Alsace (except dessert/sparkling)

1992 Pinot Gris "Sporen" (J. Ziegler)
Floral enough in its bouquet to make some think it was a gewurz or riesling when served blind,  the wine is fat, thick, dense and powerful. In this vintage, this is simply an amazing achievement.   Vinified bone dry, the wine has so much concentration that I am struggling to think of a 1992 I have had that was any better.  Pinot gris does not get much better. Regrettably for you, I do not believe this producer is imported into the USA. 94 points.

1993 Pinot Gris "Vielles Vignes" (Zind-Humbrecht)
Speaking of great pinot gris.... This wine is off dry, fat and ripe.  It perhaps is not as purely powerful as the Ziegler, above, but it is more flamboyant and flavorful, certainly at the outset.  It has a good finish and a structure to support an unusual aging curve. Exceptional in every respect, although wildly different than the Ziegler. It did thin a bit too fast with air,  which is the only critique I could make.  91 points.

1986 Sociando Mallet
How great is this wine? The level was low, at the base of the neck, and frankly there was a bit of TCA, too. Normally, I would not even bother to review this. It was remarkable anyway.  In this bottle at least, the tannins were there, but in control, and the fruit was big, rich and opening nicely, if a bit burly. (I think a lot of the massive 86s are beginning to show well, finally.) Classic cab flavors overwhelmed the TCA. The tannins provided supple support, and the wine seemed thick and spicy.   You cannot kill this wine. It is another example of how Sociando plays with the big boys, and is perhaps the single best bargain in Bordeaux, year in, year out.  90 points.

1987 Mouton-Rothschild
I haven't reported on this, perhaps the Bordeaux of the vintage, in awhile. I am pleased to say that it is holding beautifully.  The wine has developed considerable elegance and finesse.  It is silky smooth and has held well enough to have flavor left and plenty of distinction. The body has thinned a bit, but there is no hint of a dying wine. In fact, this showed better than the last bottle I had a year or two ago.  Hints of game on the nose and the finish.  This is not a great Bordeaux, but it is a fine achievement in the vintage. 88 points.

1990 Ormes-Sorbet QPR Winner
Cheap, inexpensive, no-name Bordeaux.  It's pretty darned good. Medium bodied, but flavorful, this little wine has beautiful balance and elegance, without being short or boring.  The provider brought it from France. I don't know if it's available here. If it is, call it a "best buy."  Under $12. Not spectacular, but very, very nice, and a surprise for its price range. 88 points.

1989 Monbrison QPR Winner
To my mind, this was one of the best cru bourgeois I've had. This particular bottle looked dubious. The level had dropped a bit. The cork was covered with white powder.   Although I have learned that the outside of the cork does not necessarily presage the condition of the wine, it made me a bit nervous. Not to worry.   This is not only still beautiful, but still brilliant. There is still that sweet, intense core of fruit, together with that lush, round texture. The wine seems a bit spicy, too. The nose is powerful, redolent of blackberries. The finish is long, pure and satisfying. At age 10 from a strange looking bottle it seems to be in the prime of life.   So, what more do you want from a cru? I can think of a few I have liked better, but not many, and not often.  This makes a mockery of the classification and the pricing structure. It has actually improved since my last notes, taking on character and complexity to go with its beautiful fruit.  92 points.

1994 "Aile d'Argent" Bordeaux Blanc (Mouton Rothschild)
On opening, unimpressive and confusing. At first there was a hint of sweetness. Then, the mid-palate seemed thin and uninviting. My first guess (this was served blind) was a white Rhone. But then it warmed up. With air and warmth, the wine exploded in the glass, softening, gaining weight, becoming rich and creamy.  The finish lengthened, too. On the whole, impressive white Bordeaux, although not the most powerful of its type. 91 points.

1995 Trotanoy
Not so pleasing on opening, where the bouquet and palate were dominated by somewhat gamey, bacon fat aromas and flavors. But then, aeration in the glass did what three hours of decanting could not. The wine finally opened and came together, all of its components combining. The finish seems endless. The flavors are intense. The body is deep, rich and dense. This is a wine I would not touch for a decade, though. The tannins were pretty big and astringent, too. 95 points.

1988 Clos Vougeot (Daniel Rion)
Oh, well. Another over the hill Clos Vougeot.  It is identifiably pinot noir. That's the good news. There is not much more good news. The tannins are astringent, the fruit is insufficient to keep up. The deterioration in the fruit quality leads to some oxidation and signs of the wine cracking up, too. Not much discernible flavor.  This really needs another five years of cellaring to allow the tannins to soften. Regrettably, the lack of balance on the wine means that there won't be any fruit left when that five years is up.  At least the Grivot, above, had a little charm. 80 points.

1992 Puligny-Montrachet "Les Combettes" (Sauzet)
A lovely wine that always keeps developing and changing in the glass. It opens with a pungent, hazelnut and lees nose. The fruit is smooth and round, but perhaps a touch thin at first. Then the wine warms and expands in the glass.  The noisette nuances meld with butterscotch, the fruit coats your mouth and the finish lingers, implying that the wine is even bigger than the elegant, medium body would suggest.  A very pleasing white Burg that is drinking beautifully now. 92 points.

1990 Meursault-Genvrières (Bouzerau)
This is a wine needing to be drunk, yet it holds on well.   The body seems a tad thin, and lacking in flesh. There is a touch of acid on the initial taste. Yet the finish provides a lingering hit of lees, fruit and moderate oak flavors, and the wine remains for much longer than you would have thought.  I would like some more flesh and weight, but this has a surprising kick to it that sneaks up on you. A sign of class.  88 points.

1994 Puligny-Montrachet "Champs Gains" (O. Leflaive)
Like a lot of '94s, this is on the lighter side.  But it has many good points.   After it warmed up to appropriate temperature, it showed a nice, long, leesy finish, good flavor and refreshing crispness.  This is not a long term wine, and I would say it should be and perhaps needs to be drunk now.  Eventually,  the fruit will fade before other components, leaving only acidity and lees flavors.  At the moment,  it shows well, as a wine with laid back charm that is drinking beautifully, but is just a bit short on depth.  87 points.

1995 Chablis 1er Cru (Drouhin)
Utterly boring, inoffensive wine masquerading as something special.  Acidic, a bit too tart, too light, too thin, too little flavor.  Chablis 1er Cru?  I imagine Ravenau would die of shame if he released a 1er cru that tasted like this.  80 points.

California /USA (red)(except dessert/sparkling)

1990 Pinot Noir "Mills" (Calera)
The last bottle I had of this wine a couple of months ago  left me a bit puzzled.  True enough, it was made from young vines, and although  it was spectacularly good when young, I did not expect it to age well. Yet, I  inadvertently held it too long. So, I deserved what I got, and should not have been surprised that the wine seemed to be cracking up so badly, and was so uninviting, right?  Yet it was odd that if fell so far, so fast.  Having one bottle left,  I resolved to try a glass, pour the rest down the drain, and move along.   I was pleasantly surprised.  This one  is also past its glory years, but it is way better.  Now, the fruit has some sweetness, considerable strawberry flavors, and a satin smooth, mouth pleasing texture. It even has a burst of pure fruit on the finish.   It does show some age and oxidation, and it is nearing  the end of its useful life, so drink up.  But it has something left that reminds me of the wine, circa 1993, that amazed a group of people and made some  Burgundy fanatics think that Calera was a big time winery.  086 points.

1994 Cabernet "Frei Ranch Vineyard" (Gallo) QPR Winner
There's a new generation in charge at Gallo, and you have to put away your old prejudices. I might call this the single best cabernet value in California.  Running around $18, it is simply beautiful.  Classic cab flavors, cassis, mingled with some blackberries, provide wonderful, flavorful, sweet fruit. The texture is lush and smooth,   perhaps attributable to some blended cabernet franc, and coats your mouth. It is not the thickest wine I have ever had, but there is plenty of stuffing.  There is some tannin with air, but the tannins are supple and ripe, good enough to provide some support, but never intrusive.  Pretty nose, too. There are nuances of American oak on the finish, but it is well controlled and pleasing given that there was a blend of American and French oak barrels.  I think this wine will still improve and develop over the next year or two, but it is delicious now. Depending on your preferences, there is no need to resist uncorking one, and I think this is a mid-term,  not long term wine.  Simply delightful, pure pleasure. 91 points.

1985, 1986 and 1990 Cabernet (Chateau Montelena)
Ok. Let's take these together.  The first point to make is how similar these wines, how much the house style overtakes the vintage. But there are differences. The second factor is how intense and structured these wines remain. They are built for the long haul.  The 1985 was the broadest and most expansive, after it aired out.   The fruit became charming and friendly, while the wine never lost its focus, and showed the tannic structure to age.  There was a bit of oxidation on the finish, which I tend to think was more related to this bottle than the wine.  Taking that into account, but remembering that it may not be entirely typical,   88 points. The 1986  seemed sweeter at first, but converged with the 1985 eventually.  The finish was a bit more tannic, the fruit not quite as full, and ultimately not as flavorful.  It seemed a touch sterner and austere, but was otherwise almost the same wine, without the nuance of oxidation on the finish.  88 points. The 1990, perhaps most evocative of its vintage, showed focus, black cherries, some dusty tannins on the finish, but most importantly, lush and round texture the other two lacked.  I liked the velvet.  90 points.  All three of these were excellent, and drinking fairly well. They all needed a bit of air. They all seemed a bit similar.  Most importantly, they all drank well, if not really spectacularly. I think a better bottle of the 1985 could show better. None of these three is what you would call "easy."  Contrary to the popular trend of lush, easily accessible wines, these three all insist that you be serious about wine, and prepared to do some cellaring.  Those who hate the fruit bomb types and want structure and focus.......this wine's for you.

1986 Cain Five
Cain was making some pretty darned good wines in the mid-80s that have escaped general attention. This is more than ready to roll.   It shows some oxidation around the edges, and a medium body. It doesn't seem thin, but it lacks a bit of depth.  With air, the wine improves and develops some elegance, but it never reminds me quite of the awesome Cain Five 1985, or a big league wine.   Very good, not memorable.  87 points.

1995 Pahlmeyer
As good as you want it to be. That is, this wine is the epitome of modern winemaking theories. After a minute or two of acid, the wine expands and develops a texture of velvet. The tannins are supple and hardly noticeable. The fruit is spectacular.  The core is intense and sweet, and it is one of those wines that makes you think someone injected a hypodermic with the essence of the fruit into the bottle. Serious, intense, sweet, and voluptuous, and drinking pretty well now.  92 points.

1994 Cabernet "Red Willow" (Columbia)
This wine provides an unusual dose of bubblegum flavor, and I suspect there was some whole berry fermentation going on here. The fruit is sweet, the wine is very pleasing, but it is hardly varietally true, and seems rather eccentric. Taking it for what it is, it is very nice.  It won't satisfy a craving for a serious cab.  It seems to me that a lot of Washington State cabs and merlots tend to have these cherry bubblegum nuances.  Maybe the winemakers are compensating for odd weather.  But I'd rather have my cabs taste varietally true, thanks.  84 points.

1986 Cabernet (Laurel Glen)
The wine opens tannic and astringent, but the tannins blow off fairly fast.  Underneath is a wine of good depth, medium body and sufficient maturation.  Considering the balance on this wine, I think this is a pretty good time to drink it. As it is, the fruit pops out from under the tannins, and you begin to notice the wine's depth and concentration.  It would be a shame to sacrifice that fruit.    A nice performance.  89 points.

1994 Pinot Noir (Beaux Freres)
The thick, unapproachable demeanor of this wine has moderated considerably, and you can pop a cork and try one.  On opening, it shows a bit tight, but presents a sensuous jammy bouquet that promises rich, ripe fruit.  After some breathing, the wine delivers on the palate.  It shows spice and blackberries, dark color, good concentration, and yet surprising balance.  I say "surprising," because on release there was a faction that criticized this wine as being too big.  It certainly seems rich and full bodied, but it has come into balance and hardly seems overbearing.   Beautiful flavors with every sip, surrounded by a lush texture.  92 points.

1990 Cabernet (Kistler)
This didn't remind me much of cabernet, but it was a charming wine, and a lost rarity. Kistler now does pinot. Perhaps not surprisingly, this had an elegant, pinot-styled aspect to it. The fruit was soft and charming, the drinking is easy and flavorful, the balance is superb. I can't find too many varietal cab characteristics, but pinot lovers might find this to be their kind of cabernet. Gentle, creamy and delicious. 89 points.

1997 Rosé "Crossed Rose" (Sine Qua Non)
Mixed notes.... On the first note, on opening, I simply loved this wine. Slightly chilled, it was fruity and fragrant, elegant and utterly charming. It was redolent of framboise and simply delicious in a laid back style. With air, it became increasingly unpleasant.  The fruit faded fast, acidity took over, and the flavor became harder and harder to find. I tried chilling it down again, and that didn't help either.  At $25, this is a very bad value; for less, you can get Tempier Bandol.  If I were to rate it just on how it showed for the first 20 minutes, add ten points. However.  83 points. The second bottle I opened, a lot closer to room temperature, was way better. Cloudy and unfiltered, it was utterly chaming in the beginning like the first bottle, but it retained the gorgeous framboise bouquet, and the soft, flavorful palate, and seemed closer to Pinot Noir in weight than a rosé.  It never really faded, and was still holding well over three hours later, although some astringent tannins popped up.  Which is the real deal? Got me. For this style of wine, $25 is still rather pricey, and it is too hard to find, so these are all the notes I've got. 93 points for bottle #2.

1994 Chardonnay "Unfiltered" (Newton)
I join the chorus of those who complain that California chards don't age well enough.  Of course, five years is not exactly an eternity, but this wine is in prime time condition.  Rich and buttery, creamy and deep, the wine delivers.  The butterscotch finish lingers and the fruit surrounds your tongue.  A bit heavy on the oak, but not overbearing. 91 points

1986 Chardonnay (Grgich Hills)
Served blind, it showed little fruit left. The spice and tannins came from good quality oak. But in terms of fruit, there seemed to be hints of sourness and a whiskey-laced finish. It still had good weight, but the fruit was sufficiently gone that I could not identify it blind as a chardonnay. I did not like it much when it opened. It kept getting worse. 75 points.

Dessert / Sparkling Wines

1995 Goldackerl Trockenbeerenauslese (Willi Opitz)
As good as this was, I found it rather disappointing. That's only because I tasted it pre-release, and then the wine seemed so thick, so concentrated, so rich, that it was otherworldly. With just a couple of years in the bottle, a lot of the fat has gone, and while still rich and honeyed, the wine seems very much closer to a Sauternes than a bombastic TBA.  It has surprising elegance, and the finish is its best feature: long, and nuanced, with apricot and pear flavors.  A very nice wine; not quite the automatic legend I expected, though. 92 points.

NV Egly-Ouriet Rosé Champagne
This was disgorged in July, 1997.  The last release I had of this, pre-July, 1997, was very similar.  The wine as a candied, kir-like nose that is simply beautiful. The body is lighter and not as rich as Egly's grand cru blancs. The nose presages a wine that might be slightly off-dry, but in fact it is bone dry.  It is elegant, light and flavorful, but not quite what Egly's other wines in the lineup show. 88 points.

1983 Chateau Filhot
This wine is fading and metallic.  It has lost too much fruit to be of much interest. The flavors have muted. Its time has passed, putting it succinctly. In its day, this was a really good value.  80 points.

1994 Late Harvest Riesling (Beringer)
Along the lines of the 1993, this is a TBA styled wine that would put most TBAs to shame in terms of weight and thickness. It seems a touch less concentrated than the '93, but also better balanced. Its syrupy, honeyed demeanor is remarkable, and I said then, and repeat, this is simply one of the most remarkable dessert wines you can buy in America.  If you don't like rich and thick, look elsewhere.  94 points.

1975 Muscadel (KWV)
Another South African beauty. (Regular readers will remember the Boberg "Ports.")  This most resembles a tawny port. Yet, few tawnies at this age would be as rich and sweet. Another taster said it reminded him of madeira, and perhaps it has some aspects of that, too.  Inexpensive, fortified, absolutely delicious. In many respects, this is a better imitation tawny than the real thing. 91 points.

1985 Heidseick "Diamant Bleu" Champagne
Soft, inoffensive, almost flat after it sits in the glass for five minutes, this seems to be a classic case of an overpriced wine (around $55).  It is medium bodied, the finish is mediocre, and at times it is more like drinking a routine chard than a champagne.  If this is a typical bottle, it does nothing to merit its price tag at all.  82 points.

1997 Cordon Cut Riesling (Mt. Horrocks)
This unusual Aussie dessert wine is made to emphasize sweetness and intensity. Yet while the wine is flavorful and delightful, it seems a bit shallow and thin.  Having no experience with this wine, I cannot say where it goes from here, but I would note that many late harvest wines seem a bit flat on release, and then with age begin to take on some weight. A bit of oxidation seems to help.   Maybe this will show bigger and better in two years. I remember another Aussie--a late harvest riesling from d'Arenberg--that did.  At the moment, 87+ points.

1984 Port "LBV" (Smith Woodhouse) QPR Winner
Awesome LBV.  This wine has thrown a heavy sediment. Just goes to show how much was there, unfiltered. Sweet, chocolately nuances with just hints of raisin.   Relatively full and very sweet, although showing some mature fruit rather than sweet blueberries of youthful port.  A bit short on the finish and cracks up just a little at the end. Still, it is hard to imagine a LBV at age 15 that is this good.   More along the lines of single quinta quality.  90 points.

1995 Eisrebe (Phelps)
Friendly wine that lacks depth and intensity. Pleasing. moderately sweet, some pear nuances.  Enjoyable to drink, but does nothing particularly memorable and could use some more weight. Drink, don't hold. 87 points.

1996 Huxelrebe Beerenauslese "Bissersheimer Steig" (Erich Bender) QPR Winner
A beauty in hybrid's clothing. The wine is redolent of peaches and apricots, heavier toward the former on the palate.  The balance is superb, but the viscosity is reasonably good.  Youthful, refreshing, and drinking perfectly now, this BA is not a huge wine, and not a "keeper," but is extremely seductive. 88 points.

1989 Ortega Trockenbeerenauslese "Gaubischofsheimer Kellersberg" (Oberst Schultz-Werner)
From my bottle, this is over the hill wine.  The color was dark amber, the oxidized notes predominated. On opening, the viscosity still gave me something to look forward to. But a little air quickly made the wine downright unpleasant. I can't say if this is typical, but this bottle should have been drunk years ago.  78 points.

NV "Port" (Ficklin)
This California "port" is from America's most enthusiastic port imitator. The grapes are similar, the style is similar. It seems like a decent LBV with a few too   many years of age on it. The tannins are supple, but there, and the fruit is appealing and familiar at first. The finish is a bit odd though, and the fruit flavors flatten out and turn a bit coarse, very differently than the sweet, vibrant fruit one gets on real port. Ultimately, the mid-palate seems thin, hollow and a bit acidic.  Still,   this is a nice effort, and pretty close to success. They just need a bit more practice.  The price is right: $13 in my region, but for another buck or two you could get a Taylor's LBV.  81 points.

1992 Sparkling Shiraz (Galah)
Until recently, these Aussie oddities, sparkling red shiraz,  were virtually impossible to find in the USA. This is now the second I have had, the first being the Hardy's (a wine that seems to careen from off dry to bone dry). I liked the Hardy's better, for its more vibrant fruit and bigger flavors. But there were still things I liked here. Good body, fairly dense fruit, if rather muted in flavors. I think the appearance of this--it looks like grape juice--scares people more than the taste. You not only have to serve this blind from the bottle, you have to prevent people from  looking at their glasses before they get the first tastes.  84 points.

1987 Gewurztraminer Late Harvest (Navarro)
Nearing the end of its useful life, this wine is dark amber in color, and should have really been finished earlier. The rich, syrupy aspects are still pleasing, but the varietal character of the fruit is lost from the oxidation around the edges, which overwhelms other flavor characteristics. The density is impressive; my first thought was a serious beerenauslese or TBA. But still. It has seen better days. 85 points.

1995 Jurançon (Domaine Cauhapé) QPR Winner
Spicy, peppery, crisp and delightful. It is hard to know what to call this. It is not really sweet enough to do as a dessert wine most of the time. It would work better as an aperitif. It is a  nice finisher on its own, or with light fruits. Nuances of pear and apricot.  Just off dry, medium bodied and elegant.  It also has an impressively long finish that was its single best aspect. 92 points.

NV Muscat "Rosewood Vineyard--Special" (Chambers)
This is a step up on the regular bottling; above this is the "rare" bottling. It is excellent, and unique. Call it a cross between a wine and Fra Angelico liqueur.  It increases the intensity and thickness of the regular bottling, and improves the finish enormously. It is a bit heavier, and a bit more alcoholic, at least in perception. I don't know, frankly, if it is worth the steep price increase, though. That's between you and your pocketbook. 91 points.

Italy(except dessert/sparkling)

1997 Teroldego Rotaliano (Foradori)
Beaujolais? Lirac? Well, the vinification process pretty much destroys everything else here. It tastes like carbonic maceration with a vengeance, although it is richer than a Beaujolais has ever been.  The grape bubblegum nuances are a flavor profile I've never gotten used to or liked.  A lot of people will taste this and revel in the pure flavor, the soft, approachable fruit.  I think it reeks of artificially created flavors, myself.  Ready to drink.  87 points.

1989 Barolo "Brunate" (Voerzio)
Pleasing chocolately flavors on the finish do not rescue a wine marked by astringent tannins and a hollow mid-palate that shows some defects in terms of purity of flavor. The wine shows too much evidence of losing fruit and imbalance to be attractive.   It is mostly an exercise in masochism for the tannin insensitive who don't much care about fruit.  77 points.

Loire (except dessert/sparkling)
1996  Chinon "Coteau de Noiré (Alliet) QPR Winner
This opened showing more acid than fruit. Then, the tannins came out, and they were pretty fierce at that. I was wondering if this had any fruit or balance. It was decanted, too.  Finally, the wine began to open and the fruit popped out. I would still have some concerns about its balance, though, as the tannins were very substantial. Still, there is so much of everything, including acidity,  that the wine will  have a window when it drinks very well, I think. The fruit may in the end not outlast the tannins.  Ultimately, it was about the powerful Chinon I've had; whether it is a tour de force or simply a very good wine that is not quite in balance remains to be seen in five years or so. 88-90 points.

Rhone/ South/ Southwest France (except dessert/sparkling)
1985 Bandol (Bastide Blanche)
Served blind, this seemed big and rich, and clearly from the Southern Rhone or thereabouts.  But surrounding the big fruit and the still rich body were pruney characteristics that were extremely unpleasant, and indicative of a wine beginning to crack up. Whether this bottle or inherent to the vintage, I cannot say.   But the more it aired out, the worse it got.  Unless, of course, you like prunes in the wine. 79 points.