TMac's profile

2001 Torbreck - The Factor
Beautiful aromas of black fruit, smoke, tar, and cassis explode from the glass. Beautifully balanced with perfectly ripe fruit matched against sweet tannins. Everything about this wine was perfectly balanced tonight. Simply divine! WOTY for all of us.

2007 Maximin-Grunhauser - Abtsberg Riesling Spatlese
Nose of tropical fruit, honey, and flowers. Well balanced with a slight hint of botrytis. Finish moderate with sleek lingering after taste.

2005 Hundred Acre - Cabernet Sauvignon The Ark Vineyard
Ruby red with faint edges. Nose of vanilla, black fruits. Body filled with cassis, raspberry, toasted oak, and silky smooth.Not as layered and rich as we remember. Perfectly balanced. Sweet tannins were part of a long finish.

1997 Ringland, Chris - Shiraz Randall's Hill
This wine was aged in 100% new oak for 36 months before bottled unfined and unfiltered. Tonite there wasn't a hint of wood. The nose was a beautiful -- yet powerful -- mix of ripe plums, blueberries, and black raspberries. On the mouth was wine was silky smooth with the acidity in perfect balance. The deep dark fruit was also in perfect harmony with the relatively sweet tannins. The finish was an elegant yet well defined 45+ seconds. This was very different than the '99 and '00 Chris Ringland's we've had previously. Much better balance and 1/5th of the cost.

2003 Torbreck - Grenache Les Amis
The nose was a beautiful blend of black cherries, plums, strawberries with a hint of vanilla and almond. The body was silky smooth ' hugely ripe dark fruits, cocoa, vanilla, and sweet tannins. The finish was incredibly elegant and long ' like the last bites of a chocolate covered strawberry. This was clearly the WOTN. Our hats go off to Dave Powell for an extraordinary effort