Tasting notes from a long weekend with some close family. Some of the group are casual partakers, others as obsessed as me. Some wines disappointed based on price, but no real duds in the lineup. I’ll rank them from top to bottom. Apologies for mis-spellings, I was having more fun visiting, but still wanted to jot down notes quickly. Points were averaged from the serious group of us.
1999 Lynch Bages (or Lunch Bags, as my dad called it). 30 minute decant in a makeshift decanter. Leather, dark berry, cassis on the nose an palette. Good firm tannins and balanced acid. Probably could have aged another 10 years easily but was drinkable now. Long cloyingly sweet finish. 94 points.
2002 Vincent Giradin Corton Charlemagne Gran Cru. Mid to light in color. Musty nose, hint of floral. Not even a hint of oxidation. Mid - acid, good buttery malo-lactic mouth feel. A bit of funk on the nose and palette, but not in a bad way. Reminded me of an aged chenin-blanc. Lingering mildly acidic finish. Overall well balanced. Probably a few years past peak but very enjoyable now. 93 points.
2008 Tenute Costa Due Corti Barolo. Firm tannins, medium alcohol, medium acidity. Nose of cherry, tobacco, and leather. Tasted of a tart baking cherry and earthy leather. All flavors were muted as if under a layer of dust. Just an elegant subtlety to it. Very good overall structure. Felt like a wine that is still has a few years to mature. 93 points.
NV Bollinger Champagne. Peachy, dry, smooth. Firm bubbles, mild acid. Very enjoyable. 93 points.
2013 Nicholas Rossignol Volnay 1er Cru. Nose of cherry and fennel. Soft tannins. Mid+ acid. Felt a bit heavy in the mouth for a pinot noir but overall very enjoyable. 91 points
2012 J. Hofstätter Gewürztraminer Kolbenhof. Very floral and fruity nose. Low alcohol, mild acid, totally dry. Something off on the mid-palette. A bit out of balance, maybe from the lack of residual sugar. 88 points.
We also drank a Gramercy Merlot-based wine from Walla Walla (right bank Bordeaux-ish blend). It was good, but a little one-layered compared to the others. The bottle was cleaned up before I could get the exact name and vintage.