BEAR 3.0

Resort at Artesian Lakes
Tasted Friday, January 15, 2010 - Sunday, January 17, 2010 by RedLoverJim with 620 views

Introduction

A range of wines taken for our annual trip.

Flight 1 - To Arms! (1 Note)

This was sabered to start the festivities

  • 1996 A. R. Lenoble Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Millésimé 87 Points

    France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

    (1/15/2010)

    A little off balance and spritey. A lot fewer yeast notes than my previous bottle. Enjoyable, but more along the lines of a non vintage, less expensive sparkler. Possibly shipping shock, as I didn't let this sit for my normal length of time after receiving. 3 more in stock, so I look forward to how those compare with my first two.

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Flight 2 (1 Note)

Flight 3 (1 Note)

Flight 5 (1 Note)

Flight 6 - Old Man Joe (1 Note)

The cork was soft, and the top half broke off on the worm. The rest was pushed into the bottle and filtered out.

  • 1977 Joseph Phelps Insignia 93 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    (1/15/2010)

    This wine was constantly evolving. The consensus was that it smelled poopy when initially decanted and poured. After 10 minutes in the glass the funk starts to blow off and it starts to show some bright strawberry and cigar ash aromas and flavors. There were also some slight metallic and rubber flavors that dissipated after 20-30 minutes. Overall, an elegant and well aged wine.

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Flight 7 (1 Note)

Flight 8 (1 Note)

  • 2006 Rust en Vrede 1694 Classification 94 Points

    South Africa, Coastal Region, Stellenbosch

    (1/16/2010)

    Decanted at 4:45pm, cocoa and blackberry cobbler notes erupt from the decanter when poured from bottle. Served at 8:30pm, some spice, roasted fruit and meaty aromas carry through on the palate. Nice finish. Silky smooth and elegant wine, paired very well with jalepeno bread stuffed pork loin. The first of probably the only three bottles of this I'll ever get, I was sad to see it finished.

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Flight 9 (1 Note)

  • 2004 Bremer Family Austintatious 92 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    (1/16/2010)

    Decanted at 5:30pm, bright blackberry aromas when poured from bottle. Served at 9:00pm, mild dark fruit aromas. Flavors of ripe dark berries and some smoke. Overall it's a more sparse wine than expected, but very good with a nice long finish.

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Flight 10 (1 Note)

  • 2005 Harlan Estate The Maiden 95 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    (1/16/2010)

    Decanted at 5:30pm, served at 9:45pm. Some bright strawberry, cocoa and cherry aromas. Smooth, austere, silky fruit flavors with a very elegant mouthfeel. A glass worth was left in the decanter, so it was tried the next morning and it held up very well even left out in the open air. This could lay down for another few years, but it's fantastic now.

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Flight 11 (1 Note)

  • 2004 Château Mouton Rothschild 92 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    (1/16/2010)

    Tasted over two days. Decanted at 5:30pm, with some mild cherry aromas, but really not much there. Served at 10:30pm. Mild berry nose. Some green bell peppers behind flavors of elegant black currant. 88 points at this time. Left overnight and all the next day in the open decanter, including a 4 hour drive before tasting again. Still not much nose, but the bell peppers had subsided to a hint in the background, and the fruit flavors had become smoother, more elegant and very silky. Still some gripping tannins on the back end, which is to be expected on a Mouton this young. This really needs another few years, but it was fun to try now.

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Flight 12 (1 Note)

  • 1966 Fonseca Porto Vintage 93 Points

    Portugal, Douro, Porto

    (1/16/2010)

    Tasted over two days. Decanted at 5:30pm, rich brandy and molasses aromas. Smells rich and thick. The cork seemed soft on top so I tried to ah-so it, but the cork just slid whole into the bottle. Served at 11:30pm, the aromas remained. Rich brandy and smokey raisin flavors. Sweet and stout, but very, very smooth. Drink now. 91 pts at this point. The remainder was left in the decanter and open air overnight, then driven home 4 hours while still in the decanter. Revisited on day two at 8:30, still very rich and smooth but the alcohol is showing more. Two more points for longevity.

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Closing

No particular theme to the wines, except a passing attempt to pair with the main courses each night of BBQ and pork loin. It was fun having a sabered Champagne, a young First Growth Bordeaux, a South African red with a story, an aged California red from a less than stellar vintage, an aged Icewine and an aged Port.

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