Blind tasting notes:
2000 Huet Vouvray Le Mont – this dry Vouvray was sadly lacking. Colour a bit darker than I’d have expected, sweetish nose, but simply lacked fruit on palate, ending after a gap with acidity. Not oxidized but somehow damaged and with a very short finish.
1996 Faustino I Rioja Gran Riserva – bright rim, leather and plum nose with some dill, medium body, good acidity, short finish.
1998 Ch. de la Gardine CNduP – mellow sweetish mature nose with anise and a bit of tar plus a bit of cedar, smooth in mouth, decent body, medium length, some soft tannin ready but no rush – good showing.
1982 Ch. Beychevelle – very nice claret nose with some earth and currant, medium bodied, fairly soft and forward now but no rush. Nice wine.
2003 Takler Kadarka – brought back from Hungary and we wished he hadn’t bothered. This wine would have best served had it been inflicted on the people that perpetrated it. Slightly musty sweet nose, slightly sweet entry, bland flat middle and short finish. Blah!
1997 Les Cailloux CNduP – turbid wine with spritz. Nice try, but…..
1999 Ruffino Modus – internationally styled wine from a Chianti producer. This IGT has cab, sangio and merlot. Big sweet nose, lots of fruit, decent length. Could have been made just about anywhere in the world.
1998 Castelgioconda Brunello – strange almost total absence of nose at the start gradually changed to show a bit of fruit (cherry) in the nose, but never attained normality. Good body and tons of acidity gave away the country of origin. Aside from the bizarre nose, it showed decently.
1990 Lungarotti San Giorgo – wet stone and mellow berry fruit in the nose of this Umbrian IGT (cab/sangio/canaiolo) and a warm and friendly welcome on palate, still showing surprising tannin. The wine shows age at the edge, which is lightening, but not much in the rest of its presentation which indicates it still has a long life ahead. Much bigger and brawnier than the 1988 we had recently.
1991 Fonseca Quinta do Panascal Port – this was still too young, but had primary flavours working away in a dark, hot, sweet wine, and they are starting to integrate. Should be nice in a few more years.