Another weeknight, another survived. Thanks to Steve Nordhoff for being the host of this session, all the wines selected from his cellar, served blind across 3 flights. Thank you for the generosity, Steve, and the delightful evening.
WEEKNIGHT WINES BLIND - (6/6/2019)
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2009 Louis Roederer Champagne Brut Nature Cuvée Starck - France, Champagne
Served blind next to 4 other champagnes (also blind). Lime, green apple, and a big cut of citrus that goes right through the wine. Finishes with slate and saline, lime skin and excellent structure. A genius wine, damn good. -
2002 Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Champagne Special Club Millesimé de Collection - France, Champagne
Served blind next to 4 other champagnes (also blind). 4th time I have had this wine since release, and it was my least favorite of the flight. Disgorged September 2011. Kind of oxidative and nutty, with a caramel candy chew note that I picked up on. Never had that sensory note go off in my head in tasting wines but last night the wine just flashed that picture in my head. Cool experience. Also some grapefruit here, but all together this didn’t in total engage me like the others in the flight. -
2008 Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Champagne Special Club Millesimé de Collection - France, Champagne
Served blind next to 4 other champagnes (also blind). Have drank a bunch of these the past several years and finished my final bottle a few months ago. Disgorged March 2015. I just can’t store these things in my cellar, as the bottle shape is a PITA. Clean, green apple, lower dosage, pure flavored. Bright acids with a leaner edged palate. The fruit and weight is a nice counter to the acidity. This oughta age well as the guts and material is here already for a great wine. -
2012 Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Champagne Special Club Grands Terroirs de Chardonnay - France, Champagne
Served blind next to 4 other champagnes (also blind). First time trying the 2012, and of note, this was in the same flight with the 2002 and 2008. Disgorged May 2017. Softer in tone, especially after tasting the energy of the 2008 that preceded it. Yellow apple, and deceptively red berry, although this is a Chardonnay composed wine so go figure. Found this wine nice, but for me not of the complexity of the 2008, nor the 2009 Roederer Starck. -
2002 Jacquesson & Fils Champagne Dizy Corne Bautray Extra-Brut - France, Champagne
Served blind next to 4 other champagnes (also blind). Disgorged February 2011, so this spent some good time in bottle. No dosage. Yellow apple, tangy, some herb and a good presence of grapefruit. I enjoyed the energy and the concentration here, too. I do though have to say that on this night, this wine was beat out by the 2009 Roederer Starck for me.
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2014 Dominique Laurent Clos de la Roche - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru
Served blind next to 3 other US Pinot Noir wines (also blind). Aromatics on this kept shifting. At one moment, funky, brett-like, with a few people early on suggesting it was corked but I didn’t have that perception. What I really dug about this wine was the purity of the cherry, aligned with the mineral/spine of the structure. It reminded me of the best stuff that Jamie Kutch as well as that of Rhys. It’s the transparency that comes through, that purity that is cool. Lovely wine with a good life ahead of it. -
2007 Rivers-Marie Pinot Noir Old Vines Summa - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Served blind next to 2 other US Pinot Noirs (which also happened to be other vintages of Summa OV) and one Burgundy (also blind). I had this same vintage just about one year ago and the wine tastes pretty identical to that previous note. Has the cloudy look, the orange rind, jammy strawberry (I suspect the vintage coming through) and some earth. This is continuing to age well, and despite the riper vintage as its base, there is nothing tired here so keep on aging some more if you like. -
2004 Rivers-Marie Pinot Noir Old Vines Summa - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Served blind next to 2 other US Pinot Noirs (which also happened to be other vintages of Summa OV) and one Burgundy (also blind). This particular bottle showed a tangy, soy quality along with red berry and some older shadings starting to come through, such as with a little caramel in the palate. Finishes with some blue fruit and enough energy to let it persist. Like with the 2007, this is holding up fine but it’s more advanced for me than the 2007. -
2009 Rivers-Marie Pinot Noir Old Vines Summa - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Served blind next to 2 other US Pinot Noirs (which also happened to be other vintages of Summa OV) and one Burgundy (also blind). I finished my last bottle from my own cellar on NYE 2017, so it was cool to see this be revealed when we discussed the flight. Of note, this was the final wine of the flight, preceded by the 2007 and 2004, along with the 2014 Dominique Laurent CdlR GC Burg. This vintage of 2009 for me shows a lot of cool complexity, as in the meaty/sauvage note. Fresh red berry, a but jammy too but this is 2009, a vintage that has often showed more open textured and riper with other producers I enjoy. Finishes citrusy. A terrific vintage for Summa OV.
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2015 Fontodi Flaccianello della Pieve Colli della Toscana Centrale IGT - Italy, Tuscany, Colli della Toscana Centrale IGT
Served blind as part of a 4 bottle red wine flight (also blind). Tobacco leaf, chewy, herb, spice and powerful and intense in concentration. There is acidity embedded in the wine, making it even more intense. So, all together, with the new wood, acid and fruit, this needs a pile of aeration, more aging, most likely both. I like what is here for the power. -
2015 Fattoria Le Pupille (Elisabetta Geppetti) Maremma Toscana Saffredi - Italy, Tuscany, Maremma, Maremma Toscana
Served blind as part of a 4 bottle red wine flight (also blind). Smells of tobacco, spice box and what I thought was elevated alcohol. Dark, with leather, yet plush fruit that is tinged with cocoa, what reminded me of fresh ground cocoa nibs, imparting the sense of chocolate yet the acidity that has the same intense quality. This wine seemed very youthful to me, not nearly on the same plane for me as the 2015 Fontodi Flacianello Pieve we had preceding it. -
2015 Azienda Agricola Montevertine Le Pergole Torte Toscana IGT - Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT
Served blind as part of a 4 bottle red wine flight (also blind). Currant, cherry, cedar and lots of red fruit, framed by moderate acid. Then, finishing tannic. This was pretty coiled to me, the hardest to get my head around. -
2008 Sherwin Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley, Spring Mountain District
Served blind as part of a 4 bottle red wine flight (also blind). Dark coffee aroma, some alcohol, too. Has a molten quality, dark chocolate, spice box. Modern with lots of fruit, dense black cherry and a big wine for me. I don’t dislike these kinds of wines but I am not sure I want to drink a lot of them anymore as they just seem a bit big for me. -
1994 Romano Dal Forno Amarone della Valpolicella - Italy, Veneto, Valpolicella, Amarone della Valpolicella
Served blind. This was corked although the fruit intensity here was still something cool to try. Raisiny, creamy. Never had one of these so I guess I will reserve any more comment due to the TCA and also my shift away from sweeter wines. NR (flawed)
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