Imagine my surprise when LuxLife Magazine reached out to me to inform me that someone nominated Decanting Monterey for one of their Hospitality Awards. At first, I told them they had the wrong person. I told them I just write a wine blog to promote our local wineries and entertain others with my stories. I suggested some other organizations far more worthy. Then a writer friend told me I should consider doing it. So, I did. To this day, I have no idea who nominated my website, but I am glad they did. Decanting Monterey was named Best Monterey Wine Blog!
This year’s awards are quite diverse in hospitality services, from restaurants and luxury hotels all the way down to a little local wine blog like mine.
From the press release:
“…LUXlife focuses on recognising businesses which provide a diverse range of services from event and hospitality management, restaurants and bars, travel agents, public relations as well as marketing services, to tour operators. LUXlife aims to represent the best talent from this dynamic industry.” Wow – I am humbled.
“Decanting Monterey is a great place to get the real story on Monterey County wines. Central Coast Sharon shares her passion, knowledge, personal experiences, and reviews to elevate and demystify Monterey County wines. Decanting Monterey delivers wine education and wine reviews, wrapped in interesting personal stories via a weekly post. Also found on Instagram (Decanting_Monterey) and Facebook (Decanting Monterey). Nominated in 2023 & 2024 as Best Local Blog by the Monterey County Weekly.”
Have a great Thanksgiving with friends and family. And, if you aren’t a subscriber, sign up today – it is free, I don’t sell your information, so far I don’t have any ads, and is usually just one email per week.
I never knew we could fit a crowd in Sal Rombi’s small tasting room in Carmel Valley Village, but when he offered to host the Monterey Chapter of the American Wine Society for one of their first Friday WinedUP events, I jumped on the opportunity. We had about 18 members and the intimate setting lent itself to us all getting to know Sal, his wines, and each other a bit better. Thank you, Sal, for opening up just for us – we are grateful!
I’ve dotted this post with pictures of our group having a great time at the Rombi Tasting Room. We are always looking for new places to try, so if you are a local winery and interested in hosting our group, just let us know! The Monterey Chapter of the American Wine Society enjoys learning about new places and our members BUY WINE! And *BONUS* – there is usually a writeup in Decanting Monterey about our experience!
I have to say that his 2018 Petit Verdot from Napa Valley continues to be stunner – it was a crowd pleaser that evening and continues to be a house favorite. I recently texted Sal that we have a huge problem at our house: Lots of Rombi Wine but zero (zero!!) Petit Verdot. The Decanting Monterey Wine Pod headed to his tasting room on Saturday to rectify the situation. While we were there, Sal gave us a couple of not-yet-released wines to try at home. We tasted his 2018 Petite Sirah that night, which I have just added to this post.
“Sal, we have a problem! We are out of your 2018 Petit Verdot!!”
As I have said before, the fruit from Sal Rombi’s Carmel Valley Vineyard is so flavorful, creating wines with up-front intense flavors. Rombi’s wines are very big and complex – highly recommend decanting to get the full fruit flavors. Actually, we have been double-decanting and double-aerating them for best results…unless you really want to wait a day after opening. Who can wait? I mean, it is not like we decide at noon that we will have one of his big Cabernet Sauvignons after dinner. It is usually an in-the-moment decision. Like Friday night, when we opened his 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon, which is drinking beautifully, by the way.
THE WINES
In today’s post I will present 9 Rombi wines. The 2015 Merlot, 2018 Petite Sirah and 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon wines are presented here for the first time. The Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon came from our home stock, along with the 2012 Merlot, which was gifted to me. The 2018 Petite Sirah was just gifted to me this weekend to try in advance of its release. The rest are the current releases we re-tasted with the Monterey AWS in early August, with slightly updated tasting notes, as applicable.
2012 Rombi Merlot, Carmel Valley AVA, Monterey County, 14% ABV, $65 (#836)
*This bottle was given to us – I will always tell you when I am presenting a wine any winery has gifted to me.*
My Review: We blind-tasted this wine at home. Almost purple in color. Nose of lean dark fruits – plum, blackberry, cassis and a touch earthy. Palate is intense, concentrated jamminess, fruity. I guessed it was an older, fine Bordeaux. Not too far off, eh? Dark berries, oak, cassis and a dry finish. Showing well. Lean yet big yet intense. Good to the last drop. March 2023
2015 Rombi Merlot, Carmel Valley AVA , Monterey County, 14.1% ABV $65 (#1126)
My Review: This is the first time I have presented this wine. Inky in the glass. Rich dark, warm berries on the nose, perhaps a touch of licorice, herbs, and alcohol. Brown sugar on the front end, followed by a delicious, mouth-filling palate. A little spice – cinnamon, clove and nutmeg, followed by a slight tang on the finish. We double-decanted this wine, as we do with every Rombi wine. June 2023
2019 Rombi Merlot, Carmel Valley AVA, Monterey County, 14.1% ABV, $65 (#974)
My Review: Garnet, almost purple in the glass. Dusty raspberry notes on the nose. Tart smooth raspberry on the palate. I’m lacking words to describe how delicious this fruit is. For such a young Rombi wine, it is very drinkable now and has the structure to last. April 2023
2014 Rombi Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmel Valley AVA, Monterey County, 14.1% ABV, $85 (#1127)
My Review: We blind tasted this wine at home – this is the first time I have presented this wine. Purple in the glass. Dark nose of cedar, dark plum, and blackberry. The palate was just “wow.” It was palate-coating rich from beginning to end, loaded with big and brooding dark fruit. I had guessed it was a Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine was nothing short of amazing. It was decanted and double aerated about an hour before serving. July 2023
2016 Rombi Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmel Valley AVA, Monterey County, 14.1% ABV, $85 (#837)
My Review: Affected by the Soberanes Fire, Sal fondly refers to this wine as “Smokey.” Dark ruby in the glass, tastes a bit like BBQ ribs with some ash on the finish. I like BBQ ribs…just sayin’. Yeah, it is smokey! August 2023
2018 Rombi Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmel Valley AVA, Monterey County, 14.1% ABV, $85 (#328)
My Review: Garnet in color. A warm nose with plum, cherry and mocha notes. Complex with lots of cherry on the palate and chewy tannins. Can’t wait to see what this becomes. Cellar for the future. Updated August 2023
2017 Rombi Petite Sirah, Carmel Valley AVA, 14.6% ABV, $75 (#331)
This fruit comes from the Galante vineyards, supplemented with some of Sal’s own grapes.
My Review: A rich, bright garnet in the glass. Cherry and berry notes on the nose. Thick on the palate with cherry and berry flavors. This is a “wow” wine. This wine has improved over the years and is very drinkable right now. April 2023
2018 Rombi Petite Sirah, Napa Valley AVA, 14.6% ABV, $75 (#1128) (pre-release)
Sal gifted me a bottle of this wine to try it pre-release.
My Review: Very dark purple in color. Dried fig and cigarettes on the nose. Super rich palate of blackberry and blueberry, very different from the redder fruit flavors of the Carmel Valley fruit. Our enjoyment was enhanced by not having to guess what wine this was. Very nice, Sal. September 2023
2018 Rombi Petit Verdot, Napa Valley, 14.4% ABV, $75 (#330)
This is Rombi’s first Petit Verdot, which I reviewed back in 2021 and liked very much. As I wrote before, Sal shared with us the small fact that Petit Verdot is the last fruit to ripen. I likely had commented that I used to think Petit Verdot was a touch vegetal. Perhaps others aren’t patient enough for the fruit to ripen fully!
My Review: Purple in the glass. A very jammy nose, enhanced by some warm, brown sugar and mocha notes. The palate: super rich, smooth, with dark berry flavors. It’s delicious, dark fruit with a slightly bitter finish. This is one of my favorite Petit Verdots. Blows my socks off. I’m sad we are out of this wine at our house! Updated August 2023
“Taste winemaker Salvatore Rombi’s award-winning limited-production vintages of Rombi Estate-grown Carmel Valley Vineyard Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Also, taste our outstanding Carmel Valley Petite Sirah and Napa Valley fruit Petit Verdot.
“Since the winemaker and owner Salvatore Rombi will be pouring in the tasting room, you will enjoy firsthand knowledge and education, from growing the fruit to producing the wine. Sal does it all! Truly a very unique tasting room experience.
“Rombi Wines are only available directly from our tasting room, and each previous vintage released has sold out.”
Located in the Carmel Valley Village at 1 Center Street, 11 3/4 miles from Highway One, Right Off Carmel Valley Road (831) 659-7200. Hours of Operation: Only Saturday – Sunday, 12 pm to 5 pm.
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