Five of us gathered recently for an informal evening of cards and wine over at Pete’s house while the family was out of town.
2005 Marchesi Fumanelli Terso Bianco Veneto IGT. There’s a burnished gold tint to the color of this wine, which smells of honeycomb, beeswax, wool, nectarine and lemon pith aromas that are mature and showing interesting complexity. In the mouth, it’s maybe thinning out a bit and starting to show a few holes since the last time I had it a couple of years ago, but I do like the stone, lemon, beeswax and juniper flavors that show thoughtful, reserved and gently honeyed before turning flintier and dry on the finish. It holds your interest, but I think it’s time to drink up.
2000 Louis Jadot Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru La Dominode. There are lovely aromatics to this wine, with milky scents of black raspberry fruit accented by cedar, gently funky earth, limestone and rawhide leather showing wonderfully together. In the mouth, it’s full of cool, darker-toned berry flavors and subtle herb notes atop a gently creamy texture showing medium weight and toned acidity. It’s drinking quite nicely, with plenty of life to give.
1991 Seavey Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley. This is showing plump and a bit roasty on the nose, with aromas of baked plum and fruitcake, eucalyptus, toasted bread and some struck flint. In the mouth, it’s plush and thickly jammy with black plum and blackberry fruit really pushing forward right from the start. It’s kind of sticky and chewy, rather full-bodied, and maybe a bit balsamic. I don’t think this was as good a showing as this can give, frankly.
2002 Château Lagrange St. Julien. This wine presents a rather classically-structured nose of black currant, graphite, menthol, green pepper and toasted spice aromas. In the mouth, it’s coiled and slinky, with finely-etched flavors of cool, taut dark fruit. The resiny tannins are certainly present, but they feel well-balanced by the toned fruit and fine structure. It has a serious demeanor but really pleasing cohesiveness and classicism that I definitely like. I think it’s bound to be even better in a few years.
2003 Château Lagrange St. Julien. Not surprisingly, this is more sweet-fruited than the 2002 on the creamy and generous nose, with lifted and gently-sweet mixed berry and dark cherry aromas to go along with toasted brown spice bits and a certain yeasty quality I find rather interesting. In the mouth, it’s quite smooth, fleshy, giving and pleasure-oriented—with pliant tannins and a thick-knit texture. The black currant and blackberry fruit flavors are juicy and rounded, albeit a bit high-toned at certain moments. Overall, though, it’s lovely, lengthy, tasty and enjoyable.
2003 Château Lafon-Rochet St. Estèphe. Compared to the previous wine, this comes across as earthy on the nose--with fine cut, direction and focus to the classy aromas of menthol, cedar, graphite, black leather, limestone, lavender, blueberry and plum. It’s more outgoing on the palate, however, where there are tons of vivacious, fudgy black cherry and black currant fruit flavors that are succulent and juicy despite the background threat of drying tannins that are more obvious than in the Lagrange. It’s quite giving, but still feels sort of cool and controlled on the finish, a nice combination that probably just needs a few more years and a healthy decant to show its best. I was gratified with the showing and happy to have a few more in the cellar.
-Michael