I’m not really a big Rhone white guy, but I actually quite enjoyed the in expensive 2011 Barou Marsanne. Lemon curd, sweet pear fruit, good acidity w ith a rich full slightly oily wine. Good length. B
With salad and leftover ramp risotto, 2012 Stift Göttweig "Messwein" rose . Rainer cherry fruit and a bit of citrus peel, fresh, stony. B/B+
With grilled salmon, grilled kohlrabi, and a borage salad, the 2011 Thivin Cote de Brouilly. This is a perfectly fine well balanced Gamay, but for som e reason I never seem to get excited by Thivin. Pretty much all of the folk s who I respect put Thivin near top of list in Beaujolais, but for me I nev er seem to be as happy as I am with Vissoux, Chermette, and other favorites . Still, a perfectly palatable wine. B
Thursday I went to the Grapes The Wine Company annual portfolio tasting (or iginally scheduled for fall, postponed due to Sandy) at Willet House in Por tchester. First of all, a disclaimer- the non-profit I run was the supporte d charity, and we have received substantial donations, so feel free to doub t my objectivity. But I thought it was a fine event. About 24 tables of win e, probably 150 wines altogether. The passed food was pretty amazing- lots of canapes, stations of cheese and fruit, plus lamb chop lollipops, crab ca kes, shrimp, and much more. After the 3 hour tasting there was a steak dinn er with all the sides, and plenty of wine.
I was only taking minimal notes, but then it turned out I needed to turn in my sheet with my order. So below is totally from memory, 4 days later, and only a fraction of the wine I tasted. I concentrated mostly on wines I mig ht actually buy, so missed most of the more expensive CalCabs, Brunellos, P iedmonts, etc.
Whites- The Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey St. Aubin was one of my favorites of th e night- some thought too woody but I think it will integrate well. A Bonho mme Vire Clesse was tasty, as was a Copain Chardonnay. Pine Ridge Chenin re minded me of the old days- a former value fave. I had a Loire Pinot Gris- n ever heard of PG in Loire, and after this taste I hope never to encounter a gain. The JM Boillot Montagny 1er Cru was pretty good. I liked the Neumayer GV a lot for the price.
Reds- I really liked the G. Conterno Barbera, but the Vajra Barbera was a b etter buy. Others like the Karl Lawrence “Herb Lamb” more than I, while the 2005 Heitz Marthas was a stunning young cab. My favorite Burgundy was the Grivot NSG 1er , but there were a couple good Bourgognes. I really like d the 1999 Musar (liked the current release Hochar as well). A Washington s tate wine called Jaja was a pretty impressive GSM, though a tad riper than my platonic ideal. Austrians- didn’t care for a Saint-Laurent, but there was a nice Zweigelt that I ordered, and I really liked the Moric Blaufranki sch. Note to self- Aglianico made in an Amarone style is not something to s eek. I really liked a cheap Dao, bought it, but can’t recall name- will p ost when I take delivery. I found a taste of Quinault L’Enclos to be trul y depressing, while others were telling me how it would age. Apparently in the PN seminar with Josh Raynalds a Martinelli Home Ranch PN was the overal l winner, but I tried at dinner and found it too oaky, a bit volatile, a bi t hot. I was informed it will integrate. Uh huh. I thought the ‘10 Coudou let de Beaucastel was a winner. A Pesquera was pretty nice- modern/internat ional for sure, but very well done. A bottle of the Isole e Olena Cepparell o was nice in a modern-Tuscan kind of way (at least there was acid).
Roses- I didn’t like the 2012 Triennes as much as previous vintage, but t he Schloss Gobelsberg was very good.
There were tons more, but those are ones that spring to mind. After the tas ting there was a very good steak dinner at Willet House with tons of bottle s floating around, but as the designated driver I wasn’t really drinking. Great event and a big thank you to Daniel Posner of Grapes for his generos ity.
With grilled game hen and ramps, the 2010 Clemens Busch “Vom Roten” Rie sling. Vivid pit fruits, dry but not austere, serious acids. Great food win e. Clemens Busch is moving up fast in my German producer hierarchy. B+/A-
Some jazz musician friends were welcoming a Parisian bass player and his fa mily, and I was invited for local color. Ron and Nancy did some charcuterie for starters then went all American- pork ribs, cole slaw, cornbread, etc.
Sciarpa Prosecco- a bit sweet, a bit flat. C+
2011 Arnot Roberts Chardonnay (Santa Cruz Mountains) - citrusy, mineral, ve ry good, full, and very long. A bit pricey at 30-something, but worth it. A-/B+
2011 Avanthia Godello - bigger style, some oak, but good acids and chalky f inish, good in a white Burgundy mode. B/B+2011 Laloue Sancerre -fresh, clean, good. B
1990 Freemark Abbey “Bosche” Cabernet Sauvignon- double-decanted. Still plenty of cassis fruit, some herbs, but a bit plodding/thick on palate. Dr ink up. B/B-2008 Pallieres Gigondas -handled the rib spice the best, full, ripe, good. B+
2005 Mondavi Oakville- black plums, modest finish, light tannins. B-/BLast night we started with some oysters, as I shucked we sipped on the 2011 Pepiere Muscadet. Clean, lean, crisp, minerally, citrusy. Very good for le vel. B+
With tuna steaks, couscous, and watercress salad, the 2011 Vissoux/Chermett e “Poncie” Fleurie. Quite tight at first, but opens nicely over the eve ning, with black raspberry, coffee, and mineral notes. Sappy fruit, good le ngth, I like a lot. A-/B+
Based on David B’s post re premOx, I opened a half-bottle of the 2002 Hue t “Le Haut Lieu” Vouvray Demisec. Color is dark gold, there are some di stinct oxidative notes on the nose. It actually improves a bit with air, bu t there are still some caramelly oxidative notes, mixed with the honey and quince. Good length, though. I enjoyed this by pretending it was 30 years o ld rather than 11.
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 pa rty where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivi ty, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.