We happy that Bernard, who has sampled so many wines, has shared his notes with us. We do have, or have had for sale a few of the wines Bernard writes about, and we include a link to our stock page whenever it is a producer we carry (but since the stock page is kept up-to-date and the wines are sold, don't expect any but the newest of wines to show up in our stock!). Mostly though, since we specialize in County of Santa Barbara Wine and Central Coast Wine, we don't carry a lot of the wines Bernard writes about. But we think it is important that you be able to have an idea what they're like in case you are planning to buy some somewhere, or have them in your own collection. Enjoy.

Here are Bernard's notes from March 4, 1999:

96 Saintsbury Pinot Noir Brown Ranch (Carneros)--New top line issue from this reliable producer. Dark ruby. Faint cherry nose. Nice rich texture, cherry cough syrup, fairly tannic, excellent acid. Long fine finish. Should age well for a few years. After 20 minutes in glass, opens up nicely. This would be a good buy if it were half the price, but at $67 it is downright stupid. 92+

97 Ojai Syrah California--The basic "low end" production. Medium dark. Closed nose. Spicy black fruit, good concentration, fairly tannic. Light floral, berry nose begins to show. Briary. Sweet tannins, briny, shiraz-like. Another really good generic syrah from Ojai. It can age 3-5 years. 90+

94 Silver Oak Cabernet Napa--Medium red. Sweet oak, cocoa, vanilla nose. Suave floral elements. Fairly oaky, tight, acidic structure. A little short of fruit depth in the mid-palate. Finish is tannic. 89+, could improve to 92.

96 Delectus Cabernet (Beckstoffer Vineyard fruit)--Medium dark. Black cherry, plum nose. Velvety texture. Round, not as structured as the SO. More fruit in mid-palate. Long finish, but simpler pure cab flavor. 88-89

96 Plumpjack Cabernet--Dark. Best nose of the 3 Cabs. Vanilla, cocoa, black berry, toast. Very suave, rich, very big but fine tannins. Very long. Could use 6-8 years unless you are a tannin pig. 92+

96 Fonterutoli Siepi (A Super-Tuscan merlot/sangiovese blend)--Dark Burgundian red. Very suave nose. (There's that word again. I guess suave means intl style fit for the bon vivant.) Sweet candied cherry bouquet. Rich, lavishly oaked, dark fruit, puckery. Simple mid-palate, but stuffed. Needs time to develop complexity. 90+

96 Pahlmeyer Merlot--Medium dark. Very cassis nose with lovely chocolate, fine oak. Very suave (or, would you prefer, sophisticated?), refined, creamy, deep cherry, black plum. Fine integrated tannins. Superb finish. Outstanding. 95

97 Neyers Syrah (Hudson Vineyard)--Dark purple. Taosty nose with herbal, green pepper elements. Very shiraz-like in mouth. Creamy texture, huge tannins. Black fruit, vanilla, peppery bite. Lush fruit. 4-10 years. 91+

96 Sine Qua Non "Against the Wall" Syrah--Dark violet. Great nose. Very classy. Perfumey, sweet oak, black cherry. Very intense, smooth, rich. Otherworldly delicious. Fades a little in mid-palate, but that will change in time. Zin-like raspberry fruit flavors. Finishes with sweet tannins. 94-97

95 Marietta Angeli Cuvee (Another Zin/Carignan/PS field blend)--Medium purple. Spicy, white pepper, berries, bit funky bouquet. Rather unusually very lush for this cuvee. Sweet ripe cherry fruit. Not very tannic. Give it 2-3 years. 90

97 Noon Eclipse (Grenache/Shiraz)--Dark red violet. Simple soft cherry nose. Sweet grenache fruit, like a mini-version of the 96 Clarendon Blewitt. Not quite over the top. Raspberry, oak, bit of candy apple. Lush, ripe. Cocoa. Finish with black pepper, some hot alcohol. 91

97 Wild Duck Creek Shiraz (Springflat)--Very dark. Very nice ripe nose with briary black fruit. Sweet fruit, excellent balance, fine tannin. Excellent mid-palate, high acid. Grapy with good finish. Could use 4-6 years to develop comlexity in mid-palate, but very nice now. 92+

97 Fox Creek Shiraz Reserve--Inky purple. Bit closed aromatically. Minty, black fruit. Very intense, very extracted, highly tannic. Not especially complex. Sweet black raspberry, toasty oak, diesel fuel. Chewy. Extreme, over the top. 95+ if you like the style.

From the bloody purple pulpit:

A real mixed bag of wines, from the fine delicacy of the LSJ to the behemoth Fox Creek shiraz.

Of the few 96 Burgundies I've had, the LeClerc LSJ is perhaps showing the most restraint. Not in a bad way. It is elegant, refined, complete. Just not showy. It'll be a fine dinner wine and will even benefit from short cellaring.

I have never been much of a fan of Carneros PN, but the Saintsbury Brown Ranch is strikingly different. Not as green and herbal as I usually associate with the producer. If it weren't for the price, I might even have been a buyer.

I tried to disuade Bob from including the Silver Oak in the tasting because SO buyers have a knee jerk compulsion to have it and don't need to taste it beforehand. (And before you accuse me of generalizations, this is after all my damn bloody pulpit!). OK, so the SO shows up and gets the crap beat out of it by the Plumpjack at half the price. Go home, SO, and don't come out in  public until you're ready to show your stuff! Those of you who have to have it should try a bottle in 5 years. 

Adam Tolmach continues his hot streak in producing killer syrah. This basic blend could be a good every day wine, though the price has crept up a few dollars per bottle over the past few years. Still, it puts to shame many of  those Rhone Ranger imposters who charge $25-30 for less compelling wine. This is another winner!

This was my first experience with Siepi. Fonterutoli is one of my favorite Tuscan producers. Their 90 Ser Lapo was at the top of my CCR list in that stellar vintage. (Unfortunately, I understand Ser Lapo is to be no more. But look for their 97 CCR Reserva which will include the Ser Lapo fruit. It should be spectacular). The Siepi is a bit too internationalized for my taste. True, I generally like such wines, but from Tuscany I want Tuscan wine! I wouldn't turn down a glass, I even own some of the 95 (not tried), but I'd rather have Italian wine that goes with Italian food. This might be a fine match with generic Cal-French cuisine. But so would 100 other wines I own.

Pahlmeyer's 96 merlot is a step up from its fine but overpriced 95. This one can compete head to head with the best CA has to offer. You'll pay for it, but it doesn't get any better.

The Marietta Angeli Cuvee seems too refined and soft to be a field blend. It isn't the big monster its been in the past. I don't know whether that's good or bad. But it will have to fit a different niche in food/wine pairings.

I'd read good things about Noon Winery in Australia. This first experience with their wine left me thinking that the price is a bit steep for the blend. At $30+ I'd want a bit more sophistication in the final product.

Finally, three mammoth syrah/shiraz. I'd never had Wild Duck Creek. This one was mighty impressive. Even at $36, it's a lot of bang! The Fox Creek has monumental intensity, like the Jim Barry Armagh in power, but with much cleaner fruit and a whole lot classier. And about half the price. This one is my early candidate for the 1999 Purple Tooth Award. It's now the next morning and I am still scraping tannins off my teeth.

If you don't already have connections, you haven't a prayer of getting the SQN syrah. And if a bloody sermon isn't about prayer, then why are you reading it?

This SQN makes an extremely pursuasive argument that great syrah is being produced in CA. I would put this one up against anything the Northern Rhone can throw at it. As Tom Hill would say, "World Class!" More impressive than last year's "the other hand", "Against the Wall" will be a mindblower in 5-6 years. It's already great. If you want to try it and don't have connections, call around to your favorite restaurant that has a great list of trendy wines and ask them if they'll have it. If so, get over there quick because it ain't gonna last!