Gabe poured his white first. When I got no'd on Semillon I went straight to Chenin, which was right. A Savennieres, in fact, Domaine Closel-Chateau de Vaults "La Jabousie". Stupidly, I failed to note the vintage, but it was at least five years old. Austere and bone dry, with a nose of dried pear and cheese. Next up was my white: chardonnay was guessed right off the bat but the group could get no further, flummoxed by the juxtaposition of the Chablis-like flinty, steely, petrol stuff with the voluptuous exotic fruits and plenty of strange and wonderful acids. It was guessed to be no older than five years, but in fact it's a 10 year old: 2000 Dalyrmple Chardonnay from Tasmania. Boo hoo, this was my last bottle.
Next up, a red: smokey red fruit, maturing, grenache-y, it seemed obviously a Rhone but in fact it was a non-vintage Les Cretes "Coteau la Tour" Vina de Tavola from Italy with the majority fruit syrah. Once it was unveiled I retasted it to see if I'd missed the acidity so typical of Italian wine but no, it wasn't there. Very good, though.
Now a wine from John: strawberry fruit leather, maple suyrup, oak-ness, dates...merlot? Yes, it had some in it, Spain? Priorat? Yes and yes: 2003 Scala Dei Priorat. Very good and at peak.
Jesse sent the next one around: cloudy, indistinct red fruit, olives, quite a bit of age on it. Too much, I think: it's a 95 Chateau du Trignon from Gigondas.
I decided it was time for one of my reds and passed the 2000 Joguet La Dioterie Cabernet Franc from Chinon. This wine reminded us how rarely we smell a truly perfect nose because perfect this was--hugely aromatic, it just wafted out of the glass and kissed you. Bordeaux was someone's first guess and when that failed Brian jumped in to nail Chinon. Medium red color with orange hue. Cherry red fruit on the nose with a little leather and brown sugar. On the palate, more red fruit with herbs and a smidge of green olive. Outstanding, and absolutely perfect for current drinking (Rahsaan, don't you have this one?), and pretty much everybody's WOTN.
Then came a wine from Allen: promising nose with sassafras and malt, but it otherwise gave no clues and the wine was totally shut down on the palate. Serious tannins. Should be a gorgeous wine some day but it's nowhere close to being drinkable now, and we were all surprised when a Gigondas was unveiled: 2004 Santa Duc Hautes des Garriques.
Out came another baby: Gabe's 2004 Croix de Labrie from St. Emilion. Showed a lot of Bordeaux elements and elegance, but it needs a lot more time.
Here comes something special from Jesse: licorice, tea, lithe red fruit, great acidity, smoke. It's drinking nicely right now but it will benefit from further cellaring: Brian nails nebbiolo immediately and astutely chooses Barbaresco, it's a 2001 Filles Cigliuti.
It looked like we were getting down to the bigger wines so I threw in my final entrant: the 2005 Vaillant Domaine Les Grandes Viges "Les Cocainelles Anjou-Villages I posted about recently, a wine I absolutely detested a year ago that has turned into something remarkably good. On the nose burdock root, parsnips, vitamin B6, and chalk. On the palate, black cherry and plums with a bit of chocolate. Fine tannins ease into a good finish. A great upside surprise for the group that way outperforms it's price tag of just $13.
Suddenly Vic swings into action and passes around a friendly puppy of a wine, it's all soft and cuddly and merlotish like a St. Emilion from a warm year. It's not St. Em, though, it's a Cotes du Blaye: 2005 Chateau Bel-Air La Royere. A delicious wine you could serve to anybody as it has something to please, in a way that few wines are able to do, all levels of experience. But wait, Vic's not done, here's another: round, new worldy fruit but savory and smokey in an old worldy way that everyone finds quite appealing, it's a 2003 Taltarni Shiraz. An excellent example of the OTHER Australia.
Now out comes this giant glass orb thing Allen walked in with earlier. I'm not sure what kind of decanter this is, but I am sure it didn't come into this world planning to be one.
On first sniff, John got off the best line of the night with the two-word question: "Pedro Ximenez?" When we could finally stop laughing, in unison we guessed Napa Cabernet and when Allen initially denied it we called him a liar. It just couldn't NOT be. Sweet black cherry and vanilla with a bit of fennel and cola, thick and fat on the palate. It's a 2003 Pride Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.Then Melissa decided she wanted to open a wine, too, so a cold white wine emerged: pale, almost clear with white flowers and hints of white pepper and ginger. Deceptively mild acidity and no oak. Very nice and refreshing after the Pride: 2007 Vinosia Malvasia.
Somehow about this point I spy a corked bottle on the side board I recognize for having one of the most beautiful labels I've ever seen, possibly even THE most beautiful: "Gabe, is that the same bottle we tasted a month ago?" It was. Open four weeks now, the 2008 La Cote de l'Ange CdP Blanc had marzipan and pear going on and though it had been left out a bit too long, it was only barely oxidative. Quite impressive. Would be one to buy and hold.
And in the US market is king. While in Italy there are still many producers that stick to "typicity" and tradition, in the US most producers will try to make a wine that sells for as high a price as possible. And, once again, oak is used everywhere in the US, if they can afford it.