous yeasts and aged for 12 months under flor. Oxidative nose with hints hay and pineapple. Light, mineral, precise and bone dry on the mouth, with nice saltiness and a long, somewhat bitter finish. — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.3

Attended a Parallel Wines private tasting last night. Very nice and classic in style. Didn’t realize how small their production is...less than 600 total cases. This is their 20th year and Melka has been with them from the beginning.

Starting to channel some butterscotch and creme brûlée notes. It’s rich without being overly oaked. Honey roasted almonds and even some marzipan. This is 100% Ritchie vineyard and while it doesn’t have classic Ritchie nuttiness, there is a hint of roasted marshmallows that I find common in other Ritchie Chards. — 7 years ago

Zimran Ahmed

9.2

Bright cab. Well balanced. Lovely fruit. Integrated tannins. — 7 years ago

Andrea Watt

9.4

Oak, pear, citrus, mineral, and brioche. — 3 months ago

Amit Srivastava

9.4

62% Rousanne 33% Grenache blanc 5% clariette Blanche ; Refreshing . Just rolls off the tongue — 2 years ago

with Gunja

"Odedi"

9.3

It's time for my #FridayCabernetfix.

Dark ruby in color with a reddish rim.

Strong nose of blackberries, black plums, cooked cherries, cedar, licorice, vanilla, spices, light earth, peppercorn, chocolates, tobacco, dried meats and herbs.

Full bodied, smooth and elegant, with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with blackberries, plums, cooked cherries, cedar, leather, vanilla, licorice, chocolates, herbs, spices, earth, light vegetables, tobacco leaf and peppercorn.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cherries.

This is a delicious Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley. Big, yet elegant. Fruit forward and spicy.

Showing nice complexity with a nice mouthfeel. Tangy and interesting.

This 5 year old will continue to age nicely in the next 10 years. Good right out of the bottle, and better after 3 hours of airtime.

A tiny production of only 600 bottle.

Good by itself and with food. Paired wonderfully with meats and cheeses.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

93 points.

$160. — 4 years ago

Scott E. Becker

9.4

[Tasted on March 20, 2021 at Home with the Isensteins]

Wine is Seventeen, not Sixteen Barrels. Dark fruit, licorice and sweet cedar. Beautiful wine. — 5 years ago

William Paley

9.5

Day 1 (one hour open):
Dark garnet color good clarity, boiled leather and stewed cherry on the nose. Nice mineral note, coffee bean, cocoa, toast, still very tannic, mouth-coating, bit powdery on the back side. Lots of grip. Almost salty. Finishes with bite.
Day 2 (sixteen hours open):
Oxblood color, lingering stewed cherry scent, concentrated cola flavor, but savory - very cool. Tannins dispersed, still nice weight. Delicious. — 6 years ago

with Jess

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

Our first bottling from this small production family winery in Calistoga.

My first impressions of this wine, it’s a classic older Calistoga Cabernet. It’s nicely resolved but, not at the end of its life as some have predicted. It is a shade past its prime but, drinking nicely with the exception it’s a touch hot, even after all this time in bottle and when temp’s were not pushing alcohol levels like they can now. However, heat aside, I enjoy wines just the other side of their prime and beyond. Brings out additional complexity-characteristics and are infinitely more interesting.

The nose reveals, stewed & baked fruits of; blackberries, black plum, black cherry extract, black raspberries with some deep blue fruits. Loads of baking spices; clove, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla. Dark spice, dark chocolate, sweet tarriness, mocha, caramel, walnut shells, anise to black licorice, steeped, dark fruit teas, mint/eucalyptus, dry crushed rocks, leather, tobacco, graphite, used charcoal, dark liqueur and cola, dry herbs with dark, red, blue, purple, fresh & withering flowers accented with lavender.

The body is rich, lush, ruby, statin, velvety and thick. The tannins are rounded & softened but, still speaking loudly. The structure, tension, length and balance are in a very good place. This wine has legs to stand for another 5-10 years depending on how you enjoy them. Stewed, candied & baked fruits of; blackberries, black plum, black cherry extract, black raspberries deep blue fruits, purple fruit blend, haunting raspberries with poached strawberries as it sets. Loads of baking spices; clove, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla. Dark spice with good palate heat, dark chocolate, sweet tarriness, mocha, caramel, walnut shells, anise to black licorice, steeped, dark fruit teas, mint/eucalyptus, dry crushed rocks, dry top soil, slightly, moist clay, pronounced, fine volcanic minerals, leather, tobacco, graphite, used charcoal, dark liqueur and cola, dry herbs with dark, red, blue, purple, fresh & withering flowers accented with lavender. The acidity is round & exquisite. The long finish is; well balanced fruit & earth, very complexity, rich, delicious and persists endlessly.

Photos of; Stephanie Jones Bailey, Rick and Elaine Jones, Estate view, their Cabernet fruit close to harvest and vineyard staff managing fruit clusters & leafing.

Producer notes...they were founded in 1996. Jones Family Vineyards specializes in estate grown Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc. Thomas Rivers Brown makes their wines, two Cabernet wines...Jones Family Vineyards Estate Cabernet Sauvignon and The Sisters. TRB also makes an extremely limited production of aged Sauvignon Blanc that is cellared for over 3 years in barrel and bottle.

Jones Family has ten acres of south facing vineyards that lie 600 to 800 feet off the valley floor, resting above the fog line, an ideal altitude for growing Cabernet in the Napa Valley area.

@Paul T- Huntington Beach FYI. — 7 years ago