Ronnie's Wine ExPO tasting notes

[Drew]

Last Sunday, I attended Ronnie’s Wine Expo at the Harford County Community College.
36 vendors with 204 wines offered for tasting. $40 per ticket with a nice variety of finder foods and a very nice auction area for wines and sports memorabilia. Last year’s event left me ho-hum as Ronnie’s offered low end and unexciting wines, imho as well as the group we went with. This year, though, he brought out a very nice selection, probably due to complaints we’re figurin. Anyway these are some of my top picks with impressions and the EXPO prices.


Cabernet Sauvignon:
2005 Nickel & Nickel Carpenter, $69, a wow cab

2005 Geyser Peak Walking Tree, $18.75, very nice QPR Cab

2007 Penley Phoenix, $15.75 QPR Cab winner, Aussie Cab that is very well done. Deep and rich with a rustic edge.

2005 Honig Bartolucci, 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, $67.50, very tannic but solid fruit, pricy.

2006 Honig Cabernet, $29.25, 95% Cabernet, 2% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc, elegant cab. Very well done for a difficult vintage, showed better than the Bartolucci.

2005 Chimney Rock, Cabernet/Merlot, $43.49, beautifully done, big nose, lush

Pinot Noir:
2007 Four Graces, $22.50 nice fruit and a little funk, nice pinot

2007 Wild Rock Cupid’s Arrow, New Zealand, Pinot Noir, $16.50 QPR Pinot winner

2006 Wild Horse Unbridled Pinot Noir, $27, big, rich pinot

2006 Sanford, $28.49, delicate with cherry and red licorice, nice.

Spain:
2005 Torres Salmos Red, Garnacha, Syrah, Carinena, and Cabernet Sauvignon, $26.25, balanced, rich and elegant.

France:
2006 Dom. Bois de St. Jean CDR, $9.75, very nice, fun CDR with a smidge of funk

OTHERS:
2006 Ferrari-Carano Siena, 68% Sangiovese, 32% Mabec blend, $22.49, another winner, rich and balanced, nice food wine

Rosenblum Desiree Chocolate .375 dessert wine, blend of Zinfandel, along with two of Portugal’s classic grape varieties and an infusion of rich, opulent chocolate. Really good and all the girls liked it [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb/biggrin.gif[/img]

2006 Domaine Chandon Carneros Pinot Meunier, $20.25, for those that like Pinot Noir without the cola notes, delicious with hints of mushroom and tobacco.

Drew


[This message has been edited by Drew (edited 02-28-2009).]

[hotwine]

Nice notes, Herr Inspektor! You must have carried a notebook around with you...

[TheEngineer]

Nice notes! I agree agree with the Chimney Rock! I've been going there every time I drive by.

[winoweenie]

Looks like the sight of that 44 Magnum in the holster last year did the trick. WW [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb/wink.gif[/img]

[Kcwhippet]

We opened the Rosenblum Desiree at our weekly tasting just before St. Valentine's Day. It was a huge hit and we sold out two cases within a week.

[wondersofwine]

I bought a half-bottle of Desiree at the Rosenblum tasting room in Healdsburg on my Sonoma trip in 2007. I'm thinking I may take it as a dessert wine to the Baltimore offline in April.