Took me a bit to get it all together, but here are my notes on the evening:
RIESLINGKENNER-SCHARZHOFBERGER STUDY - Oceanique, Evanston IL (9/4/2020)
This was the kick-off dinner for RieslingKenner and I was lucky enough to make the cut. A lot of great expression of the Saar across all of the wines and of course the Egon Muller flight. It was an honor to attend and help raise money for the Chicago Food Depository.
Opening Bubbles
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2009 L. Aubry Fils Champagne Premier Cru Aubry de Humbert - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
Nose: The nose is upfront and forward with pears, apples, yellow fruits, citrus, quince, smoke, roast nuts, biscuits, and brioche. The tones are attractive and forward, but they lack depth and definition.
Taste: The feel is medium bodied with crisp, high acidity. The feel is well balanced and forward with pears, apples, quince, yellow fruits, biscuits, and brioche.
Overall: This was lacking a little bit in some areas sadly. It just missed the mark and lacked complexity and depth though it is a friendly and upfront champagne. (89 pts.)
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NV Laherte Frères Champagne Rosé de Meunier Extra Brut - France, Champagne
Nose: The nose is intriguing and complex, filled with cherries, strawberries, red apples, spiced pears, orange peels, peaches, roses, toast, roasted nuts, warm dough, baking spices, and biscuit notes.
Taste: The feel is Medium bodied with racy, high acidity. There is excellent weight and density to the feel with cherries, strawberries, red apples, orange peels, roses, toast, warm dough, roast nuts, and biscuits.
Overall: This was beautifully expressive and balanced. This has a darker color and sees assemblage to create this complex and beautiful Rose Champagne. (92 pts.)
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2006 Henri Goutorbe Champagne Grand Cru Special Club - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru
Nose: The nose is expressive and balanced, filled with red apples, spiced pears, yellow flowers, citrus notes, smoke, baked dough, biscuits, and some vanilla notes. There is excellent depth and poise with the lees notes really shining through.
Taste: The feel is medium bodied with crisp, high acidity. The feel is poised and balanced with red apples, spiced pears, yellow flowers, baked dough, biscuits, and vanilla notes.
Overall: This is a lovely and balanced Special Club Champagne. They hold it back a bunch, so it is ready and willing from the get go and immensely enjoyable. (92 pts.)
Von Hovel
Taste: The feel is lighter bodied with crisp, high acidity. The feel is nuanced and lighter with white peaches, apricots, nectarines, green apples, papaya, acacia flowers, and saline notes.
Overall: This is a fresh and balanced Kabinett. There is good balance between white fruits and acidity with just a bit of juciness form the residual sugar. (89 pts.)
Taste: The feel is medium/light bodied with tart, high acidity. The acidity has some real cut to it along with nectarines, peaches, green apples, papaya, pears, white florals, and mineral tones.
Overall: This shows off a more feminine side that is backed up with a lot of lively, fresh fruits. (92 pts.)
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2017 Von Hövel Scharzhofberger Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Nose: The nose is fresh and exuberant with papayas, green apples, peaches, nectarines, apricots, white fruits, minerals, and white florals. There is a lot of freshness and balance, but it lacks some depth.
Taste: The feel is Medium/light bodied with tart, high acidity. The acidity has some good cut along with green apples, peaches, papaya, nectarines, minerals, and white florals.
Overall: This is a fresh and lively Kabinett. There is a balanced and nuanced quality with excellent white fruits across the nose and palate. (89 pts.)
Champagne Charlie interlude
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NV Charles Heidsieck Champagne Brut Rosé Reserve - France, Champagne
Nose: The nose is open-knit and aromatic with strawberries, raspberries, peaches, pears, citrus notes, floral tones, bread, biscuits, and warm dough. There is excellent depth and while it shows a lot of lees influence, it isn’t too brawny and shows off a good bit of poise.
Taste: The feel is Medium/full bodied with refreshing, high acidity. There is excellent balance and depth on with raspberries, peaches, pears, citrus notes, floral tones, biscuits, bread, and warm dough.
Overall: This is a lovely and elegant rose. There is excellent depth across the nose and palate with a lot of delicious leesy notes. (91 pts.)
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2004 Charles Heidsieck Champagne Blanc des Millénaires - France, Champagne
Nose: The nose is flowing, poised, and hi-toned with red apples, spiced pears, almonds, meyer lemons, yellow flowers, warm dough, pastry tones, and fresh baked breads.
Taste: The feel is Medium/full bodied with crisp, high acidity. The feel is well layered and refined with red apples, spiced pears, almonds, yellow flowers, warm dough, and pastry tones.
Overall: This is absolutely lovely right now and it feels like it can certainly age for a good while longer. (93 pts.)
Egon Muller
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2016 Egon Müller Riesling QbA Scharzhof - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Nose: The nose is fresh and white-fruited with green apples, white peaches, acacia flowers, pears, apricots, and crushed rock notes. The nose is alive and vibrant with a spring-like quality to it.
Taste: The feel is Light bodied with racy, but somewhat searing acidity. The feel is light on its feet and lively with green apples, white peaches, ears, apricots, and acacia flowers.
Overall: This is a fresh and lively QbA that shows why it’s at the top of the heap in the category. (88 pts.)
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2016 Egon Müller Scharzhofberger Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Nose: There is an electricity to the nose as it fills the glass up with white fruits, white peaches, lemon peels, green apples, pears, white flowers, crushed rocks, and saline. There is excellent depth and fragrance that draws you in with a feminine style.
Taste: The feel is light bodied with racy, high acidity. The feel is vibrant and fresh with white fruits, white peaches, lemon peels, green apples, pears, white flowers, and lots of crushed rocks.
Overall: This is wonderful. There is a lot of freshness and balance that makes this a real joy to drink. (93 pts.)
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2016 Egon Müller Scharzhofberger Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Nose: This is on a completely different level from the QbA and the Kabinett. There is much more depth, concentration, and polish with white peaches, green apples, limes, lemon peels, peach blossoms, crushed rocks, and saline.
Taste: There is a delicate quality to the Medium/light bodied feel with racy, high acidity. The feel is light on its feet and yet there is a great amount of depth and length that is backed up by tones of white peaches, green apples, limes, peach blossoms, crushed rocks, and saline.
Overall: This is a complete stunner already. There is so much depth and balance to this and the nose is one you just get lost in. I would love to try this in another 5+ years to see where it may go. (94 pts.)
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2014 Egon Müller Scharzhofberger Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Nose: The nose is a bit upfront and waxy along with peaches, green apples, lemon peels, pears, white flowers, white fruits, smoke, and saline. This lacks some of the depth that the 16 next to it possessed.
Taste: The feel is medium/light bodied with crisp, high acidity. There is a deft touch and a rounder quality with peaches, green apples, lemon peels, pears, waxy notes, white fruits, smoke, and saline.
Overall: This is lovely stuff, but it isn’t at the level of the 2016. Still, there is a great white-fruited base with elegance and balance. (91 pts.)
Taste: The feel is medium bodied with crisp, high acidity. The acidity is slightly out of balance but it is still lively with peaches, apples, nectarines, pears, custard, and creams.
Overall: This was a very different expression than the other wines in the flight. It is still very enjoyable and seems to be in a really good spot at the moment that leans into a bit more evolution (91 pts.)
odds and ends sprinkled throughout the evening
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1996 Tenuta San Guido Bolgheri Sassicaia Sassicaia - Italy, Tuscany, Bolgheri, Bolgheri Sassicaia
Nose: This was served blind and right away it showed off a lot of Old world Cabernet hallmarks of herbs, savory notes, red cherries, licorice, tobacco, cranberries, roses, mint, and spice tones. There was excellent depth and it was abundantly clear that there was at least 20+ years of age as the tones were in beautiful harmony.
Taste: The feel is full bodied with medium acidity and silky, medium+ tannins. The maturity on the nose carried through on the palate with red cherries, herbs, savory notes, cranberries, licorice, tobacco, roses, and spice tones.
Overall: This was blinded and I went to late-80s left bank and something like Saint-Julien. It being from Bolgheri didn’t cross my mind, but, oh well! This was gorgeous and drinking beautifully with loads of charm and depth. (93 pts.)
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2018 Bouchard Père et Fils Chambolle-Musigny - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
Nose: The nose is upfront and forward with raspberries, red cherries, roses, spice notes, licorice, cranberries, tart red berries, and some herbs. While the nose is friendly, it does lack some depth and expression.
Taste: The feel is Medium bodied with silky, medium tannins and medium acidity. The feel is friendly an forward with raspberries, red cherries, cranberries, tart red berries, licorice, spice notes, and herbs.
Overall: This is a nice and forward Chambolle-Musigny. Like the other wines from the Bouchard 2018s, it shows off upfront red fruits but lacks some depth and definition. (87 pts.)
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2017 Rapet Père et Fils Corton-Charlemagne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
Nose: The nose is deep and polished with red apples, pears, stone fruits, quince, warm oils, vanilla, spice notes, and nougat. This may be young, but it is expressive and vibrant right now in a really attractive way.
Taste: The feel is Medium/full bodied with tart, medium+ acidity. The feel is more in the light-heavyweight category as it shows excellent density but with a deftness to the tones of red apples, pears, stone fruits, quince, warm oils, nougat, and a touch of spice notes.
Overall: This is a lovely, young Corton-Charlemagne. It shows off excellent balance and depth along with polished stone fruits. This needs some air now to really get going but even a few years of aging will help it along. (92 pts.)
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2015 Principiano Giuseppe e Francesco Barolo Boscareto - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Nose: The nose was flowing and seamless from the get go with violets, rose petals, red cherries, cranberries, raspberries, roasted herbs, juniper berries, wet clay, licorice, and wild spices. There is good depth here with the earthiness coming through a bit more than I would’ve anticipated.
Taste: The feel is Medium/full bodied with silky, high tannins and tart, high acidity. The structure is surprisingly well integrated right now along with red cherries, raspberries, cranberries, roasted herbs, wet clay, licorice, and wild spices.
Overall: This is really pretty and balanced already. This feels like it could be more of an earlier drinking as the structure is surprisingly not as prominent as I would expect from such a young Barolo. Still, it’s lovely and should be great over the next 10-15 years. (91 pts.)
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