chicago crew spanish night
Habana Libre, Chicagol IL
Tasted Friday, February 15, 2008 by KeithAkers with 714 views
Introduction
the WL chicago crew got together for an under $35 spanish tasting with the goal of bringing interesting spanish wines for under $35 a bottle. There was some pretty good stuff and some stuff that wasn't so hot, but overall the quality was very good and there were some good finds
Flight 1 (12 Notes)
Closing
Lots of fun as always and it was great to meet some new people outside of the normal cast of characters. The food was really good, but the service and hidden fees from Habana Libre left a bit to be desired. Still, it was a really good time overall and it was fun as always
2000 Llopart Cava Brut Cava Leopardi Brut Reserva 87 Points
Spain, Cava
nose: extremely yeasty nose with some minerality and apple tones too
taste: nice and smooth with good effervescance on the palate. Good minerality with hints of green apple and lemons
overall: very nice and easy cava. Good feeling on the mouth and a decent finish. This one is probably towards the end of it's life
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2001 Dominio de la Peseta Crianza 86 Points
Spain
nose: sweet tones on the nose of oak, cassis, vanilla, and black berries
taste: nice smooth attack on the palate of blackberry and vanilla mostly with hints of black currants and some dark cherry
overall: this was very good until the finish just died. There is the immeadite flavors, but no mid palate and finish to really speak of, which brings it down a good amount.
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2001 Marqués de Cáceres Rioja Reserva 89 Points
Spain, La Rioja, Rioja
nose: good deep nose of dark cherry, toasted oak, plums, and blackberries
taste: real silky feel with dark cherries, vanilla, toasted oak tones, and some sour cranberry
overall: this is really nice. Luscious and smooth with a really nice sour finish
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2006 Telmo Rodríguez Godello Valdeorras Gaba do Xil 87 Points
Spain, Galicia, Valdeorras
nose: very nice mineral driven nose with some lemon peel, wet rocks, and grassy tones
taste: interesting as it is sweet on the palate with a nice mineral and lemon attack
overall: very nice. Good cross of a NZ style blanc and a french Blanc. It is a bit simple though on the flavor profile, but it does them well
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2005 Bodegas Juan Gil Monastrell Jumilla 87 Points
Spain, Murcia, Jumilla
nose: fairly new world on the nose with red cherries, oak, and some cranberry tones
taste: nice and decent with cherries, red currants, and bits of cranberry
overall: a very solid wine but the finish dies a bit. It's well put together but just fails at the end
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2004 Bodega O. Fournier Ribera del Duero Spiga 92 Points
Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
nose: really deep and succulent nose of black currant, dark cranberry, tobbacco, and some dark roast coffee
taste: great weight on the palate with dark cherry, sour cranberry,tobbacco, and black currants
overall: just a beautiful wine. A lot of complexity going on and extremely enjoyable. Really nice lasting finish with good firm tannins
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2004 Domini de la Cartoixa Priorat Galena 92 Points
Spain, Catalunya, Priorat
nose: nice dusty nose that is bordeaux-esque with cassis, black licorice, sour cranberry, blackberries, and some cedar
taste: very big structure on the palate with sour cranberry, black currant, dark cherry, and cedar
overall: this is a really great wine. Lots of structure and nice classy tannins. Brings a wonderful long finish of black cherry liqueur. This one can age very well too, an excellent wine
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2006 Hermanos del Villar Verdejo Rueda Ipsum 84 Points
Spain, Castilla y León, Rueda
nose: very interesting nose of citrus fruit, sea shells, and minerals. Very rounded on the nose, but also has some brightness to it
taste: hrm. Hard to decipher what the flavors are as it dies almost immeaditely on the palate. It feels more like mineral water on the palate and is frustrating considering how intersting the nose is. very faint mineral flavors, but it's frustrating as there was something interesting to look forward to
overall: the nose was very nice and fun to smell, but the palate just died. A jekyll/hyde aspect with it. darn
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2006 Bodega José Pariente Verdejo Rueda 87 Points
Spain, Castilla y León, Rueda
nose: nice and grassy nose with a nice punch of citrus fruit and seashells
taste: good feel on the palate with nice crisp acidity filled with ctrus notes and minerality
overall: very nice and easy drinking. I like the crispness that this brings and is a very nice wine
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2006 Telmo Rodríguez Toro Dehesa Gago 86 Points
Spain, Castilla y León, Toro
nose: very new world which is surprising considering that it's from Toro. A good amount of red cherries, vanilla, and red licorice
taste: filled with cherry and vanilla. good texture on the palate, but flavors are simple and provide little depth or secondary flavors
overall: simple and decent. Good structure, but with the flavor profile I don't know how it will age. New world fans will like this, but this doesn't act like a toro at all, which bothers me
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2005 Alvaro Palacios Priorat Les Terrasses 93 Points
Spain, Catalunya, Priorat
nose: nice, deep, rich nose of coffee, spice box, cranberry, and dark cherry
taste: really rich feel on the palate with dark cherry, spicebox, and coffe tones
overall: a really beautiful wine that is long on class and polish and leaves you with a really nice black liqueur finish
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2003 Alvear Montilla-Moriles PX Fino "En Rama" 82 Points
Spain, Andalucía, Montilla-Moriles
nose: smacks you back with a lot pheynl alcohol but also has some almonds and hazelnut components behind it
taste: the pheynl alcohol is a bit too much on the flavor for me, but it then does lean into really nice and pleasant notes of almonds, hazelnuts, and cashew characteristics
overall: has a really long almond finish which saves the wine for me. It's best on the back end and changed my opinion of it overall. Overall though I've yet to be impressed much by sherry, and this didn't impress me much either
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