Some Favorites

I've said it before, and I'll say it again... the 1990 Krug is the greatest Champagne I've ever tasted. Period. That's it. If you don't have one, get one. Amazing. The 1998 Penfold's Grange is the greatest Grange I've ever tasted. Period.

Oversimplified? Perhaps, but I have studying to do. Both were tasted on Saturday night. Both made me smile.

California wins again...

or does it? While the 1971 Ridge Monte Bello may have won the re-creation of the US vs. France tasting from 1976, I think that in actuality, we are seeing the results of French winemaking techniques on American soil. I think if you were to re-create the tasting based up modern American techniques vs. classic French techniques, in an aging contest, the French would clean up. In my experience as well, the 1970-71 vintage was superior in California, and that helped California come out on top. I doubt very much that the current wines being made in California could stand up to 35 years of aging, whereas many of the current Bordeaux wines could age for decades. If you take two equally classic, great vintages (say 2000 in Bordeaux vs. 1999 or 2001 in California), that in the long run Bordeaux would come out on top. With that being said, I had some 1985 Chateau Haut-Brion last night that was certainly on its way out. While it's incredibly powerful and has elegance, this wine has almost completely lost its fruit. It also has a hint of astringency and perhaps a hint of greenness (can't tell if it's the tannins, or perhaps the Cabernet Franc didn't completely ripen in 1985 in Graves). Anyway, still nice to taste the wine.

Study!

yup... non-stop almost... feels like it anyway. Took a break to work tonight (!)... the 2003 Lewis Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon still rocks... I won't go into details as this wine is drinking the same as the last few times. Great stuff. Had some Krug Grand Cuvee tonight, perhaps for the last time for a while as we are switching tomorrow....

And a partridge in a beer tree...

Chimay rocks... earlier this week we tasted through the three Chimay Trappist Ales - Cinq Cents (tan-ish label), Premier (red label), and Special Reserve (blue label). All of them are amazing examples of Belgian Trappist Ale. The Cinq Cents is the lightest of the three with a pronounced fruitiness and light, yeasty aroma. A wonderful ale to have with some lighter food or perhaps fish (can you say fried Alaskan Halibut???). The Premier, or "Red Label", is significantly darker, with a very pronounced hoppy aroma and some black fruit as well as a much darker - almost burnt toast - head. A great, medium-to-full bodied ale. The Special Reserve (blue label) is my personal favorite - has been for a while. To me, this is the finest ale in the world. The color is very dark - but clear. Aromas of hazelnut, chocolate, and hops are accompanied by a complex array of dark berry fruits. Heavy on the palate, but not so much as a Porter. This is a meal in a bottle, but incredibly satisfying. Very nice ale.

On the wine side, the 1996 Muga Prado Enea Rioja Gran Reserva could be the single finest traditionally made Rioja I've ever had. The nose is classic Rioja - pure dill with sawdust, dried clove, dried cranberries, leather, black plums, and black cherries. The nose is so intense... but on the palate it all comes together. The leathery, cedary, dusty and dried fruit components all come together to create an intense, extremely balanced wine with layers and layers of flavors. The finish is amazingly long and this wine stays with you for quite a while. Tasted the 2003 Gary Farrell Russian River Valley Pinot Noir as well... a classic RRV Pinot with candied cherry, strawberry and raspberry tightly wound with hints of black earth. A nice, easy to drink wine. The 2003 Ponzi Reserve Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon was a tad disjointed, with the alcohol overpowering the fruit and creating a slightly unbalanced wine. The fruit was there, but there was just so much alcohol, it was hard to cut through it. Perhaps in time this might get better organized, but I'm not sure.

Bubbles...

Tasted a few treats yesterday... the 1998 Moet & Chandon Dom Perignon Brut was much as I remember it from Miami a month or two ago. Yeasty, with apricot and asian spice. Very refined on the nose (actually extremely refined on the nose - very, very clean). On the palate, the start is good, with classic young Dom toastiness (it really comes along at about 10 years of age - awesome stuff). The finish, however, falls a little flat. Good, and certainly a Cuvee de Prestige, but not among the best. The 1995 Moet & Chandon Dom Perignon Brut Rose, however, is a different story. Not as developed as the 1990 en Magnum (though I shouldn't expect it to be, either), this is an awesome rose. Very floral on the nose with hints of strawberry and hibiscus, along with beautiful biscotti and brioche. Very clean... On the palate, this wine shines. Very full bodied, but tons of finesse and elegance. The fruit profile shines, with those bread notes coming through on the round, mouth-filling finish. This is a wine that could make you see stars... this is Dom Perignon Rose. Simply one of the best Rose Champagnes I've ever had (behind the 1990 Dom Rose, the 1981 Dom Rose, and of course, my favorite of all time, the 1985 Perrier-Jouet Belle Epoque Brut Rose.) Some other wines tasted yesterday include the 2004 Zind-Humbrecht Pinot d'Alsace (70% Pinot Auxerrois, 30% Pinot Blanc), a very nice dry Pinot from my favorite Alsace producer... not mind-blowing, but shows what he is capable of. Red wine of the day, however, was the unassuming 2001 Leon Barral "Jadis", Faugeres, Languedoc, France. Faugeres is a little-known, little used, AOC just north of Beziers in the Langeudoc region of France. It sits perhaps 40-50 miles inland from the Mediterranean, with the soil consisting mostly of schist. This area can get very warm, and hence, thicker skinned, warm-climate grape varietals are a must (Syrah, Carignan, Cinsault, Mourvedre, Grenache). This wine is 50% Syrah, with the rest Cinsault and Grenache (I believe... let me double check). So earthy on the nose, but once you get through that, it's incredibly lush and ripe. This wine screams for grilled steak or lamb with its back bone of graphite, leather, cocoa and cinnamon. For the money, this wine is amazing... Kermit Lynch Imports it... go find some!!!

Nice day

Had a killer tasting today... completely nailed 4 of 6, very close on one other, and #6 was very Bretty and uncharacteristic of it's varietal... still, not quite there yet. Also tasted the 2002 Hatton Estate EC2 Chardonnay, Gimblett Gravels, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand (yes, NZ has gotten onto the subregion/terroir track - but there's a difference - they actually understand how terrior works and are making terrior-driven wines!!!). This is an awesome unoaked, no-malolactic fermentation Chardonnay from gravelly/stony "soil" (there is no soil - rocks to 180m). They don't make much Chardonnay - and they make it "so it's perfect with New Zealand Lobster". This stuff rocks. It's so clean - very crisp with loads of tart Granny Smith Apples, Bosc Pear, and honeydew melon. It has loads of wet stone and is completely New Zealand!!! I have to find some of this!!! Also, the 2000 Hatton Estate "Tahi", Hawkes Bay, New Zealand, a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon (50% new French oak, 50% new American oak), 33% Merlot, and 17% Cabernet Franc. This is awesome stuff. It has dirt!!! It's earth-driven!!! It goes with food!!! It's only 13.5% alcohol!!! This wine should be a lesson to New World winemakers that wine isn't all about power - this wine is so well balanced, and it gives so many layers, two characteristics most of the New World wines completely lack, but in my opinion, are two essential components of great wine!!! If you want to know why New Zealand is going to blow by so many other wanna-be wine countries, it's because of wines like this. Run and get some. Something else I'd like to run and get is the 1996 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs is our new Champagne by the glass... goodbye rich, nutty, earthy Krug... Hello Comtes de Champagne!!! The nose on this champagne is without question the most complex and elegant of any champagne I've ever tasted. While it dies a little bit on the palate, this is intense and powerful stuff - as BdB should be. I love it and I can't wait to taste more of it!!!

Tasting...

for practice. Have my competition in 4 1/2 weeks so I have begun tasting non-stop... twice a week with V, every day on my own - then R throws me spirits once or twice a week. Fun stuff... feel like I'm out of practice on my tasting. Drawing conclusions I wasn't making last summer (poor conclusions), and just really being all over the place. I nailed 4 wines last night (vintage, grape, region/subregion, quality), and got 9 of 11 spirits the other day. So, I'm on the right track. I just need to practice!!!

Really Good Stuff...

The 1996 Chateau Gruaud Larose (half bottle) was outstanding. The best bottle of this vintage I've had from Gruaud Larose - this wine was so youthful. Loads of cedar, but a wonderful anise, smoke, black currant, black plum and sweet cherry palate with a long, lingering finish. A great bottle of wine, though it is just not hitting a stide and will continue to improve for quite a while still... The 2004 Patz & Hall Hyde Vineyard Pinot Noir is an amazing wine. This bottle has been open for 5 days, and it is just not starting to not be overpowering. The sweet strawberry and rhubarb are just starting to show through what is a very powerful and at the same time sinfully elegant Pinot Noir. Lots of hangtime on these grapes... The glycerol is amazingly high, but the wine is just so well balanced. Turned earth, black truffles, red plums, raspberry - truly a Carneros Pinot Noir. I would love to find a few bottle of this and put it away for a long, long time. Reminds me of a young Kistler Pinot would be if it were from Carneros. And lastly, Krug Grand Cuvee. From a Bordeaux Glass. After months of research, we have finally determined that the premier vessel in which to analyze and consume Krug Grand Cuvee is in fact NOT a Champagne Flute - but a 22oz Bordeaux Glass. The large surface area allows the elegant tropical fruit and yeast to come together at the top of the glass. The bubbles are still there, and the wine is amazingly fresh. Great way to end the week...

Favorite Wine Of The Moment...

is the 1999 Weingut Robert Weil Riesling Halbtrocken, Rheingau... so oily, so beautiful. This is awesome stuff... I'm fully convinced (between this and the massive German tasting this past fall) that Robert Weil may be one of the 5 best producers in Germany right now... Tasted some of his 04s last week and they are awesome... on another note... tasted 6 premium Sakes today. I'll post notes when I dig them out. Very cool. Thinking about doing a pairing of a Sake with one of the courses on our menu... very cool idea.

Hey Now... (with more added!)

now that's what I call a night. After quite a hiatus of what I would term "great wines" in any concentration, last night R and I were in a groove... only dissapointment was that our last 2 bottles of 1976 Leroy Romanee-Saint-Vivant were both completely acidic. Nothing doing... the bottle last month or the month before was an incredible experience, this was not. Oh well. They went with the 2001 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti La Tache. We said "She's young"... the guest said "yeah, she's young all right, but gosh... she's a pretty dame". And it was. This bottle didn't get the air time that the last bottle of this we had did, so the acid didn't show as much. It's cloudy and dull, but a great wine completely expressing its terroir. One of the great unexpected wines of last night was the 1990 Chateau Certan de May. I've neved has this wonderful Pomerol before, so it was a treat. This wine is soft and cedary, with lovely cassis, cocoa, and truffles. Very classic Pomerol with its soft, velvety mouthfeel and round tannins. A very, very nice wine. The 1990 Chateau Gruaud Larose was typical of what I usually get from Gruaud Larose - slight power with hints of eucalyptus and a long, powerful finish. Though this Chateau is in St.-Julien, it often has hints of Pauillac Power. This was cedary, with black plum - and was actually quite funky. Two different bottles, with similar notes.

The 1998 Sassicaia was an awesome bottle of wine - one of the best Sassicaias I've ever had. Blue and black dried fruits with round tannins. Just starting to show some cedar and spices. A long, complex finish. Definitely Italian. Awesome.

Two different vintages of Lafite, three bottles total. The 1955 Chateau Lafite Rothschild is exhibiting some of the most intense bottle variation I've ever seen. It's been good, great, and mind-blowing - but not all from the same bottle. But in the end, this is a great wine. It's so soft and feminine... very compelling cedar-bomb with sweet cherry, black plum, truffles, and dried leaves. 2nd best bottle I've had of this. Two bottles of 1982 Chateau Lafite Rothschild... the first was the best bottle of 82 Lafite I've ever had. Very fresh and plummy, just starting to show cedar and earth over fruit. A long, silky finish. One of the best bottles of Lafite I've ever tasted. Bottle #2 was a twinge corked on the front of my palate (didn't really detect it through the nose - though sometimes intense wood aromas can mask TCA), but whatever fault there was in the wine, it was overpowered by the intense cedar and bright cherry on the finish. A vibrant, spicy wine, but completely overshadowed by bottle #1.

A few so far this week...

The 1985 Chateau Haut Brion (last night) was over-the-top cedar and gravel... an awesome wine, sure, but I don't think I've ever had a Haut-Brion with this much cedar! Elegant, with black plum and anise. We'll see what this turns into... the 85's are getting funky... The 2001 Opus One has quickly gained a cigar-box componant to it's anise and black currant. I don't know if it was just this bottle (and I sincerely hope it was), but the structure seemed to be fading. Perhaps it was closing down, but this was unlike any young Opus I've ever seen. I'm very interested to taste this again soon. The 1998 Chateau Figeac rocks... always been one of my favorite St.-Emilion wines, this is a young powerhouse. So much cocoa, with mocha, black plums, tar and just hints of leather. This is a wine to lay down for another decade. It has such great structure, balance and intensity... these Right Bank 1998's are incredible.

One from my cellar

Opened a 2001 Lewis Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon last night and boy was it killer... it had started to develop secondary aromas of cedar and tobacco and was jsut beautiful. Starting to brown on the rim just a touch, the wine was full of black plum, anise, and cocoa. The tannins were quite soft and the wine had excellent balance and a long, long finish. While I think this wine will hold for another 5 years or so, I don't know if it will really get much better than it was last night. I think that these are wines to enjoy young...