Iron Horse 2001 Viognier Sonoma Valley, California
The finished wine is sublime. An exotic but
restrained bouquet leads to a lush mid palate brimming
with fruit. The finish is as refreshing as it is
long.
What's in a name? The dominant grape component
of this wine has been the subject of a fair bit
of controversy in the last year of so (cf. "Revenge,"
Spring 2001 Newsletter). The (ahem) viognier was
harvested from two quite disparate vineyards. The
(cough, sputter) old-reliable, checkered Chequera
Vineyard in Paso Robles gave the wine a wonderfully
powerful structure reminiscent perhaps of other
unnamed varieties of the northern Rhône, upon
which we overlaid a lush and lovely pineapple tropical
component from extremely ripe grapes grown in the
Suisun Valley. The wine is rich and unctuous as
proper viognier should be whilst still maintaining
a liveliness and exuberant freshness. A rouss …
by any other name would not smell as sweet.
Sobon Estate 2001 Estate
Viognier Sierra Foothills, California
This may be our
best yet. Our Estate Vineyards are now fully mature
and in full production. The wine has a very alluring
aroma, reminiscent of fresh Sierra meadow flowers,
with a hint of peach and honeysuckle. The flavors
are rich and spicy - full bodied and richly textured
with a long, lingering finish. Will match a variety
of foods from seafood to pepper steak.
Golden in colour, the Yalumba Viognier
is an enchanting wine with aromas of lemon and
honeysuckle with hints of spice. The palate
is rich, luscious and silky with juicy tropical
fruit, citrus and lychee. These exotic flavours
are intensified when paired with food - try
with lightly spiced Asian dishes such as stir-fry
noodles or a green chicken curry.
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