Fall Fest Wines

Larry's
Tasted Saturday, October 22, 2011 by Loren Sonkin with 594 views

Introduction

My friend Larry M., a veteran of many wine BB's over the years held his annual Fall Fest this past weekend. This is a wine geek fest that has been going on for over a decade and while many of the attendees have given up their BB's over the years, the wines never fail to disappoint. I was able to make it for the Friday night festivities. The crowd has a decidedly AFWE bent to it. I might have missed a few wines as well.

Flight 1 (11 Notes)

  • 2010 Cowan Cellars Sauvignon Blanc Isa

    USA, California, North Coast, Lake County

    I was excited to try this. I believe this is Sauvignon Blanc fermented on its skins. Slightly golden in color (I was expecting darker) and pretty. I really liked the nose. Some tropical fruits (kiwi?), pineapple, no grassiness, and a nice mineral base. Slightly oily texture which I liked. The palate was more of a grapefruit rind quality. It had a bitterness which was a bit distracting. I wonder if that will go away with some bottle age? Very interesting wine.

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  • 1996 Dominique Laurent Beaune 1er Cru Cuvée 88 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru

    I know many in this crowd are AFWE, so I brought this thinking it would be appreciated. As a couple of people told me it was their WOTN, I think I was right. For me, it deemed too one dimensional and simple. By no means, was this past prime though. Nice silky texture. Mostly cherry fruit with some sour cherries.Nice mature Burg.

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  • 1999 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Les Fremiets 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    This is in a very nice place right now. No hurry though. Lots of sour cherries. Complex. Nice acidity. Interesting wine. A crowd favorite.

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  • 1998 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape 93 Points

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    I really liked this. In fact, for a wine, that on the few previous tries was disappointing, this has come into its own. Earthy nose, slight funk, some raspberries. Lots of depth. On the palate, this tastes clean but still brings some funk. Lots of layering. Very interesting wine. Great showing.

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  • 2000 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau 93 Points

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    Another CdP that is mature and IMO has morphed into a wine better than I thought it might be in its youth. Clean nose with black and red raspberries and still some floral notes. Not as much funk. On the palate, clean with lots of layering. Complex fruit and earthiness intertwined. Nice balance. Seems to be peaking.

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  • 1998 Domaine de la Charbonnière Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Vieilles Vignes 93 Points

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    This actually drank surprisingly youthful. Lots of clean cherry and raspberry fruit. While there was a lot of complexity and layering, this still is not yet at peak. It is medium bodied and not a monster wine. Delicious. No hurry.

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  • 2001 Paloma Cabernet Sauvignon 93 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley, Spring Mountain District

    I had not had this in a while. Still drinking quite young and not showing a lot of complexity. There is some very tight layering, so the future is bright here. cassis with some mintiness. Slight earthiness. Another 3 to 5 years.

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  • 2006 Arnaldo-Caprai Montefalco Sagrantino 25 Anni 94 Points

    Italy, Umbria, Montefalco, Montefalco Sagrantino

    Obviously way too young, dense and not giving much up. Yet, there is a certain primordial pleasure with this wine. It has a lush texture, wonderful taste of sagrantino; cherries, black licorice, cranberries, that make it very nice. Certainly no harm in holding this for another decade or two. I really enjoyed the glimpse.

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  • 1998 Neyers Syrah Hudson Vineyards 89 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Some liked this more than I. Plenty of fruit left; black raspberries. I found it overly acidic to the point of being an issue. Still, it showed much better than I would have expected. I wonder how this drank in its youth.

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  • 2003 Pierre Gaillard Côte-Rôtie 91 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

    This was nice. No sense of being over done or roasted. Still young with black raspberries, grilled meats and some black pepper. Nice texture. Probably could use some more cellaring but quite delicious tonight.

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  • 1999 Alain Graillot Crozes-Hermitage 89 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Crozes-Hermitage

    Nice earthy nose with some funk and dark cherries. Still good fruit. A bit more acidic than I like, but the crowd seemed split. This is a complex wine but the acidity would worry me as far as future cellaring. Went better with food.

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Closing

It is always great to see this collection of people. Sorry I could not make it on Saturday.

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