Alsace (except dessert/sparkling)
1996 Riesling "Les Murailles" (Dopf et Irion) 
This inexpensive riesling is a good value if you like this type of wine.  It opens with a heavy hit of acid, and then pleasingly, the acid integrates well with the fruit.  The style seems almost German at times. The finish is marked by strong, lemony notes, but is not displeasing. Once the wine starts to integrate, it remains pleasing for a considerable time, but eventually fades, as the fruit is not substantial enough to completely match the acid. Still, if you're into high acid wines, this is an inexpensive bargain.  Like many such wines, it cannot (and should not!) be held long enough to let the acid calm down because there just isn't enough fruit to survive long cellaring but holding it another year or so might improve the balance.     85 points.

1997 Pinot Gris "Rangen Clos St. Urbain" (Zind-Humbrecht)
Surprisingly restrained, this seems more like routine pinot gris, than what I normally see from ZH's Rangen offering. A bit flat, a bit reticent, the wine seems too thin and slightly diluted.  Not bad, but unimpressive for the producer and vineyard.  85 points.

Australia (except dessert/sparkling)
1996 Shiraz "Draycott Reserve" (Burge)
It’s hard not to like this wine, despite evident flaws. Most importantly, it is overoaked. It is just drenched in new American oak. If anyone uncorks a bottle in a restaurant, you will notice right away; it can probably be smelled from across the room. For all of that, the fruit is tremendous, and almost holds up to the oak. The wine has great texture. It is sweet, and everything rushes at you at once. It seems flamboyant and a bit kinky. Subtle, it ain’t. But if you’re in a tolerant mood, you have to give this a break. It has too much depth and pizazz to really hate. It’s fun. 92 points

1997 Shiraz Reserve (Fox Creek)
Now, take a look at a saner way in which wines can be made. This perfectly balanced Shiraz is sweet and sexy. There’s nothing dull or boring about it. Yet, it has a gentle beauty to it that the Draycott does not. No, it is not quite as deep, but the finish is excellent, and the wine has the balance necessary to impart some sanity. This needs holding for a year or two, I think, to knit together, although it isn’t showing too badly now. If I could take the depth of fruit from the Burge and overlay Fox Creek’s style, I think we’d have one near-perfect wine. 93 points.

1998 Shiraz/Grenache (The Hattrick)
Sweet fruit dominates the first, last and in-between impressions of this wine. For something this young, is it amazingly soft and approachable. It is medium bodied. The wine has very nice flavor, but is otherwise unexceptional, very good, rather than terrific. Needs a bit more pizazz. 88 points.

1998 Shiraz "Springflat Estate" (Wild Duck Creek)
Take some big oaky overlays, although mostly around the edges. Relatively speaking, this, the regular bottling,  is not drenched in oak. Add a touch of acid. Then, dump some cinnamon into the vat? Well, this distinctive Shiraz is a middle of the road wine, but for its unique flavor profile. I liked it, but I wonder how they did that...... Very good, not great. 89 points.

1997 Shiraz (Viking Grand)
Oak-imparted licorice tinges the wine, but the components integrate well. Medium to light bodied, it has supple tannins, and a touch of acid. A little cellaring may improve this wine’s score, but it doesn’t seem to have the depth to be anything special. 86-88 points.

1995 Shiraz "Armagh" (Jim Barry)
There’s so much to like here....it is just such a pity that the winemaker decided to turn his wine into yet another stereotypical Aussie shiraz, drenched in new American oak, even worse than the Burge Reserve above, I think, and tasting a lot like, well, other similar wines with fruit flavors obscured by the oak. This wine has evident structure, and should age well. It is powerful, and deep. I like the soft texture, but it has a welcome sternness to it that most Shiraz does not. But is it possible to add any more new American oak? There are plenty of positive factors in this wine, and I would be willing to drink one if opened, but I have to admit that I don’t think I’d bother to buy it. If you are more tolerant of the oak-induced flavor profiles that give this wine a disturbing similarity to so many other generic shiraz bottlings that are most notable for their oak, you’ll like it a lot. I shed a tear for the flaw that changed a potentially mind-blowing, legendary wine into this. 90? points.

1997 Shiraz Reserve (Noon)
Medium bodied, with a hint of tannins on the finish, this seems stolid and middle of the road Shiraz. Not that that is a bad thing, but it is hard to find anyplace where this wine really excels, yet it is hard to find anything to criticize. I just was left wanting a touch more excitement, if that makes sense. Might improve with a year or two in the cellar. 89-90 points.

1998 Shiraz "Piggot Range" (Clarendon)
Clarendon is famous for making exotic, very sweet wines with odd flavor profiles, especially the Old Vines Grenache. I like them. They are not for everyone. This is Clarendon all the way, except that there are astringent tannins on the finish and the fruit is not quite so raspberry oriented. Otherwise, it’s Clarendon Blewitt or Kangarilla all over again. Exotic, very sweet fruit, juicy and forward, dripping with flavor. The wine is a bit disjointed and too young; give a couple of more years. Yet, it is amazingly approachable. Pure pleasure, nothing profound in sight. Sometimes, that works fine. 90-92 points.

The following pinots were tasted blind as part of a special event,  on which I  have an article putting everything in context along with the ringers. 

1995 Coldstream Hills Reserve 
I loved the texture and the core of  sweet, up front, pretty cherry fruit.  It was focused and elegant, not clunky, but had good weight. But it faded so fast that it was startling, and I was left with a wine that was Burgundian in style and weight, but had gone flat and flavorless. Coldstream is made by Halliday, an Aussie writer and  pinot fanatic, and is widely viewed down under as really having gotten it right. In texture and style, true. But in depth, finish and flavor.... NOT.   Interestingly, I thought the same thing of the bottles I had in Australia last year.  Good start, no finish. About $25 in the USA.  87 points.

1997 Dry River (New Zealand)
The 1997 Dry River ($43) won a lot friends, but I was not among them. I thought the style was right, and there was some nice raspberry flavor on the finish, but the wine seemed too thin and a bit hollow in the mid-palate. The finish wasn't bad, but showed some acid that I didn't like either.   Not bad, but hardly what I would call a $40+ wine.  87 points.

1998 Stonier 
From Australia's Mornington Peninsula. Flat,  lost flavor quickly, and barren of mid-palate fruit.  It had cherries up front and was candied on the finish, but in the mid-palate seemed thin and hollow.  It faded fast.  84 points

1998 Spring Vale (Tasmania)
The Spring Vale presented a different choice. It was pinot noir made like Jim Barry Armagh. Drenched in American oak, and of greater weight than other wines in the flight, the wine had fairly good depth though a bit too much acid on the finish.  Still, I liked the weight and concentration. But it was hard to tell that this was pinot in either style or flavor. If overoaking shiraz can be objectionable, doing it to more delicate pinot noir is a bit of an offense against nature. I think the Spring Vale was arguably the deepest wine in this flight, but American oak and pinot noir...I shudder. I had nightmares for a week. 86 points.

1996 Martinborough Vineyard Reserve (New Zealand)
The somewhat bitter and also slightly flat Martinborough from Marlborough, New Zealand was another heralded Down Under pinot that left me cold. Cherries up front, but not much intensity, depth or finish. It turned flat and boring quickly.  85 points.  

1996 Massoni Red Hill 
Another supposedly hot, Mornington Peninsula wine, a cooler climate area near Melbourne.  Supposedly a hot wine of the moment,  to me it seemed  sour and bitter, perhaps showing some VA. Not much value at $32 either.  It was one of my least favorites. I cannot describe the depth of my dislike, so let me say...80 points.

1994 Bass Philip Premium
Bass Philip is Australia's superstar pinot maker near Melbourne. The American analogy is Williams-Selyem. Their top of the line wine is unobtainable like Rochioli was. Their mid-level, around $40 (I actually paid $50), is the "Premium."  The 1994  was pretty good, but a poor value at that price. Good texture, good finish, some typicity, some hints of game and character.  I liked the hints of strawberry and the texture, although it did not develop much.  It lacked a bit of intensity in the mid-palate, but was a pretty nice wine. Factor in the price, and I have to pass if someone asks me to buy more.  89 points.

1997 Cloudy Bay (New Zealand) QPR Winner
In New Zealand, this is a $14 wine, and I thought it was a lovely effort, with typicity, although rather short and light. For a simple wine in its price range, terrific. Hard to get pinot of this quality for less. The fruit has a hint of licorice which integrates quickly, and then some game and nuances come out to give it character. Perhaps I'm too generous in the score, but the value for the money is an influence.  88 points.

1995 Moss Wood (Margaret River) 
This, from Western Australia, is another highly touted Aussie pinot, and I saw personal evidence of how well it ages when an Aussie friend gave me a 1983 recently. This had more depth and power than any Aussie pinot, including the Spring Vale. While it did have a touch of American Oak, it wasn't drenched in it like the Spring Vale. Exotic, lush, complex. Combines rustic and flamboyant, combines game and mint flavors, with rich fruit. 90 points.  

1992  Shiraz "Balmoral" (Rosemount) 
It was hard to dislike this wine, but also hard to get enthused about it. It seemed a bit long in tooth, perhaps, compared to how such wines normally show. It is balanced and restrained, polite and proper.  It has some velvet texture, and blueberry flavor on the finish. The mid-palate seems to have thinned, maybe a bit too much. Pleasing, middle of the road wine. 88 points.

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Bordeaux (except dessert/sparkling)
1985 Cos d'Estournel
This is a well-resolved, ready to roll Cos, in splendid form. A lot of 1985s show some cracks in my opinion. Or, perhaps more accurately, they have lost their flamboyance and youthful charm, and little has replaced it. Not here. This wine has a gorgeous texture, round and velvety, everything in balance, with no sharp edges. While it seems velvety, however, it is also backed up by depth and concentration. The wine, to be sure, is not quite exciting. It, too, has lost its youthful enthusiasm. However, its solid, layered performance wins kudos. 90 points.

1966 Mouton Baron Philippe
With a mid-shoulder level, this wine was just over the hill. It was tolerable for about ten minutes. But then the oxidation and smell of decay took over. There were tannins and acid, but little discernible fruit.   Over the hill, with or without a good level.  75 points.

1989 Léoville Barton
Barton, when it is on, always provides a pleasing wine that is elegant and pure, fragrant and balanced. It reminds me in some respects of Margaux commune wines.  It never excels, in my view.  The wine is always a little too light, a little shy in concentration and depth, a little short.  This wine exemplifies good LB.  Grapey, sweet fruit, not much underneath.  A pleasing drink, but not a wine to talk about. Just a routine beverage with your meal. That is in keeping with LB's philosophy, I suppose, but don't you want a little more from a wine of this classification?  If you like their style, this is as good as it gets. 88 points.

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Burgundy (red) (except dessert/sparkling)
1995 Volnay "Clos des Ducs" (Marquis d'Angerville)
This signature wine from d'Angerville is lovely.  The texture is velvet and the fruit is bursting with framboise flavor. The bouquet is powerful, too.   It seems to get better throughout the evening,  and ultimately some tannins and power show through, too. It is medium bodied.  Served from a half bottle, it was perhaps more ready to drink than a 750ml, which should age gracefully for a decade or more.  Ultimately, the wine is defined by the exuberance of its fruit.  Simply delicious.  91 points.

1992 Chambolle-Musigny "Les Amoureuses" (Roumier)
One of the nicest '92s I've had in awhile, this velvet-textured pinot rolls around your mouth and coats it with elegant fruit. There is a bit of candied raspberry on the intense finish, and sweet raspberry fruit in the mid-palate. A pleasure to drink, and surprisingly exuberant for the vintage. 90 points.

1988 Nuits St Georges "Les Boudots"(Grivot)
This Burg shows gentleness and elegance, some velvety texture, and charm.  It opens with tomato notes and acid, but integrates well, to become a sittin'-by-the-river wine, that goes down easy and doesn't require much more thought than enjoyment of the strawberry-nuanced finish. The fruit has thinned, though, and the wine lacks some depth and concentration.  It needs drinkin' up, so while you're down by the river, grab some of these from the cellar and finish them.  88 points.

1990 Beaune "Chouacheux" (Machard de Gramont)
Big, thick and powerful, this wine needed a lot of air to show everything it had.  There is some barnyard on the finish, and some mint, too.  With air, the components gradually pulled together, and the fragrant fruit wrapped itself into a meaty core.  The wine has some eccentricities, but on the whole, shows a lot of stuffing for a Beaune, and some character. 89 points.

1988 Corton-Maréchaudes (Prince de Merode)
This showed some oxidation, good weight and some remaining tannins, especially on the finish. It opened and developed nicely with air,  and seemed broad and expansive, but always seemed a touch off, lacking some freshness. I liked how it gained weight. If it had had a bit more flavor, I would have been more impressed. Showed much better with some air, and the score went up accordingly.  89 points.    

Burgundy (white) (except dessert/sparkling)
1996 Meursault "Le Clos de Tavaux" (Gaunoux)
This is a producer I do not know well, but if this is an example of his wines, I'd like to know more. True, the wine, at such a young age, is a bit light and seems completely ready to drink. But it is buttery, marked by typical lees notes,  flavorful and elegant.  Stupendous, profound wine it is not; but it was well balanced, tasty and flavorful enough so that it disappeared real fast.  88 points.

1991 Chassagne-Montrachet "Les Caillerets" (Amiot-Bonfils)
Light and a bit flat, this restrained, thinning Chassagne has a few good points, but is unexciting and a bit boring.  I liked the subtle, smokey finish, but the fruit was just too light and thin. Ultimately, I had to say it was just run-of-the-mill white burgundy. 85 points.

1990 Chablis "Les Clos" (Dauvissat)
A monumental wine, a tour de force. Enough superlatives? Thick and rich, almost to the point where I want to say syrupy, this wine has everything going for it. Despite its brawny depth, it shows some traces of age that great older Chablis develop, that nuanced truffles and mushroom scents and flavors.  Developed elegance with air, too.  A truly great Chablis.  95 points.

California/USA (red) (except dessert/sparkling)
1996 Pinot Noir "Brown Ranch" (Saintsbury)
This hard to find pinot from Saintsbury is thick and rich, very ripe, and suffused with raspberry flavors.  The wine starts a bit candied on the finish, but with air its youthful exuberance begins to integrate well with other components. Still, this is not a shy, or elegant wine. It is fruit forward and full of flavor, and very sweet. It will be interesting to see how this ages; it drinks fairly well now.  90-92 points.

1996 Opus
Ok, well, this ain't your father's Opus. Over the years, it has been easy to deride Opus, as an overpriced wine that stressed elegance to the point where the wine was thin and diluted. The 1980s bottlings were uninspiring at best, boring and insipid at worst. Not this one. Sweet and brawny, with dark chocolate overlays, this Opus is surprisingly rich and fine, highly extracted and shockingly approachable.  Ripeness, voluptuousness and a velvety texture make it seem like an exotic Pomerol.  93 points.

1991 Syrah (Eberle)
This gentle wine had loads of charm, and it grew on me the more I drank it. It is not the biggest, deepest or most flamboyant, but it has gorgeous, velvety texture and persistent flavors. Nuances of pepper and spice appear on the finish for some character. Elegant and lush. 90 points.

1994 Petite Sirah (Rockland)
This wine always seems a bit on the light side, and a bit tannic. The tannins here are astringent, and the wine really needs more time to open up. Considering the weight, and despite the pronouncements about its ability to age indefinitely, I am not so sure I would hold this beyond 2005 for fear of risking the fruit. It is always interesting watching wines like this. Maybe I’ll be surprised. I have seen them go through dumb stages.  88+ points.

1997 Syrah (Paloma)
There’s a big hit of American oak up front, and the wine’s other components, acid, tannin and fruit, fight for attention. Maybe this will knit together with a couple of years in the cellar. At the moment, it is disjointed, and I am not so sure I will ever really like its balance. The fruit is obscured and dull, and I disliked the acid component, too. My guess is that this won’t become anything special. 84 points.

1996 Syrah "Saralee Vineyard" (Arrowood)
This wine is not quite at peak, but with some air becomes more or less approachable. Still, I would look for it to drink best in about two to three years. It shows intense and pure, combining ripe, pristine fruit, with persistence and some power. Look for this wine to evolve into a flavorful beauty with depth and good balance. 90 points.

1997 Syrah (Lewis)
Good fruit in a medium bodied wine is obliterated by the heavy hit of new American oak. This unbalanced wine just doesn’t have the fruit to support this much oak flavoring, and the result is a disjointed wine that goes a bit awry, despite the nice fruit. On the whole, routine stuff in this style, and it could have been so much better with some restraint. 86 points.

1997 Syrah (Lava Cap)
I had never heard of this wine before, but it got my attention. Big and intense, and tinged with oak around the edges, this wine’s dominant characteristic is its velvety fruit and texture. Already approachable, the wine has depth and persistence, and looks like a promising candidate for improvement with a few years of cellaring. 90-91 points.

1996 Syrah "Bien Nacido" (Ojai)
Drunk next to a lot of big wines of all nationalities, this seemed too light to be exceptional. The wine is a bit tight, with supple tannins, but doesn’t really seem to have enough fruit to evolve into something special. Pleasant enough, but hard to get excited about. 85 points.

1997 Pinot Noir (Macrostie)
This surprisingly good pinot  showed a bit bretty, but had good balance and classic flavors, distinctive and rustic. The fruit was sweet despite the gamey nuances.  The brett wasn't too bad.  The sweetness coupled with the distinctive rustic character grew on me more and more.  90 points.

1995 Pinot Noir (Sand Castle) (Pennsylvania)
It was thin and light, and very odd. As pinot noir,  it wasn't so interesting. But it tasted good, with sweet, port like flavors, almost syrupy, with a touch of licorice and raspberry.  Very eccentric, but I liked it. Which caused great chuckles all around when the bags were removed, as this was in a blind tasting.  In my defense, I noted loudly before the bags were removed that it was weird and nothing like pinot. But it had flavor. It tasted good.  85 points depending on how you feel about typicity.  You could add to that score or take away......  

1997 Pinot Noir Russian River Reserve (Martinelli)
On a night when some 18 pinot-based wines were served from around the world,  it just outclassed everything in depth.  Roasted meat nuances at the outset were eventually overwhelmed by gorgeous, sweet fruit. The wine was lush and deep, with a creamy texture, concentrated and powerful. It is perhaps not a Burgundy fanatic's wine, but it was one of the class items of the evening. 91 points. 

1994 Zinfandel "Moore Earthquake" (Turley)
A profound zin, this Turley is burly and brawny, less the fruit bomb than a structured wine. There is always structure lurking under the concentrated Turley fruit, and the 94s are great Turleys in general, and the Moore one of the biggest. Oh, there's still plenty of flavor. Rich and deep, the wine shows persistent and penetrating fruit that pokes through and overcomes any tannins or other aspects. Dark chocolate, amaretto flavors. Mouth coating finish. A great zin, aging gracefully. 94 points.

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California /USA (white) (except dessert/sparkling)
1998 Chardonnay (Sutter Home) QPR Winner
Ok. Laugh at me if you will.  But as a bottom of the line, no-status chard, I actually thought this was one of the better cheap chards I have had from California in awhile.  Toasty and flavorful, with some vanilla notes on the finish, the wine has a nice body for its status, and does a good job of providing some distinctive flavors and style at a low, bottom of the line price level.  Sure, you can do better,  it thins out a bit too fast, and the vanilla notes are probably from oak chips,  but on those days when your in-laws are coming over (you know, the ones who like to put ice cubes in your Puligny-Montrachet), this might serve an important purpose, saving your Puligny and yet providing a wine you are willing to drink.   It is a nice effort.  Loses points for aging ability, but is pretty darned tasty now.  83 points. 

1997 Chardonnay "Unfiltered" (Newton)
In typical Newton style, this is pure power.  Lots of oak, lots of lees, lots of fruit, burly and frankly a bit clunky at times. Still, you have to admire the depth, the intensity of flavor on the finish and the persistence of the fruit, battling sometimes desperately to fit in.  90 points.  

1996 and 1995 Chardonnay "Camp Meeting Ridge" (Flowers)
I give the '96 the nod here, for depth, bouquet and intensity, but otherwise both wines are similar. The '96 opens with a gorgeous, dead-ringer Burgundian nose of  hazelnuts. The lees flavorings are heavy and intense.  The fruit is a bit restrained. One of the questions I sometimes have had about Flowers in the past is its weight. There's a lot of lees, oak and power, but I'm not always sure there is enough fruit to hang it on.  This wine is only medium-bodied, but just makes the balance, and coupled with the flavors and bouquet, it is gorgeous. 91 points.  The 1995 is similar in style, but the fruit is a bit more reticent, the wine a bit less intense. It is very good, but not quite as impressive. Perhaps a factor of the extra year of cellaring?  89 points.

Dessert / Sparkling Wines
1993 Tokaji 5 Puts (Disnoko)
Jean-Michel Caze's AXA group has done a great job.  Syrupy and sweet, better than any old style 5 puts you can find, this wine is a joy to drink.  There is just a hint of old style oxidation and madeira. Mostly, it is fresh and honeyed.  More wines like this, and Tokaji is a superstar again. 91 points.

1985 Champagne "Cuvée des Enchanteleurs" (Henriot)
This bubbly shows some oxidation around the edges, but also lots of toast, and a big, penetrating finish. The fruit has thinned a bit, like a lot of 1985s are showing, but there is plenty of weight and punch left.  Ripe and classy.  90 points.

1978 Port "Boberg Library Reserve" (KWV)
If you've read past reports, you know I've lauded the 1970 and the 1969 as some of the most flavorful, best bargain fortified wines around.  This South African port is another beauty. Tannic and pristine, pure and rich, the wine seems youthful and new.  The flavors are persistent and the wine's backbone promises a long life ahead.   A beauty.  90+  points.

1983 Port Colheita (Nieport)
I've never been a big fan of ports like this.  The tawny color is light amber. The flavors are modest with subtle nut nuances. The tannins seem more prominent than the fruit.  This is just too restrained, and lacks flavor and richness.  Don't get me wrong.  I love tawnies and great colheitas.  This is just too restrained a style.  I'd rather have Reynella Old Cave. In fact, dare I say, "Make mine Australian?"  Often, the Aussies seem to be half the price and twice the fun.  84 points.

1983 Sauternes (Chateau Rieussec)
Deep, fragrant and powerful, with some of the creme caramel aspects of gently oxidizing Sauternes, this still shows richness and classic flavors. Brawny and muscular, it shows why Sauternes is a wine, not just a dessert wine.  92 points.

1996 Riesling Late Harvest (Martinborough)
This New Zealand stickie is just a beauty.  Rich and honeyed, thick and syrupy, the wine has just enough acidity to go with the flavors and richness. Apricots, pears, and bliss. 92 points.

1993 Sparkling Wine Ferrari  Peile' Rosé
This Italian sparkler is a delight, and only about $20 in Italy. Not imported, so far as I know.  I don't think this is quite a brut, but it is not sweet. The wine is fragrant and tastes of cherries up front. The initial impression is a soft wave of bubbles, with hints of toast on the finish. Beautiful flavor and some body in an inexpensive package.  OK, it's not a profound wine, but it is a lot of fun. 88 points.

Germany (except dessert/sparkling)
1997 Spatburgunder Durkheimer Feuerberg (Fitz-Ritter)
This is under $12, but even at that price, it's a bit of a disgrace. Thin and watery, flavorless, wholly undistinguished. Drink chilled, treat it like cheap Beaujolais.  78 points.

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Italy
1994 Brunello di Montalcino (Pertimali)
Ripe and rustic, fruity and powerful, this Brunello can easily be cellared for a decade.  Yet, in newer wave style, it is approachable, and balanced, and the tannins are fine, not astringent.  Good, stern Brunello, with plenty of fruit, too. 90 points. 

1990 Brunello di Montalcino (Ciacci Piccolomini)
I just thought this was spectacular Brunello. Rich and sweet, packed with more fruit than I thought I would see in a Brunello, this wine is powerful and flamboyant, ripe and sexy.  Everything you could want in this appellation.  94 points.

1982 Barolo Riserva (Rocche dei Manzoni)
The wine opens with worrisome, astringent tannins. Hmmmm.  But there seems to be some fresh, velvety fruit underneath.  And then a miracle occurs.  The astringent tannins blow off with some ten to fifteen minutes of air in a glass. The fruit is amazingly ripe and rich; it hardly seems like Barolo. The wine develops all evening. It becomes silky eventually, with some strawberry and almond notes. Simply beautiful wine. 94 points. 

Loire (except dessert/sparkling)
1998 Chinon "Les Gravierès d'Amador Abbé de Tupernay" (Couly-Dutheil) QPR Winner
Soft and fruity, this young vines Chinon is simply delicious for short term drinking.  The exuberant, raspberry-tinged fruit is bursting with flavor, so much so that you wonder whether someone dumped a vat of framboise into the wine.  Sexy, elegant, velvety, suffused with flavor.  This not terribly complex wine is nonetheless immensely pleasing as classy quaffer.  It is a short-termer, and is ready to drink now,  although there is a hint of some tannin as it airs out.  It loses points for its ability to age, and it is what it is,  but don't let that deter you, as it sure is tasty now.  87 points.

1996 Chinon "Les Varennes du Clos" (Joguet) QPR Winner
This Chinon is a step up from young vines 1998 Couly-Dutheil, above. It is more substantial, weightier, more concentrated. The fruit is as sweet, tinged with red berry flavors, but has more depth.  It is stylish and elegant, velvety and rich.   On the whole, a pretty Chinon, flavorful and ripe, and  drinking beautifully now.  Like most fine Chinons, a real value, too.  90 points.

1996 Vouvray  Moelleux (Bourillon-Dorleans)
Flabby, with insufficient acidity, this Vouvray seems dumpy and clunky, like a teenager wearing a old woman's dress to the senior prom.  Served blind, I guessed it was  a local wine, maybe a seyval blanc. I don't apologize. That seems to be its mindset and quality level. 82 points.

Rhone/South/Southwest France (except dessert/sparkling)
1994 Cotes de Provence (Chateau de la Bégude) QPR Winner
I had never heard of this estate before, but this is was a nice introduction.  Fragrant and sweet, with blueberry nuances, the wine seems just fruity at first, but shows some structure and a touch of tannin on the finish.  At five years old, it is exuberant, pristine and fresh, and shows not a hint of entering a mature phase.  With air, there also comes some distinctive notes, a touch of game. Silky and elegant, too. Very nice.  89 points.

1995 Cotes du Languedoc "Cote Rousse" (Domaine de l’Aigulière) QPR Winner
Every time I taste this distinctive wine, I realize it will not be to everyone’s taste, sometimes mine included, but it is hard to deny the craftsmanship, the depth, and the beauty of its fruit. The texture is gorgeous, lush and velvety, even on opening. With air, there are some hits of tannin to provide backbone, and the hint of animal fat that you normally get with this wine becomes a bit more prominent. The roasted meat, bacon fat flavors may turn some off. Really, though, the fruit is so big and powerful, that it achieves some balance with those flavors. A wine this deep and finely textured in this price range is a rare find these days. It may be an acquired taste for some, but it is a taste worth acquiring.  Under $35. 92 points.

1985 Hermitage "La Chapelle" (Jaboulet)
This suffered a lot by being opened next to the stunning trio of vintages produced by Jaboulet at the end of the decade, namely, the 88, 89 and 90. [If you are wondering, no review is posted here of the 1988 or 1990 since I have reviewed both of those more than once in the last year or two, and have little to add.] The 1985 was easily the thinnest of the four, and the fruit was showing signs of decay, some tea and wet earth notes produced by oxidation. If the wine was mature, and perhaps a touch too mature, it retained a certain stately elegance, dignity and fully open fruit flavors. It had a certain charm, still, though it is hardly a great wine. 87 points.

1989 Hermitage "La Chapelle" (Jaboulet)
The 1989, tasted next to the 1988 and 1990, demonstrated the vintage differences that Mother Nature produces brilliantly. The sterner, leaner 88, gave way to the sexy, juicy 1989, and then to the thick, multilayered, lush and concentrated 1990. The 1989 is not quite at peak, but is very approachable if you give it some air. It seemed a bit tight at first. But with air, it opened gorgeously, and seemed remarkably sweet and juicy. The 1990 never opened quite so much, and the 1988 hasn’t that much to give. With air, the ‘89 also developed some distinctive game and meaty notes that added some character. This is a sexy, elegant, flavorful wine that is a joy to drink. 92 points.

1996 Cornas "Vielles Vignes" (Tardieu-Laurent)
This is a beautiful, lush and rather forward Cornas. Suffused with raspberry nuances, the fruit is remarkably sweet and the texture is gorgeous. With air, you can indeed detect some backbone, but this wine does not seem to be about structure. Revel in it. Roll it around in your mouth. Call it new wave Cornas. It may not please the Cornas purists, but it sure tastes great. 90 points.

1988 Hermitage (Chave)
Most 1988 Northern Rhones seem rather tannic and stern, and a bit on the lean side, relatively speaking, and compared to the next two vintages. This wine, for awhile, plays along. There are certainly some tannins, although rather ripe, and the wine seems big and powerful. But with a little air and coaxing, the wine develops dramatically and remarkably. The fruit is sweeter and riper than on almost any 1988 I can recall. The depth of the wine is good, and the finish is persistent. A stunning 1988.  93 points.

1989 Hermitage (Chave)
Hmmmm. Now, take that 1988 Chave, above. Add some depth. Add even more ripe, rich fruit. Add a more appealing texture. You get a wine that retains all the power, but is sexier and spectacular. This is a tour de force 1989. Just as the 1988 Chave is about as good as it gets in that vintage, so, too, here. Simply great winemaking. 95 points.

1996 Vin de Pays d’Oc "Copa Santa" (Domaine Clavel) QPR Winner
Well, nothing subtle here. But it is a super wine, with lots of pizazz. As youthful as it is, it is approachable now because there are waves of amazingly sweet fruit. Yet, there is some backbone. If you pay attention, there is some astringency in the tannins on the finish. The wine slides slightly then from pure fruit bomb to big and rustic. When everything knits together–I would give two more years to start with–it will be interesting to see how this shows. I think the balance will be excellent, the flavors will be undiminished, and people drinking this wine will be pretty happy. Amazingly, under $20.   90+ points.

1990 Crozes-Hermitage "Thalabert" (Jaboulet) QPR Winner
This good value wine has held nicely, but it is clearly time to drink up. The fruit has thinned some. Still, there was a lot here to like. The fruit was wide open and flavorful, and the wine screamed "Rhone Valley" at you. For the bucks, it is some good deal, but it needs drinking. 86 points.

1996 Cotes de Provence "Cuvée Tradition" (Domaine Richeaume) QPR Winner
Traditionally one of the best values in the South of France, this "Tradition" is good, but not great.  It delivers classic Rhone flavors, a bit of herb and roasted game,  plus some strawberry and spice. But there is a touch too much acid, and despite some good velvety texture, the wine seems a bit sharp around the edges. This is drinking well now, though, and opens nicely with ten minutes in the glass. Not a great Tradition, but still an excellent buy.  86 points.