Tag Archives: Cabernet Sauvignon

Christmas Dinner with Penfolds 389 2012 South Australia

Posted on December 25, 2015 by waywardwine

So this is Christmas, and my wife has baked a feast of field roast, potatoes, yams, carrots, mushrooms and cranberry sauce. We just happened to have a bottle of Penfolds 389: a nearly equal parts cabernet sauvignon and shiraz blend … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Australia, Cabernet Sauvignon, fermentation, grapes, Penfolds, Shiraz, wine | Leave a comment

Vancouver Visit Leaves for Backyard Vineyards in Fraser Valley

Posted on January 27, 2015 by waywardwine

With one “dry” weather day left in Vancouver, we hike the interior of Stanley Park. We feel like lost hobbits in this endless glade.

Dog walkers disappear as we delve deeper. Misty and free of the city’s steel, we find something odd. Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged backyard vineyards, bc, british columbia, Cabernet Sauvignon, Canada, pinot noir, Sparkling wine, Stanley Park, Vancouver, wine | 4 Comments

Caymus Vineyards, 40th Anniversary, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, California 2012

Posted on June 2, 2014 by waywardwine

Three generations and forty years on, Caymus lucked out with 2012. The vintage seemed completely tailored to their style. Up and down Napa Valley it was sunny, dry, and not drought-ridden as recently. All their lazy grapes got to stay on the vine (usually they drop lesser fruit).

Now Caymus likes a late harvest. More time lowers acids and tannins but risks rot, damage, or excessive alcohol. But weather allowed them to wait until Halloween to pick (madness in California). Their grape haul doubled 2011’s. So much ripe Cabernet resulted that they didn’t have to blend others. 17 months in half new barrels, mostly French with some from Missouri. Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged 40th Anniversary, Cabernet Sauvignon, Caymus, Caymus Vineyards, Napa Valley, Wagner, wine | 2 Comments

Graves Open Doors 3: Château Caillivet in Bordeaux

Posted on February 3, 2014 by waywardwine

Today continues our exploration of Graves: Bordeaux’s diverse, left-bank, value region that struggles in the shadow of famed and pricier Haut-Médoc. A white van has toured us around the village of Langon, visiting its wineries for free (this is an EU Austerity Drinking Tour after all).

We leave “Château” la Croix’s rustic charm. A new driver asks for our next winery. The local girls say something. I blankly agree. But my wife’s glare cuts me down.

“They don’t like you”, she growls. “I know. But it doesn’t really matter which winery we go to.” “Yes, but you choose one, they don’t want us around”. “Fine”. Angry, tipsy, and both of us sick and stuffy we continue to whisper/fight. Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bordeaux, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chateau Caillivet, Château la Croix, France, Haut-Médoc, Langon, Medoc, merlot, Oak, wine | 5 Comments

Mähler-Besse “Cheval Noir” Grand Vin, Saint-Émilion, Bordeaux, France 2009

Posted on January 23, 2014 by waywardwine

It is Thursday. Work-weariness be damned. I could use a drink.

Since we reached Bordeaux with Monday’s EU Austerity Drinking Tour, nostalgic, I decide to crack open a Bordelaise stateside. Tonight’s entry derives from Saint-Emilion: famed sub-region on the Dordogne River’s right bank.

The world drinks and grows Merlot because of Saint-Émilion. Veins remain in its chalky cliffs, cut by Roman vine roots nearly two millennia ago. Sideways may have tarnished the grape and drunk Cheval Blanc from a paper cup. But wines from Saint-Émilion steadfastly remain the most expensive and collected worldwide.

Tonight, we drink 2009’s Cheval Noir (no relation to the famed Blanc). Continue reading →