I received a great email from friend and customer Seth Pariser, this morning, and thought I’d share it with you. Not only does he give reviews of two wines from past club shipments, but also a most helpful tip on how to cheat at Mah Jong. Thanks Seth!
Cheers, Dave
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Hi Dave,
Last night my wife Dani had her Mah Jong group of ladies over and nearly opened my newly purchased 2006 Kosta Browne Gary’s Vineyard SLH Pinot for them. Thank god I got home when I did to stop her and to explain they were not KB worthy as lovely as they were. Instead though, I opened up two bottles: 2006 Molnar Family Poseidon’s Vineyard, Carneros and the 2007 Sojourn’s Sonoma Coast.
They may not have been Kosta Browne’s, but they were very intriguing wines all on their own worthy of enjoying.
I popped the Molnar and I got a little heat initially but crisp fruit quickly opened up on the mid palate and some nice spices on the back. I even detected a touch of some barnyard funk. This was a fusion of Burgundy meeting Northern California. A very good mah jong wine. Although I did not play, I was governing the wine pours to make sure our guests were enjoying themselves.
Then came the Sojourn. That’s when the game turned in my wife’s favor. This one was like drinking silk velvet from Lyon, France. Pure smooth delivery. The nose gave a little forest floor but an opulent delivery of bright raspberries mixed with subtle acidity exploded in my mouth that sang in perfect tune and harmony together.
This was the one that took their minds off of their games (except for my wife who remained focused). This was a perfect hustling wine for home court advantage. We were a great team together.
Thanks again for the wonderful selection of choices.
Best,
Seth Pariser
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Note, I am not a fan of Kosta Browne – a pinot on steroids. Not all grape varietals were born to be body builders, though many enjoy that style. In fact, this week’s news indicates that MANY people disagree with my tasting notes on Kosta Browne – they just reported selling the winery to the Vincraft Group for $40 million. That sales figure is many times the amount of successful, comparably sized wineries, so their wine style must appeal to a lot of people other than me. But I say, try both styles and Viva la difference!
Cheers,
Dave the Wine merchant
