Dave and Mary Kate graced us with their presence at dinner table last night, Betsy decided to make Bolognese sauce, long a Dave fave. Cooking/apertif wine was the 2009 Richard Bergerac Sec. Clean, crisp, a little bit of grass. No apparent oak, nice but nothing that screams buy again (though at $10 certainly acceptable value). B-
With the pasta/ragu, Betsy also made broccoli and a "butter bean bagna cauda" salad. I wanted Italian red, and brought up the 1997 Mastrobernardino Radici Taurasi. Some VA, cherries, a bit pruney. Big, still a bit of rough tannin on the backend. Wait, why am I drinking this? C+
Replacement was the 2002 Montevertine. A bit too chilly, I decanted and it gradually warmed up. Dried cherry, saddle leather, violets, a bit of herb. This seems mature, midbodied, not a great Montevertine but excellent for vintage. Probably at its best after couple hours in decanter, last glass was falling apart a bit. B+/B
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.