Josh Kates was in town to give a lecture at StJohn'sCollege in SantaFe. We had him over to try a few things:
1.
Dom.Bott-Geyl GWT Sonnenglanz AC: AlsaceGrandCru (VieillesVignes; 12%; MeBalP) Jean-Christophe Bott/Beblenheim 1994: Rather brown/oxidized/murky color; some GWT/spicy rather oxidized/nutty/waxy nose; off-dry some oxidized/nutty/appley slight GWT/oily/hair oil/spicy/cinammon rather complex flavor; long slight GWT/hair oil rather oxidized/nutty/apple cider finish; rather oxidized & old before its time but not unpleasant to drink. $29.00
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2.
Forlorn-Hope Batiscafo Verdelho DeWittVnyd/AmadorCnty (27 cs; 14.7%) MatthewRorick/Fairfield 2011: Med.gold/yellow color; rather stony/mineral/bit earthy some melony/lemony/citrusy/floral/apple blossom perfumed lovely nose; fairly rich/lush bit tangy/tart somewhat stony/mineral ripe/appley/apple blossom/floral bit metallic/tangy/steely very attractive flavor; very long lean/tangy/grapefruity some stony/metallic strong/ripe/lush/apple/floral finish; one of the best Amador whites I can recall.
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3.
RosenblumCllrs PetiteSirah Calistoga&StHelena/NapaVlly (TW) Alameda 1989: Med.color w/ some browning; rather cedary/pencilly/old Calif red bit tired some peppery/PS nose; soft rather cedary/pencilly/old red bit tangy/dried out/metallic/astringent flavor w/ very little fruit; long cedary/pencilly/old red tangy/astringent/dried-out/metallic finish; not unpleasant but pretty dried out & tired.
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4.
EdmundsStJohn Syrah Calif (14.2%) Emeryville 1995: Med. somewhat brown color; rather wet wool/funky/earthy slight Rhonish/roasted/cedary/smokey slight blackberry/Syrah fairly complex nose; some smokey/cedary/roasted/Rhonish rather astringent/dried-out/tired/tangy/metallic slight blackberry flavor; med.long tangy/metallic/cedary/pencilly slight roasted/Rhonish rather astringent/hard/dried-out finish; some interesting things therein but pretty much on its last legs. $16.00
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5.
Kenneth-Crawford Syrah LaFondVnyd/SantaRitaHills (15.3%; www.KennethCrawford.com) Buellton 2004: Very dark color w/ slight bricking; somewhat reduced/stinky/sewer gas/H2S/skinky strong peppery/cold-climate Syrah pungent/blackberry/Syrah/licorice some smokey/charred/oak complex nose; quite tart some hard/tannic/dried-out/astringent intense blackberry/Syrah/black olive/tapenade some peppery/cold-climate Syrah some toasted/charred/oak flavor w/ some astringent/drying tannins; long rather hard/tannic strong blackberry/Syrah/cold-climate/peppery rather charred/smokey oak finish; rather a reductive funk in the nose that had blown off pretty much by the next day.
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6.
CreekbendVnyd Traminette (EB; 12.0%; semi-dry; www.OliverWinery.com) GP&B by OliverWnry/Bloomington/IN 2012: Light gold color; very strong aromatic/perfumy/bit GWT-like/hair-oil-like slight earthy/musky/valve oil /herbal slight sweetish/muscatty nose; off-dry/sweet soft hair-oil/GWT-like/muscatty bit cloying/watery slight tangy/grapefruity flavor; short somewhat sweet rather watery/cloying some GWT-like/muscatty/tutti-fruti/hair-oil light melony/tangy finish; quite attractive aromatics but rather sweet/simple/watery on the palate; would be interesting to see this made like an Moscato d'Asti to give it some zing on the palate. Josh's contribution
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7.
Jongieux Mondeuse AC: Vin de Savoie (12.5%; MeBalP) EugeneCarrel et Fils/Jongieux/Savoie 2010: Dark color; very strong plummy/black cherry/Mondeuse some herbal/earthy/rosemary/thyme rather rustic very interesting nose; rather tart/earthy/rustic strong black cherry/plummy/licorice/Mondeuse bit tangy/metallic/mineral/graphite some tannic/hard/rough flavor; long strong plummy/black cherry/Mondeuse rather rough/rustic/earthy/herbal/mineral finish; not sure what age will do for this wine; a classic earthy/rustic Savoie Mondeuse.
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8.
Vietti Barolo Castiglione DOCG: Barolo (14.5%; www.Vietti.com) DallaTerra/Napa 2008: Med.color; rather strong/classic Nebb/lilacs/violets/floral bit pungent/tarry/licorice/earthy fairly intense classic Barolo nose; fairly tart very strong floral/violets/lilacs/Nebb slight tarry/pungent quite hard/lean/astringent/tannic/bitey/hurty flavor; long strong floral/lilacs/violets/classic Nebb slight tarry/pungent finish w/ hard/bitey/astringent/hurty tannins; not showing a whole lot and badly needs age.$64.00 (AV)
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And a wee BloodyPulpit:
1. I had known Josh casually out on the WB wine board. He is a professor in the EnglishDept at IndianaUniv in philosophy. He was planning on returning to SantaFe to give a lecture at StJohns and reached out to me about getting together over a glass of wine. It was a good excuse for mme to open up some interesting things and get to know Josh a bit better. Joining us was another local wine friend, JoeSpinden, for over 3 hrs of spirited conversation, adequate wines, and apps.
Turns out that Josh was ahead a year at StJohn's/Annapolis of AbeSchoener/ScholiumProject.
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2. Bott-Geyl: As soon as I poured the wine, I knew it was a goner from the color. There was about 2/3'rd of the btl left over and the next day, at room temperature, most of the oxidized character had blown off and it was quite a nice example of an old Alsatian GWT and a real joy to drink.
Tom