Elyse Winery and Addax Wines Wine Tasting with Special Guest Owner Josh Peeples

Whenever a man is tired, wine is a great restorer of strength. ~ Homer, The Iliad

Wine is the best in terms of keeping you healthy, that’s why I drink two bottles every day! 

The only requirement that I have to set up a wine tasting event is that I want to drink the wines and when I tasted through the new releases from Elyse Winery with the new owner Josh Peeples, I was happy to see that he was keeping with the tradition that founder Ray Coursen.  Elyse was all about Ray’s vision of making wines from amazing vineyard sites and of course his signature larger than life personality that was translated into these wines.  Josh’s winemaker Russel Bevan has a similar swagger to Ray and Josh has added a few things to the line-up with his Standard Deviation, Institution Winery and Addax labels which also use grapes from top vineyard sites in Napa and Sonoma County along with Russel Bevan’s larger than life personality.  Three of these wines in the tasting tonight received my highest rating KILLER and I even thought the Zinfandel was Excellent! 

Join us as we welcome Josh and every wine that they have in the South Florida market including the three KILLER Cabernet Sauvignons and the Excellent Zinfandel from Morisoli Vineyard along with a special five course menu to accompany the tasting wines.  The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $250+ tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com. 

Elyse Winery and Addax Wines Wine Tasting
with Special Guest Owner Josh Peeples
Friday, May 21, 2021
7:30 PM

2019 Standard Deviation Sauvignon Blanc Sonoma Coast             
Price: $24.00       Sale $21.12

Fresh melon and fig like fruit with notes of onion skin and some stone like minerality.  Justin Harmon makes this label and Russel Bevan is the winemaker now for Elyse winery.  A good amount of melon and ripe pink grapefruit jolly rancher candy like fruit, a nice amount of ripe fruit through the mid palate and a good amount of acidity holding things together nicely, tongue tingly minerality at the end.  Finish 45+   Excellent             

2017 Elyse Chardonnay Sonoma Coast  
Price: $24.00       Sale $21.12

Just a bit of that butterscotch candy and vanilla bean crème brulee and a good amount of tree fruit and citrus and candied lemon drop notes, a note of Pinot Blanc in the blend, 25% new French oak.  Smooth and creamy on the tongue with a nice amount of candied fruit hints of butterscotch and a hint of vanilla a bit heavy on the finish for those that like a big Cali chardonnay.  Finish 40+ Very Good         

2018 Elyse C'Est Si Bon California            
Price: $24.00       Sale $21.12

A blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre a summertime red and this wine has a pretty nose of fresh berry pie, fresh flowers, hints of black pepper spice.  Smooth and silky with a good amount of fresh berry pie like fruit, very fresh and balanced, very easy drinking.  Finish 35+               Very Good         

2018 Elyse Nero Misto Red Wine California
Price: $24.00       Sale $21.12         
A blend of Zinfandel, Petit Syrah, Charbono and Touriga Nacional, a mix of black grapes with a good amount of fresh berry pie like fruit fresh flowers, violets and notes of black spice.  Fresh berry pie like fruit with smooth tannins and a nice amount of spice, still bright and fresh albeit a bit bigger than the C'Est Si Bon.  Finish 45+                Very Good +     

2017 Addax Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast    
Price :$82.50       Sale $72.60

The Addax brand was started in 2009 with a good amount of cherry berry fruit some brown spice and rustic floral notes.  A big and rich style of Pinot Noir with a good amount of ripe round tannins, like velvet on the tongue with pretty floral notes and brown spices lingering through the finish, nice freshness despite its size.  Finish 45+               Excellent             

2015 Elyse Zinfandel Morisoli Vineyard Rutherford        
Price: $45.00       Sale $39.60
The first wine in 1986, 120-year-old dry farmed head pruned vineyard in Rutherford a sprinkling of other varietals co fermented with a brambly fruity bouquet of black raspberry wild strawberry fruit with exotic spices and pretty floral notes.  Juicy wild strawberry and cherry fruit on the tongue with a silky-smooth texture a nice hand of spice and surprisingly balanced for a 14.4% alcohol and that is due to the old vines.  Finish 45+                Excellent +         

2016 Elyse Cabernet Sauvignon Morisoli Vineyard Rutherford  
Price: $75.00       Sale $66.00
This is 100% Cabernet and Ray Corson sold in 2018 and this is a late release but not for Elyse this wine has a beautiful bouquet of black currant and cassis like fruit with sweet tobacco spice, dark coco and some of that Rutherford dust.  A big and chewy wine on the tongue with a good amount of everything very big but balanced and fresh on the finish a good amount of that Rutherford Dust at the end.  Finish 50+  Most Excellent

2018 Addax Cabernet Sauvignon Napa  
Price : $135.00   Sale $118.80

A blend of 5 vineyards with a touch of Merlot and Cabernet Franc with a rich currant and cassis like fruit on the nose with rich ripe currant and cassis like fruit with dark coco and fresh black earth.  Big and chewy with ample rich ripe fruit and lots of ripe tannins with a long-layered finish needs a bit of time but has everything in proportion.  Finish 50+              Excellent +               

2017 Addax Napa Valley Red Wine         
Price : $205.50   Sale $180.84

Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and this wine has no indication of the varietals on the label with a good amount of and over ripe character to the currant and plum fruit with a bit of sweet herbs and some dark spices.  A big and chewy wine with lots of everything with sweet tobacco spice and dark earth very rich and ripe style but still nicely balanced and fresh on the finish.  Finish 45+              Excellent +         

2017 Addax Cabernet Sauvignon Tench Vineyard Oakville          
Price : $205.50   Sale $180.84

Clone 4 and clone 7 but all Cabernet Sauvignon, the same block they have used since 2011, wow this wine has a beautiful bouquet of dark currant and cassis with sweet tobacco spice milk chocolate toasty oak very complex bouquet, black pepper spice.  A blockbuster in size but has lovely elegance and balance with a long-layered finish, this wine needs time even despite the fact that the 2017's are quite forward and seductive.  Finish 45+        KILLER  

2018 Institution Winery Proprietary Red Napa  
Price: $280.50    Sale $246.84
A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot or something like that has a good amount of smokey, dark spices, charcuterie and dark berry fruit with fresh grilled steak and coco very complex.  A big and chewy wine with lots of everything needs a bit of time has a lovely balance and a long-layered finish.  Finish 50+                KILLER  

2018 Institution Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Erba Vineyard Napa           
Price: $280.50    Sale $246.84
A good amount of rich ripe cassis and currant berry fruit, exotic spices with dark spices, dark chocolate, very complex bouquet of aromas lots of fruit.  A big and chewy wine with lots of everything, layers of fruit, spice and a bit of tannins here lingering through the finish, some tannins here but needs time has everything in proportion.  Finish 50+               KILLER  

Menu
Cheese and Charcuterie Selection
Bibb Salad with Roasted Fennel Poppyseed Dressing and Pink Grapefruit
Macadamia Crusted Yellowtail Snapper with Chardonnay Beurre Blanc served on Citrus Cous Cous
Australian Rack of Lamb with Mongolian BBQ
Double Dutch Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Coulis

The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $250 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.

In 1983, Nancy and Ray Coursen arrived in California from Cape Cod to fulfill Ray's dream of making wine and Nancy's taste for adventure. After working harvest at Mt. Eden Winery in Saratoga, they moved to Napa Valley and became innkeepers for a bed and breakfast. Ray then spent formative time at Tonella Vineyard Management, where he gained philosophical perspective and practical knowledge working in the vineyards. Ray's nine year tenure at Whitehall Lane Winery under the tutelage of Art Finkelstein, first as a cellar worker and then as head winemaker, honed his skills in the art of blending and was the inspiration for Ray's winemaking style. The year 1986 saw the arrival of a daughter, Elyse Sarah.

In 1987, Ray and Nancy started the Elyse brand with 286 cases of Zinfandel from the Morisoli Vineyard , which is still a cornerstone vineyard source for the winery. After a decade of nomadic winemaking at various custom crush facilities, in 1997 they purchased a small winery and vineyard on Hoffman Lane, the home of Elyse Winery and tasting room. Since then, Elyse has blossomed into a portfolio of Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petite Sirah focused on pure expression of fruit with a sense of place. For the next twenty years Elyse would become the launching pad for countless Napa Valley wine lovers to explore some of regions most celebrated vineyards.

After thirty years of stewardship, Ray and Nancy decided that it was time to retire. What began as a casual conversation over dinner evolved into the next chapter for Elyse Winery. In October 2018, Ray and Nancy Coursen sold Elyse Winery to fellow Yountville locals, Josh Peeples, and his partner, Cheryl. Perfect timing for both parties, the torch has been passed to continue the same passion for the decades to come. In addition, Josh brings his other brands Addax, Standard Deviation, and Institution to the Elyse family of wines.