| | A bunch of Tucsonites and a few of us visitors got together at the JW Marriott resort on the beautiful west side hills of Tucson. A great meal at my friend's favorite restaurant there, Primo, with wines brought by those of us attending. The whites - a comparative Lewis tasting RM brought these 2 whites to compare and contrast. To my palate, the 03 Reserve was more ready to drink, but the 04 regular chard seemed to have much more potential over the next few years. Both were beautiful however. - 2004 Lewis Cellars Chardonnay Napa Valley - USA, California, Napa Valley
On the nose, nuts - cashews or sweet nuts, some sort of a white mineral - I called it white slate even though I don't think such a thing exists, some melon and some lovely floral notes. On the palate, loads of minerals, quite acidic, wonderful fruit, and lots of oak, but all in great balance. Very Montrachet-like. Lots of oak and lots of fruit - very much in tune with each other. A bit of lemon and maybe a touch of honey. 94 pts reflects the room this clearly has to run in the next few years. The acids are still a touch overpowering (without food) but will clearly provide longevity and room for a harmonious integration of all the beautiful flavors here. (94 pts.)
- 2003 Lewis Cellars Chardonnay Reserve - USA, California, Napa Valley
On the nose, oaky vanilla and melons. Lovely, integrated oak on the palate, with lemon and acids and a bit of a tropical citrusy thing going on - JF called it kiwi. While this is showing somewhat better than the 04 normal Chard currently, IMO it's not the wine the 04 is. (93 pts.)
The reds - WOW! A great selection. Special thanks to JF for the WOTN La Turque - my first LaLa. Really just gorgeous. But you couldn't go wrong with any of these. - 1996 Jean-Michel Guillon Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Champonnets - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
From magnum. Opened but not decanted 30 minutes prior to pouring. On the nose, notes of forest floor and black cherry, with a touch of cinnamon spice. A well balanced wine, with great dark fruit and nice minerality. Leather notes, with some spice (red pepper?). Huge tannic structure. At this point, I thought the wine was on the front end of it's peak.
Came back to the wine about 45 minutes later. The nose had really filled in, becoming rounder and bigger. The palate deepened and strengthened, with the same overal profile, but much bigger fruit and still these huge tannins. At least from magnum, I think this needs another 5 years or more, and likely has a decade or more to run. 92 pts today, clearly room for improvement. (92 pts.)
- 1990 Tenuta Friggiali Brunello di Montalcino - Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino
Opened, not decanted, about an hour before pouring. Gorgeous floral aromas on the nose. Wonderful, silky tannins on the palate. Lovely licorice, with a red fruit thing going on - sort of a strawberry or cranberry thing but much deeper red than either of those. Just a gorgeous gorgeous wine. Lively acids still. Just coming toward peak - drink over the next several years. (95 pts.)
- 1994 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Turque - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie
This was just an awesome wine. nose of blood orange, petrol, and white pepper. An incredibly elegant wine - WOW!!! Just gorgeous. I'm almost at a loss for words to describe this wine. This is just so whole. Dark soil, blackberry, violets, black pepper. Just amazing. Beautiful, lengthy finish. (97 pts.)
- 1996 Tardieu-Laurent Cornas Vieilles Vignes - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas
Nose of bright red and purple fruits, with some nice white pepper. On the palate, red licorice, roasted meats, and big peppery fruit. Very primary and young. Beautifully made, well-balanced wine. Showed very well despite being poured right after a 94 La Turque. (92 pts.)
And a touch of sweetness to end the night JF also brought this. A very nice wine, but clearly opened before its prime time. - 1990 C. H. Berres Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Beerenauslese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Nose of sandalwood (never smelled so much sandalwood from a wine in my life!), plus some nutmeg and a touch of sweetness. On the palate, there's a slight citrus element, with still big acids. A touch of syrupy sweetness, but not in a sickly sweet way - it's so well balanced by the acids. In fact it's somewhat overpowered by the acids. Needs more time. (91 pts.)
An outstanding evening. Great food, great wines, great friends. |
