MW Exam prep tasting notes….
Please note that the scores are for myself and many people would think differently. They are a reflection of how the wine is when price, origin, and quality are taken into account. A 95 pt. Cote-du-Rhone is a wine I consider to be excellent for a basic Cote-du-Rhone. An 80 pt. Hermitage might be a better wine than that Cote-du-Rhone on a strictly qualitative basis but not when you take into account its privileged origin and greater price. Kinda messy but it works for me…
1/9/08
2006 Kesseler Riesling, Rheingau, “R”. Very pale straw. Pretty, steely, floral aromas of chamomile, honeysuckle, rose petal, and touch of rubber tire and asian pear. Forthright with proper acid/sweet balance, elements of pear skin, rose water, and honeysuckle. This is very pleasant for the price, and features some of the steely Rheingau minerality and power one would hope for. 92/100 for $12 Rheingau Riesling.
1/2/08
2006 Saxon Brown Semillon, Sonoma Valley, Casa Santinamaria Vineyard. From 75 yr. old vine Semillon vines. Pale straw. Pretty, reticent nose from which one coaxes pear, fig leaf, stony mineral, tangerine zest, and the faintest hint of fresh tobacco. Dense and almost bitter on the palate from biting phenolic weight. Really interesting stuff. Dominated by citrus fruits, pear skin, and something less sweet and more austere. Right now this is more pretty on the nose than on the palate– the mo-fo has bite! I want to see this is about as un-California as it gets for white wine but I am not sure where else I would put this. Certainly not for everyone but this, along with the Talullah Farina Vnyd. S.B. and Havens Albarino, are three wines tasted recently that makes me have hope for California white wine. 100/100 for $22 Sonoma Valley Old Vine Semillon (why? because there is not another one made, so this is as good as it gets!)
12/28
Margaut, Brut Rose NV, Champagne. This was formerly Margaut-Bonnerave, but something happened. Pretty copper salmon with active, medium-fine bead. Pretty nose dominated by ripe strawberry, tangerine juice, pumpkin pie spice, and mineral– rich but not too chunky. Ripe, winey palate with lots of strawberry and raspberry, some saline bite, and touch of mineral fills out the finish. I would like a little longer finish here, but that may be asking too much at this price-point. This delicious rose’, which I could have picked blind as Gosset Rose’, is better than many pink offerings from the champenoise at much higher prices. The cellar is located in Bouzy, and this rose’ is made in the vein of the richer, pinot dominated bubbly made from the warmer and south-facing cote of the Montagne de Reims. 94/100 for $30 rose champagne.
12/27
2006 Patz and Hall, Chardonnay, Dutton Ranch, Russian River Valley. Medium-light yellow with a touch of green. Rather closed right now I think. Apple blossom, bosc pear, mineral, butter and oak spice– though the ML and oak components are not over the top. Sappy and thick entry, the wine showcases nice density and richness. Lots of pear and pit-fruit here. Finish is long, though a bit phenolic. All in all, a nicely done Russian River Chardonnay, this will be excellent in 2-3 years. 91/100 for $45 Russian River Chardonnay.
12/26
2005 Ch. Rimbert, St. Chinian, Les Mas aux Schistes. A blend of Syrah, Grenache, and Carignan. Medium-bright red. Perfumed, high-tone nose of fresh rose petal, cranberry, raspberry, orange peel, spice and warm earth and violets. Medium to lightweight on palate with very vibrant red fruits, spice, and faint touch of earthy tannin. Finish is medium length and clean. Though not particularly rich this wine offers a really bright, juicy, well-balanced, mouthful of satisyfing wine. 95/100 for $14 St. Chinian (k and l wine merchants).
2005 Trimbach Riesling, Alsace. Pale yellow to greenish-clear rim. Mineral accented elements green apple blosson and skin, stone fruits, and touch of petrol– there is no way this is anything but Riesling. Bright stone fruits and apple are well-elevated by excellent acid/ fruit balance. This gives the impression of being truly dry– increasingly rare for Alsatian Rieslings these days. The finish is clean, dry, and of medium length. This, like usual, is an excellent bottle of Alsatian riesling for the price. 94/100 for $15 Alsatian Riesling
12/25
1991 Rosenblum, Summit Lake Vineyard, Howell Mountain. Medium, yet surprisingly vibrant core, to brick rim. I am amazed how pretty this still is– lovely cedar, spice, and sweet tobacco notes give way to lingering dried raspberry. This still has excellent fruit, with vervy and bright cranberry, raspberry red tones along with spicy cedar and white spice. Finishes with spice and persistent tannin. Aromatically and texturally this is absolutely mountain Zinfandel, and easily the best 10+ year old Rosenblum wine I have had (the new wines will never age this well, as this actually has acid, fruit, and alcohol balance, this is only 14.4%). 94/100 for 10+ year old Howell Mtn. Zinfandel
2006 Ch. Grand Villages, Bordeaux Blanc. I have no idea whether this wine is even available in the states as it was given to me by the owners of Ch. Lafleur in Pomerol. A “simple wine for hors d’heurves” according to the owners. Very pale lemon to clear rim. Clean, simple, and bright with nicely delineated meyer lemon, pineapple skin, granny smith apple and talc-like mineral element. On the palate this is very bright and clean– almost too bright. This is a no ML, no oak, style all about refreshment and clarity. I find this to lack the richness of a great wine but am taken with its clean cut and mineral bite. A wine with little pretension that succeeds at fulfilling moderate expectations. 90/100 for under $15 Bordeaux Blanc.
2005 Copain, Les Copains, James Berry Vineyard, Paso Robles. A rhone blend. Dark red center to light rim. It is rare that I smell a Paso wine and appreciate its elegance, but this happily succeeds. This happily marries some darker smoky syrah and grille’ elements with bright dark fruits. There is no doubting the richness of this wine but the center fruit and impeccable balance make this wonderfully food friendly and pleasant. This is not the best 2005 I have had from Copain, but it is certainly satisfying, and much more satisfying than many other wines I have had from Paso for a much higher price in recent history. 93/100 for $30 Paso Rhone blend.
12/23
2005 York Creek Vineyards, MXB, Spring Mountain. A california field blend of zinfandel, petite sirah, barbera, tempranillo, and alicante bouschet. Dark red to light red rim. When first opened I was too fixated on the annoying American oak dill and whiskey lactone elements to focus on much else. With some time and air though the wine started to show nice perfumey spice elements typical of mountain fruit, bright dark red fruits with some slight candied components, vanilla and cocoa. Surprisingly soft entry features bright, almost super-ripe fruits framed by excellent exotic spice components– this is towards the blackberry and dark cherry end of the spectrum with some cassis and ginger thrown in for good measure. Has an almost candied, pastille note as well. Finishes with spice and soft tannin. Once the forward oak tones down here this is really going to be quite pretty wine. I am impressed, this is almost exactly how I would imagine a California field blend from Spring Mountain tasting, if only they would invest in some better oak (I imagine a combination Gamba Nevers M+, Rousseau Bertranges M+ , and Nadalie Never M would work nicely). 93/100 for $25 California Field Blend.
De Sousa, Brut NV, Champagne. Pale yellow with slightly green back, persistent medium-fine bead. Precise tones of stone-fruit, apple, and crisp asian pear. Pretty yeast autolysis notes and touch of fresh hazelnut indicates this wine may have a nice percentage of older reserve wine in it. Clean, bright, and penetrating flavors of nectarine skin and pear. This has really lovely balance and the dosage seems to be quite reasonable, resulting in a very clean front-to-back flavor profile. Though not particularly concentrated this has impeccable balance and good depth. Finishes with nice yeast notes and cleansing, granny-smith-apple-skin-like phenolic component. I would be happy to drink this every day. 95/100 for $30 Brut NV (K and L Wine Merchants)
12/22
Lanvin et Fils, Brut NV, Champagne. Slightly oxidized pale-yellow, this looks surprisingly like fino sherry. Coarse bead. Oxidized nose of depleted stone fruits, under a touch of sherry and autolysis– kind of wierd. Surprisingly coarse froth for champagne. This is really lacking on center fruit, making it rather hard and dry. Altogether quite disappointing stuff. Grower champagne like this makes Veuve look good (and that takes something). 78/100 for $30 Brut NV.
12/20
2004 Boerger Sylvaner, Alsace, Vielles Vignes. Pretty deep yellow towards the gold end of the spectrum. Rather fat aromas of apple and pear with a hint of botrytis honey and some spice. Has little of the green top-note that some sylvaner can get. Not particularly complex. A little thin on entry and the fat throughout the mid-palate with apple and stone fruits being enhanced by a decent dose of residual sugar (probably around 9 grams) and rather low acidity. A bit of an oxidative note (again perhaps a touch of botrytis?) on the finish. 86/100 for $12 Alsatian Sylvaner.
12/5
2005 Andre Vatan, Sancerre. Pale lemon yellow to clear rim. Rather simple nose of minerals, capsicum, lemon (and not meyer), green apple, and something faintly musty, almost a bit like hefeweizen. Sharp and thin on the entry I find this lacking in the luxuriousness of fruit and purity of flavor typical of the excellent 2005 vintage in Sancerre. Has a clipped finish. This does not even get close to the heights reached by Gerard Boulay, Jolivet, Bourgeois, and Vacheron in this vintage in a similar price-category. An old-style “if the brits want to drink cat-pee then we will make cat-pee” style Sancerre lacking in much charm. 82/100 for $22 2005 Sancerre.
12/4
Laurent-Perrier Brut Rose. Copper-pink with decent bead. Very forward nose features lots of creamy strawberry, orange peel and a suggestion of spice. Wine is forward with its ample dosage a little too apparent, featuring lots of forward fruit. I find this to be a disappointing showing for this normally solid wine. 83/100 for $70 NV Brut Rose
2002 Tatiarra Shiraz, Heathcote. Dark red center to red rim showing a trace of orange. Gorgeous dark aromatics of coffee, pepper, smoke, black-raspberry, dark minerals, and mint. This is perfumey and bright and does not convey the impression of heaviness or heat. The wine, despite its power, shows great finesse and balance and nice secondary characteristics, with the palate displaying resinous black fruits, olive tapenade, and an exotic coriander note. An excellent example of Heathcote Shiraz. 94/100 for $50 Heathcote Shiraz.
12/2
2004 Kendric Syrah, Shenendoah Valley. Bright, medium red center to light-red rim. The nose is very Syrah in its aromatic pepper, olive, and smoke components around a core of bright fruit. I find this to be nice but some winemakers would consider it to be under-ripe (and it is “only” 13.9% alcohol). Bright and very easy to drink this is another good food wine that balances lightly on its feet. I have been of the opinion that Amador County could be a natural fit with Syrah and Barbera and I think this wine shows good potential, though I would have made it differently. 88/100 for $20 Shenendoah Valley Syrah.
2004 Keller Estate Syrah, Sonoma Coast. Medium-dark purple-red to red-pink rim. This wine shows a restrained and elegant nose– showcasing more of the pepper and bright fruit side of this varietal. Nicely interwoven elements of oak vanilla come out in the bright-raspberry, blueberry realm fruits. The wine is bright and lifted by good acidity with some nice fruit that expands through the mid-palate. Has a medium finish. This wine is all about restraint and elegance, and would be a good Syrah for food. A california version of St. Joseph, this wine actually reminded me of some efforts by Domaine Courbis. This vineyard is a couple miles north-west from Griffin’s Lair and Old Lakeville Vnyd. on Lakeville Highway shows the increasing diversity of wines being made in the Petaluma Gap. 89/100 for $25 California Syrah.
11/19
2005 Werner, Riesling “Classic”, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer. Pale yellow with slightly green back. Ripe forward aromatic profile of lilac, orange blossom, candied meyer lemon, and reddish fruits. This seems less Mosel than Pfalz or Rheinhessen to me in its forward aromatics and lack of strong mineral character. Initially forward with good fruit balanced by a touch of sweetness (I would guess this is around 10 g/l), however, the lower quality echelon here is given away by a rather austere back-end and some alcoholic bitterness. Not a bad showing, but not great for the excellence of the year. 88/100 for $13 2005 Mosel Riesling.
2004 Keller Estate, Pinot Noir, La Cruz Vineyard, Sonoma Coast. From a vineyard located in the Petaluma Gap off of Old Lakeville Rd. Medium-red. Nose is characteristic of the hot year, showing elements of ferrous minerality, very ripe and almost dried out red fruits, black tea, and a touch of oak spice. Manages some nice forward fruit that is well-spiced and creamed by tasteful oaking. This is better on the palate than the nose. finishes nicely, but still in the character of the year. 88/100 for $30 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir.
11/18
2006 Alvaro Castro, Dao, Red Wine, Portugal. A blend based on Touriga Nacional. Dark red to red rim. This wine was initially very closed and had some unabsorbed CO2 which made it hard to taste. I degassed it a little with the vacuvin and tasted the next night and it was much better. Has an initially floral nose, much like Syrah cofermented with Viognier in that it features an almost violet-like top note over some darker more feral elements of raw meat, iron, road tar, and red fruits– like a cross between Crozes-Hermitage and Pinotage. Not a particularly giving wine on the palate, this is taught and high-strung with the fruit clinging to a highwire of acid and tannin. Finish is racy if a bit clipped with a touch of unintegrated oak char. A good food wine for the price. 90/100 for $14 Portugese dry red wine.
11/17
I do not think it is fair of me to rate Ravenswood wines, particularly not blind, but I will say that I had the 2005 Sonoma and Napa Zinfandels (about $15 each retail) and both are quite good. I give major kudos’ to the Napa Valley which has really nice bright spice, balanced bright red fruits, and is just damn lip-smacking. My main beef with some RVWD wines is that sometimes they taste too safe– like excess acidification, which makes for completely microbally stable wines dulls down some of the fruit components that people are looking for in Zin. In part, why I am so pleased with the 2005 Napa is that it is so exuberant– here the acid balances the wonderful fruit from 2005. The wine is based on excellent old vine vineyards including Chaix (the rest of the white fruit from this vineyard goes to Caymus for Conundrum), the old stand-by of Czapleski, declassified Dickerson fruit, and others.
11/16
2002 Arrowood Syrah, Saralee’s Vnyd. Russian River Valley. Dark purple to red-purple rim. This wine explodes out of the glass aromatically with all things good in Syrah– dark fruits, bacon fat, violets, black pepper, and wonderfully integrated oak tones of vanilla and almond. This is as good as I thought it was going to be a couple of years ago. Lush and expansive on the palate with a large dollop of rich fruit hemmed in by good acid, suave tannin, and great finishing spice notes. Just wonderful California Syrah and a bargain for the quality. 96/100 for California Syrah over $40.
11/14
2005 Simi Chardonnay, Alexander Valley. Clear, bright yellow. Forward, rather fat aromas of peach, ripe apple, and pineapple under a thin layer of oak toast. This lies low on the entry, its focus on roundness and fatness and succeeds in creating an initial mouthful of California Chard. The initial fruit though is quickly manhandled by oak toast and some bitter phenolic tones. Fine, but boring. 85/100 for $20 California Chardonnay.
11/12
2006 Talullah, Sauvignon Blanc, Sonoma Mountain, Farina Vineyard “Le Femme D’argent.” This is from a bucolic vineyard just below next to Dinner Vnyd (think Paul Hobbs Chard) and Pickberry Vineyard (Ravenswood). Pale yello with slightly green back. Initially quite tight and closed on the nose that in time opened a bit to reveal nice complexity despite its subtlety. Nose of quinine, mandarin orange peel, meyer lemon pithe, plantain skin, minerals and a touch of wood-derived spice. Forward and bright in flavor with impressive length. Lots of citrus and mouth-watering acidity. This wine does a good job of kissing tropicality but backing away. Almost perfectly oaked, by which I mean there is extremely little apparent new oak– rather the oak here seems to be used in its other capacity as a slow oxidizer and a good vessel by which to get some slight softening mL diacetyl components. I was even more impressed by this wine after a night under vacuu-vin. 95/100 for $25 California Sauvignon Blanc.
2005 Carlisle Zinfandel, Sonoma County. Dark ruby-red. Inviting and broad nose of black raspberries, blackberries, kirsch (no doubt from 15.9% alcohol), and spice. All about the fruit, with a huge amount of lush, relatively low-acid (particularly for the vintage) profile featuring lots of red and black fruits and nice subtle oak spice– for some reason this wine seemed very Alexander Valley to me, tasting like some of the better Sausal wines from the past (without the obnoxious american oak). As much as I like the classy and low-profile oaking here I found the high alcohol and lack of acidity to make for a wine that was hard to drink into the second glass. 88/100 for $25 Sonoma County Zinfandel.
11/4
2005 Russian Hill Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. I got this wine since Russian Hill is pretty close to Rebecca’s Vnyd. where I get Pinot from. Wine is bright-medium red, with a garnet rim which already shows an odd touch of orange. Slightly over-ripe cherry, spice, and an odd combo of greenness and heat are present. The wine is initially fruit forward but with some air a touch of green-dryness haunts the back-end of the wine along with the quite present alcohol. This shows the difficulties of the vintage, and being the base wine for Russian Hill Winery probably has all the declassified wine from the better vineyards. Not a particularly strong showing, particularly for $28 Pinot (is this $16 better than a jug of Three Thieves Circle K ranch from the delta?). 84/100
11/3
2005 Lavoro Syrah, Wildcat Mountain Vineyard, Sonoma Coast. This is a wine made by Ravenswood’s winemaker Jen Beloz and her husband Alex Beloz who works as a wine consultant. The fruit, from Steve MacRostie’s excellent Wildcat Mtn, Vineyard, is vinified almost completely in a mixture of new and old barrels. Pretty bright red-purple. The nose is initially dominated by wood-smoke and red fruits, but with air one delves into elegant and exotic spice tones (no doubt both from wood and the fruit), dark but bright fruits, a touch of black olive, and a hint of game. This wine is more polished and less sauvage than the MacRostie version (though I have not had the 2005 since it has not been released yet). On the palate the wine is balanced and surprisingly subtle in its evocations of spice and fruit. This is absolutely a winemaker’s wine, less about initial show and more about delicacy. More Audrey and less Katherine (Hepburn that it). 94/100 for high end California Syrah. $45.
11/2
2005 Cedric Vincent, Beaujolais: Light-medium red. Soft, round, varietally accurate red fruits of strawberry, raspberry and spice-box components on the nose. Not as rightly layered or tannic as a good cru level Beaujolais but soft and rather alluring. The girl next door. This wine provides a nice mouthful of soft, spicy, red fruits that is well-framed and balanced. Though the slightly lean entry gives away its proletarian origin this could well be tasted blind as a softer cru such as Fleurie or St. Amour given the strength of the 2005 vintage. 93 points for Beaujolais, entry level beaujolais does not get much better. $14 Kermit Lynch.
2006 Domaine Gramenon, Cote du Rhone “Sierra du Sud.” This is a 100% Syrah CDR from the northeastern corner of the southern Rhone basin, close to the border with the Coteaux du Tricastin. Dark purple with a tinge of red. Pretty, lifting aromatics of dark cherry, violets, black olive and even some bacon fat– quintessential Syrah aromatics. The wine is both wonderfully persistent and vibrant on the palate, having all the dark fruits, smoke, and game that the New World often tries to achieve via the use of heavily toasted new oak, but also possesses wonderful old world suavity and brightness. I hope to god this wine is not on the MW because I would pick it has Cote-Rotie (though the price tag is certainly in line with some of the best Cote-Rotie producers VDP Collines des Rhodedianiam (sp?) wines such as Jasmin and Ogier). Hard to score since this is a CDR anomaly in that it is 100% Syrah and possesses a price tag of $30. Still, offers better value than many, many Syrah’s out there. 94/100
10/31
2005 Louis Latour Marsannay: Light, brilliant, red. Has the bright red fruits, orange tea spice, and light earthiness that one expects from this northern Cote du Nuits appellation. The wine expresses the nice balance of 2005, with the light to medium bodied red fruits made snappy by great acidity a moderate tannin. Though certainly not a blockbuster this makes good drinking at the dinner table at an affordable price. 90 pts. $17 K&L Wine.
2005 Nicolas Potel Burgougne Rouge: Light to medium red. Nose features the nice balance of 2005, with darker-cherry tones, asian spice, and deeper earth. Though not “clean” in a New World way, this wine has surprising depth of flavor for its humble origins. The wine has good balance and sense of sappiness due to the presence of well-balanced acidity and tannin. Really pleasant stuff. 94 pts. $16 K&L Wine.