TM


Tasting Notes
November/December, 2009

Tasting Notes Contents Page

QPR Winner   I give this award to wines that demonstrate an excellent Quality to Price Ratio. They are sometimes more expensive than the wines featured in my Best Buys section (which is cut off at $20), so while every Best Buy is also a QPR Winner,  not every QPR winner is an official Best Buy.  QPR winners are simply wines that are great values for a relatively  reasonable price.

California/USA  Dessert/Sparkling Germany Italy Rhone/S/SW France  Spain

California/USA (except dessert/sparkling)
2000 Pinot Noir "Sonoma" (Kistler)
For the age and vintage Kistler, this has aged well and shows decently. The bouquet is its best feature--it seems fresh and exotic. The fruit is thinning a bit and losing some freshness, without it being replaced by complexity or tertiary notes. It can lean a bit to acid. Yet, on the whole, it still shows well, a very respectable performance some 9 years on for this, one of Kistler's supposedly lesser Pinots. It is hardly immune to the passage of time, and I certainly liked it much better young, but if I hadn't had it young and my expectations were thus lessened, I'd say this was still a pretty nice Pinot. 89 points.

1999 "Tresor" (Ferrari-Carano)
I had this recently, but it is worth pointing out again how charming this has become in its old age. The bad news is that at the relatively young age of 10, this wine, which was a tannic beast in its youth, has shed fruit fast and seems much older than its vintage date in terms of fruit flavor profile. The good news--it has acquired a certain genteel feel, with enough structure, power and tannins remaining still to improve with air and show some backbone, while the mid-palate seems complex, with tobacco and lead nuances, along with a little forest floor, and appealing. This is at a place where it reminds me of a 15-20 year old cru bourgeois of some quality, not young, but offering a lot, and a pleasure to drink, especially for lovers of mature wines. For the pittance for which this came into my region (under $20), it is fun to drink with the right food matchup. And if anything, it was better on day 2--a very good sign, a nod to its fine structure. All told, despite its flaws, this seemed to me to be the best performance ever from this wine, that I have followed consistently in its lifetime. 90 points.

1998 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve (Leonetti)
This opens sweet and rather eccentric, showing mint, vanilla and those odd notes, impressing no one, and turning off many. It did improve quite a bit with air, graduating at least from undrinkable to ok, but it sure stuck out like a sore thumb. 87 points.

1998 "Chaleur" (DeLille)
A Bordeaux blend, this opened bright and sharp, a little disjointed and hard to drink, but the balance is pretty good here, and the wine pulled itself together and showed pretty nicely, with hints of richness, if thinning fruit, and some focus. 89 points.

1998 Cabernet Sauvignon (Quilceda Creek)
Opening tight and closed, this expanded consistently in the glass, developing a long and succulent finish, ultimately becoming the only Washington State wine we opened that seemed really serious.  Beautifully balanced, this showed better and better with air. 94 points.

2007 The Illusionist (Sleight of Hand)
A Bordeaux blend with some Syrah and Malbec, this has too much sweet oak, modest concentration and not much of note. Sharp and simple, it does have the ability to improve with some aeration and some good fruit flavor. 85 points.

2007 "The Magician" Gewurztraminer (Sleight of Hand)
Gewurz outside of Alsace--the never ending quest. This is pleasant, but not much to write home about. If you forget it is supposed to be Gewurz, it isn't bad, a dry Gewurz without a lot of austerity, depth--or varietal character. There is little concentration and less spice. It has hints of Gewurz-ness around the edges. 83 points.

1977 Cabernet Sauvignon (Clos du Val)
On a night of older Cal Cabs, this showed very nicely. As with most of them, it had some oxidative notes obvious on opening, but cool, elegant and bright, it provided nice cherry fruit, and had a succulent, juicy finish as a result of the acidity. I found myself liking it more rather than less with air, and its capacity to improve with time was impressive, making me continually revise my evaluation up. 87 points.

1973 Cabernet Sauvignon "Cask D-3" (Inglenook)
The good old days---when this great estate still had some glory left. But for the funky nose, this would be simply gorgeous. Its palate is completely harmonious, knit together perfectly, more or less seamless. There is some brightness around the edges, a sense of "alive-ness," though, that makes it more than an old, gentle curiosity, and it still has good depth, too. The palate was far better than the nose, but that nose was a bit offputting. Elegant and beautifully constructed, this low alcohol Cab has held beautifully. It would've been my pick on the night but for that funk. 87 points.

QPR Winner 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon (Maxwell Creek)
The one thing this doesn't have is much mid-palate depth. Other than that--it is simply lovely and a really nice Cab value in its under $20 price range. Drinking beautifully now, it has a sunny brightness, some intensity from relatively ripe tannins on the finish, and good focus. I liked both its clean flavors and its structure a lot. Given how good a value this was, I thought it was worth reporting on, but in fairness I should note that it was poured non-blind by its distributor, an acquaintance. 89 points.

1980 Cabernet Sauvignon (Caymus)
Quite lovely, with bright acidity and delicious, sweet strawberry fruit, this has held beautifully, still rather rich and dense, with tasty fruit driven into the palate by its good acidity. I don't recall having had this young, but I would imagine it would  not have been as pleasant then as it is today. As it airs out, it becomes harmonious and shows a little herbaceousness on the finish, which perhaps gave it some character. 88 points.

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Dessert/Sparkling
QPR Winner NV Moscatel Sherry (Pedro Romero)
 This has not always been a favorite, often seeming a bit sweet and straightforward, without a lot of character or finish. Maybe the latest bottles are better. It shows much lighter and a lot less rich than my traditional favorite sipper (the Lustau Moscatel), but it has plenty of character these days, with rich aromatics and intense flavors on the finish. Considering that this came into Pennsylvania at $10.49, it is an excellent deal. 89 points

2004 Brut Rosé "Grand Cellier Rubis" (Vilmart)
This is an acid freak at the moment, with bursts of acidity and pure power on display. It improved dramatically with air, but the real solution here is to allow this sparkler to age for awhile. That is, if you're looking for an easy drinking party wine, this isn't it. It is serious stuff, with depth and structure and power to spare. It does need to come into balance and prove it can acquire some harmony, too. While not free from doubt, I think this will come along well.  91 points.

NV 20 Years  Tawny Port  (Sandeman)
Inevitably, the non-table wines from Portugal make their way across from my desk. This is a new release. Although a non-vintage wine, you can tell which bottle this review references by the stamped "2008" on the back.  A few minutes of "wake up" and this is starts showing beautifully. Light and nutty, its acidity begins to meld perfectly with the fruit, and it becomes complex and graceful, not lush and deep, but remarkably elegant and sunny. This drinks a little too easily--beware. ;) 90 points.

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Germany (except dessert/sparkling)

1995 Riesling Spatlese "Herrenberg" (Grunhaus-Von Schubert)
This is a highly acidic wine at this point, showing some maturity around the edges, but not much harmony. At times it is a bit shrill. Some air, time and warmth makes it a bit more approachable, letting the fruit assert itself, but it is always a bit on the austere side. It needs more time in the cellar. It is very much on the drier side. 90 points.

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Italy
QPR Winner 2006 Crognolo (Sette Ponti)
Light and a touch gamey, this wine is chipper and bright, but without much mid-palate depth or concentration. It does have some complexity, showing a little forest floor. There are light tannins around the edges. This drinks nicely and for what it cost in my region (under $20), it is a nice deal. I have seen it for a lot more, though, and I don't know that it is worth much more. To its credit, it does evolve decently, showing a little more complexity and intensity after 45 minutes of decanting. Take note. 88 points.

1997 Tassinaia (Castello del Terriccio)
This Super Tuscan has come along nicely with a few years of age. It still shows relatively on the rich side, but it has some intensity still, too, and fine concentration. It now also has a little character, a touch of earthiness. With air, a little bit of a eucalyptus note emerges. This can continue to hold easily for some years. 92 points.

2005 Campaccio (Terrabianca)
Intense and deep, this Tuscan is rich, but with significant power underneath. Although approachable now, another year or so in the cellar wouldn't hurt, as this has lots of stuffing and a fair hit of tannin. It is a lovely bottling. 91 points.

1997 Brunello di Montalcino (Ciacci Piccolomini)
This beautifully balanced Brunello is drinking beautifully, elegant but intense, earthy but fruity and flavorful. It is on the lighter side at this point in its development, but is still young and fresh in most respects, able to be kept a long while still, and able to develop more complexity. There were moments I wished for a little more obvious flesh. 94 points.

1997 Brunello di Montalcino (Pertimali)
Gamey and bright, this wine is a little on the rustic side, yet it is complex and cheerful, with lush fruit and a beautifully textured mouthfeel. Distinctive and aging nicely, it will not be for those who are a little shy when the wines get gamey, but it does everything well. 94 points.