WTN: Assorted stuff plus mini-vertical of Clos du Marquis

Notes from last night's dinner party in the order the bottles were opened.

Oak Vineyards Chardonnay 2002 - This is supposed to be the same as 2 Buck Chuck. Simple. Sweet. Some oak. I've had worse. Metallic finish. I can drink this if it's really cold. Otherwise unpleasant.

Clos du Marquis 2001 - Since I was early I got to taste this before the other bottles of Clos arrived. Mint and tobacco nose. Very dry. Medium-bodied. Still some tannins. Nicely balanced. Needs food. Very long finish. The most concentrated of the Clos this night.

Ridge Lytton Springs 2003 - Light color like Pinot Noir. Some sweetness. Light zin. Some chocolate. Nothing special but OK.

Vasse Felix Classic Dry White 2004 - Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc Blend. Faint mandarin orange nose. Simple, smooth and refreshing. A good quaffer.

Sea Smoke Gratis Chardonnay 2002 - Some sweetness. Gentle oak. Buttery finish. Enough acid to balance the buttery richness. Free for those on the mailing list who order and never sold.

Clos du Marquis 1996 - Mint on the nose again but not showing much else. Very smooth with good fruit concentration. Perfect now. Slightly abrupt finish otherwise very good.

Clos du Marquis 1998 - A little musty, earthy. Very dry with a bitter finish. Declining. Better driknk this up. Least impressive Clos.

Rosenblum's Carla's Vineyard Zinfandel 2002 - Great concentration of fruit. Sweet, strong. Bitter chocolate. Seems to have fallen apart after 45 minutes in the glass. Most people preferred the Ridge.

Yalumba Mawson's Wrattonbully Sauvignon Blanc 2005 - Not much on the nose. Metallic. Not much flavor. Didn't like it at all.

Dutschke Sun-dried Shiraz NV - Very smooth. Grape juice concentrate. Very thick. Some raspberry. Very sweet but finely balanced by acidity. Such a unique wine and truly outstanding dessert wine.

St. Urbanshof QbA Mosel-Saar-Ruwer 2003 - Peach, pear and pineapple. A bit of a letdown after the Dutschke but it really should have been opened earlier. Very good and excellent value.

Hidalgo Palo Cortado Sherry - The cork fell into the bottle while trying to insert the corkscrew. Rusty orange. Rancio, very dry, heavy, oxidized. Dead, I think although I've never had a Palo Cortado so I can't be sure.

Hidalgo Palo Cortado Sherry - The cork fell into the bottle while trying to insert the corkscrew. Rusty orange. Rancio, very dry, heavy, oxidized. Dead, I think although I've never had a Palo Cortado so I can't be sure.

Can sherry die? I think this might just be the style, though the cork falling into the bottle is weird since most of these floating around were bottled in 2003...?

Thanks for your comments. The Palo Cortado was a sample bottle obtained by an importer friend of mine from the Bodega. I don't know when he obtained it but I'll try to find out.

[Jenise]

Light color like Pinot Noir.

Really? Interesting! Doesn't sound like any Ridge LS I've ever met.

Re the Marquis--I don't have the 98, but based on the few Marquises I've had I'm really surprised to learn of a 7 year old that's declining already. Sure it wasn't just shutting down?

[David M. Bueker]

The 2003 Lytton does not sound like the many 375s of the wine that I have had. While it's not my favorite Lytton, it is by no means a lightweight.

I've had the Lytton before and don't remember it being this light in body or color so this bottle did throw me off a bit. Even the flavors were somewhat muted.

See my reply to David regarding the Ridge.

The Clos was clearly declining and not shut down. This was the general consensus of the group including one taster who has long experience with Clos. We asked about the possibility of bad storage but we were assured it was kept in a Vintec right after purchase. It could have been bad storage in the store, though.