Open That Bottle Night 2015

Got together with some friends to celebrate OTBN. A really fun tradition to be used as an excuse to drink some really good wines with really good friends. The food was really tasty, too.

• NV Geoffroy Champagne Premier Cru Expression Brut

  France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru

  Lots of soft green apple and pear, almost hinting at cider, some vanilla and lees; a little more puffed up and less precise than I remember.

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• 2006 Moët & Chandon Champagne Grand Vintage

  France, Champagne

  Very large bubbles, yeast, some lemon, mineral, lots of richness but not much focus.

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• 2012 Ponzi Vineyards Chardonnay Reserve

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

  Nose seemed to be a little shy; palate came out nicely with lemon, green apple, lees, biscuit, butterscotch, and struck match; still youthful but people seemed to like this quite a bit.

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• 2009 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Russian River Valley

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Happy this was not over the top in color or richness, good sharp acid, sure very sweet fruit and spice but respectable balance, then again it was nothing to write home about for these same reasons.

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• 2003 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Resolving crimson color; nose still shows lots of vanilla and dill from the American oak, red currant, stewed fruit; palate is resolving with soft tannin but slightly absent mid for a wine of this price.

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• 2007 Plumpjack Merlot Napa Valley

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  A very structured and masculine Merlot showing lots of cedar and red currant, some flesh on the palate, the age is starting to soften the firm tannin; very nice.

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• 2010 Staglin Family Cabernet Sauvignon Salus

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford

  Hedonistic blue and black fruit but where is the structure? I got no push back from any tannin though the wine has good weight.

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• 2003 Branson Coach House Shiraz Rare Single Vineyard Coach House Block

  Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley

  Lots of dark jammy and very ripe fruit but the alcohol was in check and there was some elegance and nicely aged material here; I could see this going at least another 5+ years.

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• 2007 Domaine Raymond Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Girard

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  This seemed to be very similar to my note last September. Ripe and sweet fruit that was still youthful but much more traditional and very different from the way it performed on release.

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• 2004 Il Poggione (Proprietá Franceschi) Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Vigna Paganelli

  Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino

  This was very similar to the normale BdM from the same vintage tasted the night before except the palate was a bit richer, the nutty character was very strong, I love the producer but the wine was hurt by all of the more sweetly fruited New World wines surrounding it.

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• 2010 Elio Altare Barbera d'Alba Flawed

  Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba

  Initially very similar to previous note but with more air I realized this was slightly corked.

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• 2004 Inniskillin Riesling Icewine Single Vineyard Series Dark Horse Estate Vineyard

  Canada, British Columbia, Okanagan Valley, Okanagan Valley VQA

  Also very rich and viscous and honeyed but the searing acid caught me off guard, paired really well with apricot cheese.

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• NV Alvear Pedro Ximénez Montilla-Moriles Solera 1927

  Spain, Andalucía, Montilla-Moriles

  Pours like syrup, I found the palate a little 1-D with lots of prune and raisin, the California Raisins were dancing on my tongue.

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• 2012 St. Francis Port Flawed

  USA, California, Sonoma County

  Terribly corked.

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