From magnum. This is very pleasant, with a softness that seems to be harder and harder to find these days, what with those zero-dosage acid bombs and such. There's some shy citrus notes, and a light touch of bread, but this never veers into that yeasty, bready zone at all. A touch of chalk rounds this out at the end; this is relatively simple, but it's definitely good.
This is still in really good shape for its age. Lots of ripe dark fruit on the nose, but there's also a little touch of oak, although on the nose it seems to have integrated well (read: isn't too prominent). The palate is a bit of another matter -- it's a huge wine, dense and sappy, no doubt about it, but very drying and a bit bitter towards the back end. The oak here does rear its head in the form of the tannin.
Third bottle from a six-pack that I bought a year ago, and I've been consistently pleased by this wine. It really doesn't get more Rioja-like than this. The nose is barnyard, sweat, animale, and poop, but the palate is black-fruited, sweet, and much, much cleaner. There's good ripeness, balanced acidity, and tannins well on their way towards integration. I'm a fan.
A very intriguing wine -- something certainly a bit outside of my comfort zone, but still somehow familiar. The nose shows a real nice hint of menthol, as well as some earth and some cool red fruit. The palate still shows really good freshness -- this is quite ripe, with sufficient balancing acidity and soft tannins. Quite compelling; this is one of the bottles I would have liked to spend more time exploring tonight.
Served double blind. Got the chardonnay part of this pretty quickly, but from where? I ended up guessing South Africa, for no good reason, really. This is quite waxy, but it doesn't feel particularly greasy, thanks to quite a bit of acidity on this wine. This also seems to have been made in a bit of an oxidative style, so there's a slight sherry note to it. Lots of coconutty oak as well. I wasn't really convinced by this wine.
Served double blind. A whiff of this on the nose is enough to tell you there are tons of pyrazines on this, so I guessed cabernet-heavy Bordeaux blend. I also picked up some dried herbs, and for whatever reason, I associate that with Tuscany. The nose is extremely high-toned, but the palate shows lots of acidity; it's not too densely extracted but there is definitely some of that Sharpie marker character here. The wine isn't executed in too extreme a style, but it's definitely not my cup of tea.
Disgorged August 27, 2015. L 1303. Surprisingly dark colour, even for a rose. This wine has been hyped up to me quite a bit, but I have to admit I found this very unconvincing today. It mostly tasted like something that had been recently disgorged, i.e. not very much. There's a nice cranberry tone to this, but mostly, it seemed like this was fizz with some nondescript minerality and acidity. If I had to guess, this needed either more air or time; alas tonight, it got neither.
Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino
I'll admit, this is a very good rendition of a cult Brunello. This is a very fleshy and big wine, with lots and lots of sweet black fruit (for days!). Despite the scale and ripeness here, there's actually a nice bit of acidity that balances this out. There's no over-the-top oak here either, and what oak there once was has been dissipated by time. Soft tannins, this is drinking very nicely now.
Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino
This bottle was popped and poured, and I think that that treatment contributed greatly to my initial lack of enthusiasm for this wine. Quite frankly, it was thin and watery, with a nice red-fruited acid streak. Not particularly convincing by any stretch of the imagination. But with air, this started growing bigger and bigger, and by the end of it this grew back to the wine I remembered. It's certainly a wine of a lighter style, acid-driven and fresh, with lighter tannins and lower extraction.
Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino
Perhaps this bottle was not the best example of this wine. There's a lot of earth and sour fruit on the nose, but the fruit seems to be overcrowded by other secondary aromas. The palate leans heavily towards acidity, with the fruit somewhat muted, and some earth showing quite prominently too. There's good stuff here, but at the end of the day, this bottle seemed to be a bit towards its last legs.
The nose shows a little bit of funk, but that blows off with time. At the end of the day, this is a relatively four-square Barolo; not showing much that's of especial interest. There's some textbook earth on the nose, but the purity of the fruit and florals just isn't here -- the wine feels a little bit muddy. It's not the first time I've felt this way about a pre-2000 Aldo Conterno either...
Probably served a little bit too warm. This strikes me as a fun, simple, and quaffable red wine with a little bit of fizz on it. It's not complex but it's also not pretentious. I do find a slight bit of a carbonic character in this which I don't like.
This was singing right from the moment we popped the cork. The nose is light and floral, with a smidgen of tart red fruit and earth. But you just keep coming back to it, because you always feel like there's a little more for it to give. And the palate is racy and thin, yet concentrated all the same. There's this magical weightlessness on this... it just floats above everything, and there's so much density of florals and red fruit and all the things that make nebbiolo nebbiolo. A perfect example of why he's called Il Maestro.
In contrast to the Poggio di Sotto, this is just such a different beast. Black fruit, with a little bit of dried herbs. The fruit here is very, very ripe, and there's a little bit of sweetness here to boot. It's a big wine, no doubt, but it doesn't go over the top, thankfully. On the other hand, I did find this wine a little cloying -- it could have benefited from a little more freshness and acidity.
This is a bottle showing extremely well for its age. If served blind, I would definitely have guessed 20 years younger. The palate shows a fair amount of fruit, and it's also driven by it, although there are also some of the requisite earth and floral tones here. This is a Barolo driven by its fruit before that was even a thing.
This bottle was in tip-top shape. The nose is pure gasoline and mineral, though there's a slight bit of grapefruit peel as well. You can feel the sweetness rather than taste it on the palate. This is very restrained, and there's a really nice driving acidity on the backend that gives this wine shape. A really pleasant surprise.
From half-bottle. When Chris asked me what I expected this bottle to be like, I responded "acid bomb". Yes, there's insane amounts of acid here, but there's actually a very nice, if subtle sweetness to this wine that rounds it out. You don't exactly notice it on your first sip; it creeps up on you. There are a few nice spice notes as well. A lovely way to end the evening.
The colour on this isn't too pleasant -- it's dark and muddy, and with its thicker texture, it looks a little bit like motor oil. The nose has some Madeira-like high-toned oxidative notes, as well as some brown dried fruit aromas. The palate is sweet and thick, with plenty of balancing acidity. It's pretty much tastes like raisin extract (which is also what it is). Layered and complex, and pretty tasty to boot.
NV Tarlant Champagne Cuvée Louis 90 Points
France, Champagne
From magnum. This is very pleasant, with a softness that seems to be harder and harder to find these days, what with those zero-dosage acid bombs and such. There's some shy citrus notes, and a light touch of bread, but this never veers into that yeasty, bready zone at all. A touch of chalk rounds this out at the end; this is relatively simple, but it's definitely good.
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1990 Domenico Clerico Barolo Ciabot Mentin Ginestra 85 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
This is still in really good shape for its age. Lots of ripe dark fruit on the nose, but there's also a little touch of oak, although on the nose it seems to have integrated well (read: isn't too prominent). The palate is a bit of another matter -- it's a huge wine, dense and sappy, no doubt about it, but very drying and a bit bitter towards the back end. The oak here does rear its head in the form of the tannin.
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1981 C.V.N.E. (Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España) Rioja Viña Real Reserva 93 Points
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
Third bottle from a six-pack that I bought a year ago, and I've been consistently pleased by this wine. It really doesn't get more Rioja-like than this. The nose is barnyard, sweat, animale, and poop, but the palate is black-fruited, sweet, and much, much cleaner. There's good ripeness, balanced acidity, and tannins well on their way towards integration. I'm a fan.
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1989 Paolo Scavino Barolo Bric dël Fiasc Flawed
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Heat-damaged, oxidized, or both.
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1988 Castello dei Rampolla Sammarco Toscana IGT 90 Points
Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT
A very intriguing wine -- something certainly a bit outside of my comfort zone, but still somehow familiar. The nose shows a real nice hint of menthol, as well as some earth and some cool red fruit. The palate still shows really good freshness -- this is quite ripe, with sufficient balancing acidity and soft tannins. Quite compelling; this is one of the bottles I would have liked to spend more time exploring tonight.
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2012 El Enemigo Chardonnay 83 Points
Argentina, Mendoza
Served double blind. Got the chardonnay part of this pretty quickly, but from where? I ended up guessing South Africa, for no good reason, really. This is quite waxy, but it doesn't feel particularly greasy, thanks to quite a bit of acidity on this wine. This also seems to have been made in a bit of an oxidative style, so there's a slight sherry note to it. Lots of coconutty oak as well. I wasn't really convinced by this wine.
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2011 El Enemigo Cabernet Franc Gran Enemigo Gualtallary 83 Points
Argentina, Mendoza, Valle de Uco, Gualtallary
Served double blind. A whiff of this on the nose is enough to tell you there are tons of pyrazines on this, so I guessed cabernet-heavy Bordeaux blend. I also picked up some dried herbs, and for whatever reason, I associate that with Tuscany. The nose is extremely high-toned, but the palate shows lots of acidity; it's not too densely extracted but there is definitely some of that Sharpie marker character here. The wine isn't executed in too extreme a style, but it's definitely not my cup of tea.
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NV Georges Laval Champagne Premier Cru Rose Brut Nature Cumières 85 Points
France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
Disgorged August 27, 2015. L 1303. Surprisingly dark colour, even for a rose. This wine has been hyped up to me quite a bit, but I have to admit I found this very unconvincing today. It mostly tasted like something that had been recently disgorged, i.e. not very much. There's a nice cranberry tone to this, but mostly, it seemed like this was fizz with some nondescript minerality and acidity. If I had to guess, this needed either more air or time; alas tonight, it got neither.
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2001 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino 90 Points
Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino
I'll admit, this is a very good rendition of a cult Brunello. This is a very fleshy and big wine, with lots and lots of sweet black fruit (for days!). Despite the scale and ripeness here, there's actually a nice bit of acidity that balances this out. There's no over-the-top oak here either, and what oak there once was has been dissipated by time. Soft tannins, this is drinking very nicely now.
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1997 Fattoria Poggio di Sotto Brunello di Montalcino 93 Points
Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino
This bottle was popped and poured, and I think that that treatment contributed greatly to my initial lack of enthusiasm for this wine. Quite frankly, it was thin and watery, with a nice red-fruited acid streak. Not particularly convincing by any stretch of the imagination. But with air, this started growing bigger and bigger, and by the end of it this grew back to the wine I remembered. It's certainly a wine of a lighter style, acid-driven and fresh, with lighter tannins and lower extraction.
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1988 Conti Costanti Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 88 Points
Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino
Perhaps this bottle was not the best example of this wine. There's a lot of earth and sour fruit on the nose, but the fruit seems to be overcrowded by other secondary aromas. The palate leans heavily towards acidity, with the fruit somewhat muted, and some earth showing quite prominently too. There's good stuff here, but at the end of the day, this bottle seemed to be a bit towards its last legs.
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1999 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo Bussia 85 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The nose shows a little bit of funk, but that blows off with time. At the end of the day, this is a relatively four-square Barolo; not showing much that's of especial interest. There's some textbook earth on the nose, but the purity of the fruit and florals just isn't here -- the wine feels a little bit muddy. It's not the first time I've felt this way about a pre-2000 Aldo Conterno either...
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2007 Il Bisserino Vin de Milàn 83 Points
Italy, Lombardia, San Colombano DOC
Probably served a little bit too warm. This strikes me as a fun, simple, and quaffable red wine with a little bit of fizz on it. It's not complex but it's also not pretentious. I do find a slight bit of a carbonic character in this which I don't like.
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1978 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Gallina di Neive 98 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
This was singing right from the moment we popped the cork. The nose is light and floral, with a smidgen of tart red fruit and earth. But you just keep coming back to it, because you always feel like there's a little more for it to give. And the palate is racy and thin, yet concentrated all the same. There's this magical weightlessness on this... it just floats above everything, and there's so much density of florals and red fruit and all the things that make nebbiolo nebbiolo. A perfect example of why he's called Il Maestro.
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1997 Antinori Tignanello 88 Points
Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT
In contrast to the Poggio di Sotto, this is just such a different beast. Black fruit, with a little bit of dried herbs. The fruit here is very, very ripe, and there's a little bit of sweetness here to boot. It's a big wine, no doubt, but it doesn't go over the top, thankfully. On the other hand, I did find this wine a little cloying -- it could have benefited from a little more freshness and acidity.
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1978 Fratelli Serio and Battista Borgogno Barolo Riserva Cannubi 93 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
This is a bottle showing extremely well for its age. If served blind, I would definitely have guessed 20 years younger. The palate shows a fair amount of fruit, and it's also driven by it, although there are also some of the requisite earth and floral tones here. This is a Barolo driven by its fruit before that was even a thing.
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1983 Studert-Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese 93 Points
Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
This bottle was in tip-top shape. The nose is pure gasoline and mineral, though there's a slight bit of grapefruit peel as well. You can feel the sweetness rather than taste it on the palate. This is very restrained, and there's a really nice driving acidity on the backend that gives this wine shape. A really pleasant surprise.
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1990 Dr. Fischer Ockfener Bockstein Riesling Eiswein 93 Points
Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
From half-bottle. When Chris asked me what I expected this bottle to be like, I responded "acid bomb". Yes, there's insane amounts of acid here, but there's actually a very nice, if subtle sweetness to this wine that rounds it out. You don't exactly notice it on your first sip; it creeps up on you. There are a few nice spice notes as well. A lovely way to end the evening.
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1939 Serafino Erbaluce Passito Riserva Canale d'Alba 95 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Caluso Passito
The colour on this isn't too pleasant -- it's dark and muddy, and with its thicker texture, it looks a little bit like motor oil. The nose has some Madeira-like high-toned oxidative notes, as well as some brown dried fruit aromas. The palate is sweet and thick, with plenty of balancing acidity. It's pretty much tastes like raisin extract (which is also what it is). Layered and complex, and pretty tasty to boot.
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