Tried last night w/ my IbericoHam & GiganteBeans:
1. UrsaVnyds Souzao AltaMesaVnyd/SilvaspoonsVnyd/Lodi (14.0%; www.UrsaVineyards.com) Placerville 2007: Very dark color w/ no bricking; strong plummy/grapey/licorice/blackberry/chocolaty light earthy/mushroomy ripe attractive nose; soft/fat bit alcoholic/hot strong plummy/grapey/boysenberry/licorice slight earthy/mushroomy some Lodi/chocolaty bit Portish/ripe flavor w/ light/hard/astringent tannins; long bit hot/alcoholic/ripe strong plummy/licorice/chocolaty/boysenberry bit Smuckers boysenberry jam some Lodi/earthy/mushroomy finish w/ light/hard/astringent tannins; a rather interesting red that speaks strongly of Lodi terroir; probably not going to get any better; hit the spot w/ the beans.
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And a wee BP:
1. This is the wnry up in Placerville of Greg Stokes and Deborah Elissagaray. Greg was formerly w/ DavidBruce. Four-or-five yrs ago, I bought a selection of their wines to try and thought them well-made & interesting. However, their WebSite looks pretty stale and I don't know if they're still in business or not.
Tom