I posted about the restaurants in the Travel, Wine Tourism and Restaurant forum, but two of the wines we had deserve to be in this forum.
At Taverna Khione in Brunswick Maine, my bt½g wine was so great I ordered a full glass next!
2022 Domaine Zafeirakis Limniona Rose.
Mind Blown.
Watermelon, Cranberry, Oregano, Strawberry, Red Cherry, Banana, Sage, riveting immediacy and intensity, one of the greatest roses I’ve ever had.
If getting stung by a bee was pleasant rather than painful, that would be something like this wine. Rated 95.
2010 Finca Iscorta de Peciña Rioja Gran Reserva -
Surprisingly dark and dense for a Gran Reserva. The aromas are very powerful, with still primary black fruit (cherry, blackberry). The palate offers excellent weight and intensity, very fresh. This combines the character of deeply classic Rioja with surprising freshness and power. The flavors evolve and show some secondary notes late in the bottle. Outstanding now, it could improve for a decade, with the vigor evolving into something more subtle. Rated 95, up to 2 points of improvement possible over 10 years.
High praise for that Rosé, Dan. What were you eating with it BTW. I find that some dishes take a wine to a special level of enjoyment that cannot always be predicted
That GR is one of the few wines I made some efforts to track down affirmatively. For whatever reasons I found it more plentiful in the Northeast than my area.
I had this with grilled octopus and roasted lemon potatos. This was at Taverna Khione in Brunswick (I wrote up this and two other dinners in the travel / restaurant forum). But my first electric sip came before the food.