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WTN:Argyle, WA merlot, Rosso Piceno, Moscato Giallo, 97 Weil

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Keith M

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WTN:Argyle, WA merlot, Rosso Piceno, Moscato Giallo, 97 Weil

by Keith M » Fri Feb 08, 2008 6:17 am

2001 Argyle Willamette Valley Brut [52 percent Chardonnay and 48 percent Pinot Noir] (Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA) 13% - appears medium gold, good bubble movement, smell apples and strong pear, great oats, mouthfeel well-bound with lots of bubbles, small foam, taste great refreshing bit of acid upfront, pear bound nicely with oats, I really like how everything bound together nicely with this wine, went great with a yeasty galette thrown together, great wine to accentuate the food, at $23 it would be a much better deal if it cost 4 or 5 bucks less, but I nonetheless really enjoyed how it went with the food

2005 Milbrandt Washington Merlot Traditions [blend of 84 percent Merlot, 12 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 4 percent Barbera] (Washington, USA) 14.4% - appears dark purple, smell basic grape kool-aid at first and that is about it, as it opens up a more interesting (yet still sweet) vegetal aspect comes in, taste is again quite basic at first, very suave and smooth texture, dense, dense fruit, some suggestions of some other taste elements in background but they are hard to pick out, the finish kind of takes over the wine it is puckering and all too much, I found things to like about the wine, but I found it too dense, too concentrated, kind of like when others describe a wine as being too extracted or overextracted, it just felt like too much in my mouth, like a merlot trying its hardest to be a Petite Sirah, paired at times quite decently with a steak off the grill on a very cold evening, at times, however, the wine overpowered the food, it did better on its own, not my style of merlot here, on day two I found the savory elements in the midpalate even more pleasing, but the finish was too overbearing for my tastes, for the $21 it cost, I’d pass on another.

From producer: Fruit comes from four distinct sites within new Wahluke Slope appellation: Clifton, Clifton Hills, Sundance, and Winebeau Vineyards. Large diurnal temperature swings (often 40 degrees or more), lack of rain (6-8 inches per year), and porous, low-vigor soils. In response to my query, the producer indicated that the producer chose to label the wine with a Washington State appellation for its first vintage but will likely switch to a Wahluke Slope AVA designation for future vintages. In addition, the producer indicated that the wine has various encounters with oak, including a small proportion (including all of the Barbera) in new French oak for 14 months, a larger proportion in 1 year old barrels including American, French and East European oak, and the largest portion in neutral oak barrels with toasted oak staves. The communication I received in response to a query to the producer was very helpful and very informative.

2001 San Savino Rosso Piceno Superiore Trufo [blend of 50 percent Montepulciano and 50 percent Sangiovese] (Rosso Piceno Superiore DOC, Marche, central Italy) 13.4% - appears dark black purple, lighter rim, smell soft but fragrant, perfumed tar and coffee, hint of sweetness, on day two strong suggestion of wintergreen Certs on nose, taste smooth and refreshing entry, fruit of great intensity, lively, very savory with lots of suggestive elements on midpalate, tasty stuff, went beautifully with food and without, on day two, the wine has lost some of its refreshing qualities and the finish, which had been so well integrated the day before that I made no note of it, was now more parching and much more blunting tannins, still fine stuff, but much better integration on day one, overall I adored this wine, and although the fruit is intense and fresh, there seems to be a good deal of acidity to balance that, I simply cannot imagine that this wine ever had more fruit to offer than it does right now, but that wonderful fruit is accompanied by some beautiful interesting spices and non-fruity savory elements, at 13 euro, I wish I had bought more. From gerardo.de: 9 months in new Barrique (225l) from Allier-, Nièvre- und Tronçais-Eiche then 30 months in bottle, 4068 bottles produced. From producer: bottled 4 June 2003.

2004 Cantina Sociale Mori Colli Zugna Vigneti delle Dolomiti Moscato Giallo Ego (Vigneti delle Dolomiti IGT, Trentino-Alto Adige, northeastern Italy) 13.5% - appears viscous deep gold, beautiful color, smell strong fresh peaches, wonderfully inviting, as opens it moves to a wonderful peach cobbler, mouthfeel is viscous but light and flows excellently, taste delicate peaches and a great lime cheesecake element, worth savoring and easy to drink, just a beautiful wine, pricey stuff at 19 euro for a 375 ml bottle, but delicious and delicate enough to make it a great buy for me

1997 Robert Weil Kiedrich Gräfenberg Rheingau Riesling Spätlese Trocken (Rheingau, Germany) 13% - appears medium gold, quite clear, smell light minerals at first, slight pineapple that really opens up and blossoms, nice rocks with sweetness on the nose, mouthfeel has viscous entry, taste very fresh lime juice, but so integrated, nicely bound together—feels like it really combines freshness with a roundedness in flavors as well as mouthfeel that I really appreciate, lime with a hint of sweetness on finish, on day two, the more savory elements in the midpalate really started to stand out and I was very impressed—though it didn’t taste like the following, it certainly made me think of the following which might pair well (or maybe I was just hungry), but garlic, scallions, chives, and even mayonnaise came to mind, all sorts of interesting notes were blossoming on day two and I enjoyed it immensely, by day three, the wine had faded to a simple (but still enjoyable) tart lime-focused flavors that lacked zip, this was a very enjoyable experience as I do not have a lot of experience with aged Riesling and a local wine shop had this on the shelf, the flavors were more rounded and seemed to just be starting to develop versus the rieslings that I often try near release, nonetheless I was really wowed by how many primary fruit elements still speak loudly in this wine, it seemed like the wine was only now, more than 10 years after harvest, beginning to develop in bottle, a neat experience well worth the 24 euro it cost, I’d like to repeat it doing it side by side with Weil’s 2007 Kiedrich Gräfenberg Spätlese trocken
Last edited by Keith M on Sun Feb 10, 2008 4:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Rahsaan

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Re: WTN:Argyle, WA merlot, Rosso Piceno, Moscato Giallo, 97 Weil

by Rahsaan » Fri Feb 08, 2008 2:31 pm

Keith M wrote:it seemed like the wine was only now, more than 10 years after harvest, beginning to develop in bottle


There's a reason riesling is the Queen of Grapes.. :D

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