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 October 27, 1998:

96 Lava Cap El Dorado Fume Blanc--Delicate nose with some lemongrass. Slightly frizante. Lemon and grapefruit zest. Rather light weight, good acid, long finish with some minerality. 86

95 Domaine Serene Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir (Oregon)--Light brick red. Earthy, smoky, gamy, black raspberry nose. Black cherry fruit over layered dry tannins and toasty oak. Rather elegant style, austere, backward. With 30 minutes in glass, opens up to show more complexity, length. 88

90 Faively Morey-St.Denis 1er Cru Clos Des Ormes--Medium Burgundy color. Barnyardy, earthy, toasty oak and plummy nose. Rich textured, complex, black fruit, iron, charcoal. Still rather tannic, backward. Needs 3-4 years. Bit hollow in finish with lingering tannins. After 45 minutes in glass, expansive, bigger, more tannic. 89+

90 Tommasi Amarone--Dark Burgundy red. Very engaging nose. Alcoholic (15%%). Plummy, integrated tannins, fine finish, rather port-like. 88

94 Donnhoff Oberhauser Brucke Riesling Auslese (Nahe)--Open 1 week in fridge. No nose. Bracing acidity. Honey, orange, kiwi. Lovely, long finish. 90

95 von Kesselstatt Scharzhofberger Riesling Eiswein--Fairly viscous. Very sweet. Apple, lemon. Minerally finish, long, bracing acidity, like  lemonade concentrate. 94