A Diverse Set of Wines in Honor of a Visiting Friend

I was gratified when my friend Justin agreed to fly from Las Vegas to our home in order to get together before he returned to London. Justin is a dear friend who became a friend only through our mutual love of wine, and we have had some great adventures together, including at his lovely home in Piemonte, so I wanted to present some memorable bottles. A few friends agreed to join. My wife stepped up as well, with a spectacular stew accompanied by pureed rutabaga, some corn bread and homemade biscotti.

Just a few sips to get us started...

• 2022 Liquid Farm Chardonnay White Hill 92 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills

  Outperformed expectations, with compact orchard fruit notes and a crisp salinity that evoked Chablis. A solid intro to local Chardonnay for our visiting guest.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2009 Didier Dagueneau Silex 93 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Pouilly-Fumé

  An interesting mélange of grapefruit and pit fruit notes, reasonably fresh at first then oxidative aspects came to the fore, something which bothered others more than me. If not at peak, I thought this had a lot to offer as a benchmark bottling,

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

I wanted to roll the dice on a few bottles from the Sixties. No regrets here!

• 1967 Franco Fiorina Barolo 92 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  Slow-ox'ed for about 6 hours. A muted nose set our expectations low, as did the translucent rust appearance, but there was a lot to enjoy in the glass. No structure to speak of, but there were some soft cherry notes along with sweet spices and a bit of mint. An elegant wine I was happy to return to.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 1969 Giacomo Conterno Barolo 94 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  Slow-ox'ed for about 6 hours. The color was promising but the nose had me worried. Some volatility blew off fairly quickly, revealing a special wine. Soft, supple, silky, with red fruit notes, dried flower petals and a savoriness I liked. Never took on weight as such, but continued to soften and round out. Just lovely.

  Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No

R.I.P.

• 2004 Paolo Scavino Barolo Riserva Rocche dell'Annunziata 88 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  I added this to the lie-up as a tip of the ate to its recently departed winemaker. Slow-ox'ed for about 6 hours. To me, this wine is just stuck. No perfume. I found it compact and dense, almost unyielding, with modest fruit and no complexity to speak of, though it was not corked as best we could tell. Chunky tannins. I know it could develop with time, but somehow I just don't see it.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Not all addictions are bad.

• 1999 Soldera (Az. Agr. Case Basse) Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 96 Points

  Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino

  Slow-ox'ed for about 6 hours. This bottle showed how well the wine continues to evolve in my experience, with a powerful and fresh nose showing red fruit and spice. Concentrated and energetic, with fine tannins and loads of dark cherry, some sweet mint and a dizzying array of exotic spice notes. Just fabulous.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Oh, the heartbreak of TCA.

• 1988 Château Ausone Flawed

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

  Mildly corked, such a shame as there was plenty of dark fruit and minerality underneath.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 1988 Château Margaux 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

  I adored this wine, showing what I think of as "gentle power." Plenty of firm acidity and structure, with sweet dark fruit notes on the nose and more on the palate along with some spice. Medium bodied, with mostly resolved tannin on the finish.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Not awful, just underwhelming.

• 2004 Miani Friuli Merlot Filip 93 Points

  Italy, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Friuli

  I served this blind, and had very, very high expectations. Decanted for 3 hours, with no evident sediment. A compact powerhouse, with its 15%+ ABV unfortunately quite evident. Rich, concentrated and powerful, with ample red fruit, but no subtlety or nuance. I am such a huge fan of the producer, and of Merlot in the hands of great winemakers, but this was all about intensity and not about nuance., at least relative to where I hoped it would perform.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

I feel so fortunate to have had access to this bottle, as delicious as it was educational.

• 1970 Concannon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 95 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles

  Generously shared by a guest and served blind, without a decant. I was fascinated by its complexity and depth of flavors, mainly blue and black fruit, some leather and bay leaf notes, thinking perhaps it was a Bordeaux blend from a great 1980's era vintage. I must confess never to having heard of this wine. My friend has worked through several cases of the 1970 and 1971 and swears that every bottle has shown at this level. An impressive bring and a great way to slip a Cali bottle into our tasting.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Fittingly, what we remembered in the end was not a particular bottle, but the rare opportunity to be together and reconnect. I think Justin found it as worthwhile as I did, and very much appreciate his effort and his friendship.