Tasting Notes 5,000+ found

Ye Olde Riesling Dinner (SDK - Castro): A little more white fruit driven than the Austrian wines, though still primarily mineral-forward on the palate. This does feel ripe for a CFE, and while the acidity is sufficient and lively, it’s a little richer and fuller than other iterations of this wine I’ve had in the past. Still quite good, but definitely not as steely and tense as I expected. (111 views)

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Dinner at Tiny Pine Bistro (Carbondale, CO): Opened in honour of one of my friends who also happens to be a Trimbach stan like me, this was as brilliant as it gets. Oily and thick, and yet so alive and balanced the way Gewurztraminer so often is not. There isn't much of the intense, lychee spice quality on the nose anymore, and the spice is more of an orange-peel, brown sugar, old botrytis quality. I love the rich texture on the palate, and even though this isn't too sweet, you can still feel the ancient residual sugar here. A really special bottle, and a real treat to share. (120 views)

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Moderately golden color, light on the nose with some hints of savory fruit; don’t remember if I had this closer to release, now it’s rounded out a bit from what was surely a more austere, steely profile, medium depth, starts out slowly, then the intensity builds slightly before turning more mineral, but with a nice dash of more lush fruit. Still a rock head wine, though softened considerably, and drinking beautifully at almost 20 years. (97 views)

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Ye Olde Rieslings: Terrific! PnP, and opens over the course of the evening. A mouthful of rocks, racy acidity, redolent of flowering quince, a hint of pineapple / guava, golden raisin. Tons of dry extract and a long, long finish. So sexy - not something I've not experienced in the handful of CFEs I've had, which have usually displayed more structural/intellectual gifts rather than overt pleasure. Still very young and will continue to evolve. Let's call this tied for WOTN for me -- it may not have the sheer class and completeness of the Nikolaihof, but it a pleasure-seeker's wine that can hold its own in a roomful of intellectual wines. (154 views)

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10 years after Riesling tasting - 2014 (Restaurant Brunnenstube, Beinstein): Glass: Gabriel Universal
Bottle opened ~10h before the tasting. Clear, pale golden color. Fine, muted nose, some medicinal notes. Salty, deep, fine fruit, rather high alcohol. Very young. Not as energetic and exciting as I hoped for. Probably in a decade this will develop. 92-93 (234 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Deep yellow/light golden. Also honeyed and fragrant but less assertively varietal than the 2017 Vendange Tardive. Even sweeter than that wine, and in the mouth, at this level of sweetness, it is hard to say that I’d reliably identify the grape save for the fact that it still has some spice and just a touch of finishing cyanic bite. Despite this “de-differentiation”, it is a superbly balanced dessert wine with incredible length. I’ve had the privilege of tasting this 5 times, mostly at the domain, and it has been brilliant each time. (105 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Light golden. Honey, floral, and typical varietal lychee notes. Unctuous, mouth filling, quite sweet, and spicy but superbly balanced with some apricot pit bitterness at the end. Beautiful late harvest Gewurztraminer. Bring on the ripe Munster!! (101 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Yellow. Bright citrus aromatics. Similar weight to the 2017 but richer, more glycerine feel. Another wine that is fairly exotic for Trimbach with a mixture of off dry tropical fruit and citrus, but the fruit is crystal clear and brilliantly focused despite carrying 12 grams of sugar (compared to 2 grams in the 2017). Excellent acidity, a bit of youthful bitterness on the finish. All in all, I find it to be friendlier than Fréderic Emile usually is at this age. I think it will evolve more rapidly than the 2017, but it is still very cellar worthy. (330 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Light yellow. Complex nose of herb and tea more than fruit. Medium+ weight with a rich feel, and you can sense a bit of residual sugar despite it being only 2 grams. Perhaps that is because at this point, the scaffolding is provided more by soil than acidity. This is an excellent wine in its own right, bit it suffered mightily following the 2018 Clos Ste. Hune, seeming less focused and snappy in comparison. I understand that the intent was to progress backward through various vintages, but this sequencing put poor Fred at a big disadvantage. I look forward to retasting it without this bias. (191 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Pale. Subtle petrol. Medium weight but so delicate compared to the 2 Grand Crus we tasted. Expansive and already complex with a seemingly impossible combination of an attack which gives the impression of sweet peach fruit and a long, dry mid-palate and finish with powerful stoniness. Great length and an aftertaste that clings for over 2 minutes. This would be a great wine from any year but is even more remarkable coming from such a warm year. In an outstanding range today, nothing rivaled its elegance and breed. This showing suggests that it might eclipse any other warm year Clos Ste. Hune in memory except for the unworldly 1990, which for me remains the all time great exemplar of this wine. (130 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Slightly deeper yellow than the 2020 Schlossberg. Very aromatic with floral and soil accents. Lighter, leaner feel than the Schlossberg. Just off dry. Flavors of black tea, citrus, and a rush of finishing acidity and stone. Restrained but packed with energy. Wow! I need to get some of this but pray that I’m still alive to enjoy it at its peak. This was apparently the first vintage of Brand produced by Trimbach, and it is an understatement to say that they nailed it. Along with the 2018 Clos Ste. Hune, one of the stars of the tasting. (102 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Fuller yellow. Subdued stone fruit scents. Rich, round, powerful, and mouth filling. Ripe fruit backed up by excellent acidity and a good lick of soil. More lemony finish. Quiet but very impactful. A big boy that also begs for 5 or more years of cellaring. (110 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Yellow. Back to a more classic perfumed aroma after the 2022 Reserve. Dry, yellow peach fruit. Much longer and more layered than the previous 2 wines. Tremendous acidity and outstandingly long, soil-filled finish. I have not always enjoyed this cuvée, but recent vintages have shown steady progress, and this was terrific. Better in 5+ years. (128 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Light yellow. Much riper fruit aromas than the straight 2021. Fairly round. Rich, off dry citrus and noticeably low acidity. Pretty exotic and loose for this domain, but the lack of acidity is partly compensated by excellent soil on the finish. (116 views)

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An Oldie but a Goodie-Tasting at Maison Trimbach (Ribeauvillé, France): Yellow. Smells like black tea. Medium body. Dry, tart stone fruit and citrus. Simple but refreshingly taut. Very good entry level cuvée. (126 views)

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