Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.4

Preposterous. Only word for this wine. Stunning nose. Pungent red and black fruits, lovely dusting of earth, floral, lipstick like intensity, so sappy and so pure. Wow what a nose. Just so so expansive. Really detailed, clear and pure. Really is a step up over the 18. Wow what a palate. Froooooooot! I am Froot. I am Froot. I am Froot. Anyway. Gorgeous, clearly defined red cherry fruit with a dash of blackberry and so so pure. Gorgeous earthy minerality. But the purity, decadence and also gamey (Gevrey?) quality of the fruit really are compelling. Wow, inner mouth florals and aromas. Beautiful, elegant and taught structure as well. So so pretty. Sappy, long and dissipating finish. This is an unreal wine. I can’t figure out if it’s a 9.3 or 9.4. The day will decide. Onward! I am Froot!

Palate is getting rounded and this has the elite fruit of Pierre’s higher end wines but doesn’t have the complexity or length. But man that froot and texture.

After 4 hours this has gotten silkier, sweeter and sexier. 9.3 to 9.4. Insane acids. Huge minerals. It dances in the palate. — 3 years ago

Rhonely Boy

9.3

Thank you, George!!

Dont have a tech sheet, but will guess Zinfandel and Petit Sirah are percentages in the blend.

Wine still has baby fat. Needs 6+ months bottle time (July ‘21 earliest) fantastic late September onward. Bonkers right now. Love to see in 2024, at seven years. Good Mojo. — 3 years ago

Austin Tabbone

9.2

Fruity and watermelony. A bit of celery with lovely acidity and a dash of RS provides a nice little pet nat. — 6 years ago

Amanda + Dallas Bossort

9.7

Fell in love with this wine during our first visit to Tuscany. Technically a Chianti Classico Riserva but so much more. Small production from just outside Castellina, consistent expression of Tuscan finesse year after year (tasted and holding ‘08 onward). Dark but elegant, smooth but complex. This wine is drinking flawlessly now with continued aging potential. We ❤️ 🇮🇹. — 6 years ago

darling girl

9.8

Big fruit and long finish. Been drinking this big full-bodied red blend for years, and this vintage doesn't disappoint! Winemaker Kirk Venge is taking Dad Nils' abilities onward. The base of this wine is single-sourced old vine zin, and the Charbono, Petite Sirah and Syrah are similarly sourced. — 6 years ago

Randy Fuller

9.2

It's a dark wine, dark in color, dark in aromas and dark in flavors. The nose offers abundant blackberry and black raspberry notes with an earthy base. There is an element of smoke at the top of the glass. The palate is deep and rich, dark fruit joined with a sense of black olives and tea. It leans toward savory, but not without taking the fruit with it. The wine finishes with a little raspberry tartness and a lot of berries that stay for a medium length. It's not too much of a bruiser as far as Pinot goes, rather elegant. Let your kitchen staff know you’d like a grilled pork chop for dinner. — 7 years ago

Mark Flesher

9.4

Love this producer. What a great family owned Winery that sticks to the basics of making damn good wine! Is this the best Cabernet Franc I've ever had from Napa? Well, that depends. I do know that they are just about the most consistent Cabernet Franc producer I have had from Napa. To me this variety can vary from year to year quite significantly, and sometimes the variation between producers makes you wonder if there is any hanky-panky going on. Not with them and Cabernet Franc. They understand these grapes, and it shows. A big wine, but not so fruit forward or jammy. Lots of floral here, but then the wine from that point onward is darker for sure. Chocolate, licorice, black cherry. This wine makes you think about everything that is here, and you get a little something different every time. Finishes dark, and right now also very tannic. This one has quite a bit of life left ahead. — 7 years ago

Katharine Bodan

10

Lots of cherry. Beautiful, easy drinking right out of the bottle. — 3 years ago

with Mike

Rhonely Boy

9.2

41% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Syrah, 7% Petit Verdot, 1% Sauvignon Blanc.

Sheet of sediment in bottle, stood upright 24 hours, before decant. Filtered into decanter. Nicely aged. Strong bottle notes in decant. I recommend 3 hr. Decant. 4 hours onward, fruit notes waned.

In the tasting notes, Marijuana resin is noted. Yes, there is a taste of hash or cannabis resin in the dark notes of the wine. Pleasant, well integrated, savory, in the know.

Delicious, mature beauty. Dark bottle notes, with still bright cherry note. Cherry notes notable for estate, beautiful energy in wines.

Enjoy now.

Thank you for being present. — 3 years ago

Jay Liddell

9.5

Onward to DC! — 4 years ago

with Stefanie

Clare McKenna

9.2

Color is a light, bright red. Tasted of dried fruit and spices, but still juicy. I thought I’d like it with a slight chill, but i liked it more as it warmed to room temp. Flavors faded fast from day 2 onward, but honestly still nice. I mean, I’m finishing the bottle ok? A super solid light red. — 6 years ago

Megan O'Connor

9.1

Couldn’t believe how light and complex this was! Reminded me of cru Beaujolais. Changed how I see Zinfandel and definitely needed a delectable note. — 6 years ago

Kristen Schott

9.3

I loved this. So light and unique. Only had one other Malvasia Bianca, and this one stands up to that. Delicious. — 7 years ago

Randy Fuller

9.0

This extremely dark-tinted wine is dark on the nose and on the palate as well. Aromas of black fruit and oaky spice meet flavors of the same style, with earthy mineral notes underneath. It is undeniably a fruity wine, despite the heft and brawn that it brings. Tannins are tall and toothy, so get that grill fired up and throw a ribeye on it. — 7 years ago

Gerald Montoya

9.2

Two years after the last bottle and showing much more floral and decaying leaf with soft strawberry underneath. Still has that silky texture that makes it so easy to enjoy. Well crafted and drinking beautifully. — 7 years ago

Erin O'Hagan

9.5

Per recommendations from shipment - to be drank from 2017 onward. I was curious though. Decanted for many many hours. By 6 hours in - it was fantastic. Well worth the wait. Dark berries, chocolate and a tobacco almost earthy finish. Will be incredible in years to come. — 8 years ago

Patrick Peters

8.9

Adult juice!! — 3 years ago

with Sarah

Rhonely Boy

9.3

More Please!

More grip and acidity than remembered with 2018 (round fruity yum-yum), seems more stable for a larger distribution. Save for April 2021 onward, needs more bottle time, hold out for that first spring warm sun “Yeah” moment, and enjoy (lightly chilled) the peachy-side of life. — 3 years ago

Adriana Fabbro

8.9

Not a serious wine, but a seriously enjoyable one. America’s first sparkling Sauvignon Blanc is refreshing and verdant (aromas of wet grass, flavors of lime, green apple, papaya, guava) as you’d might expect from an aromatic white grape + charmant method. What you might not expect, though, is 15th century chic label and name inspired by Shakespeare’s Henry V or the winemaker (one Chris Christensen), a biracial Iowa native who has dedicated his winemaking career to exploring and elevating CA Sauvignon Blanc. This wine serves as a reminder that when it comes to wine, as with so many other facets of life, the most refreshing ideas rarely come from the usual suspects. Onward! — 4 years ago

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 — 6 years ago