Part 2 in my installment of Clif Family Wines (Part I can be found at Clif Family Winery), this time focusing on a white (The Climber) and another red (Gary's Improv 2006 Syrah).2007 The Climber White Wine Blend
The only one of the Clif Family wines that was a white wine turned out to be pretty tasty. All peach, pear and freshly cut grass on the nose, it wasn't anything complex, nor did I feel like it over-promised. In the mouth, the pear stuck around, but the peach and grass were replaced with grapefruit and minerals. Not a bad substitution by any means and this wine delivered more flavor than I actually thought it would. With a combination of Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Blanc and Muscat, this is very nicely balanced with good acidity.What you should do: Buy it. At $14 a bottle through the winery, this white is tasty enough that I'd go out and grab a couple for any hot summer days that are left. I really enjoyed the fruit and the acidity and the Clif Family Wines have a cool story to go along with the wines. But, I wouldn't pair it with a Clif Bar just yet.
My rating: 87
Gary's Improv 2006 Napa Valley Syrah
Overall, this was my least favorite of the Clif Family Wines that I tasted. The fruit was there with blueberry and raspberry, along with some interesting fig, chocolate and licorice components. But, in the end, the heat was a little too much for me, with a lot of burn on the back end of the finish. I tried it several times, even decanting some to see if I could mellow it out a little bit, but it was still too hot for my taste. The one thing I did not do was pair with any food, which sometimes helps mask or compliment the heat enough to subdue it, so that may make a difference. Kind of a bummer for me, because I really like the Clif Family Wines overall, but this one was just too hot for my taste.What you should do: Don't buy it. I gave "buy it" recommendations to the other three Clif Family wines - the Climber White Wine Blend above, the Climber Red Wine Blend and the Kit's Killer Cab Cabernet Sauvignon - but at $35, I would wait until the 2007 is released to see if the balance is better and the heat has been brought under control.
My rating: 85
NOTE: the Clif Family wines were sent to me as a sample from the winery.
Looking forward to trying to the Climber blend