Last night, a small group of four got together for some mid-week wine. The four pinots were served blind, though I knew what the first two were. The Cristal was a treat served to celebrate a friend turning a new page in his life (and he brought the wine!).
1999 Louis Roederer Brut Champagne Cristal. There are tons of very tiny bubbles in this renowned sparkler--making it quite effervescent and inviting. The nose offers up smoke, minerals, chalk, quinine and bread notes to start, but then begins pulling in more fruity and floral elements like citrus, powdered blueberry and white flowers. The attack is full , yet lithe and airy, showcasing a sort of elegance married to power. In the mid-palate, it is rather expansive, full and creamy, where it features apple, smoke and minerals. There are no hard edges anywhere in sight. It seems to turn to darker pinot fruits toward the back of the palate and on the finish, which is clean and decently persistent. It is a lovely Champagne, but my only complaint was that I was expecting an extra gear of depth or complexity here that just never really kicked in.
NV Pierre Peters Brut Champagne Blanc de Blancs Cuvee de Reserve. This is the second bottle of this I've had in the past 2 weeks. This was from Lot 2005.12, whereas my last bottle was from Lot 2006.09. I know these lot designations mean something, but I doubt the makeup of the two bottles was very different. The nose here is pleasant, with brioche, vanilla bean, ginger and smoky minerality. In the mouth, it is quite frothy and decidedly dry. Flavors range from caramel apples to old fashioned ginger ale. It is medium-bodied and a touch tangy, with a moderate hint of bitterness on the finish. The previous bottle had a bit more of a poached pear fruit personality and a longer finish, but otherwise my notes are pretty consistent.
2006 Inman Family Rose of Pinot Noir Endless Crush OGV Russian River Valley. The nose grows stronger as this warms in the glass, offering mild scents of fresh strawberries and raspberry seltzer, along with that strong mineral/graphite streak I always find in Kathleen's Olivet Grange vineyard. It is fresh and light in the mouth, with crisp, taut, minerally flavors of lemon/lime and strawberry. Better suited to porch sipping on a hot day, perhaps.
2001 La Bete Pinot Noir Archery Summit Vineyard Willamette Valley. Faded garnet color makes this look a bit over the hill, and I think it is. The nose here opens with stewed red fruit, funky composting earth, pulled weeds, and a sort of sasparilla/root beer blend. Nobody liked it. At least it tastes better, though it is rather dry and crisp, with narrow flavors of black cherry and an earthy bark and leaf kind of note. There is medium body, actually decent length, a hint of alcohol and a streak of spices on the finish. Over time, later glasses lost some of the weedy funk on the nose, but it never really recovered totally--my take was both over the hill and heat damaged (the cork was a bit soaked, too, lending credence to this interpretation).
2005 Roessler Pinot Noir Blue Jay Anderson Valley. This is a much healthier darker ruby-colored. Some cocoa and brown spice notes join aromas of sappy red berries, dusty earth and fresh greens on the nice nose. In the mouth, it shows an easy, approachable style with some depth to go along with that. It is medium-bodied, with dark red fruits and earth giving a sappy mouthfeel. It is very smooth and well-balanced with finely integrated tannins. It is not especially exciting, but seems like a very solid mid-term drinker if it can be found at a decent price.
2005 Freeman Pinot Noir Keefer Ranch Russian River Valley. The nose here is rather open, with briery mixed berries, stems, red candy and lots of spicy toasty oak aromas. It is smooth and creamy-textured in the mouth, with blueberries, cocoa, and a strong cola note. It is medium-bodied and does not try to be too concentrated or plush, focusing more on intensity of the spicy flavors. The finish brings back the spicy wood, but leaves no bitterness or heat.
2005 Loring Pinot Noir Keefer Ranch Russian River Valley. Of the four pinots served tonight, this one seems to have the deepest, most sensual nose--highlighted by aromas of sweet raspberry coulee and chocolate. In the mouth, this feels totally like it is cut from the same cloth as the wine above (both served blind). My guess was that this was the same wine as the previous one, with the previous one being from a more elegant vintage like 2005 and this one from a richer vintage like 2003. Well, it is a Loring, so I should have figured. It is silky-smooth textured, fuller than the Freeman, with a bit more of a sweet red berry, spices and cola profile. It ends with a bit of chalky tannins on the rhubarb-tinged finish. Overall, the Freeman is fresher and zippier, while the Loring is richer. I voted the Loring the best of the bunch by a narrow margin.
Our host then reached for a 375 that I think he said had been open for several days:
2000 Freemark Abbey Late Harvest Johannisberg Riesling Edelwein Gold Napa Valley. Toffee brown color. The nose smells like it looks, with toffee, walnuts, dried apricots and strong fig aromatics. It is round and intensely viscous on the palate, with the same flavor elements as found on the nose. It manages to also find a fine streak of citrus in there. It holds a fine line on balance, and I think it was wise to serve this chilled. The finish is super-rich and leaves one satisfied with just the one glass.
-Michael
