South FL WS Forum Offline
Bistro Provence, Boca Raton, FL
Tasted Saturday, July 18, 2009 by vinole with 790 views
Introduction
Four couples met on a stormy evening to enjoy some fabulous wine and company together. As usual, the food was top notch, and the selection of wines performed better than recent offlines.
2005 Château Olivier Blanc 89 Points
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
The nose is very nice, with rich aromas of apricot, peach, and banana, and hints at sweetness. On the palate, the wine is very dry, with reserved flavors of lemon, melon, and crushed stone. Medium to high acidity, this wine is made for food, and I think will benefit from further aging.
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1999 Zind-Humbrecht Pinot Gris Rangen de Thann Clos St. Urbain Vendange Tardive 93 Points
France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru
Beautiful golden color at this stage, with peach, melon, and honey flavors. More sweet than expected, but not at all cloying, with a thick, rich texture. Good balancing acidity, and may have benefitted from just a little more, and ends with a long, complex finish.
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2007 A.P. Vin Pinot Noir Kanzler Vineyard 92 Points
USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
A fairly big profile for a pinot, with clean, bold dark cherry fruit and spice, but doesn't have the syruppy texture and slight sweetness so many CA pinots have these days. Nice balancing acidity, with little earthiness. This is the kind of pinot I want when I am looking for a bold pinot that is not over the top.
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1989 Château Margaux 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
Some initial funk on the nose, then surprisingly light bodied red fruit on the entry. The First Growth pedigree kicks in next as the fruit turned darker and bigger on a long and complex finish. Where many here have commented they expect this may peak later, my belief is this is well into its drinking window as the tannins are completely resolved, and only those who favor secondaries over fruit should continue to let age. This wine is more about elegance and nuance than well balanced power, and I had similar experiences with the 89 Lafite and Pichon Baron.
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2001 Château Smith Haut Lafitte 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Some funk on the nose, which was more earthy on the palate. Medium to full body, balanced, but with less acidity than many Bordeaux, with flavors of dark currants and graphite, though the latter is less pronounced than many Graves wines. Definitely starting into its drinking window as its tannins and acidity are well integrated, and if you like more youthful fruit, is a good time to start drinking this.
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2001 Bodegas Muga Rioja Torre Muga 93 Points
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
Very dark color, muted nose. Full bodied with blackberry and dark cherry flavors and noticeable oak on the long finish. Higher acidity than many wines of this size. Although this is drinking fine now, I think this wine will improve with more age as it is likely to benefit from shedding some more tannin, the fruit settling down, and the oak integrating some more.
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2001 Clos Mogador Priorat Manyetes 92 Points
Spain, Catalunya, Priorat
This had more of a red fruit profile than the Muga drank alongside, with flavors of raspberry, cherry, and currants. Full bodied with medium acidity, also more fully mature than the Torre, and probably at or near its peak right now. I liked this a lot (with some calling it WOTN), but a little heat on the finish knocked a point off.
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2004 Betz Family Syrah La Côte Rousse 92 Points
USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain
A big, dark wine, with plum and blackberry fruit with a fairly high level of extract. Got some butter notes like you find in some Central Coast syrahs. Really stood out from the predominantely Old World reds drank that evening. This was decanted for two hours before the tasting and put back in the bottle, was the last to be drank, and still was a brooding wine. I will let my other bottle sleep for a few years as I think this wine needs more age to really shine.
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