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96-100 points Parker: "The 2005 Chardonnay Kistler Vineyard Cuvee Cathleen is a selection of the finest lots from all the vineyards, but most of it comes from the Kistler Vineyard. Full-bodied, firm, and backward, it is behaving more like a red wine than a Chardonnay. It boasts fabulous concentration, superb ripeness, plenty of honeysuckle, orange rind, and tropical fruit characteristics, copious minerality, and enormous length as well as richness. This beauty is as good as any Chardonnay made in either the New or Old World."
Despite the kazillion posts of tastings these days, it's not something I get to do nearly as often as I like. Sure, I do a lot of in-store tastings where I pour a couple of my wines to innocent by-standers, but a full-on tasting with some sort of reason to it is somewhat rare. It's for that reason that I get so! stoked! when one comes along.
Betty's, one of my favorite restaurants in Buffalo, is looking to expand their wine program. I spoke with Carroll, the owner, a few weeks ago about a staff training to go through their entire list and explain the differences between grapes and styles and what foods to pair them with. This was a pretty monumental task; everything they have is by-the-glass, and they have about 20 or so wines to get through. This may not sound like a lot, but since the staff was bent on not spitting, you can see the potential for mayhem. Anyway, I was over there last night and the chef prepared nibbles to go with the tasting. Predictably, the room got exponentially louder as we made our way through, but hopefully it was a good exercise to taste them all side-by-side, if for no other reason than to taste how awesome Sauvignon Blanc and goat cheese are together.
Sake is a Japanese alcoholic beverage, made from a series of fermentations using steamed rice. The process removes the millet and the protein from the rice, leaving the starch-similar to how beer is made from grain. Over time, the starch is converted to sugar naturally and a little yeast, called koji, is added in later stages of the fermentation, which acts to create alcohol out of the sugar. At the end of the process, the liquid is filtered to remove any millet or other particles. The resulting product is clear and about 15 percent alcohol. Sake has been made in Japan for over 6800 years.
Types of Sake There are two kinds of sake: junmai (with no alcohol added) and honjozo (with alcohol added during the fermentation process). Over 80 percent of the sake made in Japan is honjozo sake. Within those broad classifications, there are different grades of sake:
Futsu - economy sake
Ginjo - premium sake
Daiginjo - ultra-premium sake
How to Drink Sake Futsu (ordinary) sake is warmed for drinking. (Ginjo and Daiginjo are served chilled.) Traditionally, sake is poured from a stoneware carafe, called a tokkuri (pictured above). Warm the sake in the tokkuri by placing it in a partially-filled pan of boiling water. (Don't overheat the sake; it should be warm-a little over body temperate, not hot.)
To serve the sake, pour it from the tokkuri into individual sake cups, called ochoko. It is proper sake etiquette to hold your cup while the sake is being poured. Inhale the sake's aroma gently before sipping. Sake is meant for sipping, not throwing back like a shot of whiskey.
Storing Sake Sake does not improve with age, like fine wines or Scotch whiskey. Instead, buy sake with a recent bottling date. Once open, a bottle of sake should be kept in a cool, dark place (such as the refrigerator), as the liquid is sensitive to heat and light. A bottle, stored properly should last around a year.
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The Prince of Pinot chronicles 22 Pinot Noir wine trends that either emerged or continued their emergence in 2006. Essential reading for those who want to know where Pinot is headed.
Well I agree. There are many so so Pinots out there. I expect to pay $40.00 on up for a good American Pinot noir, though there are some exceptions. Look for Gary Farrell from the Russian River area of Sonoma and from the Southern Central Coast area, try Sanford, Fiddlehead Cellars, Foley even the Hitching Post's "Cork Dancer" and their top of the line Pinot "Highliner", Foxen also makes a great Pinot noir.
Look for vineyard specific Pinots also like Santa Maria's Bien Nacido vineyard. They produce grapes for Foxen, Hitching Post and quite a few other top Pinot producers in the Central Coast and in the napa Sonoma area.
There are actually so many really good Pinots out there right now it's hard for me so sometime make a decision. Good luck with your hunt. That is half the fun! Michael
A few weeks ago someone came in and said, ?I have this new wine from Armenia you have to try?. So, with much hesitation I went over and tasted this Armenian wine. I was even less excited when I saw the label and realized that it was a pomegranate wine. It was pretty nasty I must say. But, the folks in Isreal didn?t think so and they made their own version.
Several years before the trend got started, a family in Israel's Upper Galilee region began working to create a tastier and healthier version of the ancient fruit, only to cross their way into yet another huge food market. Their product: the world's first pomegranate wine fit to be sold to international wine connoisseurs.
The craziest part though, in my opinion, is that Pomegranate doesn?t have enough natural sugars to ferment to alcohol. The majority of the time it has to be tampered with to even get it to the alcohol content that it needs to be a wine.
In general, pomegranates don't have enough natural sugar to ferment into alcohol on its own," Leo Open, Rimon's director of international marketing, told ISRAEL21c. "In the past, some people have added alcohol to pomegranate juice to create a form of liquor, but no one has successfully made wine. Our pomegranates are the only ones in the world that have enough sugar to do so naturally."
Hmmmmm.
"Like with all wines, the fermentation process is totally natural," Open says. That being said, pomegranate wines clearly belong to a different class than the typical reds and whites, and Rimon recognizes that the market has to treat it as such, Open says. "We consider it a fruit wine, definitely not a liqueur, and it has to be appreciated in this way."
If you have to tell me that your wine is a fruit wine and not a liquor, that?s probably not a good sign. Here?s my advice, make wine from grapes. That?s it?.it?s simple. Wine= grapes!!
So, in Illinois a police chief has a big beef with big beers. Apparently 22 ounce beers are ending up as trash all over the city and the chief is fed up. He even goes so far as to say?
Police Chief Rich Miller wants to outlaw the sale of beer in 24- or 32-ounce cans, saying those sizes are preferred by trouble-making drunks.Miller says stores sell them in paper bags that conceal them perfectly and end up as litter, and that Granite City would be better off if stores just didn't sell such beers.
So, lemme get this straight, only drunks drink 22 ounce beers?? http://cbs11tv.com/watercooler/watercooler_story_254120050.html
Science Rocks!
Check it out. I found this clip on You Tube for a new robot created by Asahi that pours your beer for you. Sure I have no idea what it is saying (probably something like Americans are retarded) and it takes a little over 3 minutes to pour the damn thing but cool nonetheless. If you?re wasted, or if you?re name is Kipp and are obsessed with beer gadgets I am guessing that it is a necessity!
For years I have loved you. I have sold your wine to people who don?t even know how to pronounce your name yet they always come back for more. I know the quote on your bottle ? ?Through this earth gate, this Torii Mor, we step, to make glad the soul with wine?. I have visited your winery and tasting room, I have bought your expensive single vineyard wines. I loved you Torii Mor. I loved you even after Patty Green left you to make her own winery but I should have known. I should have known that one day one of my undiscovered baby wineries in Oregon would sell its soul for cash. Premier Buying Group from Napa has been buying vineyard land in Oregon in a very deceitful manner and Torii Mor owner Jim Olsen has been the man behind the scenes. Expect a ?Mondavi? like venture that whores out cheap ass pinot noir in your near future.
I went to New York last week and had a great time. I went to the Bubble Lounge which is a restaurant that serves over 350 champagnes by the glass. I was in heaven. I drank the Veuve Cliquot MV "La Grand Siecle". Yep that's right MV - not NV. MV means that they blend vintages. This particular wine was '88, '90, and '95 vintages from Veuve single vineyards and it was well worth every penny I paid for it. Here's a picture. I'd post more pictures but the night went downhill from there and while the pics are very funny, they are also very telling!!!
98-100 points Tanzer: "Deeper orange color. Pure botrytis aromas of apricot, orange marmalade, quince jam, honey and licorice. Moderately viscous, but brilliantly delineated. Near-solid texture and perfect balance. Features an extraordinary high-wire act of 160 g/l residual sweetness and 11.5 g/l acidity, but here the alcohol is a more substantial 14.6%. This may well develop in bottle for 50 years."
Ever get one of those annoying scam emails asking you to accept stolen credit card numbers and send your product overseas? Who are these scam artists? Who are their victims? Can they be stopped? Dover Canyon Winery has just published a five-part series of articles called Inside a Wine Scam. The series has resulted in FBI subpoenas for the operators accepting money transfers at a remote location in Oklahoma. In a surprising twist, the 'front man' for the scam may herself be a victim of 'work from home' fraud. Part I: How the Wine Scam Works Part II: The 'John...
I have always loved the packaging on Xanadu wines. That ambiguous golden dragon that looks like a knarly old vine really appeals to me. This is a blend of 73% Margaret River and 27% Frankland River shiraz. Dragon is a recent addition to the Xanadu range. It sits above the Secession and below the Estate in the portfolio.
Aromas of crushed boysenberry, cherry jam, spice, meat, pepper and toasty vanilla oak. On the palate medium bodied with fresh fruits of the forest, pepper, spice and meaty toasty oak. Dry quite assertive tannins and very fresh acidity. Good flavours but suffers from some hardness.
BUYING AND STORING OLIVE OIL Choose containers that keep out light: dark glass, ceramic, even metal. With pricey oils, taste before you buy, and look for seal-of-approval initials such as DOP (Italy), DO (Spain) or COOC (California). Keep your oil tightly sealed; store it in a cool, dark place; and use it within two years (some say 18 months) of harvest, or one year after opening. Oh, and that plastic Jug O? Oil from the C word? Don?t go there. There?s inexpensive, and then there?s swill.
WHAT?S YA FLAVA? Fruity, peppery, buttery, appley, grassy, herbal, nutty? You?d think you were talking about wine. There?s actually similar flavor chemistry going on in olive oil and wine. Early-harvest olive oils taste greener and more pungent, like an herbaceous sauv blanc. The longer the hang time, the riper the fruit, the smoother the mouthfeel, the mellower the flavors. Late-harvest oils come across more like a full-tilt chard. Both can be great; it?s just a matter of what you like and how you plan to use it. (Uh, you are gonna use it, right? You want to decorate your kitchen counter, buy a bonsai.)
GOT AN EXTRA VIRGIN? The terms ?virgin? and ?extra virgin? really are more than just sexy sounding hype: they measure the percentage of harsh-tasting oleic acid in the oil (lower is better), which can translate to quality. ?Extra virgin? oils must have less than 1 percent acidity (many clock in below .5 percent) and require as much care in growing and production as boutique wines. Oils with up to 2 percent acidity earn the ?virgin? tag. Forget the sluts, er, oils over 3 percent. And also forgo ?light? olive oil: the only thing it?s low on is flavor.
IN THE KITCHEN, AT THE TABLE, ALL AROUND THE MULBERRY BUSH There?s a reason for the large variety of oils: different oils suit different purposes. Think basic wine pairing: match light with light and heavy with heavy. Use subtle oils on mild salad greens or as bread dips, or drizzle a bit on fish, chicken or simple desserts like fruit salad, pound cake or biscotti. Big oils can stand up to red meat - try the Tuscan trick of finishing off a thick grilled steak with a slosh of spicy, robust oil. Better yet, brush the oil on with a rosemary branch while the steak sizzles.
Sometimes the best cooking is no cooking at all. There?s nothing simpler or more satisfying than setting out three or four bottles of oil at the dinner table, along with your chosen vino, some good bread and a cheese or three, before, during and/or after your meal. (If everyone wears black you can feel really superior and Eurotrashy.)
TIPS FOR TASTINGS Tasting olive oil is a lot like tasting wine: you can stick to one country (Spain, Greece), one region (Tuscany, Sonoma), or one varietal (manzanilla, arbequina) and compare six or eight side by side. Or you can taste a random assortment, and maybe throw in a flavored oil that has citrus or herbs blended in. Add some cubes of chewy bread, little bowls or paper/plastic tasting cups and some easy-drinking wine. Kick back. Speak to each other in Spanish. Wait for Penelope Cruz to show up.
FOR MORE INFO Check out The Flavors of Olive Oil by Deborah Krasner (Simon & Schuster, 2002) and the Web sites of the International Olive Oil Council (http://www.internationaloliveoil.org) and the California Olive Oil Council (http://www.cooc.com). Or just Google ?olive oil? and click around the 50 million or so sites that come up.
OLIVE OIL TASTING NOTES
XX. Antara 100% Arbequina Olives Tarragona - Spain $16/750ml The Ellen DeGeneres of olive oils - easygoing, smooth and slightly nutty. Close to XXX.
XX. Nunez de Prado Extra Virgin Family Estates Crop; Baena - Spain $24/500ml Chris Rock hosting the Oscars - dark, intense and zingers start to finish (but you know what you?re gettin?).
XX. Caroliva Extra Virgin Estate Grown and Bottled; Andalusia - Spain $20/500ml Think a big, buttery chard on steroids. Rich gold color, soft, round and juicy. Close to XXX.
XX. Columela Picual and Hojiblanca Olives Andalucia - Spain $19/500ml Gael Garcia Bernal?s eyes - big, deep and dark. Touch o? pepper on the finish. Close to XXX.
XX. Gasull Arbequina Olives Catalonia - Spain $22/500ml Cool deep-green bottle with a long slim neck. Purrs like Scarlett Johansson in a Ferrari: soft and elegant with a long, smooth finish.
X. Jordan Hand-Picked, Extra Virgin, From Italian Varietals Alexander Valley - Sonoma $25/375ml Kind of a bait-and-switch: starts out sweet and fruity, then morphs into a porcupine by the time it smacks your tonsils. Close to XX.
X. L?Estornell Extra Virgin, Organic Arbequina Olives Catalonia - Spain $15/375ml Like Erica Christensen in most of her movies: all sweetness and light in the opening scene, but she grabs you by the throat in the last act. Close to XX.
X. Molino de Leoncio Gomez Extra Virgin, Unfiltered, Picudo and Hojiblanca Olives Cordoba - Spain $11/500ml Gotta hunt for the flavors at first, then they do the Big Bang in the back of your mouth. Close to XX.
XXX. Pons Extra Virgin, Arbequina Olives Catalonia - Spain $16/473ml Yo-Yo Ma playing a cello concerto - rich, deep and resonant. Pale gold, medium body, with layers of fresh apple, almond and spice flavors, and a nice little kick on the finish.
XX. Poplar Hill 2005 Extra Virgin Spring Mountain - Napa Valley $20/375ml Light, airy, silky, delicate and balanced; buttery, hazelnutty and smoooooth. An obvious late-picked oil (check the harvest date!) that deserves nothing more than a chunk of good bread and a pinch of salt. Close to XXX.
XX. Skipstone Ranch Melina?s Harvest, November 2004, Extra Virgin Alexander Valley - Sonoma County $25/375ml Hilary Swank in Million Dollar Baby - brawny, punchy, ends with a surprising knockout.
XX. Soler Romero 100% Picual Olives Andalusia - Spain $18/500ml Why does this taste like nectarines, white pepper and grass? Starts fruity and sweet, then turns tangy on the finish. Slather some on sliced oranges with red onion slivers, lemon juice and salt.
X. Unio 100% Arbequina Olives Siurana - Spain $16/750ml The NZ sauv blanc of olive oils - spicy and green start to finish. Makes a great pesto with basil, anchovies and good parmigiano reggiano. Close to XX.
X. Zoe Extra Virgin Castilla-La Mancha - Spain $9/1-Litre Tin A tad rustic and rough, but a good value. Great for stir-frying veggies. Close to XX.
Yes, that was basically the point of this quick weekend post.Over the past week I made the best attempt I could at finding all six single-variety wines that the South African producers released, and have only achieved partial success (3/6).Though not so entirely happy with one of the whites (sadly the only one I could track down), I return to the reds to find a very interesting Shiraz.
A small clarification about how I view value wines though.Obviously, the MAN Shiraz is no Crozes-Hermitages, but that simply isn?t the objective with a value selection recommendation.It doesn?t make it better than say, a Northern Rhône Syrah that usually sells for more.Value selections like this one are unusually interesting for the price point.That shortsighted all-or-nothing approach people have the tendency to apply to so many things in life seems absurdly inappropriate even with wine.I thought about that today when I read the latest post over at The Pour, which somewhat deals with a new book on wine reminiscent of that 20/20 segment from 2005 which relegates the value of art and art criticism (good parallel with wine) to that of upper-brow contempt for the masses.How many certifiable idiots have you overheard in a hotel lobby asking trite questions that more or less resemble ?which one?s the best, Flemish art or Florentine art?The inanity of an exchange like this swiftly reveals the poverty of knowledge, or perhaps more crucial to the matter, lack of genuine appreciation which the participants must have for art.
As someone who seriously studies literature and has a couple of degrees to back that up, I have always cringed at those book club type questions where two writers from completely different perspectives and time periods are given the old CNN Crossfire treatment, ?George Sand or Danielle Steele??On a whole, more people would likely prefer Steele, who no doubt is an accomplished writer; her work could thus be considered better, right?No, no and no.As with artists or writers, let?s please leave wine out of that sort of thing.
At any rate, this Coastal Region Shiraz is all about straightforward flavors and food-accompanying functionality.I thought it a bit complex for the price point, with nice plum, berry, spice and smoke.Balance wasn?t too far off, with medium acidity, high body, medium-high tannin and solid fruit which stood up to the vegetal and spice flavors for three days after opening.An added bonus, considering most sub-$10 reds, was that the oak presence was never overwhelming.I?ll certainly consider the MAN Syrah and Pinotage again when looking for value-priced accompaniments to grilled meats and those ostrich burgers I have come to enjoy recently.
2005 Domaine Louis Boillot et Fils, Gevrey-Chambertin Medium-plus colour with plenty of purple at the rim. High tones of violets over blackberry fruit and faint earth. In the mouth it’s got reasonable concentration but lovely flavours of black cherry jam edged with faint oak toast. Fine balance and a subtly penetrating length. [...]
Regular readers of Winewaves have noticed the slowing pace of new pieces in 2007. For the first 2 years I tried to keep a daily pace of providing new pictures and reviews here. Winewaves began in February of 2005, but it's over. At least for now.
Like many other well-intentioned bloggers, I simply cannot afford to provide the quality of content that I would like to. Other paying work occupies my time. The opportunity cost of the effort I've invested in Winewaves has been great and the benefits have been scarce. My balance sheet unfortunately fits on a Post-It note. Being that I don't have deep pockets, something had to give.
Thank you to those who tuned in, found themselves checking out Winewaves, and especially to those who have sent me supportive e-mails over the past 3 years.
And go figure. No other wine created the stir that Bitch Barossa Grenache has over the last 3 years. For all those who are looking for it, I DON'T KNOW where you can find it. Which brings to my mind a pet peeve. When there is an ocean of Grenache (or at least red wine) in Australia, and when so many people are looking for "Bitch" in America, and when the people who want it are not expecting the highest standard of gustatory excellence, why don't they bottle more of it? What's wrong with giving the people what they want?
Of all the lessons learned from Winewaves, the foremost one is that I wish I could be selling wine. That's because most people who have come here thought that was the point of the site. It's so frustrating that Tennessee state laws prevent a would-be entrepreneur like myself to add value to a marketplace. Most people don't see the value of great wine label pictures, except as a way of merchandising, which I am prohibited from doing. At least for now.
Lastly, if anyone has any ideas as to how to revive Winewaves, I'm all ears.
I have been traveling back and forth across the country for the last two weeks and have been working long days for months. In between flights and endless delays in airport waiting lounges, I try to make study time for my WSET exam coming up all too soon in a few days. After a grueling, four-city tour, tonight I feel justified in picking something special to celebrate a clean desk and being home. A bottle of Amarone is definitely appropriate. The bottle I decide on is an Amarone Negar 1961. Yes the vintage is right, 1961.
It was a great year for Italian wine in 1961 ? rain and sun in perfect balance. John Kennedy was president of the USA. The Berlin Wall was under construction. Maria Callas was 38 and at the height of her career. Sophia Loren was starring in El Cid, and I was all of nine years old.
The label is a little worn and torn. The fill level looks promising ? still mid neck ? although there is a little sediment. The cork seems to be okay ? solid and removes easily without crumbling. Should I decant and risk adding too much air? I pour a glass to see what has happened to this 40-something wine.
The color is amazing ? dark red, with a little orange and brick red on the rim. The nose is equally remarkable ? still lots of fruit left on the nose, black cherry with truffle, and a little sherry oxidization odors in the background. A few swirls of the glass and the oxidative aromas disappear.
The taste and finish on this wine is surprising, still full of black cherry, truffles, and forest floor with a finish that lasts for minutes. The tannins are like silk, and there are not enough descriptors to describe the mouth feel and full body. The acidity must be holding this wine together.
Now, there is a caveat to this story. We both love Amarone, so there is a built in basis here. But points and ratings have no relevance to this wine. It is, quite simply, a great wine. It is like the Callas aria playing on the stereo ? powerful yet filled with grace and finesse. It is an Amarone at its heights. Yes, 1961 was a good vintage year for Italian wines. I am going to lay down some bottles for the future. Susan?s Note:
This Amarone is a perfect example of why Frank and I both hate the point system. Is this a 98 or only a 97 point wine? After all, how do you define the difference of a single point? Or has this venerable liquid actually achieved the enviable position of 100 points despite its initial hint of oxidation? It is only two additional points after all.
And if we were to rate it as a 98, would that make it comparable to the 2004 Cabernet Blend IX Estate from Colgin Cellars that received a 98 point nod from Robert Parker? Hmmm, let?s see. A three-year old blend of 59% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc, and 6% Petit Verdot from Napa Valley versus an Italian Amarone with almost half a century of love, care, and passion in its provenance. Somehow, the comparison just doesn?t work ? although I suppose one day, some scientist, somewhere in the world, will come up with a formula that proves you can actually make a meaningful comparison between apples and snow peas.
(Photo of Maria Callas dated 1960, only a year before this wine was produced.)
On the tasting bench today is the Scorpiiion Shiraz 2005 which unlike their Cabernet is made from 100% Barossa fruit.
Dark inky red in colour with sweet dark fruit and chocolate aromas. Easy drinking and full flavoured with juicy shiraz fruit really coming to the fore, it’s full bodied with a little spice and fine tannin on the finish. Although there was some alcoholic heat present, it would make a crowd pleasing bbq wine.
Overall a well made Shiraz in a typically Barossan style. If big, ballsy, fruit driven reds are your poison, you should get some mileage from the Scorpiiion.
Score: 87/100 Price: $21 Closure: Screwcap Alcohol: 14.8% Other Opinions: Can’t find any online Would I buy this wine? Probably not, although I would be happy enough if a glass was placed in my hand
Some notes taken at a New Years Eve event … in 2006 leading into 2007.
Seppelt Salinger 1994 A slightly better bottle than the last one, this was fresher on the palate. On the nose there were aromas of creme brulee, toast, lime and a dab of oak. Still not amazingly complex on the palate, but the length is good and it is well balanced. 88/100
Moet et Chandon 1999 Green apples and grass on the nose. Very lean palate, acid stands out and this is very simple and short. 82/100
T’Gallant Moscato 2006 A pale salmon colour. Very light spritz. Strawberry, turkish delight and cherry on the nose. Palate has a medium level of sweetness, needs a touch more acid to be refreshing but it is still quite nice. 86/100
Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Semillon 1994 Honeyed nose with toast and lemon as well. There is an oily texture to the medium intensity palate. No rough edges, this was very nice drinking now. 91/100
Raymond Boulard Cuvee Reserve NV Apples, some florals and some candy style raspberry notes. Crisp palate, medium length. No elements of great excitement but it is well made and enjoyable. 87/100
Best’s Great Western Chardonnay 1986 Grapefruit, honey and wet wool aromas. Incredibly youthful palate, it was fresh, balanced and long. Seemed as though it could live another 10 years as well. 90/100
Robert Groffier Les Amoureuses 1996 Brilliant, shifting, challenging nose of cherry, earth, violets, spice and fleeting notes of coffee beans. The palate is so delicate and wonderfully poised. the mouthfeel is beautiful with well integrated tannin and acid. Superb. 94/100
Charles Melton Sparkling Shiraz (disg. February 99) Cola, chocolate and a strong horse stable component. The palate is almost sickly sweet. Worst bottle of this that I’ve had. 79/100
Orlando Lawson Shiraz 1991 Dark crimson colour. Sweetly fruited with a touch of mint. Nice intensity to the palate, it is bold without being over the top or losing focus. Very youthful, it will go another 5 years without any trouble and it wouldn’t surprise me if people were saying the same thing in 5 years. 89/100
J. Vidal-Fleury Cote-Rotie Brune et Blonde 1998 From magnum. Lifted florals, pepper, five spice and red cherries. Savoury palate with good acidity and a medium length finish. Very good. 90/100
Domaine Michel Gros Vosne-Romanee Clos des Reas 1998 Deeply coloured. Very perfumed nose, with florals and light raspberry. Tannins are quite grippy at present, but contribute to the good structure. Well balanced acidity. 90/100
Casanova di Neri Tenuta Nuova Brunello 2001 Briary and tobacco aromas followed by vanilla, coconut and some floral characters. Quite aggressive tannins on the palate, but the length and structure are both excellent. Give this time and you will be rewarded. 91/100
Larmandier-Bernier Champagne Brut 1er Cru Blanc de Blancs 1998 Opened to drink at midnight. Corked. Happy new year. NR/100
Pol Roger Brut 1998 Apples, yeast, toast and some smoke. Good length and balance, with medium flavour intensity. Will be nice to drink over the next 5 years. 89/100
Henschke Cyril Henschke 1994 DMS city with blackcurrant, tinned corn, blackberry and chocolate oaky aromas. Palate is alright, but the wine as a whole isn’t up to the standard of one had a year prior. 84/100
Chateau d’Yquem 1958 An incredibly generous gesture from a friend of Phil’s to bring this along to share. This has been open for a while, the nose was deeply scented and consisted of caramel, burnt sugar, orange peel and almond. Luscious mouthfeel, the acid struggling a little bit to keep pace. I was immensely glad to have gotten the chance to try this. 92/100
Veuve Fourny Blanc de Blancs 1er Cru Brut NV Apples, cinnamon, honey and smoke. Dry on the good length palate, with racy acidity and great refreshment value. 88/100
Upgraded to 96-100 points Parker: "This offering has been controversial as its price increase ranged between 300-400%, but this is a great terroir, and since the remarkable winemaking team of Nicolas Thienpont and Stephane Derenoncourt took over in 2002, Larcis Ducasse is finally showing its true colors. Located near Pavie, it possesses undeniable potential as demonstrated by the profound 2005. A 3,000-case blend of 78% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon fashioned from yields of 27 hectoliters per hectare, it underwent all of the standard garagiste winemaking techniques. It is not surprising that just about all the famous estates in this neighborhood on the Cote Pavie, including Pavie and Troplong-Mondot, did unbelievably well in 2005. A dark, dense purple color is followed by an extraordinary perfume of roasted herbs, espresso, tapenade, creme de cassis, and sweet kirsch. It is a wine of sheer opulence, extravagant richness, sweet tannin, and an amazingly layered texture as well as length. A blockbuster with superb elegance, finesse, and precision, it represents an exceptional achievement. Kudos to everyone involved for turning out this modern day legend. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2030."
Leelanau Cellars markets this unique spiced wine as Witches’ Brew around Halloween, but let me assure you that it is a great wine to have on hand throughout the winter. This wine has two labels, the Halloween one (Witches Brew) and the label for the rest of the year, simply named Leelanau Cellars Spiced Wine.
If you’re looking for something fun and unique to bring to a holiday party this year, this is your wine! This wine is best served heated! Simmer in a pot over low heat until it is warm (the temperature of a witches’ tongue, if you’re celebrating Halloween). This spiced wine should not be served with dinner, but rather as dessert, with some good, dark chocolate. I suppose it could also be good before dinner, while folks are still arriving to the party. It would make a great ice-breaker!
Witches Brew is obviously a sweet wine, with aromas of cinnamon and cloves. It has very different characteristics when heated vs. room temperature. Try both!
Rating: 9/10 — Truly unique! Price: $5.99 Where can I get it? Many places in Michigan carry this wine, especially around the holidays. I found it at Meijer. You could always visit the Leelanau Cellars north of Traverse City to stock up!
Clean and fruity, with apple and toffee character and a hint of papaya. Full-bodied, with good fruit and a lively finish. Catarratto and Chardonnay. Drink now. 20,000 cases made.
How do you keep up to date with the wine world these days? I’ve found out what works for me although I still suffer from information overload some times. My interests are as follows ?
current hot topics such as closures, global warming, harvest expectations and so on
recommendations on wines to try and buy
educational material especially anything that helps me towards my WSET Diploma
I’ve found the following sources really help me
Harpers magazine. I wish I could afford their annual subscription but it’s just too much. However I subscribe to their daily bulletins via Google’s reader and this really works for me. I see a couple of lines summarising news items when I’m on the computer at home or work and I can always click the link to go their web site if i wish to read more
an unusual source of news items is South African Wines. They send out regular emails which summarise the key stories from around the world by directing you towards the various publications, web sites, blogs etc which have something interesting and relevant
there is no substitute for a monthly magazine which is good for those train journeys commuting to work. Decanter and Wine and Spirit are my favourites. I was working in the US last summer and enjoyed Wine Spectator and thought about taking out a subscription but the cost including mailing back to the UK was prohibitive
I love reading other people’s blogs. People like Jamie Goode and Andrew Jefford talk about people they have met, wines they have drunk and places they have visited. The problem with blogs is that there are so many (and yes I have one also) that it’s possible to subscribe to too many of them using Google’s reader that information overload soon takes over.
Podcasts are great for car journeys if you put them on a CD or train journeys if you play them on your phone. I’ve learned a lot from some of the podcasts from Grape Radio
For bedtime reading or sitting in a chair (with a glass of something nice of course) there is no substitute for the hard stuff ie: books. You can’t go wrong with a copy of the Oxford Companion to Wine by your side. I also try to look up every wine I try in at least one reference book such as the World Atlas of Wine, Wine by the Label or Oz Clark’s pocket wine book. These often give the context for the wine leaving the label to give the detail (unless of course it’s French!).
I may occasionally suffer from information overload but I do learn a whole lot of interesting stuff about wine which vastly increases my enjoyment of the stuff.
So yes, its finally here. I apologize to all those who’ve graciously met the deadline that I went and slipped! Tell you the truth, I am only NOW getting my own chance to take a breath and relax. I started last night, after my daughter’s second week. She’s an angel, healthy (well, healthy lungs THATS for sure), and Mom is doing great as well. The house is just about done, had to tweak a few things for the city to approve the construction (if you don’t know the background, my contractor abandoned my project - a home addition for the new baby - just before the holidays and my Dad and I had to finish it ( good thing Dad know’s what he’s doing!!!). So that’s done.
The OpenWine Consortium is now humming along with 530+ wine trade people net
Tecnorati
I went to New York last week and had a great time. I went to the Bubble Lounge which is a restaurant that serves over 350 champagnes by the glass. I was in heaven. I drank the Veuve Cliquot MV "La Grand Siecle". Yep that's right MV - not NV. MV means that they blend vintages. This particular wine was '88, '90, and '95 vintages from Veuve single vineyards and it was well worth every penny I paid for it. Here's a picture. I'd post more pictures but the night went downhill from there and while the pics are very funny, they are also very telling!!!
I have always loved the packaging on Xanadu wines. That ambiguous golden dragon that looks like a knarly old vine really appeals to me. This is a blend of 73% Margaret River and 27% Frankland River shiraz. Dragon is a recent addition to the Xanadu range. It sits above the Secession and below the Estate in the portfolio. 
airport waiting lounges, I try to make study time for my 
truffles, and forest floor with a finish that lasts for minutes. The tannins are like silk, and there are not enough descriptors to describe the mouth feel and full body. The acidity must be holding this wine together.
On the tasting bench today is the Scorpiiion Shiraz 2005 which unlike their 
