A very enjoyable, food friendly wine at a friendly price. The nose had little notes of chalk and beeswax, moving into persimmons and cantaloupe, with a little line of minerality at the sides of the bouquet. Following from that, the palate was simple but pleasant, with bright limey acidity framing gentle flavours of persimmon, rock melon and some white fruit, all leading into a nicely fleshy finish laced with chalk, beeswax and mineral. Simple, but fresh and food friendly, with a little touch of character to it as well - everything that you would want for a wine on this level.
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
Lovely. Still a little youthful, but already very enjoyable, especially after a couple of hours in the decanter. I really liked the nose on it - a little more oak than I would normally enjoy, but this was integrated very nicely with the rest of the bouquet, fanning out of the glass in wafts of smoke and sweet spice, smoked meats, almost a touch of Jamon Iberico, and then a core of deep dark cherries and red berries, all chased with a nice tail of minerality. What a lovely kaleidoscope of smells. The palate was very yummy too. Fresh, juicy, but with all the fruit and depth of a good 2010 - this opened in the mouth with lovely flavours of dark cherries, red plums and berries, lined with a nice touch of spice, and then a lovely ring of stony minerality drawing away into a long finish. A charming wine, with a lot of elegant strength and a nice transperancy to it. This was example of how good the 2010 vintage was, with great acidity, fruit and structure all starting to come together. Delicious now, especially with some food, but this will really need 6-8 years, maybe more, to truly show at peak.
Nice stuff, if rather advanced for a vintage port just approaching the 30-year mark. From a bottle that has been opened for a few days, this was showing very nicely on the night. I really liked the nose, with its notes of molasses and dried muscats, along with some savoury preserved plum aromas, maybe a touch of cherry liqueur, all patted down with touches of earth and gentle spice. Very nice. The palate was full and round in the mouth, with a yummy melange of plums and cherry liqueur, earth and molasses, all very nicely integrated and balanced. The finish ended with a hint of milk chocolate and gentle spiciness. Very resolved and delicious to drink at the moment. While neither the most complex nor the most compelling, this was a very solid, very enjoyable port, good with a series of different cheeses as one would expect.
A very enjoyable Colheita. This started with a nice nose of walnuts and mahogany tones floating over a sweeter core of honey and dried apricots, some mulberries maybe, and then a twang of something that reminded me of sour plum candy, all this wreathed in perfumed drifts of floral roses. Very attractive. The palate was rather simpler than that lovely nose promised unfortunately, but still quite yummy nonetheless, with sweet flavours of dried apricots and plums, some savoury fig peel, all couched in a nice bit of fresh acidity. Finish was decent too, with a touch of spice lingering amidst some honey and molasses. A yummy mouthful.
At Brian and Sylvia's after dinner. This was quite nice. It had a rich, almost unctuous nose, with plenty of honey and nectar, dried peach and apricot, with chamomile and other floral notes at the sides. After that, the palate was almost surprisingly fresh, with nice orange-fruit acidity running through an otherwise round, fleshy mouthful of dried apricots and sweet lemon curd. The finish was full and unctuous, still quite sweet in spite of its age, yet very fresh at the same time. I liked this - a nice drop - maybe lacking a bit of complexity, but with a lot of grace and a really nice balance to it.
2018 Aitaren Getariako Txakolina 90 Points
Spain, País Vasco, Getariako Txakolina
A very enjoyable, food friendly wine at a friendly price. The nose had little notes of chalk and beeswax, moving into persimmons and cantaloupe, with a little line of minerality at the sides of the bouquet. Following from that, the palate was simple but pleasant, with bright limey acidity framing gentle flavours of persimmon, rock melon and some white fruit, all leading into a nicely fleshy finish laced with chalk, beeswax and mineral. Simple, but fresh and food friendly, with a little touch of character to it as well - everything that you would want for a wine on this level.
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2010 Domaine Humbert Frères Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Estournelles-St.-Jacques 93 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
Lovely. Still a little youthful, but already very enjoyable, especially after a couple of hours in the decanter. I really liked the nose on it - a little more oak than I would normally enjoy, but this was integrated very nicely with the rest of the bouquet, fanning out of the glass in wafts of smoke and sweet spice, smoked meats, almost a touch of Jamon Iberico, and then a core of deep dark cherries and red berries, all chased with a nice tail of minerality. What a lovely kaleidoscope of smells. The palate was very yummy too. Fresh, juicy, but with all the fruit and depth of a good 2010 - this opened in the mouth with lovely flavours of dark cherries, red plums and berries, lined with a nice touch of spice, and then a lovely ring of stony minerality drawing away into a long finish. A charming wine, with a lot of elegant strength and a nice transperancy to it. This was example of how good the 2010 vintage was, with great acidity, fruit and structure all starting to come together. Delicious now, especially with some food, but this will really need 6-8 years, maybe more, to truly show at peak.
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1992 Fonseca Porto Vintage 93 Points
Portugal, Douro, Porto
Nice stuff, if rather advanced for a vintage port just approaching the 30-year mark. From a bottle that has been opened for a few days, this was showing very nicely on the night. I really liked the nose, with its notes of molasses and dried muscats, along with some savoury preserved plum aromas, maybe a touch of cherry liqueur, all patted down with touches of earth and gentle spice. Very nice. The palate was full and round in the mouth, with a yummy melange of plums and cherry liqueur, earth and molasses, all very nicely integrated and balanced. The finish ended with a hint of milk chocolate and gentle spiciness. Very resolved and delicious to drink at the moment. While neither the most complex nor the most compelling, this was a very solid, very enjoyable port, good with a series of different cheeses as one would expect.
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1990 Barão de Vilar Porto Colheita 92 Points
Portugal, Douro, Porto
A very enjoyable Colheita. This started with a nice nose of walnuts and mahogany tones floating over a sweeter core of honey and dried apricots, some mulberries maybe, and then a twang of something that reminded me of sour plum candy, all this wreathed in perfumed drifts of floral roses. Very attractive. The palate was rather simpler than that lovely nose promised unfortunately, but still quite yummy nonetheless, with sweet flavours of dried apricots and plums, some savoury fig peel, all couched in a nice bit of fresh acidity. Finish was decent too, with a touch of spice lingering amidst some honey and molasses. A yummy mouthful.
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1997 Wegeler Kloster Eberbach Steinberger Riesling Geheimrat "J" Auslese 91 Points
Germany, Rheingau
At Brian and Sylvia's after dinner. This was quite nice. It had a rich, almost unctuous nose, with plenty of honey and nectar, dried peach and apricot, with chamomile and other floral notes at the sides. After that, the palate was almost surprisingly fresh, with nice orange-fruit acidity running through an otherwise round, fleshy mouthful of dried apricots and sweet lemon curd. The finish was full and unctuous, still quite sweet in spite of its age, yet very fresh at the same time. I liked this - a nice drop - maybe lacking a bit of complexity, but with a lot of grace and a really nice balance to it.
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