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Musar 95-97, Bergstrom 02-07 at Kirk's
Kirk's Place
Tasted February 26, 2010 by RajivAyyangar with 865 views
Introduction
I can't thank Kirk enough for sharing his extraordinary wines, knowledge, and hospitality. Thanks to Sarah, Lisa, Chris (+1), Doug, and Emo for bringing a killer set of blinds and non-blinds. It was a pleasure to taste with all of you!
Flight 1 - Sparkler to Start (1 note)
For some reason everyone decided to bring cheese. Glad I didn't go with my first choice - Epoisses! (not that you can have too much epoisses). However since I didn't taste any cheese until after the Bergstrom vertical, I'll hold off on notes.
Rosé - Sparkling
N.V. Bruno Paillard Champagne Rosé Brut Première Cuvée
85 points
(disgorged in 2003) In the glass rich peach-copper. Medium-intensity nose of fresh baguette, hint of burnt toast with a slightly oxidative nuttiness. Light+ body with a strong, fine+ mousse and strong malic acidity. I haven't had too many champagnes with this kind of age - this was very nice.
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Flight 2 - Mucho Musar (3 notes)
I was impressed by the Rouge/Blanc vertical at Hearth... but that was far from the ideal setting - the wines were poured in minuscule quantities, at least an hour before tasting. These wines were on a different plane for me tonight. I found myself laughing, giggling, and speechless at times.
Red
1996 Chateau Musar
94 points
(First year that Serge Hochar wasn't officially the head winemaker) This nose caused me to start laughing in anticipation. Superb nose of cassis, leather, Brett (I particularly liked the Brett balance of 4-ethylphenol and 4-ethylguaiacol - the former is 'wet dog' or 'horse's ass' and the latter is clove, which was very faint for me). This fruit was RIPE. In the palate it was rich with significant umami coming through in the form of tamari, as well as some integrated Brett that reminded me of a lambic I had at Novare Res (something oude geuze... $13.50... not Hanson's). A tad rich in balance (more acidity would have been nice) and a bit simpler on the palate than I expected given the nose.
Red
1997 Chateau Musar
83 points
Thin blackberry on the nose. In the mouth, round, fruity, simple, light bodied, a bit sweet. A bit of brett. Barely recognizable as Musar for me.
Red
1995 Chateau Musar
96 points
This nose is absolutely stunning. Integrated brett, slight oxidation, leather, and wet leaves part to reveal a core of pure, ripe black raspberries and blackcurrant. In the mouth the balance is spot-on, effortless. Med body, med acid, low tannins. Gorgeous complexity, crystalline acidity, and pure fruit at the heart. The flavors keep on coming, evolving on the finish. This wine continued to transform in beautiful and subtle ways over the next 6+ hours. I bet it would have tasted fantastic the next morning... if there were any left!
Flight 3 - Berg-undies (6 notes)
I don't have much experience with Oregon Pinot, so I haven't really figured out these wines. Overall they seemed very big and ripe, with burnt flavors. I hope to explore more of this region in the future.
Red
2002 Bergström Pinot Noir Bergström Vineyard
84 points
Dark ruby in the glass, lustrous with some bricking. Nice nose of forest floor, dark fruits, earth, and well-integrated umami. A hint of burnt wood that bothered me a little. In the mouth, rich (but balanced), with med- tannins, light umami and savory dark fruit. Nice.
Red
2003 Bergström Pinot Noir Bergström Vineyard
81 points
(2003 was an incredibly hot year). The nose is dull, with a hint of huitlacoche and subtle rich espresso. Smells hot. In the mouth it is rich with integrated oak and very high acid. If it were a little lower in acid, I'd guess Ribera del duero blind... I didn't get much complexity in the palate.
Red
2004 Bergström Pinot Noir Bergström Vineyard
flawed
Dull, dark ruby in the glass with some brick. On the nose: slightly stewed fruit, somewhat reductive, with burnt wood aromas. Seems tight/closed. In the mouth, thin flavors. I didn't understand this wine at all. I'd score it sub-80, but I think it was a bit reduced.
Red
2005 Bergström Pinot Noir Bergström Vineyard
85 points
Dark ruby in the glass. Something intriguing, weird, and asian on the nose - some sort of fruit? Also, black raspberry, a bit of spice, and deep-fried pork chop (not kidding). Seems to have better fruit than the 2007. In the mouth: med+ body, plush, with med+ acid and a lovely satin mouthfeel. Rich, and clearly ripe.
Red
2006 Bergström Pinot Noir Bergström Vineyard
flawed
Corked. (I didn't call it first, but I think I noticed something was off before anyone told me, which means I'm getting better at identifying TCA!)
Red
2007 Bergström Pinot Noir Bergström Vineyard
flawed
Decanted since 8:30am that morning. Med+ ruby, dull in the glass. On the nose: Hint of reduction, light toas, ham. In the mouth: a burnt character, not much fruit, and med+ acid. Reduced, for my palate.
Flight 4 - A Bubble Break (1 note)
I may or may not have swallowed this wine. Just sayin'.
Cheeses included:
-A sublimely runny Taleggio
-A soft goat cheese - Rocostin - I really liked this! will have to look for it in the future.
-EPOISSES! hands-down my favorite soft cows-milk cheese. That's right, Red Hawk, you're not my number one.
-Piave vecchio (my contribution) - was not up to snuff tonight. Gotta stop springing for Whole Foods' Piave!
-Something delicious with black truffles.
-A seriously rich and complex blue. Savory and fruity notes.
-4-5 other cheeses I can't remember
White - Sparkling
1995 Charles Heidsieck Champagne Blanc des Millénaires
88 points
Gold with a tinge of apple-green in the glass. This has a beauty of a nose - light, with subtle autolysis, suggestions of fresh baguette, and rich, burnished secondary flavors. Superb balance and a long finish.
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Flight 5 - Blancs Blind (except the Silvaner - bottle shape was too distinctive) (6 notes)
Brilliant choices all round. Kirk nailed the Abbazia di Novacella Kerner!
White
2004 Bressan Pinot Grigio
87 points
(Served Blind) Med- gold in the glass. A bitter smell. some oxidative character. Smells almost botrytized, perfumey, some werthers' butterscotch on the palate (my call!), strong tartric/lactic, but not so much malic acid. I like it and it's weird. Vouvray was my guess based on the slight botrytis-like character. Apparently this is the current release! An amazing and unique pinot grigio with skin contact.
White
2008 Rheingraf Riesling Trocken
83 points
(served blind) A big, floral nose with rice and tropical fruit. I guessed moscato based on the nose and the sweetness/acid deficiency. Light bodied with slight frizzante and saffron on the palate. A bit low in acid for the sweetness, for my palate.
White
2007 Abbazia di Novacella (Stiftskellerei Neustift) Kerner
91 points
I brought this and served it blind, not having tasted it before. I liked their Gewurz though. On the nose, dead-on Philippine mango (nice call, Kirk!), and floral with a hint of green tea. A bit hot on the palate... but I can dig it. Fleshy mouthfeel, decent acidity, slightly off-dry. Very pretty.
White
1989 Domaine Ernest Burn Gewurztraminer Goldert Clos Saint Imer La Chapelle
95 points
(served blind) Rich gold in the glass. Gorgeous nose of beeswax, honey, slight petrol, saffron. In the mouth, ripping saffron, sweet, balanced, hint of menthol. Ripe, and complex! Absolutely friggen delicious. I totally missed this one - I didn't pick up on Litchi (palate fatigue perhaps?) or rose petal. And there wasn't any bitterness on the palate for me - usually de rigeur when tasting gewurz. I absolutely love this wine. Thanks, Chris!
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Fruit/Vegetable Wine
2001 Bartlett Winemaker's Reserve
91 points
(served blind) Orange-amber in the glass. This wine had been decanted for about 5 hrs. I'd picked up strong whiffs of bacon in the decanter, but the bacon was much subdued now in the glass. Nose: Pink starburst! (don't recall who noted this), bubblegum, bacon, strongly reminiscent of lambic ales. In the mouth... way different from the nose. Earthy, stinky, very lambic-like.
This is the way to serve this wine! I was absolutely delighted to have been blindsided by this wine, and I am an instant convert. (French oak, 11.5% alcohol, but seemed much bigger).
This is the way to serve this wine! I was absolutely delighted to have been blindsided by this wine, and I am an instant convert. (French oak, 11.5% alcohol, but seemed much bigger).
1 person found this helpful
Comments (1)
White
2003 Fürstlich Castell'sches Domänenamt Schloss Casteller "Schlossberg" Silvaner Castell
78 points
Hot (14.5%) and it burned! Nose of bitter, tropical fruit. Slight honeyed quality. In the mouth - sweet.
Flight 6 - Blind Reds (4 notes)
The whites carried the night.
Red
2007 Jean-Paul Thevenet Morgon Vieilles Vignes
89 points
(served blind) On the nose, earthy, funky, hint of carbonic maceration. In the mouth, light body, med/med- tannins. Med+ tart acidity. Fresh and earthy. Hints of brett on the nose and palate. Great! I really like Cru Beaujolais that pull off this combination of exuberant flavors and more serious undertones.
Red
2006 Perticaia Montefalco Rosso
(served blind) Saturated dark ruby in the glass. Nose of candied, baked fruit, and oak, with a floral element. In the mouth, med+ body, med acid, juicy. Low+ tannins, hint of red cherry and espresso. I had no idea on this. The palate fatigue was really setting in. I got that it was old world but in a new-world style. I'm not going to rate it as my impressions weren't super-clear at that point. Based on what I tasted, 81-86. I know - not very helpful, eh?
Flight 7 - Stickies! And one more once (2 notes)
Very sad about the 76 Auslese, but the Muller was a brilliant close to the evening... it got Doug to stick around a few minutes longer!
White - Off-dry
1976 Carl Reh Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese
flawed
Oxidized. Hints of old port on the nose, very figgy. Alas I was not one of the lucky few to catch a whiff of this wine before it faded.
White - Off-dry
2001 Eugen Müller Forster Kirchenstück Riesling Auslese
89 points
(popped in an effort to further delay missatiejacket) Beautiful nose of rice, saffron. Gorgeous on the palate with bright, strong acidity. 88-90.
Flight 8 - No wait... one more twice! (1 note)
Best rose I've ever tasted, I think.
Rosé
2008 Coleman Nicole Pinot Noir Rosé Sonoma Coast
87 points
Med pink, cloudy in the glass (unfiltered). A delicious nose of strawberry and watermelon jolly rancher. Med- body, fresh, slightly earthy, and very interesting! Strong acid. Very nice. THIS IS ACTUALLY THE 2009.
Closing
The morning after... the 96 musar was still showing well! Also the corked Bergstrom seemed less corked, somehow.