Brief impressions from a few recent wines:
2007 Quinta do Coa, CARM, Douro (Portugal): When a local shop had these on sale at $15, I had to try one. Still very young and tight, without much nose until it opened up on the 2nd day. Nicely structured, good modern style, dark fruited with some coal smoke. Not a blockbuster, but needs time. Organically grown in the Douro Superior.
2004 Pinot Noir, Flat Rock Cellars, Gravity, VQA Niagara (Ontario): Unmistakable PN nose with a medium-light carmine color. Nicely balanced red fruits, roses with a decently long, crisp finish. Very well judged for a new world PN - not clumsily oaked or trying to be syrah. Think village Cote de Beaune. Labeled 13.5% abv but not showing it. An early effort from a Niagara winery focussing on PN, Chard and Riesling and doing a good job. This is a blend of various Dijon clones (115, 667, etc.) - they were tasting individual bottlings of each clone plus this wine when I was visiting, which was an interesting experiment. Screw cap closure.
2006 Riesling, Damiani Vineyards, Finger Lakes (NY):
Lots of lime/creamsickle notes on both the nose and palate, trailing off nicely to a slatey finish. Very primary, and the very light color supports the youthful theme. Probably 2-3% sugar, but it comes off fairly dry. Not as full bodied as many FL Rieslings. Will probably be more interesting in a few years - somewhat one-dimensional now. This place is making some good reds from their own vineyards, but I think they purchase the Riesling grapes. 11.5% abv.
2008 Tokaji Quatro Mani, Kristancic, Brda Gorska (Slovenia): Kristancic is the man behind Movia and he makes this for the US importer. Very distinctive stuff: flat, very dry ginger ale (in a good sense) with a squirt of grapefruit juice and some mint leaves. Lively and distinctive.