2004 Maison Louis Jadot – Domaine Duc de Magenta Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Garenne
Nose of rye bread and toasty oak. Full, ripe, fleshy, bone dry, and nicely balanced, with good underlying acidity. Tastes of tropical fruits, honey, white peaches, nuts, and minerals. Finishes with a cardamom note. Excellent.
2004 Borgo San Daniele Arbis Ròs IGT Venezia Giulia
70% Pignolo, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 10% Cabernet Franc. Nose of mixed berries and roasted herbs. Full, smooth, and elegant, with moderate, integrated, new oak, and blackberry, cherry, crème de cassis, and herbal flavors. Definitely on the modern side, though nicely balanced, with good underlying acidity. Very good.
2002 Domaine Jean Rijckaert Mâcon-Bissy Les Crays Vers Vaux Vieilles Vignes
Rather oaky, mineral nose. Medium-bodied, bone dry, linear, well balanced with moderate acidity. Tastes of honeyed apples and pears, with some mineral notes, and toasty oak. A good wine; perhaps more oaky than I would normally prefer, though. Drink up now.
2000 Castello di Ama Vin Santo del Chianti Classico
From 375 ml bottle; 62% Malvasia/38% Trebbiano Toscano. Grapey/honeyed nose, with some baking spice aromas. Moderately sweet, lightly viscous, with good underlying acidity; not an oxidative Vin Santo. Tastes of honey, walnuts, baked apples, and caramel, with some citrus and kvass notes. Very good.
1999 Keller Dalsheimer Hubacker Riesling Spätlese #26
This is the oldest wine that I have had so far from Keller. Very pure tropical fruit nose. Full, concentrated, exceptionally well balanced, and nicely focused. Moderately sweet – into Auslese territory - with good underlying acidity, and a strong mineral backbone. Tastes of pineapples, Bartlett pears, and honey, with beeswax and kiwifruit accents. Great length on the finish. Excellent – a really stellar Spätlese. $30.
Imported by Vineyard Road Inc., not to be confused with Vineyard Research, another Massachusetts importer that also used to have Keller in their portfolio.
Note: Cellartracker lists this wine as having a Goldkapsel, but the capsule on this bottle is actually white. The fact that Keller does seem to reserve the AP #26 for Goldkapsel Spätlesen nowadays (some have a large ‘-26- ‘clearly printed on the front of the label) probably caused the confusion.