$34.95 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

One of a series of zins produced by T-Vine, this Napa blend of fruit from three estates are all old-vine, averaging 60+ years.

From the T-Vine web site:  “Founded in 1992, T-Vine Winery is built on a passion for crafting small lots of big, juicy wines from unique varietals, old vines and seasoned growers.  In 2009, a partnership between friends and vintners James Harder and Jim Regusci formed to acquire T-Vine Winery with a clear-cut mission to carry on T-Vine’s traditions and expand access to interesting, rare vineyard sources.

Our goal is to make wines that feel like you jumped into a blackberry tangle on a bright summer’s day. Our wines will be big, dark, balanced and brimming with fruit. That’s how it’s always been and always will be.”

Winery Tasting Notes:  “We take pride in making zinfandel from the Napa Valley, and our signature medley includes fruit from several notable sources. We blend zinfandel from the Nichelini, Mancini, Frediani and Black Sears vineyards, encompassing several different terroirs, to create a big, intense and complex zinfandel worthy of the T-Vine name. The 2012 vintage has a wonderfully deep nose of blackberries and blueberries and hints of licorice and BBQ spices. On the palate, loads of dark berry, spice, pepper and star anise flavors coat every inch of your mouth leading to a smooth, long finish. Our zinfandel will forever be a great companion to red meat.”

Blend:  100% zinfandel

$19.99 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

This is Jason Woodbridge’s second foray into making pinot noir under the “Cherry” label.  Cherry Pie, the original, is a single-vineyard expression of the varietal and more than double the cost of this month’s feature, Cherry Tart, with fruit sourced from vineyards on the Sonoma Coast (25%), in Monterey County (50%) and in Santa Barbara County (25%).

Woodbridge uses an interesting approach with vinting this juice:  He ferments in “puncheons,” 500-liter oak barrels.  The punch down is manual, and he even uses his hands to massage the must.  The result is big cherry flavors that Woodbridge says reminds him of his mother’s cherry pies.  The dude has a flair for marketing, too, with amazing labels and six-pack packaging (for Cherry Pie).

At Wine Club pricing, this is a huge value for such a well crafted, fruit-forward wine.

Winery Tasting Notes:  “The 2013 Cherry Tart Pinot Noir jumps from the glass with aromas of raspberry, nutmeg, sandalwood and light smokiness, lifted by a floral note. Silky and delicate up front, with ripe acidity framing the rich, sweet flavors of red berries, red cherry and earth. Offers good fat without excess weight, finishing with a fine dusting of tannins and very good length.

Blend:  100% pinot noir

$64.95 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

Really interesting back story here. . .

The winery is owned by Dr. Tom Kenefick, a San Francisco neurosurgeon who did his residency at the Mayo Clinic.  Though he now lives on Kenefick Ranch, during the formative years of building the winery he commuted on weekends from the City after purchasing his 250-acre estate in 1978.  He hails from a family of Minnesota farmers and he is very much hands-on with the viticulture.  His two children, Caitlin and Chris, are both partners in the winery and actively involved.

Louisiana native and consulting winemaker Kent Jarman is an enology/viticulture graduate of U.C. Davis and he worked as assistant winemaker at Duckhorn Vineyards.  In addition to his involvement at Kenefick, he is winemaker/partner with Coup de Foudre in Napa and produces wine under his own label, Joseph Kent (in partnership with Mitch Boyd).

Winery Tasting Notes:  “Blueberry preserve, baker’s chocolate and spices jump out of the glass to the nose. The entry is soft tannin, currants and dark cherry.  The middle and finish are supported by silky smooth integrated oak and fruit tannins. Fine tobacco coffee bean and cassis finish the wine.”

Blend:  90% cabernet sauvignon; 10% merlot

$59.95 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

This is the fourth time we’ve featured a Korbin Kameron wine as a club selection. . .and they just keep getting better.  Named for two of Jenny and Mitchell Ming’s children, the 180-acre estate vineyard is at 2300 feet in the Mayacamas Mountains straddling Napa and Sonoma Counties.  Korbin Kameron focuses on Bordeaux varieties, including this excellent cabernet sauvignon.

Beyond four family members working for the winery, the winemaker for that past several years is Timothy Milos, who got started in the business in the Finger Lakes region of New York.  He has an impressive resume with stops at Stags Leap Wine Cellars, Opus One and Cliff Lede.  He studied enology and viticulture at U.C. Davis.

Winery Tasting Notes:  “Gorgeous, deep purple hues with an intense nose of ripe blackberries, cassis, and underbrush. The well-rounded, lush palate is multi dimensional. Plums, black cherries, brambles, and spice command the palate. It is a lengthy cabernet that highlights the unique terroir of the Mayacamas mountains.”

Blend:  100% cabernet sauvignon

$57 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

From the storied Shafer Vineyard in Napa, 18 vintages of the Red Shoulder Chardonnay have been reviewed by Wine Spectator and only three scored below 90 points (lowest score was 87 points in 1998 when the wine was priced at $38).  It has not yet been reviewed for the 2013 vintage, but this remarkable wine scored 90 points in 2012.  While 6,000+ cases are made annually, it is in huge demand and we were fortunate to get a case to share with the Carpe Vino Wine Club.

Winery Tasting Notes:  “The 2013 fills your glass with citrus-flower aromas and flavors of apricot, red and green apple, honeysuckle, kiwi, pineapple, Meyer Lemon zest, and vanilla – a luscious, juicy basket of summer fruit held together with just the right touch of minerality and lively acidity.”

Robert Parker Review (94 pts.):  The 2013 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch looks like one of their all-time greats, and to date they’ve all been very impressive wines. The crisp tangerine, honeyed citrus, pear and white peach notes are prominent in this beautifully fruited medium to full-bodied Chardonnay that shows additional orange marmalade notes in the mouth. It’s textured, crisp acid, from having not gone though malolactic, gives it focus and zest, and the overall impression is one of brilliant richness subtly touched by smoke, but letting the fruit dominate.

Blend:  100% chardonnay

$27.95 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

Julian Fayard is a native French winemaker who moved to Napa in 2006 to be closer to his wife’s home in Sonoma County.  He worked previously for Château Lafite-Rothschild in Bordeaux, in Provence, as well as five years for Phillipe Melka.  He has teamed up with wunderkind viticulturist Steve Matthiasson (consultant to notables such as Araujo Estate, Spottswoode, Chappellet, David Arthur and Stag’s Leap Cellars) to produce two labels:  Le Pich (a native American term for “golden eagle”) and Purlieu.  This means “the edge of the forest,” and is a reference to the winery’s home base near the new Coombsville AVA.

Winery Tasting Notes:  “A pale gold color leads to a nose of baked pear, vanilla and piecrust. Flavors of white fruits, fresh citrus and baking spices culminate in a rich and creamy mouthfeel with a long, clean finish. Fermented in 80% new French oak barrels for 16 months.”

Blend:  100% chardonnay

$27.95 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

Julian Fayard is a native French winemaker who moved to Napa in 2006 to be closer to his wife’s home in Sonoma County.  He worked previously for Château Lafite-Rothschild in Bordeaux, in Provence, as well as five years for Phillipe Melka.  He has teamed up with wunderkind viticulturist Steve Matthiasson (consultant to notables such as Araujo Estate, Spottswoode, Chappellet, David Arthur and Stag’s Leap Cellars) to produce two labels:  Le Pich (a native American term for “golden eagle”) and Purlieu.  This means “the edge of the forest,” and is a reference to the winery’s home base near the new Coombsville AVA.

Winery Tasting Notes:  “A pale gold color leads to a nose of baked pear, vanilla and piecrust. Flavors of white fruits, fresh citrus and baking spices culminate in a rich and creamy mouthfeel with a long, clean finish. Fermented in 80% new French oak barrels for 16 months.”

Blend:  100% chardonnay

$19.99 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

This is Jason Woodbridge’s second foray into making pinot noir under the “Cherry” label.  Cherry Pie, the original, is a single-vineyard expression of the varietal and more than double the cost of this month’s feature, Cherry Tart, with fruit sourced from vineyards on the Sonoma Coast (25%), in Monterey County (50%) and in Santa Barbara County (25%).

Woodbridge uses an interesting approach with vinting this juice:  He ferments in “puncheons,” 500-liter oak barrels.  The punch down is manual, and he even uses his hands to massage the must.  The result is big cherry flavors that Woodbridge says reminds him of his mother’s cherry pies.  The dude has a flair for marketing, too, with amazing labels and six-pack packaging (for Cherry Pie).

At Wine Club pricing, this is a huge value for such a well crafted, fruit-forward wine.

Winery Tasting Notes:  “The 2013 Cherry Tart Pinot Noir jumps from the glass with aromas of raspberry, nutmeg, sandalwood and light smokiness, lifted by a floral note. Silky and delicate up front, with ripe acidity framing the rich, sweet flavors of red berries, red cherry and earth. Offers good fat without excess weight, finishing with a fine dusting of tannins and very good length.

Blend:  100% pinot noir

$37.95 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

Read beyond the hyperbole, and the winery’s description of itself is spot on:

From the Dehlinger web site:  “Dehlinger Winery is situated on an outstanding vineyard site that has received extraordinary care and attention, and has a track record of excellent, age-worthy wines. Starting with the founding of the winery in 1973, Tom and Carole Dehlinger have built a loyal following. Joined by their daughters Carmen and Eva, as well as a talented and dedicated staff, Dehlinger Winery now has a four-decade history of producing wines that express the great potential of our land in Sonoma County’s Russian River Valley.  Today our focus is entirely on estate grown wines, producing 7000 cases annually of Chardonnay, Pinot noir, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon.”

Winery Tasting Notes:  “Our 2012 Estate Chardonnay shows layers of flavor: ripe apple and pear, brioche, creamy yeast. Our style is at once rich, juicy, fresh and energetic. Tasters find its character a hybrid of Russian River Valley forward fruit and Burgundian balance complexity and nuance.”

Wine Spectator Review (92 points):  “A dose of toasty, spicy oak gives the rich pear fruit a touch of butterscotch. Bold and focused, with a long, persistent finish. Drink now through 2021.”  –James Laube

Blend:  100% chardonnay

$64.95 (retail) Wine Club pricing reflected in receipt

Really interesting back story here. . .

The winery is owned by Dr. Tom Kenefick, a San Francisco neurosurgeon who did his residency at the Mayo Clinic.  Though he now lives on Kenefick Ranch, during the formative years of building the winery he commuted on weekends from the City after purchasing his 250-acre estate in 1978.  He hails from a family of Minnesota farmers and he is very much hands-on with the viticulture.  His two children, Caitlin and Chris, are both partners in the winery and actively involved.

Louisiana native and consulting winemaker Kent Jarman is an enology/viticulture graduate of U.C. Davis and he worked as assistant winemaker at Duckhorn Vineyards.  In addition to his involvement at Kenefick, he is winemaker/partner with Coup de Foudre in Napa and produces wine under his own label, Joseph Kent (in partnership with Mitch Boyd).

Winery Tasting Notes:  “Blueberry preserve, baker’s chocolate and spices jump out of the glass to the nose. The entry is soft tannin, currants and dark cherry.  The middle and finish are supported by silky smooth integrated oak and fruit tannins. Fine tobacco coffee bean and cassis finish the wine.”

Blend:  90% cabernet sauvignon; 10% merlot