The King of My Own Castle Rock Cabernet Sauvignon

It was snowing here for the past 2 days and now its 100% sunny which is very nice.  The birds are once again chirping away, the roads are clear from snow and ice and its 26 degrees!  Yes, that's right, 26 degrees.  The good thing is that the house is heated and we work comfortably from home.  My office is in the basement and my Wife is up in the 3rd bedroom upstairs.  Currently our little boy is over at Grandmas house and my wife and I will have a good opportunity today to try to make some money.  If you are self employed you know the hardships of the current economy and realize that we now work 3x as hard as we did prior to 2008 and make 50% of the money. 

It sucks for sure.

I can only say now in hindsight that if we had not moved away from the beach when we did, we would undoubtedly be living in some 2 bedroom apartment probably somewhere in North Redondo Beach.  From previously been living (before we moved to Colorado) only 3 blocks from the Pacific Ocean in Hermosa Beach, the move "out East" to North Redondo Beach would not have made me a very happy camper.  Having family here in the Parker, Colorado, it seemed only natural that we make the move out here.  The goal was to save some money, and get through these first 3 very difficult years with our lil' boy London (that incidentally we love more than anything in the World, and are just so darn grateful for!)  So far its been boring in one respect but great in the fact that we are a family and we are raising a super star!

So here is what we ended up with for lets just say less than 400k. 
Approximately 3400Sq feet.  We have 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, an updated kitchen, remodeled bathrooms, and a walk out "finished" basement below.   It sits in a "park like" setting with mountains, trees, deer, fox, coyote, and even your occasional Mountain Lion!  The thought of lions in the neighborhood doesnt exactly make us want to get out there and do too many nature hikes you know?

When its cold like its been and the baby is sleeping, the fireplace is on, and its all warm and cozy, I often truly believe that I am the King of my Castle and last night while having these warm thoughts I tried my next semi-similar wine.

Castle Rock, Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 from Paso Robles, CA

Price Point $10

I have long been a huge fan of wines from the Paso Robles area and in fact they are of my favorites of all wines.  I don't know why but this area just seems to fruit my fancy, i mean suit my fancy!

Some other wineries that you may have heard of from this area are:

J. Lohr Vineyards

Four Sisters Ranch

Greg Norman California Estates

Peachy Canyon Winery

Meridian Vineyards

Wild Horse Winery & Vineyards (just to name a few)

Paso Robles lies halfway between the two main California cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco.  Paso Robles is located along California's famed Central Coast.  The climate in Paso Robles is perfect for the production of many styles of award winning premium wines.  Because of a long growing season that features warm days and cool evenings, the area allows for a vibrant ripened fruit with dynamic flavor profiles that translate beautifully in your glass of Paso Robles wine.  Traversing the landscape you will find 26,000 vineyard acres, producing more than 40 wine grape varieties - from Spanish to Italian, Bordeaux to Rhône, including the area's heritage variety Zinfandel. The styles of wine are diverse in this very distinct region.

The Castle Rock Cabernet is a great wine and suitable for any wine drinker from your beginner Cabernet drinker to those with the most complex of palates. Denoted as a 'Best Buy' designation from "Wine Enthusiast Magazine" this wine is a smooth and polished Cab suitable for drinking "Anytime."

It's flavoring is an expression of black cherry and spice and as I would say "easy to swallow and nice to get a hold of!"

Would I buy this wine again?
You bet!



Nothing Incognito About Drinking "Incognito"

It has been quite the adventure around here lately!  First thing was that the wife went to Las Vegas over the weekend with "the girls" and as I say "left me" with the little one!  Not exactly like she left me hanging because I am more than capable of handling a 21 month old with more energy than the energizer bunny.  But, in all honesty it is truly is A LOT of work.   The bottom line though is that becoming a parent is a very hard transition and I cannot tell you how gnarly and scary and hard it must be for a single parent.  I feel for all the divorcees in the World and I can only imagine how hard it is to "Go it alone!"  I am truly grateful to have a wife to lend a hand with me (well more of a hand) and also to share this fantastic journey with.

What a ride! 

"lil monster"

Next, President Obama flew over our house last night and my mother in law actually read the wording painted on the side of the plane that says, "The United States of America."  It wasn't like we actually saw the President but him actually flying directly over our home 500 feet up brought us some unexplainable excitement?  

My bottle to speak of today is the next in the line from the "Michael David Family of Wines."

2009 "Incognito" from the Michael David Family of Wines in Lodi, CA

 Price Range, $16-$19

I am not drinking these Michael David wines for any reason other than they were having a great sale on all the Michael David wines at Costco.  So I picked up a bottle of Incognito and began sipping away.  Like all the wines I have ever tasted from the Lodi, Ca area the first taste is strong, thick, and bold.  Something that you taste and then cant really figure out if you like it or not.  A little bit hard on the throat at first as well but better as you progressed through the bottle.  

This make up of this specific blend includes such a variety of grapes including Syrah, Cinsault, Carignane, Mourvedre, Petite Sirah, Grenache, & Tannat.  To say this wine is not complex would be a huge lie and you can understand by its make up why it may be a lil' over powering.  At least to me it was and I have a decade of nightly sipping under my belt!

I read a review which called it smoky with a core that is plum and cherry.  I can agree with the plum and the cherry but I am still to determine what exactly "smoky" tastes like?  I found the body of the wine to be nice and the finish to be decent as well. 

The bottom line is that if your palate is not seriously evolved this is not the juice for you!

Would I buy it again- Sure!

If its snowing outside and the fire is burning, this would actually be the perfect sipper for the fireside wino.


btw, its snowing outside and I just may have to go pick up another bottle!

Thanks for stopping by!

 

2009 6th Sense Syrah, Bad, Then Good, Then Great!

Last night I had the opportunity to open up a bottle of 2009, 6th Sense Syrah.  This wine is made by the somewhat infamous Michael David Wines.  I am not sure if they are infamous or not but with wine names in their collection like "6th Sense", "7 Deadly Zins", "Incognito Rouge", and "Earth Quake" you immediately think infamous, spooky and have an uncanny desire to want to try each and every one of them.  At least I do.

                                                                                                                               
 
I have long been a fan of the "7 Deadly Zins" Zinfandel though I do think it is a bit over priced in the $18-$20 dollar range at my local wine shop.  With that said though I saw on the shelf at my local store for the 1st time the "6th Sense" and had to pick up a bottle.

 

Price Point $16-$19

So I brought the bottle home, cracked it open and let it sit and breathe on the kitchen counter for about an hour before I took my first sip.

Like other wines I have tried from the Lodi California area and one in particular "Lange Twins Winery & Vineyards"  that I had tried before, it had that old familiar super strong first sip. Almost like a glass of Rodney Strong Cabernet (if you know what I mean).  A sip that is super thick, almost peppery and almost not even drinkable if one sip were to be the whole experience.  A sip that I suddenly think to myself,  "I'm going to get shit faced if I drink the whole bottle of this stuff!"

Today I read the description of this wine from the Michael David Winery site and this is how they describe it:

A dark ruby colored Syrah that opens with a very fragrant peppermint bouquet with hints of black cherry, blueberry, and red currant. On the palate, this wine is balanced, mouthwatering, and very juicy. The flavor profile is a ripe red cherry with mixed in notes of vanilla. There were also hints of red currant jam and black pepper.

 I got through my first glass and then as I sat staring into the fire I started to think, "Holy shit, this stuff is good!" and from there it was nothing but sunshine and rainbows for me.  I didn't pick up any peppermint,  or blueberry, but I will admit on hints of black cherry, ripe red cherry, and for sure black pepper.

All in all I think this wine is very good and was worth my money.

Would I buy it again- Yes!

Don Ramon, Oak Aged Quality

Now you can't always say that just because a wine is good or expensive it is good or bad.  In fact, in my last decade+ of wine drinking I have had to learn my lessons the hard way.  Because I am not rich I am typically forced to drink bottles that are in the $12-$22 dollar range.  This is perfect for me though as sitting on the couch staring at the fire and television really isn't worthy of $25 dollars a glass.

Having said this, from time to time I have found greatness in the under $12 dollar range.  Though rare, it happens.  When it does, it's a love affair in the making!

Today's wine: "Don Ramon" Vino Tinto Barrica 2008 Oak Aged Red Wine, a product of Spain

 Price Point, $6-$9


I found this wine one day while at my local wine shop.  The owner of the shop knows I enjoy blends and recommended that I give this one a try.  It was on a separate wine rack across from the standard "popular" wines and was low, low, low on the shelf.  I looked down at the bottle and said "Really."   The owner, "Donnie" said, "Give it a shot, its actually a nice lil red blend."

So that night I took home my first bottle of Don Ramon and gave it a taste.  My first thought was "Wow" I am impressed.

At first glance the bottle looks as if it came off a Spanish galleon or something.  The glass is brown (like a Mexican Beer bottle) and it has a narrow neck and a tightly fitted tiny lil' cork stuck in it.   The neck and shoulder of the bottle are closed with foil and a small ribbon that must be pulled through a wax in order to actually open the bottle.  Call it strange but its almost like opening a treasure chest or something!

Upon opening my mind washed with visions of riding through the countryside by train in Spain slowly sipping and enjoying as the fields passed us by.

Soon after that I had the vision of myself sitting table side, overlooking the harbor having tapas and good conversation.

The wine itself is simple, drinkable, and best of all easy.  What I mean by easy is that it does not dry the throat and leave you needing water to rehydrate with.  The flavor is fruity and there are hints of some blackberry and cherry.  I could drink this wine on the couch, on a boat, at a wedding, or even with a pizza.  Being a Sangria lover this is not quite as fruity and sweet, but along the same lines minus all the sugar.

The make up of this blend is 75% Grenache and 25% Tempranillo

All in all the vacation that Don Ramon took me on was pleasant, happy, and uplifting.  Last night I even found myself listening/watching a documentary special about a World renown singer/diva from Cuba named Albita.  If you haven't heard her sing I highly recommend you checking her out.  She is great!  Her beautiful voice and this wine proved to be a perfect pairing for sure.

Would I drink Don Ramon again? Without a doubt!

Would I buy Don Ramon again? Absolutely!

PS- Don't tell anyone but I have never been to Spain!

......Ahhh someday.

Apothic Red, All That and A Bottle of Tums!

Lately I have been super into drinking blends.  A lot of times friends will ask what I have been enjoying and I tell them that I am into blends.  I don't really want to give away all my favorites just yet as I won't have anything to write about.  I will tell any of you who are asking what a blend is though....

What is a Blend Wine?

At its most basic, a blend wine is made from different grapes in order to add more complexity to the flavor and texture of a wine. The goal of blending wine made in different vintages is more to balance out the flavor characteristics.
Some wine blends are made from classic recipes handed down from generation to generation. Other vintners create brand new blends in an attempt to produce a new and exciting wine that has flavor characteristics like nothing else on the market.

Sport Drinking:
 (I made this up years ago)
 Continuous drinking with no remorse or guilt.  Unafraid of the consequences, without fear.
                        
In a sentence: On Friday night I went to my friends house and we "sport drank" through 3 bottles of wine!

I personally think of a blend wine as a kind of wine that you can sit down with and do a little "Sport Drinking." I think of sport drinking as a wine that I can pour and pour that will not linger in the back of my throat, keep me up at night, or give me heart burn.

                                                         Wine Review: Apothic Red

Price Point $10-$12

From the wine maker:

Inspired by an "Apotheca," a mysterious place where wine was blended and stored in 13th century Europe, Apothic Red offers a truly unique wine experience.
By crafting a distinctive blend of California grapes, our winemaker has created an epic red wine… nuanced and complex, and undeniably enchanting.

My view of this "Blend" 

This was not my first rodeo with this bottle and I had to kick myself in the pants after my 1st glass for the following reasons.  1) The taste is ok, but it is so thick it almost reminds me of cough syrup. 2) Unless cooled and thinned out with an ice cube or two its just too thick and maybe WAY too "Complex" as they say to do more than one glass of. 3) Because it was my only bottle i finished the whole bottle and thereafter found myself in the bathroom with my beloved Tums at 4am.

Would i drink it again: Yes (if it were offered by a friend).

Would i buy it again:  Doubtful (unless in Mexico, Costa Rica, someplace third World, etc...etc...)

                                       

Gracias por leer

Looking for A New Job Anybody?

After now 5 years at my current job of selling promotional items I have begun to feel that familiar itch coming on that tells me its time to move on and do something new.  This same feeling came on  last time when I left the mortgage business and got into the promotional products business.  Believe it or not I had a dream and in this dream I was in a stand or booth of some kind and at fair or parade or something.  I was handing people reusable bags and they were smiling, laughing, and happy.  I was doing the right thing, and people were happy!  At that time (in my current job) I was selling mortgage leads.  With credit limits tightening, rates rising, and adjustable mortgages adjusting- the last thing anyone was at the time was "smiling and happy."  My dream was a very welcome relief and it felt great!  In fact, I was told daily that my leads suck, I was a con man, a liar, a motherfucker and, well, you get the picture.  So anyways, when i had the dream about handing the reusable grocery bags out and everyone being up beat and "GREEN" it was very refreshing.  So i woke after "the dream" with a new found drive like I had never had before.  I was in bed at 10 and up at 5am working on my bag company and "going green" - Wow what fond memories those days were to say the least.  My industry was hot, I was a rising star!  Well, at least I thought so.
So fast forward 5 years.  Everyone sells my beloved reusable bags, nobody has any money, and the economic situation of the USA is dismal to say the least.  I think its time to change directions again.
Tonight after the baby goes to sleep (as I sit on the couch sipping away on my glass of wine) I will reflect on my interests, my desires, my likes and my dreams.

*Daily Wine Facts
 1 grape cluster = 1 glass
75 grapes = 1 cluster
4 clusters = 1 bottle
40 clusters = 1 vine
1 vine = 10 bottles
1200 clusters = 1 barrel
1 barrel = 60 gallons
60 gallons = 25 cases
30 vines = 1 barrel
400 vines = 1 acre
1 acre = 5 tons
5 tons = 332 cases