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Angels' Share Wines 
Look for this name! We are
bringing in some very special California wines in limited quantities. Angels’
Share Wines is a company founded by Mark Snyder, a sound expert who designs the
acoustics for Billy Joel and several well known rock groups. Always passionate
about wine, Mark was introduced by some of his celebrity contacts to Bob Foley
and a few other wine makers who introduced him to some of the small “garage”
wineries in Napa Valley. He also met several cult winemakers who, in addition to
their regular jobs, make high quality, limited production wines. Think
winemakers and vineyards associated with such prestigious wineries as Behrens
& Hitchcock, Bryant Family, Turley, Tofanelli, Stags’ Leap Winery, Colgin,
Caymus, Duckhorn, Grace, Whitehall Lane, Vineyard 29, and Montelena!
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TuTu Pinot Grigio, Napa Valley, 2005
($15.99) - Wierd name, pretty label, pretty wine! This is a venture by
partners Rob Lawson (winemaker) and Jeff Smith (Hourglass Winery).
Production was 1500 cases. The label was designed by local Napa artist
Jeff Ellsworth. The wine shows delicious and ripe fruit flavors along
with a surprisingly good finish.
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Hundred
Acre “California Gold,” 2005 ($31.99) - Proprietor Jayson
Woodbridge and winemaker Philippe Melka get mid-90 ratings for their
stunning (and very expensive) Cabernet. They also make this wonderful
white wine from Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, and Viognier. Philippe
blends them to make a wine that is reminiscent of Caymus Conundrum,
only much better! Unlike Conundrum, it sees no oak or malolactic
fermentation, so you enjoy fresh, clean, pure, and elegant fruit
flavors. It is highly aromatic, barely off-dry, and wonderfully
expressive on the palate with freshness and acidity. And the small
amount of 24K gold flakes floating in the bottle makes this a
conversation piece. Truly yummy stuff!
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Five
Vintners Zinfandel, 2002 ($19.99) - Krisi Raymond, the fifth
generation winemaker whose wonderful Cabernet was written up last
month, also makes this fine Zin. Only 989 cases were produced from 60%
Napa and 40% Sonoma (Mauritson Vineyard in Dry Creek Valley) fruit.
Like her Cabernet, this is a great value.
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Esca Cabernet Sauvignon, 2004
($29.99) - A great Cabernet value! Esca means ‘allurement’ in
Italian, and this alluring wine was made by Anna and Mario Monticelli
who met at UC Davis while earning their degrees in Viticulture and
Enology. Anna worked at Chateau Cheval Blanc in St. Emilion and Bryant
Family in Napa, while Mario interned at Antinori in Tuscany before
they began making their own wines (Cab and Syrah) in Napa. This is
their third vintage using grapes grown on the western hillsides of St.
Helena in the Spring Mountain AVA. Only 800 cases of this 100%
Cabernet were produced. The wine spent 21 months in French oak. It is
dark, rich, and concentrated. The nose reveals ripe currant and
blackberry aromas intermixed with hints of cedar and sage. The wine is
well structured with good acidity and soft tannins. And yes, Virginia,
it comes with a screw-cap!
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Tamber
Bey Vineyards Two Rivers Cabernet, 2004/2005 ($34.99)
- Don’t worry that this is a 2004; it is already delicious! Tamber
Bey is an exciting new project using vineyards owned by Barry and
Carol Waitte, vineyard management by Josh Clark, and the immense wine
making talent of Thomas Brown who began at Turley and also consults
with Outpost, Chiarello, Shrader, and Nicholson Ranch. Only 600 cases
were produced from 80% Cabernet and 20% Merlot grapes grown east of
Yountville in Napa Valley. Most Angels’ Share wines are expensive,
but this is not. It’s very serious for its price (www.tamberbey.com).
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Schrader
Cellars Double Diamond Beckstoffer Amber Knolls Vineyard (Red Hills,
Lake County) Cabernet Sauvignon, 2003 ($33.99)
- Fred Schrader gained fame in the wine world in 1992 when he and Ann
Colgin produced the Colgin Schrader Cabernet from Herb Lamb Vineyard
on Howell Mountain. Fred’s Double Diamond series features wines from
mountain vineyards. Like the Mayacamus bottling, this one shows the
incredible concentration and balance of mountain-grown fruit. It
tastes like a much more expensive Cabernet!
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Five
Vinters Wines Cabernet Sauvignon, 2003 ($34.99)
- The name refers to the fact that Krisi Raymond is a fifth generation
winemaker. Her Great-Grandfather was Jacob Beringer (yes that
Beringer). Her father is Roy Raymond (yes that Raymond). Krisi
obviously grew up around wine production and has a real passion for
producing high quality, varietally correct wines at extraordinary
values. Only 620 cases of this 100% Cabernet were produced from grapes
sourced mostly in St. Helena and Rutherford. Joel’s tasting notes:
“Wow! Great value!! Soft, open knit, but deep and rich. Fleshy and
sexy.”
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Orin-Swift Cellars “Prisoner,” 2005
($34.99) - Wine
Spectator: 93
Top 100 wines of 2007 "A delicious wine offering zesty wild berry, spice, and fresh
tobacco, with focused and well-structured blackberry flavors. Plush,
rich, and concentrated, with wonderful focus. Zanfandel, Cabernet
Sauvignon, Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Charbono. Drink now through 2011."
Winemaker
Dave Phinney works with legendary grower Vince Tofanelli who sells
grapes to Turley. This is the fifth vintage of a wine that began
serendipitously. As Dave tells it, “In the ever-popular harvest of
2000, we had three main ‘challenges’ in the winery: a Zinfandel
with too much stuffing, a Cabernet Sauvignon with not enough stuffing,
and a series of beautiful small lots of Zin, Charbono, and Petite
Sirah that represented a bottling nightmare. Solution, throw them all
together and see what happens. As it turned out, we had ourselves a
pretty darn nice blend.” The
2005 Prisoner is 48% Zinfandel, 26% Cabernet, 14% Syrah, 10%
Petite Sirah, and 2% Charbono from Tofanelli, Morisoli, and a few
other high quality sources in Napa. This excellent wine
is big and bold. It makes a major fruit statement. And at 15.2%
alcohol, it takes no prisoners! Delicious!! Check out www.orinswift.com
for the full and charming story.
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Nicholson
Ranch Pinot Noir Estate, 2004
& 2005
($37.99)
- This is a phenomenal Carneros Pinot for the price. Producing
high-end Pinot Noir requires that everything be just right: soil,
climate, moderate yields, small batches, careful handling of the
grapes, and great care and experience in the winery. Only 760 cases of
this wine were made from Dijon clones 113, 114, 667, and 777. Thomas
Brown, an extremely talented winemaker who previously worked as
assistant winemaker at Turley, shows his deft hand with this wine. It
has that wonderful bouquet found only in the best Pinots. This wine is
soft in texture, rich in fruit, and elegant in style. It shows
Burgundian influences along with California ripeness. When just poured
from the bottle, it gets better and better in the glass, so I would
suggest decanting it for an hour.
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Favia Leviathan 2005 ($46.99) -
This wine is like the "Prisoner" on steroids. Which is
amazing because the "Prisoner" is a huge wine.
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Angel’s
Share: Harmonique Pinot Noir “The Noble One,” 2003
($54.99) - With deep color (for Pinot Noir) and fine depth of fruit,
this is a fabulous Pinot from the Klindt vineyard in Mendocino’s
cool Anderson Valley. David Klindt was the wine maker. Only 370 cases
of this very serious wine were produced from David Bruce cuttings of
Dijon clones 113, 115, 667, and 777. It shows the balance, structure,
ripeness, and mouth feel of great Pinot Noir.
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Hestan
Vineyards Meyer Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa, 2004 ($57.99) -
Hestan Vineyards is located in eastern Napa at the base of Okell Hill.
It was purchased and planted in 1996 by Hong Kong-born Stanley and
Helen Cheng. Mr. Cheng is the chairman of Meyer Corp., a manufacturer
of cookware brands such as Farberware, Circulon, and KitchenAid. Their
flagship “Estate” wine is a mere $110 per bottle. The rejected
grapes go into this “Meyer” bottling, but the difference between
the two wines is very slight. This wine spent 18 months in 50% new
French oak. Winemaker Mark Herold also makes the wines at Merus,
Buccella, and Harris. Wine Spectator on the 2003: 92 “Firm, intense, and
concentrated, with complex blackberry, tobacco, cassis, and anise
flavors that are tightly wound and sharply focused, finishing with
chewy tannins and a delicious burst of fruit. Best from 2008-2012.” This
is a gorgeous wine made from very low yields, and it was neither
fined nor filtered.
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Tamber
Bey Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville (Napa), 2003 ($59.99) - If you
like Caymus, you’ll love this wine! This is the big brother of the
Tamber Bey Two Rivers Cab that we’ve had for a few months. The
vineyard is owned by the Waitte family. Vineyard manager Josh Clark
and winemaker Thomas Brown teamed up to make this excellent wine. It
spent 18 months in 50% new French oak. A miniscule 300 cases were
produced!
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Schrader
Cellars Double Diamond Mayacamas Cabernet Sauvignon, 2003 ($58.99)
- Fred Schrader gained fame in the wine world in 1992 when he and Ann
Colgin produced the Colgin Schrader Cabernet from Herb Lamb Vineyard
on Howell Mountain. Fred’s small vineyard on the Sonoma side of the
Mayacamas Mountain range is planted exclusively to Clone 337 of
Cabernet Sauvignon. With only 225 cases produced, this wine shows the
incredible concentration and balance of mountain-grown fruit. A
winner!
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Trespass Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, 2001 ($59.99) -
Trespass vineyard, which lies west of Highway 29 near Spottswood, was
given its name because the locals cut through it as a shortcut to
Madrona Ave. The wine is made at Viader under the extremely talented
care of Charles Hendricks, who is the winemaker at Viader and Barnett.
Boasting a flamboyant bouquet, this very serious blend of 93% Cab
Sauvignon and 7% Cab Franc possesses great purity and richness with
structure and complexity. Only 530 cases were produced.
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Anomaly Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa, 2003 ($79.99) -
One of California’s great red wines, only 450 cases were made from a
2.2-acre vineyard adjacent to Hayne Vineyard in western St. Helena.
This is the work of Amy Aiken and Mark Porembski who are winemakers at
Behrens & Hitchcock. This fabulous wine, made from Cabernet Clone
7, has it all: flavor, complexity and refinement. Its 14.2% alcohol is
a little higher than the beautifully balanced 2002 was, but it's well
within current norms for Napa Cabernet. Very limited.
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Stanton
Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville, Napa, 2003 ($89.99) - Doug
Stanton is one of Napa Valley’s greatest farmer/growers, providing
fruit for Caymus, Duckhorn, and others. He now sets aside some of his
best fruit which winemaker Dave Phinney turns into one of
California’s best wines. This exceptional, distinctive, and huge
wine is a blend of 93% Cabernet and 7% Petite Verdot. Dave never uses
more than 20% new oak. This wine is expensive, but it is easily the
equal of some famous Napa wines that sell for $125 - $160.
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Sherwin
Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa, 2004 ($94.99) - We've
been waiting for this beauty since we sold out of the 2003. Steve
Sherwin is the brains (and much of the brawn) behind this venture.
Mike Hirby (of Behrens & Hitchcock) is the wine maker.
Approximately 720 cases of this 75% Cabernet (15% Merlot, 10% Cab
Franc) were made at Steve's inovative, gravity-flow winery on Spring
Mountain.
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Robert
Foley Claret, 2005 ($125) - A cult wine. Very limited.

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