Wine Reviews - Bouchaine - Carneros

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2008 Bouchaine Estate Chardonnay in Grapevine, August - September 2010

91 Points! "Medium-light golden yellow color; attractive, forward, baked apple pie aroma with hints of coconut, butterscotch, and toasted hazelnut; medium-full to full body; rich, layered, lemony, melon and baked apple flavors with bright acidity and overtones of vanilla; lingering aftertaste. An aromatic and flavorful Chardonnay that is nicely balanced and shows some elegance. Very highly recommended!"

Bouchaine Carneros Pinot Noir in Practical Winery and Vineyard, "Vineyard Drives Style Options of Bouchaine Carneros Pinot Noir"

Style options and vineyard techniques of growing Pinot Noir in the Carneros region of Napa are discussed in Eleanor and Ray Heald's article in the July/August Issue of Practical Winery and Vineyard. Winemaker Michael Richmond of Bouchaine Vineyard shares his philosophy and techniques of making Pinot Noir.

Excerpted from Article:

Carneros has emerged with new possibilities for the variety. Winemakers, such as Mike Richmond (Bouchaine Vineyards, Napa, CA), now have the option of growing and styling a much darker and richer Pinot Noir with black cherry-like overtones. These are not fruit bombs or jammy wines; they have abundent flavor yet elegance. Of the 25,000 cases produced annually at Bouchaine, 14,000 are Pinot Noir.

For a copy of the full article please click on the following link: Bouchaine Vineyard's Carneros Pinot Noir

2008 Vintage Bouchaine Estate Chardonnay in BevX, June 16, 2010

"Brilliant! The nose explodes with aromas of ripe tropical fruits with hints of citrus zest...with a rich creamy core...butterscotch and oak tones. Possesses a great sense of balance with a vibrant acidity framing the generous fruit."

2008 Vintage Bouchaine Estate Chardonnay in Wine Spectator, July 31, 2010

"Intense, spicy and firm...with green apple and melon flavors that end on a pleasant delicate note."

— James Laube

2008 Vintage Bouchaine Estate Chardonnay in Wine Enthusiast, August 2010 Issue

"87 Points! A very nice, super-drinkable Chardonnay marked by brisk, cool-climate acidity and a bracing minerality...pineapple, peach and apple flavors have the slight herbality you often find in Napa Chardonnay."

— Steve Heimoff

2007 Vintage Bouchaine Carneros Pinot Noir in Wine Enthusiast, August 2010 Issue

"88 Points! A nice Pinot from a producer with a long track record in Carneros. Dry and silky, it has flavors of cherries, raspberries, Dr. Pepper cola and spices, with a smoky-sweet oak in the background...it's a solid wine for drinking now."

— Steve Heimoff

2007 Vintage Bouchaine Carneros Pinot Noir in California Grapevine, June-July 2010 Issue

"87 Points! Attractive, forward, plummy, cherry fruit aroma with notes of cola and charred oak...medium-full body; herbal, cranberry, and cherry fruit flavors...with a lingering aftertaste. Highly recommended."

2007 vintage Bouchaine Carneros Pinot Noir in BevX.com, June 16, 2010

"Brilliant! The nose is lovely, brimming with aromas of red cherry and raspberry, with accents of mineral and a hint of cloves. The palate delivers much of the same with the mineral/earth notes flanking the ripe fruit, offering the perfect to the inherent richness of this Pinot. A healthy dose of acidity also gives this wine lift and makes it such a versatile wine at the dinner table."

Bouchaine Bacchus Collection Pinot Meunier recommended in Forbes Magazine (May 2009) and Forbes.com (April 2, 2009)

Bouchaine is among only a HANDFUL of wineries producing a Pinot Meunier wine. We are delighted that this very special grape is getting some attention from Forbes Magazine and Forbes.com!

Excerpts from the article
"Meunier (moon-yay) is French for "miller," an allusion to the flourlike appearance on the leaves. Never heard of it? Not surprising. It's a red grape that, most of the world over, is pressed to extract clear juice, then fermented into a small component of sparkling wines, such as champagne. It's the wine industry's silver-haired stepchild. France grows more of it than anyone."

"But about a dozen American wineries say the French have got meunier all wrong. Instead of making white wine out of it, Yankees are fermenting pinot meunier on the skins and making red table wine, as they do with merlot, cabernet and syrah. They're doing so not to be different but simply because pinot meunier tastes better than most winemakers or wine drinkers realized it could."

"Meunier is winning over fans who like its bright, fresh flavor of raspberries and cranberries, balanced with tannins. Best drunk after less than a year or two in the bottle, it has a tangy, refreshing finish that begs another sip. Two California wineries, August Briggs in Calistoga and Bouchaine Vineyards in Napa, report that the variety is among their fastest sellers."

To read the full article, please click here to go to Forbes.com. To see the Forbes article's "Made in the U.S.A." sidebar listing the handful of wineries producing Pinot Meunier as a non-sparkling, single varietal wine, please click here.

Napa Valley Bike Tours and Bouchaine Vineyards get radio-blogged by Martha Stewart Radio's Living On 112, March 2009

Read about "Cycling Around Napa" with Napa Valley Bike Tours in Bouchaine's vineyards on Martha Stewart Living On 112 Radio Blog!

"We started out at Bouchaine Vineyards, located in Carneros, in Southern Napa Valley, a family-owned 100-acre estate vineyard known for its pinot noir and chardonnay. And let me tell you, once we hit the road, the experience was nothing short of exhilarating. As we muscled up the unpaved incline into the vineyards, our beefy off-road bike tires bit into the gravel path in an incredibly satisfying way. And the view? Gorgeous. This time of year, the fields appear dusted with gold as the mustard blooms over the hillsides and pretty much everywhere you look."