3rd Annual Wine Tasting Party

Our house
Tasted Saturday, February 7, 2009 by curtispomeroy with 493 views

Introduction

This year our wine tasting party focused on syrah/shiraz from around the world: France, Washington, California, Australia.

Flight 1 (1 Note)

  • 2003 E. Guigal Crozes-Hermitage 84 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Crozes-Hermitage

    First wine of the night for our wine tasting. I'd say that most were underwhelmed by the wine and some found it to be "harsh." I think it was too "old world" for our group. At the same time I don't think the bottle was drinking all that well.

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Flight 2 (1 Note)

  • 2007 Saint Cosme Côtes du Rhône 88 Points

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône

    Second wine of our wine tasting. All preferred this to the Guigal C-H. For all the praise this wine has been receiving I was a bit underwhelmed. I would like to revisit in a year or longer to taste again.

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Flight 3 (1 Note)

  • 2004 Long Shadows Wineries Syrah Sequel 91 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

    Third wine poured during our wine tasting. This was much better than the bottle we drank in March '08. Great nose, wonderful on the palate and a nice finish. My only knock against it is that I felt the oak was still a bit too strong. Very impressive effort. Wine of the night for a couple of people.

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Flight 4 (1 Note)

  • 2005 Lyrique Syrah Watch Hill Vineyard 89 Points

    USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County

    This was the fourth bottle we poured during our wine tasting. For me it paled a bit as compared to the '04 Sequel which preceded. The nose was more muted and the flavors were not as opulent. That being said, everyone enjoyed this wine and, while no one's favorite, quite a few mentioned it as being their second best. A very nice wine.

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Flight 5 (1 Note)

  • 2007 Torzi Matthews Shiraz "Schist Rock" 90 Points

    Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Eden Valley

    This was the fifth wine poured during our wine tasting. For most this was the wine of the night. This is truly an outstanding shiraz made all the more remarkable by the price ($17 via Garagiste). This has it all in a well-integrated package. While I ultimately preferred the '03 Tatiarra Cambrian, I can certainly understand its appeal.

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Flight 6 (1 Note)

  • 2003 Tatiarra Shiraz Cambrian 92 Points

    Australia, Victoria, Central Victoria, Heathcote

    This was the sixth and final bottle poured during our wine tasting. I had not planned on opening it this young but I was too curious to resist. This was my wine of the night as well as several others who were able to tune in to what was going on. This is a multi-dimensional wine at every phase and IMHO requires your attention to fully appreciate what it delivers. I won't touch it again for several years but it is living up to its hype.

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Closing

In the end, the preferences of the group were for the new world wines with the ultimate winner being the '07 Torzi Matthews Schist Rock, an impressive wine considering its price tag.

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