A Finnish expat friend from Texas visited us last spring, so we decided to have a small sit-down with friends. Everybody brought a bottle (well, I brought two in case my first one wasn’t in sound condition - we ended up still having both) and we had some fun guessing the wines blind while catching up.
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1996 Château Lagrange (St. Julien) - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien (24.3.2022)
A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (57%), Merlot (36%) Petit Verdot (7%). Aged for approximately 20 months in oak barriques (approx. 50% new). 13% alcohol. Tasted blind.
Quite deep dark cherry-red color with quite little translucency. The nose is quite textbook aged Bordeaux nose with a little bit of bretty funk; there are aromas of leather saddle, ripe blackcurrants, some leafy herbaceous notes, a little bit of barnyard and earth, light notes of tobacco, a vegetal hint of cooked bell pepper, a woody touch of pencil shavings and a bright, crunchy whiff of fresh cranberries. The wine is dry, juicy and enjoyably savory on the palate with a medium body and focused flavors of leather and tobacco, some wizened blackberry tones, light bretty notes of horse stables, a little bit of leafy greenness, light earthy notes and a hint of gravelly minerality. The overall feel is firm and balanced, thanks to the high acidity and ample yet ripe and nicely resolved tannins that feel textural and gentle rather than tough and grippy. The finish is dry, juicy and crunchy with long, complex flavors of fresh redcurrants and more evolved nuances of wizened blackcurrants, some bretty notes of new leather and farmhouse funk, light gravelly mineral tones, a little bit of ferrous blood, an autumnal hint of damp leaves and sous-bois and a touch of earth.
A very harmonious, complex and classically built claret with all the pieces in correct places. The wine is in a beautiful spot right now, but it shows no signs of decline and based on the intensity of the fruit, I wouldn't be surprised if the wine continued to improve for years more. Drink or keep. Tasting this blind, there were no questions whether this was or wasn't Bordeaux - everyone went immediately to Bordeaux with this. Based on its somewhat evolved overall quality and pretty old-school herbaceous notes, I guessed that this must be early-to-mid 1990's. The somewhat obvious ripeness of the fruit and the overall intensity and quality made me think of 1996, so I went with that one. I had no idea which château this was, but for the appellation I guessed Saint Julien just based on a hunch. All correct.
(95 points) -
2009 Coali Tenuta Savoia Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva - Italy, Veneto, Valpolicella, Amarone della Valpolicella Classico (24.3.2022)
A blend of Corvina (60%), Corvinone (20%), Rondinella (10%), Molinara (5%) and other local varieties (5%). The harvested grapes are dried for 3-5 months before they are vinified. The wine is aged for a minimum of 5 years in old botti casks. Unlike most Amarone producers, Coali makes Amarone only in good enough vintages, of which the Riserva bottling represents a minuscule production. This was bottle #502 of total 905 bottles. 16% alcohol. Tasted blind.
Aged, dark-toned and fully opaque blackish-maroon color. Fragrant, sweet and quite tertiary nose with aromas of raisins, some balsamic notes of VA, a little bit of cherry marmalade, light oxidative notes of beef jerky and gamey meat, a hint of sun-dried tomatoes and a touch of soy sauce. The wine is very big, fat and sweet-toned on the palate with a very full body and rich, evolved flavors of stewed raisins, some pruney tones, a little bit of tomato purée, light strawberry notes, a hint of cherry marmalade and a touch of beef jerky. The structure relies mostly on the assertive, grippy tannins, not much on the soft medium acidity. The high alcohol lends some obvious heat to the palate. The finish is rich, juicy and slightly hot with moderate tannic grip and intense, persistent flavors of raisins and prunes, some sweet, balsamic notes of VA, a little bit of gamey meat, light cherry marmalade tones and an umami hint of sun-dried tomatoes.
A huge, evolved and quite raisiny Amarone with tons of body, concentration and sweetish fruit, but very little in the way of freshness or harmony. The wine feels surprisingly aged and tertiary for an Amarone not much older than 10 years - probably thanks to the hot 2009 vintage. Very recognizable for the style - one managed to guess correctly that this was Amarone with their first guess before I even got my own pour of the wine! Feels too clumsy and monolithic for my taste - I guess in cooler vintages this wine could show some sense of finesse and harmony, but this was just too big, sweet and raisiny for my taste, coming across somewhat tired and a bit flat rather than complex and impressive.
(85 points) -
2016 Lapo Berti Barolo Fossati - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (24.3.2022)
100% organically farmed Nebbiolo from cru Fossati in La Morra. Fermented spontaneously in stainless steel and open-top demi-muids, macerated with the skins for three weeks, aged in old, neutral oak barrels. 14,5% alcohol. Tasted blind.
Luminous, translucent cranberry-red color with a slightly evolved brick-red hue. Beautifully pure, fragrant and seductive, red-toned nose with aromas of ripe cranberries and raspberries, some sour cherry tones, a little bit of gravelly minerality, light floral notes of roses, a hint of tobacco and a touch of fresh red plums. Enormously attractive overall feel. The wine is bright, fresh and quite Burgundian on the palate with a light-to-medium body and pure, gently extracted flavors of crunchy cranberries and tobacco, some sour cherry bitterness, light gravelly mineral tones and a hint of brambly raspberry. The wine is high in acidity with quite ample tannins that feel rather grippy yet not assertive or aggressive. The finish is long, fresh and rather grippy with intense flavors of cranberries and sour cherries, some gravelly mineral tones, a little bit of tobacco, light crunchy notes of fresh red plums and a hint of licorice root.
Everybody guessed Italy right off the bat with this one, but after that it became a bit more difficult. Although the floral aromas reminded me of Nebbiolo, the overall fruit profile and freshness reminded me more of a bright Sangiovese rather than a Barolo, so I went with 2016 Chianti Classico. However, some guessed Barolo and they were spot on. This is wonderfully bright, purely-fruited and harmonious Barolo that is surprisingly light on its feet, reminding me more of a warmer-vintage Alto Piemonte Nebbiolo than a classic Barolo - and this is not a slight against the wine! All in all, I loved the fresh, crunchy and supple yet still remarkably firm and structured overall style of this wine. It is drinking remarkably well right now, but I have no doubts this will continue to improve and develop tertiary complexity as it ages. Superb stuff with good potential for future development.
(93 points) -
1994 Clos du Clocher - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol (24.3.2022)
A blend of mainly Merlot with some Cabernet Franc (25-30%). Aged for 16-20 months in oak barriques. 12,8% alcohol.
Very slightly hazy and somewhat evolved figgy color with a tertiary, syrupy-brown hue. Aged, evolved and quite savory nose with rather tertiary aromas of beef jerky, some soy sauce, a little bit of pruney dark fruits and dried black cherries, light nuances of wizened blackcurrants, a hint of smoke and a touch of forest floor. The wine is aged, silky smooth and rather tertiary on the palate with a medium body and savory flavors of meaty umami, some wizened red fruit, a little bit of sour cherry bitterness, light earthy nuances of forest floor, a hint of beef jerky and a touch of minty greenness. The overall feel is still surprisingly firm and tightly-knit for the age, thanks to the high acidity and still moderately grippy tannins. The finish is aged, juicy and quite grippy with long, savory flavors of meaty umami and soy sauce, some wizened red plums, a little bit of smoke, light pruney tones, a hint of earth and a touch of wild strawberry.
A nice and still fully enjoyable, but already a bit too tertiary Pomerol red that still packs quite a bit of structure, but is slowly giving up in the fruit department. There is still quite a bit of fruit intensity left in the wine, but the overall feel is starting to turn quite pruney, meaty and old, making the wine come across as a bit anonymous in style. However, even if the wine is slowly gliding into that anonymous old wine territory, it was still quite recognizable for what it was, as I poured the wine blind to a small band of wine enthusiasts and it really didn't take more than a moment or two before people guessed that the wine was a claret, soon adding that more likely from the right bank rather than the left one. All in all, pretty good stuff, but probably would've been much better and more interesting some 5+ years ago. Perhaps a bit pricey for its current quality at 31€.
(89 points) -
2017 Rall Punane Telliskivi - South Africa, Coastal Region, Swartland (24.3.2022)
A special old-vine Carignan bottling commissioned from Donovan Rall for the Telliskivi district in Tallinn, Estonia. Total production is one single barrel. 13,5% alcohol. Tasted blind.
Luminous, moderately translucent black cherry color. Sweet, fragrant and very attractive nose with quite fruit-forward aromas of black cherries and plum pits, some boysenberry, light bilberry tones, a little bit of ripe blackcurrant and a brambly hint of black raspberry. The wine is juicy and ripe yet still wonderfully fresh and crunchy on the palate with a medium body and bright flavors of brambly black raspberries and ripe blackcurrants, some juicy boysenberry tones, a little bit of stony minerality, light blueberry tones, a sweet hint of ripe black cherry and a woody touch of savory old oak spice. The overall feel is wonderfully balanced and quite structured with the high acidity and firm medium tannins that slowly pile up on the gums. The finish is juicy, fresh and gently grippy with quite long flavors of fresh black cherries and brambly raspberries, some ripe boysenberry tones, a little bit of gravelly minerality, light ferrous notes of blood and a hint of earthy brown spices.
A wonderfully fresh, bright and harmonious South African Carignan that comes across not unlike a Cru Beaujolais from a cooler vintage - the wine is wonderfully expressive and fruit-forward, but in a sort of Bojo-like sense, ie. this is not a typical new world fruit bomb. The wine is light on its feet, yet manages to pack quite a punch for its size. The overall feel is still very youthful and I can see this wine improving for a good handful of years more. Smashing stuff, recommended.
(91 points) -
2014 Domaine Henri Naudin-Ferrand Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Beaune Blanc - France, Burgundy, Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Beaune (24.3.2022)
100% biodynamically farmed Chardonnay harvested in mid-to-late September. Unlike some Naudin-Ferrand wines, this is not vinified completely without sulfites, but still with a pretty much hands-off approach. Fermented and aged in oak. 12,5% alcohol.
Quite intense and concentrated yellow-green color. The nose feels quite noticeably ripe with clean, layered aromas of zesty citrus fruits and red apples, some Asian pear, a little bit of flinty reduction, light creamy notes of oak, a hint of waxy funk and a touch of sweet exotic spices. The wine is dry, youthful and crunchy on the palate with intense, juicy flavors of fresh golden apples and zesty citrus fruits, some steely mineral tones, a little bit of ripe white peach, light creamy notes of oak, a hint of chalk dust and a touch of waxy funk. There's some obvious sense of concentration to the wine, but the brisk acidity keeps the wine very focused, structured and zippy. The finish is lovely, crunchy and pretty acid-driven with intense flavors of lemony citrus fruits and fresh white peach, some sharp notes of Granny Smith apple, a little bit of tangy salinity, light stony mineral nuances, a hint of apple peel bitterness and a touch of creamy oak.
A beautiful, fresh and crunchy white Burgundy that is still remarkably youthful, precise and high-strung even if the wine is a "lowly" Hautes-Côtes de Beaune almost 8 years old. There's a bit of that waxy character that suggests the wine is rather non-interventionist in style, yet otherwise it is clean as a whistle with no noticeable quirky characteristics - this is as pure and classic as white Burgundies come. Although very enjoyable now, it is obvious this wine is still more about future potential than immediate pleasure. A superb wine with a lot of upside. At only 23€ this was a steal.
(92 points)
Posted from CellarTracker