Wine Night in Charlotte -- Cork Vault Bottle Share Returns!

This was a free-form gathering of Cork Vault members sharing bottles they find interesting. While there was no order to wines consumed I endeavored to taste the wines in an order to assist in their showing. Below are my notes for 17 wines although they were sampled in a different order.

A white and German Pinot Noir to wet everyone's whistle before jumping into the deep end of the pool.

• 2016 Kutch Chardonnay Sonoma Coast

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast

  Pop-n-pour to kick off the evening. Bright citrus aromas burst out of the glass. Soft minerality on the palate, lemon zest and green apple notes dance lightly into a soft finish. Fantastic starter white in the Charlotte heat and humidity ahead of a murderer’s row of big, heavy reds.

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• 2018 Wittmann Spätburgunder

  Germany, Rheinhessen

  Smooth, soft earthiness, and rich red berry flavors with a hint of spice. Elegant more so than opulent as you may expect in its youth. A fantastic QPR and new wine for me that I expect to revisit.

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Aged Bordeaux and a Musar made with a "Bordeaux Blend"

• 2001 Chateau Musar

  Lebanon, Bekaa Valley

  double decanted 3 hours in advance. Equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan, and Cinsault. Fragrant nose of red fruits (somewhat primary) and earthy, smoky aromas. Smooth on the palate, the wine displayed wonderful complexity with rich flavors of black and red currants and notes of dried herbs. Smoke, spice, and everything nice. Excellent structure and fully integrated tannins, this wine was in a fantastic place. Nice long savory finish punctuated this wonderful bottle that paired magnificently with Ethiopian spiced meat served on the evening.

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• 2003 Château Léoville Poyferré

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  opened ~1 hour prior to sampling. Wonderful aromatic nose (rustic, opulent), rich flavors (dark cherries, tobacco), fully integrated tannins. Lovely medium length finish. An excellent wine that lacked nothing. No complaints. An exceptionally nice wine.

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• 2009 Château Pontet-Canet

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  double decanted 3 hours in advance. It’s about time to check in on the 2009s and what better place to start than this 100-pointer. Thanks to the double decant this wine was rocking out of the gate and it would only get better as the night rolled on (and in the years to come for that matter). Fragrant, explosive nose of rich raspberries,dark cherries, and graphite. Silky on the mouthfeel this wine displayed all the classic flavors: earthy dark fruits, cassis, tar, burnt embers wafting from a cigar box. Powerful, long finish that led me to walk away from the wine to better soak it all in. A wine that lived up to its reputation.

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• 2000 Château Talbot

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  double decanted in advance (3 hours I believe). Wonderful, opulent aromas of dried fruits and graphite. Silky on the initial mouthfeel this wine displayed excellent structure and fine minerality. Medium body, the lightness of the Talbot was a nice contrast to some of the more muscular wines on the night. Enjoyable, savory finish with medium length. A joy to drink -- possibly the best Tabot I’ve had. If they all drank this well, in short order this would no longer be one of the more affordable high-level Bordeauxs.

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• 1996 Château Beychevelle

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  Pop-n-pour into the decanter and fabulous right out of the gate -- no need to wait. Fully developed nose showing restrained strength with notes of earthy, smoky plums. Smooth on the mouthfeel with notes of black currant, oak, cedar and tobacco. Well integrated tannins this wine displayed structure with a delicious finesse. Long, enjoyable finish completed the wonderful experience of a wine at the top of its game.

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• 1990 Château Angélus 97 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

  opened at 7pm and decanted; Nose exploded with amazing aromas during the decant (I was ~2 feet away); sampled shortly thereafter and everything was there but you could smell and taste the youth -- far closer to a 10 year old than a 30 year. We set the wine aside and came back 2 hours later. Upon returning to the wine it was everything you could hope for: amazing opulent Old World nose (leather, tobacco, mushrooms, dark cherries); gentle minerality with rich, deep flavors on the palate (red and dark fruits); Structure, complexity and finesse were all there in top form. Exceedingly long finish. I could have savored ½ glass for an hour while being sated the entire time. The aromas and the flavors rang out from the glass while the finish was still fresh in my memory the following morning. A brilliant showing.

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Show-ponies that provided a wonderful complementary tasting of aged beauties.

• 1970 Château Mouton Rothschild

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Top-shoulder fill. Slo-ox and poured ~30 minutes after opening. Delightful aromas waft out of the glass: dried plum and cigar box. Silky on the mouthfeel this wine was tasty though lacking heft at 50 years of age. Medium body. The wine was balanced and elegant with soft, enjoyable but fading notes of dried cherries, sweet cassis, and earthy bell pepper. Nice, medium finish for a delightful wine still enjoyable if a few years past its prime.

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• 1970 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Top-shoulder fill. Slo-ox and poured ~30 minutes after opening. Fun to drink alongside the ‘70 Mouton. Wonderful aromas still singing from this 50 year old wine: leather, tobacco, cherries. Pleasant on the mouthfeel: smooth minerality with notes of bell pepper, dark cherries, and prunes that gave it some structure (not everyone agreed here). Savory finish. This wine had greater weight than the Mouton but still displayed understandable hints of the slow fade. A joy of a wine that should be opened before it’s too late.

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Napa "then" and "now" ... Interesting how different a Napa Cabernet is from one generation to the next.

• 1993 Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Cask 23

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Stags Leap District

  decanted 60 -90 minutes before sampling. A near mirror image of my notes from exactly 2 months prior if somewhat less expressive on this evening: “woodsy, earthy, musty red cherry nose; soft minerality on the mouthfeel, earthy, lively strawberries and blackberries reveal the best of new world fruit crafted in an Old World style. Medium+ body the wine has plenty of structure and richness that flowed into a deliciously savory finish.” Classic Napa Cabernet showing extremely well this evening.

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• 2005 Paul Hobbs Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard

  USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena

  A decade later but a world away from the Cask 23. Big but elegant, flavorful but balanced this wine had everything a Napa fan would want from the modern California Cabernet. Flavors of cassis and chocolate with an herbaceous tone. Less complex than the Cask 23 and aged Bordeaux but no lower in quality. An enjoyable top-shelf Napa Cab from a world class winemaker.

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• 2014 Realm Cellars Moonracer

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Stags Leap District

  Big wine, big nose, big flavors. This wine was politely divisive among the crowd as its stark contrast versus most of the wines on the night created at times a halting change of pace. For some it was “wine of the night”, for others it was an easy “pass”. Classic Thomas Rivers Brown in sight, smell, taste, and structure. Dark opaque purple in color, nose of raspberry, blackberry, cocoa, and gravel. Plush tastes of jammy black cherry and blueberry pie. Dusty finish. The quality was there but stylistically the alcoholic vibrancy of fruit and lack of complexity did not suit me this evening. Would have benefitted from a very long decant. I would wait 5 (if not 10) years to check back in on the big and flavorful, but flabby Cabernet blend.

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• 2015 Pine Ridge Vineyards Charmstone

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Similar to the Realm this wine could have used a decant and a few hours of air. Pleasant nose of plum, blackberry, and blueberry. Soft on the mouthfeel, flavors of red cherries and bell pepper flowed seamlessly. Medium body with a pleasant silky texture; Enjoyable though somewhat short finish. A fine wine.

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These wines were all late-night pulls from lockers to keep the party going.

• 2012 David Arthur Cabernet Sauvignon Elevation 1147

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  splash decanted and impatiently waited ~30 minutes before sampling. Nose of dried herbs and dark fruits. Plush on the mouthfeel, this wine was delicious, smooth and flavorful. Excellent complexity with a mix of strawberry and blackberry notes with a hint of chocolate. Long finish. Ready to drink and showed better early versus the Myriad but probably could have used another 30-60 minutes of air.

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• 2012 Myriad Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Georges III Vineyard

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford

  Opened to pair against the David Arthur; splash decanted and impatiently waited ~30 minutes before sampling. The nose was opulent and fruity: black cherries and dark fruits. Silky smooth on the mouthfeel, the wine was delicious but had a lot of baby fat still on it. Flavors of cassis, blackberry, and tar with notes of dusty tannins. This was a “meal wine” long after most people had finished eating. When I grabbed a few bites to pair with it, the wine evolved nicely with greater complexity more consistent with a Mike Smith wine. Dark with a lot of sediment the wine almost certainly needed another hour to fully open and definitely filter it. A great wine that needs to be treated right (2 hour decant, filter sediment, pair with hearty meats).

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• 1988 Silverado Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Stags Leap District

  Pop-n-pour. Fun wine with an interestingly fragrant nose. Not a lot of strength but plenty of red fruits. Thin on the mouthfeel there was still a lot of flavor left in this wine. A bit linear in its delivery evidencing an expected fade in this 33 year old Napa Cabernet. Despite being past its prime this was a treat late into the night with most palates shot.

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• 2007 Klein Constantia Vin de Constance

  South Africa, Coastal Region, Cape Peninsula, Constantia

  Brilliant amber-brown color. Delightful notes of apricot, caramel, and honey. A fantastic dessert wine to end the evening. Did we really need more alcohol at this hour? No. Did I thoroughly enjoy my pour? Absolutely.

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We consumed over 25 wines and these were only the wines I was comfortable writing notes for on the following day. Treatment of wines (decanting, etc) was based on whatever information was shared although I was unaware of many wines treatment.