Charvin Côtes-du-Rhône 2006
Remains beautifully open and red-fruity with a Kirsch Schnaps top note, soft roasted Provençal herbs and pepper, and flinty-pebbly minerality. Nicely mouth-cleansing tannin. Medium body and length. Pretty wine! Rating: 87
Château Giscours Margaux 2000
Ordered from a restaurant wine list at 87 dollars, this remains very fairly priced. A wine I had been looking forward to retasting ever since release, when I thought it an extraordinary QPR buy. Deep lightly purple ruby-black, opaque centre. Very well-balanced, complex lightly violety fruit, still faintly youthfully bitter tannin, minerally, nice metal soil notes, quite long on the finish. Not the weight of the top wines, but another potentially very harmonious 2000. Rating: 92+/93(+?)
Robert Groffier Chambolle-Musigny Les Sentiers 1996
A bottle I opened for my parents. Needs to poured with care, as it was neither filtered nor fined, and contains some sediment at this stage. Cannot say I prefer the 1996 to the 1995 apart from the fact that it is the ageworthier of the two. Healthy raspberry-ruby-red, some black reflexions. Well-concentrated. Fractionally brighter yet less sweet, red or uplifting fruit. Higher red onion flavoured acidity, tighter tannin. No undue dryness. Lovely intense forest floor, less tree bark, soft minerals. Virtually no oak is noticeable at this stage anymore. Persistent and quite long on the finish. May need more bottle age to show at its best, but really one of those 1996s where I would not bet on that. My parents were ecstatic about the wine. Rating: 91(+/-?)
Pia Maria Pagani de Marchi Rosso Montescudaio Montaleo 2007
Thanks to my parents. A blend of 70% Sangiovese, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot. Full ruby red colour. An inexpensive, gastronomy-style if oak-free wine, smooth and fairly round liquified metal and fig sweetness, integrates its substantial 14% alcohol quite well, balanced, lightly heavy-handed roasted rosemary and sage flavoured tannin, but not rustic at all as my mother had feared. Medium length. Did not hold up too well with airing until the next day. Good value for the money, even so, my parents will not buy more, as the wine is lacking in personality. Rating: 86-
Château Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2002
From magnum thanks to Remo. A blend of 99% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% Cabernet Franc. Opaque ruby-purple, ruby-red at the rim. Intense, sweet and pure blackcurrant, bright berry notes, wet earth, bakery/bread dough spice, perhaps a suggestion of St. Julien-like tobacco. Green licorice stick to a goodly amount of finely grained, otherwise sweet tannin. Touch of vanilla, clove and faint marzipan oak mainly on the otherwise fruity back end, with airing also powdered cinnamon. Good (Remo says nice but no more than medium-plus) body and length. The 14.3% alcohol is quite well integrated, nicely warming if at all noticeable. A very well-balanced, potentially harmonious wine, without the intense soil notes of e.g. a Dunn, but a softly minerally, nicely Bordeaux-styled Napa. Oliver and Remo were absolutely delighted. Rating: 93+/94?
E. de Montmollin Fils Auvernier Pinot Gris 2006
Thanks to Ursi. Light and tasty little QPR Pinot Gris to have with appetizers, lightly floral, soft acidity, medium length at best. Rating: 83-
Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Rabajà 2004
Thanks to Remo. Full ruby-black, watery pink at the rim. Sweet raisiny black cherry, darker dried rose petal, riper tannin and acidity, and more noticeable alcohol than the 2001. Not as firm and expressive of soil notes as the 2001 (which prompted Remo to complain that the 2004 has a relative lack of character – I like the 2004 as well, but am not entirely sure I would have picked this as Rabajà in a blind tasting), but this should both (relatively speaking, that is, taking into account the three years difference in age) drink well earlier as well as age harmoniously and thus perhaps longer (that is, without drying out at the far end). Nicely (but not very) tannic yet warmingly fruity finish. Finesse notes of dried oregano and thyme. Lovely wine, perhaps less intriguing than the 2001, but both are rare fine QPR Baroli. This drank better on the second day in the recorked bottle, and really deserves a few more years in the cellar. In short, the 2001 seems more classic, but less hard-core Piedmont lovers will find the 2004 easier to appreciate. Rating: 92+?
Taylor's Vintage Port Quinta de Vargellas 1987
From half bottle. Same as always. Still almost opaque ruby-black colour. Sweet macerated and honeyed violet, pretty tannin, soft acidity, a bit creamy and hot, with a touch of viscous cedar, soft but racy plum and cherry finish and aftertaste. This is no longer improving, at least not in this format. The remainder even turned slightly hot in the decanter until the next day. Rating: 91-/90(-?)
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
