8.30.2007

Napa Wine Review Part 3: Pina


Sigh. Where do I even begin. It is such a love-fest when I discuss Pina, as you might have already read in my previous posts. Anyway, I had to drag The Boyfriend and our friend with whom we were staying, (we will give him the code name Sucio to protect the guilty) to Pina that morning. We were all a bit worn out, as we hit the ground running when we landed in Napa the day before, plus the boys harvested grapes in the morning, so they were not being cooperative at all. BUT, once we were tasting wines right out of the barrel at Pina, they were SOOO happy I made them attend.

Sometimes you attend a tasting and there are only a few, if any, stars in the group. At Pina, every single wine that it pours is fantastic. Pina has had such a solid performance in past years that it sells out on its futures (futures in wines are just like everything else - you are purchasing wine not yet bottled and/or ready for sale). Bottom line, you cannot go wrong with any of its wines. (sorry, love-fest, you were warned). We tasted five or so wines right out of the barrel, since the 2004 Howell Mountain Cab is the only wine available for immediate sale and consumption at this time.

My favorite:

2005 Cabernet Sauvignon (Yountville-Wolff) - PRRRRRrrrrrrrrr... This wine was my favorite of the entire trip. It is a full-bodied cab with dark fruit, but the hightlight is the spicy, Thai-esque finish. It will be absolutely incredible when it is released next year. It made me do a happy dance in the barrel room. Seriously. buy it now. and a lot of it. It is that good.

Photo: Pina (check out the middle pic - it is the paella pan that I mentioned in previous posts!)

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've just discovered your blog--great job, fun to read! I represent a range of wineries, would like to talk to you...could you please contact me? 707/963-9757 or corking@julieannkodmur.com.

Sincerely,
Julie Ann Kodmur

jac said...

Thanks for stopping by, Julie Ann! I really look forward to hearing about your wines!