Dark, inky purple. Classic syrah aromas, stylistically more Rhone than shiraz. I wouldn’t guess California. Lots of expressive personality. Crushed black pepper, wild blackberry, anise, dark plums and black cherry followed by some intense, yet smooth tannins. Long, palate staining finish. This is young. I like it now but will have to buy more to [...]
Archive for August, 2007
2005 Tenuta delle Terre Nere Etna Calderara Sottana
Fabulous smorgasbord of aromas ranging from earth to anise to cherries. Complex, deep and dark. Delicious front palate, with a nice, ripe fruit start and also a huge personality brimming through the finish. The only grade deduction is the length (20 seconds or so). Made from Nerello, a native Sicilian grape. Certainly worth a try. [...]
2005 Groffier Bourgogne “Pinot Noir”
Very dark for a generic Bourgogne. Ripe, round cherries, but tannic and backwards. Needs a little age. Seems like a Gevrey-Chambertin. However, lacks the earthy truffle of a higher end bottle. Still, this is one of the best Bourgogne I’ve tried. It makes me want to try more Groffier wines. It is also exciting to [...]
2001 Martinelli Moonshine Ranch Pinot Noir
Hard at first, but then after 20 minutes opens into something lovely. Quite new world in style. Vibrant and fruit driven with velvet violets and candied dark cherries. Even though no one would confuse it for burgundy, or even an Oregon pinot, it has mushrooms, truffles and underbrush. One lesson repeated for me is that [...]
2004 Paloma Merlot
Not fair, after the Aubert. Nice merlot. Lovely color, but somewhat one dimensional. Perfumed, ripe, leathery, classic merlot flavors with a substantial finish. Still, doesn’t quite live up to the hype. Decanted 3 hours before drinking. Will probably improve with additional bottle age. Retail: $62. Grade: B+ www.whatwouldmikeydrink.com
2004 Aubert Chardonnay Ritchie Vineyard
Sublime. There’s an entire universe in the nose. Lemon rind, pineapples, mangoes, litchi and vanilla. I wish I could I could take a recording of the flavor to replay over and over. Gigantic, complex, excessively long, like satin, and just perfect. Can’t imagine a better chardonnay. Plus, we ate this with Bouchon quiche. It is [...]
2003 Sangiovanni Rosso Piceno Superiore Leo Guelfus
60% Montepulciano, 40% Sangiovese. Retail $21.99. Excellent pasta wine. Dried flowers, sour cherries, and damp earth. Very interesting finish. Something like watermelon jolly ranchers. With pizza. Nice pairing. Worth a try. Not blown away at this price, but certainly good wine. Grade: B www.whatwouldmikeydrink.com
2002 St James Winery Norton
Another gift. Better than the Friendship Red, but not by much. Has more similarity to wine. But with a hollow mid-palate and harsh tannins. I really wanted to like these wines. I was rooting for them. Retails for $13.49. I don’t recommend it. This pair goes under whatwouldntmikeydrink. Grade: D www.whatwouldmikeydrink.com
St. James Winery Friendship School Red NV
Wine from Missouri, given as a gift. This is not my style. It is off-dry, and with an odd herbaceous cherry nose. Then semi-sweet (must have residual sugar), some nice cherry jam, but many other off, dirty flavors. Would have a hard time paring this with food. Has a slight similarity to wine. Made from [...]
2004 Fongoli Montefalco Rosso
Welcome to Umbria! Fascinating, medium ruby, looks like a pinot, but smells like nothing else I’ve had, with cinnamon, olive oil, and hairy raspberries. Medium body and finish, but impeccable balance. Has the subtlety of a burgundy, but replace the funky mushrooms with spice. To some, this may look like grade inflation, but I’m buying [...]