A last call with the Astorettes
Cafe Loup
Tasted February 24, 2008 by Gregory Dal Piaz with 720 views
Introduction
As many know I left Astor wines & Spirits this past week. While there is much I will not miss I cannot say that about most of my coworkers. I have enjoyed sharing with them and they have made me sharper and forced me to stay one step ahead of them For our final dinner together I took a more relaxed approach than usual but still wanted there to be a lesson, something learned. I look back on my tenure at Astor and I am pleased with much of what I have been able to do but I will say I am most proud of the enthusiasm I have been able to support among the many salespeople that have passed through. It is so very hard to drink well enough to learn on a sales person wage so the fact that I was able to offer up what I could has been immensely satisfying. Of course I am always looking for a reason to drink so that never escaped me either.
Flight 1 - The spanish flight (3 notes)
This was the core of a Spanish tasting I had planned with my coworkers so I figured it would be a good place to start.
Red
1990 Bodegas Alejandro Fernández Ribera del Duero Tinto Pesquera Reserva
Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
Funky animale nose with tobacco notes and apply red fruits on the nose. This enters a bit diffusely and surprisingly tannic though there is a solid core of fruit that again recalls red apples. Nicely integrated with a medium length finish and more structure than might be warranted by the remaining acid driven fruit, lets call it gentle intensity. Time to drink them up if you've got em.
Red
1990 Bodegas y Viñedos del Contino Rioja Contino Reserva
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alavesa, Rioja
This offers good intensity straight out of the gate with a buttery edge to the balanced, picklebarrel, red berry, and muddy earthen aromatics that with time add a deep and satisfying note of roasted strawberry. in the mouth this is very sauve and classy with great precision and lovely balance. there id great freshness to the well managed tannins and seamlessly integrated acidity. The brisk texture is buffered by solid fruit that is slightly monolithic, lacking complexity and a bit of depth though the finish offers some spicy wood notes. This is very friendly stuff and would surely be a crowd pleaser. I don't see much upside here and would drink these over the next few years. 2008-2012
Red
1995 Bodegas Muga Rioja Gran Reserva Prado Enea
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
This offer up a very stinky, very Burgundian nose with a core of leather and spice notes gently backed with vanilla tones. High toned and with great intensity this adds expansive notes of reduced red berries. Opulent and layered in the mouth with black cherry fruit of almost syrupy quality. Lots of very fine tannins add support to the fruit and the superbly integrated acidity keeps everything fresh. This is very youthful and absolutely delicious. 2008-2016
Flight 2 - A toast (1 note)
And of course I needed something to keep me smiling
Red
1986 Château Lynch-Bages
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Classic Bordeaux nose that starts very herbal and earth but slowly opens to reveal lurking cassis and mulberry fruits with distinct clean tones of graphite and cedar. This has resolved so well, silky entry is really lovely. Just entering it's plateau this remains rich and packed with fruit that just has a touch of austerity on the palate. The dense core remains light on it's feet with lively acidity and a long very fine finish that recalls the aromatics on the nose. The fruit grows in the glass yet remains very precise with great cut and definition. Wonderful mature Bordeaux. 2008-2020
Flight 3 - Two typical but yet not quite Cabs. (2 notes)
From here on I athered a group of 1995s to help illustrate how wines age. I chose 1995 because of its broad success and the fact that for the most part the wines are entering a good drinking period that can appeal to both those who prefer youth and those who crave development
Red
1995 Tenuta San Leonardo San Leonardo
Italy, Trentino-Alto Adige, Trentino, Vallagarina IGT
This offers the typical and classic herbaceous Cabernet nose that is San Leonardo with a bit of smoky oak still obvious and lovely grace notes of hot rocks and dark berry fruit adding a Bordelais twist. Very soft attack with opulent bright berry fruit and very fine grained tannins. Classic superb supporting acidity gives this away as Italian. The finish is moderately long with echoes of red fruits and gentle spice notes. in all an elegant old-world cab. 2008-2013
Red
1995 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon Backus Vineyard
USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville
This is performing on another level with a fabulous nose that offers up very ripe fruit that retains a cool sense of freshness, lovely integrated oaken spice, blackberry pie filling, a toastiness that recalls pie crust and some sweet, stewed vegetal notes in a very positive sense. Some sweet herb notes and a slight hint of spicy porcini emerge. This is big, dense and chewy yet elegant and lithe in the mouth with great acidity. there really is a surprising sense of elegance and a good level of complexity across the palate as the fruit is edged with bloody mineral tones and a gentle, medicinal bitter note that extends through the finish. This remains very youthfully taut and will benefit from additional time in the cellar. 2008-2020
Flight 4 - We continue with 1995 (2 notes)
I almost put the two Italians together and the two Frenchies together but I was very happy with the way these pairings worked out. this flight featured the more obvious oak and some similarities that Nebbiolo and Pinot share.
Red
1995 Elio Altare Langhe Arborina
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Langhe DOC
This is quite oaky, even seems like there is some american oak but I doubt that. Very reticent though there are some nuances of bitter root, tree bark, flowers, and cinnamon french toast adding interest. in the mouth this has a very delicate presence on the palate with a tender structure and soft fruit yet very drying tannins mar the finish. What fruit one can taste is dark and minerally with cocoa notes emerging on the finish but it does seem masked and muted by the wood treatment here.
Red
1995 Geantet-Pansiot Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin
this opens with a feral nose. High toned and tight but decidely in the barnyard with notes of truffle and black pepper adding wonderfully savory depth. An attractive nose but somewhat unexpected though turning more typical with air as a bit of oaken spice and macerated cherry emerge. This is powerful and tannic in the mouth with lowish acidity and the tannins are a bit chunky and just a touch astringent. Excellent flavor intensity across the midpalate but the structure keep the finish short and tight. This needs another few years. 2010-2016
Flight 5 - Bang (2 notes)
This pair of two of my favorite wines was an excellent illustration of how two drastically different wine can be at equivalent qualitative levels while delivering completely different experiences. Delicious wines both.
Red
1995 San Giusto a Rentennano Percarlo Toscana IGT
Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT
This really powers out of the bottle with a nose that is dark and confected with subtle spice, wet rocks and green moss notes all draped against a backdrop of reduced cherries spread on glass to cool. With time some camphor and cigarbox join in. This is very fine in the mouth with crisp tannins supporting a fairly opulent midpalate. great acidity adds depth to the cherry/cherry pit fruit that remains razor sharp through the palate and into the finish. the lithe texture remains fresh with a feathered egde of austerity keeping this focused. Wonderful sangiovese. 2008-2020
Red
1995 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape
France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
This is such a change of speeds with it's classic mourvedre notes of leather, earth, and roast meat adding complexity and depth to the very sweet herbal fruit that recalls dried tomato and, strawberry jam, and bramble. This is positively mouthfilling and has gained considerable weight over the past few years. there is a great core of cherry fruit and a wonderfully intense level of spice that leads to a long finish. Certainly lean and cool for Beaucastel but that is how I prefer them anyway, trading some of the ripeness for this level of freshness and detail. 2008-2018
Closing
So that is that. Done but not finished.
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