SOLD OUT

One of the most famous appellations of Bordeaux, Chateau de Pez is situated in the western part of Saint Estèphe and the property covers roughly 118 acres on a high plateau.  Gravel (1m deep) over bedrock of limestone and clay.  A historic vineyard, it was owned by the founders between the 15th century until the French Revolution; it is currently owned by Roederer.  Chateau de Pez is one of six distinguished 'Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnels'. 

Joseph Drouhin is one of Burgundy's most important wine producers.  1966 was generally a very good vintage in Burgundy; this is a top example. Simple, elegant aromas of delicate red fruit.  Cold winter and spring, disappointing summer, then stunning Indian summer in September.   Organic, biodynamic.

Sauternes is a village 40 miles south of Bordeaux city, famous for producing some of the world's most prestigious, long-lived and expensive dessert wines; Noble Rot develops reliably here.  When aged, it turns a deep amber with aromas of blossom and stone fruit, hint of honeysuckle (trademark of botyrtized wines).  Total estate production is 38,000 bottles.

The vintages are entirely destemmed to avoid tannin and green flavors; fermentation is carefully controlled in stainless steel with daily pump-overs (10 days).  

#6 on Wine Spectator's Top 100.  Margaux is an important appellation, about 15 miles to the north of the town of Bordeaux.  Chateau Margaux is one of of Bordeaux's most famous wine estates (along with Lafite, Latour and Haut-Brion).  A particularly cold and wet winter & spring, followed by a long, hot and extremely dry summer with some vines experiencing drought stress.  Much-needed September rains brought some relief however some areas of Bordeaux saw flood damage.  A harvest in late Sept was warm and dry, keeping the vines free of disease.  1986 was an incredibly large harvest, with mixed quality although good examples like this one, with intense, concentrated fruit character, do exist.  

The labels are created by famous artists for each vintage, with Bernard Sejourne, Salvador Mali, Picasso, and John Houston to name a few. The bottles by themselves are collectors’ items, and each wine earns 100 points by all reviewers.  A dark, intense color with a ruby tint, this fine vintage reveals a nose of nuts and prunes made more complex by notes of toffee, peppery spice and cedarwood.  The attack is dense, the tannins forward and tightly-knit, the wine powerful, rich and smooth, displaying an array of jammy fruit, wild berry and blackcurrant liqueur flavors, leading into a finish on notes of toast.  Cabernet Sauvignon (80%), Merlot (10%), Cabernet Franc (8%), Petit Verdot (2%).  

1992:  Smooth and generous, glowing with blackberry and currant flavor that echoes on the supple finish. A fruit-centered Pinot Noir that is graceful enough to drink now. 3,000 cases made.  The winery is owned by Maison Joseph Drouhin and released its first vintage in 1988.  1992 was the hottest year to-date in Oregon's winemaking history; harvested early- to mid-September.  Very fruit forward.

1994: Short, dry and warm harvest with moderately high alcohol and seen by many as the best vintage to date.  Very small yields and production, driest growing season to date.  Wines with higher acidity aged better, most were consumed in their youth.  Firm & focused, bit of chewiness with finely grained tannins.  Peppery blackberry, 6,200 cases made.

Extended skin contact, 6 gentle barrel-to-barrel rackings, 19 months French Oak, unfiltered to retain depth and texture.  18,000 cases made, rich and harmonious, supple with lively red berry flavors.  Cabernet Sauvignon (91%), Merlot (6%), Cabernet Franc (3%).

Buena Vista is the second oldest vineyard/winery in California, founded in 1857 and is considered to be the godfather to California cabernet.  Luscious, ripe cassis and berry flavors.  1,100 cases made.  Dark cherry and plum flavors, compact and concentrated, pretty aftertaste of spicy currant and wild berry.  Carneros AVA is between Sonoma and Napa.  Mostly the territory of chardonnay and pinot noir (Tattinger and Ferrer have invested in sparkling wine production here); very little Cabernet Sauvignon is grown, except in the  warmer pockets on the Napa side.  Vintage art series label describes 1993's erratic growing conditions.  

A leading estate to the west of Margaux in the Moulis-en-Medoc appellation.  One of six Crus Exceptionnels in the 1932 Cru Bourgeois classification (until that was annulled in 2007).  Very dense plantings (10,000 vines per hectare), different varieties are fermented in stainless steel or epoxy-lined concrete vats of 18,000 liters then aged up to 18 months in barriques.  Dark, bright red, notes of fresh plum and cocoa, mint, leather and blackberries.  Elegant and fruity, with currant, berry and violet character.  

Condor is a limited production wine from Elk Cove's premier vineyard, La Bohème.  These are wines that were never made available to the general public.  Handcrafted at every step, with all proceeds being contributed to a hunger relief program in Peru.  60 cases produced from 27-32 year old vines.  Aged 10 months in French oak.  Whole cluster fermentation, spicy, black fruit.