LibraryAccolades

CLINE CELLARS

Welcome Distributors and wine-lovers! This page is to inform you on past reviews and ratings. For more information contact Tina Martin at Cline Cellars 707/935-4310. Cheers!

Current Accolades

Carignane Ancient Vines Contra Costa County

1997 Carignane Ancient Vines Contra Costa County
Ripe, with an intense beam of blueberry, black currant, spice and game. Concentrated, with soft tannins and an ironlike tang on the lingering finish. Drink now through 2003. 2,631 cases made. -J.L.
1997 Carignane Ancient Vines Contra Costa County
84 points, Wine & Spirits Magazine, March/April 2000
This is a serious wine and was an interesting surprise. The low yields have created a medium dark ruby wine. Brimming with chocolate and black cherry spicy nutmeg and clove with orange rind flavors. The wine has fresh earthy aromas, medium tannins, with a lingering vanilla finish. Drink this now, but in 3-7 years this will be very nice indeed.
1996 Carignane Ancient Vines Contra Costa County
Food & Beverage International Magazine, March/April 2000
This is a serious wine and was an interesting surprise. The low yields have created a medium dark ruby wine. Brimming with chocolate and black cherry spicy nutmeg and clove with orange rind flavors. The wine has fresh earthy aromas, medium tannins, with a lingering vanilla finish. Drink this now, but in 3-7 years this will be very nice indeed.

91 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, June, 1999
Red-purple with slight fade. Moderately full-bodied. Highly extracted. Moderately tannic. Crisp cherries, coal tar, herbs. An impressive medicinal note to the nose, with faintly herbal and crisp-fruit aromas following on the palate. Balanced, dry tannins. Very complex.

85 points - Wine Spectator Magazine, January 1999
Fairly supple, with firm, ripe tannins, this wine shows black cherry, spice, vanilla and herb notes. Finishes moderately, almost plush. Drink now through 2002.

91 points - 1999 Beverage Testing Institute - Exceptional!

^{Côtes D'Oakley Vin Blanc}
1998 Côtes D'Oakley Vin Blanc - Last year we received a best buy, look what happened this year!
89 points - Wine Spectator Magazine, February 2000
SPECTATOR SELECTION - Lots of fun in this bottle of white. It's rich and gooey, with fresh fennel, papaya, tangerine and melon flavors that are refreshing, not cloying. Drink now through 2002. A blend of Marsanne, Roussanne, Viognier, Semillion and others.

Two and a Half Stars - The San Francisco Chronicle's Wine Selections, April 26, 2000
Peachy-mineral aroma with citrus back notes; sweet fruit, lively flavors, mineral and ripe peach, very good balance. Vaule. Try with seared scallops over fruit vinaigrette.

88 points - The Beverage Testing Institute Summer 2000
Pale straw hue. Floral and almost sweet aromas show a hint of toasty oak, big and weighty up front, with a moderately full body and a thick mouthfeel that is not unlike a white Rhone varietal. Carries a little hint of off-dry sweetness and a dry, almost minerally mouthfeel. BEST BUY.

Good Value - Wine & Spirits, February 2000
A simple, floral white wine filled with green lily scents. The sweet and sour balance will play off take-out Chinese.

Côtes D'Oakley Vin Gris

1997 Côtes D'Oakley Vin Gris
86 points - 1998 World Wine Championships - Silver Medal

Côtes D'Oakley Vin Rouge

1997 Côtes D'Oakley Vin Rouge
85 points -Wine Spectator Magazine March 1998. . . this wine is youthfully fresh, while displaying the nicely balanced cherry, spice and plum flavors of a more mature red. Enjoyable now, even better in a year or two. A good buy for all that it offers.

Marsanne Los Carneros

1998 Marsanne Los Carneros
86 points - The Beverage Testing Institute Summer 2000- Highly recommended
Golden luster. Rich, buttery aromas. Smooth and glycerous with a full body and a silky, textured mouthfeel showing butter character. Not very fruity but quite hedonistic.

Two and a Half Stars - The San Francisco Chronicle's Wine Selections, April 26, 2000
Spicy-peach aroma, lime-juice back notes; medium acidity, fresh, lively flavors, concentrated ripe pear, long finish. Nice choice with fresh oysters.

86 points - The Beverage Testing Institute - Highly recommended

Mourvèdre

1998 Mourvèdre Ancient Vines Contra Costa County

90 points -Wine Spectator Magazine, February 28, 2001
Enticing flavors of roasted herbs, mint black currants and plum are loaded with intensity in this Rhone-style red from California, while chocolate notes and firm tannins carry through the finish. Drink now through 2005. 3,099 cases made. -J.L.

1997 Mourvèdre Ancient Vines Contra Costa County
95 points - 1999 Beverage Testing Institute - Exceptional!

1998 Mourvèdre Small Berry Contra Costa County
88 points - Wine Spectator Magazine, February 28, 2001
Chunky, with pronounced mint, roasted herbs and plum flavors. Firm, with focused tannins and acidity. Drink now through 2004. 1,000 cases made. -J.L.

1997 Mourvèdre Small Berry Contra Costa County
91 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, October 1999
Very rich chocolate, plum and allspice aroma, like a pudding. Classy. From low-yielding old vines, and it shows in the intensity and density. Deft winemaking keeps it from being ponderous. Really alive and fresh.

Wine of the Week - The Cincinnati Enquirer, December 12, 1999
This inky deep beauty ranks high on my best wines tasted in 1999. Cline packed its top Mourvèdre with intense, full-bodied flavors but also achieved surprising refinement. Pair this unforgettable red with hearty fare, such as lamb stew, game or grilled meat.

93 points - 1999 Beverage Testing Institute - Exceptional!

Roussanne Los Carneros

1998 Roussanne Los Carneros

90 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, August 2000
In California only a few wineries make top-quality Roussanne, and Cline is a leader of the pack. This one is a big-style white with 14% alcohol (so you may want to hold off pooping the cork until after sundown). It has a lime-driven personality, with some talc-like dryness. Underneath, however is where the real game is played. There's a warm, honeyed core of spiced pear--also licorice and clove. Because it's on the large side, it deserves fine cuisine, preferably a great piece of fish or grilled lobster tails.

89 points - The Beverage Testing Institute Summer 2000 - Highly Recommended
Medium golden luster. Stony, honeysuckle aromas. Juicy, peachy fruit flavors with a moderately full body and a bright, juicy finish. Very attractive.

86 points -Wine Spectator Magazine, May 31, 2000
Rich honeysuckle, melon and butter notes combine in a viscous package framed by oaky vanilla flavors. Drink now. Tasted twice, with consistent notes.

89 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, July, 1999

89 points - 2000 Beverage Testing Institute - Highly Recommended

Syrah

1998 Syrah California

87 points - Wine Spectator Magazine Top 100 Wine Values Edition, October 2000
Rated the top Syrah in the California Reds division of the 100 Top Wines at a Glance.

Best Wine - Food & Wine American Wine Awards Issue, October 2000
Best Syrah $15 and under.This versatile Sonoma winery produces fine Zinfandels as well as Rhône blends and varietals. Although Syrah, a Rhône grape, has become wildly popular only recently, proprietor Fred Cline recognized its potential years ago. The 1998 Syrah, a blend of several different appellations, is immediately accessible, a soft juicy red with a nose redolent of smoke and spice--a Rhône grape that's grown California ripe.

87 points - Wine Spectator Magazine, May 31, 2000
Focused, with smoke, leather and spicy berry notes that remain concentrated through the firm finish. Great bang for the buck.

Good Value - Wine & Spirits, February 2000
A simple, fat and fleshy syrah with dry tannins and a little musky, barnyard character. Open a bottle with grilled burgers.

1998 Syrah Los Carneros

4 Stars - Press Democrat Food Section January 24, 2001
A big wine, complex and earthy. Notes of cassis, currant, sage and toasty oak. A good quaffer. -P.M.

1997 Syrah Los Carneros

XX - Wine X Magazine - Volume 4.4 2000
A receptionist with an attitude at a bread factory-- dough, pencil shavings and aggressions. Almost XXX.

90 points - Wine & Spirits Magazine, October 1999
Scents of a redwood forest pervade this flavorful Syrah. It's deep and dusky in tone, with an herbal rosemary and eucalyptus bark character. The fruit is lavishly ripe, round rather than structured. Give it some air to bring all it's evocative scents to the fore.

88 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, June 1999
Typical plum, berry earth, coffee and peppery aromas. Rich and sweet, with tons of fruit and spice, but very dry. Moderate tannins. Drinks well now, but the impeccable balance indicates it can age . . .
93 points -1999 Beverage Testing Institute - Exceptional!

3 stars - San Francisco Chronicle's Wine Selections - Excellent
Black Pepper and spicy oak over ripe black-cherry aromas; good texture, layered with fruit, pepper and anise accents. Value.

Viognier Los Carneros

1999 Viognier Los Carneros
87 points -Wine Spectator Magazine, February 28, 2001
Easy to like, with butter, caramel, peach and tangy citrus flavors through the finish. Drink now. 610 cases made.-J.L.
1998 Viognier Los Carneros

Food & Beverage International Magazine, March/April 2000
Nice character, very smooth and non-overbearing. The surprise is in the way the finish comes back at you. Decant and wait for the aroma to unfold and the full structure to come forward. This Viognier would go well with olive oils or stir fried foods. Recommended.

89 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, July 1999

84 points - 2000 Beverage Testing Institute - Recommended

Zinfandel

1998 Zinfandel Ancient Vines California

89 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, March 2001 BestBuys Big, toothsome wine, chewy and assertive. Cline fans will recognize the style: brambly, peppery, with enormous vitality and punch. Bright, spicy fruit backed with good acids and just enough toast.

86 points - Wine Spectator, December 15, 2000
Big and ripe, with earth cherry, wild berry and even a touch of beet in the mix. Finishes with firm, leathery tannins, so a little more time in the bottle won't hurt. Drink now through 2005. 8,061 case made. -J.L.

1997 Zinfandel Ancient Vines Contra Costa County

Global Vintage Quarterly Magazine, January - March 2000 Issue
Regional Winemakers Score 97 points
National Critics Score 88.8 points
Global Vintage Score 95 points

93 points - Wine & Spirits Magazine, October 1999
VOTED ONE OF THE TOP TEN ZINFANDELS' OF THE YEAR! Not for the faint of heart. This wine is heady, odoriforous, almost too intimate. But perhaps you like that intimacy with the slightly fetid, slightly sweet richness of freshly turned earth . . . Personally, I can't pull myself away from the aroma of this zinfandel. With more critical distance, I could name components of cranberry, black currant, leather, molasses. But that sounds heavy, and it' s not-just extremely concentrated, from old low-yielding vines planted in the sandy soils of Oakley. It has the texture of a grand cru of California, supple and dynamic. Glorious Zin.

1999 Zinfandel California

86 points - Wine Spectator Magazine, May 15, 2001 BEST BUY
Lively in the mouth, with flavors of raisins, dried currants and roasted herbs, highlighted by modest tannins. A very good Zin at a hard-to-argue-with price. Drink now through 2005.

87 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, March 2001 BestBuys Full dark berry aromas and flavors anc classic pepper accents mark this very likeable wine. Cocoa and meaty elements add a bit of complexity not necessarily expected at this price. Kept lively by its brisk, but not sharp acidity, it finishes peppery with a tart-sweet profile. This straightforward, delicious wine exemplifies how competitive California can still be, despite the trend to priciness.

Connoisseur's Guide to California Wine, January 2001
Coming close to the remarkable value that its 1998 predecessor offered, this ripe, berryish, straightforward effort offers plenty to enjoy in its full-bodied, fleshy, ripe flavors and mannerly tannin. If not likely to make you forget about the more costly and deeper versions of Zinfandel, this one nonetheless must be kept in mind when value for money is part and parcel of your wine-buying equation.

1998 Zinfandel California

XX - Wine X Magazine - Volume 4.4 2000
The Zinfield Follies of reds --a lot body, spice and fruit.

83 points-The Wine Spectator, June 2000
Milk Chocolate, spice and plum flavors are round and easy to drink. Drink now through 2002.

Four Stars-The Santa Rosa Press Democrat, May 24, 2000-WINE OF THE WEEK
Top honors to Cline's 1998 Zinfandel, California. Chef Michael Quigley, co-owner of Café Lolo states "It's a classic Zin. Certain Zinfandels are like a spoonful of raspberry jam and other Zinfandels are on the spicy side . . . this Cline Zin is a perfect balance between the two. Fruity, with nice acid."
Highly recommended-The best match for a burger, this Zin is very spicy with rich, sweet berries. Slightly herbal with aromas of berry, chocolate and smoke.

1997 Zinfandel California
86 points-The Wine Advocate, June, 1999
This winery has a fine track record for hefty, rich and pleasurable Zinfandels . . . one of the vintage's better bargains . . . the 1997 Zinfandel California is medium ruby-colored and elegant, with loads of fresh, briery, cranberry and cherry fruit, spice and pepper. It exhibited deep saturated colors and is made from fine raw materials with high quality ripe fruit.

86 points-The Wine Spectator, June, 1999
BEST BUY! Have a yen for Zin? This one's very nice, and the price is right too. It's rich and jammy-tasting, with harmonious plum, strawberry, spice and herb-laced flavors, finishing soft. Drink now through 2001.

1997 Zinfandel Big Break

Global Vintage Quarterly Magazine,January - March 2000 Issue
Regional Winemakers Score 96 points
National Critics Score92.7 points
Global Vintage Score 93 points

90 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, September 1999
Open and accessible . . . showing the importance of terroir. Ripe, briary and peppery, it captures Zin's character in an earthy, likable way.

1997 Zinfandel Bridgehead

90 points - Wine & Spirits Magazine, October 1999
² Super-concentrated, with juicy fresh berry and jammier fruit combining in a lucious, mouth-coating texture. Oak influence shows up at the end, adding even more intoxicating richness.

Named One of the Top Ten Wines of the Year - San Francisco Chronicle, November 10, 1999

1997 Zinfandel Fulton Road
88 points - Wine Spectator Magazine, November 1999
Dark, rich and concentrated, with a ripe, rich core of mint and cherry, currant and wild berry flavors that are well focused, finishing with firm, chewy tanning\s. Best to cellar into 1998.

Three Stars - Connoisseur's Guide, July 1999
Highest rated wine in Connoisseur's Guide's July 1999 Zinfandel issue! The wine is big, ripe and well extracted in the winery style, yet it is every keyed on neatly focused blackberry fruit and gives little ground to runaway ripeness. Lots of sweet oak spice complete a rich and enticing picture, and while very tasty now, this deep, handsomely crafted wine has the inner strength and solidity to develop nicely for five or more years.

1998 Zinfandel Live Oak Contra Costa County
88 points - Wine Spectator Magazine, December 15, 2000
A solid chunky, firmly tannic effort, rich with ripe plum and berry flavors flanked by tar and spice. Finishes with a dry, tannic aftertaste, drink it now or cellars. Drink now through 2006. 1,331 cases made.
1997 Zinfandel Live Oak
2 Stars - Connoisseur's Guide, July 1999
. . . this bold, deeply filled Zinfandel is simply loaded with ripe-berry fruitiness. If fairly full in body and wonderfully fleshy in feel, it shows acid driven brightness and vitality, and it never succumbs to the heat and heaviness that undermine so many highly ripened wines. We like it now, but it is guaranteed to age, and it may not show it's very best until four or five years have passed.

91 points - Wine Enthusiast Magazine, May 2000

Jacuzzi Familly Vineyard
1996 Jacuzzi Family Vineyard Zinfandel
91 points- Wine Enthusiast Magazine, May 2000

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