The next Block is in—and it may be the strongest.
The response from the first three Block reviews (512 Sonoma Coast, 925 Howell Mountain, and 345 Rutherford) has been amazing. People try these wines—not knowing much about them—and realize they’ve stumbled upon something special and want to find out more. The same thing happened to me, and I was further intrigued by how little information was actually available. So I set out to change that.
Pulsing in color, the garnet and purple juice tints and holds the inside of the glass. There is no hiding that this is an exceptionally concentrated wine, explosively ripe and extracted beyond the reaches of what seems possible outside of Australia. In my opinion, for a wine this gushing to succeed, it should be joined by an equally elaborate flavor profile. It should combine complexity and harmony—beyond the vinous equivalent of a balanced teeter-totter of chewy currants and oaky vanilla.
The nose boasted exotic aromas of plantains and brown sugar. The berries, dark and plentiful, included baked blueberries, currant, and cherry. A robe of fresh coffee grinds appeared all over the nose and palate—the same crossover quality was apparent with the wet, raw tobacco that was present on the nose and midpalate.
Surprisingly, there is no heat on this wine—instead an amazing mineral coolness keeps this wine riding low in the mouth and out of the sinuses.
Decanting is counterproductive with the Yountville. There was a definite moderating of flavors as the hours passed with an unfortunate loss of some of the early exotics.
As this wine sat under air, the tannins came out of hiding and reigned in the fun, adding a touch of civility. This is the point where the Yountville becomes more classically Cabernet Sauvignon. But, it was the varietal liberties that I really had fun with, the expressive/spontaneous/exotic/enthusiastic face that carried this wine out of the gate.
I am thrilled to announce that the C+C southern support staff has pulled through in a major way by gathering another seven Block wines for review. C+C will soon become the official unofficial Block resource center. I am so excited by these wines. The execution is flawless, from concept to quality, label design, to their elusiveness. Vineyard Block Estate masterfully “de-branded” their wines—it’s all about the district and the juice, nothing else—not even a website.
The Vineyard Block Estate series is composed of special lots, hand selected by their winemakers, from California’s most exclusive wine districts and vineyards. Each lot undergoes meticulous care in the cellar, where individualized fermentations followed by gentle racking to premium oak barrels encourages the site specific flavors in each wine. Only 952 cases produced of this powerful 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon. Chunky, firm and concentrated with lots of black cherry, cassis, wild berry and plum flavors. The middle has great depth with a hint of chocolate and the finish is complex and seamless. 93 Points Wine Buyer
Enjoy!
-Rob
Oh, NOOOOO! Did P and C clean out the ABC store??? What’s to become of me?
Just stumbled upon this site doing a Google search a few weeks back and just have to say congrats on finding and reviewing the Block wines. I work for a liquor, wine & finer foods retailer in Tejas and was introduced to the wines last year after beginning work there. Anyway, if you get a chance to try the Block 906 Pinot I don’t think you would be disappointed.
Enjoy reading your reviews.
Thank you so much for the kind words. I have to say, it has been really fun reviewing these wines, especially because they haven’t really caught on in the blog world. The Block reviews continue to pull in tons of hits everyday, so there is definitely a buzz surrounding these wines. Ironically, I have about 5 new Blocks arriving in the mail today, so stay tuned… Thanks David.
It is very interesting seeing which “Blocks” you have and the ones I’ve seen on the shelves, some are the same while others different, would be interesting to get complete list.
These are the ones I’ve seen come through my store.
647-Alexander Valley Cab
713-Napa Valley/Yountville Cab
925-Howell Mountain Cab
345-Rutherford Cab
512-Pinot
906-Santa Lucia Pinot
106-Meritage
The 512 Pinot is probably one of my favorites to date. I had no idea there was a Alexander Valley Block, very cool. Does your store ship?
I work for Spec’s and the main store handles all the shipping. The website has a “shipping” function to determine if they can ship wine to addresses out of state based on a zip code search.
The feed back I’m getting from customers are that they prefer the Block 925 and Block 647 over the Block 713 and many have compared the 647 to Silver Oak Alexander Valley.
And I sold my last bottles of the 906 Pinot and 106 Meritage this past weekend
the block wines are taking florida by storm. I am a wine consultant for a major spirits company in orlando, and i can attest to the greatness of the block wines. If u leave my shop with only one bottle it should be a block. The 512 pinot was all the rage for thanksgiving, i sold four cases in the two days before thanksgiving. bought some for myself and drank it out on the dock with my girlfriend. Smoothest pinot you can get for under twenty bucks. Below is a list of the blocks available in florida (if they arent all gone)
B106 meritage
B 213 merlot B 629 yv meritage
b 214 oakville cab B 906 PN
B 312 ruth. cab B 925 howel cab
b 331 ruth cab B 946 meritage
B 345 ruth cab
B 423 cab sp mt
B 512 pn
B 613 yount cab
Couldn’t agree more on the 512! Amazing wine. Any word on a Stags Leap coming back? Thanks for the comment. I can’t wait to get started on the next 5 Blocks I just acquired!
I have a few bottles of stags in my work cellar but they are collecting dust, to much good wine for less money in these economic times. People are looking for value without comprimising taste. I am on a bordeaux kick right now i cant find anything that i like as much as Rothschild wines, they are an elegant balance. They have a los vascos wine that they actually grew in chile which i cant wait to try. French winemaking in chilean soil this could be the wine i have been looking for.
I really like this blog. Please continue the great work. Regards!!!
The 2007 Block 906 Pinot is magnificent, it outdrunk other reds at a recent dinner party by miles. Anyone know a NJ outlet with some left?
Thanks for the note Jeff. That is one bottle I have not been able to get my hands on. The 512 Pinot is outstanding, but it can’t be mailed out of Florida. Check Applejacks liquor out of Colorado or Specs out of Houston—I have been meaning to call them to try to get that Pinot. I will email you if I find it!
Spec’s still has it at the downtown store that does all the shipping. I have a case in my store but I’m not allowed to ship it out.
Correction, after an online inventory search it looks like the downtown store no longer has it in stock. They could easily get in from another store(in the same county that has any) through a transfer and ship if it is possible.
Anyone have any idea when the new 2009 vintage of blocks will be hitting the shelves? I am running low on the 2008 at my shop and i want to get a jump on the new wines
I wish I knew…I was going to ask you! Haha
If memory severs me correct the new lot came out in March or April of last year.