What Would Mikey Drink

2005 Henri de Villamont Savigny-Les-Beaune 1er Cru Clos Des Guettes

mzimberg — Sun, 19 May 2013 01:28:21 +0000

Pretty, young red. Compelling mushroom, menthol, pine, dried leaves aromas. Bitter chocolate and cranberries on entry. Excellent texture, Lots of layers. This is the real deal, wonderful Savigny. Red Côte de Beaune fruit shining through on the tension-filled finish.

This would be an excellent introduction to burgundy. Haskell’s has it: retail $35, grade: A.

2009 Bouchard Beaune de L’Enfant Jesus

mzimberg — Thu, 02 May 2013 01:59:19 +0000

Dark ruby, less purple/ black than the other 09s I’ve tried. Jam packed nose of cherry, earth, anise, cardamom, and strawberry rhubarb pie, Full and dense palate. A bit one sided and tannic. Very long finish. A little hard to tast today but its a powerhouse and should improve significantly. I will try to lay off my other bottles at least until 2016.

2002 Pine Ridge Andrus Reserve

mzimberg — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 00:26:14 +0000

Still youthfully purple. Classic cab aromas of cigar box, and sweet plums. Pure cabernet fruit all over the palate. Silky and long. A touch of well-integrated oaky vanilla. Drinking nicely right now. However, I don’t get anything terrior specific. Just nice napa fruit. At $100 direct from the list almost 10 years ago this is a dud. I’d be a buyer at about $30.

2009 Kutch Falstaff Pinot Noir

mzimberg — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 03:26:50 +0000

Lovely velvet. Earth scented lilac, cloves, and cherry aromas, with a touch of chambolle smoke. Complex and nuanced palate with a deceptive density to its poise. Cola, all-spice, and some ripe, red, tiny fruits. Long, smooth finish. This has a lot of character and is quite tasty. There’s a Burgundian sense of harmony and place, but it is clearly new world. I paid $50 direct from the Kutch mailing list. Expensive, but worth it. Grade: A.

Worth

1988 Ridge Zinfandel Bradford Mountain

mzimberg — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 01:39:35 +0000

Quite dark ruby. Lots of musty old books aromas. With some funky plummy velvet. At first mostly stinky and just old, but after 30 minutes there’s massive improvement. Rich and really mellow palate, with warming cedar, cracked black pepper, and a drop of lingering acids. This is a twenty five year old zinfandel. Wow. I got this for the price of a current release on winebid, and this is way more interesting. Grade:A

2002 Copain Dennison Vineyard

mzimberg — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 01:40:00 +0000

Much younger looking. Dark block of flavor. Sharp and bright and somewhat awkward. Sometimes nice, sometimes strange, but mostly good. Jill likes it, but I find it a little strange. A bitter blocky note in the back to go with the spicy cherry, bumpy, block of forest spice. Grade: B-

2002 Etude Pinot Noir Heirloom

mzimberg — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 02:28:01 +0000

Interestingly young. This seems like a 4-5 year old pinot. Dark ruby to the rim. Strong plums and cherry cola aromas. Full and quite tasty with sweet pretty tiny blue and black fruit and earth. Alcohol sticks out slightly on the end. This is probably a $90 bottle and it is not a great value. Possibly in an awkward phase. Something like the brute unyielding nature of 1995 red burgundies. At $20 I’d jump up and down. My grade factors in the very expensive price. Grade: B+.

2002 Domaine Humbert Frères Gevrey-Chambertin Poissenot

mzimberg — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 00:59:57 +0000

Pretty light ruby with some bricking. Pretty earthy, funky mushroom aromas. Gevrey earth. Sour crystalline cherry juice palate, fading fruit, earth and a zingy bright acidic finish. This is a solid wine from an excellent vintage, in its prime and ready to go. A treat. Thanks Seth! Grade: A

2009 Turley Zinfandel Old Vines

mzimberg — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 01:13:18 +0000

Deep, dark color. Roasted, Christmastime aromas of figs, pine, roasted nuts, and cedar. Full and teeth staining with layers of fruitcake, cracked peppercorn, plums and grape jam. Long, powerful finish. This is a real treat, especially at $25 direct from the Turley list. Kapow but it works. Grade: A-

2007 Keller Estate El Coro

mzimberg — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 01:39:11 +0000

Dark ruby. Deep serious mentholated cherry juice aromas. Balanced and even palate, with layers of spice cake, cola, ame dried fruits , and salty meats. This was a lastbottle.com purchase at under $30, but the lowest retail price is $50. Great at the price I paid, only decent at the current retail. My grade reflects my price. Grade :A