WHAT'S UP, BALTIMORE!!!
Friday, October 19, 2007
Stereolab - Fluorescences
I am an unabashed Stereolab junkie. Well, at least up until the Dots and Loops album.
A terrific Stereolab song, the ever present commodore computer, multi-colored neon lights, Michel Gondry direction - what's there not to like? Fluorescenses captures a mood and state of mind to which I can relate. It's a beautiful song.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
YESTERDAY WAS W&S TOP 100 TASTING DAY
Yesterday was the single busiest day we have had at the shop year to date. The ever powerful closeout email insured an afternoon of trying to stay on top of the order qeue, pick and process order after order, cart after cart. Usually not my j-o, but as it's a team effort, I was hangin' with the operations crew, processing orders for the better part of the afternoon yesterday. They're good guys, slightly more friendly than the ops team at Dundar-Mifflin.
I had planned to go to the trade portion of the good old Wine & Spirits Top 100 Tasting, but ended up catching the last hour of the consumer portion of the event since I didn't get out of the shop until later than I had hoped. It's just as well. Trade tastings, at least as used for tasting, enjoying and remembering wine, are not ideal events. They are crowded, noisy, and full of distractions. As a way to meet other people in the business (crotchety old retailers, chipper young distributor reps, cute servers, etc) trade tastings sometimes are fun. Yesterday, however, I was in the midst of an all-out consumer cocktail party, sponsored by Wine & Spirits. With about an hour to fit it all in, I definitely missed a bunch of stuff. It didn't help that I was not entirely focused, talking to some winemakers or importers for too long, allowing a drunk restaurant owner to chat my ear off for what seemed like forever. You need to attack an event like this in the way you would a museum. Example: OK, I'll start with Champagne at the Gimmonet table, try the Cliquot stuff so I have something to hate on for my blog, skip the Gobelsburg because I know the wines really well already, hit the Royal Tokaji table for some 6 puttonyo deliciousness before it gets too crowded at the end of the night when everyone wants dessert wine, then have some food and taste wines from Toro and Ribera del Duero so I have more things to hate on, and so on.
So this time around I only tasted champagnes and whites, which is fine as there was not a whole lot of winners from the looks of the red wine line-up. A very condensed listing of some highlights and lowlights:
TASTY
Pierre Gimmonet Blanc de Blancs 1999 - Very precise and crisp, with great minerality and fruit intensity. Their special club, very recently disgorged, was a bit tightly wound up and very mineral. Needs some time.
Hidalgo 'La Gitana' Manzanilla and 'Napoleon' Amontillado - These are always good, better than the comparable Lustau sherries. I was talking to the importer rep, a nice girl who grew up on Russia's Pacific coast, who is now selling wines along the United States' Pacific coast.
Francois Chidaine Montlouis Sur Loire 'Les Choisilles' 2004 - Tasty, dry chenin, tasting of green things: green figs, green tea, just under-ripe Anjou pears.
Francois Chidaine Montlouis Sur Loire Clos Habert 2005 - Off dry and the most funky of his whites that I have had. There is a similar funk in his sparkling wine. This chenin tastes like a peach pit, is slightly honeyed, and has a real chewy Loire chenin texture.
Francois Chidaine Vouvray Le Bouchet 2005 - This is between demi-sec and moelleux. Sweeter, but the acidity seems brighter and stands out more than the Clos Habert, which by comparison is heavier and, once again, fonky. On this particular evening, Le Bouchet was my clear favorite.
Domaine Huet Vouvray 'Clos du Bourg' 2005 - Very famous vineyard site and producer and it was very tasty. I do not remember specifics, just that it was really good Chenin that has a long, long life ahead of it.
Domaine Weinbach Cuvee Ste-Catherine L'Inedit Riesling 2006 - My memory is failing me here. I remember just the slightest bit of RS, ripe mandarin fruit, and lots of energy on the palate, with very good depth, intensity and length. The gewurz, the 2004 Cuvee Lawrence, had a really gorgeous nose, with an amazingly vivid, red grapefruit character, and then was all gewurz on the palate - spicy, bitter, alcoholic and lacking in acidity. If I don't like this then I guess I'm officially an Alsace gewurz hater.
JJ Prum Spatlese Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Spatlese 2004 - Really cool wine. Super funky doryann fruit characterize the nose of this riesling. Very slatey /petrolly and already an interesting wine, though it is still a young pup.
C. Von Schubert - This is what I get for not taking notes. These were good wines and I don't recall which was my favorite, the Maximin Grunhauser Abstberg Riesling Spatlese or the Maximin Grunhauser Herrenberg Riesling Spatlese. Were they both '05, or was one '05 and one '06? Maybe one was a kabinett as well. I don't know, outta sight outta mind. All I remember is that these are very solid Rieslings, with talc like minerality and very clean, lemon-lime soda flavors.
EH...NOT SO MUCH
Veuve Cliquot La Grande Dame 1998 - What a waste of money! This is so boring. A real snooze fest. I'd go as far as saying that I would rather drink even a few mediocre grand marque NV champagnes than this stuff. For $130 I would just get four bottles of good grower champagne. Or Bollinger. BOYCOTT Louis Vuitton Moet Hennesy. products. They're overpriced, branded, strictly profit-driven wines that are guaranteed to disappoint.
Schiopetto Mario Schiopetto Bianco 2004 - Anonymous, boring, friulian wine.
That was the tasting - as you can tell, a rushed, not so expertly recorded event. For dinner I decided to dine solo (something I enjoy doing and haven't done in a while; if you haven't already done so you should try it) and went to Two (which is in the former Hawthorne Lane space). I ate an amazing lamb pastrami sandwich with russian dressing, sauerkraut and melted gruyere served on toasted black bread. The pastrami was spicy but not overly salty, and much more tender and less dry than the usual rendition. At first I had ordered a bottle of 1990 Poniatowski Vouvray Moelleux (only $42 on the list) which, sadly, was corked. I then got a bottle of 1995 Crouchet Vouvray Demi-Sec. Nothing like a high acid, slightly sweet white wine to go with some hearty, spicy meat and kraut. The sommelier noticed that I still had a good amount of wine left, so I was comped a cheese plate (thanks, Jeff). Great food and way reasonable prices, so I will definitely have to make a return visit to Two sometime soon.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
A Malbec from Walla Walla - It's good (trust me).
Mmm, mmm, mmm. This is a really tasty wine that I will happily drink again, and again. It smells like Malbec, with some mixed berry fruit and subtle floral notes. The texture is very soft and supple, with mulberry and some raspberry fruits, and the inner mouth floral notes that I love to perceive in wines and seldom do in more inexpensive offerings. Tannins are light and very well integrated. Nowhere is the overoaked, cloying, manipulated quality found in many Argentine Malbecs. Seven Hills Malbec is refreshing, food friendly, and should please many a Euro-centric, jaded, geeky palate. At least it certainly did with folks I was tasting with.
Why don't more folks in the US make wine like this?? If they did maybe more younger wine drinkers would support their wine instead of buying imports.
Monday, October 15, 2007
1996 Champagnes are the greatest
No newsflash here. I really do love these wines though - true wines for acid heads. I had some 1996 Pierre Moncuit Blanc de Blancs a few days ago which reminded me yet again of the greatness of these champagnes. It had what some may find to be jarring acidity, but with plenty of richness, length and nutty tones on the finish. Some other '96's I've enjoyed recently: Fleury 1996, Bruno Michel 1996 (interesting blend of 80% chard and 20% meunier, all original massale selections, with fascinating flavors and nearly endless length) and Bollinger 1996 RD (WOW).
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Rhone, Rhone Wine
Here are some notes, mostly on '05 Rhone reds. Southern Rhone wines are not my favorite wines. Never have been. Nevertheless, it really seems like many folks in the region, in CdP in particular, are going down the path of over-ripe, simple, fruity, hot (high alcohol) wines that I wouldn't want to drink on their own, and certainly not with food. For an interesting post on the same topic, click here (make sure to read the comments as well). Anyway, it is a mixed bag here - some winners and some duds.
2005 Domaine la Garrigue Cotes du Rhone Cuvee Romaine - This is importer Eric Solomon's very profitable custom cuvee for the States. It's supposedly declassified Vacqueyras from very old vines (Grenache, Mourvedre, Syrah). In the past I have enjoyed this wine. It has always been a Cotes du Rhone with good meaty savor, that tasted honest and, for $12 or so you could do a lot worse. Well this year, there are some unresolved tannins and a really sharp astringency on the finish. In the midst of this imbalance, some dark cherry fruit and cough syrup flavors sneak in there. A truly unpleasant wine, this.
2004 Gigondas Raspail-Ay Reserve - Bright red fruits on the nose. After opening up for a few hours, the wine revealed a bit more: plums and some rose petals. On the palate the wine is all crunchy cherries, with excellent purity, texture and energy. No surprise that I find this to be a better balanced, more interesting wine than any other in this line-up, given the cooler '04 vintage and the fact that winemakers in Gigondas seem not be as easily given to the temptation of making over-extracted wines for the export market. I'd give this wine another 5 years, though 7 would probably be more ideal.
2005 Alain Corcia Chateauneuf du Pape 'Patricia' - A pretty, perfume of mixed dark fruits leads to more of the same on the palate. An enjoyable lighter style of CdP for this ripe vintage.
2005 Ollivier Hillaire Chateauneuf du Pape - Here is a CdP that is rich and just fruity enough for the fruit sluts, but elegant, balanced and lively enough for people who want a balanced Grenache based wine to go with food. This is CdP of the blackberry and licorice stylee, with a slightly soft, creamy vanilla aspect towards the finish. May be too much for some - for me, it works. 8 years would be ideal for this one to come around.
2005 Ollivier Hillaire 'Le Petits Pieds D'Armand' - Blackberry jam. Hot. Brutish. For $30 less I'd go for the basic CdP above, but some other folks who tried it really enjoyed this 100% Grenache wine. They of the non-hyper critical wine geek, happy to be there tasting mold.
2005 Vieilles Julienne CdP - This one could be even worse. Yep, this could be the nadir of the line-up. I'm sorry, this wine is way too smooth, creamy, dumbed down and hot to be remotely interesting. There is very little spice, no floral aspects, no licorice, no gamey savor. And I don't see these notes ever emerging from this wine.
2005 Vincent Paris Cornas 'Granit 30' - OK, things are now getting better. The northern Rhone is an area where I have limited tasting experience, but plan to rectify the situation by tasting a lot more of the wines. They are generally more my style: lower in alcohol, greater in aromatic nuance, more subtle in their fruit flavors. Blueberry and plums, charred embers, white flowers, white pepper and mixed Indian spices come together on this beautfiul nose. On the palate, there is a bright, huckleberry quality, and though it is still tightly wound and a bit over-laden with sulphur, it should shape up really nicely and be a charmer in another 3 or so years.
2005 Bernard Burgaud Cote Rotie - This wine was just nearly impossible to taste. So tight. Nevertheless, there was great acidity and a gorgeous, velvety texture. Apparently the wine is aged 15-18 months in barrique, mostly new. Hmm...nonetheless, I think this Cote Rotie might become pretty interesting with a decade or so of bottle age. But then again, my experience with Cote Rotie is so limited. Someone please chime in and give me some insight here on the northern Rhone tip. I'd appreciate it.
2005 Domaine la Garrigue Cotes du Rhone Cuvee Romaine - This is importer Eric Solomon's very profitable custom cuvee for the States. It's supposedly declassified Vacqueyras from very old vines (Grenache, Mourvedre, Syrah). In the past I have enjoyed this wine. It has always been a Cotes du Rhone with good meaty savor, that tasted honest and, for $12 or so you could do a lot worse. Well this year, there are some unresolved tannins and a really sharp astringency on the finish. In the midst of this imbalance, some dark cherry fruit and cough syrup flavors sneak in there. A truly unpleasant wine, this.
2004 Gigondas Raspail-Ay Reserve - Bright red fruits on the nose. After opening up for a few hours, the wine revealed a bit more: plums and some rose petals. On the palate the wine is all crunchy cherries, with excellent purity, texture and energy. No surprise that I find this to be a better balanced, more interesting wine than any other in this line-up, given the cooler '04 vintage and the fact that winemakers in Gigondas seem not be as easily given to the temptation of making over-extracted wines for the export market. I'd give this wine another 5 years, though 7 would probably be more ideal.
2005 Alain Corcia Chateauneuf du Pape 'Patricia' - A pretty, perfume of mixed dark fruits leads to more of the same on the palate. An enjoyable lighter style of CdP for this ripe vintage.
2005 Ollivier Hillaire Chateauneuf du Pape - Here is a CdP that is rich and just fruity enough for the fruit sluts, but elegant, balanced and lively enough for people who want a balanced Grenache based wine to go with food. This is CdP of the blackberry and licorice stylee, with a slightly soft, creamy vanilla aspect towards the finish. May be too much for some - for me, it works. 8 years would be ideal for this one to come around.
2005 Ollivier Hillaire 'Le Petits Pieds D'Armand' - Blackberry jam. Hot. Brutish. For $30 less I'd go for the basic CdP above, but some other folks who tried it really enjoyed this 100% Grenache wine. They of the non-hyper critical wine geek, happy to be there tasting mold.
2005 Vieilles Julienne CdP - This one could be even worse. Yep, this could be the nadir of the line-up. I'm sorry, this wine is way too smooth, creamy, dumbed down and hot to be remotely interesting. There is very little spice, no floral aspects, no licorice, no gamey savor. And I don't see these notes ever emerging from this wine.
2005 Vincent Paris Cornas 'Granit 30' - OK, things are now getting better. The northern Rhone is an area where I have limited tasting experience, but plan to rectify the situation by tasting a lot more of the wines. They are generally more my style: lower in alcohol, greater in aromatic nuance, more subtle in their fruit flavors. Blueberry and plums, charred embers, white flowers, white pepper and mixed Indian spices come together on this beautfiul nose. On the palate, there is a bright, huckleberry quality, and though it is still tightly wound and a bit over-laden with sulphur, it should shape up really nicely and be a charmer in another 3 or so years.
2005 Bernard Burgaud Cote Rotie - This wine was just nearly impossible to taste. So tight. Nevertheless, there was great acidity and a gorgeous, velvety texture. Apparently the wine is aged 15-18 months in barrique, mostly new. Hmm...nonetheless, I think this Cote Rotie might become pretty interesting with a decade or so of bottle age. But then again, my experience with Cote Rotie is so limited. Someone please chime in and give me some insight here on the northern Rhone tip. I'd appreciate it.
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