Monthly lunch notes.
2005 Hendry Napa Chardonnay – the lack of oak and presence of significant acidity had us thinking about other areas. Creditable Calchard in an international style.
2001 Ch. Carbonnieux – corked
2004 Bruno Colin Chassagne Montrachet en Remilly – sweet chard nose smooth in the mouth and with a spiciness,. Good length.
2002 Dom. Leflaive Meursault Prem. Cru Sous le Dos d’Ane – this little number from ‘under the donkey’s belly’ was very nice, although some of us had a bit of trouble dealing whit the sizeable hit of sulphur at first in the nose. There was nicely integrated fruit and mineral as well, it just wasn’t the first thing that hit your nose. This one had a nice creamy texture in the mouth and good length.
1997 Turley Conta Costa Zinfandel Duarte Vineyard – lighter in colour than it was in youth, hottish sweet nose labelled it as a southern clime wine, slightly browning edges as a wine with a bit of age, one taster pointed out the strawberries in the nose and we all agreed, and it had a nice long finish. Very tasty. Pity that people probably drank 99% of these wines within a couple of years of release, because some of them do pick up interest with age.
2000 Malvira Roero Mombeltrano – this wine from a producer one may have come across with the whites made from Arneis was a stumper with their Nebbiolo based wine. Spicy pepper in the nose had us wondering about the Rhone, but medium fruit and high acidity steered us toward Italy. Very dry finish and probably best with food, but very pleasant.
1985 Monticello Rioja Gran Reserva Especiale – Only the Spanish can integrate so much oak and have it work out well, Slightly stinky and then settling down to mature fruit and cigar boxes. Slightly astringent on palate.
1984 Beaulieu Vineyards Georges de Latour Cabernet – sweet warm nose, extracted almost ripasso style, good flavour concentration, fairly full bodied and tasty. Perhaps on the downhill side, but ageing gracefully.
1999 Behrens and Hitchcock Ode to Picasso – a wine made from 32% Syrah, 31% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, and 12% Cabernet Franc, and pretty much typifying the sort of California style I dislike. The wine was still purple at the edges with a jammy iodine nose and remains monolithic with no development, no interest, no differentiation, just a continuous shaft of flavour from beginning to end. Will appeal to those for whom intensity is sufficient justification.
1994 St. Hallets Old Block Shiraz – garnet colour and a slightly sweet typical mature Shiraz nose, no tannins left, fully mature. My impression was that it would have been better 5 years ago.
2004 von Schubert Maximin Grunhauser Abtsberg Auslese – this Mosel was a nice finish, not too sweet and with lots of acidity. More lemon than petrol in the nose, and a hint of spritz that can often be a bad sign, but it went away.
A fine meal featuring rabbit and sweetbread courses made it a very pleasant holiday lunch.