Over the course of a week, I taste a bunch of wine, usually with friends, and almost always with my wife.  Here are some of the wines we tasted over the past few weeks. These are wines that were not sent as samples—in most cases, I actually paid for these wines (although a few have been given as gifts).

2008 Arcadian Pinot Noir Sleepy Hollow Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands, CA: Retail $60. Responsible Bottle (571g; 1lb 4.1oz). Under cork. It has been nearly seven years since I popped a bottle of this wine; I stated back then that I was in “no hurry” to drink the remaining two bottles I had in the cellar. Well, I should not wait another seven years to crack the last one. Sure, this is delightful, but it is certainly starting to show its age. The fruit is somewhat stewed and reserved and while the acidity is still vibrant and expressive, it seems to overpower, if ever so slightly. Do not get me wrong, this is an elegant, wonderfully aged California Pinot. Excellent. 90 Points.

2005 Cosentino Winery Cabernet Franc Reserve, St. Helena, Napa Valley, CA: Retail $60. Heavy bottle (693g; 1lb 8.5oz). Under cork. We were over at my in-laws and my wife’s mother intimated that we should take all of the “drinkable” wines back to our house (which is only a few hundred feet away). I felt guilty, but there were some potential gems there. Including this one: a wine produced while Mitch Cosentino was still in charge. Medium color in the glass with a fantastic nose which was low on fruit but high on spice (black pepper, cardamom), exhibited a great herbal aspect (basil and thyme), and had a lovely floral aspect. There is fruit on the palate, albeit subdued, with a fantastic acidity and a shot or two of verve. Very nice. Outstanding. 94 Points.

NV Gallimard Père et Fils Champagne Cuvée de Réserve Blanc de Noirs, France: Retail $50. Heavy bottle (832g; 1lb 13.3oz). 100% Pinot Noir from l’Aube. I am surprised it has been nearly two years since the last bottle of this wine that we opened. Perhaps not surprising? Similar notes to that previous bottle: Good fruit, but also rich and yeasty with flavors that go on for days. We just picked up another case from Last Bubbles, while this bottle came from Last Bottle Wines (yes, the two are related, if you were wondering). Excellent. 91 Points.

NV Remy Massin & Fils Champagne Brut Rosé, France: Retail $50. 85% Pinot Noir, 15% Chardonnay. Purchased from F1rstBottle. I have been around the block a bit when it comes to Champagne and while this is not the most earth-shattering rosé that have crossed my delicate lips, it is stellar. While one might say the strawberry is prominent on the nose, I would argue it is the peach, and even an apricot that dominates. The palate? Fruity, tart, effervescent, luscious. Yeah. Giddy-up. Excellent. 91 Points.

2021 Les Sarrins Rosé, Côtes de Provence, France: Retail $25. Heavy Bottle (697g; 1lb 8.6oz). 60% Grenache, 25% Cinsault, 10% Rolle, 5% Mourvèdre. It is now mid-March, 2024 and I still can only find the 2021 in the market anywhere. While that is technically OK with me (this 2021 is still drinking well, with similar notes: “Classic Provençal rosé in blend, color, and nose with red berry fruit a-go-go with mineral and floral notes. Yowza. The palate is lovely–great fruit, fantastic acidity, impeccable balance.“), it would be nice to buy some 2022 at least (I was sent a bottle to sample and it was fabulous). The crazy thing? Some outlets are still seeking full-retail for this 2021. You know how supply and demand works, right? *Note: I have since found (and bought) several bottles of the 2022 at my local H-E-B grocery store. Excellent. 92 Points.

NV Veuve Clicquot Champagne Brut Rosé, France: Retail $60. 44 to 48 % Pinot Noir, 25 to 29 % Chardonnay, 13 to 18 % Meunier. As one could tell by the number of tasting notes I have written about this wine (over two dozen), I am not a stranger to Veuve Rosé. There are many detractors, many people who are decidedly anti-Veuve (particularly when it comes to the Yellow label Brut), but hear me clearly: this is a quality wine. Sure, it is overly hyped, overly available, overly present. But. That does not make it “bad”. In fact, this rosé, were it more affordable would be our go-to rosé sparkler in this house. But at seventy bucks? There are less-expensive options available. Darker, perhaps, than your “typical” rosé, with bright cherry and strawberry dominate on the nose; delightful. The palate exhibits one of the richer rosé champagnes with incredible fruit, great sparkle, and a lasting tartness. My only “gripe”? It might be a tad sweet, but heck, this is really good. Outstanding. 93 points.

WINE OF THE WEEK: As witnessed from the notes above, over the course of a week, we drink more than our fair share of champagne and as a result, the region has been fairly well represented in my choices for Wine of the Week. A region that has certainly been under represented, however, is this country’s most “renowned” wine region, Napa Valley. I don’t have, don’t buy, and certainly don’t drink much wine from the region for the a couple of reasons: I do not drink much Cabernet Sauvignon and I find the wines from the region are (often dramatically) over-priced. Is that an over-simplification? Certainly. There is much more to Napa Valley than uber-expensive Cab but it is certainly getting harder to find as more wineries and vineyards are being purchased by larger entities. Case in point. Cosentino Winery was literally my gateway into the Napa Valley. Back in the day, I was a poorly paid teacher living in Marin County when I went to a wine dinner hosted by Mitch Cosentino. I fell in love with his wines and signed up for his wine club on the spot even though I knew I couldn’t really afford it. Cosentino was the reason I made my first ever trip to Napa (I am pretty sure I had convinced myself that driving up was cheaper than paying the shipping to have the wine club shipment sent to me). This 2005 Cosentino Winery Cabernet Franc Reserve, this week’s Wine of the Week, was a bottle from said wine club that I had gifted my father-in-law however many years ago. I know Mitch is still making wine in the Valley, but a bit of Napa was lost, at least for me, when he was forced to sell his eponymous winery.

What was/were your Wine(s) of the Week?