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Comments on my notes

(16 comments on 16 notes)

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Red
2020 Anatolikos Vineyards Fine Mavroudi of Thrace Red Blend
4/12/2023 - Coookie wrote:
88 points
great fun fruity red, low tannins and easy to drink by itself but could be priced €5-10 less. (retail €30)
  • hutch commented:

    4/12/23, 11:51 AM - I agree with your thoughts but think It's a little more serious. Glad to see you enjoying Greek wines though!

White
2009 Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Clisson Melon de Bourgogne
6/19/2022 - hutch wrote:
This is definitely showing some development. It was not temp controlled for last few years. Yellow color. Faint oxidation. Bright acidity. Not a lot of fruit. Some salinity. This is definitely still alive, and I find it quite interesting, but it is mature. This isn't delicious, but demands dinner reflection. It is fascinating.
  • hutch commented:

    12/12/22, 12:38 PM - Hope you enjoyed it! It was one of my favorite wines. I need to edit the note, because it was in fact, not temp controlled for a few years and that might have affected this somewhat. Either way, it was still a super fun bottle, and I imagine your mag will be an even better experience

White
2005 Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Côte de Léchet Chardonnay
5/20/2022 - jmoore431 Likes this wine:
92 points
Experienced Chablis drinkers will recognize this as at peak (not past it’s prime). Delicious with refined intensity, minerality and class. Excellent long finish. 92+
  • hutch commented:

    5/21/22, 2:13 PM - I haven't had this in a while, but it's been out on the market at this point for at least 4 years. I would imagine there is some bottle variation at this point, and wonder if that might lead some of these tasting notes to think it's past its prime? I know I have had quite different experiences with various vintages and Crus and not all of them have been sublime.

Red
2017 Evening Land Vineyards Pinot Noir Seven Springs Vineyard Eola - Amity Hills
Damp soil, fresh rainfall, strawberry and cranberry scents on the nose. Leads with sweet to tart red berry fruit - underripe raspberry, cranberry, and rhubarb - with notes of orange rind and cinnamon. Subtle peppery spice too. Medium acidity.

Three bottles in a year, all pretty consistent. I don’t suspect this revolves much. Nice wine for the near term.
  • hutch commented:

    12/10/20, 1:20 PM - I have found that if you swirl the wine with your tongue while it's in your mouth it revolves much better.

Red
2003 Château Pontet-Canet Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend
12/6/2020 - Life At Your Leisure 🍷 wrote:
96 points
Dark ruby color turning violet rust at the rim with a reflective edge. The nose gives off earthy leather and dried herbs on black fruits. The palate is full-bodied, powerful and youthful showing vibrant acidity that carries the ripe blackberry and cassis followed by secondary notes of cola, tobacco, leather and vanilla on toasted oak. This is really drinking well right now and finishes long and heightened with fleshy, gripping tannins. Drink now until 2043. 96+
  • hutch commented:

    12/10/20, 10:23 AM - I was hoping to wait until 2044 or '45 to drink mine. Do you think I should adjust plans to 2043?

Red
2011 Vietti Barolo Ravera Nebbiolo
6/22/2020 - hutch Likes this wine:
93 points
This was a wonderful bottle of Barolo, still very young. Personally, unless money is no object, I am unable to see paying the absurd amount of money needed to aquire this, but yes, it is very good indeed. Lots of typical Barolo notes, although on a fairly big frame. It's not a bruiser, but is quite a bit wine.
  • hutch commented:

    11/27/20, 6:41 AM - Hi Euge67! Often I write only part of what I am thinking. In this case, I was thinking about the difference in pricing in general between single vineyards, luxery cuvees, etc. I am under the impression that in many cases, and many vintages, I have a hard time justifying the cost from a consumers perspective. I personally would rather spend $50 for the regular Barolo than $175 (what it costs for me) for this. Obviously, the cost of things are incredibly subjective though.

White
2018 Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough
10/10/2019 - hutch wrote:
87 points
So here is the thing: when you professionally taste wine, there are a lot of categories that you dread to taste. Argentine Malbec, Napa Cab, Bordeaux, Carmenere, Pinotage, and of course NZ SB. That isn't to denigrate those regions or varieties, but a lot of these wines taste the same, and a lot are not very good. So back to Spy Valley. This has a lot of grapefruit. It is high acid. But it is a much nicer SB then most NZ SB. There is texture. This still isn't a wine I will reach for, but I can appreciate it.
  • hutch commented:

    9/4/20, 7:27 AM - Ha, I agree that it's probably not a great idea to have a profession in an industry you don't enjoy. And I am not trying to bash those wines or regions. But trust me, when you are a buyer, there are certain regions/wines that sales people are always bringing buy and 95% of the time you know exactly what they are going to taste like. IE suppliers chasing the next Oyster Bay. But hey, we both like the Spy Valley, so cheers!

Red
2017 G.D. Vajra Langhe Rosso Langhe DOC Nebbiolo Blend, Nebbiolo
10/7/2019 - chablis28 wrote:
89 points
Perhaps Piedmont's only version of Cote Du Rhone from one its best producers. A blend of Nebbiolo, Barbera, Dolcetto and the rare heirloom Freisa and Albarossa. Aged mostly in stainless and some neutral oak. Semi translucent ruby red. Fresh violets and berries on the nose. The palate seems to indicate Barbara is the dominate grape with its almost prickly acidity without food. With food it integrates perfectly adding lift and energy. Somewhat tart mix of red and darker fruit, spice, herbs and minerality. Just a radiant, honest, pure expression of Piedmont tastiness. Perfect no, but always fun and always somewhat different from year to year. Excellent value for $13 on sale locally.
  • hutch commented:

    10/31/19, 10:27 AM - Love your description of this as a Piedmont CDR!

Red
2014 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée Red Rhone Blend
9/11/2019 - tob100 Likes this wine:
95 points
Still great! Haven't changed much since last time. One of my favorite wines!

I read here and there that people recommended that some type of redwine should be cooled down to 15 degrees, so i gave it a try.

I recently got a winefridge for storing which has a temperature at 14 degrees by day & 16 degrees by night.

So I took the wine out, opened it and decanted it for 3 hours. Wow, that was stupid!

The temperature of the wine felt like i JUST took it out. The wine had all the usual notes and taste but there was more acidity than normal and a bit more harsh.

Personally I like my red wines to be at room temperature, except Pinot Noir - they has to be cellar temperature.

Despite this little experiment it's still one of my favorites.
  • hutch commented:

    9/12/19, 2:34 PM - Interesting. I don't like any red and warmer than 17 degrees, and prefer 15-17 in general. I find the heat from the alcohol really comes out past that point. But in general, once in the glass wine warms up quick enough that it isn't too difficult to figure out your ideal temp.

Red
2011 Rhys Alesia Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast
11/25/2016 - hutch Likes this wine:
91 points
I really enjoyed this wine. Unfortunately, haven't had the Rhys wines before, so do not know how this "second" label compares to them. This is in the earthy, savory vein, with everything very well balanced. It is not Californian in the sense that there is none of that ripe fruit. If you were to suggest this is a little under ripe, and furthermore argue about a wine trying to be burgundian instead of being of the place it comes from (California) I would not stop you or try to hard to move you from that perspective. We would also have to have a conversation about stem inclusion, I imagine. Indeed some of that might be true. But I really like it, I find it enjoyable to drink and very well balanced. That is enough for me with this bottle.
  • hutch commented:

    11/25/16, 2:47 PM - Hi Desertdoc. That's why I put it in quotes. And why I didn't want to make any comparisons to the Rhys labeled wines, since I haven't had them (Unfortunately). I just thought it important to note where I am coming from with my thoughts.

Red
2006 Domaine Monpertuis (Paul Jeune) Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhone Blend
5/21/2016 - MC2 Wines wrote:
Q2 Tasting - The Rhone! (The Apt): Wine #9: Part of a double blind tasting of Rhone wines. This was much more fruit forward than some of the others. Almost a candied flavor to it. Very clean. Well liked by the group - tied for 4th highest rating of the wines. (6 pennies)
  • hutch commented:

    5/25/16, 12:25 PM - Hi MC2. Just wanted to say I love your idea of voting with pennies. I'm going to have to use that!

Red
2006 Mollydooker Shiraz The Boxer South Australia
3/7/2011 - graemeg wrote:
NobleRottersSydney - 'Bet you've never tasted this before' (Alio's, Surry Hills): [screwcap, 16%] {Gordon} A wine to fill an important gap in the matching-with-food matrix. Until now there was no wine suitable to accompany iced donuts or cocoa-pops. Now the dilema is solved. An apparent blend of vodka, chocolate topping and ribena, it’s the ultimate example of flavour without structure. Apparently a total lack of acid or tannin can be offset with additional sugar, fruit and alcohol. Who knew? More a cocktail than a wine. How on earth the Wine Advocate crew regard this as some sort of benchmark wine is beyond me; and a tragedy for the Australian wine market internationally.
  • hutch commented:

    3/11/11, 4:32 PM - Sadly, how true regarding you comment about how this affects the market and perception of Aussie wine. Not only is it difficult to sell the good stuff coming from Australia, it's nearly impossible to even get it anymore due to the collapse of the market in America other then the processed and candied stuff.

Red
2007 Doña Paula Cabernet Franc Alluvia Tupungato
9/4/2009 - nzinkgraf wrote:
Mega Slide (Waterford Wines Milwaukee): Rich liquorice to the nose. blue to black fruited. deft oak on the nose. this wine has grill marks. full dash of wood on the palate. definitely a brightness of fruit on the nose. almost a tangy unsweetened Kool-Aid nose. rich and tight wood expression on the palate. why do people do this to Cabernet Franc???
  • hutch commented:

    8/17/10, 3:02 PM - Interesting. While I love a great Cab Franc from the Loire, I've also been enamored from versions from Washington and Bordeaux that see oak. I think the Dona Paula version is firmly in line with them, and the oak doesn't detract from the wine. (In fact I found the use of oak much more deft then in many of the regular bottlings from Dona Paula.

Red
2007 Chalone Vineyard Pinot Noir Monterey County
7/19/2010 - dfarley wrote:
77 points
This is my second bottle of this wine that I've tried, and my reactions were similar. Flat on the palate and very one dimensional. Many better Pinot Noirs out that at this price point
  • hutch commented:

    8/14/10, 7:35 AM - Why did you try the second bottle?

Red
2004 Sesti (Castello di Argiano) Brunello di Montalcino Sangiovese
2/25/2010 - hutch wrote:
92 points
Lynch Italian Tasting (Conference room): Traditional BdM. Lots of sour cherry. Great tannins. This screams of place. Really nice stuff, but the tariff is a bit much in RI. ($90)
  • hutch commented:

    6/15/10, 3:12 PM - Re: Ben. I think that's a very valid point. As well as the fact that this will be a different bottle in five years, at which point $90 might even seem like a value. And of course the expense of $90 is all relative. For me, a 92 point wine is a world class effort, and $90 isn't a lot to spend for many for that kind of quality. For me though, it's a bit much.

Red
2006 Domaine du Cros (Philippe Teulier) Marcillac Vieilles Vignes Mansois, Fer Servadou
2/5/2010 - campingfleurie wrote:
flawed
Made from Fer Servadou, but first aromatic impressions are of inky Cab Franc meets thin, dark-raspberry, boiled-sweet Gamay. Then… that’s not VA… that’s vinegar! Snap: the aroma and the whole wine just went to vinegar. My wine merchant will refund, but they also tested a bottle the next day and reported no problem. NB: I used the bottle for cooking and it thoroughly shot the dish too – beware any vinegar-fault wine!!
  • hutch commented:

    3/8/10, 11:52 AM - Nope, this is 100% Fer Servadou, or Mansois, as the Marcillacans call it.

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