Hook or Crook Cellars

 

Holy moly it's been awhile! But hi! How are you? Today I've got some bottles of Hook or Crook Cellars out of Lodi, and I'm just gonna give a quick rundown. Unfortunately, it appears that my bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon is faulty and oxidized, and it's important to note that this is not the fault of Hook or Crook. It just happens. Rarely, but it does. The Merlot is a classic affordable Merlot. It's medium bodied with blackberries, a pop of raspberry, and that cinnamon I love so much as well as other baking spices. But the Field Blend is where it's at. Light bodied with soft tannin, and notes of black cherries, cranberries, chocolate, and vanilla. I would give this a slight chill and have it with cured meats and cheese. All three of these bottles go for $11.99.

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Oak Farm Vineyards Fiano 2018

This wine is out of Lodi, California, which has a similar climate to Fiano's native homeland of Avellino in Campania, Italy. It shows melons, buttered pecans, and earthy herbs. As it cools off and opens up, lemon shows up on the scene. On the finish it has a snappy and tangy acidity with nice minerality on the finish. It is just beautiful!

Listen to Mike and Joey talk about it on Grapes & Capes Episode #3!

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Grapes & Capes Episode #3: Robots don't eat cookies

Michael and Joey read The Ultimates #1 and Vision #1 while tasting Oak Farm Vineyards Fiano, La Crema Sonoma Chardonny, and Banshee Rosé. Wines provided by Colangelo & Partners.

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Wine #1: Oak Farm Vineyards 2018/2019, sitting on the leese

Comics #1: The Ultimates #1 (2002)

Wine #2: La Crema Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2018, New World wine vs Old World wine, effects of oak, what is Zinfandel

Comics #2: Vision #1 (2015), Tom King's Batman, War of Jokes and Riddles, Tom King's comicsgate controversy, Scarlet Witch

Wine #3: Banshee Rosé 2019, how they make pink wine, orange wine, dry rosé vs sweet rosé

Comics #3: the death of Deadshot, DC Universe Infinite, HBO Max, call Tony Stark at 212-970-4133, Marvel getting cosmic

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Wine Quickie: The Federalist Lodi Zinfandel 2016

This is the third of five wines that I'm doing quickies for by The Federalist this month, and as an admitted Zinfandel hater I'm really liking this one. It's purple in color with aromas of plums, strawberry jam, lobster shell, and cinnamon. On the palate it's medium bodied with a fluffy mouthfeel and sweet tannins. There's flavors of plums, raspberries, dark chocolate, and black table pepper. Then it finishes hot with plums and black table pepper. American mythos tells us that George Washington could not tell a lie, and I'm not lying when I say that this is a Zinfandel that I thoroughly enjoyed.

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Wine Quickie: The Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2016

I've got five bottles of Federalist for quickies this second half of the month! FIVE! One Cabernet, one Red Blend, and three Zinfandels. The Lodi Cabernet is 93% Cabernet, 5% Zinfandel (oh no), and the remaining 2% is Petite Sirah, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. It's garnet in color with a medium body, sweet tannins, and a bright acidity. There's aromas and flavors of black cherries, plums, cedar, cinnamon, and it has this syrupy molasses thing going on that I'm really not a fan of. This is not the Cabernet I'm looking for.

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Wine Quickie: Acquiesce Ingénue 2018

I had this during a virtual tasting and I missed the specifics of the blend, and it's not like it's easy to look up because this wine hasn't even been released yet. But it appeared as though I was the only one there who wasn't a fan. There's a lot of tropical fruit like pineapple and banana and mango, which I'm not opposed to (that's not 100% true because my first order as world ruler would be to abolish flat head screws, and second to abolish mangoes), but working with other aspects of the wine such as its flat full body, lack of acidity, and lack of character, it just didn't work for me. Everybody else who commented seemed to love it but I just don't want a glass of this.

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Wine Quickie: Prie Vineyards Carignane 2016

This Carignane out of Lodi is made from fruit off of vines planted in 1900, and dude... it's awesome. It's rather "Zinny", for the lack of a better word, but lacking the things that I don't like about Zinfandel. Its overall character is spicy with candied/dried fruit but still silky and elegant, with descriptors of cranberries, strawberries, leather, and oak. The tannin is soft and dusty, while the acidity brings a nice uplift to the finish. This is a great food wine, especially with grilling season upon us. Outstanding!

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Wine Quickie: Ingénue m2 Vermentino 2018

Vermentino is not really something that I traditionally get excited about. But I'll always get excited about trying wine from places you would never expect it would come from. And this is a Vermentino from Lodi, Calfornia, so that is exciting! And it's pretty friggin' awesome! It's ultra light yellow in color but medium bodied with lower acidity than I expected. Yet it's crisp and clean with light notes of orange, lemon thyme, and spearmint. The orange finish seems to go on forever, which is great because I wish oranges would go on forever and I get sad when I finish one. I really liked it, but my wife liked it even more. So the rest of the bottle is hers.

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Wine Quickie: Mettler Estate Grown Pinotage 2016

Pinotage was created in a lab in South Africa and it really has remained a South African thing. However, this is a Pinotage out of Lodi, California of all places! And man is it good! For color it's a dark ruby red with vibrant purple edges. It's medium bodied with soft tannin and balanced acidity with notes of black cherry sauce, black coffee, earth, vanilla, and other baking spices. Then it finishes with black cherries and little bitter but it totally belongs with the character of this wine. This is very much a surprise and a sleeper star of Lodi wine. 

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Wine Quickie: Michael David Inkblot Cabernet Franc 2016

I do love me some big sticky Lodi fruit by Michael David. They make "stress relief" wine. Come home from a long, tough day and pop open a bottle of Michael David wine and suddenly everything is just fine. The Inkblot Cab Franc is purple in color. On the nose there's a cloud of very fine black table pepper over aromas of blackberries, tomato leaf, mint, and violets. On the palate it's medium bodied with a rich mouthfeel and dusty tannin. There's flavors of big concentrated blackberries, caramel, chocolate, green peppers, and spices. Good stuff, man. I love it. Plus the label reminds me of Watchmen.

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Wine Quickie: LangeTwins Aglianico Rosé 2018

You all know that I have sexual feelings for Aglianico. Aglianico was shipped over by the Greeks from Turkey to Italy where it found its true home 2,500 years ago. And here is a Rosé made by that same variety out of Lodi, California. And guys, it's beautiful. Strawberry all day with rhubarb, pink grapefruit, cream, and a bright acidity that all comes together to become a wonderful experience. This falls within the lines of a perfect rosé for me, and I'd love to drink it all summer!

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