PetiteSirah wrote:Jon and Margie,

Was the viognier in the Serendipity just blended? Or was it cofermented with the Syrah?

copigmentation colloids free the weasels!

Winemaking is more art than science and blending is the height of the art. When starting out with new fruit that a winemaker is unfamiliar with, they typically blend later in the process. As you get to know the fruit and the finished product it produces you start blending sooner and sooner in the process ( you get braver and braver is more like it). Being my first commercial rhone blend with this fruit, I blended late in the game just prior to bottling. So the wines are kept in individual barrels all the way to bottling. Actually, I am even more anal than most. When I rack off I keep the wine in the barrel in its own barrel again. I do not blend the whole lot. This means each barrel is unique and the selection process for a blend is done on a barrel by barrel basis. More tedious, but also more rewarding.

madwinemaker wrote:Most syrah is lacking on the noise, viognier is added in small qtys to brighten the noise in a syrah based red. The problem is that you need to be careful not to add too much. 4% max is normal. I like to make it almost unnoticeable unless of course I tell you.

What I really need is some Grenache to work with too.

OK...I've grown a bit on wine knowledge in the past few years, but what in the name of (expletive deleted) is noise in syrah?

gregorylane wrote:OK...I've grown a bit on wine knowledge in the past few years, but what in the name of (expletive deleted) is noise in syrah?

OK. You got me. I fat fingered it. I meant nose.

I was in until I saw "Serendipity." That's just, um, "dipity."

In for one. Too much buzz about it.

madwinemaker wrote:OK. You got me. I fat fingered it. I meant nose.

Thank you, thank you...I think my wife would have had me committed if I started making her listen to the wine.

madwinemaker wrote:Its on the website but its 70 syrah, 29 mourvedre, 1 viognier.

The viognier is simply to brighten the noise and integrate more spice.

madwinemaker wrote:Most syrah is lacking on the noise, viognier is added in small qtys to brighten the noise in a syrah based red. The problem is that you need to be careful not to add too much. 4% max is normal. I like to make it almost unnoticeable unless of course I tell you.

What I really need is some Grenache to work with too.

madwinemaker wrote:OK. You got me. I fat fingered it. I meant nose.

3 times???

Alright, I'm in for 2. Now what did I buy?

eric9tx wrote:3 times???

be nice, he's west coast, and it's still early.... and unlike some of us, he doesn't spend all his time typing in front of a computer. If it was MW, you could make fun.

eric9tx wrote:3 times???

Once fat, always fat.

Here is a 10-year retrospective on Paso Robles vintages. Note that this is NOT from Madison Cellars

http://tablascreek.typepad.com/tablas/2008/12/ten-years-of-vintage-grades-paso-robles-report-card-19992008.html

2004 writeup, which they give a B-
http://www.tablascreek.com/harvest2004.html

Wine Spectator uses these guys for Vintage notes, fyi.

madwinemaker wrote:Most syrah is lacking on the noise, viognier is added in small qtys to brighten the noise in a syrah based red. The problem is that you need to be careful not to add too much. 4% max is normal. I like to make it almost unnoticeable unless of course I tell you.

What I really need is some Grenache to work with too.

Are you planning on a GSM blend?

Jon, there are many wineries out there that have already released their 2005's (and even 2006's) of a lot of these varietals, particularly Merlot and Syrah. What is your reasons behind waiting so long to release the next vintage? Can you tell us a bit about how you decide when you are going to release the next one?

Got 3 for me and Nostrom0.

Love, love, love these wines! Love, love, Love Margie and Jon!

Their Serendipity is my all time favorite. It has the perfect blend of grapes that just brings lots of aromas and flavors together that make you say "Ooohhhh that was nice." Great for every day and great for parties.

I could be a rat. Will be home all week.

And as no one else has asked yet, I figure I may as well do so:

In your opinion, what do you think are the prime drinking windows for these wines, and separately how long can they be cellared for before they start to decline?

Do you have any favorite pairings with these wines with regards to cheeses and/or foods, etc?

HitAnyKey42 wrote:Jon, there are many wineries out there that have already released their 2005's (and even 2006's) of a lot of these varietals, particularly Merlot and Syrah. What is your reasons behind waiting so long to release the next vintage? Can you tell us a bit about how you decide when you are going to release the next one?

These were released in 2007, bottled in 2006. The bottling and release dates are listed under the details for each wine ;)

HitAnyKey42 wrote:And as no one else has asked yet, I figure I may as well do so:

In your opinion, what do you think are the prime drinking windows for these wines, and separately how long can they be cellared for before they start to decline?

Do you have any favorite pairings with these wines with regards to cheeses and/or foods, etc?

The drinking windows are listed on the front page under the details for each wine.

When is Woot going to add to the list of states that can receive wines directly shipped to them? TN and KS were just added to the list as of 7/1/09, according to the very site they provided on the main page, ShipCompliantBlog.com. But they are not on the drop down box so I can select my correct state to ship, so I cannot order. Bummer, as my wife was interested in trying this sampler.

fireguy896 wrote:When is Woot going to add to the list of states that can receive wines directly shipped to them?

It's not w00t's call. Each winery featured on w00t has to purchase a license for each state for direct shipping. Sometimes states make things too expensive for a small cali winery to make a return on the license. Also, it takes time for the states to get around to processing applications so that adding a state during a sale isn't likely.

Hello everyone! Hope you all had a safe and happy 4th. Thank you all for your kind comments and orders. You are the best. Ummm .. hot tubs and skivies? Didn't see that one coming!

fireguy896 wrote:When is Woot going to add to the list of states that can receive wines directly shipped to them? TN and KS were just added to the list as of 7/1/09, according to the very site they provided on the main page, ShipCompliantBlog.com. But they are not on the drop down box so I can select my correct state to ship, so I cannot order. Bummer, as my wife was interested in trying this sampler.

Each winery must have a license in that particular state. Smaller wineries will be able to ship to all states.

Maybe there could be FAQ sections that would cover things like this and the labrat. They are asked frequently.

Deal too too too good to pass up. Also interested in trying some good merlot, since I've avoided it since having a horrible house merlot at a restaurant a few years back.

In for one earlier this morning. In fact... it was inside the rattage deadline.

Imagine4vr wrote:The drinking windows are listed on the front page under the details for each wine.

(yeah, that's all I got to say in response to that one)

Imagine4vr wrote:These were released in 2007, bottled in 2006. The bottling and release dates are listed under the details for each wine ;)

Ok then. So how about I rephrase the question.
How come the 2005 vintages have yet to be released, which should theoretically have been bottled in 2007 and released in 2008?

For those not clicking through to the CT link for the Cab, here's my posted review:

Dark ruby red, going lighter at the edges. Nice nose of blackberries, spice, and earth. More berries on entry, then sour cherries, some tannins, not much heat, short to medium finish. A nicely put together effort, appropriately fruity and easy drinking. 88.

I paid more than it is here, and I thought it was a good deal then. At this price, its almost legal theft.

I'm a big grenache/GSM fan, so I can hardly wait for Jon to plant, vinify and blend those varietals. It may take 5 years or more, but I'm not going anywhere.

In for one with shipping to Madison, Wisconsin!

bang21 wrote:In for one with shipping to Madison, Wisconsin!

Too bad you didn't get your order in sooner. If anyone was more deserving of being a LabRat for this offer, it would be you.

A couple of questions:

Are the 3 varietal wines 100% (Cab, etc) or is there some blending on the fringe?

And, are the stated drinking/aging windows from the vintage date, bottling date, or release date?

This looks like an amazing offer. Before I jump, why do some of the people say it has a "bacony" (sp?)flavor? Being vegan, I'd hate to be partaking of pig in my wine

lassow wrote:Here is a 10-year retrospective on Paso Robles vintages. Note that this is NOT from Madison Cellars

http://tablascreek.typepad.com/tablas/2008/12/ten-years-of-vintage-grades-paso-robles-report-card-19992008.html

2004 writeup, which they give a B-
http://www.tablascreek.com/harvest2004.html

Wine Spectator uses these guys for Vintage notes, fyi.

Thanks for posting these links. I recall 2004 being a poor year in general for all of CA. There were still some outstanding, highly concentrated wines to be had but it is a really hit or miss year. I'm a little hesitant on this offering just because of it being 2004. There were only a few hundred cases of each vintage but was released 2 years ago so that makes me a bit nervous as well. Shouldn't these have been long gone by now? Great deal though at these prices regardless. Need some good Rat feedback...

darlenee1 wrote:Are you planning on a GSM blend?

We only use our own estate grapes. Currently, we do not have any Grenache. I do want to plant some soon. So, the short answer is we won't have a GSM blend for a few years, unfortunately.

HitAnyKey42 wrote:Jon, there are many wineries out there that have already released their 2005's (and even 2006's) of a lot of these varietals, particularly Merlot and Syrah. What is your reasons behind waiting so long to release the next vintage? Can you tell us a bit about how you decide when you are going to release the next one?

Well that is always a good question and of course there are many reasons why a winery releases a wine when they do... and some of them have nothing to do with the wine.

For us, we make all our wines unfined and unfiltered and we sur lees age AND we only rack once or twice max. For these reasons our wines tend to need a little more bottle time before release. Of course your first vintages you try to push them out faster and then the next ones follow based more on inventory queue. All this said, it means our 06s are due out shortly. As an FYI, we sold our entire 05 lot in bulk, so will not be releasing anything retail for 05.

Already in for 1, but should I be thinking two for this offering? I've been incredibly happy to enjoy 6 bottles of the Ty Caton instead of 3 because of wine.woot peer pressure

HitAnyKey42 wrote:And as no one else has asked yet, I figure I may as well do so:

In your opinion, what do you think are the prime drinking windows for these wines, and separately how long can they be cellared for before they start to decline?

Do you have any favorite pairings with these wines with regards to cheeses and/or foods, etc?

In general our reds are drinkable after 2 years in bottle and probably peak in the 3-7 year range. Why do I say think? ... because we have not aged any wine longer than 8 years. By the way, all of the wines still taste great after the 8 years. I continue to open my library wines to see how they are aging long term.

If you are storing them properly I would recommend consumption with 3-7 years bottle time.

As for favorite pairings...

I keep finding new ones I like. But being a cowboy wanabee, I must say there is nothing like a good marinated tri tip roast grilled on the BBQ with a Madison Cellars red. My favorite is the 02 syrah (sorry to mention what you can't have;-)) or the 04 cab or merlot.

I like the merlot with cheeses or the serendipity for the more blue like cheeses because the sur lees are stronger with the serendipity and they go well with those types.

HitAnyKey42 wrote:Ok then. So how about I rephrase the question.
How come the 2005 vintages have yet to be released, which should theoretically have been bottled in 2007 and released in 2008?

05s are all gone my man. We had an offer we couldn't refuse to seel the whole lot in bulk.

merryberry wrote:A couple of questions:

Are the 3 varietal wines 100% (Cab, etc) or is there some blending on the fringe?

And, are the stated drinking/aging windows from the vintage date, bottling date, or release date?

100%.

Usually the drinking windows are from the release date. THey usually quote windows which cover the bottle time and the release time reference.

fastcarv6 wrote:This looks like an amazing offer. Before I jump, why do some of the people say it has a "bacony" (sp?)flavor? Being vegan, I'd hate to be partaking of pig in my wine

No worries, we don't add anything non grape and yeast to our wines.

Look at it this way, you can enjoy the taste of bacon and stay true to your beliefs.

wiggie2gone wrote:I have been reading a lot about the Serendipity and Merlot what about the syrah?

Really, really good. And I'm thinking it was the vintage Java pulled out by "accident" from Madwinemaker's wine cellar. And almost put a hit on Java for doing so .....

FergyinDaATL wrote:Thanks for posting these links. I recall 2004 being a poor year in general for all of CA. There were still some outstanding, highly concentrated wines to be had but it is a really hit or miss year. I'm a little hesitant on this offering just because of it being 2004. There were only a few hundred cases of each vintage but was released 2 years ago so that makes me a bit nervous as well. Shouldn't these have been long gone by now? Great deal though at these prices regardless. Need some good Rat feedback...

You are correct, 04 was a tough year. The biggest problems were low yields due to spring frost and then a cool finish to the growing season, so late harvest. We ended up with about a 1/3 of the crop we wanted (I had to drop a lot of clusters to get the remaining fruit ripe). We had to pick the late and the sugars were lower than usual. For Paso, this ain't so bad. We typically end up with more sugar than we need, hence hotter wines and higher alcohols.

If you had the previous 2 vintages the biggest differences you would see are:
the 04s are lighter in color and lighter in body and more approachable.

madwinemaker wrote:No worries, we don't add anything non grape and yeast to our wines.

Look at it this way, you can enjoy the taste of bacon and stay true to your beliefs.

Awesome - Like bac-o bits for wine
In for two, please!