by Tom Hill

A self-admitted wine geek, Tom lives in Northern New Mexico and works as a computational physicist at Los Alamos National Laboratory doing numerical neutron transport & large scale code development. He has been tasting wines since 1971, participates locally with a couple of large tasting groups in his area, and is practically a fixture at most California wine festivals, such as the Hospice du Rhône, Rhône Rangers, and ZAP. Other interests: Tom is heavily into competitive sport fencing (foil & epee), biking, cooking, basketball, skiing, backpacking, mountain climbing.

 
1. Navarro Anderson Valley Deep End Blend White Riesling (11.8%; RS:0.9%) '98: Pale yellow color;  lovely fragrant light pineapply/floral/R some Alsatian nose; tart/clean bit metallic/crisp  attractive floral/R pineapply/appley bracing/zingy flavor; long bracing/zippy/tart light  floral/R pineapply/appley finish; lots of acidity & bright R fruit.
2. Navarro Mendocino Chenin Blanc (13.2%; RS:0.4%) '99: Pale yellow color; nice/spicy CB/floral  clean/fruity nose; pleasant aromatic/floral/fruity/appley/melony clean crisp CB flavor;  med.short Sprite/7Up/floral/fruity/melony finish; a pleasant-drinking very fruity/CB wine. 
3. Navarro Anderson Valley Pinot Gris (13.7%; RS:0.39%) '99: Pale yellow color; fragrant/appley bit  earthy/smokey/spicy nose; tart/metallic bit sweet/sour lean/tight appley/floral light earthy/  smokey flavor; med.short metallic appley light floral finish; pleasant wine but more  Calif Riesling in character than Alsatian PG.
4. Navarro Anderson Valley Estate Gewurztraminer (13.6%; RS: 0.45%) '99: Med.yellow color; terrific  spicy/GWT/lychee bit hair oil very aromatic/perfumed nose; soft spicy/lychee attractive  floral/GWT bit hair oil flavor; long bit off-dry spicy/lychee/GWT light hair oil perfumed  finish; terrific nose but a bit dilute on the palate.
5. Navarro Mendocino Cuvee 128 (13.1%; RS: 0.29%) SauvignonBlanc '99: Med.light color; attractive  herbal/cat-pee/figgy/SB clean bit perfumed talc nose; soft/round bit metallic light herbal/  perfumed talc/cinammon light oak flavor; med.long slight metallic light figgy/herbal light  oak finish; pleasant low-key SB.
6. Navarro Mendocino Table Wine Chardonnay (13.4%; RS: 0.39%) '99: Med.light gold color; light  spicy/cinammon/oak clean/appley/Chard attractive/simple nose; light cinammon/oak clean/  appley/Chard bit green/spicy flavor; med.short light appley/Chard/spicy light cinammon/oak  finish; pleasant/simple nice-drinking Chard. Great price at $8.75 
7. Navarro Mendocino Chardonnay (13.2%; 75% Anderson Valley, 25% PotterVlly) '98: Med.light gold  color; light toasty/oaky melony/fragrant/Chard slight earthy nose; tart/clean light toasty/oak  light melony/appley/Chard flavor; med.short appley/melony/Chard citrusy light toasty/oak  finish; pleasant lightly oaked simple Chard.
8. Navarro Anderson Valley Premier Reserve Chard (13.1%) '98: Med.dark gold color; strong butter-  scotchy/toasty/buttery/Fr.oaked ripe melony/Chard nose; strong toasty/butterscotchy/oaked/  buttery floral/melony/appley/Chard bit cinammon/spicy flavor; very long butterscotchy/toasty/  oaked buttery bit smokey/spicy ripe/melony finish; just more intensity of both fruit & oak;  attractive tasty Chard.
9. Navarro Mendocino Pinot Noir (13.7%) '98: Med.light color; bright/fragrant cherry/soda pop/  whole berry fermentation light toasty/oak nose; tart bit lean bright cherry/soda pop zippy  some toasty/oak flavor; med.short some pencilly/toasty/oak bright cherry/soda pop finish w/  light tannins; simple bright cherry Pinot w/ lots of whole-berry fermentation character. 
10. Navarro Anderson Valley Methode a l'Ancien Pinot Noir (13.7%) '98: Med.color; deeper more earthy/  black cherry spicy/cloves some toasty/pencilly bit Burgundian nose; tart rather pencilly/  smokey/oaked fairly deep black cherry/cherry light earthy flavor; med.long toasty/pencilly/oak  earthy/black cherry finish w/ light tannins; pleasant earthy/Burgundian-style Pinot.
11. Navarro Anderson Valley Deep End Blend PinotNoir (13.9%) '98: Med.dark color; strong smokey/toasty/  oaked/molasses/maple syrup/pungent strong black cherry/earthy nose; big rich black cherry/  maple syrup/pungent/smokey rather toasty/pencilly/oaked complex flavor; long rich toasty/smoky/  pungent/charred strong black cherry/earthy spicy/cloves finish w/ some tannins; needs several yrs;  rather Burgundian in style; one of the best Navarro Pinots yet.
12. Panther Creek Willamette Valley Reserve (13%; U; 535 cs) PinotNoir '98: Dark color; earthy/funky/  bit fecal/pungent slight volatile rather Mourvedre-like earthy/complex nose; tart bit thin/  hard funky/pungent toasty/oak black cherry/earthy flavor; long hard/tannic pungent/funky/  smokey ripe earthy/black cherry toasty/Fr.oaked finish w/ fair tannins; not the richness &  lushness I'd expect of a '98; maybe over-saigneed?; strange stuff.
13. Navarro Mendocino Cabernet Sauvignon (13.9%) '95: Very dark color; strong herbal/CS smokey/toasty/  cinammon/cloves/oaked some earthy/dusty complex nose; tart bit lean/hard some herbal/CS/pepper/  green peppercorn cinammon/cloves/pungent spicy hard/tannic flavor; long cinammon/cloves/oak  pungent/toasty green peppercorn/herbal/CS earthy/dusty finish w/ fair tannins; needs 2-5 yrs;  one of the biggest most extracted Navarros I've had; pretty good Mendocino Cab.
14. Navarro Mendocino Zinfandel (15.0%) '98: Dark color; strong spicy/toasty/oaked licorice/  blackberry/tarry very peppery nose; tart Dr.Pepper/licorice/blackberry/tarry/pungent earthy/  dusty big flavor; very long pungent/tarry/smokey/toasty/oaked blackberry/licorice/spicy/  peppery finish w/ fair tannins; big rich hard extracted Zin that needs age; best Navarro  Zin yet. Great price at $17.00 
15. Pringle Family Vnyds Howell Mtn Outpost Zin (old Lamborn Family Vnyd; 16%) '98: Very dark color;  quite volatile/finger nail polish/EA/fumey/hot strong blackberry/licorice/fruity/tarry nose;  hot/volatile/fumey strong blackberry/licorice/black pepper toasty/oak flavor; long very  peppery/blackberry/tarry/pungent rather hot/volatile some toasty/oak/cedary finish w/ fair  tannins; a raging volatility marrs some pretty interesting Zin in this wine.
16. Navarro Anderson Valley Vintage Select Late Harvest Gewurztraminer (10.0%; RS: 14.2%) '99: Med.dark  gold color; beautiful aromatic/floral/intense/lychee/hair oil light peachy/botrytis nose;  very sweet intense lychee/hair oil/spicy/GWT slight raisened/oxidized flavor; very long  intense lychee/hair oil loads of GWT fruit slight oxidized/raisen finish; not much botrytis  evident; tastes like GWT that set out on the leavless vines into Dec dehydrating; pretty  terrific dessert wine at a great price.

1. Many of these are Howard&Rhoda's prelease stash that recently arrived, hence the prices may  be a bit lower than normal. 
2. Most of these Navarros had strong/fragrant noses, but they all seemed a bit dilute on the  palate as if, perhaps, they were being a bit overcropped. But you certainly can't object  to the prices. 
3. Zin & Cabernet: The Navarro versions I've had before of these wines tasted like Zin or Cab  made by a Pinot producer. These two ones were in a whole 'nuther league; big rich & extracted.  They are a bit lacking in lushness & forward fruit, but seem pretty ageable wines. 
4. Outpost Zin: This wine comes from the old Lamborn Family Vnyd estate on Howell Mtn. The  winemaker was Ehren Jordan, so I had very high expectations for the wine. Very much an over-  the-top Zin; it had some pretty impressive fruit in it but the raging volatility badly marred  the wine & made it seem very hot/fumey/alcohoic/mouth searing on the palate. 
5. No doubt about it. Nobody does dessert wines in Calif like Navarro. Consistently always very  good to outstanding. And at great prices.