(NOTE: as a wine pimp, I sell or have sold these wines at one point)
While the wife and son are in Orlando visiting the in-laws (God help them), I get the chance to break out a few things that don’t usually make it to the ‘shared’ rotation, and enjoy them all to my lonesome. That, and post in the NSFW forum in my tighty whities…
Agricola Gussalli Beretta Franciacorta ‘Lo Sparviere’ (if my notes serve me, this is a single vineyard or single property bottling)- Tracy can drink with the best of them, but 1-2 glasses of sparkling wine will put her in intensive care the next day, so we’re preciously short here, with only a couple cellar items on hand. With her gone, I can only bring myself to break out a value oriented bottling. If you have not tried a quality Franciacorta before, splurge with the $20 and get one, because this is every bit as good as a French Cremant from Alsace or Bourgogne, or Cali Champagne knock-offs. Made from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the wines carry a similar profile to Champagne, showing nice tart citrus and even a light hint of bitter almond. If you’re comparing it to Champagne, yes, it won’t fool you as it doesn’t have that chalky note or high intensity. But damn if it isn’t dry and incredibly satisfying for the money. This is also a ‘Saten’, which means it’s bottled at a slightly lower level of carbonation than traditional sparkling wines, and after a few minutes open it gains a slightly creamy lemon curd character which makes it very easy drinking. I would drink this WAY before most of the Cali Champagne wanna-be’s.
Smith Woodhouse Port Lodge Reserve-I have some Vintage Ports and some single quintas stashed for better occasions than being left alone to my own devices, so this will do nicely. Nice complexity, plenty of classic Port red fruit, but higher in acidity than many other NV Ports. Many NVs are best their first day, but I think this style shows better the 3rd or 4th day, allowing the acids to soften and show more sweet red fruit. Wish I could have followed my own advice and left more for tomorrow…
Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA- When Dogfish Head first released this in 2003 they were packaging it in 750ml bottles instead of the 12oz ones now. This was my last one in the store from that first release, and Tracy, while a Belgian fiend, is not down with the mondo hop world, so I figured she wouldn’t miss this. When I have tasted fresh releases of the 120, it bypassed my threshold of hop enjoyment going into overkill, and I find it a chore to finish a glass. With 6 years of slumber in this format, this ABSOLUTELY ROCKED!! It’s still a monster in terms or alcohol potency, but the hops have mellowed more impressively that I could have imagined, reeling it back into the Barleywine realm of flavor profile, with an incredibly huge but balanced malt profile. If you have any small bottles, hide them for at least 5 years; if have any of the 750ml’s put them away fro another 3-4 years, because they are still smoking. I hit my last 750ml of Olde School Barleywine (2003 or 2004)m so my last big 'un from Dogfish is a Raison d’Extra from 2001-2002, which I’m stashing doe another few years.
BTW: as I’m writing this, I’m pulling from a 1994 Cantillon Rose de Cambrinus Lambic; first pour smells like cherry pits and dirty sex, and only the cherry fades as it opens. Time to go back to NSFW…