• 2003 Chateau Montelena Riesling - Potter Valley, California, USA
  Slightly chalky nose, then Lemon Pledge. The palate is sweet and sugary without much acid.
  
• 2001 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay - Napa Valley, California, USA
  An unwooded Chardonnay, that has to be worth something! Alas, this is somewhat underwhelming. Green apple with light yeastiness and maybe the faintest bit of toast. This has a ripe, oily mouthfeel. Tart, clipped finish. (83 pts.)
  
• 2001 Chateau Montelena Zinfandel Estate - Napa Valley, California, USA
  Very green notes on the nose, somewhat peppery. On the palate, this is simple and sweet with red berry, spicy yet cloying. Alas, the cloying continues onto the long finish. Not my style of Zinfandel.
  
• 2000 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Valley, California, USA
  This is the wine that was called the 'Calistoga Cuvee' in prior vintages. A shy nose of cassis and black currant jam is quickly overwhelmed by green bell pepper. This has reasonable structure, but I'm not a fan. (80 pts.)
  
• 2000 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon Estate - Napa Valley, California, USA
  This was my favorite wine of the tasting. The spicy nose shows faint notes of cedar, somewhat reticent, some deeper notes of cassis are waking up with swirling. The palate is quite awake though, gorgeous and supple with layers of fruit and impeccable balance. This is still quite closed and clearly has a fair amount of structure, and especially on this finish this is obvious as some grippy tannins dominate the finish. I really enjoyed this one. (91 pts.)
  
• 1998 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon Estate - Napa Valley, California, USA
  This has a more mature nose than the 2000 showing black olives and tar, pure cassis, really blossoming out of the glass. The palate is black and brooding with a 'dark complexion,' getting more sweet with air. The depth here is OK but not fantastic. A medium finish starts to gain length and power with air. Even for a 1998, this is pretty tightly wound. (90 pts.)
  

• 2001 Arietta Variation One - Napa Valley, California, USA
  60% Merlot and 40% Syrah. Purchased off the wine list for $120. Wow, this has a knockout nose of violets and black fruit, sooo perfumed! This initially was somewhat sweet, but then the deeper, darker flavors took over. The palate is very structured but so juicy, powerful and nuanced. I really enjoyed this. (92 pts.)
  
• 2002 Robert Foley Charbono - Spring Mountain District, Napa Valley, California, USA
  I had a quick taste of this after lunch. A grapey nose of blackberry. On the palate this has juicy blueberry with raspy tannins and tart acidity. There is a Pride-like hint of brown sugar. Unique. (86 pts.)
  

• 2002 Joseph Phelps Sauvignon Blanc - Napa Valley, California, USA
  95% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Viognier. This has a nice, fresh nose, lemongrass, some ripe, tropical notes. The palate shows prickly acid with fresh mouthfeel. This is more tropical than grassy, lots of ripe melon. Pretty nice. (84 pts.)
  
• 1999 Joseph Phelps Chardonnay - Los Carneros, California, USA
  Deep gold color. Tropical, ripe, some butter, yeast. The palate shows spicy oak that totally overwhelms the almost overripe fruit and rotten mango flavors. This is pretty much everything that I dislike about prototypical Napa Chardonnay. Not rated. No like. (75 pts.)
  
• 1998 Joseph Phelps Le Mistral - Napa Valley, California, USA
  50% Grenache with the remainder of other Southern Rhone varietals, Zinfandel and even Petite Sirah. The nose is slightly brambly with some cherry. The palate tastes like cough syrup, clumsy with lots of alcohol. Fairly gross. How could they pour this? (75 pts.)
  
• 2001 Joseph Phelps Merlot - Napa Valley, California, USA
  Was this an off bottle? It was sweet, almost sickly sweet, sort of a pale shadow of a Pride Merlot with all of the sweetness but none of the intrigue or complexity. The palate has some herbal elements and then finishes like cherry cough syrup. I can't give this a score, undrinkable.
  
• 2001 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Valley, California, USA
  Deep color. This shows green olive, black fruit and some heat. The palate is spicy with nice structure and an interesting vegetal edge. Then this finishes out somewhat cumersome, too sweet with raspy tannins. Perhaps the 2001 Merlot tasted prior dragged my palate down. (84 pts.)
  
• 2000 Joseph Phelps Insignia - Napa Valley, California, USA
  The nose shows roasted plum, cassis, caramel and some black olive. The palate shows dark, sultry fruit, spicy, yet somewhat monolithic and simple for now. The 2000 is one of the few Insignia that is not at the same level as the others. (88 pts.)
  

• 2003 Darioush Viognier - Napa Valley, California, USA
  In the past I had greatly enjoyed the 2001 Viognier, so I was eager to try the 2003 edition. Alas, the nose showed peach and kerosene with ample notes of the 14.8% alcohol. The palate was very sweet, too sweet, like peach nectar. Not rated.
  
• 2003 Darioush Chardonnay - Napa Valley, California, USA
  Wow, this has a LOT of wood, ouch. The wine is cloudy, spicy, everything I hate about Napa Chardonnay.
  
• 2001 Darioush Merlot - Napa Valley, California, USA
  Hot, astringent, lots of harsh wood tannins. Peeking out from beneath this is actually some nice fruit, trapped in a spicy, toasty prison of oak residue. (80 pts.)
  
• 2001 Darioush Shiraz Signature - Napa Valley, California, USA
  The nose shows tar, leather, jammy black fruit. Like the other wines, this has a lot of wood to burn, but this might work out over time, as it has structure and fruit in spades. I enjoyed this wine a LOT more a few months ago with time to aerate, integrate and enjoy with food. The wood treatment is too heavy here, but this is good wine. (87 pts.)
  
• 2000 Darioush Cabernet Sauvignon Signature - Napa Valley, California, USA
  Spicy cedar, cassis. This has nice fruit, but it is SOOO heavily oaked. (84 pts.)
  

• 1994 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande - Pauillac, Medoc, Bordeaux, France
  Wow, this was lovely! A nose of tobacco and barnyard, very black with dust, mineral and roasted earth. Classic claret! The palate shows such stunning silk, roasted fruit, and mineral. This still has plenty of structure on the back end and nice acid, finishing with a long mouthful of tobacco. This wine was at its best right when we popped and poured, and it provided glorious drinking for an hour before starting to shut down a bit. This is really lovely claret. (92 pts.)
  
• 1999 Vérité La Muse - Sonoma County, California, USA
  While the Pichon was singing out of the gates, this bottle got off to a slow start. Cherry liquer with some earth and horsiness. However, with an hour of air and a nice rare steak, OMG, this just exploded. This is my third bottle, and each time it leaves me shaking my head and just what unreal juice it is. (95 pts.)
  

• 1989 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape - Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Southern Rhône, Rhône, France
  Dried herbs, sweet cherry, saddle leather, such a nose! This has a remarkably intense attack, just exploding in your mouth with incredible structure. As we sipped, the glorious flavors of provencale herbs, pine resin, and roasted meat come out. This is still very young, and even with five hours of air this is a little painful with a dry, tannic, mouthcoating finish. (96 pts.)
  
• 2001 Château Lafite Rothschild - Pauillac, Medoc, Bordeaux, France
  From 375ml. We popped and poured this baby, ouch! The nose is almost impenetrable with graphite, minerals and cocoa. With air this is gaining sweetness on the attack. Wow, this has such unreal structure, tart, tight fruit, cranberry, red fruit, dusty, silky tannins, crushingly powerful. This is probably far beyond my ability to evaluate. 91+ (91 pts.)
  
• 2001 Inniskillin Vidal Sparkling Ice Wine - Niagra Peninsula, Ontario, Canada
  This is one of those wines that makes you ask why they made it. It certainly had me questioning why I put it in my mouth. Very odd.
  

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I totally agree with you on Darioush. After the '99 vintage they now use so much oak I can't drink their wines. Who do they think they are, Leonetti?

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The '98 and '00 when the '01 is out and available? Sounds like they're trying to empty out the poor vintages in the tasting room! Can't blame them, but as an experienced taster (and buyer), I hope for more.

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Looks like Montelena's tasting hasn't changed much. I went there four years ago and decided I never need to go back.

The '98 and '00 when the '01 is out and available? Sounds like they're trying to empty out the poor vintages in the tasting room! Can't blame them, but as an experienced taster (and buyer), I hope for more.

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