Rest of the Top 10...

I guess I better finish the top 10 of 2008 before the end of 2008, huh?

And we start with... a tie (so no number 8)

#7 - 1987 Dominus/ 1987 Robert Mondavi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon - had these wines within month of each other and they were both blockbusters - still both youthful and bright, with a purity of fruit found only in these special vintages from California... wish wines were still made this way (though both of these producers make wine more like this now than almost anyone else out there).

#6 - 1955 Chateau Haut-Brion - what else can I say about this extraordinary wine? I am more than privledged to have tried this wine so many times, and I shall remember each bottle if I should never get to try it again.

#5 - 2004 Weingut Robert Weil Keidricher Grafenberg Riesling Spatlese en Magnum - had this in August as well with the perfect group to share it with... the wine was pure as any wine I've ever tasted in my life. As one of my collegues said... "In Magnum, this is a 50-year wine" - I think he's right...

#4 - 1982 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild - I have never completely "gotten" this wine - it's always been closed - for hours on end after opening - and to me it has not revealed all of its glory - almost- until this bottle. This opened relatively quickly (for 82 Mouton, at least) - and was simply glorious. My guess is this wine won't be fully developed for another 10-20 years... I hope there's some left for me to taste...

#3 - 1976 Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Auslese - I hope the 04 Keidrich is half as good as this as it develops... complete experience - I only got to try this to confirm it was sound... and wow... was it.

#2 - 1990 Chateau Lafite-Rothschild from 1/2 bottle - Lets me look into the window of what a magnum of this wine will age like - breathtaking. A momentus Lafite - pure in spirit.

#1 - 1996 Champagne Krug - As if there was any doubt... when I got to taste this, I was simply in shock. Without question the greatest Champagne I've ever gotten to try - and I tried it with the winemaker. Purity doesn't even begin to describe this. As much as I love the 1990 and 1988, I think this far surpases those... Wines like this are the reason I'm in this business...

Well, cheers and Happy New Year!!!!

We made it...

Officially moved... more to come.

Changes all around...

well, moving on is hard to do, but there is so much to look forward to...

So, the other night I met up with a friend at the restaurant he works at. A few drinks, and some vino... The 2000 Chateau Lynch-Bages was beautiful (even if I did call it Northern Rhone!!!)... lots of cedar, tobacco, chocolate, graphite, and black cherry. This is such a baby... Save it... another 10 years should do it. The 1998 Flaccianella (Super-Tuscan) was simply beautiful... the wine was gorgeous with rose petals, underbrush, tar, leather, sandlewood... a very pretty wine that really opened up as time went on, then hit a peak about an hour in. The 1997 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Richebourg was OFS on the nose, but a bit acidic on the palate. This one lasted for an hour in the glass, then faded big time... but roses, classic cedary/clove, silky red strawberry and cranberry. Lovely exotic spice and cedarwood. Great stuff... thanks for sharing!!!

#9

Back for more...

As great as this wine is, it is sad to put it up here... the 2004 Didier Dagueneau Silex Blanc Fumé de Pouilly (Pouilly-Fumé) is a stunning homage to a one of the greatest winemakers that ever lived. Intense in every meaning of the world, but effortless at the same time. This is a wine that hurts your brain... If it were a ski slope, you'd need an avalanche transmitter and a shovel... Let's hope his son is 1/2 as good as his father was...

#10

1999 Chateau La Graviere Tirecul Vendange Tardive Cuvee Madame - this moved up quite a few places cine last year... this is simply stunning stuff. Botrytised Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc... I'm not sure what else to say... One of the greatest sweet wines I've ever tasted.

Top 18 Countdown...

Ok... so let's go 18-11 today...

#18 - Penfold's Kalimna Block 42 Cabernet Sauvingon, Australia - one of the most profound yound Cabernet Sauvignon's I've ever tasted. Simply stunning... Power, spice, finesse - this is a just plain sexy wine. I wish I had a bottle to try in 40 years...

#17 - 1982 Chateau Latour, Bordeaux - Wow. Just had it the other night... see the notes from there.

#16 - 1988 Domaine de la Romanée Conti Grands Echezeaux, Burgundy - Wowzers... my favorite '88 from DRC. Still powerfully tannic, but less so than the RSV. Lovely earth notes that just screamed from the glass... What mature Burgundy should be, and this one still has time.

#15 - 1982 Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, Bordeaux - Yes, better than the Latour. A great wine, and I usually like Latour better... this year, though, the 82 Lafite was better than the 82 Latour I had. Incredibly intoxicating with the cedar box and tobacco leaf aromas. Timeless.

#14 - 2001 Dominus, Napa Valley, California - Yup, there it is. Not the best Dominus I've had this year, but the best young Dominus I've ever tasted. I don't usually like it when it's young (too anise-y and brooding), but this one was just perfectly balanced. I need to find a bottle - this might be Merry Christmas to me...

#13 - 1967 Mascarelli Barolo, Piemonte, Italy - this was one of those "No, no, no, no, yes, no, no, yes, no, no, no, no, no, no, no - wait a minute - YES!" It was alive, and it was glorious... Sotto Bosco maximus...

#12 - 1998 Alvaro Palacios L'Ermita, Priorato - oh my... I'll never forget this taste. One of those legendary wines I've had the priviledge of drinking many times. Mr. Palacios is a master...

#11 - 1992 Krug "Clos du Mesnil" Blanc de Blancs, Mesnil-sur-Oger, Champagne - two intoxicating bottles of this otherworldly Chardonnay... Like smelling a box of the finest dried brioche, apple skin, citrus and pears. Perfection.

Birthday Dinner

Had a great night last night... started with 1995 Veuve Clicquot La Grand Dame Rosé which was drinking beautifully... toasted cherries, brioche, iodine, rose petals - really lovely. The 2001 Jones Family Cabernet Sauvignon was drinking so well... this is a great bottle, but glad I opened it. When I got home, finished the night off with some Johnny Walker Blue Label... beautiful smoky peat. Awesome!

Wine of the Year

Well, it's that time again... and though I haven't had as much time in the last few months, there was still a lot of great wine this year. So, let's break it down... some of these wines were never written about on my blog, but I'll describe them if they make it. More to add as I find more notes that I don't have right now... I've got a great idea of what #1 is, but haven't really thought about the rest... can you guess???

Champagne
1996 Krug, 1992 Krug Clos du Mesnil, 1990 Krug, 1998 Perrier-Jouet Belle Epoque Fleur de Champagne, 1988 Piper-Heidsieck Cuvée Rare, 1998 Dom Perignon Rosé

California
1987 Robert Mondavi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, 1987 Dominus, 1991 Dominus, 2001 Dominus, 1995 El Molino Pinot Noir, 2005 Paul Hobbs Beckstoffer- To Kalon Cabernet Sauvignon, 2005 Schraeder T6 Beckstoffer To Kalon Cabernet Sauvignon, 2005 Harlan Estate, ZD Abacus 10, 2005 Blackbird Vineyards Merlot Illustration

Bordeaux
1982 Chateau Latour, 1982 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, 1988 Chateau Calon-Segur, 1978 Chateau Haut-Brion, 1997 Chateau d'Yquem, 1975 Chateau Suduiraut, 1985 Chateau La Mission Haut Brion, 1988 Chateau Le Pin, 1990 Chateau Lafite Rothschild, 1955 Chateau Haut-Brion, 1990 Chateau Latour, 1985 Chateau Latour, 1996 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, 1982 Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, 1990 Chateau Figeac

Burgundy
1988 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Grands Echezeaux, 2006 Louis Latour Batard-Montrachet, 1990 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne, 2002 Bonneau de Martray Corton-Charlemagne, 2001 Domaine de la Romaneé-Conti Romaneé St.-Vivant Morey Monge

Other France
1989 JL Chave Hermitage, 1990 Chateau Beucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape, 2004 Guigal Chateau d'Ampuis Cote-Rotie, 2000 Guigal La Mouline Cote Rotie, 1999 Tirecul La Gravieres "Cuvee Madame" Monbazilliac, 1998 M. Chapoutier Hermitage Le Meal Blanc, 1999 Guigal Cote-Rotie "Chateau d'Ampuis", 2004 Didier Dagueneau Silex Blanc Fume de Pouilly, 2000 Guigal Chateau d'Ampuis Cote Rotie

Germany
1989 Herm Donnhoff Niederhauser Hermannshole Riesling Auslese, 1979 Eitelsbacher Karthauserhofberg Riesling Auslese, 2004 Robert Weil Kiedricher Grafenberg Riesling Spatlese (magnum), 1976 Eitelsbacher Karthauserhofberg Riesling Auslese, 1983 RvK Scharzhofberger Auslese

Italy
1967 Mascareli Barolo, 1997 Solaia, 2001 Gaja Sperss, 2004 Antinori Tignanello, 1999 Gaja Sugarille Brunello di Montalcino

Spain
1991 Pesquera Reserva, 1998 Alvario Palacios L'Ermita Priorat, 1994 Vega Sicilia Unico

Rest of World
2003 Henschke Hill of Grace Shiraz, 2000 Penfold's Grange, 1937 Quinta do Noval Colheita Port, 2004 Penfold's Kalimna Block 42 Barossa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, 1999 Clos Apalta

1997 Solaia

Oh my... what a stunner. The 1997 Solaia is so young (had the Latour last night - Saturday - and the Solaia Friday night.) but so Italian at heart... dusty dry earth and black turned gravel with cedar, truffles, anise and black cherry. A long dusty finish...

82 Latour

Ho hum... another bottle of 1982 Chateau Latour.... wow. wow. wow. This wine is still a baby - more like a 1995 with its big tannins. Of the bottles I've had (somewhere in the 10 bottle or so range), this one falls in the middle. Not the best, but very nice. Opened up slowly, first revealing coffee bean and mocha notes (the oak seemed fairly unintigrated at this point), with truffles, leather, pencil shavings, and just hints of black plums and currants and a smoky-rotting tobacco leaf finish that lasted minutes. As it opened over 1 1/2 hours, the bright cherry notes started to come, then faded off. It went from sublime to nearly dead very quickly. Still, the wine was too young and I would hold off drinking any for another 10 years. Probably had 8 ounces.

How Time Flies...

Wow... it's really been two weeks. I've been so crazy busy, I haven't had time for anything... Quick rundown... 1983 RvK Scharzhofberger Auslese - Killer. 2004 Weil Kiedricher Grafenberg Spatlese... stunning... 1990 Figeac - took forever to open, and then was amazing... 1983 Chateau Gruaud Larose en Magnum - massive, tannic beast... time to drink, but outstanding. 1981 Chateau Beychevelle en Magnum - elegant and beautiful... amazed it was still alive, but still had loads of life left in it. 1996 Krug... what can I say. Perhaps the finest Champagne I've ever tasted. 1998 Krug... "something" to drink while the 1996 evolves. Krug Rosé... elegant and lingering - behaves like a fully mature Rosé... Krug Grand Cuvée... wonderful how it blossoms over time. 1999 Dom Perignon - evolved yet steely. 2000 Dom Perignon - ready to drink bowl of hazelnuts. 1993 Dom Perignon Oenotheque... never my favorite, but drinking well. 1998 Dom Perignon Rosé... perhaps the finest Rosé Champagne produced... no one does it like Dom Rosé. Many more than that...

Great three days...

Back from a great three days (short!) in Napa Valley and San Francisco... I'll go into details later, but some highlites where the 1991 Von Strasser Cabernet Sauvignon, 1991 Dominus, 1995 El Molino Pinot Noir, and many more...

Sorry!

Been too long, I know... but so much going on... today had the 2001 Mondavi To-Kalon Reserve Fumé Blanc - who says Sauvignon Blanc can't age?!? (well, it was blended with Semillon, for the record). Great stuff... cheesy-Bordeaux like nose... beautiful food wine. The 2005 Mondavi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is fantastic... No the over-done style of some other wineries - refined, elegant - it tastes like wine, not grape juice and vodka. Bravo!

Things Will Change...

Well... all good things must come to an end... sometimes its so that better things can come along.

Had lunch the other day and tasted the 1999 Piper-Heidsieck Cuvée Rare and the 1988 Piper-Heidsieck Cuvée Rare... both out of this world, and both current releases of this Rare Champagne indeed... The only vintages produced were 76, 79, 85, 88, 90, 98 (Magnum only), and 1999. The 1999 was tightly wound with intense mineral notes and a beautiful nose! Toasted brioche, ripe citrus and stone fruit with hints of star anise and white flowers. A beauty, but needs time. The 1988 was silky, still slightly tightly wound, and gorgeous. This warm vintage wine was disgorged in January of 2008 - giving it 20 years aging on all of that yummy yeastiness. Hazelnuts, almonds, with an amazing freshness of fruit. Awesome, and for the money, an absolute steal!

Fun Times...

Lots of amazing food and wine this past week... had dinner the other night with the higher-end Rosemount Estate wines... great wines. The 05 GSM is outstanding, the 02 Balmoral Syrah is a beauty, and the 05 is a rockstock waiting to be unleashed... the 05 Roxburgh Chardonny, though, stole the show. A great wine - clearly Australian, but not overdone in any way. Went great with my Crab Cakes.

Earlier in the week, had a nice dinner with some good friends. Had a bottle of Ruinart Brut Rosé, which was a great starter. The 2006 Gunderloch "Jean Baptiste" Riesling was a nice value, and started quenching out Riesling thirst... The 1979 Eitelsbacher Karthauserhofberg Riesling Auslese was awesome - the wine shouldn't have been alive, but there it was. Beautiful and tasting nearly try, but with tons of petroly-extract. The 2002 Jean Grivot Echezeaux was the red of the night, and was earth, truffles, red raspberry and cranberries. Still needs time, but by the end of the evening it was OFS. Had a 2005 Fiano di Avellino (didn't write down the producer) that was a bit off... more hazelnut than it should have been, though this is not a wine to drink older 1 year past vintage. The 2006 E. Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru (forgot the vineyard...) was tight, ripe and steely. A deft hand with the oak let this one sizzle. Nice stuff. The 1998 Zind-Humbrecht Clos Windsbuhl Pinot Gris was hot, powerful, and loaded with VA. When it cooled down some, it was better, but still a bit ripe and overdone for my taste.

The next night, had an amazing night at a chef's house... great conversations - my chest hurt from laughing so much!!! Bubbles... Another bottle of Ruinart Rosé, a bottle of Ruinart Blanc de Blancs (nice and toasty!)... Still white... A magnum of 1989 Zind Himbrecht "Clos St. Urbain" Rangen Grand Cru Riesling was all Alsace and the Rangen should be. My favorite Alsace Grancd Cru vineyard, it faces south and is thick with Volcanic soil on an incredibly steep, terraced slope (too steep in fact... I climbed it one January and I thought I was going to die...). This was cheesy, with a diesel fuel finish. Powerful, but nice with some oysters. The 2001 Trimbach Cuvée Frederick Emile Riesling was a stony mess... what an amazing wine. Complete contrast to the ZH, this was racy and steely without the massive power, and this was completely dry. The 1998 Seringer Schloss Saarstein Qba (?!?) was nice, but not great. The 2006 Domaine Weinbach Gewurztraminer Réserve was too much for me... powerful, but overripe, too much RS, and too thick for the food. A great wine on its own though. The 2001 Baumard Savienierres was great... classic Chenin with a little bit of bottle age. Still a baby, but full of lanolin. The 1994 JJ Prum Wehlenuhr Sonnenuhr Riesling Spatlese was fabulous. Still a bit of sweetness, but underlying stone fruit and petrol sealed the deal. A great seafood wine. The 2004 Henri Boillot Meursault 1er Cru "La Crau" was nice and rich hazelnuts. On to the reds... The 2003 Macarini Barolo Brunate was unfortunately corked... The 1999 Monsanto "Il Poggio" CCR was beautiful Chianti... dried tomato sauce, twiggy earty and beautiful red berries. The 1991 Pesquera Reserva Ribera del Duero was awesome... 2nd best red of the night. Earthy with a capital "E", lovely black fruit, smoked tobacco, dried bacon. The 2000 Guigal Chateau d'Ampuis Cote Rotie was rockin' after 2 hours in the decanter. Trying to remember my exact words... like a pig ate something... ah... don't remember... it'll come to me though. The 1989 Diamond Creek Volcanic Hill had lost most of its fruit and had extremely dry tannins. Good length, but bretty... The 1987 Dominus Estate is one of my favorite California wines I've ever had. The last time I had it was back in September of 2005, out of magnum (you can find my post to back then...) The wine is timeless. Still with a decade of life left (at least), this 21 year old was amazing... Stunning length, with black tarry fruit, cocoa, and cedar. Awesome... would have been better if I didn't spill some on my pants... For dessert was the 1983 Chateau Raymond-Lafon Sauternes, which was good, but not great. A bit too much "shriveled botrytis" to this one, and not enough fruit left. The 1997 Chateau d'Yquem was on the other end of the spectrum. Even after being decanted for an hour, it had not appreciably opened. NB - if you have a great vintage of d'Yquem - it needs 20 years at least before you open it. It's going to be a great wine when it finally starts to open, but it wasn't even close on this one. Disjointed... so, I had to have a Johnny Walker Blue...

The next night was a long ride... so what better companion than numerous bottles of great Champagne & Sparkling Wine??? More Ruinart Rosé & Blanc de Blancs, but also joined by 2003 Bella Vista Rosé Franciacorta - nice stuff. Pretty with lovely bubbles... The 1996 Champagne Henriot Brut was awesome... a great wine from an amazing year. Just starting to open up, this wine is a beast and shows the breeding of the vintage. The 1990 Dom Perignon Oenoteque was, unfortunately, corked. The Bruno Paillard NV Brut was great. Nice and rich with a bit of iodine. The 2004 JM Boillot Meursault "Cerrons" was nice. Light for a Meursault, but good. The 2005 Chateau La Nerthe CdP Blanc was perfect for the beets. The 2003 Trimbach Cuvée Frederick Emile Riesling was great, but this was fat and ripe vs. the steely-intensity of the 2001 from the night before. The 1991 Gunderloch Niersteiner ?? (forgot the vineyard name... usually I'm very good, but I didn't have my notepad so these were all from memory...) Riesling Spatlese was beautiful. Nicely intense, showing good fruit and petrol. The 2000 Clos Erasmus from Priorat was corked... We had a Barolo as well, but frankly, it was in a bit of a fog at that point.

Tired of reading? Good... I'm tired of writing!

Wine

The 1996 Diamond Creek Gravelly Meadow is a great bottle of wine... normally... except this one was corked. Very slightly, but it still put a kabash on the fruit and underlying layers... The 2006 Sea Smoke Southing Pinot Noir continues to rock... a great bottle of wine. See previous notes. The 1998 Stags Leap Wine Cellars "SLV" was very good, if a bit green. Better than most 98s I've had, and it says something that this wine has held up far better than it's better rated brother in the 1997 vintage (could be the most over-rated vintage in history, btw....)

???

Tried the 2006 Belle Glos "Gambit" Series Pinot Noir's yesterday... Gary's Vineyard from Santa Lucia Highlands and Griffin's Lair from the Petaluma Gap in the Sonoma Coast AVA. Both bottled without SO2 use at any stage in the winemaking process... interesting wines, but very expensive.

More Wine...

The night was fun... started with a bottle of Perrier-Jouet Brut N/V... nice, clean, dry (!)... wonderful stuff. The 1992 Perhod Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru "Les Chenevottes" was unfortunately, dead... not even close... d.e.a.d. As a tribute to old-school California Cabs... the 1987 Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve was one of my favorites of the week... beautiful black fruit, balanced tannin, lovely cedar spice, a hint of mint... a great wine with a long life ahead. Too bad the wines aren't made like this anymore... The 1982 Chateau Cos d'Estournel was powerful, full of tar and leather, tobacco leaves, cedar cigar box, all spice and a hint of green pepper. A great wine, but I prefered the 87 better, though many did not. The 1993 Domaine Robert Arnoux Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru "Les Hauts Mazieres" was the best Pinot Noir of the week... beautiful with Epoisses. Lovely red cranberry, beetroot, clove (along the lines of DRC), rose petals, pink peppercorn, and forest floor. I've always loved Arnoux's wines from Vosne-Romanee better than his from any other village. Certainly one of the best, he just gets what V-R is all about...

The next night was a pair of Bordeaux and a lovely Loire Chenin... The 1988 Chateau Calon-Segur was as good as I remember from a few months ago. Beautiful ripe red cherries add a fruit componant to this wine that is different than so many of the other '88s. Long lingering finish. The 1986 Chateau Pichon-Lalande was gorgeous with lots of bell pepper, graphite, black cherries, black plum, and loads of spice box and tobacco. The Merlot really came through in this vintage. Good, but ready to drink. The 1997 Domaine de la Souchieres Coteaux du Layon - Chaumes was out of this world... mindblowing candied apricots, perfect balance... a great sweet wine. Stunning, really... this wine really needs 20 years, in addition to the 10 it already had! Beautiful...

On the last night, the wines really were out of this world... until the end. The 1978 Chateau Haut-Brion was a wine I could have smelled all night long. It continued to open an hour after opening... the glass smelled like tar-covered gravel, with smoke, saddle leather and black plums. Ready to drink? Sure... would it improve? Doubtful, but an exceptionally enjoyable bottle of wine, even more so given the company. With the 1990 Chateau Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape, someone smiled as the last bottle I had was corked, and this one blew away the one before that even more than I could have imagined... this bottle was fresh, alive, still young (!)... red cranberry, red wild strawberry, crushed pomegranite seeds, dried roses and spice box. A beauty... long, long finish. The last two, were unfortunately, both dead and we gave up and had some Lemoncello instead (!)... The 1976 Hallgarten Siebeldinged Konigsgarten Riesling Beerenauslese was unfortunately, long past its prime... As was the 1981 Chateau St. Jean Riesling Late Harvest... such a shame...opened a 1981 CSJ Johannisberg Riesling (dry) last year and it was great...

All in all, a fabulous week with the family... when I came, back, I had some 2002 Perrier-Jouet Rose Belle-Epoque Fleur de Champagne... this is a rock star... maybe the best since 1996, or even 1985...

Great Week...

a week's vacation... but it wouldn't be a great vacation without family, friends and some great wine. I'll go into more detail about some... The 2006 Ch. Ste. Michelle/Dr. Loosen Eroica is a dry Riesling with lovely stone and citrus fruit with just a bit too much alcohol for my liking... while I appreciate the desire to make a dry wine, the alcohol made it a bit unbalanced... perhaps a Kabinett-level styled wine would serve better from the Columbia Valley... The 2006 Owen Roe Eola-Amity Hills Pinot Noir was outstanding... I will disclose that they source fruit from a friend... ripe black and red fruits, spicy, but a beautiful, elegant berry nose. Great stuff!!! First wine I've had from their vineyard... The 1989 Chateau Montrose was better than the last time I had it, but still not a great wine. I don't know if time will help it or kill it... Guess we'll find out! The 1983 Reichsgraff von Kesselstadt Scharzhofberger Spatlese was on it's last legs, but still delicious! Appeared bone dry with honeyed apricots, bruised Granny Smith Apples and a long finish. Very nice!

Day two brought a great party with plenty of bubbles and a great bottle of 1985 Graham's Vintage Port... still a baby, but nice fruit. Black plums, stewed black cherries and blueberries with a lovely hazelnut and smoked cocoa powder note. Nice! Day after was the 2002(?) Barmes-Bucher Herrenweg de Turkheim Grand Cru Riesling was beautiful, if not very young. Oily and stoney with barely a hint of RS. Long white peach and orange blossom finish. The 1989 Chateau Gruaud-Larose was beautiful... classic for this wine, this is still a baby showing lots of black berries, cassis, cedar, tobacco leaf and graphite. Powerful, too. The 1967 Giuseppe Mascarello Barolo was a quick-change artist... a beautiful fill level and fabulous color... the initial nose was gorgeous... the first taste was... not good. After letting it decant for a good 15-20 minutes, I came back to it to find that the beautiful rose petals had returned, the dried underbrush was coming back to live! The wine was alive! Not only alive, but very young indeed! Cocoa powder, cranberries, dried cherries! Amazing wine, and one of the top 3 wines of the week for me. The 1988 Chateau Rausan-Segla was very nice, but unfortunately had to compete with the Barolo... lots of wet tobacco leaf and clove on this bottle. Dark and earthy with a hint of dark flowers. The 1995 Chateau Loupiac-Gaudiet was ok... not my favorite. Lots of over-ripe candied apricots, but an almost bitter, stemmy finish. Sweet, yes, but my feeling is this was one will not get any better.

The next night brought some 2007 Cono Sur Sauvignon Blanc, Casablanca Valley, Chile which is an outstanding value... clean, crisp, slightly herbaceous with lemongrass, gooseberry, tart grapefruit and citrus notes. A hint of mineral fools you for just a second into thinking you're in Sancerre, but the intensity of fruit brings you right back. Dueling Rhones tonight... The 1994 Lucien et Andre Brunel Chateauneuf-du-Pape Les Cailloux was outstanding, despite the vintage. Still full of life at 14 years of age, this showed spiced cranberry, red raspberry, dried forest floor, barnyard, hay and dried saddle leather. A wonderful long finish. Afterward came the 1989 J.L. Chave Hermitage Rouge which was otherworldly... "Amazing, dried meat, tar, leather, dried earth, black olives" - all from my journal that night. A long, long silky finish and an unforgetable nose left me smelling the glass when I was done... Still a baby though. Many more great wines to come, but they will come another day.

More...

Nice to try a few wines by the same producer next to each other (or within a day or so...). The 2004 Bond Melbury was powerful, but I noticed some slightly green herbal notes (?!) I didn't think were possible with this level of extract... unless they managed to squeeze a few seeds in there... not great. The 2004 Bond St. Eden on the other hand was beautiful - black fruit, cocoa bean, dark chocolate, and a long, tannic finish. Great stuff. The 2006 Sea Smoke "Southing" Pinot Noir was beautiful, if not a bit more alcoholic than the bottle I had last week. Lovely red plum, currant and wild red berry fruit. Lots of spice... long finish, but needs a bit of time. The 2006 Sea Smoke "Ten" Pinot Noir, on the otherhand, was beautiful now, but needs a bit of time for the oak to integrate. Lovely wines... The 2001 Solaia was beautiful - cedary, dusty-dried leaves - classic for this wine. Still has lots of life left in it... almost a bit jammy still!

Harlan v Masseto, 2004

The Harlan won... tried these two monsters side by side the other night. The 2004 Harlan Estate is good - better than 03, not as good as 02 or 01... silky velvety mouthfeel. Felt just a touch overextracted... The 2004 Masseto felt the same way, but left me with bitter anise on the finish. Good, perhaps they'll both be better with age.

Sorry...

I've been so busy, with not a ton of great wine in the last few weeks... Did have the following - 2002 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Vosne-Romanee 1er Cru, which was drinking very well. Such pretty spice that could only be a DRC. Still somewhat tight, but the texture is like no other... The 2004 Craggy Range "Le Sol" Syrah was so spicy and peppery... I loved it! Really needs some time though... This week, I had the 2002 Vincent Girardin Meursault 1er Cru "Les Charmes"... shared it with some good friends. The wine was outstanding... stony, steely, nutty - vibrant fruit. Showed great depth and length - all that I had hoped. The 2006 Amisfield Pinot Noir, Central Otago, New Zealand was beautiful... showed nice berry fruit, with almost no classic herbacious notes. Pretty, bright - lovely black earth. Nice wine. The 2004 Robert Mondavi Reserve Chardonnay was rich, buttery, full and oaky. My glass of Quinta do Noval 10yr Tawny was a nice nightcap. Always a fan of Noval... The 2006 Sea Smoke "Southing" was amazing... one of the great Pinots I've had this year. I brought it to share, and I'm glad I did. It's one of those great bottles that makes you smile... The 2004 Pike's Shiraz, Clare Valley was beautiful and peppery. Not overly jammy & alcoholic, but ripe and powerful with layers of spice. Old-school Shiraz, the way I like it. Evolved slowly over 5 hours. The 2006 Jolivet Sancerre was good... classic. The 2006 Michelle Redde Sancerre was ok, not as good as the Jolivet. The 1990 Chateau Lynch- Bages was drinking well, but only held up for a few hours. Nice and cedary with a bit of tobacco and dried leaves, but slowly faded away to nothing... The 2005 Jadot Pommard was good, not great... expected more, actually. Aside from the wine on my little trip, the Margarita's were killer... some of the best I've ever had....

Just One...

1985 Chateau Trotanoy... mediocre at best... really lacking a mid-palate... the nose was pure Asian Spice, with cedar and clove, bell pepper and nutmeg. The palate was like drinking soy sauce - without the salt.

Not a lot...

lately... The 2003 Domaine Berthau Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru was good, a bit ripe and hot, but still pretty and showing some clove-y earth and delicacy... The 2005 Domaine Jean Grivot Nuits-St.-Georges "Les Charmois" 1er Cru was tremendous... decanted for 45 minutes, this shows truffled earth, black raspberry, smoke, coffee, mocha, cocoa bean, strawberry... and a need for a lot more time in the bottle. Wow...

Variety...

Lots of things... 1988 Chateau Calon-Segur was fabulous... one of the best 88's I've ever had. Sweet cherry and blackberry fruit with lovely cedar... very elegant. The 2006 Penner-Ashe Roséo was good, but perhaps a bit too heavy on the alcohol. Lots of bright, spicy Pinot fruit. The 1998 Perrier-Jouet Belle Epoque Fleur de Champagne was beautiful... showing a slight autalysis note with some bright, sweet fruit - a very, very nice Champagne. The Pol Roger NV was good as always... The 2005 Lewis Cellars Cab and 2004 Lewis Cellars Reserve Cab (tasting side by side) revealed a lot... the Lewis Cab is a fruit bomb, with anise, cocoa and black plums. The Reserve tasted like alcohol... too hot and powerful in comparison. The 2005 Jean Grivot Nuits-St.-Georges 1er Cru "Les Charmois" was stunning... lots of oak, but didn't overpower the wine. Just beautiful earth, clove, beet root, red cherry and a wonderful asian spice note to the wine. A great wine. The 1994 Grgich Hills Cabernet Sauvignon was good, but nothing special. The 1999 Gaja Sugarille Brunello di Montalcino is a great bottle of wine... dusty earth, twigs, saddle leather, and sweet cherries. A long, long, long finish. I could smell the glass forever ala Lafite...

Beer... Tusker Lager from Kenya is a pretty lager... a light-gold color with a lovely soapy head, smooth caramel and citrus notes. Nice! The Aventinus Doppelback/Weizenbock was mind-blowing and other-worldly (not really, it's from Germany). Simply the best beer I've ever tasted... In case you haven't noticed, I found a great beer store that stocks amazing Belgian, German, Polish, Czech, etc. beer. Simply stunning... Anise, cherries, spice box, christmas spice, caramel apple... an amazing nose. So big and powerful, two a few sips to tone my tastebuds down.... I would drink this again, but I'd have a "starter beer" before hand... perhaps an Anchor Steam...

beer...

Tried a beautiful beer the other night... Traquair House Ale... a Scottish Spiced Ale... really amazing nose. Deep and full of fruit, baking spice, asian spice and flowers. Medium-bodied and powerful finish.

Older California Pinots...

Had lunch with one of the owners of Littorai on Tuesday and tasted some delicious older Pinots and Chardonnay... The 2000 Charles Heintz Chardonnay was beautiful... stony, steely, a bit of baked apples, fat and rich - in short, it still needed time. The 2001 Thieriot Vineyard Chardonnay fat, overripe fruit, with buttered popcorn, honey, cantelope and pineapple. Nice and long, but I prefered the previous Chard... On to the Pinots! The 2001 Hirsch was mushroomy with barnyard, turned wet earth, ripe black and red fruits (wild raspberry, ripe candied cherries) - this was young and powerful. The 1999 Hirsch was baked cranberry, bramble, black cherry, raspberry, allspice, thyme and smoke. This was a beauty... still very Russian River Valley. The 2001 One Acre from Mendocino was a completely different animal... ripe, powerful black fruits with exotic spices, red charries... "Stunning" was one word I used... the 1999 One Acre was all earth spice, black turned earth, dusty mushrooms, broken twigs with a bit of alcohol evident on the nose. My favorite was the 01 One Acre... the 2006 "The Gift" is a botrytis-infected chardonnay with over 200g/l rs(!)... from the Mays Canyon and Thieriot vineyards. Nice, not cloying, but beautiful. Very high acid on this as well... needs time.

Last night I also tried the 2005 Kistler Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir - very, very pretty - actually my favorite bottle of this I've had from this vintage. It's starting to come together... the 2003 Berthaud Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru was hot, over-ripe and didn't appear to have anything to do with Chambolle-Musigny... tasted more like Chateauneuf-du-Pape! The 1998 Chateau Batailley is as it has been, but two good bottles have me feeling good about this one. The 1998 Chateau Lynch-Bages was soft, ready to drink and pretty. Not a great wine, but not bad to drink either! The Henriot Brut Rosé is amazing Rose... so yeasty, nutty and toasty with just hints of berry fruit on the nose... intoxicating nose...

Yummy...

The 2000 Domaine de la Romaneé-Conti La Tache is beautiful... not overly powerful, but elegant and refined. A beautiful lady... The 2004 Justin Isoceles is a fruit bomb, but nicely balanced. The 2003 Chateau St. Jean Cinq Cepages is nice - subdued, not an in-your-face style, but a more refined, overall pleasing wine. Had a few library releases from Littorai as well... I'll write about them tomorrow.

Another one...

Could have stuck around for the '03 Phelps Backus, but chose to come home instead... did have the 1999 Chateau Latour, however. What a beautiful wine!!! I'd forgotten how good this wine is... of course, I should note that Latour is certainly one of my favorite Chateau in the world... lots of black currant, game, leather, tobacco, cigar box, dusty dried leaves, black plum, cocoa and a long, long, long finish. A great 1999 and accessible at this time.

California Dreaming...

Some nice California wines the last few days... 2001 Harlan Maiden is youthful - baked anise, black plum and dare I say it??? Somewhat of a finesse wine(!)- clearly a Harlan Estate wine and a different breed than the 2003 Bond Melbury, which is black fruit, but less refined, more fruit-driven and intense. Bold flavors here. The 2003 Shafer Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon is the same as it has been, though the deep, dark dusty plum notes are most welcome. Nice, nice, nice.

A completely different wine and style... the 2001 Domaine de la Romaneé-Conti Romaneé St.-Vivant Morey Monge was one of my favorite RSV's I've ever tried... lovely, earth and bright red fruit spiced nose, with wonderful length and class on the palate. Truly a great wine and is drinking well now... I've said it many, may times now... the 2001s are great, terroir-driven bottles of wine. They do not have the structure to age effortlessly like the 2005s, 1999s, and 1990s. An awesome, awesome bottle...

Best of the Year (so far...)

So, it's time to recap my favorite wines I've tasted/drank this year so far...

Bordeaux - 1982 Chateau Lafite Rothschild, 1955 Chateau Haut-Brion, 1990 Chateau Latour, 1990 Chateau Lafite Rothschild, 1988 Chateau Le Pin, 1982 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, 1996 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild

Burgundy (red & white)- 1989 Remoissenent Gevery-Chambertin "Cazetieres" Premier Cru, 1990 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne, 2002 Bonneau de Martray Corton-Charlemagne, 2006 Louis Latour Batard-Montrachet, 1983 Faiveley "Clos des Myglands" Mercury

Rhone - 2000 Guigal Cote-Rotie La Mouline, 2001 Chapoutier Les Granits St. Joseph Rouge, 1999 Delas La Landonne Cote-Rotie, 1999 Guigal Chateau d'Ampuis Cote-Rotie, 1998 Chapoutier Hermitage "Le Meal" Blanc

Other White - 1976 Eitelsbacher Karthauserhofberg Riesling Auslese, 1983 Bischofliches Konvikt Piesporter Goldtropchen Riesling Spatlese, 2001 Trimbach Cuvee Frederick Emile Riesling, 2004 Didier Dagueneau Silex Blanc Fume de Pouilly

Champagne - 1992 Krug Clos du Mesnil, 1990 Krug, Krug Rose MV

Spain/Italy - 2004 Tignanello, 1995 Gaja Sori San Lorenzo, 1998 Alvaio Palacios L'Ermita Priorato, 1994 Vega Sicilia Unico, 2001 Gaja Sperss

California/ Australia/ Chile/ NZ- 1999 Clos Apalta, 2004 Kosta Browne Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, 2004 Craggy Range Le Sol Syrah, 2005 Craggy Range Le Sol Syrah, 2005 DuMol Gary's Vineyard Pinot Noir (RRV), 2000 Penfold's Grange, 2005 Blackbird Merlot, 2003 Harlan Estate, 2004 Penfold's Kalimna Block 42 Barossa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Sweet/ Port - 1975 Chateau Suduiraut, 1999 Tirecul Cuvee Madame Monbazillac, 1937 Quinta da Noval Colheita (2000)

Here comes another one...

just like the other one... another great night last night... The 1994 Grgich Hills Cabernet Sauvignon (two bottles) was nice... a bit herbaceous, which suprised me from this vintage. Still some lovely black fruit, black plum, eucalyptus and dusty earth. Nice, but if you have some - drink up. The 2006 Livio Felluga Pinot Grigio (for those that think I don't ever taste Pinot Grigio...) is fruity, balanced, and a nice sip. The 2006 J Pinot Gris, Russian River Valley is fat, ripe, and round with lovely tropical fruit. Nice finish on this one too. The 2002 Zind-Humbrecht Pinot Gris Vieilles Vignes is at the extreme end of Pinot Gris... super fat, off-dry - almost sweet baked apple pie, apricots, Asian spices and a long, powerful finish. Some like Olivier Humbrecht's approach to the classical Alsacian varietals, others say he is crazy... He is the Dagueneau and Raveneau of Alsace - makes terroir-driven, expressive, extracted, long-aging wines. I like them, even if he does not make "typical" wine. There - three Pinot Grigio/Gris!

On to the meat... unfortunately, had a terribly corked bottle of 1979 Chateau Cheval-Blanc... no fun on this one... tried it a few hours later to see if the TCA had blown off - nope, only worse... oh well. The 1996 Chateau Cos d'Estournel was all that it should be from this ripe, new-world styled vintage. Lots of toasty oak still prevalent on this bottle, but lovely black plums and black currant, dark chocolate, and a classic Cos d'Estournel herbaceousness on the finish. Very long wine as well... nice stuff. Tasted next to it was the 1996 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild. This is still a baby, but is open and enjoyable right out of the bottle.... its sibling, the 1995, is still very tight and closed. Which will be the better wine? Who knows, but I still think the 1995 will be a longer lived wine. Tons of graphite, cassis, leather, toasty oak, black currants and a long, long cedary-spice box finish. Nice. The 1993 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Richebourg has a beautiful nose!!! What elegance, power and depth right in the glass... red cherries, beetroot, cranberry and exotic spice box... this is definitely a food wine however, as the high acid needs food to bring balance back to the wine. Good? Yes. A great Richebourg? No. With food? Potentially... For me, the wine of the night was the 1990 Krug. Sugar and spice and all things nice on this one... lovely baking spices, autalysis, ripe golden apples... this has become tight and closed as it begins to enter a level of maturity. The bubbles are starting to shy away on this one, bringing so much to the surface. I think this is the better wine of the 90/96, with both still needing a long, long time to come out... amazing amount on minerality on this wine. Love the slightly oxidized note on vintage Krug. Certainly a benchmark wine and one of the great Champagnes ever produced.

A Classic Pair...

Not food and wine, but wine and wine... Two of the great bottles of my life came yesterday... Both of which I have tasted before, but neither had ever been like this... The 1982 Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, tasted half a dozen times before, was at its most aromatic opulence... dusty, cedary, cigar box, spice box, leather, dried leaves, mushroom - all on the nose. The palate was a fruit wonderland, balancing out the tremendous earth that can only be Lafite. Latour is power... Mouton is graphite and black plums... Lafite is the lady... she is pure elegance. The 70+ second finish on this still evolving wine is stunning... I tasted this several times over the course of 3 hours and the wine continued to improve each time. First, it was earth. Then it was fruit and tannin... finally... it was a glorious combination. Stunning bottle, really... more aromatic and complete than the others I've tried. I didn't want to taste anything else after this, but then... an amazing bottle of 1955 Chateau Haut-Brion appeared. I opened - cork in one piece, completely soaked through, somewhat soft, but still firm. Stamped correctly, etc. I poured it into a glass... orange/brown rim going towards a ruby red center... beautiful. The wine is still youthful. The nose on this was a bit muted compared to the other bottles of this I've had, but the palate was special. Cassis with the wonderful bacon-fat, stony/rocky minerals that I expect from this wine. A long, long, long finish... the wine is still young! The best 55 HB? Doubtful, but certainly #2...

Celebration!!!

Lots to be thankful for in the last little white (sorry about not writing... had more important things to attend to...) Had some great wines in the last little bit though with all the celebrating going on... First, Perrier Jouet NV Brut... clean, crisp, slightly toasty - everything you could want in a NV Brut... but my favorite (other than Krug...) is Bollinger NV which was rich, full and clean. Not as evolved as some bottles I've had of this, but very lovely with anise, orange blossom and baked apples. Nice stuff... the 2005 Alex Gambal Bourgogne Blanc continues to impress... see earlier notes. The 2005 Emeritus Pinot Noir is again, to me, the best value Pinot Noir in the US. Done. The 1989 Chateau Talbot was a beauty!!! Lots of cedary game, leather, bright red cherry, a hint of mint... nice, nice stuff here. The 2001 Trimbach Cuvee Frederic Emile Riesling is amazing... so lemony - this is still so tightly wound, it will take a decade to come out. It was still openening 2 days later!!! Lemon minerals. The 2001 Livernano is a great bottle - full of black currants, dusty black truffle, mushrooms, stewed cranberries and cocoa beans. Long, long finish. Did not care for the 1999 Remoissenet Clos Vougeot... now, I'll admit that I've never been the biggest Clos Vougeot fan - I just don't get the elegance out of the vineyard that I feel I should with Pinot Noir... every so often I'm blown away by one, but mostly not so much...

Tried two great California Cabs next to each other last night... first was the 2003 Shafer Hillside Select. I've had this quite a few times now and the wine is shutting down slightly... notes of black currant, licorice, dusty earth, black plum and full of power. A beauty... not as appealing as the youthful and bright 2005 Scarecrow, however. This wine was a baked blackberry pie with black raspberries, cinnamon, black currant, bright black cherry and nutmeg. Massive tannins, but ripe and full. A bit hot, though this should meld in time. Don't drink for another year.

Plethora...

not a lack of things I tasted this week...

2004 Darioush Cabernet Sauvignon is spicy as always... nice wine, not great though... the 2003 Stags Leap Wine Cellars "Fay" Cabernet Sauvignon has the most inviting nose... beautiful black currant with hints of cedary dust. Nice stuff. The 2004 Tignanello continues to blow me away... I have tasted every vintage made of this wine and I think this is the best one to date. The 2004 Flor de Pingus is coffee, mocha and a whole lot of goodness... awesome stuff, and to imagine Pingus is even better... The 2005 Pahlmeyer (I think it was 05...) Pinot Noir is big, powerful, and a bit overdone on the alcohol. Good wine, but not tremendous. Our last bottle.

Dessert for dinner...

Had some awesome sweet wines yesterday... the 1977 Barros Colheita Port was good, but not mind-blowing, like the 1937 Quinta da Noval Colheita - which is one of the great ports I've ever tasted in my life (and I try it about once a week, I just rarely write about it...) so long... Also tried the 1920 Favilia Viera Malvasia Madeira, which is awesome, but see earlier tasting notes. The 2005 Royal Tokaji Wine Company 5 Puttonyas Tokaji is nice - oxidized and sweet caramel cherries. The two star sweet wines were the 1998 Domaine Bott-Geyl Grand Cru Sonnenglanz Gewurztraminer Vendage Tardive was awesome... sweet lychee, spice box, citrus rind, orange blossom, honeycomb, and ginger. Long, long, long finish. But, not as great as the 1999 Tirecul Cuvee Madame Monbazillac which I have written about many times before and continue to laud as one of the great sweet wines in the world... see previous tasting notes as this is still the best.

Two dry wines last night as well... the 2002 Araujo "Eisele Vineyard" Sauvignon Blanc was a point... So beautiful, spicy, creamy and citrusy with sharp acid. Nicely balanced... reminds me of the great Caymus Sauvignon Blancs of the 90's... The 2004 Domaine de la Janesse Vieilles Vignes Chateauneuf-du-Pape is a big, sweet, ripe wine. Awesome... starting to open up a bit and revealing more oak and earth notes, balanced by hot, sweet bing cherry and broken dried twigs.

Long week...

2003 Pahlmeyer Red Blend was good - huge bottle of wine - massive tannins, loads of graphite, black currant, broken pencil, and a nice dustiness. Not my style... The 2006 Ken Wright Shea Vineyard Pinot Noir rocks... a wonderful strawberry "prickle" on the palate, beautiful, sweet fruit nose. Awesome stuff... 2004 Duckhorn Three Palms Merlot is tight, closed and full of cocoa spice... 2004 Duckhorn Estate Merlot is downright awesome. Silky smooth texture, loads of cocoa bean, lush ripe black cherry, red currant - great wine!

It's Alive!!!

Two great wines last night... first was the 1983 Faiveley "Clos des Myglands" Mercury... this wine should have been dead long ago, but it was beautiful! A wonderful underbrush and funk. Awesome stuff, with a bit of cherry fruit still left. Still stunned it was this good... but, as good as it was, it wasn't even close to the 2001 Gaja Sperss... one of my all-time favorite Gaja's (and it's not even begun to age yet!), this "Barolo" from Serralunga d'Alba is powerful, hedonistic Barolo... Dried saddle leather, bright sweet cranberries, violets, underbrush, dried plums... a stunning example of this wine... the texture is what gets me though. Like a great Musigny... the silky smooth texture just coats your palate... amazing, amazing wine.

Last week was the 2005 Lewis Cabernet Sauvignon - which, as usual, was really good - but not as good as the 2003 Shafer Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon which just overpowered it (!!!)... See several previous tasting notes on the 03 Hillside. The 2002 Bonneau de Martray Corton-Charlemagne was fabulous... honeysuckle, hazelnuts, and liquid Granny Smith apples... still a baby with tons of minerals... needs to come together a bit more, but the wine rocks.

Also tried the 1999 Chateau Pontet-Canet and was happier with this bottle than the last one. Good, but not great. The 1995 Domaine Louis Latour Corton-Grancy rocks... a bit tighter and more tannic than the 1996, this shows beautiful underbrush, bright ripe cherry, strawberry and raspberry. Still a while to go on this one. Great texture...

Muller...

Egon Muller... and his 2002 Scharzhofberger Kabinett... stunning stuff. Egon is the stuff of legend and even at the "basic" kabinett, the wine is rich, oily, and full on length with amazing balance... killer wine.

The Name is Bond...

Two bottles of the 2003 Bond Vecina tasted the same... loads of anise, black plum, black currant and a nice dustiness. This wine has finally blossomed...

V

Mouton's seem to be falling out of the sky lately... the 1988 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild was faily light, but still the classis graphite & cocoa bean nose. Not very intense, certainly more to the elegant side. A bit tannic? While it had the typical Mouton notes, the power was not there - but clearly from the 1988 vintage. The 1999 Louis Jadot Chambertin-Clos de Beze had finally opened and was an incredible wine... lovely clove and earth with exotic spices - lovely cherry and wild strawberry fruit as well.

Stellar Lineup...

A nice lineup last night... the Krug Rose MV (more recent bottling) is so beautiful... strawberry, toasted brioche, anise and hay on a long, clean, crisp finish. I do think that the Rose is the least appealing of Krug Champagnes, if only because their other wines set the bar so high, and whereas I have a hard time finding a better Champagne than their Vintage, Multi-Vintage and single-vineyard offerings, I can name a few other Roses that I think are better than this... The color is lighter than most Roses (which has been my experience with this wine over time). Still, an awesome bottle. For me, the wine of the night was the 2004 Didier Dagueneau Silex Blanc Fume de Pouilly (that's fancy for Pouilly-Fume). Along with Haut-Brion Blanc, this is the purest expression of Sauvignon on the planet... amazing concentrated nose of bell pepper, grapefruit, gooseberry, wet polished rock, and tart green apple. The wine is stunning... the finish so clean and pure - like a razor blade. Absolutely mind-boggling... The 2004 Drouhin Clos des Mouches Blanc is still a baby and mostly primary at this point. Lots of toasty new oak with a crisp mineral backbone. Hazelnuts, almonds and tart Granny Smith Apple dominate this one with a sharp lemon-curd finish. Give it time, give it time... The 1989 (?) Charmes-Chambertin was old, tired and after holding in the glass for 10 minutes, finally died... nothing noteworthy here. The 1989 Olivier Leflaive Pommard Epenots 1er Cru was still holding on - barely. Lots of toast, coffee, and dried, dusty leaves. As I described it at the table - it was "really cool" as the wine still had outstanding structure, but didn't appear as if it would open. It did open, barely, then slowly faded over the next two hours. The 1989 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild took a long, long time to open up. The 89s are tough... some are great, some are faded. I first thought this was not going anywhere, but opened after 1 hour and was still getting better when I last tasted it 4 hours later. Cocoa, graphite, anise and leather (my Mouton signatures) with a powerful finish. This one kept adding length and mid-palate depth as the night went on. Still very dark, could go for a few more years ;-)... the 1983 Chateau Margaux had a touch of TCA on it (I've now had 2 corked bottles of this legend) and was not as good as the last bottle I'd had of this. Cedary black violet and a long, silky finish. Nice wine, but there are better bottles of this around. The 2006 Inniskillin Riesling Icewine is good, a bit cloying, but still beautiful. Tons of orange blossom, apricots, honeysuckle, (did I say orange blossom?), petrol and minerals. Nice, but not great. Also had a 1971 Pedro-Ximinez (PX) Sherry (I'll have to get the producer... I actually have a bottle of this in my cellar)... amazing, amazing wine. Black earth, toasted prunes, roasted walnuts, hazelnuts and almonds. What length... almost syrup in its texture. The 2005 Faust was good, not great. A bit too much anise for me on this one, but lots of dusty earth as well. Too concentrated.

Different Styles...

Three great red wines - three completely different styles. The first - the 1986 Vieux Chateau Certan was cedary with tons of fruit... I almost can't believe this is 22 years old. An amazing wine, still dark ruby red with hints of purple. Long, long, enticing, elegant finish. Great wine. The 2004 Antinori Tignanello (my last bottle!) is a blockbuster. To me, the best Tig since 1997 or even 1990. Full of black, dusty earthiness with lots of black cherry, red berries and anise. A beautiful wine. The 2005 Lewis Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon is still so concentrated but is such a joy to drink now. Powerful stuff - mint, black plum, and black currant. Nice.

Had lunch with a fellow MS the other day... tasted through Betts & Scholl (produce wine on 3 continents)... The 2007 Eden Valley Riesling is so dry, clean and crisp... a great glass. The 2004 Hermitage Blanc is fabulous. Loads of honeysuckle, burnt caramel, orange blossom, acacia and nectarines. Long, rich finish. The 2001 Hermitage Rouge was showing so well... Black Olive Tapenade on lardon being cooked on a rock... so beautiful. Continued to open over the course of 1 1/2 hours. The 2005 Barossa Valley Grenache gives credence to this as an up-and-coming varietal outside of the Southern Rhone. Sweet cherry, black spice and bramble. The 2005 Chronique Grenache was even more powerful, stunning wine. One of the best new world Grenache's I've had. The 2005 Cali Syrah was good, classic California Syrah. The 2005 Black Betty Shiraz from Australia was all brown sugar and molasses with minty-eucalyptus and black plum. Intense wine, but not overdone. Bravo!

Been a while since...

I've tasted the 1982 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild and wow has it changed... I think it's been at least a year and a half. The last time I had this wine it was impenetrable for hours, only to slowly open. This bottle showed what a bit of time has really done... Pure pencil lead on the nose immediately after opening - slowly revealed the beauty that can only be Mouton. The wine is at once elegant and powerful - full of grace and finesse and still able to pack a punch. Notes of cassis, pencil shavings, graphite, leather and cedar were perfectly in sync. The tannins, though present, are well integrated. This wine is still a baby at 26 years of age. Certainly the greatest Mouton I've ever had (though anyone who wants to donate a '66, '45, or '47, I'd gladly cook you a steak or lamb chops...) Incredible length that goes on forever. The scary thing is I think this wine is only getting better - will not reach maturity for another 15-20 years and will age for a century easily. The 1994 (producer not noted, but I will find out this week) Niersteiner Spiegelberg Grauburgunder Beerenauslese was very cool... (Grauburgunder = Pinot Gris). So youthful and showing so much RS, the pinkish-sweet wine was incredibly viscous (as one would expect with a BA). Honeyed caramel, baked apricots, ginger and Asian spices... nice stuff, especially for a Grosslagen wine.

Had a drink with a few friends at a newer restaurant after work last night... Forte di Asprinio. Very cool atmosphere - almost art-deco, but not. Perfect for Clematis Street. Great wine list (some really rare gems here... DRCs, 34 Lafite, etc), nice drinks (ok, anyone who has Anchor Steam is good in my book...), great food (had a few bites of this and that). Started with a glass (or two) of Duval-Leroy Brut Rose... pretty stuff. Bit of raspberry, strawberry and brioche. To stick with the "Leroy" theme... had a bottle of 1999 Leroy Bourgogne (rouge). Pretty, pretty stuff. Amazing how structured this 9 year old "basic" Bourgogne was. Not powerful, needs food, but a great, great bottle. Took 45 minutes to open up. The mid-palate was enrapturing though... I wish more producers could make Grand Cru Burgundy as well as Lalou Bize-Leroy makes her Bourgogne. A steal... Of course finished with an Anchor Steam. I'll definitely be going back time and time again... if you're in the area, check it out. I'm having lunch there on Wednesday and needless to say, I'm excited.

Ja! Ja! Ja!

Riesling!!! After a long period of relatively non-overly-exciting wines, a glass of 1976 Eitelsbacher Karthauserhofberg Riesling Auslese was handed to me... my guess (I tasted it vintage blind - I knew the producer, just not the vintage) was 1983 (!). The wine was so fresh I could not believe my eyes when I looked at the label and saw 1976... The wine is still so young, so fresh with vibrant petrol, orange blossom, honeysuckle, stony-slate, mouth-coating minerality. Amazing, amazing wine. One of the great Rieslings I've ever tasted, and better than the 1964 Beerenauslese I had from this winery a year and 1/2 ago. I can not believe it... tasting almost bone dry, the wine didn't appear to have darkened at all in color yet (!!!!!). This is why Riesling is the greatest white grape varietal on the planet. The 2003 Joseph Phelps Insignia Magnum was beautiful as well... lots of dusty cocoa, black plum... very Phelps. Better than the pre-release of the 2005 a few weeks ago. The 1996 Diamond Creek Red Rock Terrace was Pauillac - California style. Tons of cedar, cassis, black cherry and dusty earth. Almost Lafite-like in its elegance.

Go Cats!!!!

So much fun to watch your alma mater go this far... go Wildcats!!!

Too Much...

Had a great meal the other night at the Ritz-Carlton South Beach's new "Bistro". Awesome food, great service. Very clean, fresh, simple ingredients that came together so perfectly. Had a glass of Perrier-Jouet Blason Rose Brut Champagne... nice and bone dry with strawberries and rhubarb. Nice. The 2005 S.A. Prum Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Spatlese was rich, oily, and immensely thirst-quenching. The 2004 Alex Gambal Chambolle-Musigny is drinking so well right now. Perfectly silky with soft turned earth, rhubarb and beet root. For drinking in the next few years, but a good wine.

This Week...

Been another one of those crazy busy weeks and it's not going to get any better... I'll go in order... the 2005 Poet's Leap Riesling from Washington was nice, clean and crisp - slightly off-dry, just a hint of residual sugar, but classic petrol and white flowers here. Nice. The 2001 Potel Chambertin Grand Cru was a rockstar...I love the way the 2001s are drinking right now. They are so terroir specific with plenty of weight. They might not be the long-lived monsters that 1999 or 2005 will be, but really nice wine. Classic Chambertin power with truffled earth, sweet rhubarb and cranberry. Awesome, long, long finish. The Jamesons I had after dinner was a nice salute to St. Patrick's Day... The 2006 Pascal Jolivet Sancerre was good, but does not seem as minerally-intense as in past vintages. A slightly fatter style perhaps? The 2001 Trimbach Cuvee Frederick Emile Riesling was intense petrol, minerals, peaches and orange blossom. Really nice wine here... completely bone dry. The 2005 Russian Hill Tara Vineyard Pinot Noir is nicely balanced, spicy and clean. Nice wine. The 1994 Vega Sicilia Unico has turned so mushroomy and sweet with dark black plum I didn't recognize it. An amazing bottle, this wine is just beginning its maturation. A long, long lingering powerful finish. The 2001 Jarvis Finch Hollow Reserve Chardonnay is a blender full of honeysuckle, buttered popcorn, and lemon rind. Really long, caramel finish. Nice (see, some California Chardonnay's DO age). The 1985 Chateau La Mission Haut Brion was delicious... dried underbrush, tons of rocky/stony minerals, and leathery charachter. Lacking a bit of fruit, but a decent wine. The 1999 Tirecul La Gravieres "Cuvee Madame" Monbazilliac is simply amazing... one of the great sweet wines on the planet. A slightly oxidized style, putting the tons of botrytis in line with the rich sweetness and baked, dried apricots. Awesome, amazing finish. The 2004 Penfold's Kalimna Block 42 Barossa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is mindblowing... without question the greatest Cabernet Sauvignon I've ever tasted from Australia. Black pepper, white pepper, over-ripe black plums, graphite, pencil shavings, black currant, and a thick-oily texture that literally coated the glass. There is so much sediment in this wine it must be decanted. The tannins are so sweet and well-integrated, as is the monstrous alcohol, that this could easily go a few decades. After 4 hours in a magnum decanted, the pepper-quality lessened and the wine really blossomed. Awesome.

Rhone Tasting

Every so often, a group of us get together and do a tasting of a particular region, vintage, etc. Last night was Wines of the Rhone Valley.... and what a tasting it was. We started out with aperitifs of a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc (no, not Rhone... and there were quite a few that were not Rhone at the end) which was good, if not overly exciting. The 1983 Bischofliches Konvikt Piesporter Goldtropchen Riesling Spatlese was pretty... certainly towards the end of its life, the wine was pure petrol and dried apricots. The wine has a long, slately oil finish. Nice... The 1998 M. Chapoutier Hermitage Le Meal Blanc was the first of the Rhone wines and wow... what a monster. Honeysuckle, Acacia Blossom, apricots, lime peel, crushed stone, and what a long, powerful finish. The wine is still a baby but is already one of the great White Wines and was my wine of the night. The 2005 Chateau La Nerthe Chateauneuf-du-Pape Blanc was stony, still ripe and rich and round. Honeysuckle, orange blossom, tangerine rind, really nice stuff. Tons of minerals. Needs time. The 2005 Chateau d'Acqueria Tavel was a nice transition sitting by the pool... spicy with lovely "grenache" hallmarks of ripe raspeberry and meatiness. Nice. The 2003 Guigal Gigondas was powerful, again, tons of Grenache leaving it earthy and spicy, but ripe and rich. My 1990 Chateau Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape Rouge was completely (and very nastily) corked. Oh well. The 2003 Chateau La Nerthe "Cuvees des Cadets" Chateauneuf-du-Pape was a monster... has to be 16% abv, but didn't show it... bright, ripe Grenache - a powerhouse. Doesn't need too much time as it was beautiful right now. I would imagine it would go on for a quite a while though. On to the north! The 2001 Guigal Cote-Rotie "Brune et Blonde" was nice - meaty, olivey, smokey and lots of ripe black plum. Long, powerful finish. The 1999 Guigal Cote-Rotie "Chateau d'Ampuis" is a monstrous bottle of wine that, even decanted for 4 hours, was still a baby. Absolutely mind-blowing power with intense, clean black fruits, black pepper and loads of black olive. This is what Syrah is all about. An awesome bottle that I'd love to try again in 10 years. The 1999 Delas Cote-Rotie "La Landonne" was beautiful - just a bit more austere and less put together than the Chateau d'Ampuis - but, I think in time, the better bottle of wine. The layers went on and on forever. A lot more stony minerality to this wine than in the Ampuis, and it created a more rustic, classic Cote-Rotie type nose. Well, that was it for the Rhones... so we went on to the 1997 Michel Chiarello Barolo "Cannubi" which was tannic, powerful, and floral rose petals galore... very nice wine. The 2003 Almaviva shocked us back to the new world with its eucalyptus and deep black plum fruit. Powerful, a baby... a great wine and a great night of wine.

Interesting...

The 2001 Opus One in half-bottle was green, full of anise and black currant, and generally completely unappealing. The 2004 Craggy Range "Le Sol" Syrah continues to rock... awesome stuff. I just put a few bottles away for a nap... The 2004 Louis Jadot Vosne-Romanee 1er Cru "les Suchots" is beautiful, but young... still grippy oak tannin and power (though starting to fade a bit, which is a good thing) though the elegance of this vineyard comes through on the long, long finish...

ummmmmm Krug...

Two different bottles of the 1992 Krug Clos du Mesnil Blanc de Blancs... wow... amazing wine. Tart lemon curd on buttered brioche... hazelnut, crisp granny smith apples, hints of iodine, minerals, how beautiful. Better than the 1990? I think so...

Clean and crisp...

I love the 2006 Schloss Vollrads Riesling Spatlese... it's clean, crisp, off-dry, and packed full of flavor... thirst quenching? The 2005 Alex Gambal Bourgogne Blanc is minerals, minerals, minerals, with a bit of lemon rind... for the money, simply awesome stuff.

Tons...

Lots this week... The 2002 Francois Villard "DePoncins" Condrieu is awesome... totally honeysuckle and tangerine rind. The 1999 Jaboulet Hermitage "Sterimberg" Blanc was a touch oxidized, but still had a ton of minerals. Very lean and unwieldy... perhaps a different bottle would be better? The 1996 Chateau Lagrange is outstanding... too bad it was the last bottle... classic St. Julien, and I don't see how the bottle could improve as it was near perfect for the Chateau. The 1983 Chateau Leoville Las-Cases Jerobaum (that's 5 liters in Bordeaux, folks), that I have been dying to try for several weeks, was (loud gasp here) corked... who likes screwcaps now? The 2003 Harlan Estate is big, brash and bold, but starting to soften some. It's still not the 01 or the 02. The 1996 Beringer Estate "Third Century" Cabernet Franc was mature, soft and very peppercorn and cassis oriented. Nice wine. The 2005 Dutton-Goldfield Freestone Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir is delicate and elegant. A beautiful bottle of wine. The 2005 Blackbird Vineyards Merlot is stunning... like drinking pure silk... move over Pride, Paloma, Duckhorn and Switchback... I think this is the best merlot in California right now. Next came an opportunity to taste 4 different Bond bottlings side by side. First, the 2003 Bond Vecina showed more weight than it had previously. Lots of anise and graphite wrapped in a cassis and black plum blanket. The 2003 Bond Melbury showed softer this evening... not quite the power that I have experienced with this bottling. Very nice though. The 2003 Bond Pluribus was spectacular - very jammy and ripe, with a bit more earth than the other 3. The 2003 Bond St. Eden was the star of the show for me. Ripe, concentrated, powerful, but completely balanced. I think this was the wine of the night for me. The 2002 Bond "The Matriarch" was beautiful and classic in the 2002 power-packed style. Nice. The 1996 Penfold's Grange was almost salty... lots of ripe raspberry and black plums with loads of black pepper and earth. The 1997 Penfold's Grange was light and uninspiring. It was almost like it was weak and had VA at the same time... not my favorite. The 2000 Penfold's Grange on the other hand was stunning. Powerful, yet balanced and a bit of elegance on the long, long finish. Went on for minutes with earth and raspberry. The 1993 Stags Leap Winery Petite Syrah was cedary and lighter, but still PS. The 2001 Hartford Court Highwire Zinfandel was hot, ripe, but beautiful balanced and a wonderful wine to drink...

Ummmm Beer...

The five true Trappist ales are Orval, Chimay, Westmalle, Rochefort, and Westvleteren... After today, I only need to try one more... I found a bottle of Rochefort "8" (9.2%, 11.2oz) today and had to buy it... wow!!! What flavor! A heady nose of alcohol was quickly followed by chocolate, leather, raspberry spice and earth... a long, chocolately, mocha/ toasted almond finish went on forever... now I just have the mythical Westvleteren 12 to try...

Hmmm

The 1998 Chateau Batailley is bretty, earthy and wonderful... really nice, drinkable Bordeaux here. Some mocha and cedar on the finish of the 5th Growth... The 2001 Chapoutier St. Joseph "Les Granits" is the finest example of this appellation I have ever encountered. Incredible structure, beautiful balance, fabulous hanging meat and black olive nose....

Big Names

But not big quality... The 1983 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Grands-Echezeaux seems to have finally met its end. I've tasted this on several occasions and this one was it... lots of brown, maderized fruit. Toast. Kaput. The 1993 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti La Tache was not much better... I see lots of high scores on this wine, but all it is giving right now (and I doubt that it will change) is high acid with very tart, sour fruit and no midpalate, and even worse, no weight at all (and I don't mean this in a good way). The finish just drops off a cliff... The 1994 is better! The 2006 Penner-Ash Dussin Vineyard Pinot Noir is hot, ripe and poweful. This needs a good year or two to really come down.

This week I tasted through the 2006 Louis Latour White Burgundies (18 of them!)... the highlites were Puligny-Montrachet across the board (the Folatieres was stellar, but even the village was great), the Corton-Charlemagne (which will put on more weight and the overt alcohol should become better integrated once it's bottled - oh yeah, this was a barrell sample), and without question the Batard-Montrachet, which is a perfect, textbook example of this meaty, fat, round, rich and stony Grand Cru. Needs time, but is drinkable now (again, barrell sample). For the Chablis, I thought the Clos was not as rich as I usually find it - a bit more spread out rather than focused, but the Preuses was awesome...

Sad, Busy Week.... lots of news and wine...

I'll always admire your courage, your will, your fight. You're amazing and I'm better for having known you. I'll always remember the bottles we shared, my first day, the beach, the fun. Thank you...

So, there were 9 new Master Sommeliers!!! Congratulations to all!!! Enjoy...

This week was busy.... the busiest of the year... I'll do them somewhat in order. The 1990 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne was an unbelievable bottle. Certainly the best I've had since the first one several years ago. Pure honeysuckle, caramel, wet stones... an amazing and powerful wine with an exceptionally long finish. The 1989 Remoissenet Gevry-Chambertin 1er Cru "Les Cazetiers" is still one of my absolute favorite wines to drink right now. It's full of earth, nicely mature (but not overly mature). Still needs 1/2 hour to open up and show its beautiful underbrush, dried wild strawberries, black plum and spice box. Very long... The 2000 Guigal Cote-Rotie "La Mouline" is as it was a few weeks ago, but maybe this bottle was a bit more open? Lovely black olive, cold meat (had a steak last night that was the exact note in this wine), black pepper, cilantro (?!) and lots of black cherry, black plum, raspberry... like eating smoked rocks... Awesome finish. Needs time, though. The 1937 Quinta do Noval Colheita continues to be one of the great ports I've ever tried... I try this all the time and often overlook it... but it's incredible!!!! The caramel popcorn, butterscotch finish starts out nicely, with the alcohol taking over to start, then fades, then POW! all of the flavor comes back in wave after wave to an incredible finish. The 1995 Gaja Sori San Lorenzo (Barbaresco) was fabulous... so much tannin, though... lots of sotto bosco, black cherries, etc, but I wonder if it will be overwhelmed by the tannin in the years to come. The Krug Grand Cuvee is, well, Krug. Better than the Piper Heidsieck Cuvee Rare, though completely different animals... as we say, the Krug is great and the the Rare, well, it doesn't suck. Two bottles of 1988 Chateau Haut Brion were completely different. One, a bit tired, the other just coming into adulthood. The tired one was smokey earth with cedar and tobacco leaves... little fruit. The other was packed with black plums and exotic spices and full of the beautiful smokey-bacon fat covered gravel that is without question Haut Brion. The 1990 Chateau Prieure-Lichine (one corked, the other in good condition) is really beautiful and shows just how underrated this 4th Growth Margaux can be... Wonderful violet and silky plum nose with lots of cedar and cigar box. Mature, but will hold on for a long time. The 1990 Chateau Pavie-Decesse, a wine I've always been completely underwhelmed by, was a bit better than the other bottles I've had. Very stony and spicy with some black fruit and cedar notes. Ok... Next were two bottles of the ultimate garagiste wine, and a wine I've never been impressed with, the 1988 Chateau Le Pin. These two bottles were much better than I'd had before (and both showing nearly identical), but still underwhelming. Yes, the vintage was light, but these wine still showed beautiful typicity. Some anise gave way to a very exotic smoke on the palate and nose after about 30 minutes. The wine tried to mount an attack on the palate, but started dying off before it could gain any momentum... A long, silky finish though to a very rustic wine. The 2005 DuMOL Gary's Pinot Noir, Green Valley, RRV was awesome... made in a Kosta-Browne style, but not to that extreme, the wine is perfectly balanced with wild strawberry, ripe cherry and raspberry. Some Jolly-Rancher type fruit in here as well making it easy to drink now, but with sufficient acidity to lay down for a few years and develop some more nuances. The 2004 Vieux Telegraphe "La Crau" Chateauneuf-du-Pape rocks... spicy, raw, angular and powerful, this wine will (eventually) settle down... watch out! The 1982 Monsanto Chianti Classico Riserva was all underbrush, balsam wood, dried cherry and dried leaves. A nice, medium-length finish from the awesome vintage and one of the longest lived Chiantis around... The wine of the week though, and the best bottle of this I've ever had, was the 1990 Chateau Lafite Rothschild. Now, don't get me wrong, I love Lafite, but maybe not as much as Haut Brion or Latour. Except in this case. Rivaling the Chateau Margaux as the best 1990 on the block, this wine was pure Lafite - tons of cedary dried tobacco leaves in a Cigar Box... Chinese spices out the wazoo... a finish that goes on forever (I could literally still taste the cedar and tobacco 30 minutes after I tasted the wine). So elegant - all that is Lafite.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

4 new Master Sommeliers yesterday!!!! Awesome job!!! They just had tasting to finish... we'll see how many by the end of the week!!!

The Best

Ok, so I haven't done this in a while and I know I'm going to miss a few here and there, but I felt it was time to recap my favorite wines I've ever tasted... There's only a handful that could even make the top... This differs from my annual lists in that this takes into account potential...

1961 Chateau Latour, 1982 Chateau Latour, 1990 J.F. Mugnier Musigny Vieilles Vignes, 1999 DRC Montrachet, 1955 Chateau Haut Brion, 1990 Guigal Cote-Rotie "La Turque", 2001 Harlan Estate, 1982 Chateau Cheval-Blanc, 1982 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, 1982 Chateau Lafite- Rothschild, 1955 Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, 1990 DRC Romanee-Conti, 1990 DRC Echezeaux, 1995 Leroy Richebourg, 2003 Domaine de la Mordoree "La Plume de Pientre" Chateauneuf-du-Pape, 1990 Krug en Magnum, 1990 Trimbach Clos Ste. Hune Riesling, 1964 Eitelsbach Karthauserhofberg Riesling feinste Auslese, 1953 Chateau d'Yquem, 1982 Chateau Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, 1990 Chateau Margaux, 1988 DRC Richebourg, 1989 Chateau Haut-Brion, 1989 Chateau La Mission Haut Brion, 1995 Kistler Cuvee Katherine Pinot Noir, 1985 DRC Echezeaux, 1975 Petrus, 1998 Penfold's Grange, 1990 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne, 1990 Krug "Clos du Mesnil", 2004 Sea Smoke Southing Pinot Noir.

There you are... the order??? Well, know that the 1990 Guigal La Turque, 1961 Latour, 1982 Latour, 1990 JF Mugnier Musigny, and 2001 Harlan Estate make up the top 5 (though not in that order...)

Good Luck!

The Master Sommelier exam started today... good luck to everyone!!! Hopefully we'll see a few new Masters...

Can't Win for Trying...

Rough night last night... only bottle I tried that I loved was the 2004 Craggy Range "Le Sol" Syrah... and I've already written about that many times.

Goin Back to Cali...

Two beautiful, but extremely different young California Cabs last night, plus a few older bottles, a not-so-great bottle of Hermitage. First, the 2005 Lewis Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon (not sure if I wrote about the other bottle of this I tried a few weeks ago)... anyway, I love Lewis wines... and this thing is a monster. Certainly the most powerful regular bottling of Lewis I've ever had... Tons of mocha, dusty earthiness, black jammy fruit. Needs a year or so... The 2002 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon is quite different. While still very concentrated, the wine is elegance to a "t" in modern-styled California wines. Lots of dust, with round, soft tannins, and tons of anise and black currant. The 1995 BV Georges de Latour was rustic, though it still had some good fruit to it, was not as refined as the 1994 BV Georges de Latour - though the 94 was a bit more elegant, it didn't show as well from 2 different bottles last night. Nod to the 95... The 1999 Jean Luc Columbo Le Rouets Hermitage Rouge was very closed, but appeared to want to open up... not sure if it ever was going to.... and ultimately determined to be raisiny... a dissapointment to be sure.

Now that's better...

One of my all-time favorite bottles tonight... but first, one that certainly didn't make the list... the 2004 Pavillion Blanc du Chateau Margaux was (hopefully, at best) closed... at worst... not a very good Pavillion Blanc. Some light grapefruit notes, but really a hint of cheese (which could be expected, instead of the full-blown fromage one gets as these wines age), with some clove, lime zest, lemon rind and white flowers. There was just no depth to the nose or the palate... The 1999 Opus One was tired... all tannin, little fruit. Granted the bottle had been open 2 hours when I tried it... but still... this is Opus??? It's NOT cheap... The wine of the night and currently in a race for best wine of the year so far was the 1955 Chateau Haut-Brion. Tried many times (I'll have to get an exact count, but at least 6 or so) in the last few years, this wine was simply stunning. Like the others, pure bacon-fat, gravel-fed smoke. The palate is intense, yet elegant... this wine could be nothing other than Haut-Brion... and a great one at that.

Ok, I Promise

To write more... this is really getting out of hand now. Tonight saw two great bottles... the first, the 1937 Quinta do (I always forget if it's da or do) Noval Colheita... always mindblowing, I seem to take this one for granted as I try it so frequently (at least once a week, in general). Such an utterly mindblowing wine on the palate. It's expensive, sure. But it's completely worth it (and I don't even like port that much!!!). The other great wine tonight, and the wine of the year so far, is the 1990 Chateau Latour. The wine has evolved and opened over the last few years. Not the best bottle I've ever had of this vintage, but it was the most open. Showing tons of power with loads of cedary-cigar box quality (actually one of the most aromatic Latours I've ever had). The finish was pure power.... awesome, awesome stuff.

Been a while...

I'm sorry for not writing more often... it's been a very, very busy time... Last night was the 1997 Bollinger Grand Annee - a textbook example of the 1997 vintage (as seen through the eyes of Bollinger). Very steely, knife-like acidity. This wine needs a lot of time to unwind and show its full richness. Great stuff. The 1985 Chateau Latour was beautiful. Classic Latour with a wonderful cedary, pencil lead and black currant nose. Nicely dusty, but not overly so. The 1998 Chateau Pichon Lalande was still tight. Lots and lots of mocha and anise. Very good for the vintage on the left bank. The 2005 Ridge Paso Robles Zinfandel was amazing. One of the great zins I've had in a long time. Nothing more than an appellation bottling, the wine had tremendous depth, classic bramble and red berry fruits, with notes one can only describe as the "Ridge Nose". Wow...

Been a long time...

and it's going to be even longer...

2005 Chapoutier La Bernadine Chateauneuf-du-Pape, 1975 Suduiraut, 1957 Pichon Baron, 1988/1989/2001 Pichon Baron, 2006 Rose des Tourelles, 2005 S de Suduiraut, 1995 Calon-Segur, 1985 La Mission Haut Brion, 2005 Robert Weil Riesling Kabinett Halbtrocken, 2004 Kosta Brown Sonoma Coast, 2002 St. Innocent Shea Vyd Pinot Noir.... All will be coming shortly

Will they ever come around???

Some nice wines last night... The 1999 Chateau Pontet Canet was nice, but certainly ready to drink. Lots of coffee and mocha with cedary black cherries. The 2004 Paul Hobbs Cabernet Sauvignon was powerful, a bit unbalanced though with excess extraction and alcohol... The 1999 Jean Luc Columbo Hermitage "Les Rouets" was earthy, meaty, and spicy... The 2001 M. Chapoutier St. Joseph "Les Granits" could be the best example of the appellation produced today. Lots of black olives and peppery black raspberries. Very meaty and earthy... could easily be mistaken for a decent bottle of Hermitage. The 2001 Sterling Diamond Mountain Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon is beautiful(!!!!)... the nose was very seductive with silky black currants, dusty earth and chocolate boisenberry liqueor with loads of cassis. Sterling gets a bad rap sometimes, but they are still making traditionally styled Napa Cabs built to age a long time. The 1975 Chateau Suduiraut (same bottle from a few weeks ago) is just beginning to open up!!! Can anyone say honeyed apricots??? On to a fairly controversial vintage (at least for now)... the 1995 Chateau Haut-Brion was closed. And closed it stayed. Except for perhaps an ounce left in a glass for several hours - and it was beautiful - loads of gravely bacon-fat and cedar. Can anyone say "long-lived vintage"???? Most of the 1995s I've had are still closed and not giving much at all - BUT - and this is a big BUT - they are in such balance that when they do open (and I now believe most will come around), they will be one of the great vintages of the last 30 years (up there with 82 and 90)...

Oh no!

The last bottle of 1997 Dominus we had was completely corked... nasty stuff really. Such a shame. Gave me an opportunity to try the 2004 Plumpjack Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon - what a powerhouse! The nose was a bit closed, and so was the palate at first, then WHAM! All at once... this needs time. BTW, this was in screwcap! The 1985 Chateau La Mission Haut Brion was beautiful bacony-pulverized gravel and leather. Not the most powerful, but a beauty.

It's coming...

Just when I thought I might be able to take a breather... nope!!! Two great bottles... 1998 Alvario Palacios L'Ermita Priorat and the 2000 Guigal La Mouline Cote Rotie... both beautiful. Straw and black earth for the Priorat (incredible finish... big tannins), and amazing meat and beautiful dark chocolate, black olive and smoky grilled bacon... awesome stuff. The 2005 Lewis Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the most powerful Lewis has ever produced (and that's saying something)... though, it is nicely balanced. The 2003 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet Clavillion was a bit warm and the alcohol a bit overpowering to get a good read on this one.

"6 is the new 8"

Back from an amazing week in Chile. I'll write about it in the coming days (hopefully not too many days!)... just recovering for now.

End and Beginning

So, the end of a year and the start of a new one. They both were quite the same... lots of DRC on both accounts. So, the start of the year was two bottles of the 1988 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Grands Echezeaux... the first bottle was superior to the others I tried but not by much. It was perhaps a touch younger... earthy, spicy, peppery - a completely awesome bottle of wine. The 1999 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Echezeaux was a great contrast. Still extremely youthful and powerful, this wine took a good hour to open and was even better by hour 3. Lots of wild berry fruit with clove and a bit of woodiness in the tannins. Exceptionally long finish... this is why I love wine!!!!!!