I drank lots of wines over the weekend with Laura and my parents. With some unfortunate drama I didn’t do as good a job as usual of keeping track, but hopefully these impressions will prove somewhat useful.
Salil has already addressed Friday night (and the unfortunately corked Selbach-Oster kabinett…grr), so I will proceed with Saturday.
2007 Three Wine Company Mataro Spinelli Vineyard
First taste on opening was quite volatile and rather brooding on the fruit. We decanted the wine for 2 hours, and the volatile notes faded, but it’s still a monster. The alcohol is fairly well hidden, but for the most part it’s indistinct, inky stuff with no real character other than big fruit and some volatility. This despite 100+ old, own-rooted vines.
2006 J. A. Ferret Pouilly-Fuissé Les Sceles
My mom summed this up as being too easy to drink. It’s fruity, a bit spicy and goes down very easily. Yum.
It’s a measure of how little I was actually paying attention that I cannot recall the third wine we opened Saturday, despite the fact that I know it was my favorite (and I didn’t drink much of the other two).
Sunday was a little more focused. I made the braised hoisin pork, and due to the fruitiness/richness/sweetness of the food prep we decided to forgo the Bordeaux I had pulled for my dad’s birthday (we’ll drink it another time), and instead had two California wines that really danced with the food.
1998 Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill
Young, fresh, precise, delicious! Drink now for pure pleasure, or wait as long as you want. This is one of the few prestige wines that I am still willing to (occasionally) pay for.
2008 Anthill Farms Pinot Noir Tina Marie Vineyard
This wine is an interesting conflict of perception. It's quite dark (purple), but not at all opaque. It's rich in aromatics on the nose, but quite elegant on the palate. Lots of fruit, not much, if any oak (I really did not notice any), and a purity to the wine that impresses me very much.
2008 Edmunds St. John Syrah Cuvee Fairbairn
Steve’s most recent Syrah from Mendocino is like a perfectly grilled steak in a glass. Outstanding! No more needs to be said.
We also had a (very) sweet Riesling from Three Wine Company that really wanted to be a good TBA, but just lacked some acid. It had that high level of botrytis, but just needed a little more freshness.
Monday was dinner out at our local Asian BYO.
2007 90+ Cellars Riesling Spatlese Erdener Treppchen
I know what you’re thinking – Bueker falling for pointy marketing? This was actually a Dr. Loosen bottling (complete with branded cork) that somehow ended up as part of this line. It’s an excellent wine, with better balance (to me) than many 2007s (a touch more acid showing) & excellent palate presence. It showed well with the Asian food, and was equally good if not better when I drank the (little bit of) leftovers Tuesday night.
2007 Baudry Chinon La Croix Boissee
Mmm…this is nice. There’s a lovely herbal element setting off the rich fruit, and the balance is just right. Also a great match with the Asian food. Drink now or any time for a long time.
