I’ve had two or three bottles over the past couple years. To no surprise, it’s pretty seamless. Not especially profound but also really nothing to fault. Resolved but not old. Beautiful.
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Yesterday I opened a double magnum of 2006 Sojourn Home Ranch Cabernet. Craig signed it for our 18th wedding anniversary. Sojourn was in town yesterday at Birch Road, and we went to a tasting with friends who have also been on the mailing list. So afterwards, they stopped by, and I popped the magnum. Probably should have drank it 3-4 years ago, but it’s actually doing quite well. Had to use my Durand to get the cork out, but otherwise was fine. Will finish the bottle tonight.
…and…?
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A few wines over the weekend:
2000 Montrose: I feel like i am a minority around here as an admirer of Cos. This is the anti-Cos, and I loved it! I can’t remember the last time I had a Montrose. This was near-brilliant: still surprisingly primary (but wow, what primary fruit flavors, like a bag of jellybeans, if jellybeans were a lot less sugary). Just fantastic burnt vegetal notes, a little graphite emerging after about 90 minutes in the decanter. This had a bit of it all. The only fault was that the finish seems a little shorter than I expected — but this is quibbling a bit. For those who want more tertiary tones, this is only beginning to develop them.
Innocenti 2015 Acerone IGT: This took a while to loosen up but finally did (after a couple of hours) to express very fine Sangiovese character of cherry and rosemary. Delightful.
2014 Faiveley Chassagne Morgeot: Last bottle of a half case and for once my cellar management was efficient: these have been consistently good but tonight finally showed a little past peak. Mostly this was shown by being for once a little out of balance, with the acidity and fruit/savory sides starting to separate. Still nice, if you have any, probably time to drink up.
2010 Drouhin-Laroze Clos de Beze: Not a bad wine but a bit of a disappointment given the year, the GC vineyard, and my happy experiences with the producer in the past. A little flabby, a little prematurely tired, a bit generic burg. I have had other Drouhin-Larozes over the years, esp their Bonnes Mares, that I have really liked, with reasonable prices, so I was hoping for a similar experience. I do not sense low levels of TCA— touch wines just seem flat to me rather than flawed — so I asked my wife (who has a great hostility to cork taint and is quite sensitive to it) if she thought this was off. She thought not. So I have to conclude this is not a TCA problem. Again, not bad, just not inspiring.
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The wine, yes, but what’s the vintage?
2016
Ah ha! No, I’ve got some but haven’t opened one yet. How does it rate compared to other vintages?
Absolutely loved it! Big full bodied wine. Drinking well now plenty of life ahead. A great Grenache
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I was allocated some of this when it was first released (2009 and 2010). I didn’t care much for it and dropped it after a couple of vintages. I probably should have aged them (more).
CRB — La Closerie 1999
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I thought the label read ‘Acetone’ and I was immediately put in mind of a violently volatile Paolo Bea rosso from a few years ago!
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Between the two Champagne flights on Saturday night we had a few bottles starting with the '19 PYCM with pan seared flounder. I love the '19 whites and this was no exception. While not the most complex wine, for the price it is very good indeed. We had an intermezzo of the Domain de la Cote. My first time trying this and it was enjoyable, would have paired well with chicken, but none to be had this night. The Dunn and the Insignia were served with the steak. The Insignia is mature but still so full of fruit, this will continue to drink well for years to come. Despite its age, the Dunn was drinking fine and has been for years. This was probably my 6th bottle of a case purchase on release and all bottles drank surprisingly well for a young Dunn.
Since it was one of my friend’s birthday, I grabbed an '01 d’Yquem to pair with homemade sourdough waffles with whipped cream and pomegranates which served as the birthday cake. Who does not love this wine? The Rieussec was a bit too sweet and flabby comparatively, but not surprising given the vintage.
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Good to hear about the 1996 Insignia. I still have one to open and am glad it’s not too late.
Jon @Jon_Lawrence How much air does that 2010 Dunn need?
Out of curiosity what other red burg producers would you put in this style? I drank the 2015 La Colombiere last year in Burgundy and was very impressed, but I’m not a buyer at secondary market prices.
2019 Raats Cabernet Franc “Dolomite”
A glass before dinner. Delicious wine. Tasty nuanced fruit with an unexpected and enjoyable stony minerality.
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Yup. Really good stuff. One of the better New World Cab Francs made.
Producer name is Dutch.
Bottling name is Italian.
What am I missing here?