Sphaerics pt 1

 I am excited to have my first sampling of wines from this new label. 

Sphaerics is a project by my former boss, Brian Ball, now GM at Skipstone, and wife Laura Jones, Skipstone winemaker since 2022. 

Laura was assistant winemaker for 5 years at Aubert. She has also gained experience at Cliff Lede and Domaine Armand Rousseau in Gevrey-Chambertin.

Their first release in 2022 garnered high praise from Jeb Dunnuck, Owen Bargreen and Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and as an ardent Chardonnay fan, I was anxious to get to try the wine. 

I got two of the wines from the 2023 vintage and am first exploring here, the 2023 Overline, from Carneros. 

It has a focused nose of fruit, unencumbered by loads of new oak and malolactic influence. There is a lovely briny quality along with noticeable minerality over lifted floral notes and aromas of nectarine, white peach and Mandarin orange with whiffs of white pepper. 

It has a racy entry with excellent acidity to accompany a lithe texture and plenty of verve and tension. This is definitely crafted with deference to a more Burgundian "architecture" achieving ripeness without being heavy or leaning too into tropical flavors and lushness, but with plenty of freshness and vibrancy. 

It is youthful, but already shows plenty of stone fruit character lifted by lemon and Buddah's hand zest with a slightly chalky undertone and a tinge of meringue-like sweetness that amplifies the fruit character. It's a gorgeous wine, deftly balanced in its delicacy and restraint. 

This is a wine I can readily and enthusiastically recommend to folks who love a leaner, fruit-forward style of Chardonnay that provides lusciousness without becoming flabby or simply, good Burgundy. 

Capture the peak- 2019 Pine Mountain Merlot

 This brand has had a fascinating evolution. Began originally by the late Denis Malbec and his wife May-Britt, it was a Bordeaux-inspired range of high elevation reds from the Cloverdale Peak area. I'd had some in the past and they were always delicious. Once I began working within The Spire Collection, I still enjoyed pouring and tasting the library vintages that Denis had crafted, that were acquired along with the brand by Jackson Family Wines. If memory serves, Denis' last vintage was 2012 and Graham Weerts oversaw the 2013 vintage. 

As the brand was entering in renaissance in 2015, winemaker Sam Teakle took over crafting these wines. The label has always provided a delicious Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Since my departure, more varietals are now on offer. On a visit to Spire within the last year, I was struck by this wine, so had to take some home. 

This vineyard sits at 2866' elevation atop Pine Mountain, in Cloverdale at the top of the Mayacamas range. 

It has a dark, brooding nose of Luxardo cherries, shaved cocoa, Marionberry, black currant and Kirsch. There are also underlying hints of clove, espresso and pine resin along with sueded leather.

It has an interesting black cherry cola entry quickly balanced by marked minerality of slate and granite.  There is a lovely grilled herb quality underlying black plum, blackberry, black cherry and acai. It has nice verve and acidity and has youthful, grippy yet polished tannin. 

In addition to Sam's varied world-wide experience, working with Graham at Stonestreet and the "master of Merlot" himself, Christopher Carpenter at Cardinale and Lokoya, his deftness with Cab and Merlot is apparent. 

This is a serious wine, yet at a very affordable price point given its pedigree. I highly recommend this and others by Sam. 

2022 Maggy Hawk Skycrest Vineyard Chardonnay

 Since this wine was added to the MH lineup, I have enjoyed it. It's a wine that offers nicely balanced fruit and vibrancy with a bit of weight and texture. 

For those who like a "Goldilocks zone" Chardonnay, Mendocino County is a good place to start. This is a much, from that region. 

It enters with lovely aromas of peaches and cream. Piecrust spices underlie nice notes of baked apples and pears, fresh tangerine and citrus. 

It begins how it ends, with lovely structure. There is a gorgeous balance of acidity and texture. There is richness in the ripeness of the fruit and from barrel and fermentation style, but it is kept in check with nice acid. For me, it sits in the sweet spot of being a nice Chard with the best of both worlds. 

Flavors follow the aromas of peaches and cream, apple/pear tart, tangerine, Mandarin and subtle lemon influence all over roasted vanilla bean, fresh baked piecrust and a subtle hazelnut character. 

Very nice and imminently food friendly. I recommend this wine, readily. 

A celebrity... Pursued by bear.

I'd been curious about the Pursued by Bear wines since learning about them.

 Proprietor/actor Kyle MacLachlan has been making wines from his home of Washington state for nearly two decades. I am always curious about a "celebrity wine", but he seems to really enjoy wine, so would at least have a passion to make a quality product. I'd say, he very much does. 

2023 Twin Bear Yakima Valley Chardonnay-

Fairly subtle nose on this wine. Hints of apple, pear and citrus with suggestions of spice.

It has lively acidity that awakens the palate to more delicate flavors of golden and MacIntosh apple, D'Anjou pear and barely ripe white peach all accented by Meyer lemon and hints of pie crust. 

It's a nice wine to simply sip and enjoy without too much focus or contemplation. Simply, wonderfully balanced and very tasty. Those who like leaner Chard with zippy acidity will be pleased with this wine. As such, it's sure to be super food-friendly.

Barnett Vineyards flight of 4

 I got to try a nice 4-wine flight of the current lineup from Barnett Vineyards. 

2023 Sangiacomo Vineyard Carneros Chardonnay- aromas of fresh apple and pear tart. Poached fruit over a frame of baking spice and flaky pastry crust. Hints of briny sea air and white pepper. Faint suggestions of gardenia. It has nice texture without feeling weighty or unctuous, balanced by nice moderate acidity. Layered flavors of apple and pear fruit with some citrus peel accents and pie crust with nutmeg and vanilla. It's a CA Chard that lies nicely in the middle ground between minerality and butter with plenty of fruit character and nice, judicious use of oak and ML. 

2023 Tina Marie Vineyard, Green Valley of the Russian River Valley- The youth of this wine has it feeling super oaky upon opening and pouring. This will require a decant of an hour or more to let the strong oak influence on the nose die down. After a while, aromas emerged of pomegranate, boysenberries, black cherry and plum along with a dusty minerality and cocoa powder with leafy accents. On the palate, there is an interesting clay pot suggestion, with tart red fruits like cranberry and pomegranate along with currant and black cherry. There are also flavor accents of black tea, dried violets, slight clove and blueberry juice. It finishes with nice balancing acidity on flavors of kirsch. 

2022 Merlot Spring Mtn.- Nose of black cherry, red and black currant and a graphite/iron minerality over slight hints of cinnamon graham. It has nice texture from the entry, throughout. A good streak of acidity keeps it lively on the palate with red plum, cherries, blackberry and red and black currant. There are subtle notes of dark cocoa and vanilla with some stone minerality and a touch of bay leaf. It is velvety on the tongue without being heavy and lingers long with a pleasant fruit-driven aftertaste. 

2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate (Spring Mtn)- On the nose, this Cabernet has a nice, focused varietal purity with loads of cassis and blackberry. There is a bit of barrel influence underpinning the fruit with hints of espresso, cocoa and cedar. It has nice verve even at 14.8% alc, and the fruit provides freshness throughout. There is balancing acidity to fine-grained tannins giving it nice grip while having a smooth texture. Lovely floral suggestions on the palate with flavors of blackcurrant, blackberry, boysenberry and black cherry. On the midpalate, suggestions emerge of dark chocolate mousse and damp earth with a roasty quality. 

James Suckling's Wines of the World SF 2025

 This was my first visit to this event. 

Pluses:

Each station was independent with a clearly marked table number "flag" and display of the winery on the front of the unit. It made things super easy to locate. 

It might have been a requirement of the wineries attending, but it was nice that they were pouring the actual 100-pt and other high-scoring wines, so it didn't feel like some bait and switch. 

There was a nice range of represented wineries and regions, some of whom I had scarcely or never seen at other similar events. 

Minuses:

Perhaps due more to the layout of the top floor of the Gateway Pavilion at Fort Mason, the narrow hallways got super congested at times with folks lining up at some more "famous" tables and folks trying to simply get by/through. 

Food was scarce. I didn't even get to see what was being served as it was gone both times I walked by that station. 

I am a fairly avid notetaker and it's my own fault I didn't bring a pad, hoping that the event would have booklets for making notes. They had mostly just a picket size floorplan and listing. That said, I didn't get to jot down any impressions, so am going from memory here. I took to photographing the wines I most enjoyed, in most cases.

We decided to beat the crowds and likelihood of running out of wine early, so we started at Louis Latour. It's never wrong to begin with Corton Charlemagne. Both the 2022 Charlemagne and the Corton Grancey Grand Cru were absolutely delicious with wonderful verve and balance. 

From there, on to Chalone. The winemaker was there, but I didn't take advantage to ask any questions. Their 2022 estate Chardonnay is great and I have long been a fan of this house with both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. There is a reason they have such a long, storied history and the quality remains high. The Pinot is also worth seeking out. 

On this occasion, I quite enjoyed the 2022 Willamette Valley Sisters Chardonnay from Lingua Franca. I found the Pinot Noir to be nice, but made in such a lean style that I feel I've had enjoyed it more with some food. 

A delightful find, were both the 2021 Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from Patagonia, made by Otronia. Prior to this, I was unaware of this brand. Very nice wines. 

Another new discovery were the Corbieres Blanc 2023 and Corbieres Grand Reserve 2019 from Chateau de Lastours in the south of France. 

A lovely and refreshing Albarino came from Garzon Single Vineyard 2023. They also offered a Garzon Balasto tannat, which was nice, though bracing after such a fresh and fruity wine. 

I am sorry that I missed Erdevik as they seemed interesting, but the day got away from me. They, after all, had a Shiraz called "Stifler's Mom". 

We'd intended to hit sparklers mid-way to be a palate refresher, but the only two dedicated sparkling houses had massive lines/waits. I went for the shorter line and enjoyed the Blanc de Blancs from Delamotte. I don't care as much about Cristal, but do enjoy Roederer, but the line never really died down, so I skipped this one to spend more time tasting new wines. 

Another fun find was that by Chateau Plain Pont who has a bottle shape and label reminiscent of Haut Brion. They had a nice, texturally complex Sauvignon Blanc 2022 and the Fronsac 2019 was also nice. 

Also notable was the El Enemigo Cabernet Franc El Cepillo Mendoza Gran Enemigo Single VY 2021.

Zapata also had insane lines, so I opted to seek exploration elsewhere. I hit Domaine de Chevalier too late in the event, so the BDX Blanc was gone, but got the last little sip of the 2015 rouge. Very tasty and still youthful. 

I hit Pio Cesare too early, so was glad to revisit later on. Both the 2020 Barolo and Barolo Onato were gorgeous, though need quite a bit of time. 

This was my first exposure to VIK, with two stellar wines. Both the Valle de Cachapoal VIK 2021 and La Piu Belle 2021 were truly outstanding. 

Another I thought best to hit early were Christian Moueix wines. It was fun tasting side by side and you'll notice a big lack of CA listed here. As I live and work in Napa, I opted to skip many of those as I am more than familiar. Here, an absolutely gorgeous Premier Grand Cru Classe St. Emilion 2019 from Chateau Belair Monange. Next to it, the 2021 Ulysses form Oakville. Both stunning. 

I hadn't had Matthews for years and their 2000 Bordeaux-inspired "red" transfixed me years back. Both the Cabernet and Cuvee were very nice.

Two 100-pt wines from Valdicava here and deservedly so. 2019 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Montosoli and Riserva Madonna Del Piano 2019. Beautiful wines, both.

I missed the Chateau Smith-Haut-Lafitte, but was anxious to try their newer Napa project, Cathiard, so I broke my no-Napa rule for this. Very nice wine here. 

Another new wine that I was anxious to try for the first time was the big and bold 2021 Beckstoffer Las Piedras Cabernet from Annulus.

A really surprising wine was the Pinot Bianco from Cantina Terlan from Alto Adige. This was the 2021 Vorberg Riserva, and very delicious. 

 

Another surprising wine was the Kerner from Cantina Valle Iscaro from Alto Adige called Aristos from the 2022 vintage.

It'd been years since I have tasted Freeman, and enjoyed both Pinots here, but I think my favorite of the two was 2021 Gloria Estate from Green Valley RRV.

Chateau Cantemerle 2015 was showing nice at 9 years of age, as was that from Chateau Lascombes from 2018.

I was completely unaware of Germany-in-Willamette, but was pleasantly surprised by a nice Pinot Noir from Apassionata Dundee Hills Andante 2017. This is a Dr Loosen project. 

Both wines were quite nice from Famiglia Cotarella in Le Macioche Brunello di Montalcino 2018 and Lazio Montiano 2020.

Another nice treat was from a 3L of Campogiovanni 2016 Il Quercione Brunello di Montalcino. 

Continuing with Brunello, I enjoyed both from La Rasina with the 2016 Il Divasco Riserva and 2019 Brunello. Another nice pair was from Uccelliera with their 2020 Brunello and 2019 Riserva. Both were also very, very good from Argiano with the 2020 Brunello and 2021 Toscana Solengo. 

Switching to Chianti, I enjoyed both the offerings from Barone Ricasoli; the 2021 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Castello di Brolio and Gran Selezione Colledila 2021. Another great Chianti Classico came in the form of Maggiolo 2022 by Lamole di Lamole. 

Also from Tuscany, the Corbaia 2021 Toscana from Castello di Bossi was very tasty and the Cabernet Franc Filare 18 2021 Toscana from Casadei.

I tend to steer away from Argentine Malbec in many cases, as it's just rarely my thing. I was reminded they can be quite delicious with both the Nieto Senetiner wines; Malbec Mendoza Don Nicanor Barrel Select 2021 and Malbec Lujan de Cuyo Villa Blanca Estate 2021. Another delicious example was the Doña Paula Malbec Mendoza Gualtallary Seleccion de Bodega 2021 and in addition, a very tasty Cabernet Franc in the Mendoza Altitude Series 1350 from 2021. 

Another nice reminder of Argentine Malbec came from two wines from Colomé. From Salta, both the Malbec Altos Valles Calchaquies Altura Maxima 2019 and Valle Calchaqui Estate 2022 were quite good. 

Two very nice Right Bank wines came from Chateau Tour Saint Christophe St. Emilion 2020 and Chateau La Patache Pomerol 2020.

Another nice treat was to try two different wines by the same house in different regions. Bodegas Valdemar offered a tasty Rioja in their Conde Valdemar Gran Reserva 2017 and very delicious Valdemar Estates Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 from Walla Walla Valley, WA. 

Some of my top wines and more-than-welcome introductions were to these great wines/houses.

 Juve & Camps Cava Reserva de la Familia Gran Reserve Brut Nature 2018 and Pagos de Anguix Ribera del Duero Costalara 2020- outstanding quality and a tremendous value for the price!

The 2020 Ao Yun Shangri-La from Yunnan China. 

Prats & Symington- These were gorgeous, elegant wines that I very much enjoyed, possibly more excitedly than any other "find". If you can find these, I highly recommend 2022 Douro Post Scriptum de Chryseia and 2021 Douro Chryseia.

Naturally some of the usual suspects offered delicious wines, including Almaviva Puente Alto 2022, Clos Apalta with 2021 Le Petit Clos and 2021 Valle de Apalta.