Alsace (except dessert/sparkling)

1994 Riesling "Clos Hauserer"(Zind-Humbrecht)
In this pricey vintage, this offering was a ZH "Best Buy."  High quality riesling in classic ZH style, but more around $25 than $60.  Off dry, fragrant and with a touch of peach, the most remarkable thing about this wine is its length. The fruit coats your mouth, and doesn't release your tongue or tastebuds for what seems like forever. For all of its off dry flamboyance, it is medium in weight and surprisingly elegant.  Utterly charming is a phrase that would sum it up.  91 points.

1990 Riesling "Clos Windsbuhl" Vendange Tardive
There are notes of botrytis, and some underlying intensity, but the distinctive part of this wine was its spicy character and tingly acidity. The wine is beautifully balanced. It suffers only in comparison to the ZH "Clos Windsbuhl" gewurzs. Neither Clos Windsbuhl or ZH ever seems to make rieslings quite as monumental as the gewurzs.....   But no one will be unhappy with this wine. 91 points.

1989 Riesling "Rangen Clos St. Urbain" (Zind-Humbrecht)
This wine seemed surprisingly subtle, but then suddenly blossomed with air. The Rangen is always a more structured, tighter version of the Clos Windsbuhl.  Here, too. And when they open, they become floral, gentle and charming.  This suffered by being opened after a very sweet wine, but it persevered, and demonstrated its character and breeding  despite being treated rather unfairly.  90 points.

Australia (except dessert/sparkling)
1997 Chardonnay "Orange Vineyard" (Rosemount)
This good value chard (around $15) is presented in an uncomplicated, crowd-pleasing style. Buttery, creamy and ripe, the wine has a pretty fair dollop of butterscotch and creme caramel oaky overlays.  It is saved from being another run of the mill wine that substitutes oak for fruit by having a nice little hit of acidity on the finish, and enough fruit to fight back.  Oh, and it tastes real good. This is not a Grand Statement chardonnay. It IS flavorful and fun.  87 points.

Bordeaux (except dessert/sparkling)
1996 Sociando Mallet
Brooding and tannic, this darkly colored wine is backward and crying out for extended cellaring. Not much sign of the new wave winemaking style here!  This is difficult to drink at the moment, and as always, Sociando goes for the vin de garde achievement. There is sometimes an issue with Sociando as to whether there is enough fruit to balance the tannin, whether the austerity will ever moderate. Of all the '96 Bordeaux reviewed here, this was by far the most tannic and austere. Yet, it has intense fruit, too, and while the wine is difficult to evaluate now--seemingly already on its way to closing down--I think this wine will be a success, but always a touch on the austere side.  This is a big, backward Sociando that will compete with the big boys, but admittedly, you do have to appreciate its intense, brooding style.  89-91 points. 

1996 Haut Marbuzet
Supple and sweet, this HM, at least from this bottle seems lighter than usual, lightly colored, not particularly dense.  It is delicious, but its weight is a bit troubling; usually HM seems more stuffed with ripe, opulent, velvety fruit. This wine has tons of sex appeal, but I wonder if this bottle is typical. If so, it is a lighter styled HM that will be best for short term drinking.  88 points.

1996 Croix du Casse  QPR Winner   
Wow. Big, dense and meaty, this Pomerol has an amazing amount of tannin, but equally amazing amounts of dense, thick, concentrated fruit. With air, the tannins kept popping out, but the fruit is so rich that the wine has unquestionable balance. The hints of meat and game provide distinction. This sure doesn't seem like fruity little Merlot, American-style. At about $26, an amazing value. 90-92 points.

1996 Fontenil  QPR Winner   
This little Fronsac runs about $15, and is a real good deal. It needs, ideally, one to two years in the cellar, but can be drunk now if you let it breathe a bit.  It is relatively light and elegant, surrounded by supple tannins and finishing with herbal nuances.  It could use a bit more stuffing, but in today's marketplace for relatively short term drinking, it is a very nice value.  85 points.

1996 Clerc Milon
In the peer group tasting of 1996 Bordeaux you see reflected on this page, this was the big loser. Hard and austere, the wine seems to be all tannin, however supple, and acid. The fruit is modest, the flavors nominal.  When tasting wines at this time, there are always questions about whether it has closed, but I just don't see this wine doing much in the future.  84 points. 

1996 Talbot
Critics will complain that this wine lacks structure, will not age well and is too easy to drink this young. Well, sometimes young Bordeaux is easy to drink, and that does not necessarily belie aging ability. Whatever the ultimate answer here, this wine is charming and drinking pretty well now.  Fairly extracted and dark, the fruit is sweet and supple.  It is so easy to drink that it is probably an intoxication risk.  I think for sure, this is not a great Talbot. It is a bit shy on depth and concentration. But for short to mid-term drinking, it is a pleasure.  88 points.

1996 Beychevelle
Now, take the comments made above by the 1996 Talbot, and add some sweeter fruit, a bit more intensity and depth, and you get the Beychevelle. The finish is a bit short, but I suspect this will have a better chance of pulling together and lasting than the Talbot. If not, it will be even more charming and sensual in the short term. It certainly has better and riper fruit.  About $35.  89-90 points.

1996 Potensac   QPR Winner   
One of the great values recently in Bordeaux, running around $20 on release until recently, this wine from Michel Delon (owner of Léoville Las Cases) has outperformed its status just about always. The 1995 was charming and opulent. This is more intense and firmer. It needs more cellaring than the Beychevelle and the fruit is wrapped around the tannins more, and hidden a bit. The persistence and intensity is impressive for its classification. This is big wine style, albeit in medium-body weight. It will be interesting to see how it develops.  89-90 points.

1996 Lafon Rochet  QPR Winner   
In a $30 range, this impressive wine is one of the great values of the vintage.  It has it all, and there are no questions to be answered. Incredibly dense, sweet fruit momentarily hides the tannic bursts. But it has plenty of tannin and plenty of structure. There is no question of balance either.  This wine is going to close down hard with a vengeance, but when it opens, come back around 2005 and I think you will see a beautifully textured, intense Bordeaux that is absolutely gorgeous and goes head-to-head with the bigger names. 90-92 points.

1996 Bernadotte  QPR Winner   
This wine from the Haut Médoc comes from the owners of Pichon Lalande, and is big winner that belies its $17.50 price tag.  Elegant and supple, it is focused and a bit deeper than the other bargain wine in this group (Fontenil) and also more open. There is a nuance of roasted beef on the finish, and the wine, for short to mid-term drinking, is extremely appealing. 86-87 points.

1995 Dame de Montrose
This second label of Montrose is surprisingly elegant, but also a bit flat. I waited for the big fruit. I waited for the tannins. Instead, the wine was broad and expansive, surprisingly gentle, completely harmonious, finishing with a touch of game.  It is an easy drinker, and in many respects, typical of a second wine in the 1995 vintage, which I am finding very supple in general.  87 points.

1982 Domaine La Gaffelière
In its youth, this must have been an elegant, sweet, lovely wine, with a Burgundian feel. There are still traces of that left, but the wine has clearly past its peak, and needs drinking, although it provides some useful pleasures for awhile.  Delicate and thinning, brown around the edges, the wine has enough left to expand slightly with some air, and show some flavor, fruit and charm.  There are some tannins and earth on the finish, as well as some oxidation.  After the first ten minutes, the wine holds nicely for an hour, then gradually but clearly dies.  85 points.

1982 Pavie
Pristine and sturdy, this Pavie seems dense for its age, and youthful. The only reminder of its age is that the sweet fruit flavors of youth are gone.  It has easygoing charm, but not a lot of intensity and persistent flavors.  The texture is beautiful, but I did have a longing for some more pizazz. 88 points.

1989 Mouton Rothschild
This was a wine I liked more than I thought I would.  It is surprisingly light for a 1989 1st growth and the finish is a bit short. The lack of depth is troubling. But after you get past that, this wine had so many complex aromas and seductive flavors spewing forth that it was hard to resist. Spice, meat and mushrooms on the nose gave way to truffles, herbs and cassis on the palate.  The wine opened nicely and acquired some velvety texture to go with the aromas and flavors.  This falls well short of a great Mouton, but it was an elegant and distinctive pleasure to drink.  89 points.

1990 Lagrange
Think of the classic definition of the iron fist inside the velvet the glove.  Welcome to 1990 Lagrange. The texture is soft and sensual, but it doesn't take long for the big, astringent tannins to pop out.  The wine is very tight and a few years away from peak.  The finish is superb, and the mid-palate has a classic core of focused cassis.  This is a beauty, but give it some time. 91 points.

1982 Latour
This is drinking gorgeously from this bottle, and it is everything you'd expect a top 1982 to be. Deep and concentrated (it seemed to double the intensity of the wonderful Pichon Lalande, below), yet rich, ripe, velvety and fragrant, this Latour attacks your senses at the beginning with its texture. In the middle, the mid-palate is full and rich. And at the end, the finish is intense. The wine has more of a feel of Pomerol than Médoc, but the flavor is all Pauillac.  It is approachable now, but has ages to go; the supporting tannins burbled under the surface, struggling to get past the layers of fruit, but they were ripe and unobtrusive.  This is Bordeaux, folks.  98 points.

1982 Pichon Lalande
Some game around the edges provided some welcome character, but at heart this wine was just what it always was: sexy, gentle, round, ripe, and deep enough to provide surprising concentration. When this came out, many people thought it would never hold. To this day, the dwindling number of  "naysayers" on the 1982 vintage are just CERTAIN these wines will fall apart.  Well, I guess ONE day they will, but here you have this amazingly fruit forward, seventeen year old wine with few obvious tannins, and it shows nary a hint of fading. Beautifully balanced, fragrant and seductive--as it has been from the day it was released. Subtle, but surprisingly good finish. 93 points.

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Burgundy (red) (except dessert/sparkling)
1990 Nuits St. Georges (Daniel Rion)
Daniel Rion often makes distinctive, some say  gamey, burgs. Or, at least the Domaine did in this era. Some were turned off, some loved it. This wine fits the mold in most respects. First, you've got a village wine pushing ten years old. It is not only not faded, but it is sturdy and burly, with a hint of astringent tannins on the finish. The bouquet has notes of bacon fat which follow through on the finish.  This is not a fruit bomb type of wine, but it has depth, finish and character.  A fine village offering. NB: I opened two bottles of this at the same time. The first was consumed by volatile acidity. The second had perhaps just a trace, but drank well.  It is hard to say what is typical without trying more bottles. 88 points.

1989 Griottes-Chambertin (F. Esmonin)
Sturdy and prudent, but unexciting and rather boring.  This wine showed some rhubarb nuances, but not much  else in the way of flavor.  It seemed a bit flat and dull at times, middle of the road wine, and simple.  The texture and weight were excellent, but the rest of the wine was unremarkable. Not a bad wine,  and I rather liked the texture after it warmed up and aired out, but also too short to justify spending grand cru dollars for in my view.  88 points.

1980 Gevrey-Chambertin "Combes aux Moines" (R. Leclerc)
The surprise was not that this wine showed fairly poorly, but that a lot of people were still willing to drink it.  It has held rather impressively, but the ultimate conclusion is still that it is over the hill.  There are some notes of volatile acidity, and lots of game on the nose.  The brett colonies are out in force, but the dominant flavor notes are the prunes from the VA.  The wine retains some spice, too, and ripe, tingly tannins.  Still, it is hard to find much of interest in this wine any more.  Well past peak.  79 points.

1983 Clos de la Roche (Ponsot)
This antique from one of Burgundy's most questionable vintages in my memory had little to recommend it.  Some pruney notes of volatile acidity spoiled what little flavor was left.  There wasn't much anyway.  The wine was flat and dull, although the weight was still good (that was one thing '83s tended to do rather well).  This is not quite as off-putting as the Leclerc, above, and it had slightly better weight, but they are in basically the same, over-the-hill, shoulda-drunk-'em category. 80 points.

1992 La Tache (DRC)
If you spent mucho big bucks on this wine, you'd be entitled to wonder if anyone was getting together a class action suit. Mediocre is too kind. The best you can say about this wine is that it has good weight. The fruit is already drying out, the tannins overwhelming the flat, flavorless grape juice. Short, boring, insipid. Good weight, though. If you care. 84 points.

1990 Richebourg (Mongeard-Mugneret)
A beautiful Richebourg. In texture, elegant and silky. But it sure isn't thin. The fruit unfolds in layers, and shows good depth.  The finish is marked by intense raspberry flavor.  There is some acid on the back, but the fruit is otherwise very sweet and dominant. It opened beautifully as time went on. 94 points.

1990 Nuits St. Georges "Les Boudots" (Leroy)
Simply monumental.  The depth and concentration on this wine is unbelievable. It needs at least five years of maturation, or a lot of decanting. Although there is a hit of mouth-drying tannin on the finish, the fruit is so deep that it took ages to open even a bit. When it did, it delivered a punch of roaring raspberry flavor. It's a big mouthful, a keeper, and about as deep as any Burgundy you've ever experienced. When it fully opens, it will have charm and more flavor, too. 95-97 points.

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Burgundy (white) (except dessert/sparkling)
1990 Nuits St. Georges "Clos de l'Arlot" (Arlot)
This wine is simply stupendous white Burgundy. It is just about everything you want, and drinking perfectly right now.  It is has some bite and a lively, vivacious character.  But there is more here than that. The fruit is rich and ripe, tinged with caramel, and some vanillin from oak, I think.  The yeasty notes are prominent, and you get a big hit of that gout de noisette on the finish that typifies so many white burgs.  The finish is remarkably long, and coats your mouth thoroughly. The wine is beautiful, structured and bursting with hazelnut flavors. 94 points.

1990 Chassagne-Montrachet "Les Morgeots" (Ramonet)
This beautiful premier cru has some heavy hazelnut nuances jousting with crisp acidity on the finish. The finish is great, and the body displays finesse and elegance.  It seemed like the wine could use another year or two to fully knit together, but it is certainly approachable. Flavorful and assertive. 90 points.

1990 Meursault-Perrières (Comtes Lafon)
Well integrated and focused, this wine is marked by intensity from lees on the finish. The finish is very long and lingering, and every moment it stays on your tongue if filled with flavor. Nutty nuances, and an elegant body with a lot of finesse. This is more subtle than the Arlot, above, but no less intense.  94 points.

1991 Corton-Charlemagne (Coche-Dury)
Fully open, and just brilliant. This wine has about the best finish I have ever had on a white Burgundy. And it certainly has the best nose. The bouquet is explosive, and hits you from a couple of feet away. The lees flavoring is heavy and dominates the wine, but the flavor profile is very complex, with hints of spice and tobacco, too.  The finish is mouth coating, mouth drying, and marked by nuts on the back end, as the fruit finally overwhelms everything else. Beautifully balanced, to boot. Tour de force white Burgundy. 97 points.

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California / USA (Red) (except dessert/sparkling)
1986 Cabernet "Howell Mountain" (Dunn)
This opens with some trademark Dunn astringency, but then I was surprised at how fast the tannins blew off and the wine blossomed. This has some of the best fruit I have had in a mature Dunn, with sweet cherry overtones. The wine is nicely balanced, and the components knit together well. It is robust and vibrant, yet gentle.  It is a balance and level of charm that Dunn rarely achieved in this era,  it was altogether pleasing, and it kept improving impressively through the night.  I liked it better every time I came back to it.  90 points. 

1978 Cabernet "Napa" (Caymus)
On opening, this was remarkably good. The wine is not only alive, but rather tight and tannic. There is some astringency on the finish, and also some hints of barnyard. In the mid-palate, though, the wine has grip and surprisingly intense red berry fruit.  Yet, for all of its pluses, the wine never really dazzled. In the beginning, it seemed to be more tannin than charm or fruit.  By the time it aired out and the tannins really moderated, the window of  optimal drinkability was small.  It faded badly by the end of the night, dissolving into acidity and cracking up.  On the whole, though, a rather impressive performance in many respects for a cab of this age, even if it did not last long. While it was good, it was very good, and if it had stopped there and held a reasonable time, I would have scored it much higher.  Fading after some brilliance is a common trait of  many older wines, of course, and when they show that way, it is always a philosophical decision as to whether to score them as if you were drinking a young wine, i.e., take into account their ability to develop and hold and subtract points if they cannot, or simply take them as they showed at their best, recognizing their window of life is not as  great.  I vote for the former position and don't believe in making excuses for older wines,  so you can factor that in. ;)   84 points.

1995 Von Strasser Reserve
This is not to be confused with the cab. This tiny production Reserve bottling (the label says only about 40 cases produced) is an oddball Bordeaux blend, turned upside down. The dominant grape is Petit Verdot, and the label says it was 54% of the blend, rather remarkable considering that it rarely seems to break into double digits in Bordeaux, when used at all. The verdict? Much ado about nothing. If the winemaker is attempting to prove that a very nice wine can be made of Petit Verdot, the case is made. On drinking this, though, I couldn't help but feel there was some oomph missing, and the wine would have been better served if it had reversed the percentages of Petit Verdot and Cabernet (in the mid-20s).  That would have retained its eccentricity, but given it some welcome power and intensity. As it was, though, it was pretty good.  On opening, the wine had red berry overtones and mouth coating, oily fruit that stuck to your tongue. There was some acid on the back end.  It was sweet and fully accessible, surprisingly gentle for such a young wine, and without much in the way of perceptible tannin. I would drink it in the short term. With air, it went nowhere in particular, and showed no improvement at all.  This is a charming, solid wine that seems to fall short in intensity and the ability to develop, but is very pleasing and charming at the moment.  Some suggested it was closed, but frankly I don't see that. It seemed more like a wine that was shedding its tannins and expanding with unforeseen rapidity.  89 points.

1973 Monte Bello (Ridge)
On ope0ning there were some hints of decay, but the mustiness blew off nicely, and the wine rounded surprisingly into form. It is completely open, soft and gentle, expansive and round. Those who like their tannins fully resolved will like where this wine is. Despite the softness, this wine held effortlessly all night and never showed much deterioration.  I liked it for its gentle charm more and more as the evening wore on. It did not reach, perhaps, the high note that the 1978 Caymus, with which it was opened, achieved (the Caymus is reviewed above), but it was steady and consistent all night long. Different styles, different pros and cons, similar scores.  85 points. 

1994 "Firebreak" (Shafer)
This wine has smoothed out, the tannins resolved. What it has not lost its is sexy charm, and its seductiveness, its appealing texture and its claim to be one great Cal-Italo-clone.  Elegant, balanced, but flavorful and reasonably deep, this is maturing gracefully.  It is fully ready now.  90 points.

1995 Cabernet Franc (Pride)
One of the better cab francs you'll find this side of Cheval Blanc. This is burly and big, but the tannins resolve fairly fast with air and are supple and ripe.  The wine rolls out your mouth like waves crashing on your tongue. Its flavors never stop, and the depth is impressive. Cab franc on its own has a checkered history. Here's an American entry worth the price of admission.  90 points.

1996 "Isosceles" (Justin)
This is a "meritage" bottling, or for those who use English, a Bordeaux-style blend.  It's offbeat, eccentric, sometimes more Australian in style. The oak is not a problem, but the fruit is like candied raspberry, very sweet, one taster said, "overripe." Perhaps, yet I didn't see anyone at the table ignoring it.  It may not have any resemblance to Bordeaux, but it sure tasted good. Sweet and charming, big and rich.  Hard to match up with food, though.  And yet another example of these increasingly annoying, big, fat bottles.  88 points.

1991 Cabernet "Reserve" (Mondavi)
Tight and closed, dark, and a bit tannic, this is one of the bigger 1991s I have had lately, and one of the more backward. (No, it's not Harlan Estate-level backwardness!)  Still, it looks like it has all the promise of the wonderful 1990, and then some, with more stuffing, more fruit, more of everything, to go with the classic, clean cab flavors and gorgeous fruit.  It is a beautiful wine, but I think it is two to three years away from ready.  90-92 points.

1993 Old Telegram (Bonny Doon)
I've always felt this was one of the best reds Bonny Doon ever produced, and it has been aging gracefully.  In its youth, this had more tannin and power than most Bonny Doon reds showed.  Now, the components have melded together beautifully, and the wine is fragrant, open and ripe.  It still needed some aeration in the glass for the initially aggressive tannins to calm down on the finish. Once they did though, the strawberry tinged fruit, with hints of bacon, kept unfolding.  It seemed more and more like a fine Languedoc.  The wine remains well structured and vibrant, and shows not a hint of decay.  A beauty.  90 points.

NV Pleiades V (Sean Thackrey)
This was an odd wine in some respects, a great one in others. On opening, it seemed harsh and bitter, with whiskey notes on the finish.  Then, gradually, the fruit came through and it was pretty darned nice fruit at that.  There were also hints of American oak after it aired out.   Bottled in May, 1996, this wine is a hodge podge of nebbiolo, grenache, syrah, carignane, zinfandel and mourvedre. It seemed to have some characteristics of most of them.  The sweet, flavorful fruit in the mid-palate that eventually bubbled up was grenache. The game and leather seemed to come from the mourvedre and syrah, the bitter almonds from the nebbiolo.  I at first hated this wine.  As the evening wore on, I liked it better and better.  I suspect a lot of people who just taste quickly and move along will not be so happy.  88 points.

1997 Petite Sirah "Rattlesnake" (Schuetz-Oles)
Complex, it ain't.  But everything else it is. The wine opens slightly dominated by American oak, but that doesn't last long. The bouquet changes to sweet blueberry fruit, and the jammy, forward fruit burbles up.   The wine is elegant and medium bodied, for all the flavor the sexy fruit has.  This is pure flamboyance, and it seems to me to be a wine that will drink best in the mid to short term, when that beautiful fruit is still fresh and sweet.  I don't think it will fall apart with ten years age, but I do think it will become uninteresting if held too long.  It expanded and held well for awhile, but it didn't evolve consistently well through the evening.  Call this pure pleasure at the moment, and as for the future, whatever will be, will be. I loved it.  In the short term, it outperforms its score in terms of pure pleasure.  88-90 points, depending on how it develops in the mid-term.

1995 Legacy (J. Stonestreet)
Ripe and juicy, this is an immensely charming wine that seems full of fun, and rather approachable now.  It is a Bordeaux style blend that is mostly cabernet sauvignon, with a hefty dollop of cab franc. The fruit is grapey and youthful, and there seems to be relatively little tannin or backbone.  As a fun wine, this is great.  For the price they are asking these days, there are perhaps some delusions of grandeur.  88 points.

1994 Cabernet "Frei Ranch" (Gallo)
I tasted this on release and was impressed by the purity of fruit, the balance, the elegance, and the way the oak, even though noticeable, integrated quickly into the wine.  This is the new Gallo. At $18, it is a bargain in its quality level.  Coming back to this now, I find the wine has aged gracefully and beautifully.  It is a mid-term wine at best, and this is a great time to drink it. It opened burly and a bit tight. With half an hour of air, the wine suddenly unfolded, and the fruit became juicier and riper. It was suddenly captivating and full of charm. It lacks some depth and ageworthy qualities, but don't let that bother you in the short run.  89 points. 

1989 Pinot Noir "Rochioli" (Williams Selyem)
An off vintage and a decade of age produce.....a winner?  Yes!  The fruit on this wine has thinned out dramatically.  It is hardly robust, and in weight it is almost at Santenay level. This wine does so many things right though that it is a wonder. The bouquet is fragrant with crushed raspberry notes.  The fruit is subtle, but for every moment you hold it in your mouth, the flavor broadens and becomes more piquant. It is not the sometimes flamboyant Williams Selyem that we see in bigger vintages. It reminds me a bit of the charm and elegance of 89 Serafin Charmes-Chambertin.  No one would describe this fruit as candied. It instead seems to be exactly what pure, pristine pinot noir should be.  Its only defect, as noted, is how badly it has thinned. It is too light and lacks depth, but its elegance and charm make up for a lot. 89 points.

1996 Pinot Noir "Camp Meeting Ridge" (Kistler)
This wine is striking for both the purity of its fruit, the beautiful, dark cherry flavors, and the smooth, velvety texture. Given that it is a 1996, I don't see how it can possibly age very well. It doesn't seem like the most structured wine, and seems to drink rather well now.  At the same time, don't get the wrong idea: this is not a fruit bomb. Oh, the fruit flavors are persistent and clear. It has flavor. But in texture and in weight, it is well integrated, perfectly balanced and seems rather elegant, not thick.  A pretty wine for mid-term drinking. 91 points.

1997 Zinfandel Old Vines (Turley)
If this zin were not a bit along the lines of a late harvest zin--you can just taste the first nuances of sweetness and caramel--it would be called elegant and sexy.  Oh, well. Call it elegant and sexy any way. The flavors are rich and fulfilling, but in weight the zin seems beautifully balanced and shows finesse. This shows riper than some recent Old Vines bottlings I've had, but it is stylistically a pretty Turley, with enough oomph to satisfy fans. (Nothing will satisfy the critics....)  89 points.

1994 Cabernet (Navarro)
A bit candied and tight, this wine seems to have some tannins up front, and an unusually sweet, strawberry finish in the back. With some air, it knits together decently, but the wine lacks the depth and weight to be really interesting. Not bad, but call it a routine, middle of the road cab, with some eccentric twists and turns. Needs another year or so of cellaring.  86 points. 

  
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California / USA (White) (except dessert/sparkling)
1995 Chardonnay "Vine Hill" (Kistler)
This is not what I would call one of Kistler's best. On opening, the fruit seemed tightly wound and a little bitter, with acid on the back end.  It never developed much. I waited for the wine to become expansive, but it just sat there, crabby and disgruntled. Not bad. A long way from the best this winery can do. 87 points.

1995 Chardonnay "Camp Meeting Ridge" (Flowers)
Well, Flowers is rather popular these days, but at least as far as their chards go, I am not convinced. In peer group tastings, they are outclassed by the more traditional cult wines (Marcassin, Peter Michael, etc.).  On their own, as with this bottling, I see mostly sweet oak, with the relatively light fruit buried underneath. It as if the winemaker had a goal of elegance but then let someone else handle the oak aging.  I find this rather out of balance and not on the level of top California chardonnays in depth or concentration of fruit, although there sure are some that will match its oak.  87 points.

1995 Sendale (Simi)
The blend on this wine, which comes in yet another annoyingly large, oversized bottle that would seem more appropriate for a magnum, is like a white Bordeaux.  It is interesting rather than great. Grass on the nose, but a finish with some licorice gives a nice, interesting blend of flavors and fragrances.  The wine is fragrant and medium bodied, with a heavy acidic kick on the back end, too. There is a hint of candied fruit amongst all the varied and sometimes conflicting elements of the wine.  It is hard to know whether to study it or drink it.  It has its good points, but I can't say I was overwhelmed.  88 points.

1995 "The Bride" (Sine Qua Non)
I tasted this young and thought it was simply one of the best California whites I had ever had. Now that it has some age on it, it is still wonderful. The difference is that now it opens with a blast of racy acidity.  But with air, it all knits together quickly.  It is creamy and sweet, obviously with a fair dollop of oak.  It gives the impression though of great balance, and it has a long, mouthcoating finish. Most of all, it is simply delicious, with hints of vanilla, caramel and nuts. Still a beauty.  93 points. 

1997 Twisted and Bent (Sine Qua Non)
The Bride (see above) is a hard act to follow. SQN has made my expectations high since The Bride debuted, and never met them since. The T&B is in the same style as The Bride. It is definitely related. But the fruit is thinner,  and the wine lacks the intensity of flavor that The Bride has.  Tone The Bride down, make it more boring, more commonplace, and you get this.  Poor T&B.  It has the misfortune to follow The Bride. Good, not exceptional.  88 points.

1995 Chardonnay "Red Shoulder Ranch" (Shafer)
The best white wine I have had to date from Shafer, simply put. Powerful and brawny, dominated by the intensity of the lees flavoring, this seemed serious from the outset, and never disappointed. Waves of fruit flavor, intensity and persistence, mark this opulent, powerful wine.  Not for the shy, packed to the gills. 93 points.

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Dessert / Sparkling Wines
1982 Late Harvest Riesling (Newlan)
Surprise, surprise. Life is full of surprises. Like a box of chocolate. Or maybe a bunch of dessert wines.  The color on this was a bit amber. And I have not necessarily been happy with the way mid-80s, let alone early 80s, late harvest rieslings from California  show.  But gosh. This was all that and a bag of chips.  The only concession to age besides the color was the apricot nuances some of these older wines develop. But it had not passed into the hard, very oxidized stage. It retained a lot of sweetness on the finish, with a heavy hit of sugar, but even so, I was thinking as I drank it that when young it must have seemed way sweeter still, almost pure sugar.  I liked the second sip even better. Robust and nuanced, sweet and fragrant, this was an amazing wine at age 17.  92 points.

The following six sparklers all tasted together in a peer group event:

1978 Dom Perignon Champagne
The good news is that at age 21, this wine seems fresh and pristine.  Think Champagnes can't age?  Wrong. Of course, it is best to have something like a Dom. The bad news is that this doesn't seem much more distinguished than a top flight NV Brut.  Medium bodied, pleasant and clean, this wine has only one real distinguishing feature: a great, mouthcoating finish.  That's worth something. But if you paid, say, $250 for this bottle, you might not think it was nearly enough.  89 points.

1988 Champagne Blancs de Blanc Cuvée Orpale
This is a wine not imported into the USA, so I am told. It was pretty good, though. It is all grand cru, and seems burly and tight. I liked its character, too, a bit bitter, but distinctive and different.  Focused and intense, not thick though.  I suspect that a lot of people won't like the way this shows, and the touch of bitter herb on the finish, but I did. 90 points.

NV Champagne "Cuvée Marie Damarisse" Rosé (Deutz)
Elegant and charming, this wine surprises with its oily, mouthcoating, fruit forward finish.  I can't say I liked the mid-palate all that much, but this grew on me as I kept going back to it.  88 points.

1983 Champagne (Salon)
This ultra premium house has never been one of my favorites. On the good side, you can say that this is 16 years old now, and still drinking well. It is bigger than the '78 Dom above, but showing a bit more oxidation.  With that price paid, though, you get some toast and power around the edges.  The wine ultimately finishes medium-bodied. I bet it was a monster in its youth. At this juncture, it should be drunk at this moment when it still has hints of youth.  90 points.

NV Champagne Rosé (Dom Ruinart)
This premium sparkler is distinctive, and I bet it will annoy a lot of people.  The wine is big and burly, meaty and has, perhaps, a touch of brett. It is rich and flavorful, though, and it seemed to have so much more character than the average rosé. This is more like a sparkling grand cru Bourgogne rouge than a champagne.  It won't be to everyone's taste, and some will consider the flavors out of place and atypical. I thought it was pretty fine, actually, downright awesome. Very expensive, though.  95 points.

NV Champagne Blancs de Blanc (Goerz)
Routine bubbles.  Light and inoffensive, this wine has just a touch of distinction around the edges, a hint of toast.  It doesn't have much weight, flavor or charm. Not that it's bad. It is in fact very pleasing in a simple, aperitif style.  But it won't stand out in fast company.  85 points.

1997 Riesling Brut "Geisenheimer Mönchspfad" (Schumann-Nagler)
This sparkler is airy and elegant, with pristine little bubbles. Every time I have a German sparkling riesling I think the same two things: lots of charm and elegance. Not much depth or body. This is a valid style, and a lot of people don't want their sparklers to be too heavy at times. But there is another level. I wonder if these ever reach it?  The best feature of this wine, surprising for its style, is a great, subtle, but lingering finish.  This is a pleasing wine best used as an aperitif.  86 points.

1977 Port (Fonseca)
I decanted this notable port about three hours before we got to it. That helped a lot.  The tannins seemed fairly resolved with decanting, although the wine was still sturdy.  The fruit took on dark cocoa overtones, with underlying sweetness. It seemed to have a burnished velvet aura, rather than flamboyance it had in its youth. NB: This did show a touch of seepage, and may have been a bit farther along than some bottles.  Serious port. Winter and the Millenium are nigh. 92 points. 

1989 Riesling Eiswein "Durkheimer Hochmess" (Vier Jahreszeiten)
Syrupy and thick, this apricot tinged Riesling has a hint of oxidation around the edges. And then....whoa! The skies open, the lightning crashes, and the waves of very sweet, powerful fruit assault your taste buds.  Give up, surrender. You'll be happy you do. The subtle touch of crispness--almost but not entirely lost--gives the wine a bit of liveliness, too.  93 points.

The following eight sparklers all tasted together in a peer group event:

NV Taittinger "La Française" Brut Champagne
In this style, I would have to say that this is about as pretty an NV wine as you can get, and worth every penny of the $25 or so you can buy it for.  Nuances of lime and other citrus fruit on the palate at first. The flavors integrate beautifully into a wine suffused with charm and elegance. It is the perfect aperitif champagne.  Those looking for more full bodied, creamy, rich wines will be disappointed. While this is light, though, it is never thin, and the finish is good for its status. It is a pleasure to drink, persistent and focused, if light and airy. It would be hard for a wine in this style to do any better in this price range.  90 points.

NV Roederer Brut Premier Champagne
Whether you prefer the Roederer Brut premier or the Taittinger above will be a matter of taste and mood.  For sure, this is richer and creamier, with more notes of toast and yeast, although it does have a heavy hit of acidity in the middle. It is a weightier and deeper wine, but not necessarily much better.  On most nights, this is more my style, but there are times when the Taittinger above would be a better match to the moment. This should also age a bit better. About $30.  91 points.

1990 Charles Heidseick Brut Champagne
The price tag ($60) of this wine is no doubt affected by several things, including the impending millenium, the quality of the 1990 vintage and the lofty score given to it by some reviewers. At the moment, this wine seems a bit disjointed, with heavy hits of acid jousting with the layers of fruit.  It is medium bodied, deep and long. It is a very fine champagne, although I do not find it to be the monumental star that some have discovered, with hints of toast and yeast on the finish. I think it will improve with cellaring.  90-92 points. 

1990 Pol Roger Brut Rosé Champagne
This is quintessential Pol Roger, burly and big, with steely fruit that suggests power and grip.  The wine opens nicely but never develops a lot of charm or finesse.  Still, it is difficult to find affordable pinks of quality and substance. Not that $50 or so is cheap.  90 points.

1992 Dom Perignon Champagne
This Dom is significantly lighter than the 1990, but is otherwise prototypical Dom of the modern era.  It is drinking beautifully now, but can improve, too.  Tinged with peach, supported by some bracing acidity that will integrate with a couple of years of cellaring, and providing a great, mouth coating finish, the wine achieves the Dom profile of elegance and persistence. About $100. Pretty fine wine, but frankly the Roederer Brut Premier for $30 wasn't far off this mark for short term drinking.  92 points.

1990 Nicolas Feuillatte "Palmes d'Or" Champagne
A bit eccentric, this wine nonetheless gave me most of what I wanted in a premium, top level champagne.  It is also a great value in its classification in that it has a price tag of only $75 or so.  And don't forget the unusual and very pretty bottle. ;)  The body is elegant and medium bodied, but it is the flavor profile that makes this distinctive.  Tinged with anise, the fruit finishes robustly and fully open.  The finish is very long and gripping.  Some may not like its distinctive features, but if you do, you may like it even more than I did.  92 points. 

1988 Piper Heidseick "Année Rare"Champagne
Simply about the best value around today in têtes de cuvée champagne, this $65 wine has everything you want in a top flight champagne.  I liked everything about it, from the great balance and finesse, to the yeasty, toasty notes in the mid-palate. The heavy pinot noir percentage (65%) contributes to the body and the flavors.   There were hints of licorice on the finish, and the finish itself was pleasingly long.  It would be hard for anyone to be disappointed with this wine, drinking gorgeously now.  94 points.

1990 Veuve Clicquot "Grande Dame"
For all of the (deserved) publicity that other 1990 champagnes have gotten, it seems almost that this one has been overlooked.  Why? This is the real deal and the whole package. Rich and toasty, creamy and powerful, with bracing, supporting acidity, this seems likes a long haul champagne that misses nothing.  Great finish, remarkable depth and power, and surprising elegance to complete the package.  Certainly, this is approachable now, but I suspect this will become even finer with a couple of more years of age, and at times it showed a bit disjointed.  94-96 points.

1983 Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Beerenauslese (Zacharias Bergweiler-Prum Erben)
The rush of fruit backed with bracing acidity, wrapped around a perfectly-in-place body that seems light and airy, while managing to gain weight and develop viscosity with air, reminded me of one experience: going down a hill on a bike at 40 miles an air. You never quite knew where this wine was going, but it seemed thrilling and death-defying. The finish is long and refuses to end.  Sweet, and aromatic, with apricots on the bouquet. A beauty.  93 points.

1989 Durkheimer Schenkenbohl Scheurebe Trockenbeerenauslese (Vier Jahreszeiten-Kloster Limburger)
The dark amber color, unusual for the relatively young age, did not bode well, but in fact the wine showed better that I thought it would, even if had obvious flaws. In texture and sweetness, the wine is simply wonderful. Thick and syrupy, rich and sweet, just stopping short of sugary, the wine is redolent of cooked peaches.  It has an amazingly low alcohol content under six percent, yet provides all this weight and body.  The bad news is that the fruit is drying out, and sometimes those cooked peaches flavors seem a bit burnt.  With very sweet wines, I often find in fact that decay and thick, syrupy texture goes hand in  hand. They seem to need some oxidation in order to provide maximum viscosity.  So, drink up.  But sip and marvel, too.  90 points.

NV Tawny Port Whiskers' Blake (Hardy's)
I'm a big fan of the style, but this light, thin, youngish tawny lacks fruit, flavor and depth. It's really a long way from a good representative of the Aussie tawnies,  at least as this bottle shows.  It has been a popular brand for years, but this is just too light and too thin. 81 points.

NV Tawny Port "Trafford" D.P. 30 (Seppelt)  QPR Winner   
Unlike the Whiskers' Blake, above, this lighter-styled tawny has character.  On opening, there are nutmeg nuances, and spicy notes. The wine is medium bodied to light--certainly lighter than Seppelt's vintage-dated Para Port for instance, or even less expensive ports like the Old Cave.  However, if it lacks the depth and character of the bigger boys, it is juicy, sweet, and has some distinctive features, like the spice, and lots of flavor. Inexpensive and pleasing for short term drinking, and a terrific value for under $10.  Was better, juicier, more open after a two days on the vacu-vin. Another impressive contribution from Australia to the world of fortified wines.  89 points. 

NV Sherry Solera Reserva Moscatel Superior "Emilin" (Lustau)   QPR Winner 
Lustau makes two incredible bargain sherries. This is one; the other is the Pedro Ximenez. The Moscatel is not as flamboyant, thick or sweet as the PX, but it is better balanced. I love the over-the-top PX, but sometimes it is so intense, I find it necessary to chill it down a bit. Which I pick, depends on mood and use. The PX holds up better to desserts.  The Moscatel is less provocative, but more charming and is a great easy sipper as an after-dinner drink all by itself. Interestingly, too, this wine I bought several years ago and then cellared. It comes with no release date, so I cannot say what its "vintage" is. But I can say that cellaring for a few years has seemingly improved this wine. The Moscatel is now relatively light (compared to the PX) but the fruit is gorgeously open. It is so juicy, it just bursts with fruit so ripe and flavorful that it makes your mouth water. Just super. Fun fact: I left five ounces in an open, uncovered glass overnight. Some 12 hours later it had hardly changed. And just $15! Send the winemaker a check if you feel guilty.  95 points.

1986 Chateau d'Yquem
Marked by heavy botrytis,  redolent of caramel, this wine is nowhere near peak. There is acid on the back, but with air the fruit gets richer and takes on weight and power. Let this knit together for a few more years.  A terrific Yquem from a great vintage. A memorable finish. 95 points.

1830 Malmsey Madeira (Quinta de Serrado)
Orange peel and black tea notes, oriental spices and caramel raisins,  meld together to create a fascinating bouquet. It's not unusual for Madeira to hold given the way it is made. This has lost some of its lusciousness, but still has some sweetness, and was certainly completely drinkable. It is better suited at this point, though, as an after-dinner drink than a dessert wine. One thing it still is, though, is thick and powerful. The bouquet is one of the most intense you'll ever get on a wine and, well, it's hard to drink anything else after the finish. Romance aside, and as fascinating as it is,  I think I'd rather have the more luscious, sweeter, 1981 Seppelt Para Port. It's sure several hundred bucks a bottle cheaper.   90 points.

1990 Cristal (Roederer)
Brawny and a bit oxidized from this bottle,  this wine is saturated with lees and yeast flavors. The power of the fruit and components leaves you a little amazed at the wine's depth and vigor. 95 points.

1997 Late Harvest Riesling (Navarro)
This is a terrific Navarro that needs some bottle age to come around. The wine is a bit disjointed, the acidity competing with the very ripe, very sweet, unctuous fruit (far sweeter than recent efforts from Navarro). Yet, on the whole, the wine seems to have everything--acidity, deep fruit, sweetness, texture, bouquet. It just needs time to put them all together. The best Navarro LH I've had since the benchmark 1986.  92-94 points.

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Germany (except dessert/sparkling)

1971 Winzenheimer Rosenheck Riesling Auslese (August Anheuser)
This wine is a bit past peak, I think, but it has gracefully aged and is still fun to drink. Gentle and soft, the wine's finish and fruit sneaks up on you, with subtle charm.  It is hard to drink this and not think of a late Spring day, and long hours sippin' on the porch. It has lost a lot of its depth, but not its charm.  88 points.

1975 Liserer Niederberg-Helden Riesling Auslese (Schloss Lieser)
The the Anheuser above, this wine is a bit past peak, but it shows its age differently, with hints of maderized apricot on the finish. It is perhaps on the cusp of going over. Yet, the mid-palate dissolves into juicy fruit, and this is far thicker and sweeter than the Anheuser, above, and retains more of its depth and power.  I'm not sure I will like what this will be in five years, but at the moment, I can ignore the modest defects given the robust whole. Hey, I've got a few gray hairs, too!  90 points.

1983 Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese (Fredrich-Wilhelm-Gymnasium)
This wine shows dully, lifelessly and charmlessly in the mid-palate.  It's just there.  The fruit has faded and left the major flavor nuances to the finish and bouquet. There is a nice hit of acidity and fruit on the finish, still, which partly redeems the wine and gives you a reason to drink it, but it does not entirely redeem a weak and fading bottle. 83 points.

1989 Winniger Rottgen Riesling Auslese (Freiherr von Heddesdorff)
Spicy and pungent, this wine sort of grows on you.  There is a major hit of acidity on the back, which evolves into a burnt caramel nuance on the finish with air.  The fruit is persistent and sturdy, and the wine is bright and elegant.  Not a superstar, but not just a brick or so short.  89 points.

1985 Rieslaner Auslese "Haardter Manderling" (Muller Catoir)
I can't say enough good things about this great wine. The nose is confusing. At first, it seemed like riesling. Then, notes came through that reminded me more of sauvignon blanc or scheurebe. The fragrance was intense. The flavors were marked by caramel, and while there was considerable crispness, the wine had surprising unctuousness that gradually snuck up on you. Ripe, and powerful, youthful and pristine, still remarkably sweet.  About as good as it gets from a great producer. 95 points.

1992 "Abtsberger" Riesling Qba (Maximim Grunhaus)
For a seven year old QBA, this is simply stunning. Ok, the wine lacks a bit of depth. But the fruit is sexy, slightly sweet and charming. The wine is fragrant, and the acidity and fruit meld together to create something perfect for a spring day.  With a lot of air, the acidity did begin to dominate, and it does not have the concentration of top wines, but, hey--it's a QBA, and you won't get much better at this age.  88 points.

1971 Riesling Auslese "Urziger Wurzgarten" (E.C. Berres)
Sturdy, and weighty, this elderly Riesling showed lots of pros and cons. The fruit has faded, and long since started to dry out.  But the wine's depth and concentration is remarkable still.  There are some apricot nuances on the wine, although due to oxidation it comes closer to roasted apricots than fresh. The finish is still decent.  One can only imagine how rich and succulent this wine must have showed around 1980.  At this point, its best days are long gone, and it is interesting rather than special.  84 points.

1998 Scheurebe Kabinett "Binger Schlossberg" (Kommerizienrat P.A. Ohler'sches)
Bright and sprightly, brimming with zest and acidity, this Scheurebe is fragrant (in a good way!),  a bit off dry, exuberant and charming. Imagine working hard on a hot summer day. Then, on your way home you decide to race through your neighbor's sprinkler. That's how alive this wine makes you feel on first taste.  It is a bit short on depth and concentration, and no one will want to compare it to truly weighty, monumental wines, but it does what it sets out to do remarkably well.  88 points.

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Italy (except dessert/sparkling)
1988 Sassicaia (Tenuta San Guido)
It is hard to believe this isn't Bordeaux. The smell, the flavors, the style.  They would all make me say "Bordeaux" in a blind tasting, I think.  This bottle in fact reminded me of fairly mature (i.e., a bit thinned out) Montrose. There is some game and leather on the nose and finish, which always shows some supple tannins on first taste.  In the mid-palate, there is pure cassis fruit.  The wine is velvety and beautifully textured, fragrant and flavorful. It is at best of average weight, and drinking beautifully.  It held reasonably, but I would note that by the end of the evening its flavors were muted a touch, and it had long since stopped developing. It isn't the deepest wine you'll ever find, but it sure is sexy and seductive. Everyone who had this loved it, but then the issue arose, grumble, moan and bitch.  Considering the prices this is pulling down lately, for this quality level, can't you get a lot of  good Bordeaux a lot cheaper?  Yes, I think you can, actually.  This is a way overpriced wine,  and a fairly bad value, but such is the way of the wine world these days. In the meanwhile, forget such issues, enjoy it for what it is.  For what it is worth, I liked this better than the overhyped 1985. Fully open, signing beautiful songs.  91 points.

1988 Tignanello
The biggest mistake this wine made was being opened next to the fragrant, flavorful Sassicaia reviewed above. It is a brawny and tight Tignanello, brooding and reserved.  With air, it became more gentle, and subtle cherry flavors popped through.  It opened nicely, and became a wine with lots of charm. This could use a couple of years of cellaring, and the good luck not to be opened next to Sassicaia again, which made it seem bland and boring. Would probably profit from another couple of years of cellaring, but is approachable now for sure.  89 points. 

1983 Reciotto del Amarone (Quintarelli)
Off dry red, flamboyant, alcoholic and heady, full of flavor with plums and power, yet surprising balance for all of its flamboyance. I tasted it and thought, "Turley Zins!"  I'm not sure if either winemaker would consider that a compliment, but the off dry, overripe quality that both sometimes achieve seemed very familiar here. And the surprising balance was familiar, too.  This is an exciting wine in many respects. It is just hard to figure out what to drink it with.  (Although...the dry chocolate pasta with wild boar sauce was not a bad choice.)  92 points.

1993 Barolo "Galarey" (Fontanafredda)
It is said that 1993 is not a great Barolo vintage, but time and again I find myself liking these charming '93s a lot. They may not be quite as deep, nor as tannic, as bigger vintages, but that can be a good thing in Barolo.  They lend themselves to making charming, more fruit forward, accessible wines.  I find them a lot more attractive than traditional Barolo winemaking, which seems often to be fixated on astringent tannins, and bitterness. Add this producer--which tends to make fruitier wines anyway--to the 1993 vintage style, and you're sure to get something tasty and fruity.  There are tannins here on the back end, but they resolve pretty quickly in favor of flavorful fruit with a sweet and surprisingly long finish.  I thought this was delicious, charming and elegant.  90 points.0

Rhone/South/Southwest France (except dessert/sparkling)
1990 Chateauneuf du Pape "Marie Beurrier" (Bonneau)
So, they brought this wine out and immediately proclaimed it corked. There was sure something funky about it on opening, and I thought there was some TCA at first, too, And maybe there was.  Normally, I wouldn't bother to review this wine at that point. But this was a wine so sweet, so flamboyant, so filled with fragrant fruit, that the forces of Good seemed to conquer whatever other problems existed. All I could focus on was the unctuous raspberry fruit infusing a medium-bodied, perfectly balanced wine with amazing flavors.  Corked?  Well, I still wanted to drink this.  Spectacular.  What would it be like normally?  P.s...This is the third bottle in a row that I had of this, two in the last month, and one from a different cellar. I suppose it could be TCA, but I am beginning to think it is something else. Certainly, the fruit does not seem dulled, which is usually the first thing that happens with TCA.  The moldy finish is disturbing, but it is still spectacular. 92? points. 

1995 Vin de Pays de la Vallée du Paradis Blanc "Cuvée Surmaturation" (Domaine de la Passière Chateau Haut Gleon) QPR Winner   
This unusual wine is old vines Grenache from Corbières in the South of France. It's pretty impressive for an inexpensive bottle, or at least it is inexpensive in France. I don't know if it is imported. On opening, it was dull and simple. There was not much "there" there. I put it aside. Half an hour late on retrying it, I found it ripened and exploded in  the glass. Suddenly, the wine was vibrant and tannic. This is a structured rather than an opulent wine, intense and penetrating, not so much fruity and ripe. It held effortlessly all night, and the next night, it was arguably better, golden and oily,  the finish still coating your mouth with persistent fruit.  Intense and brooding.  90 points.

1978 Hermitage "La Chapelle" (Jaboulet)
I expected a powerful, voluptuous wine along the lines of the 1978 Beaucastel. Not. This is medium bodied, but texture and weight are the key issues here. The wine is exotic and eccentric, with oriental spices and anise. The nose is redolent of menthol. The wine knit together nicely and I rather enjoyed it, but it sure wasn't what I expected to see. Flamboyant and unusual, light and perplexing, yet somehow interesting. 90 points.

1996 St. Joseph Blanc (Domaine Duchene)
Acid dominated, short on fruit, this white Rhone is dry, bitter and sorely lacking much of interest. Unless you enjoy just drinking acid, you might be well advised to search out something with some fruit. 80 points.

1990 Cote Rotie (Clusel-Roch)
Subtle, and persistent, this elegant wine sneaks up on you. At first, it is a bit light, but with air it begins to take on character. There are hints of game and sauvage notes. The fruit is muted. With more air, the blueberries burble to the forefront, and the wine becomes juicier and juicier. Silky and elegant, pleasing and flavorful.  Not the deepest, most concentrated or biggest wine you'll ever have--but a charmer.  89 points.

Spain (except dessert/sparkling)
1990 Pesquera Riserva
Based on experience with older Pesquera, I have to wonder if these have upped the quantity of sweet, intrusive, American (or American style) oak.  This is a sweet, seductive wine, with an elegant body and sexy fruit, but it is so drenched in American oak that it is hard to pay much attention to anything else.  Good wine, but I've lost my taste for this annoying style.  88 points.