John Gilman is writing a profile of Kalin Cellars for View from the Cellar, got together a nice crew to taste a bunch. Dan offered to host and cooked a fine meal of steak, potatoes, and green beans, Cathleen brought a nice li neup of charcuterie and cheese, and the rest of us contributed wines.
I?m really looking forward to John?s writeup, as the history and storie s from Terry Leighton are fascinating. I didn?t try to note the vineyard sources and stories of each of the wines. A really fascinating evening, wit h every wine (with the exception of one oxidized and one corked bottle) tel ling a unique tale. I knew I liked the whites, but the reds were eyeopeners .
Notes are brief, and I probably scored tougher than normal because the over all level was so good. Group differed on favorite wines, but I think all we re impressed.
The whites
1996 Kalin Cellars Sauvignon Blanc Reserve Full, ripe, but good crispness, a little grass. B+/B1995 Kalin Cellars Sauvignon Blanc Reserve Fresh, young, grapefruity. B+
1994 Kalin Cellars Sauvignon Blanc Reserve oxidized/cooked (too bad, one of mine) 1997 Kalin Cellars Semillon Fuller, riper style, I liked but paled behind 1991 and 1985. B1996 Kalin Cellars Semillon This showed heavy, a little hot (13.8, for Kalin that?s high) B-
1991 Kalin Cellars Semillon Wow, this was my white of the night. Floral, minty, waxy, fresh, long. A-/A1985 Kalin Cellars Semillon Petrol, mineral, lanolin, fully mature. B+/A-
1995 Kalin Cellars ?Cuvee LV?Chardonnay Fresh and young, a little fresh scraped vanilla bean, pears. B+/A-1994 Kalin Cellars ?Cuvee LV?Chardonnay a little volatile at first, calms down, ripe. hazelnut B
1994 Kalin Cellars ?Cuvee LD?Chardonnay corked1994 Kalin Cellars ?Cuvee W? Chardonnay a little cheesy note at first, but good fruit, nice length. B/B+
1990 Kalin Cellars ?Cuvee LD?Chardonnay Minty, round, malty., could be a mature Burg from a ripe/low acid vintage. B 1987 Kalin Cellars ?Cuvee LV? Chardonnay Quite young, crisp, floral, herb, citrus, apple. A- (a detour in Champagne- both nature/EB, but neither with any of the austeri ty I sometimes associate with those) NV Godme Extra Brut Crisp, dry but not austere, long, very good. A-/B+2004 Billecart-Salmon Extra Brut Very full, deep, brioche, peaches. A-
The reds
1997 Kalin Cellars ?Cuvee DD? Pinot Noir Smoky, earth, good acids, not as long as the ?94. B/B+1994 Kalin Cellars ?Cuvee DD? Pinot Noir Earthy, fresh fruits, bright, I like. B+
1990 Kalin Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Ripe, lush, a little bit of oxidation poking around edges, B/B-1989 Kalin Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Fresh, structured, more black fruited than others, very long. A-
1987 Kalin Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve There?s a green/weedy edge, but not OTT, red currants, gets better with a ir. B+1986 Kalin Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Ful, long, structured, midbodied, mostly resolved tannins. A-
1982 Kalin Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Santa Barbara fruit. Who knew? Great nose- herbal, cocoa, crunchy red frui ts. On the palate it?s just a touch shrill . B+ (A nose)That?s a helluva lot of wines. But not enough for Dan. He appeared with 2 decanters and blinded us:
Blind #1 - Ripe, full, long, with an herbal note than made me guess Figeac, once we were in Pomerol started guessing vintages, most were late 80s/90s I went with 1983, elegant, very nice. 1982 Latour a Pomerol A-
Blind #2 - Smooth, mid to full bodied, good acids (leading me to guess a to p 1979, nowhere close), mature but in no hurry, good fruit with cigarbox an d pencil lead. 1961 Beychevelle. A-/A
Wow.
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.