Bouchard, Chidaine, Urbans-Hof, Veglio, Seven Stones, Alban, Keplinger

My home
Tasted Sunday, July 1, 2012 by Loren Sonkin with 431 views

Introduction

Last night, my wife and I had a few friends over for dinner. It was a nice evening of conversation, food and wine. This is my favorite way to enjoy the wines of my cellar, matching a bottle to the food, with wines of all different pedigrees.

Flight 1 - With Edamame Hummus & Nan Bread with Zaatar (1 Note)

Flight 2 - With chilled Curried Peach Soup (1 Note)

  • 2005 François Chidaine Vouvray Sec Les Argiles 92 Points

    France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray

    This is still drinking quite young. 05 was a warm vintage in the Loire IIRC, and this still has plenty of fruit to show. Light golden in color. The nose is great with orange peel, ginger and some apricot. Full bodied. Dry. Nice acidity. On the palate, this has developed some complexity and depth and it continues to unwind in the glass. Great full bodied texture. Food friendly. Delicious wine.

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Flight 3 - With Beet Salad with Goat Cheese Croutons (1 Note)

  • 2009 Nik Weis / St. Urbans-Hof Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Spätlese 89 Points

    Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

    Light silvery gold in color. The nose has some grapefruit and a bit of minerals. Clean. Medium bodied. Sweet and a bit flabby. I would have preferred more acidity on the palate. This is nice and easy to drink. A solid wine but I hoped for more. Not sure if this is more of a house style or vintage characteristic.

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Flight 4 - With Creamy Polenta with Chanterelles in a cream sauce (1 Note)

  • 1996 Mauro Veglio Barolo Castelletto 92 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    I wish I had bought more of these years ago for under $30. This wine continues to out deliver for the price IMO. Ruby/brown in color, but proper for Nebbiolo, no real bricking or age showing. The wine was opened for 10 hours and decanted before serving. A bit of sediment but not that much. Earthy, cherries, some tar and roses on the nose. Complex and tightly layered on the palate. Nice acidity. Worked great with the food. Just delicious.

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Flight 5 - With Roasted Corn, Poblano and Red Pepper Pizza with Monterrey Jack Cheese and Cilantro (1 Note)

  • 2006 Seven Stones Cabernet Sauvignon 96 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena

    Really a great bottle of wines. Decanted 1.5 hours. Purple in color. The nose has cassis, plums, charred earth and some black licorice. Full bodied. Lots of structure, it seems that this has plenty of time to develop. Still, it is delicious now. Lots of cassis. Tightly layered, it opened all night long. While not a powerful wine, not a weakling either. Really very impressive. I wish it was not so expensive, but it is a "fair" price in the market IMO.

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Flight 6 - With a Cheese Course (1 Note)

  • 2003 Alban Vineyards Syrah Lorraine 91 Points

    USA, California, Central Coast, Edna Valley

    This was an interesting bottle. Opened and slow-o'd for about 10 hours. Purple in color. The nose has a fair amount of VA on it. It did seem to blow off after a while. Plenty of black raspberries, grilled meats and black pepper along with the nail polish. Full bodied. Better on the palate although it is a bit cumbersome. Tons of jammy fruit. It did work well along side a cheese course. It is an outstanding wine, but doesn't have that nimbleness that some great Syrahs have.

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Flight 7 - With Watermelon, Ricotta Ice Cream and dark Chocolate shavings. (1 Note)

  • 2009 Keplinger Holdout 89 Points

    USA, California, Sierra Foothills, El Dorado County

    A dessert wine that is 80% Grenache and 20% Mourvedre. Ruby in color. The nose has some alcohol to it, also some raspberry jam and a bit of charred wood/smoke. Full bodied and viscous. On the palate, the fruit is not as prominent as I might have thought. Very easy to drink. Raspberry flavors mostly. Worked nicely with the chocolate in the dessert. A fine wine but $60 for 500ml is probably more than I would pay again.

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Closing

Thank to all for coming over.

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