McKinney, TX
Tasted Friday, November 5, 2010 - Saturday, November 6, 2010 by GalvezGuy with 1,191 views
The TX CellarTrackers gathered in McKinney to share great wines and great friendship made possible by CellarTracker. The wines were numerous, the food was wonderful, and the CT'ers were once again generous and gracious. Oskiwawa, thank you so much for putting the event together. WIML, thank you so much for arranging and serving.
Dinner with wines. The food was restaurant quality from the prep to the presentation and the flavor. A wonderful experience. The wines were great with the 64 Pio Cesare being the WOTN (even though others scored higher, I just loved the nuance of this old Barolo). The biggest surprise for me was the showing of the Windy Oaks, it spanked the Kosta Browne by a wide margin. The 05 Beau was also a great wine, drinking very well now although I suspect that in 10 years I will like the 04 more.
A great afternoon at bstump's with a great vertical of Mondavis. For me the 85 surprised the most, it was in a very good place and seems to have quite a bit of life left. The 94 seemed a little young and the 97 actually seem to be on the decline from my point of view. All in all, a great experience, thanks everyone for sharing and thanks to bstump and Mrs. bstump for their hospitality.
To close, I cannot thank everyone enough, oskiwawa, wiml, bstump, jar1, floydtp, petitblanc, thank you so much for sharing some great wines. Oskiwawa, you have raised the bar for event planning. WIML, I appreciate your energy and service. I look forward to our next one in Austin or Houston. One final thing, if anyone needed to get a hold of TexasWineGeek, dial 1-800-NOSHOW (just kidding TWG, you know we love you).
1988 de Venoge Champagne Louis d'Or Millésime Brut 93 Points
France, Champagne
(11/5/2010)
Nice golden color, small bead. Great nose, toast, citrus, brioche, golden delicious apple. On the palate, brioche, golden delicious apple, spice, light hint of citrus. Nice crisp finish. Great with the scallop starter. 93+ Outstanding.
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1989 Philipponnat Champagne Brut Reserve Speciale 92 Points
France, Champagne
(11/5/2010)
Really focused nose, bright citrus, apple, toast, biscuit dough, pear, on the palate, meyer lemon, golden delicious apple, toast, spice. Finishes with a laser beam of acidity. I might be underrating the two champers. They are both outstanding. (NOTE revist score)
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1964 Pio Cesare Barolo 92 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
(11/6/2010)
Very pretty wine, pale garnet color. Nose of leather, truffle, earth, tea, and a hint of red fruit. On the palate, truffle, leather, red raspberry, some sort of nut (almond?). Finished with nice acidity, tannins seem completely resolved. Although not the highest scoring wine of the evening it was WOTN for me from an interest perspective. Would have like to spend more time with this one.
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2008 Tablas Creek Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc 90 Points
USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
(11/6/2010)
Nose of chalk, florals, honey, apple, lemon oil. On the palate, oily mouthfeel, apple, mineral, honey, citrus, spice. Finishes with nice fruit and honey notes. Very nice
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2005 Alban Vineyards Viognier Alban Estate Vineyard 92 Points
USA, California, Central Coast, Edna Valley
(11/5/2010)
Big nose of peach pit, white florals, petrol, butterscotch, apricot. On the palate, peach, apricot, white pepper, citrus peel. Oily mouthfeel, Finishes with a great acidic zing. Outstanding wine
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2006 Ken Wright Pinot Noir McCrone Vineyard 88 Points
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton
(11/6/2010)
Nose of ripe black cherry, spice, tea, vanilla, cranberry. On the palate, ripe cherry, spice, vanilla. Finishes with decent acidity. Feels overdone and a little clumsy, might improve with time.
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2005 Windy Oaks Estate Pinot Noir Estate Cuvée Schultze Family Vineyard 93 Points
USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains
(11/6/2010)
Beautiful nose. Bing cherry, red raspberry, rhubarb, cranberry, mushroom, vanilla, asian spice, cola. On the palate, black cherry, black tea, spice, vanilla, black raspberry. Great transition in the mouth with wonderful sappiness. Great acidic kick on the finish. Drink or continue to hold. Tremendous value and outclassed the other Oregon and Cali Pinots.
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2004 Sea Smoke Pinot Noir Southing Flawed
USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
(11/5/2010)
Not corked or cooked, but definitely not there. Was leaking out the cork.
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2007 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Kanzler Vineyard 91 Points
USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
(11/5/2010)
Nose of earth, plum, black raspberry, black cherry. On the palate nice mix of black cherry, black raspberry, spice. Finishes a little hot. Needs much more time and definitely outclassed by Windy Oaks.
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1974 Gaja Barbaresco 90 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
(11/5/2010)
Nose of prunes, leather, earth, tea, gave the impress of being oxidized. On the palate, far different, mushroom, earth, tea, muted red fruit, tar. Finishes with decent acidity and nice grip. Would have like to have this with a little more air.
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1999 Feudi di San Gregorio Taurasi Piano di Montevergine 92 Points
Italy, Campania, Taurasi DOCG
(11/6/2010)
Decanted for two hours. Great nose, black fruits, tar, anise, earth. On the palate, very walled off fruit, blackberry, espresso, anise. Finishes with strong tannins. Hold this for quite a few years.
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2004 Antinori Tignanello
Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT
(11/5/2010)
Nose of earth and black fruits with some vanilla and spice. On the palate, nice sweet black fruit, tobacco, leather, earth. Finished with substantial tannins that quickly overwhelmed the fruit. Great structure and mouthfeel. Not scored but this promises a great future.
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2004 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape 91 Points
France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
(11/5/2010)
Very similar to the one tasted last month. Tight nose Red and black fruits, leather, roasted meat, anise, pepper. On the palate, rich black fruit, raspberry, anise, pepper, vanilla. Finished crisp with smooth tannins. Hold for at least five years. Lots of potential, might be better than the 05 given enough time.
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2005 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape 94 Points
France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
(11/5/2010)
Explosive nose of red fruit, leather, roasted meats, black olive, and great florals. On the palate, sweet red fruit, olive, leather, smoked meats. Finishes with great acidity and tannins. Great showing for this wine.
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1988 Château Rieussec 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
(11/5/2010)
Nose of apricot, lemon curd, honey, spice, peach. On the palate, apricot, lemon curd, spice, honey. Finishes with lifting acidity and great sweetness.
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1955 Croft Porto Vintage
Portugal, Douro, Porto
(11/5/2010)
This bottle had definitely seen better days. Tawny color, nose like a tawny port with raisin and hazelnut. On the palate, like a tawny the palate repeats the nose. Not scored.
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1976 Mayacamas Vineyards Zinfandel Late Harvest
USA, California, Napa Valley
(11/5/2010)
Offered as a late night cigar wine by oskiwawa. Still very much alive, nose of dark berry and pepper. On the palate sweet ripe blackberry. Not much of a finish but what can you expect? Great little conversation piece and a great end to a great night. If I were forced to score it would be in the 85-87 range.
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