WTN: Bert Simon Auslese, Esprit de Beaucastel, Murrieta

Notes from Saturday lunch at Toki with some friends I hadn't seen in some time.

Bert Simon Serrig Herrenberg Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel 1989 - Medium gold. Remarkably fresh. The sweetness seems quite gentle. Apple skins, green apples, orange. Lovely, elegant wine.

Tablas Creek Esprit de Beaucastel 2005 - Lots of barnyard on the nose which doesn't completely disappear, even with vigorous swirling. At least from smelling, this a convincing copy of Beaucastel (from the very few I've tried so far). Medium to full-bodied wine. The palate is still pretty tight and there are still abundant tannins on the finish. This needs a couple of more years to show full potential but I think it will be excellent in time.

Marques de Murrieta Finca Ygay Reserva 2003 - Chocolate and cherries, cigar, roasted meat, coffee. Medium-bodied. Quite dry, with lots of acidity and tannins on the finish. This needs a couple of years to shed the tannins. I thought the high acidity unbalanced it somewhat.

[David M. Bueker]

There's a lot of that '89 Bert Simon around. I've had it on both coasts.

thanks for notes. I also liked the 05 Esprit de Beaucastel, but agree it needs some cellaring.

Tablas Creek Esprit de Beaucastel 2005 - Lots of barnyard on the nose which doesn't completely disappear, even with vigorous swirling. At least from smelling, this a convincing copy of Beaucastel (from the very few I've tried so far). Medium to full-bodied wine. The palate is still pretty tight and there are still abundant tannins on the finish. This needs a couple of more years to show full potential but I think it will be excellent in time.

Thanks Jay. This sounds like a good one. I've seen this at a local store at a reasonable price. I have to try this one.

Piling on - we had the Esprit de Beaucastel a couple of weeks ago and it was a bit tight. Good stuff, though.