drdan322
Member #567,408 signed up 12/24/2017
This Member Is a Fan(1)
-
Goldstone
3,020 Tasting Notes
Profile
Member since December 2017
This member's profile is not public.
Member #567,408 signed up 12/24/2017
3,020 Tasting Notes
This member's profile is not public.
1983 Château Doisy-Daëne
8/19/2023 - drdan322 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Dark gold-copper color with aromas of honey, dried apricot and caramel.
Sweetened agrume and ananas flavors on the palate as the fruit, acidity and congenial bit of tartness combine in marvelous balance.
Remarkable viscosity with an extended finish.
A truly mature Sauternes passing it's peak but still lovely. Drink up!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1985 Philippe Leclerc Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Cazetiers
8/18/2023 - drdan322 Likes this wine: 98 Points
Purchased on release and well-cellared since.
High neck level with a snug cork that eventually loosed and was drawn intact and clean. Translucent pale red with orange tinges. Initial whiff was barnyardy with pepper notes. Decanted carefully with little sediment.
This wine took on heft in the decanter and was absolutely splendid after two hours. Stunning!
A pungent bouquet of old red fruit with clear undertones of mint and black pepper - medium body but still mouth-filling - fruit softened nuanced but well balanced by acidity – brief, very pleasing finish.
No longer a youthful powerhouse but now a beautifully mature wine that has aged sublimely over nearly four decades - near its peak.
A fully mature fine, fine wine with some years left in this peak even four decades on!
Fabulous with an equally fabulous menu at chef Victoria's choice:
1st Course – Charcuterie Board
All homemade: Smoked oyster dip, smoked eggplant dip, turmeric marinated cauliflower, lemon olives, cucumber and jalapeño lime pickles, caramelized onion chutney, French sourdough countryside toastettes, Rye toastettes, salty tarragon and anchovy shortbread.
With store bought: salt and vinegar chips, Ritz, saltine, and cranberry hazelnut crackers.
Cheeses - d'Affinois (France), Piave Stravecchio (Italy), Prairie Breeze Cheddar (Iowa, USA)
2nd Course – Dessert
Homemade: Concord Grape Pie with vanilla, pecan and candied orange ice cream.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1976 Bodegas Valdemar Rioja Conde de Valdemar Gran Reserva
8/11/2023 - drdan322 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Purchased on release and well-cellared since. The cork was stubborn but was drawn out cleanly.
Clear ruby red stippled with shiny copper and brass hues. Translucent (so as to read text through the glass). The initial nose was soft old leather suffused with berry and light white pepper.
It decanted with little sediment. In the first hour still rather closed with earthy herbaceous notes yet hopefully more to be revealed.
Over the next two hours a beautifully integrated fine wine of great finesse emerged - with all structural elements totally knitted together that evinced old cedar, aged tea, soft spices as well as a wonderful infusion of vanilla with whiffs of other more exotic pantry fragrances.
Surprisingly smooth with just enough round tannins lingering to frame a classically defined mature Rioja exuding long-lived raisiny tempranillo fruit shrouded in aspects of earth, tree bark, and morels.
On the palette it caresses as with velvet and silk while utterly soft and refined tertiary aromas sublimate subtly, almost as in a sleep dream.
This is a truly distinguished early-modern Gran Reserve Rioja that bridges from an earlier era of more homespun technique and production. One of the best then and even now with some years left at this marvelous peak.
Formidable yet soft and light, so very graceful and lithe - a rare experience. Magical!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment