Vinography Unboxed: Week of 9/1/24

Hello and welcome to my weekly dig through the pile of wine samples that show up asking to be tasted. I’m pleased to bring you the latest installment of Vinography Unboxed, where I highlight some of the better bottles that have crossed my doorstep recently.

This week included a few more Pinot Noirs from Nicolas Jay, the joint project between Jean-Nicolas Méo (of Burgundy’s Domaine Méo-Camuzet) and music entrepreneur Jay Boberg (co-founder of IRS Records). All four wines are worth seeking out as distinctive expressions of Willamette Valley. I particularly enjoyed the single-vineyard wines from Nysa Vineyard and Bishop Creek, both of which were planted in the late 1980s, and are now (own-rooted, and organically dry-farmed) in their maturity showing lovely complexity and individuality.

This week I’m also happy to recommend a couple more wines from Virginia. Indeed, these three wines are among the best I’ve had from the state. The Cave Ridge Vineyards Fossil Hill bottling offers wonderful red and blue fruits with great elegance and balance. Likewise, the King Family Vineyards Meritage manages to be medium-bodied and restrained while offering ripe expressions of fruit.  The “Spark” from Hark Vineyards is perhaps a little less elegant, but no less tasty. All three are excellent ambassadors for Virgina’s potential, and highly recommended for anyone who may be unfamiliar with the state’s viticultural potential.

I’ve been tasting the wines of Tierra Roja for some time. Proprietor Linda Neal brings a level of passion and personal dedication to her estate that is admirable in a valley with so many absentee vineyard owners (she does business under the name Obsession Wine Company, after all). The 2021 vintage is perhaps the best in a decade from Tierra Roja. The wine is made in the modern Napa style—big-boned and ripe, but not over-extracted and with a surprising elegance that results in a powerful wine, but one that is not overbearing—a sweet mouthful of fruit that isn’t jammy. Ultimately, another example of why I think 2021 is such a great vintage in Napa.

Crosby Roamann is a wine brand run by Juliana McBride and her husband Sean. Transplants from Brooklyn, this pair spent more than a decade living and working in Napa before deciding to launch their own label named after their respective grandparents. This week I’m tasting their Syrah from the Petaluma Gap in Sonoma County, as well as their Merlot-dominated red blend from Napa Valley. The Syrah is perhaps at an awkward stage of its evolution in the bottle, showing a little reduced at the start, but there’s excellent acidity here that suggests it may age into a more complete version of itself. The red blend is more seamless and approachable now, though I would personally wait a couple of years to see what it can really do. The winery makes much of sustainability and the carbon-neutral status of its wines, which is quite admirable, but I can’t help but wonder why they persist in using such heavy glass. Going with lighter bottles would presumably make them not just carbon neutral, but carbon negative!

Finally, I’m thrilled to have gotten a chance to taste what I believe is one of the most impressive debuts in Napa in quite some time with a great story behind it. Cuong Pham fled Vietnam in the late 1970s as part of the huge exodus around the war. In the United States, he became an engineer at Apple, then an entrepreneur, eventually founding Red Boat Fish Sauce company, the successful and rather ubiquitous purveyor of this crucial Vietnamese ingredient to restaurants globally. In 2021 he purchased land on Soda Creek Road in Napa Valley, and hired winemaker Nova Cadamatre to make his first wine, Dôi Dá (“Rocky Hill” in Vietnamese) which was recently released. This first vintage is made from purchased fruit, but the 9-acre estate vineyard will come online in three to four years. This initial wine seems to be to be an incarnation of classic, old-school Napa Cabernet in its finest form. With an admirably restrained 13.5% alcohol, beautiful acidity, and gorgeous fruit, it’s an extraordinary mouthful.

What’s more, Dôi Dá is priced below the stratosphere of typical Napa vanity wine projects. A (mere?) $125 per bottle. Of course, that’s a lot of money to pay for a bottle of wine—more than most people (myself included) are willing to pay except on the most special of occasions. But considering the number of brands I’ve seen debut in Napa priced at $250 and above in their first vintage with zero track record, it shows remarkable restraint, if not humility.

The only thing Dôi Dá seems to have gotten wrong (from my perspective) is the use of a bottle that weighs more than the wine inside. I hope the Pham family can do some work on sustainability and go for lighter glass in future vintages. In the meantime, I look forward to tasting more of their efforts, especially if they continue in this restrained style, which is such a beautiful demonstration of what Napa is capable of at its best.

Tasting Notes

2022 Nicolas Jay “Nysa” Pinot Noir, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon
Medium hazy garnet in the glass, this wine smells of candied raspberries and flowers. In the mouth, wonderfully bright raspberry and redcurrant flavors have a cottony tannic texture and excellent acidity that brings in notes of citrus peel and a touch of cedar shavings. Dried herbs linger in the finish. Vineyard planted in 1989 on volcanic Jory soils and farmed organically. 100% destemmed, native yeast fermentation. Spends 14 months in 50% new French oak. Bottled unfined and unfiltered. 13.5% alcohol. 166 cases made. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $100. click to buy.

2022 Nicolas Jay “Temperance Hill” Pinot Noir, Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon
A light to medium hazy garnet in the glass, this wine smells of raspberries, mushrooms, and flowers. In the mouth, raspberry and cherry flavors have a hint of blueberry as bright acidity makes the mouth water, and lightly grippy tannins caress the palate. Hints of sawdust and herbs linger in the finish. The vineyard was planted in 1993 on volcanic soils and farmed organically. Spends 15 months in 50% new French oak after destemming and a native yeast fermentation. Bottled unfined and unfiltered. 13.5% alcohol. 100 cases made. Score: around 9. Cost: $.

2022 Nicolas Jay “Bishop Creek” Pinot Noir, Yamhill-Carlton District, Willamette Valley, Oregon
Light to medium garnet in the glass, this wine smells of earth, raspberries, and chopped green herbs. In the mouth, raspberry and sour cherry flavors are wrapped in gauzy tannins as notes of dried herbs and citrus peel emerge over time. Excellent acidity. Nicely refined. The vineyard was planted in 1988 on marine sedimentary soils and farmed organically. Spends 15 months in 50% new French oak after destemming and a native yeast fermentation. Bottled unfined and unfiltered. 13.5% alcohol. 325 cases made. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $110. click to buy.

2022 Nicolas Jay “Own-Rooted” Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon
Light cloudy garnet in the glass, this wine smells of raspberry and raspberry leaf. In the mouth, juicy orange peel and raspberry flavors mix with sour cherry and a light dusting of dried herbs. Faint powdery tannins add a ghost-like texture to the wine while great acidity keeps things fresh and bright. A blend of fruit from own-rooted vines planted in the 1970s and 1980s in the estate’s three vineyards which are farmed either organically or biodynamically. 100% destemmed, fermented with native yeasts. Ages 15 months in 50% new French oak. Bottled unfined and unfiltered. 13.5% alcohol. 413 cases made. Score: around 9. Cost: $100. click to buy.

2019 Cave Ridge Vineyard “Fossil Hill Reserve” Red Blend, Shenandoah Valley, Virginia
Dark garnet in the glass, this wine smells of oak, cherry, and blueberry. In the mouth, bright cherry, cola, cedar, and blueberry flavors have a wonderfully fresh, medium-bodied quality, with faint cottony tannins that hang in the background. Very good acidity and nicely integrated wood. Quite easy to drink and very well done. A blend of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Cabernet Sauvignon grown at 1350 feet of elevation in limestone and silica soils. Ages 14 months in a combination of French and Hungarian oak. 13% alcohol. Score: around 9. Cost: $65.

2019 King Family Vineyards “Meritage” Red Blend, Monticello, Virginia
Dark garnet in the glass, this wine smells of blackberry and black cherry fruit. In the mouth, fine powdery tannins hang in a hazy cloud around a core of black cherry, black plum, and blackberry fruit, as excellent acidity keeps things quite fresh and bright. The tannins stiffen slightly with time, giving an architecture to the wine. Very well done. A blend of 47% Merlot, 28% Petit Verdot, 21% Cabernet Franc, and 4% Malbec. 13.8% alcohol. Heavy bottle weighs 1.53 kg when full. Score: around 9. Cost: $41. click to buy.

2019 Hark Vineyards “Spark” Red Blend, Monticello, Virginia
Dark garnet in color, this wine smells of black cherry and blackberry fruit. In the mouth, lightly grippy tannins wrap around a core of black cherry and blackberry fruit tinged with dried herbs and a hint of citrus peel. Black tea notes linger in the finish. Very good acidity. A blend of 46% Cabernet Franc, 30% Merlot, 24% Petit Verdot aged for 20 months in barrel. 13% alcohol. 375 cases produced. Score: around 8.5. Cost: $30.

2021 Tierra Roja Winery Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville, Napa, California
Dark, inky purple in the glass, this wine smells of crushed blackcurrants and black cherries. In the mouth, sweetish black cherry and blackcurrant flavors are wonderfully supple on the palate and rich without a lot of weight to them. The tannins are incredibly fine and hang in the background letting the fruit do the talking. Very good acidity. Barrel fermented in 75% new French oak and then aged for 20 months. 14.8% alcohol. 250 cases made. Comes in an unnecessarily heavy bottle weighing 1.64 kg when full. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $185. click to buy.

2022 Crosby Roamann Syrah, Petaluma Gap, Sonoma, California
Very dark garnet in the glass with purple highlights, this wine smells of struck match and blueberry fruit. In the mouth, blueberry and blackberry fruit flavors are wrapped in a fleecy blanket of tannins that smells of oak. The tannins stiffen with time, as a bright citrusy kick emerges in the finish. Slightly disjointed but will likely age well. Ages for 16 months in 40% new French oak. 14.2% alcohol. 600 cases made. Unnecessarily heavy bottle, weighing 1.61 kg when full. Score: around 8.5. Cost: $46.

2022 Crosby Roamann Red Blend, Napa Valley, California
Dark garnet in color, this wine smells of sweet cherry and cola. In the mouth, muscular tannins wrap around a core of bright cherry fruit tinged with cola nut and citrus peel. Excellent acidity and brightness here keeps things fresh, but the wood is a bit overbearing in texture (though surprisingly not in flavor until the very end of the finish). Needs a little time, but will likely age very well. A blend of 70% Merlot, 27% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 3% Cabernet Franc. Ages for 22 months in 100% new French oak. 15% alcohol. 600 cases made. Comes in an unnecessarily heavy bottle weighing 1.57 kg when full. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $80.

2022 Dôi Dá Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, California
Very dark garnet in the glass, this wine smells of black cherry, blueberry, and blackberry. In the mouth, wonderfully supple tannins coat the mouth as bright, juicy acidity keeps the wine quite fresh on the palate, as flavors of cherry, cola, pencil lead, and tobacco leaf swirl for a long time. Notes of licorice root and dried herbs linger in the finish as the fine-grained tannins stiffen slightly. Beautifully balanced, with incredibly well-integrated wood. A seriously impressive debut release with poise and elegance. Ages for 18 months in 100% new French oak. 13.5% alcohol. 160 cases made. Heavy bottle weighs 1.56 kg when full. Score: around 9.5. Cost: $125.

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