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About Me

Hi, I'm Jim. I'm not a wine professional or critic. But I am a geek who loves wine. For me, half the fun of wine is learning about the grapes, the vineyards, the winemaking, the history behind the bottle. I'm drawn to old vines, indigenous grapes, single vineyard bottlings, field blends and anything else that makes a wine distinctive. On this blog I share my thoughts and tasting notes on the wines I drink and what I learn about them along the way.

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If you want to connect with me beyond leaving comments, email me at jim [at] vinegeek [dot] com

Mourvèdre Monday #23: Becker Vineyards Prairie Rotie 2007

Mourvèdre Monday finally makes it to Texas. Becker is a big name in the Texas wine scene. I’ve tried quite a few of their wines over the years with mixed results. I had high hopes for their “Prairie Rotie” — a Southern Rhône blend of Mourvèdre, Grenache, Syrah and Carignan (though the name is a [...]

Mourvèdre Monday #21: Cline Cashmere 2008

I always look forward to opening another bottle of wine from Cline Cellars. Cashmere is their GSM blend (Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre) and in their latest release – the 2008 –  they’ve upped the share of Mourvèdre in the blend. Your favorite blogger’s favorite grape is now the lead dog at 44%. (Let’s all pretend [...]

Hess Allomi Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

Hess has produced a number of bottles that have been noted as great values by the big wine publications in the past few years. When I saw this single-vineyard Napa Cab on sale at my local supermarket, I thought I’d give it a try.
Note to wineries: putting the vineyard name(s) on the bottle always makes [...]

Mourvèdre Monday #20: Bonny Doon Mourvèdre 2004

Opening one of Randall Grahm’s wines is always an event for me. I had the 2003 version of this wine in my cellar for 4 or 5 years before I gave in to temptation and pulled the cork; I was not disappointed. Though this is a 2004, I didn’t have to cellar it for half [...]

Vistalba Corte B 2005 Mendoza

This wine was another Costco pick-up. The 92-point review from Wine Spectator and the $17 price tag grabbed my attention. (I know, I know, points don’t matter…) Then the all-Spanish label added some intrigue (I couldn’t even tell what the grape varieties were). So I pulled the trigger just to see what this wine was [...]

Mourvèdre Monday #11: Cline Ancient Vines 2008

If memory serves, Cline’s was the very first varietal Mourvèdre I ever tasted, way back in the mid-90s in the tasting room. If it wasn’t the first, it was certainly the one that made me take notice of the grape. It’s been an old favorite ever since.
Producer: Cline Cellars
Grapes: 100% Mourvèdre
Appellation: Contra Costa County (AVA, [...]

6th Sense Syrah 2007: I See Fruit Bombs

Producer: Michael~David Winery
Grapes: 84% Syrah and 16% Petite Sirah
Appellation: Lodi (AVA, California)
Vineyards: no info
Vintage: 2007
Winemaking: The wine spent 20 months in French oak (% new unknown)
Alcohol: 15%
Price: $17 at the online store
My tasting notes: The wine starts off with sweet blueberry and blackberry cobbler aromas along with smoke and tobacco notes. It actually reminds me [...]

Chateau Raspail 2007 Gigondas

My apologies in advance for the sketchy details on this bottle. There’s not much info on it to be found online. I’ve had a draft of this post sitting around for a while and I didn’t think I’d bother posting it, but I’ve been sick for a while and haven’t been drinking any wine so [...]

Two Angels Petite Sirah 2006

Producer: Two Angels
Grapes: 100% Petite Sirah
Appellation: High Valley. This is an AVA within the Lake County AVA in California.
Vineyard: The grapes are sourced from Shannon Ridge Vineyards at nearly 2200 feet, which they claim are the highest in California. (It’s not called High Valley for nothing.)  Soils are volcanic and gravelly. A nice bit of [...]

Oddball Wine of the Week: Petite Petit

Michael~David Winery Petite Petit 2007 Lodi
This wine was a press sample provided by Michael~David Winery.
Which came first the name or the wine? That’s what I wonder when see that this wine is called Petite Petit for it’s combination of Petite Sirah and Petit Verdot (and oddball blend to be sure). Clever name, but is that [...]

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