2019 Jean Louis Grand Reserve Cotes du Rhone

 Norm's Tasting Notes

by Norm Bentley

The North Georgia Wine Advisor

normwine@bellsouth.net

normwine@charter.net

2019 Jean Louis Grand Reserve Cotes du Rhone

#40-2022

I have always been partial to wine from the Rhone in France, and I liked this one enough to make it a "second sipper", meaning this is my second review, since I wrote the first one about seven or eight months ago.  This time we paired it with a medium rare fillet, and it was great!  What makes it even better, is that it is an under fifteen dollar quality bottle of wine!

Noted wine writer James Suckling scored this one a 91, but I am sticking to my original score, a solid 90!  The wine is compelling with black and dark red berry flavors which sing a song of enchantment next to a portion of well prepared beef.  The alcohol content is 15%, and as previously stated, Norm's score is 90.

Put this one on the table with Beef Wellington, or Chateaubriand and you will have scored a Hit!

score: 90

price: $10 - $15

Norm

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2021 Cakebread Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc

 Norm's Tasting Notes

by Norm Bentley

The North Georgia Wine Advisor

normwine@bellsouth.net

normwine@charter.net

2021 Cakebread Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc

#39-2022

We just got back from an enjoyable week at the beach, where we saved the best restaurant for last.  Unfortunately the restaurant was "All Show, and No Go", with high prices and substandard cuisine.  It must be a place which preys on the tourists.  However, all was not lost, as we enjoyed a wonderful bottle of Cakebread Sauvignon Blanc, which almost made up for the poor fare.

The  Cakebread has a fragrant nose with the aromas of flowers, melon, and citrus.  The flavors are clean and  crisp, highlighting pear, melon, and stonefruit with a refreshing minerality in the finish, and also a slight touch of oak.  The alcohol content is 14.1%, and Norm's score is 90.

This Sauvignon Blanc would be an excellent choice for Italian Fruit de Mer, or Fettuccine Alfredo, or even Shrimp Scampi.

score: 90

price: $30 - $35

Norm

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AVAILABLE ONLINE AT:

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Wine – God's Proof of His Love for Humanity

2019 Bogle Old Vine Zinfandel

 Norm's Tasting Notes

by Norm Bentley

The North Georgia Wine Advisor

normwine@bellsouth.net

normwine@charter.net

2019 Bogle Old Vine Zinfandel

#38-2022

I read the following review a few days back and it reminded me of one I had written more than a decade ago about this same wine.

Critical Acclaim

WE91

Wine Enthusiast

retail = $14.99

Mint and cedar aromas give way to lively berry flavors and a good structure of moderate tannins and a full body. The wine is complex, interesting and also rich in fruit. Best Buy. (WE)

 

Below is what I wrote in 2010, and this wine has been a "Favorite" for years!  

nb

2008 Bogle Old Vines Zinfandel

#nb-16-10

Big, fat, and jammy, and so good! No, I am not talking about a jelly roll, I am talking about the 2008 Bogle Old Vines Zinfandel. Mary the "Chardonnay Queen" said that "it tasted like somebody dropped a big old glob of blackberry jam into the middle of the glass!" Now everybody does not like "jammy", but I sure do! This Zinfandel is intense and very bold, with lots of big dark berry flavors swirling through it.

The Bogle Vineyards are located in the Sacramento Delta near Clarksburg, California, and the vines used to make this wine are about 45 to 80 years old. This Zinfandel has been aged for ten months in American Oak, which puts some tannin in its finish, and the wine is a sturdy 14.8% alcohol.

Many of the Italian immigrants who moved to California in the late 19th, and early 20th centuries, loved Zinfandel almost as much with their pasta as Chianti, and they planted a lot of Zinfandel throughout Northern California. Speaking of pasta, we enjoyed this bottle of Bogle Old Vines with a big plate of spaghetti covered with Norm's famous meat sauce. Spaghetti is always one of my most favorite meals, and this Zinfandel made it almost perfect!

This intense wine would also be great with any hearty stew, game meat, or barbecue. You won't find a better old vine Zinfandel in this price range. Norm's score is a 91.

Price - $10 - $14
Score - 91

Norm

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Wine – God's Proof of His Love for Humanity

2020 Monopole Blanco Secco Rioja

 Norm's Tasting Notes

by Norm Bentley

The North Georgia Wine Advisor

normwine@bellsouth.net

normwine@charter.net

2020 Monopole Blanco Secco Rioja

#37-2022

I sampled a wine recently which many know little of, much less about the grape it is made from.  The grape is Macabeo which is used in both France and Spain to blend with Chardonnay and other grapes in the making of sparkling wine.  However, in Spain's Rioja region it is called Viura, and is bottled as a still wine, and called Blanco Secco Rioja.  It also may be the perfect companion for oysters on the half shell!

It is pale in color, as well as aroma, with just a slight hint of citrus in the nose.  The flavor, however, is complex with lemon, green apple, and a sturdy mineral background to add a chalky character which finishes with good acidity, and a crisp goodbye.  The wine cuts perfectly through the salty taste of oysters.  The alcohol content is 12.5%, and Norm's score is 89.

Great with raw on the half shell, it would also lend pleasure to a bucket of steamed clams, or a platter of Mussels Italiano.

score: 89

price: $12 - $16

Norm

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AVAILABLE ONLINE AT:

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ALSO AVAILABLE at: Dunwoody Patch

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Wine – God's Proof of His Love for Humanity

The North Georgia Wine Advisor

 Norm's Tasting Notes

by Norm Bentley

The North Georgia Wine Advisor

normwine@bellsouth.net

normwine@charter.net

#36/2022

This was first published in 2014 - I thought you might want to know more about The North Georgia Wine Advisor

Scoring wine from the North Georgia Wine Advisor 2014 (Dunwoody Patch)

Good advice on wine and food from the North Georgia Wine Advisor

Norm Bentley,Community Contributor

Posted Sun, Jul 27, 2014 at 10:48 am ET

Having been in the wine business for many years, and also having been a judge at wine competitions, I am often asked what goes into scoring a wine. The first thing that should be noted is that all opinions about wine are just that, opinions. The most important opinion is yours. If you like the wine, then that is the only opinion that really counts.

When scoring wines, the majority of opinions are based on a one to one hundred scale, while some use a more simple one to ten scale.  I receive sample bottles of wine from wineries and their advertising agencies, as well as making purchases in local retail outlets on my own.

My criteria is to write about wines which I feel are in the 85 and up category on the one to one hundred scale. I do not write about wines that are inferior because I would rather write about wines which are enjoyable, and in today’s market place, there are many to choose from. When I was in retail, I used to tell customers, “I taste a lot of bad wines so that you don’t have to.”

Today there are thousands of good wines to choose from, and many are in the ten to twenty dollar range, which fits most people’s pocketbooks. I hope that Norm’s Tasting Notes is a useful guide to help make your dinner or special occasion a successful one.

Norm

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normwine.blogspot.com

AVAILABLE ONLINE AT:

Pine Island Eagle.com

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ALSO AVAILABLE at: Dunwoody Patch

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Wine – God's Proof of His Love for Humanity