K&L Wine Merchants - Staff Review Landing Page

2011 Punta Crena "Cruvin" Rosso

By: Greg St. Clair | Review Date: 4/4/2013 | Send Email

It seems to be a never ending parade of "what kind of grape is that"? Crovino? And yes they are they only producers who make one... BUt thank GOD they do! The wine has a great fleshy richness on the palate without being over ripe. A little bigger than a CRU Beaujolais, a little softer than Nebbiolo, and 100% delicious.

Drink from 2013 to 2015

Price: $23.99

2011 Feipu dei Massaretti Granaccia

By: Greg St. Clair | Review Date: 4/4/2013 | Send Email

Ligurian Grenache? That's what I thought, but wow this stainless steel aged red has "classic" Grenache fruitiness, with sort of a crunchy freshness. A really complete wine, complex, fruity and absolutely delicious!

Drink from 2013 to 2016

Price: $24.99

2008 Guido Porro "Vigna S. Caterina" Barolo

By: Greg St. Clair | Review Date: 4/4/2013 | Send Email

This wine is such a pleasure to drink, another outstanding effort from the tremendous 2008 vintage for Barolo. The aromatics are classic, earth, floral, not a sweet ripeness but complete ripeness, rich but not fat on the palate and a layered finish that just begs you to take another drink, and at this price....what a steal.

Drink from 2013 to 2020

Price: $35.99

2011 McGah Family Cellars "Ten Seventy Green" Rutherford Sauvignon Blanc

By: Bryan Brick | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

This small, family-owned project really impressed me with their two wines, the other a solid, crowd-pleasing Rutherford Cabernet for a reasonable price. But this Sauvignon Blanc is really something special. Riding a perfect line between the spicy, capsicum-driven nose of Kiwi SBs and the fruit-forward, citrus-driven nose of Napa, it is wildly alluring. Linear and alive, from the onset this delivers plenty of Meyer lemon, Key lime, Thai basil and mango flavors that dovetail to the broad, mouthwatering finish. Add just a kiss of 10% new oak to give a little dimension and added complexity and this is a bottle that you can go back to time and time again.

Price: $19.99

2011 Halcon "Esquisto" Yorkville Highlands Rhone Blend

By: Bryan Brick | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

One of the most truly delicious wines I’ve tasted in 2013 is the 2011 Halcón “Esquisto” Yorkville Highlands Rhône Blend ($25.99). Halcón was one of the revelations of 2012; they shocked me early on with their outrageously good Syrah and this new release did nothing but fortify that burgeoning reputation. Their estate vineyard is planted in the Mendocino County appellation called Yorkville Highlands. The vineyard sits at 2,500 feet in elevation, above the fog line, on fractured shale, quartz-rich rock and mica-schist, which is a very similar soil composition to the famous Côte-Rôtie appellation in the northern Rhône. People like Wells Guthrie at Copain have already taken notice of the relatively young vineyard and are bottling vineyard-designated Syrah from there. This estate blend of 40% Grenache, 30% Syrah and 30% Mourvèdre is wild, nervy and full of flavor, with tremendous aromatics of pithy raspberry, dried strawberry and a slight touch of cured meats. Weightless and full of energy, this is perfect for lighter meat dishes with its flavors of fennel pollen, lamb jus, black raspberry and a streak of white pepper. Rhône lovers shouldn’t miss this bottle.

Price: $25.99

2011 Palmina Santa Ynez Valley Malvasia Bianca

By: Mellyn Craig | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

One whiff of this Malvasia Bianca, and I imagined myself lounging on a tropical beach sipping on this delicious wine! Aromas of tropical fruits and white flowers leap out of the glass, carrying on to the palate with a creamy, yet lively acidic mouth feel. I will be drinking a lot of this wine this summer!

Price: $26.99

2001 La Rioja Alta "Viña Ardanza" Reserva Especial Rioja

By: Shaun Green | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

It's hard to say enough about this wine. Beautifully clear and expressive Rioja that should cost twice this much. I keep drinking the bottles I bring home intending to age because it is just so incredibly alluring right now. I'll have to lock some up to make sure I get to see this beauty when it's mature, because it will only get better from here.

Drink from 2013 to 2030

Price: $29.99

RP 93 ST 92

2012 Luli Central Coast Rosé

By: Shaun Green | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

I think I've found my summer rose already! Mouthwatering and 'cruchy' red fruits with a slightly fuller body - great for patio duty! Half Pinot and half grenache seamless and only dangerous because you'll always want another glass.

Drink from 2013 to 2013

Price: $13.99

2009 Two Sisters "Lindsay's Vineyard" Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir

By: Shaun Green | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

If you're a fan of rich California style pinots, don't let this one slip by. Rich and round, almost Sonoma in texture with a nice dose of red and blue fruits, spicy notes and the French oak showing through nicely, yet not overpowering Good mouth-watering tannins and a wonderful mid palate weight create a mouthfeel of a very expensive Pinot. At 1/2 the previous price you get a very big deal wine at a fantastic discount.

Drink from 2013 to 2018

Price: $29.99

2010 Domaine des Niales Rhedon-Marin Mâcon-Villages Vieilles Vignes

By: Christie Cartwright | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

A superb value for Classic White Burgundy from the Macon. Lots of minerality and citrus stone fruit, crispy and bright, with no new oak so it stays fresh and clean. Balanced with great texture and a real find for your everyday Spring/Summertime Chardonnay! And something almost every palate can enjoy and appreciate. You wont believe the quality for the price!

Price: $12.99

2011 Roark Wine Company Happy Canyon Santa Barbara County Malbec

By: Joe Manekin | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

This is one crazy Malbec. Crazy in that the dark fruit breathes on the palate, and shows a just ripened quality, not at all the rich and chewy style of Argentina. Yes, this is in fact the first Malbec I've had from outside of the Loire Valley to truly bring Côt to mind. For that fact alone, this Malbec is well worth trying. It's not cheap but it is quite tasty and a bottle that I imagine would be drained very quickly indeed.

Price: $26.99

2011 Forlorn Hope "Que Sandade" Verdelho

By: Joe Manekin | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

A lovely take on Verdelho, the Forlorn hope version has loads of richness on the mid-palate, with a strong note of apricots. The intense fruit builds towards a long finish. I can just as easily see this as an aperitive as I could paired with a wide variety of foods, perhaps a piece of halibut accompanied by roasted red peppers and quinoa with a generous few handfuls of choped parsley and mint.

Price: $22.99

2009 Saarloos & Sons "His" Santa Ynez Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

By: Bryan Brick | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

Sometimes you just know. You just sort of have a feeling that everything is going to work out just fine. Some call it ESP, some say it is their gut feeling and some are just so braggadocios that they will tell you they knew all along. Well, whatever you want to call it I think all of us that visited Saarloos and Sons on our recent trip to the Central Coast back in late February knew pretty quickly that we were going to do some really cool stuff together. I originally heard a hot tip about this winery from Bob Lindquist at Qupé a while back and if Bob says someone is doing a good job than that is good enough for me. What I didn’t know was just how much this family is committed to making great wines, being true stewards to their vineyards all the while having ridiculous amounts fun and trying to pass their wines onto people in a truly different way. I mean cupcakes with wine pairings at the tasting bar??? Seriously rad. Gift Certificates made out of barrel staves. Totally bitchin’ right? Letting their 6 year old daughter decide when to begin harvest on their Sauvignon Blanc? Genius! Writing a sustainable 250 year business plan? That is just plain cray-cray. But even without all the coolness surrounding this family project I would have loved these wines every bit as much. The reason: purity. These wines are the essence of well farmed fruit made gently into even better wines. Sometimes when you taste wines with the people behind them it gives you a better context in which to understand the wines. Here we instantly saw the personality of the people in the wine: honest, dedicated, farmers, looking to do something classic but always with a modern spin. Basically what I’m trying to say is these awesome guys and gals make wines that perfectly personify that awesomness.

Price: $39.99

2010 Saarloos & Sons "Hers" Santa Ynez Valley Grenache Blanc

By: Bryan Brick | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

Sometimes you just know. You just sort of have a feeling that everything is going to work out just fine. Some call it ESP, some say it is their gut feeling and some are just so braggadocios that they will tell you they knew all along. Well, whatever you want to call it I think all of us that visited Saarloos and Sons on our recent trip to the Central Coast back in late February knew pretty quickly that we were going to do some really cool stuff together. I originally heard a hot tip about this winery from Bob Lindquist at Qupé a while back and if Bob says someone is doing a good job than that is good enough for me. What I didn’t know was just how much this family is committed to making great wines, being true stewards to their vineyards all the while having ridiculous amounts fun and trying to pass their wines onto people in a truly different way. I mean cupcakes with wine pairings at the tasting bar??? Seriously rad. Gift Certificates made out of barrel staves. Totally bitchin’ right? Letting their 6 year old daughter decide when to begin harvest on their Sauvignon Blanc? Genius! Writing a sustainable 250 year business plan? That is just plain cray-cray. But even without all the coolness surrounding this family project I would have loved these wines every bit as much. The reason: purity. These wines are the essence of well farmed fruit made gently into even better wines. Sometimes when you taste wines with the people behind them it gives you a better context in which to understand the wines. Here we instantly saw the personality of the people in the wine: honest, dedicated, farmers, looking to do something classic but always with a modern spin. Basically what I’m trying to say is these awesome guys and gals make wines that perfectly personify that awesomness.

Price: $26.99

2011 Donkey & Goat "Broken Leg Vineyard" Anderson Valley Pinot Noir

By: Joe Manekin | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

In a sprawling yet very high quality domestic line-up yesterday, this was quite possibly my favorite wine in the bar. Clocking in at 12.8% alcohol, this bottling of Donkey & Goat Pinot Noir shows a lovely, spicy aromatic profile, very pretty. On the palate, there are tart cherries, as well as a fairly thick, natural texture that suggests no filtration was used. The wine is persistent, with a long finish. Spectacular stuff.

Price: $34.99

2005 Clendenen Family Vineyards "Bricco Buon Natale" Santa Maria Valley Nebbiolo

By: Joe Manekin | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

As a bonafide Euro wine guy, I must admit that the best wines of California continue to challenge my long held prejudice that the old world simply does it better and cheaper. Take this Nebbiolo from one of the old pro winemakers in California, Jim Clendenen. It has delicious fruit, a pleasantly astringent Nebbiolo finish, and for $30 would likely do very well in a line-up of entry level Barolo. More importantly, the wine is simply delicious and would make a fine pairing with any foods you normally associate with Barolo (a rich mushroom risotto, braised lamb et al)

Price: $29.99

2012 Copain "Tous Ensemble" Anderson Valley Rosé

By: Joe Manekin | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

Some quick K&L Redwood City slang: "fraysh" means fresh but incredibly so. Copain's latest Tous Ensemble Anderson Valley Rosé is fraysh. It has all the bright red fruit flavors I like in rosé with a soft texture, no rough edges, no excess of SO2, just beautiful, thirst quenching fruit flavors. This one is drinkable and ready for the season. Git some!

Price: $18.99

1993 Kalin Cellar "Cuvée LD" Sonoma Chardonnay

By: Joe Manekin | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

Kalin tends to be a sommelier's and hip wine journalist's darling, and why not? They do things their way, releasing all kinds of stuff when they deem it to be ready, even if it's been ageing for years and years. What's old is new and what's current is library with these guys, if that makes any sense. I love and respect that about Kalin. Truth be told, though, lately I've been a bit disappointed in their releases. This '93 Chard however, is delicious, hitting all the high notes of a properly cellared white, with rich yellow fruit, surprising lift and brightness as well as a very elegant texture. If you're a Kalin fan then you'll love it. If not, but you like well aged, mature whites, then you should definitely give this a try.

Price: $44.99

2002 Louis Lequin Santenay 1er Cru "Le Passe-Temps"

By: Keith Wollenberg | Review Date: 4/3/2013 | Send Email

This charming, slightly earthy Santenay Premier Cru has delightful secondary development, but retains a bright, fresh fruit profile and a pretty cherry note. For 10 year old Burgundy, this is such a smoking deal I am amazed we managed to get it!

Top Value!

Price: $39.99

2009 Olek Bondonio Barbaresco

By: Greg St. Clair | Review Date: 4/2/2013 | Send Email

This 2009 Barbaresco has superb, deep fruit aromatics, and a power that just seems to fill your glass with a breath of the harvest. Powerful and complex on the palate but while still holding that “sweet” profile that softens the tannins into balance. A long life a ahead and impressively drinkable now.

Drink from 2013 to 2030

Price: $49.99

WS 94

2010 Oddero Barbera d'Alba

By: Greg St. Clair | Review Date: 4/2/2013 | Send Email

After the success of the 2009 Barbera from Oddero I was readily looking forward to the 2010 edition! Well the wine is tremendous, that classic Oddero earthiness coupled with layers of supple fruit balancing the acidity and leading to a very complex and long lasting finish.

Drink from 2013 to 2016

Price: $14.99

2010 Suñer Bibiloni Ca Sa Padrino "Montenegro" Binissalem (Mallorca)