2018 Henschke Tempranillo Eden Valley Stone Jar. Ruby-purple throughout, a shade darker than expected, spotless with a high shine to the surface. Glance of oak toast, vanilla to the nose, then it’s all but entirely sleek red berry fruit with a few incense and dirt back road notes thrown in for good measure. Light-bodied, manages grip beyond its weight per se, displaying more acidic verve than tannic. Orange citrus, pressed flowers lead into the strawberry, raspberry, blueberry fruit. If one is accustomed to Spanish Tempranillo slathered in creamy oak this might seem lean and wanting. Has a refreshing quality, leaves the palate clean and primed for the next taste. Very good sipping wine but the price is offputting. (Screwcap)
2018 Bedrock Zinfandel Wedrock Wedding Cuvée (MK Red Wine). Blackish crimson in color, excellent clarity given its darkness. Dusty, parched earth led nose, the proverbial “dust bowl,” licorice, eucalyptus, orange peel, suggestion of leather, tough nosed black cherry, black currant, blackberry scents, in no way underfruited, perhaps marked most by the absence of oak. Medium-bodied, very well structured but to me in a way which gives it gravitas today rather than “check back in ten years.” Stones and tilled dry soil, some anise and sweet cooking herbs. The citrus shows more tart edge here. Some green apple infiltrates the currant, cherry, mixed berry fruit, not as “black fruited” albeit right now of the three vineyards Pagani has the deepest stamp on it. Nice mentholated lift at the end. One must assume you don’t craft a “backward” wine for one’s wedding while still wanting many a bottle to last through anniversaries to come. Opened up well over the evening. Grapes sourced from Bedrock Vineyard, Old Hill Ranch, Pagani Vineyard.
2018 Bedrock Syrah Sonoma Valley Weill a Way Vineyard. Saturated violet core, clean and mostly transparent, the rims barely budge from violet into red plum flesh hues. Good salty edge to the nose, cured beef and flowers, heavily mentholated, the black currant, cherry scents content to be woven into the whole, will be interesting to see how tertiary the aromas get with age. Medium-bodied, fairly sleek, more like velvet than satin. The tannin tends to clump up as you sip. The ripeness more evident in the plum, cassis, blackberry fruit. However, the finish is stunted as the fruit trails off. Cocoa nibs to milk chocolate with a hint of vanilla signal the oak presence. Lots of violets for perfume. Youthful awkwardness shown today, once the tannin comes to heel will prove more harmonious. 92% Syrah, 8% Viognier.
2018 Bedrock Sonoma Valley Compagni Portis Vineyard. Greenish gold, semi-flat, blockishness helps visual impact. The lychee outraces the pack in the nose and not sure any competitor catches up, tangerine pith, molasses, lilacs and Brazil nuts fill in much of the white space, to its credit the melon, apricot, kiwi scents not looking to hog the spotlight, gets nuttier through the finish but at the same time tends to close up as much as lift. Medium-bodied, from the very first sip it seems “busy” and goes in all kinds of flavor and texture directions. In the end its dryness helps, brings it shape and focus when it could have easily been otherwise. The nuttiness right upfront here as is the lychee and given its nature as a field blend would not be surprised at all to learn that the percentage of Gewürztraminer was higher than other years. Tangerine citrus with lime accents. Sour white fibrous fruits. Pretty in a rough and tumble way, think Joan Jett. More favorable impression since the 2014 version. Unspecified percentages of Gewürztraminer, Trousseau Gris, Riesling, Roter Veltliner, Chardonnay, other.
2000 Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée. Minimal purple in the core, rust red to yellow at the outer rims, doesn’t look dull. Smells like an ashtray sitting on a tarred apartment building roof, cracked leather, asphalt but then slowly florality and a glimmer of red berry fruit. Full-bodied, from the first sip this is fully resolved in every way. That said, contra the nose there’s ample raspberry, blueberry, boysenberry fruit, almost juicy. That tar and ash element remains but in proportion. Mesquite grill, orange peel, potpourri. There’s a certain roughness to the texture but forgivable. Respectable finish, not a lot going on retronasally. Showing remarkably well, better than previous bottle consumed October 2019. Based on a 2015 sampling, probably hit it’s peak 2013-2015. Mainly Grenache, remainder Syrah, etc.
2002 Méo-Camuzet Frère & Sœurs Fixin. Decent amount of violet left in the core, some bricking at the rims but too generally washed out to tell. Smoke and ash impelled nose, hummus filled earth, faded incense and potpourri, the fruit somewhat diminished but it’s mainly maraschino cherry and raspberry jam so what’s there is concentrated. Medium-bodied, nice fluidity, the structure relaxed. Tons of cedar, campfire smoke, and tar. As in the nose, the fruit lessened but not faded and perks up with air time. As it does it elevates the lemon citrus presence. Almost chewy finish. Some would aver waited too long on this bottle but this is the type of wine an old school Burgundy lover would appreciate for the dominance of tertiary aspects.
2016 Château Coupe Roses Minervois Cuvée Vignals. The purple core is dark and can envision it turning black with age, wide crimson to rust red rims. Plump nose of juicy black fruits, lavender and garrigues, spiced orange peel, strong cleansing sensation in the nostrils, touch funky around the edges, should become more pronounced if the fruit fades. Medium-bodied, brushed velvet feel, good coating of the palate. Minimal tannin, no acidity, there’s no guile in the sweet plum, cassis, blackberry fruit. Spicy, here you get a bit of milk chocolate with the orange peel. Conversely, ends with olive pit and a forest floor counterpoint. Not horribly complex but recognizably of its place and a good value at around $20. 60% Syrah, 30% Grenache, 10% Carignan. (Composite Cork)
2019 Clos de la Roilette Fleurie Cuvée Tardive. Ruby-purple core, more plum red at the rims, good clarity while an attractive warmth to it as well. Pleasing snap to the nose, mineral and stone dust as well as dried lawn grass give it structure, almost get a whiff of tobacco now and then, the raspberry, red cherry scents show a zippy succinctness. Light to medium-bodied, follows on closely to the nose here, all taut gristle and ligaments. Grass, dirt caked pebbles, ash, if you said it came from Mount Etna would not be shocked. More give and juiciness in the blueberry, raspberry fruit here. Still, unsure if it will be a long term sparring partner with the structure. Bristles with energy. I’d have to go back to the 2016 vintage to find one I liked as much.
2016 Château Coupe Roses Minervois La Bastide. Dull blackish purple core, healthy color in the brick red rims. The nose at least initially marred by band-aid and camphor, as it opens this moderates, in turn what seemed like taut red fruits turned blacker, cocoa, lavender, twiggy, good staying power but there’s little pretty about it. Medium inclining towards light-bodied, increases the pacing across the palate. The acidity greases the wheels more than threaten. Plenty of ripeness in the black cherry, blackberry, perhaps raspberry fruit. Orange to lemon citrus a minor factor. Florality never fully blossoms. But don’t read into this a negative experience as it’s a totally acceptable lunch wine or one of those baguette and cheese wines you think of when a paysan relaxes at the end of the work day. 48% Carignan, 46% Grenache, 6% Syrah. (Composite Cork)
2017 Famille Perrin Vacqueyras Les Christins. Reddish purple core, dark yet remains transparent, vibrant sunset red rims. Grill smoke and meat rub spices counter the grassiness right out of the gate, this is clearly a nose built on very ripe berry fruit and a mentholated lift, nothing memorable but entirely enjoyable. Medium-bodied, falls short of firm but can’t say it’s flabby. The more sips you take the more the acidity makes a lasting impression. Green olive, orange peel, milk chocolate sneak in before the jammy steamroller comes through. It’s a juicy, fruity wine, nothing more to say. 75% Grenache, 25% Syrah.
2019 Guigal Tavel Rosé. Dark watermelon pinkish red, healthy glow to it, strong to the rims. The nose musters enough mineral, stone dust to lend shape to the red berry scents, same for the lemon zest, suggestion of floral water, overall light of touch. Medium-bodied plus, there’s much less subtlety here as the strawberry, raspberry, melon fruit gushes across the palate. Cocoa most prominent accessory at first then lemon custard, the acidity is good but the wine does not achieve what I consider to be an essential element of Tavel, a “high-toned heft.” Does present an herbaceous side as well as a milder florality. Finish is above average but finding this monochrome in an uninteresting way.
2017 Château Coupe Roses Minervois Frémillant Rosé. Glows in the glass, at this point it’s more orange than pink, watery rims. There’s a stony, chalky underpinning to the nose with a saline edge which is the right way to order things, afterwards it doles out watermelon, strawberry fruit, lemon custard, and a semi-musky floral perfume, suggestion of grassiness but doesn’t develop. Medium-bodied, goes wide instead of deep so you feel it cheek-to-cheek. Pretty good acidity without developing a fine blade. Accents of cocoa, lemon drop, violets mix in, but it’s all wrapped around a core of red berries and watermelon, apple. I find with some slightly aged rosé wines that they get fruitier which is arguably the opposite of a red wine. Who knows. 40% Mourvèdre, 30% Cinsault, 20% Grenache, 10% Syrah. (Composite Cork)
2002 Château de la Roche-Aux-Moines (Nicolas Joly) Savennières Les Clos Sacrés. First off, Joly is polarizing. So, any note almost has to come with that caveat. All you can do is clear your head and go with your experience. That said, this is amber like real amber, orange wine can’t hold a candle to it, more surface shine than expected but flat underneath. Decanted. Pleasing piquancy to the nose, sauna smoke, roughhewn pineapple, papaya fruit, dried white grapefruit pulp, verging on brine, calms down with a bit of wax, sage, maybe if dinosaur bones could smell it would be like this. Medium-bodied, surprisingly firm and even muscular, the acidity steps right up and gets in your face. Yes, there’s a yeast to lactose undercurrent but there’s a great deal of life to the pineapple, nectarine, green apple, mango fruit. Same for the mixed pink and white grapefruit. Lanolin or Pledge. Bruising finish, certainly lacks finesse. Each sip primes you for the next. Curiously, did not open much over time. Still, I like this very, very much.
2017 Gilles Berlioz (Domaine Partagé) Roussanne Vin de Savoie Chignin-Bergeron Les Friponnes. Luminescent yellow color, strong glow to it, some loss at the rims. Soft and fleshy nose of lemon custard, honey, molasses, vague smokiness brought on by chalk notes, rich peach, apricot, melon scents, not much length but when it’s there you know it. Full-bodied, low acidity yet manages to have some spring to its step. Almost roasty like a coffee bean or mocha, odd nuance. Cinnamon, nutmeg, ripe lemons. The fruit a pleasing, if predictable, array of apricot, pear, melon, nectarine, juicy, no bite. There’s a lazy confidence to it like it knows it will win you ever eventually. Needs food to account for what it lacks, likely spicy food. Otherwise I’d drink this as a guilty pleasure wine.
2010 Overnoy-Crinquand Chardonnay Arbois-Pupillin Vieilles Vignes. Fully bronzed, you might as well slap Bain de Soleil on it, masks the dullness, blockish enough to look like you should be impressed. Yeasty nose, orange pith, dried molasses, not as smoky as expected and with an odd vegetal component, the sherried quality makes it difficult to tease out the fruit scents. Medium-bodied, impassive, the acidity a blanket, actually registers better as the wine warms. Likewise gains length as it warms and likely would have benefited from a decant. That yeastiness remains dominant, still there’s a shock of minerality here missing in the nose. Plus the citrus tightens up to bring added sourness. Lanolin, wooly, at times verges into old Chenin territory. As it opens a lot more peach, apple, pear fruit comes into play. An hour or two after opening it hits its stride. I like it but I’m never quite sure what to do with wines like this. Except drink them.
2019 Pépière Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Sur Lie La Pépie. White to yellow straw color, neither flat nor shiny, sort of floats in the glass. Steadily expands in your nostrils, soft on the whole, features melon, apricot, pear fruit, lemonade, almost a note of bubblegum, eventually the salinity and chalk wake up but not a large factor, never heavy and lifts as it dissolves. Medium-bodied, not devoid of acidity but any means yet all its contours are round. A dash of jalapeño juice starts it off, Sauvignon like, helps to play up the herbaceousness before moving into more predictable chalk, sea salt. Nice tang to the lemon, white grapefruit citrus. Friendly mixed white fruits with a floral patina. Likable, would put it behind 2018 and in front of 2017. Would have to go back to 2012 for the last vintage of this bottling that was truly superlative for my palate. (Composite Cork: Diam1)
2017 Jean-Luc Colombo Condrieu Amour de Dieu. Deep golden color while retaining youthful appeal, moderate shine, noticeable hue loss at the rims. Nose of honeysuckle, tangerine zest, blanched nuts, and layered peach, apricot, pear fruit with a streak of pineapple, appreciate the lack of heaviness and overly done perfume, I prefer the more voluptuous style of Condrieu but not over the top. Medium-bodied, the acidity kicks it into high gear to keep it from getting ponderous. Very citrus driven, almost sour. In turn this brings out an underripe character in the nuttiness. Conversely, has a honeyed dimension for balance. In the end the kumquat, pineapple, passion fruit knocks it off the fence in favor of tart. Like it but don’t love it, looking for more harmony and integration.
2019 Chidaine Sauvignon Blanc Touraine Clos de la Grange. Warm yellow color helps it pool deeply into the glass, not much shine but has presence. The nose has heft but more jelly belly than muscle, lemon juice, pear, melon, fruit, freshly cut flowers, whipped cream, it’s clean enough, just there’s no sense of terroir to be had. Full-bodied with same sense of texture, feels like your tongue is coated with peanut butter. Acidity is weak, however, the citrus finds some tang. Note of bell pepper helps too. Juicy peach, melon, guava fruit flavors. Vague minerality through the finish. This is a good by the glass pour candidate. (Composite Cork)
2011 Heymann-Löwenstein Riesling Winninger Uhlen R QbA Trocken Schieferformation Roth AP #1. Maturing into amber from what was likely a darkish gold to begin with, without much shine but doesn’t look dull per se. Understated nose comprised mainly of rubber glue, lemon custard, mint and lilacs as well as more forceful pineapple, passion fruit, papaya scents, any slate notes glide in and out on a whisper. Medium-bodied, the acidity seemed stern at first but in the end doesn’t do much more than dry out the palate. There is a welcome tingle on the tongue. The florality ups its game while a pink grapefruit, lemon citrus element supports the effort. Fruit still led by pineapple but the rest falls back into peach, apricot territory. Rubbery, no diesel. Allowing for the possibility of it being in an awkward phase never did warm to it and totally respect the producer. (Screwcap)
2018 Velenosi Lacrima di Morro d’Alba Quercia Antica. Plum red-purple, looks like you just broke a plum open, clean, straddles the fence between transparency and opacity. The nose just about mugs you in broad daylight, the boysenberry, blueberry, elderberry fruit, violet pastille and white citrus leap out of the glass, high-toned with a soft underbelly, settles down into muddy barnyard dirt, grill smoke, tingly sensation, this is a love it or hate it nose, I’m in the former camp. Light-bodied, but like a gnarly 5’7” Irishman playing outside wing in rugby, will knock over a man twice his size. The acidity shocks the palate and the tannin not far behind. Tart plum, blueberry fruit with white grapefruit, lemon citrus, covered over by a leather tarp. Cleaner here, stony. Reverberates long after the flavors have dissipated. A wine that speaks of a certain time to me, when I first encountered grapes like Tazzelenghe that turned my understanding of what wine could be like on its head. (Composite Cork: Diam3)
2010 Vallana Boca. Washed out violet core, the rest a burning sunset red with some yellowing at the outer edge. Slugger nose of leather, straw, tilled brown earth, slowly unfolds the licorice, maraschino cherry, pine elements and then enough dried flowers to fashion a pretty perfume. Medium-bodied, wiry tannic frame, no one would accuse this of being modern. When given ample time to open there’s no lack of licorice, grapefruit citrus, tar, menthol. The cherry, red berry fruit credible for where it is on the aging curve. Pretty much spot on, kind of like a macho guy showing off on Dancing With The Stars. 65% Nebbiolo, 20% Vespolina, 15% Bonarda. (Composite Cork: Diam5)
2017 Lavradores de Feitoria Douro Tinto. Glossy blackish purple, full scarlet red rims. Smells like leather and a wet wool sweater, tree bark, menthol, it’s not related to alcohol but there is a tingly, scrubbing sensation in the nostrils, milk chocolate patina to the plum, cherry scents. Medium-bodied, initially marked most by the high level of acidity, immediate puckering sensation. This lends the mostly black fruits an attractive sourness. While it’s sort of stony, earthy, as it opens the grassy, stemmy element takes hold better. That said, the astringency is negligible. Mild white citrus tones. Has a chewy, “vin de garde” feel, likable and no shy wallflower. Unspecified percentages of Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Barroca. (Screwcap)
2019 Quinto do Ameal Vinho Verde (100% Loureiro). Greenish yellow with a faint glow, nice surface shine, rims close to hueless. There’s a huge explosion of bubblegum in the nose before it gets grounded in mineral powder and lemon peel, fetching floral lift, the apple, pear, apricot scents not quite clipped but it’s an obligatory appearance at best. Medium-bodied, there’s excellent grip and palate traction, almost feels tannic. This particularly as the acidity comes off as a blunt blow rather than cut. Lemony and chalky, loses the minerally edge here. Still, there’s a general smokiness which cloaks most of the florality. Fruit similar to what found in the nose. In the end I find the wine to be pretty much neutral. So, it may have decent versatility at the dinner table but not the best sipping wine.