2005 St Emilion, Alsace and Stickies

With great anticipation for the evening, we got going!

At least I got Gewurtztraminer right...
Generally too expensive or too poor (PB).

• 2012 Domaine Weinbach Gewurztraminer Altenbourg Cuvée Laurence 85 Points

  France, Alsace

  Has an enticing, sweetish, rose-root aroma that becomes this wine quite well. Nose is from a decidedly youthful wine with abundant flowery aromas. Very, very nice!
  Palate is not at all parked in my alley. Semi-sweet. Acids are too low, giving the sugars a cloying "un-quality" that has no useful place in my wine Universe.
  To be a Gew, this is quite restrained on the aromatic side. But, man! The lack of acids... But why? I just don't get it...
  
  Possibly, it will come forward as it comes of age, but I wouldn't spend my hard earned money on btls like this one. Still rather good, but just not good enough.

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• 2012 Zind-Humbrecht Riesling Heimbourg 87 Points

  France, Alsace

  This is a high score for me, for a young white.
  
  My guess: PG (acids had me fooled and in all honesty: I always find it difficult with the overlapping aromatics of Riesling and PG, especially in the young.)
  
  Mandarin aroma, candied orange rind (sweet citrus).
  This is a dry, rather small wine on the palate. It is showing (only) M acids, a small load of Pear Soda and some even smaller earthy aromas that move towards cloves. Superbly balanced and great with food.
  
  A rather unusual Riesling, but not without qualities. Pricewise: I'd never buy again. But I must admit that it would be incredibly interesting to learn what happens with this btl in 10-15 yrs.

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• 2012 Bestheim Pinot Blanc Reserve 76 Points

  France, Alsace

  Face plant wine.
  When PB is good, it sports acids to die for and the joyous playfulness of little children. But not this wine.
  
  This wine is foul and muddy with stale overtones.
  In the mouth the small residual sugars bolster a thin, low-acid wine with absolutely nothing in the way of complexity. A rather problematic earthy (newly-dug potatoes) character that really is not enjoyable.
  
  Sauce-wine!

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• 2012 Domaine Paul Buecher et fils Pinot Gris 88 Points

  France, Alsace

  I mistook this one for Riesling as it really displayed some Riesling aromas. Hejja! Back to school I go...
  
  Together with goose berries and kiwi, almost entertaining the thought that we had accidentally gotten an SB from Alsace. Blinded, the nose would have definitely signalled SB for me as all of those aroma flags are up.
  
  Taste is fecking great! As a fine relief from the nose's extravaganza, the palate is quite restrained. Young (but of course), intense, rich and with some residual sugar.
  
  This is quite something... Wish we had some as I think this will grow well over the intermediate future. And the price point is most acceptable.

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Nothing stood out with Pavie other than its insane price tag.
I wish I had some La Clotte in the cellars, amazing performance this night!

• 2005 Château Pavie 95 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

  Huge Bdx nose packed with barrels and dark berries.
  Per os this is restrained, but the most forward of tonight's '05 St Emilions. Bdx earth, ceder, merlot fruit. Rich, slim, chocolate. Quite generous and fecking good.
  
  However, I will NEVER EVER pay this much for a single btl of wine, ever again.
  
  When you drink the only red Bdx that raised their prices in 2011, compared to 2010, you've gotta wonder if the insanity lies within the proprietors, or amongst the buyers? The quality will never be worth the mega-extra dough, but the label may very well be.
  
  Fact is: I struggled to find the Pavie in the 4 wine flight that I knew was 2005 St Emilion and that one of the wines was Pavie. I was not at all sure which wine it was, as none of the wines shone in any clear and bright €200 sort of way.
  
  A great wine and a great marketing stunt.

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• 2005 Château La Clotte 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

  Youthful, aggressive fruit, tight Bdx earth with a fine dose of Brett.
  In the mouth this is pure, fine, youthily youthful in tight reins. M+++ tannins tearing at your gums, teeth and palate in wonderful ways. Call me masochistic, but: THIS IS SPARTA!!! Cassis, lingon berries. Tremendous wine!
  
  This is exactly the kind of wine I can accept paying £50 for. With some years' under its belt, it'll make wifey purr and any dinner a dramatic event.
  
  The best choice of the evening for ME's grilled meat. And for all I know: the most promising wine from this evening.

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• 2005 Château Rol Valentin 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

  Non-descript, very tight nose.
  On the palate it's SA-TANNIC. This is rich, well structured, built to last but yielding absolutely NOTHING this evening.
  
  Would be most interesting to learn what comes out of this btl after some 15-20 yrs.

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• 2005 Château Croix de Labrie 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

  Elegant, forceful Bdx-nose that's (compared to the company) voluptuous. From a von oben perspective: quite young, typical and bolted shut.
  In the mouth, deep, intense, young-young palate with M++ acids and M+++ tannins. Elegant and rather "merloty" in the long finish. The only wine of the evening with integrated wood.
  
  My TN describes a better wine than I had. Too expensive for what it is and not showing as much promise as I had hoped for.
  
  If our btl was representative, this is not good bang for your bucks.

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Zind-Humbrecht underperformed.
Suduiraut did what I've come to expect from it.
Eiswein with some age are always interesting, but I'm still waiting for the btl that will make me see the light...

• 2006 Zind-Humbrecht Riesling Brand Vendange Tardive 89 Points

  France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

  Diesling written all across the continent of this wine's origin...
  
  Palate: Riesling everywhere: acids, aromas, petrochem, somersaults and structure. BUT! It is surprisingly short, so: NOT for my afternoon tea. Ever.
  
  Even if this is really a great wine, it will only be appealing to those of us who prefer short wines.
  Score given from the imaginative POV that 'finish' is of no consequence. Jolly good!

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• 2005 Château Suduiraut 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  If you ask me: The evening's winner, by far! But, it just ain't fair that a 2005 Bdx wine wins the 2005 St Emilion Eve Grand Prix...
  
  Suduiraut is my game. And this btl delivered nicely :-)

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• 2009 Château de la Roulerie Coteaux du Layon Chaume Les Aunis 86 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Coteaux du Layon Chaume

  Good, highly alive acids to match the sweetness. Gives a fresh feeling in the mouth. Easy to drink, even given it's a dessert wine. Fecking delicious! ...even if this is a rather simple sweet wine.
  Has some potential for keepers, but I doubt it will ever be a master piece, unless it lives as long as Moulin-Touchais.
  
  Would happily have again!

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• 1996 Weingut Ernst Bretz Bechtolsheimer Homberg Riesling Eiswein 90 Points

  Germany, Rheinhessen

  ...how much I payed for this, how far I drove, how long I resisted opening this btl and how many things occured in my life from procurement to actually drinking it... I kept this btl from being a young adult to becoming a mature man. From a producer without any kind of fame. Because a wine shop lady told me it would be great around 2015...
  
  Beautiful Golden colour.
  Schoolbook textbook rich, opulent, petrochem, Riesling nose of quite some distiction.
  In the mouth, the fruit is dead flat, acids are rampaging the palate and this wine is sweeter than a Zugared Zatan. In one way of describing this wine, you could say:
  An long and elegant caress of love.
  
  You could just as well describe it as:
  Dried up and ready to recieve it's Death Certificate. Acids, fruit and sugars were not ever integrated (as Eisweins usually never become integrated...). A very fine ice-wine this is, but not at all worth the price, the wait and suffering the piercing acidity.
  
  Not at all even remotely as great as I had hoped and dreamt. Procured in the village it was produced, a half-a-lifetime-away. Sold by quite a marvellous lady, I must say. Fluent in more languages than i have fingers and quite convincing.
  
  However, life has taught me that Eiswein is rather a production method, not resulting in wines with personality. And I still await the moment when the vineyard workers' toil results in a wine that gives me more pleasure than the Ausleses they produce.
  
  Will not ever buy more ice-wines. There are still some in our cellars, but... Yeah...
  
  The acids are too pronounced. The fruit is drying out and there is very little to look forward to. Quite an explosion of tastes, but the acids makes for an unbalanced encounter. Very typical. Very tough to give the score as I arrive at results between 75 (unbalanced) all the way to 94 (typical, venerable). It all depends on how you cut it...

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The Tokayer was marvellous!
The sherry is quite a lot of bang for your money. Wow!

• 1981 Monimpex Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos 95 Points

  Hungary, Tokaji

  Bonus wine, for the dessert. Opened for ~1 mth.
  
  Brown, golden colour.
  Sherry aromas of various dried fruits and tea-tobacco as well as 'snus' (wet tabac w/low pH for under your over-lip).
  Palate serves Extra All today! Sugars galore. Acids feel M++ (but probably are M++++) and livening things up. A great mix of richness and taste explosions build up the experience in its loooong finish: tea, cloud berry jam en masse, toast and apples. Also Botrytis aromas and a general richness.
  Apparently, it was even better in the early weeks... I score it (only) 95p.
  
  Tonight: Schweeenagött!

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• NV Delgado Zuleta Jerez-Xérès-Sherry Palo Cortado Monteagudo 92 Points

  Spain, Andalucía, Jerez-Xérès-Sherry

  Bonus wine, for the shrimp soup that it married indescribably well.
  
  Dead, dry bones in the dessert, despair in a bottle. Burnt hair. Hell on Earth... Apocalyptic poetry. It married MJ's shrimp soup like nothing else. For sure: the spring's Sherry tasting can't be held without this fabulous soup.
  
  This wine started out poorly for the first week or so, so please remember to aerate this bottle well before you drink it!

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The Suduiraut stole the show.
We were all in a bit of a 'MEH?' state after the Pavie.
And the stickies surely delivered!
(I almost missed my flight in the morning.)