from a wonderful dinner the other night . . .
2014 Giacosa Arneis: wonderfully expressive tropical fruit nose, which does not carry through to the palate; instead, it is crisp and mineral driven, the complete opposite of the . . .
2012 Aubert Chardonnay Laren: not my cuppa; cloying and candied; simply doesn’t work for my palate
2005 PYCM Meursault Perrieres: full, rich and creamy delicious
2013 PYCM Meursault: much leaner and sharper than the ’05, yet just as delicious in its own way
1997 Pio Cesare Barolo Ornato: perfectly integrated sweet rich dark red fruit; a very pretty drink which glides past the palate effortlessly; delivers pure pleasure with little effort, therefore giving it a very high PER (pleasure to effort ratio)
1999 Clerico Percristina: this is kind of like Chicago deep dish pizza: as long as I don’t think of this as Barolo, I can enjoy it; starts with a nose which is a bit funky, then on to waxy, as well as sappy, concentrated dark rich fruit and menthol\eucalyptus; somehow rustic and modern at the same time
2010 Elio Grasso Barolo Gavarini Chiniera: corked, yet, the good doctor felt he could pull a fast on me; when will he ever learn . . .
2004 Oddero Barolo: tons of acid and sharp with drying tannins; not a lot of pleasure at this point, OTOH . . .
2006 Francesco Rinaldi & Figli Barolo Le Brunate: this was sheer pleasure; elegant and very pretty with sweet rose petals and supple young saddle leather
2006 Paolo Scavino Barolo Rocche dell’Amunziata: the polar opposite of the Rinaldi in power; where the Rinaldi was feminine, this was all testosterone, in a really good way; both wines were delicious, just completely different profiles despite sharing the same vintage; rich, dark, dense and powerfully concentrated, with a much more modern style than the Rinaldi
2008 Clerico Barolo Pajana: shut down and holding back its pleasures, yet clearly with plenty of stuffing; chalky drying tannins; let this sleep and you will be rewarded
2008 Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia: extremely expressive nose full of lively red fruits and flowers, all of which carry through to the palate; beautiful; perfectly balanced; brings a smile to my face just recalling it
2011 G.B. Burlotto Barolo: really pretty delicate freshly picked light red fruit, plenty of nuance, yet ripe strawberries predominate; a very nice drink
2011 Brovia Barolo: nose is a bouquet of red flowers; really wonderful lithe food-friendly drink
1998 Gaja Sori San Lorenzo: wow, now we’ve turned it up to 11; still young, powerful, and sexy with dark concentrated fruit, especially dark cherries, as well as menthol/eucalyptus and tobacco adding to the complexity and the long long finish
2010 Bruno Rocca Barbaresco Rabaja: silky smooth and lush with elegant sweet young fruit; starts delicately and then the intensity builds the longer it opens in the glass; wonderful
Just what the doctor ordered; thanks to all of my dear friends.