Andrew Willingham

9.0

Powerful sweet red fruit on the nose with oak/vanilla. Palette sees more bright Fruity notes, Brett, medium+ acid, long finish. Even better after 18hrs in the fridge...Valdigué was more fun, IMO, but this is good value for $25. — 8 years ago

Shay A

9.5

Another 4th Friday for the books. What a much needed time out of the house and to be with friends after this past week.

It’s SQN, so descriptions normally fall short. I am partial to US Syrah vs US Grenache, BUT, I am fascinated by SQN’s play on Grenache. You could smell the black peppercorn here, imitating a top shelf CdP. It faded to a more iron/jerky like note that had a very solid amount of acidity in play. Still a baby. After time in the glass it gave way to some floral/lavender notes as well as a crazy complex finish that added baking spice and dark fruit. — 8 years ago

with Dan, Mark and 1 other

Mark Flesher

9.5

What a wine. I look down to see the 2020-2025 drinking window on Cellartracker, and can't help but thinking that this probably would be the best window if I had any willpower at all. Unfortunately I don't...therefore find the cork out of this one after a 2012 Gargiulo G Major 7 has been successfully polished. This has to be one of the better Cabs coming out of Geyserville IMO, and this producer knows a thing or two about cab having planted the first cab vines in Alexander Valley. Powerful blackberry and meaty nose. The entry is all blackberry, medium+ to full bodied, with a licorice note in the middle, leather and spice. Finishes very stiff, and this is where I think this wine will improve in the next five years. But this one is in NO HURRY of showing its complexity. Already drinking rather well and very happy that I have a mag of this one set aside. — 8 years ago

Michael Pool

9.0

Fruity with smoky after tones, really drinkable and good with Italian meatballs — 9 years ago

Patrick Derdeyn

9.2

127th vintage from this vineyard. Now one of a few that are owned by Bedrock Wine Co, but this one is the OG. After a couple years down it’s starting to come into balance, but still incredibly young. On PnP the 40% new french oak was apparent, but that mellowed a bit with air. It developed a cherry, plum, tobacco, core with very vibrant acidity and still medium tannin. Just into early drinking now and will continue to improve for several more years. — 9 years ago

Patrick Derdeyn

9.3

This is singing right now. Had the '14 Carlisle version last week and it wasnt quite as open at this stage. After a quick decant Morgan's version is plush, jam packed with dark fruit but braced by solid acidity and moderate tannin. Utterly gulpable now, but just at the very beginning of it's window so no rush. — 9 years ago

Donald Williams

9.3

This was our aperitif for Christmas dinner. Absolutely wonderful. And it makes a nice after dinner cocktail with a splash of Port. EDIT: And it made wonderful mimosas the next morning. — 10 years ago

with Bonnie

TheSkip

9.0

An interesting wine. Sold as "extreme extended maceration" with skin contact for 9 months. The result is fairly impressive in the mouth. The nose is a bit odd and unidimensional - cedarwood. The tannins are nicely integrated and fairly soft. Went quite well with food. Almost imagine they are going after the prisoner market here. For $15, very good value. Very good QPR — 10 years ago

TJ Stroud

9.0

Very enjoyable. Great first sip with the smooth after taste to follow. — 10 years ago

Craig Haarmeyer

9.2

Wow. Sniff #1 strongly indicates that my palate loves this wine. The rest of me will weigh in after it recovers..... — 11 years ago

Steve Anderson

9.1

Mouth-puckering tannins even after five hours in the decanter. Great structure, still so young. Thanks Matt!
— 11 years ago

with Matthew and Alec

Punky Mahle

9.2

Glad this one made it- mature, a little too ripe and died after 45 minutes #earthquakestains — 12 years ago

James Forsyth

9.3

Today is international beer day. I haven't been exploring my beers recently but if ever there were a day to do so, today seems appropriate.

This beer is a sexy, fruity, tropical with pineapple and papaya, yet bone dry, complex New England style double dry hopped double IPA. Make good decisions indeed. 👏🙌🎉 ... 🙈🙉🙊

#internationalbeerday — 8 years ago

with Gautham

Mason Balistreri

Sommelier, International Wine Guild; Balistreri Vineyard; Sales, Joy Wine and Spirits

9.6

It might shock you, but my favorite rosé is not French but instead comes from California! Blasphemy, I know - but Bedrock's Ode to Lulu is just that good. The difficulty is actually finding a bottle. For the last three years, I've only been allocated a case (or less) to sell here in Denver. It's possible you are one of the select few I've actually told about this wine... If not, now is your chance. This is the first year there's an "okay" supply. It won't last, but you should be able to get a bottle.

So yes, it's not French but it's made in the same style and method of Tempier Bandol Rosé- the most sought after, cult rosé out there. The name "Ode to Lulu" is actually an homage to the 4.5 foot tall, 101 year old woman named "Lulu" Peyraud (born Lucie Tempier) whose father gifted the Mourvedre heavy estate to her and her husband Lucien Peyraud. The wines they would go on to produce from the 1940's onward quite literally defined Bandol and put it on the map as some of the best rosés out there. She's still alive and presumably drinking plenty of wine.

This California-born "Ode to Lulu" is modeled after the great Tempier, but has some unique properties compared to it's French namesake. For one, the vines are EXTREMELY old. Tempier defined itself by focusing on old Mourvèdre and Grenache plantings, but even these French vineyards cannot compare to what Bedrock is working with in California. If you don't know, Bedrock is the winery of Morgon Twain Peterson, son of legendary Ravenswood founder Joel Peterson. Morgon grew up making wine and through his father has cultivated relationships with some of the most important heritage vineyards in California. The "Ode to Lulu" is made from Mourvèdre and Grenache planted as far back as 1888! These are some of the oldest plantings of these grapes around and make for unbelievable wines. Tempier's average vine age is around 40 years old today. Bedrock's is over 3x as old. Insane.

Morgon may be young, but he has a life time of winemaking experience. He started making wine with his father when he was 5 years old and hasn't stopped yet. In addition to absorbing his father's knowledge on heritage vineyards, he is a real student in the world of wine, earning a "Masters of Wine" designation (this industry's highest achievement). I've been drinking his wine for several years and I can say that his wine is made extremely thoughtfully and with expert attention to detail. This is true even with a wine as humble as rosé.

Unlike most California pink wine, Bedrock is not produced by "bleeding off" juice from a red wine. Instead, the grapes are picked early and separately at very low potential alcohols, and whole cluster pressed with low extraction. This preserves the freshness and acidity, creating a wine of clarity. In an old blog post I dug up, Morgon explains this idea:

"I pick at potential alcohols lower on the scale where brightness and lift still exist. This is not to say that fruit does not matter—I use Mourvedre from a block planted over 120 years ago for requisite concentration of complexity of flavor—but like fine champagne, the wonders of rosé lie in its unbearable lightness of being."

I agree with this idea of rosé and I think most people instinctively do as well. It's no coincidence that our best selling bottles come from provence. However, I urge you to pick up at least one bottle of this Ode to Lulu. It's a wine that's close in spirit to the best French rosé but made from vineyards that are American and unrivaled in age.

This is the fourth vintage of Ode to Lulu I've tasted, and I would say that's the most elegant yet. The 2015 was maybe my favorite for it's depth and I picked a few up to age, drinking my last bottle recently... This new vintage is great now, but it will reward with a short cellaring time. Honestly, if you can hide 2 bottles and drink them before fall or into next year, you will be blown away. Bandol rosé is a wine that improves dramatically over the course of 6 months to several years (Tempier Rosé is known to go decades). This bedrock is no different.

I can personally attest to past vintages gaining depth with time. How is this possible? Unlike other rosé which should be drank young, Bandol and Ode to Lulu are made of Mourvedre, a grape that is naturally reductive and resistant to oxidation. Further, the acidity is high and alcohol low. As the acidity starts to fall away, a depth and richness of character will emerge. In fruitier/riper rosé with more alcohol, this richness becomes too sweet and cloying... Not the case here. This keep balanced through time, gaining complexity while remaining refreshing. 

You should buy this wine. However, I think there is one more important facet to rosé that I should mention before you do... Rosé is not always about what's in the glass itself. Rosé is really an ethereal thing... It's more so an "essence" of terroir and vintage rather than a sturdy, hard representation like red wine is... Sorry if that doesn't make sense but what I'm trying to say is that sometimes rosé is more about the place and the people you enjoy it with than the exact flavors themselves. Of course, we cannot all visit the picturesque village of Bandol to visit Lulu Peyraud; but I think, with this sunny Colorado weather, we can come close. Perhaps Morgon said it better than I can:

"Proper rosé is refreshing, life-nourishing stuff that revives the soul... I drink as much for pure pleasure as for intellectual stimulation. In the warmer months there is something sacred about a late afternoon meal of cold chicken, fresh garden tomatoes, and rosé. It is one body in the sacred trilogy of rustic simplicity." - Morgon Twain Peterson

#rose #oldvine #lulu #tempier #bedrockwineco — 8 years ago

Severn G

9.0

Enjoy After 04.20.17
Very smooth, light Brett characteristics, mellow and very enjoyable for the first beer of the evening. Been sitting on this one for over 22 months. — 9 years ago

Ryan Akens

9.0

After about 3 hours the tannins showed up a bit more. Not as much as expected. Tobacco spice with a mellow finish — 9 years ago

Mono Head

9.0

The first serving of this wine I gave it an 8.5. It was after the second tasting that I gave it a 9. Full body fruit forward. Well balanced. Good but not great. $85 — 10 years ago

Steve Anderson

9.1

Got away with hiding a couple of modest bottles behind a row of Fetzer at a friend's holiday party last year, but not this time. This one was drained in five minutes. Glad I got a taste. — 10 years ago

Tara Rowland

9.3

Loving these smokey London porters. This one is quite intense and rich with bitter chocolate coffee a hint of smoke. — 10 years ago

Tama

9.0

Peppery nose and secondary flavor after bright red fruit. Lightly oaked with smooth mouthfeel and lingering finish. — 11 years ago

Steve Gautier

9.1

After two hours, this was lighter than other's tasting notes but a very enjoyable wine. 2011 — 11 years ago

Daniel Mahdavian

Consulting Somm-Daniel Mahdavian Ventures

9.5

White chocolate & spicy Szechuan peppers. Yummy & perfect to drink after 27 years! — 12 years ago

Jennifer Whelan

9.8

Wine thirty after tennis! — 13 years ago

Shay A

9.2

This is Palmaz’s second wine. I’ve been fortunate to have visited Palmaz once...one of the most incredible winery tours with their high tech tools.

This is a nice second wine. Still required a 30min+ decant due to age, but it was easy to drink after. A lot of toasted graham cracker, blackberries and fig on the nose. Palate was similar with little tannic bite. Smooth. There was a unique aspect to the finish of this wine...cinnamon bread wrapped in dark fruit. Very interesting. — 8 years ago

with Mark

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

When it comes to my B-day, there is only one fit, an old Pichon Lalande with my Ribeye. As a lover of Bordeaux, these two are my favorite pairing. It’s a very slow walk to the finishline. A small bite of steak and a sip of 89 Pichon Lalande. Then, repeat until finished. I had some concerns about this bottle. A slightly slippery and crumbling cork. The first sip was not bad, but not what you want or are expecting. After some time in the decanter, it really started to shine. On the nose; ripe, ruby, floral cassis, blackberries, dark sweet & sour cherries, baked strawberries, blue fruit hues, dry cranberries, baked rhubarb, saddlewood, soft, used leather, bay leaf, touch of sage, hint of spearmint, eucalyptus, vanilla, cinnamon, crushed dry crushed rock powder, black turned earth, dry brown soil with clay, tobacco leaf and perfumed red florals with violets. The body is full, round and silky. Tannins are well resolved at around 80%. The texture, length, tension and length are in a sweet spot. The fruits are ripe, ruby & expressively floral. Blackberries, dark sweet & sour cherries, baked strawberries, blue fruit hues, dry cranberries, baked rhubarb, saddlewood, soft, used leather, bay leaf, touch of sage, hint of spearmint, eucalyptus, vanilla, cinnamon, crushed dry crushed rock powder, black turned earth, dry brown soil with clay, scorched earth, tobacco leaf and perfumed red florals with violets. The acidity is just a little off but still nice. The finish is divided nearly equally in fruit, earth, florals and herbaceous. It’s very enjoyable but falls just a little short in longer, lingering length. This bottle had good storage, not great. Even so, still has another three to five years ahead. A bottle with excellent storage has another five years beyond this one. Photos of; the backside of Pichon Lalande, angled terrace view of their vines right next to Latour, my steak & twice baked potato (so good) and CEO Nicolas Glumineau. — 8 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

I have a six-pack of this 05. I thought after 10 years in bottle, it would be interesting to check in on its evolution. While tasty, I’ll wait another 8-10 to open another. Even after 2-3 hours in the decanter, it’s still a very young adolescent. On the nose, slightly sour blackberries & dark cherries, dark currants, baked black plum, haunting blue fruits, anise, whiff of spice, steeped tea, dry stones, dry crushed rocks with dry top soil, caramel, vanilla with fresh & dry red florals. The body is thick & full. Tannins are starting to round out. It’s velvety on the palate. The fruits are; bright, fresh & ripe and really show the greatness of the 05 vintage. Dark currants, blackberries, dark cherries, baked black plum, haunting blue fruits, baked strawberries, cherries, raspberries on the long set, dark spice, clay & loamy dry top soil with crushed rocks, dry stones, cigar with ash, graphite, dry stems, slight herbaceous character, mint, used leather, clove, caramel, vanilla, fresh & dry red florals with violets. The round acidity is about perfect. The structure and length are still strong. The balance is in harmony. As for the long finish, it’s lush, ruby, rich and well polished. Photos of; Chateau Brane Cantenac, large wood vats, Henri Lurton and Estate vines. Producer notes and history...Chateau Brane Cantenac began in the early 17th century. At the time, the estate was known as Domaine Guilhem Hosten. Even that far back, wine was produced from the property. In fact, the wine was so highly regarded it was one of the more expensive wines in Bordeaux. It sold for almost as much money as Brane Mouton. This is interesting because of who went on to buy the vineyard in the 1800’s. The Baron of Brane, also known as “Napoleon of the Vineyards”, purchased the Chateau in 1833. At the time of the sale, the estate was called Chateau Gorce-Guy. To get the funds needed to purchase the Margaux vineyard, the Baron sold what is now called Mouton Rothschild, which was at the time of the sale, known as Chateau Brane-Mouton. Not such a good move with hundreds of years in hindsight! In 1838, the Baron renamed property taking his name and the name of the sector where the vineyards were located and called it Chateau Brane Cantenac. The Chateau later passed to the Roy family, who were well-known in the Margaux appellation in those days, as they owned Chateau d’issan. Moving ahead to 1920, the Societe des Grands Crus de France, a group of merchants and growers that owned several chateaux located in the Medoc including; Chateau Margaux, Chateau Giscours, and Chateau Lagrange in St. Julien, purchased Chateau Brane Cantenac. Five years later, M. Recapet and his son-in-law, François Lurton, took over Brane Cantenac along with Chateau Margaux. Lucien Lurton (the son of François Lurton) inherited Brane Cantenac in 1956. Today, the estate is still in the hands of the Lurton family. Brane Cantenac is owned and run by Henri Lurton. After being given the responsibility of managing Brane Cantenac, it was under the direction of Henri Lurton that large portions of the vineyard were replanted. Vine densities were increased, the drainage systems were improved and the plantings were also, slowly changed. The vineyard of Brane Cantenac is planted to 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 4.5% Cabernet Franc and .5% Carmenere. Carmenere was used for the first time in the 2011 vintage. The only other Chateau I know that still uses Carmenere is Clerc Milon. The 75 hectare Left Bank vineyard of Brane Cantenac is essentially unchanged since it earned Second Growth status in the 1855 Classification. At least that is the case with the 45 hectares used to produce the Grand Vin of Brane Cantenac. Those 45 hectares are planted surrounding the Chateau. Those vines are located just in front of the Cantenac plateau and are the best terroir that Brane Cantenac owns. They have other parcels, which are further inland and much of those grapes are placed into their second wine, Le Baron de Brane. Those additional hectares can be divided into 3 main sections. Behind the Chateau, they have 15 hectares of vines on gravel and sand, 10 hectares across the road with sand, gravel and iron and a 13 hectare parcel with gravel called Notton, which is used for their second wine. The vineyard is planted to a vine density that ranges from 6,666 vines per hectare on the plateau and up to 8,000 vines per hectare for the vines located behind chateau, in their sandier soils. The higher levels of vine density are always found in the newer plantings. The terroir of Brane Cantenac consists of deep gravel, sand and clay soil. Experiments in the vineyards are currently looking at becoming more organic in their vineyard management. Today, more than 25% of Brane Cantenac is farmed using organic farming techniques. It is expected that over time, the amount of hectares farmed with organic methods will be increased. Brane Cantenac has gone through 2 relatively recent modernization’s in 1999, when they added began adding the first of their smaller vats to allow for parcel by parcel vinification and then again in 2015 when they completed a much more complete renovation of their cellars and vat rooms. While Brane Cantenac is a traditional producer, they are no stranger to technology as they were one of the first estates to embrace optical grape sorting machines. In very wet vintages, they can also use reverse osmosis. To produce the wine of Chateau Brane Cantenac, the wine is vinified in a combination of temperature controlled, traditional, 22 oak vats, 18 concrete tanks and 20 stainless steel vats that vary in size from 40 hectoliters all the way up to 200 hectoliters, which allows for parcel by parcel vinification. 40% of the fermentation takes place in the oak vats. The oldest vines are vinified in vats that are selected to allow for separate parcel by parcel vinification. The younger vines are vinified more often together in the same vats. However, the Carmenere is entirely micro-vinified, meaning that those grapes were completely vinified in barrel, using micro-vinification techniques. This can also happen because the amount of grapes produced is so small. Some vats can be co-inoculated, meaning they go through alcoholic fermentation and malolactic fermentation simultaneously. At Chateau Brane Cantenac, malolactic fermentation takes place in a combination of French oak tanks and barrels. The wine of Brane Cantenac is aged in an average of 60% new, French oak barrels for 18 months before bottling. The initial 2 months of aging is done with the wine on its lees, which adds more depth to the wine. There second wine is Le Baron de Brane. Le Baron de Brane is not new. In fact, previously, the second wine went under the name of Chateau Notton, which took its name from one of the main parcels where the grapes were planted. During the late 1950’s and into the 1960’s, having a second wine was important as the estate declassified 3 vintages, due to extremely poor, weather conditions in 1956, 1960 and 1963. Production of Chateau Brane Cantenac is about 11,000 cases per year. — 8 years ago

David Hayes

9.3

Love always having a bottle of this around for after dinner with dark chocolate. Such great acidity — 11 years ago

Anthony Trumbo

9.0

After 2+ hour decant, dark fruit and a nice Syrah funkiness on the nose. Flavors of blackberry and spice with a little cocoa finishing with some tannic bite. Another Bedrock FTW on both quality and value. — 11 years ago

Alicia Cypress

9.3

This wine is going down way too easily. Word of advice: give it some air. After about 45 minutes the nose increased drastically and earth and leather penetrated the palate. — 11 years ago

Steve Bourn

9.3

Flavorful..no funky after taste. My wife who primary drinks whites liked it. Good choice for Pinot noir drinkers . — 12 years ago