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GSM sounds like a cool stage name · Sips, Suds, & Smokes

• 0:00
  > Harm>On the next episode of Sips, Suds, and Smokes.
• 0:03
  > Brent>Here are the wines we're going to be discussing today. We have the Gamble Estates Yountville Cabernet Sauvignon or Cabernet Sauvignon Blanc 2024 Corazon del Solo Minoso GSM Blend 2022 Mendoz, Argentina. Whitehall Lane, Napa Valley Merlot 2021 Ravana Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley 2021 Ravana Estate Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena 2021. And don, um, Melcar Puente Alto Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2021.
• 0:38
  > Maury>Not a bad lineup. Yeah, I wish I had a nice big ribeye right now, Bob. That would have been made.
• 0:44
  > Maury>It's always tasting. It is Bob's fault.
• 0:46
  > Harm>Sorry.
• 0:46
  > Brent>I produced the show, write the script, source the whiskey, and get your lunch and everything else.
• 0:50
  > Brent>But I didn't get you a steak.
• 0:53
  > Harm>We'll be right back after this break. Brought to you almost live from the dude in the basement studios.
• 1:21
  > Maury>Why? Because that's where the good stuff is. It sips, suds and smokes with your.
• 1:27
  > Harm>Smokin host, the good old boys. And now it's sippin time, foreign.
• 1:59
  > Brent>Time again. Welcome to this Sips episode where everything good in life is worth discussing. As always, we are the best thing on at 2am M. Or 4 or whenever you hear us.
• 2:09
  > Harm>You know what? I. I don't know that we're the best thing on it 2am M. Anymore. Because you know what?
• 2:13
  > Harm>I was looking at my Netflix queue. It's been a lot of things I haven't watched in a while.
• 2:18
  > Brent>Well, you're the one that's up that weight, so that.
• 2:20
  > Harm>That's the problem. Till after midnight last night.
• 2:23
  > Brent>That's messed up.
• 2:24
  > Harm>Then insomnia hits. You got to put on the Netflix.
• 2:27
  > Harm>Did I put on the podcast? I did not put on the podcast.
• 2:30
  > Brent>What, this one?
• 2:31
  > Harm>Yeah. Come on. I. I've listened to it already. I was here. I lived it.
• 2:35
  > Brent>People listened.
• 2:36
  > Harm>I could. You know what? Beer shows are pretty good now, though. We don't do enough cigar sugars.
• 2:41
  > Harm>Well, Justin, you're part of the cigar crew, right?
• 2:44
  > Brent>Yes.
• 2:45
  > Harm>How are you not doing more cigar shows?
• 2:47
  > Brent>Wow.
• 2:48
  > Bob>Uh, that's a long story.
• 2:49
  > Brent>All right, whatever. Well, this made man Bob joining me today are good. Ah, old boy Justin.
• 2:54
  > Bob>It's a pleasure to be here and looking forward to drinking all this wine.
• 3:00
  > Brent>And good old Mori.
• 3:02
  > Maury>Good morning. Pleasure to be here today with some.
• 3:05
  > Brent>Beautiful wines and good old boy Harm.
• 3:08
  > Harm>I was going to Say it's a pleasure to be here with such beautiful company. But it's not. It's not a pleasure. The wine is better.
• 3:14
  > Brent>Oh, Then what's in this table?
• 3:15
  > Maury>You took the words right out of my mouth. I won't disagree with you on that one.
• 3:19
  > Brent>Yeah, that. I think just about anything better than what's sitting at this table. Good Lord.
• 3:24
  > Brent>Well, our sip segments are all about wine.
• 3:26
  > Brent>Distilled spirits, tea, coffee, anything else you can sip. And here are the wines we're going to be discussing today. We have the Gamble Estates Yountville Cabernet Sauvignon or, uh, Cabernet Sauvignon Blanc 2024 Corazon del Soluminoso GSM Blend. 2022 Mendoz Argentina. Whitehall Lane, Napa Valley Merlot 2021 Ravana Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley 2021 Ravana Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, St.
• 3:55
  > Brent>Helena 2021. And don, um, Melchor Puente Alto Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon 2021.
• 4:03
  > Maury>Not a bad lineup.
• 4:04
  > Brent>Yeah. Yeah. It doesn't.
• 4:06
  > Harm>Helena or Helena. Or Helena.
• 4:08
  > Brent>However you want to. However you want to say it.
• 4:10
  > Brent>Helena, however you want to say it. Doesn't matter.
• 4:13
  > Harm>Go to Helena.
• 4:14
  > Brent>Doesn't matter. Well, we're going to be tasting, uh, these wines and rating with our one to five sips rating. Justin, pick one out of five and give us a. Give us a one. Come on.
• 4:26
  > Harm>Oh, my.
• 4:28
  > Bob>I was unaware anything could be this good.
• 4:31
  > Harm>Oh, my God.
• 4:32
  > Brent>That was creepy. That was creepy.
• 4:36
  > Bob>And that was five sips.
• 4:38
  > Brent>Yeah, that was. Yeah, that was disturbing.
• 4:40
  > Harm>It sounded like five lashes, my friend. Yeah.
• 4:43
  > Brent>Well, let's have Harm tell us about our first wine.
• 4:45
  > Harm>Thanks, Bob. Our first wine of the evening is Tom and Colette Gamble family's, uh, uh, wine this Gamble Estates, the Yountville Sauvignon Blanc.
• 4:55
  > Harm>Tom and Collette Gamble started, uh, in Napa Valley Agricultural, uh, you know, seen since 1916. The gambles tended the land transition from Campbell, uh, cattle. Cattle ranching to grape growing, with Tom purchasing his first vineyard in 1981. The Collette family has deep roots in Napa Valley, contributing to the region's family farming heritage since the 19th century. Tom's mother, Marianne McGuire, involved in establishing the 1968 Napa Valley Agricultural Preserve and safeguarding Napa Valley vineyards and wineries.
• 5:27
  > Harm>The Campbells began bottling their first wine under the family name in 2005 and now cultivate 175 acres in Oakville, Mount Veeder, Rutherford and Yountville the first wine, the Gamble Estates.
• 5:41
  > Harm>Um, Yountville Cabernet. I'm sorry, I keep saying Cabernet because you stood it. Yeah. Sauvignon M Blanc. The 20, 24. 13.8% ABV, 100% SA Blanc. The appellation is, of course, Yountville Napa Valley.
• 5:55
  > Harm>100% barrel aged, and it's on the leaves for six months with 15% new oak. The fruit is from the 22 acre Riverbound Vineyard in Yountville. Nestled against a large hill, this low lying vineyard holds cold, cool morning summer mist between the rivers, uh, longer than everywhere else in Napa Valley. The color is a gorgeous straw. And this is a huge grapefruit bomb. At first, when it was really cold. Now it's warmed up, it's become much more nuanced. Uh, I'm getting flowers, I'm getting lemon cake. I'm getting, uh, almonds. I'm getting again, the grapefruit's still there on the nose.
• 6:33
  > Harm>And it's. You know, I generally do not like Napa Valley Sauvignon because too much barrel aging.
• 6:39
  > Harm>But because there's only 15% new oak, and most of this must be neutral, they did a really good balance here. I'm not getting that, uh, over tannic thing. I'm not getting, like, all that vanilla and all the lignin and tannin from those oak. I'm really just getting. They're letting the grapes shine here. It's got gorgeous fruit flavors. Let me have a sip real quick.
• 7:01
  > Maury>I think while you're sipping. I would say that aging it on the leaves for an extra six months also help balance and round it out.
• 7:07
  > Harm>Exactly. Maury. It's. It's the. The six months on leaves, it gives it a wonderful mouth feel, uh, without giving it the. The tannin of the oak just overpowering it. You get beautiful citrus notes.
• 7:21
  > Harm>Um, there's some minerality from the soil here.
• 7:24
  > Harm>I'm getting, um. It's. It's not just a one note thing. You're getting. You're getting minerality.
• 7:29
  > Harm>You're getting great citrus. You're getting a beautiful acid. And that, um, almond mouthfeel must be coming from the leaves. It's rich. It's got a good medium finish. I mean, it's longer now that it's not cold. Yeah, I enjoy it. Yeah.
• 7:45
  > Bob>Justin, what'd you think I got on, um, the nose?
• 7:47
  > Bob>Salty, buttery grits, tangerines.
• 7:51
  > Harm>I don't get the grits, but the tangerines will give you on the palate.
• 7:54
  > Bob>Green apple Kind, um, of a seltzer texture.
• 7:59
  > Brent>Uh.
• 8:02
  > Harm>That went away as it warmed up. But I saw what you're saying. It was cold.
• 8:05
  > Bob>Yeah, it tasted like Fancy candle. And the finish was short broken.
• 8:10
  > Harm>Your soul is defective when what tastes like Fancy candle? Were you a marine? You eat the green crayons.
• 8:16
  > Bob>Didn't have the pleasure to serve Maury.
• 8:20
  > Harm>Please fix him.
• 8:21
  > Brent>I.
• 8:22
  > Harm>He.
• 8:22
  > Maury>He's beyond repair, I'm sorry to say. I am not a magician.
• 8:26
  > Harm>Don't eat the fancy candles, kids. They're expensive. But I, you know, I only got.
• 8:32
  > Bob>To do that one time.
• 8:34
  > Maury>What you said, Harm, is actually spot on. Uh, I thought when it came out, it was a citrus grapefruit bomb. And it was very tart, A little bit of green apple. But with air and time in the glass, it's really blossomed into, uh, a delicious, balanced, um, sauv blanc. It's. The minerality is nice. The acid balance is nice. Um, the flavors kind of dance on your tongue. I didn't get that spritzy seltzer texture that Justin, uh, got when it was cold.
• 9:04
  > Harm>I understand what you're saying, but not now.
• 9:05
  > Maury>But, um, it's extremely pale. My glass, it's nearly colorless. It's a very, very pale color.
• 9:11
  > Maury>But don't judge the col. A lot going on in the glass. Uh, I think it's a beautiful rendition of a California, uh, uh, soft blanc. Bob.
• 9:20
  > Brent>Um, I thought it was delicious, uh, when it was cold. And just so the audience knows, we. When the wines, we always start out with them a little bit colder than they probably should be, because a lot of people do drink their wines way too damn cold.
• 9:34
  > Brent>Um, and then they sit here and warm up as we make notes. And it was a little bit tight when it was cold. Um, but once it warmed up, the flavors just started spilling out of this thing. Like you said, the grapefruit's still there, but the citrus is there. The orange blossom is there. White, uh, flowers. The mineral, uh, note on it is delicious.
• 9:57
  > Brent>Dry stone. It's. I mean, this is. This is a really well done somewhat.
• 10:04
  > Harm>Yeah.
• 10:05
  > Maury>Yeah.
• 10:05
  > Harm>Harm and I are both pouring extra.
• 10:07
  > Maury>I think Harm prefers the, uh, New Zealand, but I.
• 10:09
  > Maury>I really, when it's well done, a Napa Valley soft blonde.
• 10:13
  > Harm>Not that I prefer New Zealand. I generally think, for years, California screwed it up by boozing too much oak. I really prefer.
• 10:20
  > Maury>This doesn't fall into that category.
• 10:23
  > Harm>No.
• 10:23
  > Brent>This one's. This one's delicious. So we're going to give the Gambla Estates, uh, Yantville Sauvignon Blanc 2024, a well deserved. Four SIPs.
• 10:32
  > Maury>That's classified.
• 10:35
  > Brent>I. I'm with you. I mean they, they tend to over oak them in California, but this one.
• 10:41
  > Harm>This one, I carry good California Sa Blanc at the store, but they're very rare. Far and few between.
• 10:46
  > Maury>Yeah, there's nothing wrong with a little bit of oak, but you're right, this wine does not need to be over oaked.
• 10:50
  > Harm>Yeah, I still prefer the French Maury. Well, uh, the French baby.
• 10:54
  > Brent>We'll. Hey. And we're back. We just finished talking about the lovely Sauvignon Blanc from Gambla states, the Hunt, Vol. 2024. So let's move on to our next wine. We're going to have Maury tell us a little bit about that one.
• 11:11
  > Maury>Thank you, Bobby. Uh, founded by Madia Ravana, the man behind Napa Valley's Ravana estate and Alexana estate in Oregon's Willamette Valley. After making his first visit to Mendoza, Argentina, Dr. Ravana quickly formed a vision to plant a vineyard that could challenge the world's greatest examples of Grenache, Morvedra and Syrah. From Chateauneuf du Pape to Hermitage, the first vines of Grenache, Morvedra and Syrah were planted to Dr. Ravana's vineyard in 2008. And three years later, the first clusters were hand harvested and put into a fermenter to co ferment together. An interesting technique.
• 11:49
  > Harm>Do they co ferment and shut enough to properly separate?
• 11:52
  > Maury>Everything is separate. They even separate the block sometimes in the rows and then blend them.
• 11:57
  > Maury>Um, so this is really a novel technique. The, uh, first wine is the Corazon del Sol Luminoso GSM Blend, 2022 Mendoza, Argentina. Clocking in at 14 ABV. It is 55 Grenache, 38 Syrah, 7% Morvedra. It is 100% Corazon del Sol Estate Block 13 Lo Kay as a state at 38 foot elevation, UCO Valley, Argentina. Organically farmed, double hand sorted, whole cluster pressed, seven day fermentation with native yeast.
• 12:35
  > Harm>This one double hand sorted mean it.
• 12:37
  > Brent>Means they sort of double secret probation.
• 12:39
  > Harm>Use left and right hands.
• 12:40
  > Brent>Yes.
• 12:40
  > Maury>Correct age, 12 months in second use and neutral French barrels and rested at least six months in the bottle. So with that it's got a beautiful deep garnet color on the nose. There's definitely an overpowering cherry aroma, A uh, hint of red meat and spice. The palette is.
• 13:04
  > Harm>Who needs more?
• 13:04
  > Maury>A bit voluptuous. Um, it's mouth coating. It's got some spice. It's Got some smooth, rounded tannins.
• 13:11
  > Maury>The finish is medium. It's a really lovely wine. I think it's a beautiful example of a nice GSM blend. It's interesting to see it coming from Mendoza. I think they've done a beautiful job with this wine. It really has no flaws. I think it's, uh, beautifully made, and I think it's, uh, It's.
• 13:28
  > Maury>It's enjoyable, especially with some food. I wish I had a nice big rib eye right now, Bob. That would have been made. It's always tasting. It is Bob's fault.
• 13:36
  > Brent>Produce the show, write the scripts, source the whiskey, and get your lunch and everything else.
• 13:40
  > Brent>But I didn't get you a steak.
• 13:42
  > Maury>Well, this isn't exactly a whiskey, but.
• 13:44
  > Harm>It is paying the big bucks, Bob. Anyway, uh, what'd you think?
• 13:49
  > Brent>Waiting on those.
• 13:50
  > Harm>Yeah, you hit the main notes, Maury. I mean, when I think gsm, I think shat enough to pop. I think Southern France, and I think Australia. I never think South America, but I like California.
• 14:01
  > Maury>There's some California GSMs that are pretty nice.
• 14:03
  > Harm>Yeah, you've got the Rhone Rangers and all those guys doing stuff like that.
• 14:06
  > Maury>But I agree with you. It's. You don't think Argentina.
• 14:09
  > Harm>You don't think Argentina. And I was pleasantly surprised.
• 14:12
  > Brent>Maybe now you will.
• 14:13
  > Harm>Yeah, doctor, uh, Ravana did a good job here.
• 14:17
  > Harm>Just, um, strawberry, dark fruit.
• 14:21
  > Maury>Sorry.
• 14:22
  > Harm>It's all right.
• 14:23
  > Maury>I thought he was done pontificating.
• 14:25
  > Harm>No, no, uh, I haven't begun to pontificate. I haven't got my big hat on yet.
• 14:30
  > Bob>I definitely got my Elmer's third grade glue after it aired before.
• 14:36
  > Harm>Then I got eating the glue.
• 14:38
  > Maury>Well, he rode the short bus. Of course he eats glue.
• 14:41
  > Harm>Once.
• 14:42
  > Bob>Once I was 10, I stopped sniffing and eating the glue.
• 14:45
  > Harm>Uh, that's why he became a lawyer.
• 14:47
  > Maury>But he does have a vivid recollection of the glue eating.
• 14:50
  > Bob>I do.
• 14:50
  > Harm>Yeah.
• 14:51
  > Bob>The good old.
• 14:51
  > Maury>We call that pica.
• 14:53
  > Harm>I look, I think this has got such a.
• 14:55
  > Maury>You're a piker.
• 14:57
  > Harm>Maury said cherries. I'm, um, seeing red cherries, but there's black fruit here, too. There's strawberry here, too. There's such a good bounce of acidity and tannin. And where do you see the acidity and tannin coming from the glue?
• 15:12
  > Maury>I was using cherry on the nose, by the way.
• 15:14
  > Bob>That is what it is now.
• 15:16
  > Brent>My time. Outwitting morons.
• 15:18
  > Bob>It was fruitier, and now it's more glue.
• 15:22
  > Harm>What the hell?
• 15:23
  > Bob>On the palate, I got, like, smoked pork and subtle fruits.
• 15:28
  > Harm>There's a lot of umami here. And I will give you smoked pork. I don't want to do it, but you're right. Yeah.
• 15:34
  > Bob>And that's what I got.
• 15:36
  > Maury>It's really fruity on the nose, more so than the umami, but the umami does come through later on.
• 15:41
  > Harm>Underneath.
• 15:42
  > Maury>Way underneath.
• 15:42
  > Harm>Bob, tell them while they're broken.
• 15:45
  > Brent>Here's Justin giving the review of the wine that, you know, that we did before.
• 15:49
  > Harm>I like the unusual flavor of Thunderbird wine.
• 15:52
  > Harm>It's an exceptionally good drink.
• 15:54
  > Bob>Yeah.
• 15:55
  > Harm>Okay.
• 15:55
  > Maury>Yeah.
• 15:55
  > Brent>Good Lord.
• 15:56
  > Maury>Well, thank you.
• 15:57
  > Brent>Go back to sleep. This, um, is lovely. I mean, again, this is a first for me, a GSM from Argentina. But I think they did a really good job with this.
• 16:07
  > Maury>And it's with air and time in the glass. I think you'll be pleasantly rewarded with temperature improvement as well as aeration.
• 16:14
  > Harm>Give it four more years in the bottle to have some. We're drinking it young. We're killing babies here. We. We. We drink the wines they send us from the PR companies to, you know, taste their wine.
• 16:26
  > Maury>Well, they don't send us library releases, I'm sorry to say.
• 16:28
  > Harm>Yeah, sometimes they do. We've. We've gotten.
• 16:30
  > Brent>Oh, no. Once in a. We get.
• 16:32
  > Maury>Yeah, but generally speaking, we're getting.
• 16:34
  > Brent>Usually, uh, what you're getting is what's going out into the stores. That's right.
• 16:37
  > Maury>And in the stores, people are going to buy. They need to know that they need to give this a little time. Both in the bottle or in the glass.
• 16:43
  > Harm>Or both. Americans don't do that. I tell people all the time, look, don't buy this by a case.
• 16:48
  > Harm>Drink this one this year. Drink this one two years from now, the next one three years from now, then keep going. All right, Bob, give us a rating on this one.
• 16:57
  > Brent>Let's move on. So we've got for the Corazon, El Soluminoso GSM Blend, 2022. Um, three sips.
• 17:05
  > Maury>Interesting.
• 17:06
  > Brent>Nice little wine. Really well done.
• 17:08
  > Harm>I think it's closer to four because. But I got overrated.
• 17:11
  > Maury>Yes, it improved with time.
• 17:13
  > Bob>Definitely overrated, huh?
• 17:14
  > Brent>Overruled. All right, Justin, tell us about Whitehall Lane.
• 17:18
  > Bob>White hall lane. Back in 1993, when Tom Leonardi Senior purchased a small winery in St. Helena.
• 17:26
  > Bob>Originally hailing from Genoa, Italy, their family history in San Francisco Bay Area dates back to the late 1880s.
• 17:34
  > Harm>I love how they say we're originally from Genoa, but our family history from 1880s in.
• 17:39
  > Maury>I know. Come on.
• 17:40
  > Harm>Come on, man.
• 17:40
  > Bob>When Tom's parents settled on a farm.
• 17:42
  > Harm>Those are. People say gabagool instead Of Capicola.
• 17:45
  > Brent>Sorry.
• 17:46
  > Bob>Since purchasing the original property.
• 17:48
  > Brent>Cracks himself up.
• 17:49
  > Harm>Yeah, I do.
• 17:50
  > Bob>The family now has eight vineyards in Napa and Sonoma. They currently have three generations of the family involved in the business. Their winemaker is Jason Moultone, who earned his postgraduate diploma in viticulture and enology from Lincoln University, New Zealand. Before Whitehall Lane, he worked at vineyards in New Zealand, Bordeaux, and South Africa, and has been at Whitehall Lane since 2016. Now we're going to talk about Whitehall Lane. Napa Valley Merlot 2021 clocks in at 14.9 alcohol by volume.
• 18:28
  > Brent>Mhm.
• 18:29
  > Harm>Mhm.
• 18:29
  > Bob>From Napa Valley, it's 82% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Malbec, 2% Petite Verdot, and 1% Cobb Franc. Hand harvested and sent to the tank for whole berry fermentation. The grapes were cold soaked in a tank at 45 degrees for four to seven days and increased color, aroma, and flavor.
• 18:56
  > Bob>Extraction fermented at 82 degrees, which allowed for hot extraction on the skins with twice daily pumpovers aged in 35% new French oak for 20 months. On the nose, I got blueberries, plums, and biscuits on the palette. The blueberries came through, and then I got heavy cream, and the finish was creamy as well. What did you think, Bori?
• 19:25
  > Maury>Well, I think you give a nice description of this wine. Um, I do like the nose of the strawberry, and I get a little hint of rhubarb. And along with the plum, I think it's got a nice mouth feel. It's a little bit, uh, astringent for my liking. But we'll be back and talk about it further.
• 19:44
  > Harm>A commercial break again.
• 19:49
  > Brent>Hey, and we're back, and, uh, Maury was giving us his thoughts on the white hallway. Napa Valley Merlot.
• 19:54
  > Harm>I believe he was waxing rhapsodic.
• 19:56
  > Maury>Yes.
• 19:56
  > Brent>No, it's a really lovely wax on, wax off.
• 19:59
  > Bob>Sorry, Brazilian wax.
• 20:02
  > Maury>Yeah, it's a lovely merlot. Uh, the tannins need a little bit more time to mellow and integrate. Uh, but that aside, I think it's drinking nicely. It checks many of the boxes. Is. It's a. It's a nice merlot, especially for those who like bigger grapes, like cabs. It's got a lot of body to it.
• 20:19
  > Maury>It's got a beautiful mouth feel. It's got a medium finish. I liked it. I thought it was nice.
• 20:24
  > Harm>Justin, how's the wine?
• 20:26
  > Bob>So.
• 20:29
  > Harm>He talked about it.
• 20:30
  > Bob>I did talk about it.
• 20:32
  > Harm>He was the first guy on the show.
• 20:33
  > Bob>Blueberries Heavy cream.
• 20:34
  > Harm>Yeah, yeah. Bob's been drinking. Ignore him. I'm just gonna say something.
• 20:39
  > Brent>Okay, look, um, waiting for somebody on the nose.
• 20:42
  > Harm>It was all cherry and vanilla for me with milk chocolate. And then I'd met. I. I re. Re approached and I said, what? Where's this menthol coming from? I picked up the wrong glass. There's no menthol. That's the next wine. That's.
• 20:55
  > Bob>You picked up your pack of cools.
• 20:56
  > Harm>Ah, no, it's the Cabernet that's evolved. But anyway, so this merlot on the nose is, um, milk chocolate covered cherries. And vanilla on the palate is where I get those strawberries they.
• 21:09
  > Harm>They were talking about. So strawberry nice, good acidity, very integrated tannin. But the finish is a bit short. And that's literally all that takes this wine from a four to a three for me.
• 21:28
  > Bob>Remember that drink Quick, when you were a kid?
• 21:30
  > Harm>Yeah.
• 21:31
  > Bob>Nestle kind of reminds me of Quick.
• 21:34
  > Harm>It's not chocolate, but it's chocolate as a kid.
• 21:36
  > Bob>Yeah.
• 21:37
  > Harm>Yeah.
• 21:38
  > Bob>Well, you know, I go back to. I blanked out 20 years, so everything is like, you know, 10 years in younger, free for tasting.
• 21:45
  > Harm>Bob, what do you think? Quick.
• 21:47
  > Maury>Oh, my God. Where'd you find him?
• 21:51
  > Harm>It's not strawberry Quick.
• 21:52
  > Bob>It's, uh, Nestle Quick chocolate, right?
• 21:55
  > Harm>No, they had strawberry too, so.
• 21:57
  > Bob>Yeah, it's true.
• 21:58
  > Harm>I, uh, look so like four parts chocolate to one part strawberry Quick. You get this Merlot.
• 22:03
  > Bob>Yeah, you're right.
• 22:05
  > Harm>I. I can. I can eat glue too. Justin.
• 22:08
  > Maury>You guys.
• 22:08
  > Harm>Glue too.
• 22:09
  > Maury>You guys need to go back to the rubber room. Uh, Romper room.
• 22:14
  > Bob>I. I never left. I resent that implication that I ever left.
• 22:19
  > Brent>Maury.
• 22:23
  > Harm>Bob, why are we. Why are we. Why are our souls defective? Tell us.
• 22:28
  > Bob>That's a long discussion.
• 22:30
  > Brent>Yeah, there are doctors at Cal State trying to figure that out right now. I think this is a lovely. This is a really well done, well put together, good example of a nice Napa Valley Merlot. The strawberry is definitely there. The red fruit, the chocolate is definitely there.
• 22:53
  > Maury>Um, on the palate.
• 22:59
  > Brent>On the palate again. Juicy, got a nice mouth feel to it. Acidity is mostly front palate for me. The fruit is there. The raspberries, the strawberries.
• 23:11
  > Brent>The chocolate is still there on the back.
• 23:13
  > Harm>Nobody said raspberry. Said you.
• 23:15
  > Brent>Yeah, I got it broken. No. And just, I mean, really? Yeah. Well done. Well done. A very nice little wine. So we're going to be giving the Whitehall Lane Napa Valley Merlot 2021 a well deserved three sips well, what about you?
• 23:33
  > Maury>Interesting.
• 23:34
  > Harm>It's. It's a. I think it's deserves a little bit better, but it's really great for entry level merlot from these guys.
• 23:41
  > Brent>Yeah, yeah. I mean, considering how much of it they make and you know, I mean, for the money, a damn good bottle of wine.
• 23:48
  > Harm>So you tell us about the next wine. Do it. It's your turn, baby. All right.
• 23:51
  > Brent>So Ravana States was founded by. How are we saying it?
• 23:56
  > Harm>My dear Madia.
• 23:58
  > Brent>My dear Ravana.
• 24:00
  > Harm>I guess I'm from north India. He's not from North India. Whatever. Madia.
• 24:05
  > Brent>Yeah, he's, he's a doctor.
• 24:06
  > Harm>And you know, we're going to split out now.
• 24:09
  > Maury>We're going to split hairs between north and South India.
• 24:12
  > Harm>Look at this guy over here. Here's a urology story is have the net worth of Dr. Ravana.
• 24:16
  > Brent>I don't think any of us got.
• 24:19
  > Harm>A cardiologist who makes wine. Yeah, go ahead.
• 24:21
  > Brent>Well, starting on a family farm in rural India, through hard work and perseverance, he made it to university, then to medical school, then was accepted for a three year residency in internal medicine in New York. Uh, he made it from New York to Philadelphia and then finished his cardiology training in Dallas. After going into private practice and through friends with mutual interest is wine interest began to grow. In 1997, after a medical conference in San Francisco, he met a realtor who showed him a property in Napa Valley and introduced him to Jim Barber, now Ravenna Estates vineyard manager. They planted the vineyard in 1998 and their inaugural lease was their 2001 cabernet. So we are going to be drinking the Ravana Cabernet sauvignon Napa Valley 2021.
• 25:06
  > Maury>That would make it their 20th anniversary release, sir.
• 25:10
  > Brent>It's uh, 14.7% ABV. Appalachian is Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc Merlot and Petit Verdot. Uh, fruit harvested from the Ravana estate vineyard and St. Helena AVA. A quarter vineyard in Atlas Peak and Shiflet Ranch in Oak Knoll and panic vineyard in St. Helena. The fruit is hand picked, hand sorted and then whole berry fermented in micro fermentation batches. Barrel age for 20 months and 16 or, uh, 60% new French oak and 40% once filled French oak. The color on this just a, um, Beautiful, beautiful. Dark, dark, dark, dark, inky, inky, lovely. Not a lot of light going through that. That's what I like to see on the. No blackberries, dark fruit, black cherry.
• 26:11
  > Brent>There's A mineral note to this, a graphite. Almost a, uh, almost a slaty nose to it. And on the palette, let's see. M hm. Black currants, dark black fruit. It's got a little bit of a herbaceousness to it. On the mid palate.
• 26:37
  > Harm>I'm getting that herbal note right on the nose right away. Dude. This, the one I was talking about, had a menthol note after that.
• 26:43
  > Brent>Breathe. Yeah, but it's got, I mean, but it's subtle.
• 26:48
  > Maury>It's like very well structured, but very subtle.
• 26:51
  > Brent>The tannins on it are nice. They're, um, not overpowering, um, but well structured. It's got a nice, very well defined. This is a lovely wine.
• 27:02
  > Brent>Really, really nice.
• 27:03
  > Maury>I thought it was quite delicious. It really drinks well.
• 27:06
  > Brent>What do you think, Justin?
• 27:07
  > Bob>So I kind of got a late, uh, 90s Pier 1 imports nose on this thing.
• 27:13
  > Harm>You know what, you laughed, Mari, but he's right.
• 27:17
  > Harm>There's this incense note.
• 27:18
  > Maury>Mhm.
• 27:19
  > Harm>I'm smelling. Smelling the rattan furniture.
• 27:23
  > Brent>Right.
• 27:23
  > Harm>Incense. Right. And I'm smelling, uh, 90s girls.
• 27:28
  > Bob>Yeah.
• 27:29
  > Harm>Wearing a little bit too much patchouli.
• 27:31
  > Bob>Yeah.
• 27:31
  > Maury>I definitely get the rattan smell, I'll give you that.
• 27:34
  > Bob>And then on the palate, Describe it. I got, um, Jamba Juice with much less sugar.
• 27:42
  > Harm>Now you're just being a.
• 27:44
  > Bob>No, that's just rage. I'm in a late 90s strip mall with this. It just takes me back to 1999.
• 27:53
  > Harm>Oh, late 90s, man. I was, I was in my prime.
• 27:57
  > Brent>Yeah, good luck with that one.
• 27:58
  > Harm>Plowing through the.
• 28:00
  > Brent>Yeah, your prime. Okay, whatever. Yeah, prime.
• 28:05
  > Harm>Ah, the girls were hot.
• 28:07
  > Maury>Mhm.
• 28:07
  > Harm>Yeah.
• 28:08
  > Brent>And they didn't talk to you then and they don't talk to you now, so. Yeah.
• 28:13
  > Harm>Yeah, well, you know, that's just like, uh, your opinion, man.
• 28:19
  > Brent>All right, so tell us, tell us about the wine.
• 28:24
  > Brent>Come on.
• 28:25
  > Harm>All right, the nose. This was kind of jangly at first. This did take a long time.
• 28:30
  > Brent>He likes that word, doesn't, uh, he. He's been saying it all day.
• 28:32
  > Bob>He's. He's got some jangly stuff going on there.
• 28:35
  > Harm>The wine was not well integrated when we first poured it. I got the BlackBerry and there was like a weird hint of toasted vanilla. The graphite's there, but it's way in the back. As it sat in the glass, it became more integrated. The citrus notes, the ins. The incense notes, that rattan, that herbal thing going on. When I came to it, um, after the, uh, the second wine, I picked up the wrong one. I got menthol from further away. This wine's got a lot of stuff stuffed into it. It's quite well made. I think it's great. It hasn't quite settled down. It needs more time in the bottle. It's only five years old. It's way too young to drink this wine. This wine is built for a longer aging period. I think we need to drink this five years from now. It'll even be better because this guy's making good wine. Um, Maria hired a really great winemaker. So, uh, we're going to commercial and we'll be back.
• 29:41
  > Brent>Hey. And we're back. And we were just finishing up the discussion on the Ravana Cabernet sauvignon Napa Valley 2021. We are going to be giving that one a well deserved four sips. Harm, tell us about our next cab from.
• 29:54
  > Harm>My turn already. Okay, so, uh, the Ravani estate cabernet sauvignon St. Helena 2021 is 14 point.
• 30:01
  > Harm>14.7 ABV. That's crazy. The Appalachian is St.
• 30:05
  > Harm>Helena AVA or St. Helena Napa Valley. 100% cabernet sauvignon. Fruit harvested from the Nirvana State Vineyard in St. Helena. The fruit is hand picked, hand sorted, and then whole berry fermented in micro fermentation batches. Barrel aged for 20 months. 80% new French oak, 20% once filled. French oak. And that's what makes the difference here. The color is the exact same as the previous one. Gorgeous, uh, opaque ruby. That with the, um, clear edges. It's still young. The nose is all about cassis and black currants. It's all those black fruits that you expect from a cab.
• 30:43
  > Harm>A little more tobacco, A little more, um.
• 30:47
  > Maury>Stop holding the bottle. Send the bottle down, would you?
• 30:49
  > Harm>Oh, here. Sorry.
• 30:50
  > Brent>That's okay.
• 30:51
  > Harm>I'm just. Pour some more. So good. This, uh, wine is also, you know, it's as good as the last one.
• 30:59
  > Harm>Or if not better. But it's different. Yeah, it's very different. St. Helena is, uh, just a little.
• 31:07
  > Harm>A little more integrated than the first one. Is drinking better young than that first one did. And it's just gorgeous. Full bodied. Fine.
• 31:15
  > Maury>This one's ready to go now. And it will age and it's got the body and structure to live on for another decade or more. But, uh, it is the better wine today. It is beautifully integrated, very balanced, very.
• 31:29
  > Harm>It's better, but it's not luscious.
• 31:31
  > Brent>It's.
• 31:31
  > Harm>It's. They're still great together. Justin, what weird things did you taste?
• 31:38
  > Bob>So this is like drinking a fine red Wine in a cigar store with going full blast. The tobacco notes are on the nose. They follow through on the palate and the finish, but I think it's really good.
• 31:50
  > Harm>How is it you didn't screw up this one? What's going. I agree with him.
• 31:54
  > Brent>Wait, shut up, shut up. Leave it alone. Don't go back to him. Just leave it how it is.
• 31:58
  > Harm>Bo, what do you think?
• 31:59
  > Maury>Even a blind squirrel gets a nut now and then.
• 32:02
  > Brent>Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut. Okay, we actually got something insightful at him for once.
• 32:07
  > Bob>Okay.
• 32:09
  > Brent>Delicious. Lovely. Black currants, dark fruit, dark earth for a little bit of forest Flor.
• 32:17
  > Harm>Scorched earth.
• 32:18
  > Brent>Yummy. Just so well done, so well balanced. Like Mory said, this one's drinking well now. The other one needs a little more time to really just link.
• 32:29
  > Brent>But this one is going now. But both are going to go. These both are going to go for years.
• 32:33
  > Maury>This one's my jam for today.
• 32:34
  > Brent>Yeah, um, this one is definitely my jam for today.
• 32:37
  > Brent>Well, like I said when I tried that one because we do them in order, I went, wow, I really like that first Ravana and then I had the second one, I go, wow, I really like this one even more so.
• 32:47
  > Harm>But they're very different.
• 32:49
  > Brent>They're very different.
• 32:49
  > Harm>They're both great. They're both great different ways.
• 32:52
  > Brent>So we're going to give the Ravana estate cabernet sauvignon St. Helena 2021 a well deserved four sips plus four.
• 33:00
  > Harm>Plus it's a. It's a hot blonde and a hot brunette, man. Which one are you going to chase? Choose both.
• 33:06
  > Maury>Well, uh, this one's. This one plus five years.
• 33:09
  > Brent>I'm going to take both of the bottles. So yeah.
• 33:12
  > Maury>Oh, no, he's gonna have to fight us for one of them.
• 33:14
  > Brent>All right, tell us about this one and read quick.
• 33:17
  > Brent>We're running out of time.
• 33:18
  > Bob>Don Melchor is a legacy wine from Chile. First created in 1987 by the Giulia Stasi family of Concha Itoro and named for their forefather in Chilean wine, Don Melchor was created to be the singular expression of Puente Alto vineyard in the upper Maipo Valley. Overseen by winemaker ENRIQUE TIRARO Since 1995, the seven parcels of Don Melcore, uh, are harvested independently to support over 150 micro vinifications in the cellar, then tasted and selected for the final composition. The second vintage of Don Melchor in 1988 was the first Chilean wine to be named wine spectators, top 100 wines of the World. Now we're going to talk about Don Melcore Puente Alto vineyard. Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 punches in at 14.8% alcohol. By volume, it's 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 3% Merlot. Hand harvested and fermented in stainless steel with three times daily pumpovers. Once the fermentation was complete, the tank was hermetically sealed and the wine spent around a week less time than usual macerating at temperatures between 23 and 25 degrees Celsius, which I have no idea what that is.
• 34:35
  > Harm>70 degrees, 72 degrees. Thank you very much.
• 34:38
  > Bob>To extract a smoother tannins. Once the maceration was complete, the wine from each tank was racked, tasted and selected by Don Melchor winemaking team and put into French oak barrels to undergo malolactic fermentation and aging. Age for 15 months and 68 new and 32% second use French oak.
• 35:00
  > Bob>Don Melcore 2021 is the 35th vintage.
• 35:04
  > Harm>Of Don Melchor and also number one rated wine from Wine Spectators top 100.
• 35:09
  > Brent>And I think this is the fourth vintage we've had the good fortune to taste. So what do you. What does it taste like, Justin?
• 35:14
  > Harm>It's a.
• 35:15
  > Bob>Well, the color is a dark, beautiful ruby. The nose is intense and fruity. The palate is just rich. And, you know, licorice jumps out in the beginning, although with, uh, air that kind of faded. And the finish was long and pleasant. Makes you want to go for another sip. What did you think, Bob?
• 35:36
  > Brent>I thought it was fantastic. Every year they just do it every year. I mean, every year I think, well, this will be, you know, not as good as last year. No. Every year it seems like they never have an off year with Don Melchor. Um, the nose is absolutely yummy. Dark red fruit. There's a little bit of black tea in there and on the palate. M. So well put together, so perfectly integrated. Um, black cherries, violets, licorice, a little bit of black pepper on the back palate. Just so well done. Just so well done. Like, like everyone from them. What do you think, Harm?
• 36:22
  > Harm>Um, my mother opened our liquor store in 1988.
• 36:25
  > Harm>That's when these guys started. We've carried Don Melcore for almost every vintage. Not since 1988.
• 36:31
  > Harm>I don't think it came to America back then. From$40 to $200. There's a reason it's phenomenal wine. It's never been bad. No, I've not had a bad Vintage.
• 36:43
  > Brent>It's never been. Not great.
• 36:45
  > Harm>Yeah. Um, forget bad. This wine needs to be in your collection. Buy some. Just. It's fantastic, Maury.
• 36:51
  > Maury>Yeah, no, I agree. We've had this a number of times on the show. It's a delicious wine. It's beautifully made. It's really. Attention, meticulous attention, detail. It's delicious. The beautiful part about it is you can really open it, let it aerate, and enjoy it. Today, it will age for another decade or more.
• 37:09
  > Harm>It'll age for 20 to 30 years. Dude, this is phenomenal.
• 37:12
  > Maury>But I'm telling you that this. I like them young.
• 37:14
  > Maury>And this is one you can never seller. You don't have to sell it.
• 37:18
  > Harm>Don't say those things anymore to enjoy it.
• 37:20
  > Maury>You can enjoy it right today, out of the bottle.
• 37:23
  > Maury>Just give it some time, some air, and some patience. It's definitely opened up with time and air in the bottle, in the glass. Excuse me. Uh, I think it's fantastic. It's the best thing we've had today. So thank you for, uh, bringing it to the show, Bob.
• 37:35
  > Harm>It's one of the best wines I've had since. In 2025.
• 37:38
  > Brent>A couple years ago, Maury and I had the good fortune to go to a dinner with Don Melcore down in Miami and. And got to meet the winemaker, and they had seven or eight different vintages.
• 37:49
  > Maury>Yeah, it was pretty amazing.
• 37:50
  > Harm>Uh, Library night.
• 37:51
  > Brent>Yeah, they had one going back about, I want to say, 15, 16 years and.
• 37:56
  > Maury>And get better. Oh, my God.
• 37:58
  > Brent>They're just. Every one of them. Just like, how.
• 38:01
  > Brent>How do you do this every year? So delicious. But we're going to give. Give. They. It's like we're giving it. They are.
• 38:08
  > Harm>They've earned more than we.
• 38:09
  > Brent>We're going to give. Don Melcore, Puente Alto vineyard, cabernet sauvignon 20, 215 plus. God.
• 38:19
  > Harm>So good.
• 38:19
  > Brent>Every year.
• 38:20
  > Harm>Leather, flowers. It's all there.
• 38:23
  > Brent>Yeah. Uh, it's everything you want. Everything you want in a bottle. Well, this is all the time we have for today. I want to thank everybody for joining. Thank you, Justin.
• 38:32
  > Bob>Thank you. Wow.
• 38:33
  > Brent>Yeah. Thank you, Maury.
• 38:34
  > Maury>Thank you, Bob. Another great day in the basement.
• 38:37
  > Brent>And thank you, Harm.
• 38:38
  > Harm>You know I never mean it when I say thank you.
• 38:41
  > Harm>Except today.
• 38:42
  > Brent>Now. You still don't mean it.
• 38:43
  > Harm>I still don't mean it, but whatever. The wine was good.
• 38:46
  > Brent>Yeah, the wine was good.
• 38:47
  > Harm>The wine was great.
• 38:48
  > Brent>Well, first sip. Suds and smokes. This is made, man. Bob, thanks for joining us. Remember, life is too short to drink bad wine.
• 38:55
  > Announcer>We hope you enjoyed this episode. If you're listening to us online, do yourself a favor and tap. Just tap it in the subscribe button.
• 39:04
  > Harm>Give it a little tappy tap, tap taparoo.
• 39:07
  > Announcer>The easiest way to listen to our show is to ask Siri, Alexa, Google, Uncle Larry or whoever it is that talks to you on your phone Play podcast, Sip, Suds and Smokes. We love your feedback and you can reach us at infoipsuds and smokes.com our tasting notes flow out on Twitter and Instagram with our handle ipsuds and Smokes and our Facebook page is always buzzing with lots of news. You'll also be able to interact with the thousands m millions of other fans on those social media platforms. Do us a favor, take the time to rate this episode. If you're listening to us online, that's a big help to us and we get to see your feedback as well.
• 39:50
  > Announcer>Come back, join us for another episode and keep on sipping.
• 40:04
  > Harm>This has been a 110 hand production of SIP, Suds and Stories Smokes, a program devoted to the appreciation of some of the finer slices of life from the dude in the Basement Studios.
• 40:16
  > Maury>Your host, the Good Old Boys will.
• 40:18
  > Harm>See you all next time.