Tasting Notes: Frog's Leap Vineyards

I recently had the opportunity to visit the Napa Valley wine country and took some notes at the tasting rooms that I visited. Here are my notes for Frog's Leap. Overall, the experience at the winery is truly fantastic. The surrounding gardens provide a very beautiful environment in which to sample the wines of the vineyard. The tasting experience itself includes a seated tasting of 4 wines, paired with a small plate of cheese, crackers, California almonds and dried fruits.

Frog's Leap Sauvignon Blanc (Rutherford) 2008 ($18): The Sauv. Blanc offers a very light olive oil appearance and served chilled. The nose provides fruits such as grapefruit and a touch of lime mixed with lemongrass. On the palate, the wine was slightly salty with very little depth. Strangely, the finish was instant and slightly bitter, offering stronger lime flavors. Overall, this was a simple wine with a bright nose but little complexity. The flavors, as is often the case, do not closely resemble the nose. Rating: 84.

Frog's Leap Zinfandel (Napa Valley) 2007 ($27): This wine was not 100% Zin, but offered in a blend of Zin (76%), Petite Sirah (19%) and Carignane (5%). The blended wine leads to a dark, lush velvety appearance with a faint leading edge. The nose provides smoky scents with hints of butter, spice and ground pepper with big, jammy fruit after aeration. The palate receives big fruit such as black cheery and a light oak-driven smoke flavor and beautiful velvety mouthfeel. This wine was very nice and resembles what I remember of very good recent vintages of Ridge Geyserville. Rating: 89.

Frog's Leap Merlot (Rutherford) 2006 ($34): I must issue a statement regarding my lack of preference for Merlot. Nonetheless, I am attempting to be objective regarding this review. The appearance is a wonderful dark plum offering with some fragmentation. The nose offers a touch of oak complemented with eucalyptus and green pepper. The flavor offering is a blended set of currant and black cherry with an oaky underlying flavor. The finish was rounded and pleasant with a faint smoky flavor. I enjoyed this merlot, although the price puts it far outside a range of contemplation for me. Rating: 86.

Frog's Leap Rutherford 2005 ($75): The Rutherford is Frog's Leap version of a Meritage-like blend of grapes (96% Cab. Sauv, 4% Cab. Franc). The appearance is very dark but still transparent. The nose offers vanilla with an earthy scent and a hint of green pepper. Significant depth on the nose suggests that the wine would age wonderfully for 5-10 years. The taste writhes of tobacco and dried cherry with a cedar flavor laced throughout. The finish was a nice silky mouthfeel with a light tannic touch. The nose of this wine is very distinct. I rate this wine very highly but the price is a deterrent. Rating: 87.