- 2002 Mt. Difficulty Pinot Noir - New Zealand, South Island, Central Otago
Classic pinot color (an almost irridescent light ruby) and nose (earthy notes, cherries, strawberries, with a hint of herbs). Medium bodied, fairly elegant flavours of cherries, rasberries and a hint of earth and spices, and a lovely silky texture. Took a peak at other notes, but his bottle wasn't a huge pinot at all. Nicely balanced and even restrained. Certainly not an old world style, but not an in your face New World wine at all. (B+/A-) - N.V. Yalumba Muscat Museum Release - Australia, Victoria, North East, Rutherglen
Hazy notes from a few days ago. Not as impressed as I had hoped with this Oz stickie. A little cloying, but certainly rich, tasty and variety correct. Very good, but not excellent in my books. (B+) - 2000 Tatachilla Shiraz Foundation - Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, McLaren Vale
Deep purple in color, with elegant, smoky plums, blueberries and a bit of chocolate milk on the nose. The palate is wonderfully smooth and silky - what great mouthfeel and seamless texture. There's still a hint of milkshake here (but less than before), but there's a bright flash of classy fruit (mainly plums and blueberries) and nicely integrated oak too. Rich and ripe, but not over the top. This was marginally better than the first bottle, and will hopefully keep improving over the next few years. (A-) - 2001 Celler Marti Fabra Empordà-Costa Brava Masia Carreras - Spain, Catalunya, Empordà-Costa Brava
This wine is from the Costa Brava region of Spain, a blend of mainly old vine grenache (50%) and carignan (35%). Deep ruby with purple hues, and a nice nose of earthy redfruits, pomegranates, iodine and a hint of menthol. The medium-full bodied palate is velvety smooth, full of deep redfruits with slight, ripe tannins on the finish. Mouthfilling, tasty flavours here, and an interesting, well made wine. Ready now, but certainly cellarable too, and should develop more complexity on the way. (A-)
FWIW, my scoring 'system' is:
A: outstanding (93 JS pts +)
A-: excellent wine (90-92)
B+: very good (87-89)
B: OK (86-84)
B-: Bleh (80-83)
Just what the world needs, another scoring system!
I saw your other post on that wine and your first bottle and it made me ponder my single experience with their wines, at the winery in fact when they would have been pouring the 98's.
