A nice sunny day in early spring was enough inspiration for me to get my balls out and have people over for a bocce and crostini wine chat.
Clos du Ch. de Mosny Montlouis nv – a methode champenoise wine that I just love, made from Chenin Blanc and all apples and cream.
2007 Poets Leap Riesling – an Alan Shoup Longshadow wine from Washington state, this showed very well, with correct varietal nose, a slight spritz impression and smooth feel and end. Similar to a Kabinett. It inspired me to bring out a BC wine to taste against it.
2005 Tantalus Old Vine Riesling – tried a bottle of this on release and decided it needs a couple of years of age. This one showed beautifully – a petrol sort of nose that would have fit in perfectly with a German tasting, crisp and clean on palate with some pina colada stuff happening and a long finish. Pulled straight from the cellar which was about right for serving temperature. Just ordered some 2007 for the cellar. Certainly the best BC Riesling I have tasted.
Pleiades XVI – this Thackry wine was brewed up using syrah, barbera, carignon petit sirah, sangiovese and Viognier, no doubt with a few other odds and sods tossed in as well. This sort of Heinz approach to wine making can easily backfire, but it seems to work out well most times for this producer. The nose on this was particularly interesting, a melange of slight must, walnut skin, spice, cinnamon, a little mint, and a few others I probably didn’t write down. Medium bodied and drinking well right now with bright finish. A really annoying wine if served at a blind tasting, for sure!
2007 Dom. de Cristia Cotes du Rhone – the excuse for this gathering was for a friend to pick up a case of the 2008 of this wine that we’d split, so I figured opening a 2007 to remind us would be fun. Big spicy cherry nose, obviously Rhone, light tannin, good fruit – while this one will last a few years, I sense it may not get the chance in my cellar!
2006 Torbreck Juveniles – this Grenache, mataro, shiraz blend actually showed some brett in the nose, which I thought was going a bit far, importing common Rhone flaws for the sake of verisimilitude….but it came off well and the wine as bright and finished well if a tad edgy.
October 2000 Alain Brumont Pacherenc de Vic Bilh – I love these wines and so seldom see them outside of the madiran where I last tasted them. No one is likely to guess petit manseng for varietal, so another good stumper for the blind tastings. A molleux wine, not too sweet, it showed sweet apricot and almonds in the nose and maybe a faint hint of vanilla, and was well balanced, only a bit sweet with good acidity. These wines often remind me of an Alsatian vendage tardives in terms of balance and acid/residual impressions.