I usually claim "only drink the absolutely freshest rosés." But last year I liked the 2002 Antichi Vigneti di Cantalupo "Il Mimo " (Colline Novaresi) so much I bought quite a few. The last one gathered dust through the winter. Monday Betsy planned an al fresco dinner of chicken salad, with a homemade mayo flavored (mildly) with gorgonzola. Chicken salad, outdoors, sounds like rosé season has returned. Deep coppery pink, aromatic with framboise and flowers on the nose. Rich cherry fruit with a pleasantly bitter edge, long finish, good wine. B+ This one hadn't been hurt at all by the "aging", looking forward to trying the currently available 2003.
Tuesday we were outdoors again, this time with a gazpacho with fresh crabmeat. No soup is an easy match, I went with the 2002 Gilbert Picq Chablis. Rich ripe fruit yet with steely acidity, the fruit playing off a light mineral component. Very good depth of flavor. The mineral is more apparent on the flinty finish. Very good for a regional level Chablis. I think I've yet to be disappointed in a 2002 Chablis. B++ Wednesday afternoon thunderstorms rolled across the area, but US Air was saying Betsy's flight would leave ontime. So a soggy drive to LGA taking Betsy and Katie for their flight for a concert series in the South, but I got them to airport on time (where they waited almost 6 hours to board the flight, alas). I had promised I would see to it my stepson had a nutritious meal, so I stopped and picked up fried chicken. We had the chicken with some broccoli rape and green beans Betsy had left, and I tried my first 2003 German. The 2003 Leitz "Dragonstone" (Rüdesheim Drachenstein) Qba (Rheingau) is a little richer and softer than the 2002 Dragonstone. White fruit with a grapefruity edge, sweetness seems a tad more apparent than the 2002. I'll try again tonight, but for the first couple glasses a B/B+. Good value, if not the screaming value of the 2002 (priced at $12 now).
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. Dale
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