2019 Grosset Riesling Clare Valley Springvale Vineyard. Green white straw color, very nice shine and brightness to it. Light rubber accent to the nose, flowers, wet stone, lemon peel and a hint of mint, not especially fruity with moderate apricot, peach, pear scents, overall it’s compact and succinct as expected of a young Grosset wine. Medium-bodied, erring towards light, the web of acidity a cloak on the tongue. More stony and minerally here, the rubber replaced by oil slick. The mixed white citrus a dull throb more than sharp blade. Pineapple, papaya, kiwi gives it tropical bite. Moments of green apple. The florality at times evokes bubblegum. All the pieces are there but this sucker is wrapped tightly and doubt it’s uncoiling for at least a decade. (Screwcap)
2018 Nalle Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley. A strong garnet red presence lightens the violet core, close to pinkish magenta rims of good brightness, liquid immaculate. The nose has a meadow/mountain freshness, rugged in a clean manner, trim and sour black fruit scents with raspberry to add more zing, grapefruit citrus, eucalyptus, more coffee bean than cocoa, the oak well knit in. Light to medium-bodied, while the tannin gets a bit gritty it has uncommonly strong acidity which washes this away without structural detriment. Very strong grapefruit presence. The fruit cornerstone is raspberry, blackberry but at turns you get strawberry and blueberry. Pretty mentholated sensation. Enjoyably fresh and likely to prove very versatile at the dining table. I do wish more attention was paid to this winery (which remains a small family operation for those who care). 92% Zinfandel, 6% Petite Sirah, 2% Carignane.
2018 Sandlands Chardonnay Moon Mountain District Vendimia Vineyard. Deep golden color, on the flat to dull side but no lack of hue. The nose infused with fresh citrus spritz, ranges from tangerine to lime to lemon, a light minerally sparkle canceled in part by a vanillin element, floral, the orchard fruit scents not especially impressive. Light to medium-bodied, the compactness keeps it fluid an don point. Good acidity contributes to the brisk pace. Oak presence minimal. Curiously hardly getting any citrus. Pear, apricot, apple fruit not perfunctory but close. Warming helps a little. At warmer temps gets nutty as well. Truncated finish the most bothersome aspect, you really feel it disappear.
2002 Joguet Chinon Clos de la Dioterie. Turn the glass on its side and there’s barely any purple left, brick red noticeably shifting into bands of orange and yellow, at a minimum the first pours crystal clear. The nose has a muscular lift to it, hot tar, asphalt, grapefruit, bell pepper, sour dark berries, it’s like your nostrils are stung by a cat o’ nine tails. Then in the mouth it’s medium-bodied, genteelly plush and yielding. The tannin is there, wearing an ascot and knowingly nodding. Pipe smoke and ash, sandy earth, tar, and the (to me) requisite bell pepper bite. Fantastic lift, it just comes at you from all angles. The perfume lingers for some time, this is on par with the previous bottle from last year. Benchmark aged Chinon. Wines such as this is explains why I became a Chevalier de Chinon (Confrérie des Entonneurs Rabelaisiens).
2015 Clos del Rey Côtes du Roussillon Villages l’Aragone (100% Carignan). Glowing violet core, magenta red rims, in keeping with what I expect from the grape visually. Some flatulence to the nose, moderating into a bucket of plum, blueberry, blackberry fruit, fading cut flowers, and ginger root, uncomplicated and not the worse for it. Medium-bodied, holds it fully through the finish. Feels tannic and first but by the finish there’s more acidic freshness. Restrained juiciness in the dark berry, plum fruit, no shortness. Baking spices and lively white citrus. Perfect everyday “country” wine that stays within itself. (Composite Cork: Diam10)
2004 Daniel Bouland Morgon Vieilles Vignes. Filmy, you can see the silt move as the glass swirls, washed out and opaque purple core, brick red to orange further out, hueless rims. The nose full-on barnyard, abounding in cow patties, camphor, matted wet straw, now there’s a raisin to prune nature to the fruit, probably helps it stick around well. In the mouth it’s medium-bodied and on the tacky side, tannin reduced to dust. Leathery and gristly but not funky. Substantial plum, black cherry to blueberry fruit, a lot more than expected. Slight menthol, licorice notes. No citrus or anything to provide cut. Not a tertiary development blockbuster so disappointed on that score. But, hey, at least the fruit held up.
2019 Jean-Marc Burgaud Morgon Côte du Py. Deep violet core, spotless, the rims an equally dark scarlet to magenta, packs visual punch. Dusty, minerally nose with a mean streak of white grapefruit, leathery with floral scrub, crackling cranberry. bing cherry, raspberry scents, it all rushes through your nostrils. Medium-bodied, dry and tannic, dare I say backward. Very sour red fruits with little length, not underripe per se but hard to get at. Budges a bit with air. Craggy stoniness to earthiness. Twiggy. Tart citrus laden finish. I have had good luck aging this producer in the past, there’s sufficient fruit here yet it is anyone’s guess if it will last until the structure softens. This bottling remains fairly priced vis-à-vis the competition.
2016 Mas des Tannes (Paul Mas) Pays d’Oc IGP Reserve Rouge. Solid scarlet red influenced purple core, pure red rims, nothing unusual here. There’s a bluntness to the nose, packed earth, stone and cracked leather, the plum to currant scents in a vise, a citrus element lingers long after the rest. Full-bodied and chewy, the tannin has a sinewy, gristle like feel. Endowed with adequate plum, cherry, blackberry fruit per se but not vis-à-vis the structure. Spicy, some menthol and licorice. But the tannin here is borderline unbearable and it throws the balance all out of whack. As is said elsewhere, down teh fat sink. Unspecified percentages of Grenache, Cabernet Sauvignon, Mourvèdre.
2018 Clos Saint-Jean Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Glowing purple core of utter opacity, thin crimson rims, hue saturation maxed out. Confectionery nose of ginger, nutmeg spice, molasses, bubblegum, cherry to plum/prune fruit, smattering of citrus, while on the whole uninteresting at least it’s not that hot given its 16.0% alcohol level. Medium to full-bodied, the tannin is astringent, either wood tannin or underripe phenolics, or both. I’d attribute the woefully short finish to this and the somewhat watery raspberry, blueberry, cherry fruit. Mocha, molasses, orange peel, slight burst of menthol. Leaves the mouth raw and tingling. To be fair I’m not a fan of the producer but even allowing for this not impressed. Willing to listen to what I’m missing. Unspecified percentages of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Cinsault, Vaccarèse, Muscardin.
2001 Huet Vouvray Le Haut-Lieu Sec. Foreword: This bottle not prematurely nor maturely oxidized. As much dark gold as amber to it, clean, average shine at best. Nose of lanolin, furniture polish, sauna smoke, tangerine, pineapple, kumquat to papaya fruit scents, takes some time to uncoil and not sure it ever fully did. Medium-bodied, has shed a good bit of flesh and the skeleton showing as a result. Acidity still swinging a cudgel. Spiced tangerine to blood orange dominant. At times like chewing on a ball of wax. Same basic sour tropical fruit, all bite, no bark. Metal shavings and limestone. It has volume it’s blunt demeanor tends to cut things short now and then. I’d say this has peaked but with this kind of acidity it should hold for awhile yet.
2018 Domaine de l’Ecu Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Granite. Bright gold color, simple yet pretty, has both shine and depth. Minty nose focused on apple, pear, apricot fruit, light cinnamon touch, lemon, quite openly knit and not getting much stoniness. Close to full-bodied with as syrupy a texture as wines of this ilk can get. The acidity is okay but the sheer ripeness gets the better of it, particularly if allowed to warm some. Baking spices, light yeastiness, the florality opens into orange and lemon citrus. Melon, apple, apricot to kiwi fruit, juicy and without any real bite. Likable for what’s in the glass but it didn’t deliver to expectations, this being one of my preferred Muscadet bottlings.
1999 Paolo Bea Montefalco Sagrantino Secco. The color has paled to a transparent brick red core which yellow further out, throwing a decent amount of sediment. Medicinal nose with a witch hazel cleansing feel, mushroom, damp forest floor, leather, tar, then a charred smokiness, beneath all this is a layer of cherry liqueur. Medium-bodied, the tannin turned to a fine powder and it all but glides through the mouth. Licorice, potpourri, cedar in the fore along with that super-concentrated and sweet cherry to raspberry fruit. To its detriment it does show excess alcohol. That mushroomy earthiness more knit in here. Past apex but not on death’s door, perhaps consumption a few years earlier would have masked the alcohol some, had more body back in 2004.
2019 Abbona Dolcetto di Dogliani Papà Celso. Fat magenta to purple hue, flushed with color if you’re into that kind of stuff. Dusty earthiness and something akin to bell pepper penetrate the nose, dried citrus pulp, baking spices and a mix of black fruits, lacks breadth. Medium-bodied, tannic but no so much you can’t get at the sour blackberry, cherry fruit. Earthy and still vaguely herbaceous here too. The citrus never gets to enunciate fully. Smooths out some by the finish but this is definitely on the chewy side of the spectrum and while extra bottle time may soften it, don’t think it will ever come into harmonious balance. (Composite Cork: Nomacorc Reserva)
2016 Paolo Scavino Barolo. The purple muddied by red clay to brick hues, dull scarlet rims, transparent throughout. The nose at first presents a somewhat charred character, campfire smoke, charcoal, almost meaty but then it’s gone in favor of dark cherry, blackberry fruit and leather, echo of dried rose petals and anise, overall dense and primary, hard to predict the development of nuance. Medium-bodied, plump and stops short of soft. And to be fair firms up a little with air. Leather, sandalwood, naval orange pulp. More density than sweetness in the cherry, raspberry, blackberry fruit. Moderate length on the finish, hampered by some astringency. It’s acceptable but nothing special. (Composite Cork: Diam10)
2019 ColleStefano Verdicchio di Matelica. Pale straw hue with a mild green glint, somewhat flat in spite of a soft glow. In the nose softer anise, lavender notes swept aside by strong salinity, quinine and savory herbs, citrusy like a lemon wedge dropped in tonic water, the white orchard fruit doesn’t achieve full clarity. Medium to full-bodied, the acidity has brawn to spare but the muscular heft refuses to get pared down. There is sweetness in the melon, passion fruit, pineapple flavors. And sour juiciness in the orange to lime citrus. And plenty of saltiness. At the end of the day finding it witheringly puckering and feels “hot” as a result. Have had two previous vintages with similar results, not sure what to make of it.
2017 Hillersden Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough Sparkling. Adequate mousse, short lived, bubbles dispersed, no beads, pale yellow straw hue. Mild creaminess to the nose, ripe orange citrus, mint, more metallic than minerally, the white pit fruit scents speak in whispers. Light-bodied, crisp with prickly pétillance, turns creamier through the finish yet on the whole refreshing. Strong orange to tangerine presence. Minty here too. Pineapple, peach, nectarine fruit. It’s potable and more or less does the job. However, outside of a winery saying they can make a sparkling wine not sure what’s the rationale for the bottling. Can’t be that cheap to make versus the world’s inexpensive bubblies. (Composite Cork)
2019 Filipa Pato Bairrada Dinimica (D.n.m.c) (100% Baga). Deep and glowing purple color, thin garnet red rims, sucks light to it. In spite of an ash and brown dirt component the nose is plummy and juicy, bolstered by baking spices, pressed flowers and a mixed citrus spritz, as it opens there’s a nice green apple snap added. Light to medium-bodied, strong tannin yet it sets the structure with widely spaced beams so there’s plenty of openness for movement. A good deal more floral here and the citrus has a zest/blossom character. The blackberry, black cherry, plum fruit could stand more juiciness. Stony notes add to its generally rugged profile. No makeup added to pretty it up, admirably stands on the merits of the primary material. Not advisable for casual sipping.
2019 Quinta da Soalheira Vinho Verde Monção e Melgaço (100% Alvarinho). Deep yellow gold, nice warmth to it, holds well enough into the rims. Airy nose of orange blossom, spearmint, lilacs, the pineapple, passion fruit, kiwi fruit strikes the right balance between crisp and juicy, manages a smoky flourish before it all dissolves. Medium-bodied, nice palate traction, dry enough to grip and release without losing a sense of movement. Naval orange citrus base with a kick of lime to pink grapefruit. Here a curious doughy to yeasty element appears. Papaya, guava, pear, melon flavors, the fruit allows for some food pairing neutrality. A bit too compact for the florality to really swirl. Inner mouth perfume extends way past the swallow. Gets the props that I wanted to finish the note quickly so as to just drink it.
2015 Susana Esteban Alentejano Portalegre Procura. Simple gold color, diminished some at the rims, nothing really of note. Crisp oak toast to it, mildly buttery, lime zest, anise, floral in a way which evokes bubblegum, straightforward pear, peach, apple scents, needs to get warmer for any minerality to show. Medium-bodied, here the oak is close to all powerful. Without any available information on the field grape blend, one would have to assume the winemaker considered it ageworthy if not meant to be aged. Black licorice, mint, spiced orange and lime similar to the nose. Hard to distinguish fruit flavors but more tropical bite. Wasn’t really what I was expecting but once I adjusted it was satisfactory. Unspecified field blend of traditional Portuguese varieties.