Funky nose with some petro. Floral and with tropical fruits such as peach and pineapple. Quite nice. The palate is still quite sweet, with sweet apples at first. The finish is however too acidic, and it is a bit unbalanced due to this. On its way down.
Pipe tobacco and anis on the very fine nose, mixed with some raspberries. The palate has fine fruit and a very fine acidity, but tannins like a barolo. With air, the fruit goes hiding and transforms this to a tannic, acidic beast. Not sure if it is in a phase or on its way down, and also unsure if the fruit will ever outlast the tannins.
Sweet and seductive nose. Some sweet/sour tones that would lead to italy if tasted blind. Improves with air and showes a very pure strawberry fruit after some time in the glass. The palate is still fruity and quite tannic. Keeps developing in the glass and has potential for further cellaring. However, some heat in the finish stops this from being a great wine.
Wow! Sweet and stunning nose with blackberries and blueberries. Also iron minerals and some vanilla. Fresh, vibrant and perfect development so far. Keeps on improving with air. The palate is also stunning, with lots of fruit and concentration. Also lots of mature tannins. Stony minerality. Very long finish, and all is in perfect balance here. Really a fantastic wine that still seems to have upward potential.
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Lots of oak mixed with black currant on the nose. Sweet and a bit heavy fruit. Still in its primary phase. Appealing, and even more so when the oak declines with air. Then pencils, paprika and an earthy minerality is taking more of the stage. The palate has sweet and fine fruit. Good concentration, but a bit too heavy. There is a burn in the finish that is negative. Improves with air, and I would wait 10 years for next bottle.
My first Monte Bello - finally. Stunning nose that is textbook westside Bordeaux, but with an impressive purity to the fruit. Lots of black currant and cedar wood. Fantastic. The palate is super smooth. Lovely, slightly sweet and very pure. Very concentrated and with mature tannins. Super wine. Drinking great now.
Bretty nose, like a stable full of hippos(!) Beneath there is nice and very clean black currant fruit. Seductive, but the mineral component is missing to take this to another level. The brett is however partly making up for the missing complexity from the lack of minerality. The palate has lots of fruit, but is lacking in structure and caracter. Burning finish. Better nose than palate.
Same bottle as Atryeu. Stunning and complex nose of toasted rye bread with coffee and a stony minerality. Vibrant and great. The palate is rich, very concentrated, mineral, acidic and all in a rough style. Great champagne.
1998 Weingut Reinhold Haart Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Kabinett
Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Funky nose with some petro. Floral and with tropical fruits such as peach and pineapple. Quite nice. The palate is still quite sweet, with sweet apples at first. The finish is however too acidic, and it is a bit unbalanced due to this. On its way down.
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1998 Château de Cayx Cahors
France, Southwest France, Cahors
Brown bananas on the nose, utterly undrinkable. Oxidised.
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1998 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
Pipe tobacco and anis on the very fine nose, mixed with some raspberries. The palate has fine fruit and a very fine acidity, but tannins like a barolo. With air, the fruit goes hiding and transforms this to a tannic, acidic beast. Not sure if it is in a phase or on its way down, and also unsure if the fruit will ever outlast the tannins.
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1998 Luis Pato Bairrada Vinha Barrio
Portugal, Beiras, Bairrada
Sweet and seductive nose. Some sweet/sour tones that would lead to italy if tasted blind. Improves with air and showes a very pure strawberry fruit after some time in the glass. The palate is still fruity and quite tannic. Keeps developing in the glass and has potential for further cellaring. However, some heat in the finish stops this from being a great wine.
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1998 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Chapelle
France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage
Wow! Sweet and stunning nose with blackberries and blueberries. Also iron minerals and some vanilla. Fresh, vibrant and perfect development so far. Keeps on improving with air. The palate is also stunning, with lots of fruit and concentration. Also lots of mature tannins. Stony minerality. Very long finish, and all is in perfect balance here. Really a fantastic wine that still seems to have upward potential.
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1998 Château Pavie Macquin
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Lots of oak mixed with black currant on the nose. Sweet and a bit heavy fruit. Still in its primary phase. Appealing, and even more so when the oak declines with air. Then pencils, paprika and an earthy minerality is taking more of the stage. The palate has sweet and fine fruit. Good concentration, but a bit too heavy. There is a burn in the finish that is negative. Improves with air, and I would wait 10 years for next bottle.
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1998 Ridge Monte Bello
USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains
My first Monte Bello - finally. Stunning nose that is textbook westside Bordeaux, but with an impressive purity to the fruit. Lots of black currant and cedar wood. Fantastic. The palate is super smooth. Lovely, slightly sweet and very pure. Very concentrated and with mature tannins. Super wine. Drinking great now.
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1998 Viña Almaviva S.A. Almaviva
Chile, Maipo Valley, Puente Alto
Bretty nose, like a stable full of hippos(!) Beneath there is nice and very clean black currant fruit. Seductive, but the mineral component is missing to take this to another level. The brett is however partly making up for the missing complexity from the lack of minerality. The palate has lots of fruit, but is lacking in structure and caracter. Burning finish. Better nose than palate.
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1998 Vilmart & Cie Champagne Premier Cru Coeur de Cuvée
France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
Same bottle as Atryeu. Stunning and complex nose of toasted rye bread with coffee and a stony minerality. Vibrant and great. The palate is rich, very concentrated, mineral, acidic and all in a rough style. Great champagne.
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