5/22/2017 - tooch wrote:

Day 1 in Piedmont (Vietti, Prunotto, & Bartolo Mascarello) (Piedmont, Italy): In 2012, fruit was lost from the Rue vineyard - a primary source for their Barolo. This is significant because the Rue is has a heavy clay composition which, typically, yields fruit that provide weight & concentration to their Barolo. Given the loss of fruit, the 2012 barolo is a light vintage. Loved the aromatics - strawberries, roses, some tar, bits of mushroom, & some darker floral notes. Its palate was so silky and refined, and while it may not have the weight of many other baroli, its flavor is still concentrated. Very impressive wine.

9/28/2014 - tooch wrote:

Sunday Night Dinner (RPM Steak - Chicago, IL): It's been over three years since I last tried this and this still has greatness in its future but was a touch less expressive than before. Still has the powerful black fruit core to it with some beautiful spices and smokey notes. The tannins seemed to get to me just a bit more this time...they're pretty gnarly. Worth noting that its aromas of florals and smoke were very nice.

8/3/2020 - tooch wrote:

A brilliant, young Dom Perignon. Lots of energy on the palate with the signature toasty/yeasty notes that I love. Balance is on point and the depth of the palate is noticeable. Should be fun to watch this mature over time.

8/23/2016 - tooch wrote:

Pop n' pour. Really like the aromas of lime, pear, lemons, and fresh flowers. The richness reminds me of some of the 2013s I tried, but the balance reminds me of some of the 2007s or 2010s. It's a really nice Clos des Briords...I will say that I didn't drink any of this at or around room temperature (which is usually how i like to drink them). At the warmer temps, the brininess usually seems to come out a bit more. Either way, this was very enjoyable.

12/22/2021 - tooch wrote:

Decanted for 2 hours before drinking. Easiest way to sum up this wine, "beautiful tropical fruits that were buzzing with electricity".

1/24/2015 - tooch wrote:

Tasted blind. Guessed 2005 Sauternes, so gave myself a pat on the back for that. Unfortunately, the reason I guessed 2005 was because of the lack of acid. Compared to the bottle I had 6 years ago, this lacked considerable freshness. Still a heck of a delicious wine, so the 90 points primarily comes from the deliciousness.

2/4/2015 - tooch wrote:

Reunion Dinner in DC (Red Hen - Washington, DC): I was really impressed by this young Chevillon. Rumors swirl about how Chevillon's need ages to mature, and while I age my at home, it was great to get to try one through the generosity of a friend. Beautiful aromas of spice, violets, cranberries, and minerals. The palate had great concentration and intensity to it, and I thought the palate was nearly seamless. This will be absolutely gorgeous once some of the secondary and tertiary flavors grow over time.

11/14/2021 - tooch wrote:

Probably my favorite bottle so far. Electric tones of peach and tangerine buzzed in my mouth and, with time, lime and white floral notes built. Just a dazzling wine.

5/28/2014 - tooch wrote:

Dinner in LA (b.o.s - Los Angeles, CA): I liked this a hair more than the Chaffots as it seemed to have more of a fleshed out floral note. I’ve always loved the floral complexity of Volnays, so maybe that’s where it’s coming from. The palate was delicious, but a bit simplistic. Interested to see where this goes with time

5/4/2015 - tooch wrote:

A bit more lean and restrained compared to the 2012. Had some lanolin notes on the nose with a good dose of lemon. The palate was dominated by a sweet lemon curd note with nice acidity and, overall, good balance. Not overly complex, but entirely delicious.

8/6/2014 - tooch wrote:

Early 90s disgorgement. Definitely the oldest Grande Cuvee I've ever had and it was so incredibly good, it makes me want to buy a bunch now and cellar them for 20 years. The buzz of the newly release Grande Cuvees has slowed down here and a lot of secondary and tertiary flavors have crept in. Some mushroom, some toasty apple notes, and a yummy doughy flavor. The length and depth are still there, too. Just awesome stuff.

5/31/2014 - tooch wrote:

Another great bottle. I'm still getting used to a Mourvedre that has this type of weightlessness on the palate. The rose, cherry, and strawberry flavors are intense, rich and juicy, but are airy and elegant. Can't imagine how this will be with some maturity. Holy moley.

9/26/2020 - tooch wrote:

The Last Few Weeks; 9/1/2020-11/2/2020: Beautiful as always. Aromas of flint and lemon curd. Palate was exotic with citrus, minerals, and flinty notes. Good length. Another winning bottle.

7/6/2020 - tooch wrote:

Delicious chardonnay bursting with pear and lime flavors. Seductive nose of flint and lemons was awesome. Finest American chardonnay.

9/12/2016 - tooch wrote:

Monday at Domaine (Domaine Wine Storage - Chicago, IL): It's been almost 6 years since I last had this wine and it's still a showstopper. Beautifully aromas of spicy red fruit, silky floral notes, and damp earth. The wine seemed to be made from silk. Wonderful composition that blended the exotic fruits of the vintage with the rustic notes that Beaucastel is so well known for. The complete package in CdP.

5/23/2016 - tooch wrote:

I was looking forward to trying this and it outperformed my expectations. Loved the mouthfeel of this; silky, smooth, and cool. Lots of concentration without much weight. Cranberries, cherries, wet earth, & spice. Gorgeous.

9/12/2013 - tooch wrote:

Dinner in Orlando (K Restaurant - Orlando, FL): Tasted blind. About the same as it was back in April. The nose took some coaxing to get going...had some light berries, tobacco, and tar. The nose made me think Nebbiolo at first, but when Robert said, "smells like Rioja" the light bulb popped on. Seems to be in a weird place, certainly young with some wooly tannins on the finish, there's no question to me that this has the raw material to "go the distance" (sorry, watching Field of Dreams...).

5/28/2014 - tooch wrote:

Dinner in LA (b.o.s - Los Angeles, CA): Seemed a bit simplistic and overly acidic to me (and I LOVE acidic pinot). This did have really nice floral notes, but never seemed to reach the levels of the other Maison Ilan’s.

11/24/2020 - tooch wrote:

The 2018 VdF is a great wine with a long road ahead of it. At times, the minerality is so piercing it feels like you’re sucking on river rock, and at other times it’s like you’re on the beach in Hawaii drinking fresh squeezed tropical juice (pineapple, peach, mango, etc). It’s already a great wine. At age ten, it’ll be a superstar.

5/28/2014 - tooch wrote:

Dinner in LA (b.o.s - Los Angeles, CA): Served blind. Very impressive wine. Aromas of dark fruits, lots of steaminess, and flora notes. This was a powerful wine but seemed to have a lightness on the palate to it. This is really good.

1/22/2016 - tooch wrote:

The aromas were intensely green. Do you like green beans? Good. You'd love the aromas here. The palate was far more plush and rich. I actually thought this showed better than I had anticipated. Give this wine some serious air.

5/2/2014 - tooch wrote:

A Night of French Wine (Chez Simo Bistro - Chicago, IL): Was expecting a jammy mess, but got a really nice bottle of Pegau. Lots of meaty, exotic notes on the nose. The palate was deep and powerful. Just insane depth to the dark fruits, meaty tones, and spicy red fruit. There was a touch of heat that stopped this was really setting off fireworks for me...but great nonetheless.

4/4/2014 - tooch wrote:

Chardonnay Shootout & Dinner at Sun Wah (Domaine Wine Storage & Sun Wah - Chicago, IL): Super impressive wine that blends powerful floral and citrus notes with sizzling acidity and minerality. One of the best Californian chardonnays.

5/23/2017 - tooch wrote:

Day 2 in Piedmont (Giacosa, Conterno, & Cavallotto) (Piedmont, Italy): Roberto Conterno talked fondly of this wine while we visited him, so when we saw it on the list at dinner for a reasonable price Izzy picked it up. After a decant, the wine had some nice aromas of red fruit...some sour cranberry gave the wine some initial tartness, but the rich cherry tones kicked in and rounded out the flavor. A beautiful wine that had a lot of elegance and class to it from a very tough vintage. This will have many many years of great performance ahead of it.

10/27/2014 - tooch wrote:

Chicago Rotating Dinner Series - 2001 Piedmont (Osteria Langhe - Chicago, IL): This has P-R-O-M-I-S-E written all over it. The youth of this wine was painfully evident with the barrage of tannis you get on the palate. The nose was really great though. Truly hypnotic. Multiple layers of earthy red fruits, smokey tobacco, and roses. What I'm hoping is that as the tannins recede, the underlying fruit mirror the gorgeous aromas it had. Hold, hold, hold.

6/22/2014 - tooch wrote:

This was lighter than some of the roses drank alongside it...so be prepared! Folks were throwing out comparisons to Frank Cornelissan in Etna, but I don't see it that way. Frank's wine are crazy and weird (a lot of the time, that's good), but this had more purpose. Loved the radish, cherry, pomegranate, and mineral tones. If you're used to the big boy Mourvedre's, this wine will be a shock. Gorgeous stuff in my opinion.

4/6/2013 - tooch wrote:

(Mostly) Northern Rhone Night (The Bristol - Chicago, IL): Wow, this is young. This has the typical spicy red fruits and earthiness you'd expect from Beaucastel. The palate still has its youthful richness and probably a bit of baby fat. Should be a great wine with time.

1/16/2015 - tooch wrote:

Smells like wet river stones. I decanted this for about 2 hours and it was still pretty wound really tight. There was some lithe lemon and pear tones on the palate, but this is more about the minerals than the fruit at this point. I like what's going on here...will let me other rest for 5-7 years.

1/23/2013 - tooch wrote:

UGC Chicago (The Drake Hotel - Chicago, IL): Yeah, this is really good. Like other vintages, this is a great claret. Lovely minerality, great tobacco, graphite and dark fruit. Just completely yummy and a old-school-Bordeaux-lovers wine.

5/28/2016 - tooch wrote:

I love Donnhoff's 2004s and this was beautiful as expected. Lots of youthful fruit and airy floral notes along with petrichor, lime, & lychee. Exotic nose as you'd expect. The palate was juicy with nice balance and depth. Can't really find much to complain about...

2/3/2015 - tooch wrote:

A unique and compelling young Barolo. This was a neat combination of the Northern Rhone and Barolo. I say that because I got this very energetic olive and meat note on the nose that I usually associate with Northern Rhone syrahs. Additionally, this had beautiful red florals, some lighter red fruits, and earth - traditional Barolo characteristics. Plenty of structure and firmness for this wine to go many many years. Very interesting wine.

12/6/2015 - tooch wrote:

One of the better DP's I can remember having. Beautiful combination of pure, clean strawberries, with undertones of mushroom and earth. Palate was bright and energetic. Acidity was refreshing and it had tons of depth to the flavors. This is great.

1/22/2014 - tooch wrote:

UGC 2011 (The Drake Hotel - Chicago, IL): Living on the edge here. Intensely sweet fruits; coconuts, peach, passionfruit with an important dose of mineral and acid. Without the balance this would have been just too sweet.

7/4/2013 - tooch wrote:

July 4th Wines (My Place): A fine MdT. Beautiful fruit that was cool and edgy. Great flinty notes with lush lemons and limes. Great balance, and blew the Dauvissat Vaillons out of the water!

7/10/2014 - tooch wrote:

Goodbye to Izzy & Rachel (and Meyer!) (Domaine Wine Storage - Chicago, IL): Clayton brought up a good point, "tonight this is my least favorite champagne, but in 10 years it'll be a lot better". On this night, this was lean and hard but I liked its edgy citrus notes a lot. Pretty one dimensional, what I did taste was very good. I agree with Clayton, though...hold for better results.

9/28/2014 - tooch wrote:

Sunday Night Dinner (RPM Steak - Chicago, IL): This might be the first non-Alesia bottling of syrah I've had from Rhys. I liked this a lot. Had some spicy dark fruits, a touch of meatiness, and beautiful florals. Nice acidity and a cool fruit profile, I was a fan.

1/2/2015 - tooch wrote:

Dinner at Sun Wah (Sun Wah BBQ - Chicago, IL): Everything was in the right place with this wine and it was fantastic. The nose was airy, salty, citrusy...The palate had great cut with big, cool fruit throughout. Pears, lemons, limes...think "fresh fruit". Really nice salty/mineral tones too gave it a real sense of place. A powerful Preuses!

2/16/2015 - tooch wrote:

February Rotating Wine Dinner (Mon Ami Gabi - Chicago, IL): In a flight of older Rioja's this absolutely stood out. Denser, darker, and years away from the beautiful 1985 vintage open alongside it. I think the material here is quite good, but I worry about the oak here. Tons of oak everywhere you look in this wine and you have to wonder if this will age in a similar arc as the 1985?

1/6/2012 - tooch wrote:

Popped and poured. From the start this was firing on all cylinders. Soaring nose of dried red florals, bright, cool red fruit, and a roasted mushroom undertone that was sublime. The palate was balanced and impressive with wonderful florals - a hallmark of this monopole from Volnay. Loved the subtle dried tobacco, exotic spiciness and searing acidity on the finish. Wish I had bought more of these...

11/6/2013 - tooch wrote:

Sine Qua Non Night @ Domaine (Domaine Wine Storage - Chicago, IL): Blackberry liqueur, some pepper, and brambly dark fruits. Palate was candy, candy, candy. I mean, c'mon. This is so incredibly young I can't imagine how anyone can enjoy it. So. Brutally. Young.

5/2/2014 - tooch wrote:

A Night of French Wine (Chez Simo Bistro - Chicago, IL): When Druet is on, it's hard to beat. Older Chinon is one of life's great pleasures, and this had tons of character with nice tobacco, red fruits, and subtle olive tones. Really nice structure too. These wines are getting harder and harder to find, so this was a real treat!

3/29/2013 - tooch wrote:

Final Friday at Domaine (Domaine Wine Storage - Chicago, IL): Another contender for my favorite wine of the day. Incredibly silky and smooth, this had a weightless palate but incredibly pure and vivid red fruit and floral profile. So good.

1/12/2013 - tooch wrote:

Saturday with David White (Domaine Wine Storage & Sun Wah - Chicago, IL): A really nice wine. Had that light berry, floral and brambly nose that Trousseau can have. The palate was juicy and energetic with great acidity, a nice earthy component and then vibrant red fruit. The fruit was more vivid that most of the Trousseau I've had from the Jura, but the fruit an airy coolness that was quite nice.

6/25/2012 - tooch wrote:

2010 Pichler Fest (Sun Wah BBQ - Chicago, IL): Pop and pour. To me, this was the clear class of the 2010 Pichler riesling lineup. Do yourself a favor and decant this if you're planning on drinking it now...air really elevated the aromatics. A classic Pichler in every sense of the word, though, with the sensation of drizzling freshly squeezed peach juice down a chalkboard. Sizzling minerality, incredible complex and layered peach, pear and petrichor tones with beautiful spicy herbal and floral notes. Great stuff.

10/31/2014 - tooch wrote:

Lots of lanolin and floral notes on the nose. The palate had a peachy/banana note to it, a touch of cream, some leesy notes, and nice acidity. A sleek but rich Chenin...very nice.

7/18/2014 - tooch wrote:

Friday Lunch (Rosebud Steakhouse - Chicago, IL): Is there more to say about the 2002 DP? Not sure, but here are a few additional thoughts. It still has tons of power, structure and citrus fruit. There's a lot to like here and you have to think this will only continue to get better.

3/1/2017 - tooch wrote:

An amazing Kabinett. Layers of fruit, and florals, and fruits, and florals. Lovely composition, great acidity, and a ton of concentration.

1/24/2015 - tooch wrote:

Served blindly. One of the biggest shocks of the afternoon was this bottle. A lot of us thought this was from a more classic vintage...like 2004. Had some nice cedar, graphite, dark fruits, and earth. Didn't come close to the dense, sappy 2009 fruit profile I would have expected. Very nice surprise!

3/11/2015 - tooch wrote:

hadn't tried this in a couple years. the oak was a problem before, but it seemed to be far more integrated now. the rusticity of the plot was showing itself with some nice meaty, earthy notes really coming through. once the guigal oak treatments wears off, the beauty of the terroir (Vallouit Les Greffieres vines, i believe) really shines.

2/7/2013 - tooch wrote:

Birthday Dinner (Browntrout - Chicago, IL): One of the better Joly wines I've had. Great texture and acidity. Had this really nice orange marmalade tone to it with subtle grassy and vanilla undertones.