|
||
|
Tasting Notes Blog - Printer-Friendly Version
- March, 2008
|
Use your browser print function to print this page. |
|
Wednesday, March 19, 2008 WT031908-01. 05 CRISTALINO NATURE BRUT CAVA - (SPARKLING) Oh, is this good and leesy! The heavy style. Krug-esque. Apple, squash, custard, shortbread./ Yes, grainy, nutty, mealy. Really upscale for the price. Lots of time (30 months) en tirage. One ambitious cava for the money. 16.2. WT031908-02. 05 BOURGOGNE CHARDONNAY VIEILLES VIGNES, ALBERT BICHOT - (FRANCE BURGUNDY) Clear, elegant, poised, and as yet understated. Airing coaxes forth sweet, ripe apple, quince, and even stone fruit aromas./ Delicately stated on the palate too. Touch of oak and vanilla. Good acidity. Elegant, drawn out aftertaste. This will surely amplify with more bottle age. 16.2+. WT031908-03. 04 MONTAGNY DOMAINE DE LA CROIX JACQUELET, JOSEPH FAIVELEY - (FRANCE BURGUNDY) Bright, crisp 04 malic approach gives freshness and vigor, while barrel and bottle age brings toast and grain to the table. Good Chalonnais bulk and resinous contributions./ Has achieved mature bottle bouquet and flavor while retaining a nice 04 malic crispness. Apple, cream, almond, oak, and flowers nuances. Full-bodied Faiveley Chalonnais blanc. Will fill out further but would be appreciated at the table now. 16.6+. WT031908-04. 04 TOKAY PINOT GRIS CORMIER, DOMAINE LOEW - (FRANCE ALSACE) Wow! The full and real Alsace pinot gris spectrum: apple, melon, wax, nut, vanilla creme./ Palate adds honey, pear, loquat, and tawny peach notes. Rich, but also fully bright, with fine 04 race, brace, and extract. Rich, voluminous, viscous, glycerined filling. Totally wholesome, vital, on the up and up. A bargain. 16.4+. WT031908-05. 04 EDELSZWICKER, DOMAINE LOEW - (FRANCE ALSACE) Rich and tonic. Rose-hip tea. Gewurz is the leading aromatic player as usual in an edelzwicker. Muscat chimes in too with sweet, floral aromas distinct from gewurz rose. And there’s peach-apricot pinot gris. Very bright./ Delightfully dry, rangy, and flavorful. Pinot gris gives plumpness. Gewurz lends astringency, even bitterness at the end. Definite value. 16.1 WT031908-06. 04 RIESLING MUSCHELKALCK, DOMAINE LOEW - (FRANCE ALSACE) Some spruce aromas of mature riesling. A noble, refined presentation. Crispness and fruit clarity of 04. Full of stony vigor./ Palate confirms the fine 04 styling with its racy acidity and good extract grip. A large wine, a full-scaled Alsace riesling that will prove very useful at the dinner table. Well priced. 16.2. WT031908-07. 04 FORSTER MARIENGARTEN RIESLING KABINETT, EUGEN MULLER - (GERMANY) MAMMOTH! Wow! Huge 04 extract. Chewable. Like it’s full of stone dust. I remember being similarly impressed when I first tasted this wine a couple of years back./ Yes, just loaded with material, dry extract. Which is garnished with a cornucopia of lively, silky, juicy, sweet peach and tropical fruits, touched with bergamot. Yow! 17.1+. WT031908-08. 06 BEAUJOLAIS VILLAGES, CHATEAU DE LACARELLE - (FRANCE BURGUNDY) Bottled by my old buddy, Jacques Depagneux. Boy, this has a lot of grip like an 05. Substantial, still austere. Villages material, extract. Airing brings out a rambunctious fruit display of raspberry, currant, tart and black cherries./ Rich on the palate. Cherry and pit (almond). Again, the full Villages substance. Delightful for its sleek suppleness, polish, and full gamay presence. This definitely has the traditional Depagneux largesse. Nice to meet up with one of his productions again after a decades-long interlude. 16.3+. WT031908-09. 06 YECLA CARRO, SENORIO DE BARAHONDA - (SPAIN) 50% monastrell, 20% each syrah and tempranillo, 10% merlot. The deep purple fruit qualities of mourvedre dominate at first. Very deep and serious stuff. More 3D than the 05. More important. Opens out to display a boat-load of fruit, oak, and cigar box aromas./ Yes, chewy, deep, substantial, meaty, saturating, mouthfilling. A powerful, hedonistic, new wave piece of work. Not for the faint of heart. Fabulous value. 16.1+. WT031908-10. 05 VALENCIA DIS TINTO, BODEGAS ENGUERA - (SPAIN) Half each tempranillo and syrah. Warm, strong, southern, and serious too. More important than the 05 as well. Soft, rich cherry, red and black berries, and peppercorn aromas./ Spicy, with good acidity and tannin, poise and polish, and a touch of finesse. A Med warmth and richness envelopes the palate. But there’s still a tight, dry core to it. Needs time for that to soften. 16.0+. WT031908-11. 04 TERRA ALTA PORTAL ROBLE, CELLER VINAS PINOL - (SPAIN) Merlot, cabernet, grenache, syrah, tempranillo. A good oak approach in keeping with the high-altitude fruit elegance of Terra Alta. Vanilla and gently imparted spices and incense. Classy, elegant, upscale, and generous fruit display./ Rich and abundant in both fruit and oak attributes. Game and spiced fruit savors. Totally harmonious and succulent. I love Terra Alta. 16.8. WT031908-12. 05 RIBERA DEL DUERO MIBAL, BODEGAS HORNILLO BALLESTEROS - (SPAIN) All tempranillo. Deep, purple, haunting, elegant. Full class; Grand Vin. Spicy oak vigor and purple fruit depth./ Yes, the oak is Grand Cru styled, perfumed, refined, subtle, complex. And the fruit is substantial and lovely. Fine structure, fine balance. Grip of oak and fruit tannins, but not coarse tannins. Intense, silky, polished, stylish finish. A big-time RDD player at a very reasonable price. This was the Talk of the Tasting. 17.4+. WT031908-13. 00 RODELSEER KUCHENMEISTER SCHEUREBE SPATLESE, GEBIETS WINZER GENOSSENSCHAFT - (GERMANY) This scheu is a fresh and vital varietal presentation of snappy black currant and gooseberry./ Again, it’s snappy, pure, and totally fresh. Nice bitter orange scheu strain. Great acidity and light sweetness in good balance. A bargain discovery. 16.6. WT031908-14. 05 NACKENHEIMER SCHEUREBE SPATLESE, BINZ - (GERMANY) Whoa! Big time flowers and tropical fruits facets of scheu. Intense, pure, unique. Exuberant, ripe, exotic, perfumed./ Sweet and concentrated. Very bright 05 purity and intensity of varietal character. A different face of scheu from the above. Shows the potential range of this variety. Wow! Totally complex and seductive. Like Hawaiian Punch Gold. I’ll have to go back to my original notes. I don’t remember this wine being this complex. After tasting the young Binz wines at Tasters Guild 3/2 and now this one, I’m convinced this guy has turned to reductive winemaking in a big way, and his wines have taken a giant leap in quality since my early experiences with them. 17.0. WT031908-15. 03 WEHLENER SONNENUHR RIESLING AUSLESE, MEULENHOF - (GERMANY) The edelfirne maturity now forming. Plus fresh notes of flowers and citrus. A big, rich, ripe 03 auslese./ The full sweetness of 03 and auslese. Say, this has good acidity and extract too, and that bright ring of Mosel. 16.7+.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008 WT031208-01. 05 COTES DU TARN LES FUMEES BLANCHES, LURTON - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) That Tarn Wine! Fruit wholesome yet. Grapefruit, pineapple, touch of mango. Creamy, and quite giving. Good sauvignon grip. Not afraid to assert itself./ Yes, there’s volume here, peachy roundness, and good structure and acidity for mealworthiness. The group found this surprisingly fresh and wholesome. Orders were taken. 15.8. WT031208-02. 06 KREMSTAL SANDGRUBE GRUNER VELTLINER, STADT KREMS - (AUSTRIA) Full apple, bosq pear, loquat, snow pea, and citrus aromas of gru-ve. Very bright and lively. Sense of richness too./ Yes, both fresh and rich, and cool. Palate adds green melon. And a nice white pepper edge. Best vintage of this I’ve tasted. 16.8. WT031208-03. 05 CHATEAU BELLEVUE ROUGIER, BORDEAUX - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) Red currant, red cherry, tea, dried herbs, and clay on the nose. Hint of wood. Sullen to start, it fills and rounds out with airing./ Cherry and licorice flavors. Still very tight. Promising. 15.7+. WT031208-04. 06 CHATEAU HAUT PLANTEY DECLERQ, HAUT MEDOC CABERNET SAUVIGNON - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) Fine oak and certainly ripe enough cabernet sauvignon berry fruit. A pleasant introduction to 06 Haut Medoc in bottle./ Rich and racy and complete. More accessible than the 05 at the same stage. Some green tannins betray the vintage, but overall this is a pleasant success. 15.8+. WT031208-05. 03 ARIA DE CHATEAU DE LA RIVIERE, FRONSAC - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) Big, with good old vines concentration and fine, elegant oak embellishments. 03 ripeness, bigness. Plenty of breed. Nice range of spicy extras./ Richness of the vintage. Fine, lush, sweet, creamy oak and great fruit concentration to enjoy it. Nothing 03 overdone about it. Does the vintage proud. Pure and well extracted; an essence of de la Riviere.
17.4+. WT031208-06. 06 ST. SUPERY CALIFORNIA MOSCATO - (U.S.) Flowers, orange peel, papaya. Lively and fun./ Rich muscat grapey appeal. Not too sweet, not too tart. Nice. 16.0. WT031208-07. 04 SANTA ALICIA LATE HARVEST LIMARI VALLEY MUSCATEL half liter - (CHILE) Wow! More Med warmth. Sultry. Orange oil, orange liqueur, lemongrass, apricot, papaya./ Sweeter, denser, richer, more complex. The acidity is mild, but the strength balances the sweetness. It’s only 12%, but plays higher. Creamy and delightful, not cloying. 16.5. WT031208-08. RISING SUN SEMI SWEET MOLDOVA PLUM - (MOLDOVA) Good, sweet, light, and fresh aromas of plum and peel. Much better than many of the Japanese versions, which have more almond paste than plum aromas./ Sweet, with good acidity and peel astringency to counter. Clove-cinnamon extras, either added or derived from the peels. And floral perfumes. Fresh finish. 16.2.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008 WT030508-01. 04 WEINHEIMER RIESLING KABINETT, GERNOT GYSLER - (GERMANY) Hermetic to start. Airs to a lovely, peachy riesling nose with style, restraint, and restraint./ Lush, alluring, friendly. Plenty of fruit. Good acidity. One of the best 04s we’ve tasted lately. 16.4. WT030508-02. 04 BECHTHEIMER HEILIGKREUZ SCHEUREBE KABINETT, J. GEIL - (GERMANY) Good, snappy black currant and gooseberry scheu facets./ Very juicy and quite sweet for kabinett. Mild but adequate acidity for scheu. That’s compensated for by good scheu bitter touch. Sweet finish, black currant aftertaste. Good stuff. 16.1. WT030508-03. 05 CHATEAU LA FORET, BORDEAUX - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) By Chateau de Fontenille @La Sauve. Deep aroma with good 05 purple fruit qualities. Taut to start, it turns distinctive, rich, and forward with aeration, showing currant, blackberry, and cigar box aromas. Plenty to offer./ Rich and generous fruit. Good acidity. Traditional claret dryness and youthful tannin and astringency. Growth to go. 15.8+. WT030508-04. 05 CHATEAU BOIS NOIR, BORDEAUX - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) By Maransur. Oak aged. Hint of sweet oak vanilla and fine sawdust. Taut, polished, ripe berry fruit./ Bright fruit on the palate. More fruit intensity. More oak too. Needs time for the oak to settle in. I’ll give it a chance. Plenty of stuffing. Tannins to shed. 16.0+. WT030508-05. 05 CHATEAU TOUR DE GILET, BORDEAUX SUPERIEUR - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) @Ludon, Haut Medoc. All petit verdot. Deep purple fruit. Big and solid. Seems like a claret on steroids. Petit verdot is a steroid injection grape variety in Haut Medoc, so it’s no surprise a total PV is larger than life. Plum, fig, flowers, nutmeg/ Glorious fruit richness, ripeness, chewy concentration. Very ripe petit verdot. You get this
only in the
top vintages. Outstanding age potential. 16.4+. WT030508-06. 05 CHATEAU PEYNARD LE CHENE, 1ERES COTES DE BLAYE - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) Oak and time in oak. Oak vanillin. Smoky, toasty, heady, almost brandy-like./ Oak and ripe fruit. Cassis and spices. Both fruit and oak tannins. Requires cellaring. 16.1+. WT030508-07. 05 CHATEAU ROLAND LA GARDE PRESTIGE, 1ERES COTES DE BORDEAUX - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) Fine oak and class claret blackcurrant fruit in keeping with this mid-range Roland cuvee. The top one is too woody for me, the regular one damned good without the new oak./ A fine oak complex with plenty of sweet, pure, and vigorous 05 fruit to match. Balanced and sweet. Not overoaked, not overdone. Deep, well tuned, nicely
textured, well
structured. Fine ager. 16.6+. WT030508-08. 05 CHATEAU GUILLOU, MONTAGNE SAINT EMILION - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) By Jean-Bernard Saby @St. Georges. Dense and polished ripe raspberry, tea, and floral aromas. Fine oak and St. Emilion class, beauty, generosity. A great example in 05./ Clear and fresh 05 claret fruit with light oak. Ideal oak-fruit balance. Style and pedigree of origin show. Racy acidity. Fine but full tannins. 16.8+. WT030508-09. 04 CHATEAU DU RETOUT, CRU BOURGEOIS, HAUT MEDOC - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) @Cussac. Silver Medal - Paris. Freshness of 04. Good oak and cabernet sauvignon blackberry and black currant./ Yes, the fresh 04 style. Not too 04 tart or herbal. Tres claret. Lovely. And will improve. 16.5+. WT030508-10. 04 CHATEAU CORDET, MARGAUX - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) Chateau Monbrison @Arsac. A more restrained, tensile 04 with a sense of Margaux levity and charm. And good concentration./ Ripe fruit flavors. Tight and terse core. Full acidity and chalky tannins. Needs time. 16.7+. WT030508-11. 03 CHATEAU DE LA RIVIERE, FRONSAC - (FRANCE BORDEAUX) Gold Medal - Bordeaux. Fabulous oak extras, including toast, smoke, Oriental spices, potpourri, and sandalwood. Ripe and ample, warm and fleshy 03 fruit to match, neither overripe nor over-powerful. Fabulous nose./ Very open-armed, come hither 03 style, spicy, with fine oak and the plentiful ripe plum and raspberry fruit to match. A model for 03 claret.
Fabulous.
17.2. WT030508-12. 03 ST. SUPERY ELU NAPA VALLEY RED - (U.S.) Large, but not without style and grace. Vanilla, caramel, and fine oak spices. Ripe, sweet cherry, raspberry, and blackcurrant fruit./ Sweet oak and fruit. Yes, it’s large, but also refined as this cuvee always proves. And there’s 03 stylishness. Balanced, so appealing now. Cellar-worthy too. Great wine. 17.5+. WT030508-13. 03 ST. SUPERY DOLLARHIDE NAPA VALLEY CABERNET SAUVIGNON - (U.S.) Rich and fine oak and oak toast. Raspberry and cassis. Good, dark cabernet reserve./ Sweet vanilla frosting. A dense heavyweight. Large wood and fruit tannins call for aging. Fabulous potential. 16.8++. WT030508-14. 03 ZELTINGER SCHLOSSBERG RIESLING SPATLESE, SELBACH - (GERMANY) Sweet, melony fruit of 03. Softness too. Still fresh./ Honey, stone fruits, ripe apples, even mango. A beauty. Mild acidity of the vintage, or maybe it’s still coated. Delivers a lot for the money. 15.9+. WT030508-15. 04 BECHTHEIMER GEYSERBERG RIESLANER SPATLESE FEINHERB, J. GEIL - (GERMANY) Lovely lime aroma of rieslaner. Some botrytis intricacies. Plenty of varietal character and beauty./ Dry, but juicy and tender. Great citrus verve, especially lime. Fine acidity. Lasting flavors. Excellent feinherb. Very popular with the group. 17.1. WT030508-16. 03 WEINHEIMER HOLLE RIESLING AUSLESE, GERNOT GYSLER - (GERMANY) Sweet and honeyed 03 auslese. Still largely unformed./ Fresh and plentiful fruit. Rich and generous auslese. Lots more to come. 16.2+.
|
|
|
