Rather approachable and absolutely delicious already. Need to get the rest of the bottles to my offsite storage quickly, else they will be gone within weeks 
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First time ever drinking Arinto dos Azores.
Moreover, this Arinto Sur Lies 3 Vintages is made exclusively from the second press of the grapes. António Maçanita, the producer, says that although one might expect a lack of acidity from this process, the grapes from Azores are so intense that they more than compensate the acidity and, furthermore, the second press extracts more salinity and minerality out of the grapes. Also, this is a blend of the 2018, 2020 and 2021 vintages.
I enjoyed it very much. Very elegant and complex nose and again very balanced and elegant in the mouth, even if length is only medium.
I have scheduled a tasting at the end of November where we will try a Vinha Centenaria, sort of a big brother of this Sur Lies. I am looking forward to tasting it.
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Opened a 2020 Turley Dusi Zin last night. Wanted to see if there were any smoke issues, none detected and this was a fire cracker young zin. Typical Dusi finish; very fresh, primary fruit. Think I will hold back opening any more 2020s until the latter half of 24’.
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That is very interesting!
I don‘t know what happened here but I didn‘t enjoy this at all, unlike the other bottles not so long ago. Disjointed, scratchy, taxing. Just entered a closed phase, root day, poor daily form?
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This is better than the last bottle I tried about a year ago. Its less smudgy in the mouth and is gently pleasing to drink. Only a couple left and I will crack on with them.
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1981 Leoville Las Cases
The wine exhibited an initial hint of mustiness with a short, funk-laced whisper of cassis. It was the taste of oenological death. Instead of bringing joy, it served as an austere reminder of time’s relentless flow, a poignant lesson not to squander our singular opportunity to bring a measure of joy to those around us, and a warning of the precious immediacy to life.
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2020 Lamy Bourgogne ‘Les Chataigniers’. This was part of my 2020 Lamy allocation. Damn this was good. Fresh bright and very appealing. Lots of citrusy fruits, drinking superbly really for such a young wine
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A recent 2000 was quite good.
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ChdP blanc - Madame‘s favorite. If not for my intervening we would be drinking those every evening.
The domaine is an enigma, I don‘t find any information online. And yet there is this classy (but watch your head!) show room at prime location in the village. The proprietor with famous cousins is a skilled salesman. Latest when you find yourself humming along with him the tune from A Man and a Woman you realize you are not walking out without buying wine. Which is OK: correct, sound Châteauneufs, both red and white.
This bottle has nice spice, similar to Clos des Papes, probably a similar blend.
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Good glass. Has evolved fine, but actually think I liked it better young when it had a bit more nerve.
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This was meant to be a coravin journey through burgundy. Bordeaux and the rhone with a new to tasting friend on a Friday. Turned into a great night for four with only the two Bordeaux still standing. Which in itself is a tasting note! The Volnay was the pick, floral and open with a long aftertaste, and both CnDP were appreciated but have another 5-10 years to do so. Bordeaux disappointed, but not the best selection.
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Good week-end with a good friend coming over from Bretagne. Above and beyond the wines below, we had a great lunch at l’Accord Parfait in Divonne (wood fire oven galore) and I made my regionally accurate Crozets (friend took a picture of the dish so I’ll try to get it). The recipe in a nutshell is: cream, lardons, Crozets, Gruyère+Comté, heavy cream, repeat for 2nd layer and top with a Reblochon cut in half lengthwise and bake in oven+broil… decadent. We make this for everybody’s first time in our area.
Friday lunch:
Very nice. I had been told that Grivault’s Pommard was eternal well, not false. That 1997 was pretty much spot on: evolved nose with everything you want from an old red Côtes de Beaune yet so much life and vigor! Sous-bois, mushroom, old worn out leather but also red berries. The palate is evolved but still shows great vivacity with red berries and medium acidity. The tannins are on the way out though. Great bottle and lot of fun to drink this.
Nose and profile is true to BdB. Nice concentration and chalky finish.
I had a bottle of this on Tuesday and mentioned it was great but not necessarily a QPR winner. I was wrong. This is a smashing wine! Absolutely beautiful: lots of fruit, medium-plus acidity, good structure, nice length on good fruit and tight minerals. 46 euros and I asked my buddy to put 6 aside for me. Amazing Bojo.
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OK. Nothing bad with it: forest floor and dead leaves on the nose. Palate is mostly tertiary with some fruit left but not enough. Enjoyable.
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Wow, amazing QPR. This was the 4th bottle of the evening with two aficionados drinking them in a short lapse of time so my judgment could be called into question but for 22 euros, this is a steal: fresh, green apple and citrus but then comes the buttery nuances. Round bodied with fresh cut and decent length. Very nice Champagne.
Complex. Very good. Fruit, pastry, oxidative undertones. It had me miss part of the discussion when i had my first sip. Very engaging. Must buy more.
Ok. A little stemmy, decent pure fruit but missing complexity. A little bit of a letdown.
I was expecting more ripe fruit on this 2018. A little austere and boring. I’ll revisit tomorrow.
Edit Day 2: it fleshed out. We now have ripe cherry and some light spices on the nose. The palate is medium with good fruit and a little bit of earth, medium-low acidity and a medium finish on tarter berries and fine tannins.
Edit:
Here it is. Looks like nothing, eats like heaven (well a cheesy, heavy heaven):
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Recently acquired an unopened OWC of this. Everything is pristine; the level is into neck, cork was firm and & barely stained. Wine is a nice mid to dark red, betrays its age with some bricking at the rim. Nose is very Pomerol with a mix of iron and earth and plums and a bit of meat. Palate is rich and generous with lots of fruits and nice structure. As it opened up, it got deeper and more impressive with time. Really good
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We had the 2020 earlier this week with oysters and it was very nice both on its own and with the bivalves.
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It is still a good wine. A bit more mellow and lightly oxidative now. Still lots of fruit left, but lost a bit of it’s lemon driven touch which i like a lot.
This still have years left in the tank, so might just have caught it in a spot where it haven’t gone fully mature, but lost some of the stuff I liked early on. Think I have one 2016 left, so will give that another 3-4 years. But based on this I prefer them young at release.
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Torbreck the Struie Shiraz 2003 for last 3 days. Still lovely and lively bouquet despite a over-sweet taste with not well-polished tannins.
Henry’s Drive Pathaway Shiraz 2003 for today. Robert Parker Jr. rated this 94 pts. Hopefully this table wine is still okay to drink.
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You lunch well 
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