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Game night wines
Our home
Tasted May 30, 2017 by Loren Sonkin with 496 views
Introduction
On this past Sunday, my wife and I hosted a mix of neighbors and friend for a Game Night. We seem to be doing this on a regular basis lately, trying to invite over different people from out different circles in life. The crowd was eclectic and while wine lovers, certainly not wine geeks. The wines were consumed over the course of the evening, non blind and certainly not the main part of the night. Just minutes before we were to start, the rains came down so hard that the surrounding streets flooded and it took some people a while waiting for the waters to recede or to find a different way in. Eventually everyone arrived though and we were laughing and enjoying the games food and wine.
Flight 1 (8 notes)
White
2014 Rivers-Marie Chardonnay Sonoma Coast
92 points
Boy, I should have bought more of these. What quality for the money! Light gold in color with specks of green. On the nose a delicious vanilla cream with pineapple and grapefruit. The palate is similar with a seamless texture that is quite inviting. Nice balance. Long finish. A crowd favorite; the bottle was emptied quickly.
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Rosé
2015 Château Miraval Côtes de Provence Rosé
90 points
Brought over by my neighbors. Yes, there is the celebrity aspect of the wine but we don't care either way. Actually, that is not exactly true, we have always been fans of Perrin wines. ;-) I like the bottle shape but would never buy it as it is difficult to store. Still, it makes a pretty serving. The wine is a bit of a salmon/orange mix in color. The nose is pretty with strawberries and some watermelon. It is a feminine wine with no hard edges. The strawberries and watermelons carry thru. Decent, not great acidity. Nice finish. Seemed to be a crowd favorite although everyone had a taste and moved on. There was wine left at the end of the night.
White - Off-dry
2012 Dr. Pauly-Bergweiler Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Spätlese
89 points
Screw capped. This is very nice. Light golden in color. The nose has a nice wet rock note with a bit of peach. On the palate, this is slightly sweet, though not a lot for a Spatlese (which I liked). Not a ton of depth but that might develop more. Good acidity. Lovely freshness. Nice finish. I spent more time on this than most as the lower alcohol was nice and I found this very vegetarian food friendly. IIRC, its around $20 which is a great value.
Red
2007 Vietti Langhe Nebbiolo Perbacco
90 points
What a great value these have been. Around $20 on release, I have gone thru a whole bunch. This is the first one that seems to be just a bit past prime. Still outstanding and in some ways representing a more mature Barolo, and so better. I think most people blind would, in fact, guess Barolo. Light ruby in color. The nose is pretty with fresh and dried roses, slight dust, fresh and dried cherries, and a slight earthy/fresh tar note. On the palate, cherries, showing just a bit tart. Slight layering. Long finish. Certainly eating some food with the wine helps (duh). I think I have on bottle left that I will keep an eye on but I might let it go further.
Red
2014 Sineann Pinot Noir Yates Conwill Vineyard
92 points
Very nice showing for this wine. Screw capped. Still very young but not as big a wine as Sineann often produces. Deep ruby in color. The nose has cherries and dark cherries with a bit of spice. On the palate, this has a juicy texture. Depth. Lots of cherry and some dark cherry fruit. Long finish. As usual, a crowd favorite.
Red
2013 Jaffurs Syrah
93 points
From magnum. Opened for a party and consumed over two nights. This performed way above expectations, and I really like this wine anyway. Purple in color. The nose is great. deep with black raspberries, roasted meats, black pepper, slight earthiness and slight floral. On the palate, this is a big wine. Firm tannins. Juicy black raspberries. Deep and tightly layered. Nice balance. Long finish. Still young, this has a long life left. This is around $30 for a $750 and year in and year out, one of the great values in wine.
Red
2015 Bedrock Wine Co. Old Vine Zinfandel
91 points
Another very good showing for this great value wine. Purple in color. The nose has black raspberries, black cherries, slight bramble and leather, and an earthiness which is night. On the palate, this is lush with black cherries and black raspberry fruit. Some earthiness. Medium tannins. Juicy acidity. Nice finish. Easy to drink but very interesting too.
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Red
2014 Nikki's Cellar Mixed Bag Amarone
87 points
Ruby/purple in color. The nose has cherries and chocolate. On the palate, there is a spritz to it. Trapped CO2. It is persistent but the underlying wine is good. Dark cherries, slightly sweet/raisin, with a dark chocolate finish. I had had plenty of Amarones not as correct as this. Very interesting. A bit thin in the midpalate, but overall a very nice wine.
Closing
What a fun night. These wines were just what one wants for such an occasion. Delicious, drinkable but not requiring anyone to pay homage.