Typed these notes incredibly leisurely listening to Solomon’s 1942 HMV recording of Brahms’s Handel Variations, Fleisher’s 1956 Epic recordings of the same and the Waltzes Op. 39, plus Kempff’s 1950 Decca recording of the 7 Fantasias Op. 116 – needless to emphasize perhaps, none of the wines below were quite that good...
Henri Bonneau Vin de Table de France Les Rouliers L 01.06-02/03
Medium ruby-black. The most Burgundian bottle of Grenache I have ever had, in part due to the fact that this contains a goodly percentage of 2002, and thus comes across as relatively light, but it is a prettily ripe and balanced wine, nicely smoky, with soft black and a little green pepper, and Provençal herbs. Long finish. Simply loved this! Rating: 88-/87?
Bründlmayer Grüner Veltliner Kamptaler Terrassen 2007
Tasted twice in the last few weeks. Retains quite a lot of CO2. Goodly amount of acidity for a medium-light 2007. Fair enough ripeness. Peppery apple, some spice and herbs, merely faint stone dust acidity. Slightly short medium weight, but tasty. Rating: 84(+?)
Charvin Côtes-du-Rhône 2006
Retasted six times since release (we are half-way through a case now), a pleasurable little vintage, sweet clean Kirsch and roasted Provençal herbs, not particularly peppery (thus, on the whole, less garrigue than in some vintages). Nice but not much tannin, enough acidity for some cut. Good medium-plus length. Pretty wine, fine QPR buy, even if there have been better vintages. Rating: 87
Dominus Napa Valley 2005
Tasted in passing at a local wine shop. 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot. Quite complex, albeit owing some of its exotic spice to (no doubt expensive and new) oak. Medium-plus length. Plum and cherry, softly dried-fruity and chocolatey. Softly minerally, some early complexity and finesse even. Quite evenly ripe and balanced, this will age quite harmoniously. Not bad given the polished style, but I like my wine either fresher and racier, or then so singularly captivating that I feel compelled to make an exception. Also, the same “playing it safe” style can be had for less money in Bordeaux itself, from (to me) inherently more attractive terroir. Rating: 91+?
Fonseca Guimaraens Vintage Port 1991
Pruney ruby-black, opaque at the centre, with a medium-wide watery ruby-red rim. Fairly sweet, medium-dense grapey dark chocolate, sweet black licorice and plum, a little green pepper and mint. Medium-weigth, not too complex. Nice body and medium length. Lightly leafy tannin. Faint herbaciousness to medium acidity. Fine little viscosity. Nice, if unexceptional Fonseca or 1991. Rating: 89(+?)
Fontodi Chianti Classico 2006
Tasted leisurely, if in passing, at a local wine shop. Another wine that I wonder may be becoming fractionally oakier and more modern by the year, and/or bit hotter climate in character – it certainly seems so compared to the 2004 and 2005, but it is also more concentrated and opulent, and ultimately promising, which makes it hard to complain. Still youthfully burly and tannic, this can be approached now if need be, as it is ripe and thick – personally, I would give it an additional year or two. Rating: 89+/90?
Foucault Clos Rougeard Saumur-Champigny Le Bourg 1995
Our second to last bottle. The slight underlying camphor- if not rhubarb-like greenishness/bitterness (oxalic acid?) persists, while the fruit subsides. Even so, this was thoroughly enjoyable. Good ruby-red, soft black reflexions. Cabernet Franc without much of a herbaceous quality (apart from the above-mentioned “defect” in this vintage), but some nice herbs to soft but quite sharply etched fruit. Very evolved compared to the 1996. Beautiful graphite-like minerality, nice tannin for a 1995, fairly long finish. Medium body. Rating: 89-/88(-?)
Jadot Pommard 2006
A sample bottle I brought along since Pommard is on of my mother’s favourite Burgundy appellations. Medium raspberry-red with a soft purple-black hue. Clean and pure but relatively light blood-orange, red beet and raspberry, sweet and sour, medium dry. Faint undergrowth and wet earth. Some cut to the acids. Red onion sour and bitter note. Medium-short on the finish. Not too expressive even considering its youth. My mother finds it rather acidic and thin. The little fruit is also fractionally evolved for such a young wine. Neither a bad nor worthwhile effort for a 2006 village wine, but certainly too expensive for what it is (over 30 dollars!). Rating: 83(+?)
Jayer-Gilles Côtes de Nuits-Villages 1998
Thanks to my parents, their last bottle. Same as always, a nicely racy, well-concentrated, lightly barnyardy-animal, tannic and softly oaky wine with good iron and mineral notes, that is not drinking very well, but whose balance is such that it will in all likelihood dry out, no reason to hold on to this any longer. Rating: 89-/88(-?)
Lisini Brunello di Montalcino 1990
Thanks to Ned. Every bit as good as if not better than at Linden Wilkie’s horizontal in London last year. Ruby-orange with soft black reflections, orange at the rim. A distinctly non-volatile bottle, started out a bit smoky, nicely balanced albeit with little fruit, nice acids, no undue dryness to the tannin, quite long and harmonious on the finish. Rating: 89-
Malat Grüner Veltliner Höhlgraben 2007
From the wine list in a Japanese restaurant in nearby Austria. Pale yellow-green. Medium weight and quite refreshing, a bit spicy-herbal and grassy with a light bitter note, easy to drink in quantity, despite good vinosity. Good length. Went well with the food. Fairly priced. Rating: 86(+?)
Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2005
Tasted in passing at a local wine shop. Inoffensively modern wine that lacks character, and that I am afraid is too expensive for gastronomy (to be served by the glass, that is). Approachable, quite round and smooth. Mildly oaky by modern standards. Some elder and blackcurrant. Medium length at best. Easy to interpret wine that made me wonder if the enologist who made would be able to pick this correctly in a blind tasting of Napa Cabs, it is so streamlined. Rating: 86-?
Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Napa Valley 2004
Tasted in passing at a local wine shop. A blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot. A little more depth, concentration, intensity and power than the 2005 normale, but oakier with a slight green bitterness. Shows at least some minerality and potential complexity. The 15.3% alcohol is certainly well integrated. Needs a few years to come together, nor bad, but not a favourite vintage of this bottling. Ridiculously expensive. Rating: 88+
Nigl Riesling Senftenberger Piri 2001
Full yellow-golden colour, definitely looks mature, and it is. Faintly peachy and limey pear, lightly golden-strawy herbs, some stony minerality. Good acidity for balance. There is a nice glyceric thickness about this now that Riesling often shows shortly before it turns brittle. Drink up! Rating: 88-/87(-?)
Château Pavie Macquin St. Emilion 1999
Thanks to Remo again, third weird, Malaga-like bottle in a row, so either cooked, or oxidative, or both, assuming (hoping) not all bottles of the 1999 are like this (we have a better, but never a truly convincing one so far). Cork looked (and smelled) perfect again, but the glass on the inside of this bottle in particular was almost completely stained (= possible freeze and/or heat damage?). Rating: N/R
Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée 2005
Tasted leisurely, if in passing, at a local wine shop. Maybe there is something to be said in favour of Pégau vintages in which no Da Capo has been siphoned off. Deep plummy/pruney ruby-purple with a medium black hue, relatively wide lighter rim. Most reminiscent of the 2001 in its fruit density, albeit not its “freshness” (if that is the right term at all – both seem hotter climate, perhaps typically so for the forward Grenache wines from La Crau, in the context of their respective vintage). More integrated garrigue, i.e. roasted Provençal herbs and pepper, than usual, not quite as peppery/spicy as in some vintage (less so than e.g. in 1998, a vintage many thought of as emphasizing the surmaturité aspect back then). Relatively finely grained tannin for a 2005, no touch of green here as far as I could tell, a warming style of CdP that will make friends easily. In particular, this is nicely dense and thick with fruit, almost in a tomato essence kind of way, with less of a high-toned Kirsch and red fruit characteristic than I am used to here. Good body and length, a well-balanced wine with no undue alcoholic warmth. If anything, I would have liked to be crunchier, racier, livelier, but then, it was really too good to spit as it was. To put it into perspective, while I clearly prefer the 2005 to the 2004, it is not up to the 2001 and the 2003 – perhaps qualitatively closest to, if different from, the 2000. Still a fair, but no longer outstanding QPR buy. Rating: 93(+?)
Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée 2000
From 500 ml bottle. Deep ruby-red, black hue. Not the complexity of the 2005 tasted last week, nor the density of fruit, but racier, fresher, surprisingly so perhaps. Youthful, too young to drink in fact. Sweet Kirsch schnaps and redcurrant. Strong dried sage and thyme, a little lavender. A bit smoky-peppery. Low-acid but tannic, neither dusty nor too finely grained. Tiny green rhubarb or camphor bitter note that does not hurt anything. I used to think the 2000 (exceptionally given the respective vintage profiles) may be better than the 1998, but it seems only the latter is hiding part of its potential, whereas the 2000 is evolving just as expected (which is, well and slowly). While this needs several more years of bottle age, I would not bet on its upwards potential – seems as if what you see is what you (will) get. Rating: 93(+??)
Claude Papin Château Pierre-Bise Côteaux du Layon-Beaulieu Clos de La Soucherie 2005
Ordered from a restaurant wine list. Full golden orange colour. Quite sweet if not too concentrated medium weight, nice lightly raisiny-botrytised fruit, dried apricot, honeyed golden raisin and pear syrup of medium-plus complexity and little minerality. Soft but pretty acidity. Faint rancio oxidation (virtually unnoticeable given the surface fat and sweetness). Fairly long. Ultimately a tiny bit diffuse and light, but a pretty wine, honeyed, smooth, round and tasty, and fairly priced. Rating: 88(+?)
Clos Château Ravire (Michel Savioz) Humagne Blanche 2002
Thanks to my parents. Pale strawy gold colour. The lightest vintage of this wine I have ever had, almost watery. Barely medium strawy-grassy-herbaceous complexity, hardly any minerality, relatively short length. This is so light in fact that it seems a near-miracle the acidity does not stick out like a sore thumb – the “balance” is acceptable. Tempting to say this is mostly "impressive for survival" (to borrow a phrase from Cor Balfoort – hope he is alive and kicking, does anyone know?). Rating: 80-
La Réméjeanne Côtes-du-Rhône Les Arbousiers 2005
Thanks to my parents. Virtually unchanged, just more open and supple now. Full ruby-purple. Sweet canned Amarena cherry, touches of Kirsch and olive, soft herbs, pepper and spice. Fair enough body and length. Medium tannin, soft acidity. Modern fruit bomb-styled in an inoffensive way. Rating: 88-/87
Château du Retout Haut-Médoc 2005
A blend of 43.5% Merlot, 36.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Petit Verdot. Tasted twice without taking notes (will next time), but seems an attractive QPR buy for Bordeaux. A bit youthfully oaky and tannic still. Not too modern-styled, that is, not offensively so.
Château Ste Michelle Vintage Riesling Columbia Valley 2007
Tasted in passing at a local wine shop. Rarely get to taste overseas Riesling nowadays. Ripe soft fruit and acidity but of almost Germanic freshness, with attractive florality, medium minerality and cut, good length. Nice, and a fair QPR buy, even if similarly priced Kabinett can be had from top producers in Germany. Rating: 86
Barbara & Thomas Studach Malanser Pinot Noir 2005
From half bottle. Quite full ruby-black. A mildly peppery-fruity high-acid vintage, but the acidity is now very well-integrated, the wine nicely round, lively and sufficiently ripe, with fair enough complexity and glycerine, a fine little steel note, and medium finish. Very nice food accompaniment. Rating: 89+/90?
Château Troplong Mondot St. Emilion 1994
Full ruby-red, tiny watery rim. A bit oaky, but prettily mild yet rich, with tannin that probably will not dissipate before the fruit does, but that is not at all coarse or dry. One of my favourite 1994s (albeit not a favourite Château in general), in hindsight a great QPR at just under 30 dollars (having said that, the Pichon-Lalande cost about the same). Rating: 90-/89(-?)
Fattoria Valtellina Giorgio Regni Chianti Classico 2001
First mature bottle of the 2001 we have ever had. Medium-deep ruby-red. Brunello-like fruit and (soft!) minerality for a Chianti, with a black truffle note and pretty Malaga-like sweetness on the finish, and almost dissolved, quite round tannin. Drink now and over the next few years. The importer once claimed this would one day surpass the 1999 – I have always doubted it, now more so than ever (having said that, we are planning to retaste the 1999 soon, just to make sure). Rating: 88
Château La Villatade Minervois 2005
Ordered from a restaurant wine list. Blend of Syrah, Carignan and Grenache. Quite darkly coloured, nicely medium- to full-bodied, barely oaked (élevage in foudre) Minervois with warming dark berry fruit, ripe tannin, round acidity, and quite good length. Gastronomic but not too simple, tasty little wine, attractively priced. Rating: 87+/88(+?)
Daniel Vollenweider Riesling Spätlese Gold Capsule #7 Wolfer Goldgrube 2007
From half bottle again. Quite sweet and rich, almost Auslese-like, a ripe, nicely concentrated and old-viney and darkly slatey, blossomy-floral, lightly honeyed and spicey, round but now also more precise beauty of a Spätlese. Minor CO2 that assists the wine’s overall impression of freshness despite ripeness. Complex, finesseful and very long on the finish. Probably my favourite QPR buy of the vintage. Rating: 91(+?)
Greetings from Switzerland, David.
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„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti