2007 TOR Rock Hommage Allan Judge Family Vineyard
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The 2007 Tor Homage Alan-Judge Vineyard, a blend of 70% Grenache and 30% Syrah, offers up beautiful notes of kirsch, licorice, lavender, pepper, spice, and raspberries, lovely fruit, medium to full body, a silky texture, and a hedonistic, up-front appeal. Enjoy it over the next 4-5 years. Because the majority of Tor Kenward’s wines are from Napa, I have also included his Chardonnay from Sonoma as well as his Grenache/Syrah blend from Bennett Valley. Tor Kenward, the long-time PR professional at the Beringer group, continues to fine tune his craft. He has been a collector and connoisseur of European wines for as long as I have known him (over 25 years ), and I am sure that gives him a perspective in terms of searching out top sites to make wines that combine the complexity of European wines with the beautiful fruit, texture, and purity that the viticultural Shangri-La of California provides. Tor produces three Cabernet Sauvignons, and tasting through the 2007s was a treat. He is obsessed with fully mature polyphenols (sweet tannins), and he seems to have achieved that in each of these three beauties. Tel. (707) 963-3100; Fax (707) 963-3114
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The 2007 Tor Rock Syrah/Grenache Judge Family Vineyards Hommage Allen is a blend of 75% Grenache, 20% Syrah, and 5% Marsanne. Its classic aromas of kirsch liqueur, licorice, and charcoal do an admirable job of imitating a serious Chateauneuf du Pape from France’s Rhone Valley. A deep ruby/purple color, broad, full-bodied flavors, and plenty of purity suggest this wine will drink well young, yet keep for 7-8 years. Good things happen to good people, and Tor Kenward is not only one of the leaders in the wine business (he’s a longtime executive at Beringer), but he is also a true wine connoisseur, humanitarian, and a burgeoning high quality wine producer. His concentration on Burgundian-styled, single vineyard Chardonnays, or single clones, some impressive Syrahs under the Tor Rock label, and some fabulous Cabernet Sauvignon under the Tor label, has gotten him off to a rocket ship-like launch. Production remains under 3,000 cases (and it is not likely to increase), but this winery is well-worth following as the wines are hand-crafted and bursting with personality. Tor Kenward was a Rhone wine enthusiast long before those wines became fashionable. In an attempt to emulate some of the top-notch French Rhones, he has sought out cool vineyard sites in the Bennett Valley and southern Napa. Tor Kenward and his winemaker, Jeff Ames, are equally attuned to Cabernet Sauvignon. They produce three cuvees, including a brilliant effort from Yountville’s Mast Vineyard, a more mineral-dominated, tannic wine from the Cimarossa Vineyard on Howell Mountain, and an offering from one of the classic sites for Napa Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville’s Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard. Tel. (707) 963-3100; Fax (707) 963-3114