Tasting Notes, September/October, 1996

• 1993 Ridge Santa Cruz Merlot A ripe, rich mouthful of Merlot that's hard to resist. Thick and dense, sweet and flamboyant, I wonder if some of Paul Draper's zinfandel ideas are rubbing off on the merlot. (g) Very nice wine, especially by the standards of most California merlots. The glycerine and velvet coat your mouth with ripe fruit and the wine's density gives you several layers of it to lap up. Appealing now, and the label claims it will age gracefully for a long time. About that, I am not as sure, but it will certainly improve over the next couple of years.
• 1993 Ravenswood Sonoma Merlot This Merlot from another fabled zin maker also has that element of flamboyance that you find in their zins. I wonder how many might pick this as a 1990 Sonoma Zin in a blind tasting. I joked a little about that with the Ridge, above, but it is even more pronounced here. The Joel Petersen style molds and affects this wine more than anything else. There, however, the similarities between the Ridge above and the Ravenswood end. On its own, this is tasty, unusually sweet in the sense of the fruit being very ripe, and perhaps even a little over the top, and it has merit. But it lacks the density, concentration and mouth coating velvet of the Ridge Santa Cruz. The prices were pretty close. For the extra $3, the Ridge wins hands down.
• 1989 Lagrange This Bordeaux seems a little flat. Maybe it's just this bottle? From this bottle, seems medium bodied, so-so, nothing much interesting going on, and a little hot. Seems more like a bargain wine than a cru. One person suggested it would improve with age; personally, I doubt it. From this bottle, I'd give it an 85.
• 1993 Longoria "Huber Vineyard" Chardonnay The person who brought this claimed he had had better bottles. However, no one disagreed that this was showing a lot of alcohol and acidity, and not much fruit. A boring, routine chardonnay, and not especially pleasant either. If it has shown better from better bottles, I'm sorry, but this is what it was tonight.
• 1982 Latour Haut Brion I thought this was near death on opening. It actually improved a little with decanting, but never got beyond a barely passing grade. It showed oxidized, flat, and dull. If you're holding it, hope that your bottle shows better and drink up.
• 1983 Canon This wine is showing traces of being a little too old. There are some oxidized notes and the fruit is dulling. It still has enough body and fruit to be an interesting drink, but its glory days have passed. If you're holding it, it's worth drinking, especially with a restrained food matchup. But drink up. NB: A couple of months later I had another bottle of this that showed much, much better. The fruit was livelier, it was a charming wine. Both bottles looked well stored.--11/5/96
• 1994 Landmark "Damaris Reserve" Chardonnay Full of lees and oak flavors, the chardonnay is occasionally hard to find. Still, this is a mouthfilling wine that shows body and concentration. Not everyone will flock to it, but I rather liked it. If I were scoring, give it an 89-90, and see if improves with a year or so in the cellar, which I think it needs.
• 1991 Meursault (Coche-Dury) I was disappointed in this wine from one of Burgundy's fabled producers. The fruit seemed flat, the wine thin, even a little watery. I frankly didn't see much to recommend in this.
• 1982 Bandol Rouge (Vannieres) Holding surprisingly well, this gamey mourvedre based wine is medium bodied, balanced, flavorful, fully mature, with hints of robustness still. Not that you can find this any more, but I thought this showed very well and provided an excellent food accompaniment for meats.
• 1985 Beaulieu Reserve Cabernet This wine, which some call the last great BV Reserve, is fully mature and not going to improve. But it shows signs of holding gracefully for some years. Like a lot of wines with signficant, rich oak and pure cabernet, it has some licorice aftertones, medium body and is simply very tasty. It falls shortly of being really exceptional, but it's fine wine. Give it a 90.
• 1990 Morey St. Denis Clos de la Bussière (Roumier) A marvellous wine. This is what you want in red Burgundy. Not unreasonably priced (around $30), plenty of structure, with soft tannins poking through, beautifully balanced, aromatics to die for with crushed raspberries on the nose, and a palate jam packed with sweet, delicious red berry fruit. This is not a "big" wine, but it has plenty of stuffing and the fruit is simply so sweet, so pure and so tasty that it's simply irresistable. You could spend more--and get less.
• 1992 Volnay "Clos des Chateaux des Ducs" (Lafarge) Not as rich and ripe as some big 92s I've had, but on the other hand, a pure clean finish with no vegetal aftertaste. Instead, round, ripe strawberries, a welcome ingredient in Burgundy. Some moderate tannins, this will improve for a year or two. Pretty pricey for what it is ($45), but a bargain for Lafarge.
• 1987 Qupe "Bien Nacido" Syrah This syrah was a wine I tasted when first bottled and have followed ever since. It was the debut release, and only a few dozen cases were made. When young, it was massive, tannic and fruit packed. I thought it was the best Rhone clone I'd ever had. I also thought it needed a long time in the cellar to let the tannins resolve. The good news is that the nose is pretty, redolent of blueberries, the palate shows through much the same way. The fruit has integrated with the wine, the tannins resolved. But the acidity is also out of balance and the finish seems marred by volatile acidity. A lot to recommend it still, this wine nonetheless needs to be drunk up if you're holding it.
• 1992 Chassagne-Montrachet "Les Embrazées" (Morey et fils) This wine is a classic example of how you can ruin a good white burg by drinking it too cold. Chilled to the core, this was boring, bland and acidic. Warmer, it suddenly showed a lot of class. Oaky, lees flavored, but also rich, rounded fruit. It won my affections slowly but surely.
• 1994 Meursault "Les Genevrières" (Jobard) This wine has a fine future, but is simply too young. Put it away for two years and then try. At the moment, it's very tight, showing lots of acidity and tannins. When it develops, it should be a fine wine.
• 1990 Savigny-le-Beaune (Chandon de Briailles) Savigny doesn't get much better. At age 7, we've got a wine still going strong, showing refined tannins, but plenty of them. The fruit could be a little lusher for my tastes, a little more vibrant, but there's more than enough to keep most people happy and how much more can you expect from Savigny? A great bargain wine.
• 1985 Hermitage "La Chapelle" Simply beautiful. Still youthful, it fills your mouth with sweet, lush blueberry fruit. Yet with age, it's acquired a bit of finesse and balance, too. Swirl it around it your mouth and the tannins pop out, revealing a structure that can support this fruit for a long, long time. Great stuff.
• 1989 Zind-Humbrecht Riesling Rangen Clos St. Urbain Rich and concentrated, showing sweet, with great depth. Unusually accessible for a great riesling, but too young nonetheless. This is a tour de force. Look for it to get better and better.
• 1989 Chablis Montmains 1er Cru (Robin) A fine Chablis from a relatively obscure producer. Steely and full bodied, with enough nutty aftertaste to keep me happy. A wine in fine shape and aging gracefully.
• 1989 Pommard (Lejeune) At first, it seemed hard and charmless, but I guessed it would develop. It did, but perhaps not enough to impress in the company it kept. The fruit emerged, and it became a pleasant village wine. It lacks the stuffing and ripeness to be special, but was enjoyable nonetheless.
• 1981 Haut Brion The Haut Brion was just a tad fuller than the Ducru, below, but better. It was showing some maturity and signs of decline. How much you liked it depended on whether you like the wines with some age and oxidation covering once vibrant young fruit. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't, but mostly I think it's what it is: a wine in gentle decline. I thought it accompanied the food well and still provided lots of pleasure, but if you're holding this wine, my advice would be to drink it. It has seen its best days.
• 1978 Ducru Beaucaillou The Ducru was perhaps unfair to judge because of a little corkiness. Nonetheless, I have to say, it was showing its age, a little gameyness, and that plus the corkiness on the finish let it made it just a medium bodied wine with a lot of defects. Yet drunk next to the Haut Brion, above, it was in terms of concentration, about its equal. I'd like to try a better bottle of this.
• 1993 Ravenau "Blanchot" Chablis. The wine was way too young, and we were silly to drink it. Sometimes you win, sometimes not. Hard, tight, intense. Needs a lot of time, and is going to be splendid.
• 1981 Raymond-Lafon Sauternes. The RL is fully mature and ready to drink. The youthful syrupy sweetness has gone, leaving a sweet but muscular wine with overtones of caramel. Drink up, though. It's not got a lot left, and some decay is evident.
• 1985 Ponsot Latrichières-Chambertin This is at a time when it is drinking exceptionally well, probably at or near peak. Still fresh and intense, still showing the depth for which Ponsot grand crus are famous in this vintage, but no hint of being unready. The baby fat is gone and this wine is à point, in my view. For those really into sweet hedonism, perhaps it's even lost that sweet, initial burst of fruit that undoubtedly made it so appealing when young. But love can be lovely the second time around, too. Unless you like your Burgs very mature, this is a good time to drink this, though, while it retains the vestiges of youth.
• 1988 Grivot Richebourg The Grivot is another story. This is still tightly wound and more tannic. Yet the surprise is not how tannic it is, but how approachable it is, something a lot of 88 grand crus are not. It needed fifteen to twenty minutes of breathing in the glass to open up, but when it did, it showed lots of layered, concentrated fruit. Give this two years, then it hits peak and will likely keep improving for another three years or so beyond that. A very fine wine, that I think will develop beautifully.
• 1988 Meursault "Goutte d'Or" (Lafon) A wine that has seen better days. I found the fruit flat and unexciting; perhaps some volatile acidity on the finish. The oak and lees flavors were pleasant. The wine was a tad too thin and oxidizing. Anyone holding this has held it too long, frankly.
• 1993 Arrowood Late Harvest Riesling A nice effort that seems, however, a bit prematurely old. Shows rich and ripe enough, although not a monster in the style of the Beringer Late Harvest Riesling. Lacks a bit of acidity, and, as noted, seems a bit too far along in the maturation process. Still, not bad. Has a lot of nice things, including sweet, pleasant fruit and enough weight to hold up to dessert. But there's a lot of competition in this type of wine these days.
• 1971 Clos Vougeout (Pierre Engel; Lichine imports) This wine has a lot going for it. I underestimated it at first. The nose smelled of decay and oxidation, and the palate was dull and musty. I thought rightly that it needed fifteen minutes to breathe, but I thought, too, that you'd then have to drink up REAL fast. As it turns out, the wine blossomed, the mustiness blew off, it still shows some tannins, and the strawberry fruit became attractive and pleasant. Still, it's not at peak. It would have benefited by having been drunk a few years earlier. And if you have any, drink it now. But it's in good shape for it's age and lineage.
• 1983 Chambertin (Trapet) Thoroughly disgusting. Tainted with rot, gamey to boot, this wine has absolutely nothing going for it. Trapet gets a lot of criticism for underachieving. In this wine, mere underachievement would have been a plus.
• 1993 Au Bon Climat "La Bauge Au Dessus" Pinot Noir A fairly typical La Bauge. That is to say, good depth and concentration, nice mouth feel, vegetal and to me unpleasant finish and mid-palate. I've never liked this offering from ABC, and this does nothing to change my mind.
• 1993 Pommard "Clos de la Platière" (Prince de Merode) An average Pommard that lacks enough vibrant fruit to keep you interested. Clean, correct, proper, and boring. Needs some upfront, sweet fruit, some additional glycerine, and then we might have a really interesting wine. Worth buying if the price were right, say under $20, but otherwise, don't bother.
• 1988 Faiveley Mercurey "Croix Jacquelet" Not a bad performance for a village wine, but a little shy of getting good marks. Where the fruit should show velvet and vibrancy, it seems flat, heralding a wine perhaps a bit past peak. Tinged with strawberries, it lacks sufficient stuffing and sweetness to really be interesting, but not a bad effort if the price were right.
• 1987 Corton "Renardes" (Capitain-Gagnerot) Fairly impressive for the vintage at this point in time. Does everything fairly well, nothing specially well. Good body, good fruit, fades a little too quickly with air. Could use a touch more depth and concentration, but that's the vintage.....
• 1991 Chambolle-Musigny (Confuron) This wine has a hard edge, a hint of a raspberry core at first, but ultimately it devolves into a fairly charmless wine of medium body and insufficient ripe fruit. Its most attractive attributes blew off fast. It's not a total disaster, but even with air it failed to improve, and indeed the air revealed its flaws.
• 1988 Volnay "En Champans" (Monthelie-Douhairet) A lovely little Volnay that is drinking beautifully now. When the fruit coats your mouth with velvet and gives you a couple of layers of sweetness to boot, you've met the first two criteria for hedonistic pinot pleasure. To be sure, this is not a great wine. It doesn't grab you by the throat and scream for attention, but it does everything well and has no major defects. If you want more depth and concentration, pay more. This wine delivers in its price range.
• 1993 Panther Creek Reserve Pinot Noir (Oregon) This wine is a year or two from being ready, and it's going to be a good one. At the moment, it's still a bit hard and closed, the tannins are still prominent, and only the nose gives some hint of what is to come. It could be a bit bigger and rounder, but for about $19, pinots with this much velvet, glycerine and flavor are not easy to find. When it fully opens, it should be lovely.
• 1993 Concha y Toro Marques de Casa Concha Chardonnay (Chile) For inexpensive chardonnay, I give this high marks. If I were being critical, I would say it was a little too oaky (but still seems to have enough flesh and fruit), but more importantly, it has a somewhat odd finish, which, although offbeat, I actually rather liked. You may not be as forgiving, but this wine has a lot to recommend it in its price range, delivering, at least, flavor and body.
• 1994 Chardonnay "Alto Adige" (Tiefenbrunner)(Italy) Another cheap chard that has its flaws, but delivers some flavor and provides some reasonable amount of fruit for just $8. Fairly oaky, dark round fruit flavors, a lot of taste for the bucks. Not quite as pungent as the Concha y Toro, above, and not quite as big. Try both.
• 1995 Pouilly-Fuissé "Vielles Vignes" (R. Dubois) This is by no means a great PF, but it's reasonably priced and provides pure fruit flavors after it blossoms in the glass. It needs about a year to mature. It lacks the heft and bite of top notch white burgs, but the pristine chardonnay flavors and elegance are a welcome change of pace after the heavily oaked Chilean and Italian samples above. Make sure to serve this on the warm-ish side and let it breathe in the glass.
• 1992 Gabrielli Reserve Chardonnay (Mendocino County) This limited production wine (400 cases) was available in Pennsylvania for just $14. It has a lot to offer. Its style is oaky, but the fruit is there and sweet. The wine has a nice weight in the mouth and it has matured gracefully since release. I might be more enthusiastic but for a bitter finish that, perhaps, would not be as noticeable if the wine were drunk with a meal. Good marks, in general though, and fair value.
• 1993 Clos Jebsal Pinot Gris Selection des Grain Nobles (Zind-Humbrecht) I had this in April at a comprehensive ZH tasting. I took the half opened bottle home, and the, some hours after it had first been opened, had a chance to freeze it and vacuvin it. I opened it on October 19. It's a truism that these eiswien style wines gain weight and concentration with age and oxidation. All that has been done this wine has only improved it. What was light and airy, is now heading to thick and syrupy...as it should be. The unctuous quality to the wine, the pure, delicious tropical fruit flavors and the thick body presage a great future for a wine that may last decades.
• 1959 Chianti Classico Riserva (Fossi) This apparently late bottled wine appeared on shelves for around $30. It was a good risk, but a failure. The wine has lost most of its flavor and is oxidizing unpleasantly.
• 1990 Gigondas (Santa Duc) Truly, a great Gigondas. Cascades of rich, forward, ripe blueberry fruit that never seem to stop. I had one friend who suggested it would be better in five years, but I don't think so. At age six, the wine shows no signs of stopping, but when that gorgeous, hedonistic fruit begins to tone down, I wonder if it will be so interesting. I get relatively little tannin, usually a requirement for graceful aging over the long haul. My guess is, whatever this wine's longevity, I won't have any left to find out. :)
• 1981 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape (rouge) This wine has some ardent admirers, but I'm not one of them. It summarizes everything I often dislike in Beaucastels when I dislike them. The wine is dominated by broad, gamey flavors which make the fruit almost an afterthought. The fruit itself has flattened out and lacks vibrancy. If you're a fan of this wine, I'm leaving you my share.
• 1993 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape (Blanc) This is a wine that seems to do most things correctly but nothing exceptionally well. I was a little disappointed in it, having developed a fondness for great white Rhones. Mostly Roussanne based, it seems to lack character and depth. Not bad, but not distinguished.
• 1994 Coudoulet Cotes du Rhones Blanc (Beaucastel) This wine is showing too young and disjointed at the moment. The acidity is a little too prominent and the wine a little too tart. On the whole, although I think this will come into balance, I don't think it has the depth and fruit to be a really interesting wine. Let the price tag be your motivating factor.
• Pol Roger NV Champagne Creamy, toasty, rich, full bodied....if only all non-vintage Champagnes were this good! If one were to criticize, there is just a hint of bitterness on the finish. But when surrounded by such rich, toasty froth, it's easy to forgive. A winner.
• 1991 Crozes-Hermitage "Mute Blaniche" Blanc (Jaboulet) This wine shows pretty floral notes, tropical fruit flavors, and there is a time when drinking it that one might find it really appealing. Ultimately, its eccentricities outweigh its benefits for me. It could use a little more weight, but that's forgivable in a Crozes. More importantly, I ultimately felt like I was drinking pineapple juice. The novelty wore off. I wanted a Rhone.
• 1988 Domaine de Saint-Prefert Chateauneuf-du-Pape (Serre) An inexpensive, dirt cheap Chateauneuf that would be hard to find in this country, but is worth the effort. This Domaine goes for balance and elegance, and unlike most, manages to pull it off without your feeling deprived of fruit. Medium bodied, subtly but broadly flavored, if this were available here for the $10 or so it costs in France, it would be a great deal.
• 1992 Morey St. Denis, Clos de la Bussière (Roumier) When "on" this can be one of the best values in Burgundy. This bottling was OK, but not special. On opening, it added a harsh, tannic finish atypical of Roumier to a wine that seemed flat, acidic and unpleasant. After airing out for half an hour or so, it improved immensely--not enough to be a find, or a special wine, but enough to be a fair recommendation if the price were right. Still, this will never be a great Clos de la Bussière.
• 1990 Calera "Mills" Pinot Noir When young, this wine was an exercise in hedonism. It simply drenched you with layers of sweet, ripe, flamboyant fruit redolent of cherries and strawberries. I thought at the time though that it would not age as well as other Caleras, and tonight does nothing to change my impression. The wine still shows some considerable glycerine and velvet in the mouth, but the finish is a bit green. A lot of the hedonism has been lost. It's still a very enjoyable wine, but not quite the superstar that made you scream for more in its youth. I don't think this wine will fall apart immediately and some may even like its newfound restraint. However, my recommendation would be to drink it up over the next couple of years.
• 1992 Meursault-Perrières (Pierre Morey) This wine doesn't show much in my view. It's a little too lemony, and the acidity is out of balance at the moment. It's a bit short and lacks depth and concentration. This wine could use some more weight. It's pleasant enough, but not a $25 to $30 bottle. Just because it's Burgundy doesn't mean we should make excuses in the sense of value for money.
• 1990 Chambolle-Musigny (Roumier) This was a delicious wine in its youth whose only flaw was that it was a bit short on finish and depth. I.e., a perfect village wine. The only mistake made here was keeping it so long. It still provides some pleasure, but I really think this is a wine that would have been better drunk young.
• 1991 Aloxe-Corton (Senard) An obscure wine from a producer I don't know much about. This has little to recommend it in my view. The fruit is flat and has an odd aftertaste. Boring and flawed at the same time. It's just there.
• 1987 Menada Cabernet/Merlot Reserve (Bulgaria); 1990 Menada Cabernet Reserve (Bulgaria); 1991 Menada Cabernet Reserve(Bulgaria) (all from the Oriachovitza region); 1994 Menada Merlot Stara Zagora (Bulgaria); I'll deal with this radically different quartet of wines from Bulgaria in one note. For suggested retail prices of $5 to $5.50, the 1991 Cabernet and the 1994 Merlot are excellent values in that price range. The Merlot shows some pulpy, Beaujolais style fruit, some mouth drying tannins on the palate and has some flavor. It's out of balance, and I doubt that the forward fruit, which seems to have a touch of carbonic maceration, will hold long enough to support the aging it needs. But for $5, you could do worse. The 1991 Cabernet is the best of the group. Pretty cherry flavors, medium body, some tannins for structure, not an overly strong varietal flavor, but for a suggested list price of $5.50 (which may be greatly reduced on the street), it's a good value. Certainly, a flawed wine. But $5 or so? It delivers value. The best of the group by quite a bit. The 1990 Cab has faded, shows little flavor and has seen better days. A weaker vintage than 91. The 87 Cab/Reserve is a shame. Here's a wine for $7.50 list price that shows some weight and heft for its price range, but....BUT. The wine simply tastes like broccoli. Talk about vegetal! Simply hideous, despite having done some good things. Only 3500 cases, and that may be a good thing.
• 1993 Chateau Souverain Merlot One of California's bargain wineries hits the mark again. Nice effort. Well balanced wine with fruit integrated into the structure, can support and needs a year or so's time in the cellar. Everything correctly done, medium body, good weight and heft in this price range.
• 1988 DeLoach Russian River Chardonnay I didn't expect much from this wine, but I got more than anticipated. It's held well for a California chardonnay. It opened sweet and tight, but showed its age with air, as the flavors dissipated rapidly and the wine went flat. Drink up if you're holding it, and drink fast when you open it.
• 1986 Williams-Selyem "Rochioli" Pinot Noir A marvel. When this wine was young, it was a medium bodied slice of strawberry candy. I liked it, but didn't see enough depth and structure to permit aging. It was an open question at the time, and many said it wouldn't age. I held a bottle or two, and it's STILL drinking beautifully. In fact, with air, the wine blossomed even more, and the initial, hard finish dissipated. Explosive, fabulous nose; plenty of glycerine and velvet. Sweet fruit, dark chocolate on the finish, rounded and beautifully balanced.
• 1987 Laurel Glen Cabernet I don't know if this bottle is typical of not, but if so this wine has deteriorated alarmingly. It still shows great weight and body, but nose and finish reek of decay and autumn leaves. Taste before buying what used to be a fine wine, and may be still in better bottles.
• 1976 Sterling Reserve Caberent If the Laurel Glen is showing autumnal qualities, this has headed into winter. It's leathery, showing little of the Laurel Glen depth, but still attractive in weight and concentration. Well balanced, but simply over the hill. The decay and oxidation are too much, and the flavors of the fruit have been lost.
• 1986 Dominus I like their new style; I liked their old style. The only two Dominus bottlings I haven't liked much were the 1983 and 1988, both very difficult California vintages. Among the others, this is my least favorite, but still a fine wine. Amazing depth and concentration, takes a long time to air out, and seems to have multiple layers of fruit. The fruit seems simplistic and the wine one dimensional, though. It's chunky and that's about it. The 1984, by contrast, has sweetness and more flavor; the 85 and 87 better balance and finesse despite their power and concentration. Very good, but a B+ or A-, not a superstar.
• 1993 Beringer "Sbragia" Chardonnay OK, I admit it. I don't get this popular and rare wine. Yes, it has good depth and concentration. But it just seems heavy, without distinctive flavors or character. Drunk next to the Peter Michael "Cuvee Indigene" [reviewed last month], it was blown away in my view. There are a lot of interesting, expensive chards on the market these days in many different styles---Peter Michael's stuff, Talbott, Kistler, Mt. Eden, Marcassin. I just don't see this one in that group.
• 1994 Phelps Late Harvest Riesling A lighter styled late harvest wine, with delicate flavors, tropical nuances and a pretty floral bouquet. But if you like this style, there's a better alternative: buy the Bonny Doon Muscat which doubles it in intensity and flavor.

  
  
  

  
  

Copyright © 1996, all rights reserved, Mark Squires.