Delectable Wine

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9.6

The 1976 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate from Clos du Val is the most interesting of all the wines. The estate was founded by John and Henrietta Goelet in the early Seventies when the couple challenged recently graduated winemaker Bernard Portet to create a Bordeaux-inspired estate in Napa. Clos du Val attained global recognition when its inaugural 1972 Cabernet Sauvignon was one of the wines poured blind by Steven Spurrier at the epochal The Judgement of Paris, so this bottle of 1976 was one of their earliest bottlings that, incidentally, came directly from Clos de Val’s apparently meager reserves. It is very elegant and perfumed on the nose, typical old school, classic Napa Cabernet in all its unfettered glory, beautifully defined with wilted rose petals and a light fish scale element. Supple, very pliant tannins define the palate. There remains ample freshness and poise, a fine silver thread of acidity and a clove-tinged, rounded, exquisitely balanced finish that would surpass practically every other Bordeaux from this vintage. Outstanding. (Neal Martin, Vinous, April 2024)
— 2 years ago

Patrick Peters

9.3

Lemon and pear, great acidity and weight. Paired with fish in a lemon caper sauce. Delicious wine! — 4 years ago

Sarah Norman

9.4

Dreyfus Ashby and co import. So so good. This was my first Albariño and I was so happy. I need to explore this varietal more. Seems like a great summer wine and went amazing with our fish tacos on the balcony — 5 years ago

with Torey

Abh

8.9

A beautiful unfiltered sake with banana, white peaches and green apple on the nose with sour papaya, pineapple, fresh coconut and lemon zest. This sake starts out a little tart on the palate and smooths out in 4 to 5 seconds and leaves a luscious creaminess on the palate that goes well with medium fatty fish. This is a medium bodied sake to pair with hirame or sake. — 7 years ago

Michael Duffy

9.2

Grape juice glou. A little licorice, candy, freshness. New Cali rocks. Who knew about the potential freshness of Mourvèdre? Gone in a flash. Aged in concrete eggs and blessed by flying fish, or something. I dig it. 30% marsanne — 7 years ago

Wayne Spilsbury

9.0

It tastes better when it’s free — 9 years ago

Scott Sandberg

8.9

Nice. Would actually go with an oily fish or cream/butter sauce... — 9 years ago

Stuart Pollack

9.2

Nice Sauvignon Blanc with mild grapefruit and pineapple flavors. It went well with fish in olive oil. — 3 years ago

Adriana Fabbro

9.1

Grown up Hawaiian Punch in fruit profile and drinkability, but also a fine wine. Silky and aromatic (those sandy sandy soils!) A red you can have with fish according to my mother. — 4 years ago

Lesley Bellanca

8.9

Cape May Fish Market w/Lobster Rolls — 4 years ago

Lizzy Toreev

10

Light in color, reminds me of the color of a poppy field. Beautiful acidity up front, red berries at the end with a good amount of tannin. Lovely with kedgeree, and would be great with any light fish dish, pork, or eggplant. Can’t wait to drink again - especially with the sun shining down outside! — 6 years ago

Monica Bibeau

9.3

Had at flaming buoy co, nice with fish..taste of pineapple — 7 years ago

Victor Hsu

8.9

Enjoyed a small chilled bottle of this smooth, balanced and slightly floral sake at the Flying Fish Grill in Carmel-by-the-Sea. It was an excellent accompaniment to their Yosenabe Seafood Claypot. — 8 years ago

Thomas Brenner

8.9

On fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish, motherfucker.

(Best if enjoyed by intonating in a Samuel L. Jackson fashion) — 9 years ago

Thomas Ricketts

9.2

Perfect for the fish tonight. Mineral and a small bit of tropical fruit. Hmm, that seems like a description of the Azores. — 9 years ago

Vanessa

9.1

If you’re looking for an excellent wine to pair with sushi, try a crisp, dry Chenin Blanc! If you’ve already tried this combo, you know what I’m talking about…

Chenin Blanc can have a mouth-watering structure and elegant fruit profile, lending brightness and lift to a meal with delicate fish flavors, without overpowering it.

This Chenin comes from South Africa (locally called “Steen”), produced by Lievland Vineyards (“Loveland” in Afrikaans), owned by MAN Family Wines, in the district of Stellenbosch, in the Coastal Region located on the Western Cape.

We’re grateful we had the opportunity to sample this wine with Winemaking Director, Tyrrel Myburgh (also Co-Founder of MAN), who was in town for The Wine Company’s trade tasting event last year. It definitely left a lasting impression. At roughly $17.99/bottle at retail, it’s delivering an excellent quality (and value) for the price.

The grapes come from old, dry-farmed bush vines in the district of Paarl, just north of Stellenbosch. Vines like this tend to produce lower yields, which often translates to more concentrated fruit (“less is more”). The juice was fermented in 50% stainless steel and 50% neutral oak vessels, followed by 2 months of aging on the lees; choices that lend balance, complexity, and richness to the resulting wine.

With that, let’s get to the tasting note! This wine is pale lemon with medium (+) intensity of aromas, including, fresh and vibrant lemon, lime, yellow apple, just-ripe peach, apricot, white blossom, lemongrass, wet slate, salinity, gunflint, and toast. It has a hint of struck match, as well. The palate is dry with medium alcohol (13% ABV), a medium body, and medium (+) acidity giving way to riper, rounder flavors emphasizing the stone fruit characteristics. The finish lingers.

Cheers exploring the wonderful world of Steen! — 3 years ago

with Deked1

Mike Saviage

9.4

Another good showing for the 04 lineup from chez B Morey... medium gold, nice weight. Leesy citrus nose including notes of tan spice, wet stone and a hint of petrol. Great mouth feel and finish. In a perfect drinking window and at peak. Paired well with all the fish dishes we had at Flying Fish Grill in Carmel. — 5 years ago

Eva Freedman

9.1

Light and slight effervescent, not bad with fish, sticks to the tongue — 7 years ago

MaJ CappS

9.0

I have been really wanted to try this, after they were featured in A Decanter article.
The nose was like tinned fish and fresh tarragon, that erupted into a well rounded body of alpine berries, griddle fat, forest funk, and tiny little Tannins. Thanks. Les! — 7 years ago

with Les

Jordan Wardlaw

9.0

What a steal this wine is. Great aromatic intensity and rather expansive on the palate with a very persistent finish. More green, herbal qualities to this vintage, but well-rounded with fragrant white flowers, piercing peaches,
grapefruit pith and a hint of salinity. Nervy, high-acid, herbal and rather complex. An ideal accompaniment to just about any fish, and with enough savory and vegetal component to match well with challenging pairings such as asparagus (which I tried, and it was excellent). — 8 years ago