Saturday I spent the day working around the house, and rewarded myself with a big porterhouse, grilled squash, grilled polenta, and a salad. The wine was the 1990 Lungarotti "San Giorgio 2000" (Umbria). A little browning, the first whiff & sniff showed high acidity, low fruit, and a thin finish. Uh oh. If I'd had guests I probably would have run downstairs for a replacement bottle, as it was I was reluctantly sipped as I prepared dinner. Glad I did- the wine revived to almost full health. Eventually there was plenty of fruit, a mix of red plums and cherries, with a slightly roasted edge. Some secondary aromas of cedar/cigarbox & mushrooms, the acidity remained high but seemingly integrated. Resolved tannins. By the time the meal was finished it was a fairly nice midweight if slightly international wine. The most distracting thing was that roasted note to the fruit. I've seen similar effects on some 1990 French reds and at least one Barolo, don't know if that made it all the way down to Umbria (I know nothing of Umbria vintages, I just extrapolate from Tuscany). I'm also not sure of the storage history of this wine. Still, far better than I thought on opening, B/B+
Sunday AM the hound and I traveled to JFK airport, where Betsy arrived from California. We had a nice day, but sadly had to take her to LGA that afternoon for a flight to NC for some concerts. After the dog and I returned home, I cooked some sausages, told Lucy she couldn't have any, and opened the 2002 Castano "Hecula" (Yecla). Really rich ripe fruit, could almost pass for a new-wave CdP, though the oak is in the background. There's some light meat/animal odors dancing around, but the real focus is the blackberry/elderberry fruit. There's a sweetness here that I just can't get past, however. Is there actually residual sugar here? Sure tastes like it. Too sweet, which is too bad. B-
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.