Whites:
2010 André Stentz Riesling
17,47€ (the price keeps on going up!); 13% abv; 9 g/l RS, 6,2 g/l acidity. Despite the price creeping up this is still one of the better cheap Riesling available here. A lovely aroma, very pure Riesling despite some slight hints of botrytis. Lively and pure fruit, there is great energy and zing on the mid-palate, good grip on the finish. I like it. It seems to have the structure and balance to age in the mid-term but I won't dare try because it now comes with plastic "cork".
2010 Capo Malvazia - Croatia, Istra, Zapadna Istra
19,36€; 12,5% abv; Malvazija istra. Nicely perfumed, clean, floral and slightly citric; rich but dry and crisp. Not terribly complex but I like it. Expensive for what it is, however.
2009 Herdade do Esporão Alentejo Private Selection
14,5% abv; 90% Sémillon, 5% Roussanne, 5% Marsanne. Deep gold. Quite international in style: fruit of such ripeness that no hint of the grapes can be seen and plenty of oak. Rich - fat even -, fruity and oaky. Ho hum.
2010 Cellier des Princes Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc
25€; 14% abv; Grenache Blanc 65%, Clairette 15%, Bourboulenc 5%, Roussanne 5%. Smells of pear-drops so I guess it sees a cold fermentation. Some hay and nut aromas emerge with time, but it is pretty much a neutral wine. The palate is rich and has fairly good acidity but is neutral, too. 25€ should get us something far better than a clean, neutral and very forgettable wine and therefore I can only conclude that Finland's monopoly Alko's purchasing department once again failed at its job. How can we get rid of such an inept monopoly???
2005 Éric Texier Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Vieilles Vignes
Seriously good wine; this bottle at least being expressive after three years of these being shut down. Quite a lovely, slightly Musary nose; crisp for a white Rhône, a nice blend of richness and raciness. Lovely.
Reds:
2008 Éric Texier St. Joseph Vieilles Vignes La Croix
12% abv. This is not a big wine. Lovely savoury Syrahsity, lovely purity, lovely refreshing structure, lovely fruit, lovely lightness, lovely raciness, lovely everything. I only got to buy two of this vintage, now both gone. I intended to hold onto this one longer but drinking this now, though it is too young, makes me happy that I did open it: this is perhaps the most perfect wine I have ever had. I am certain that many will dislike the wine for having a slight leafy, green touch (delicious IMO, but inevitably some will find it under-ripe) and high acidity and lots of savouriness. But never have I had such an obvious Robinson Crusoe wine. If I could only drink one wine for a long time, I think I'd choose this. It is like Bach's Goldberg, or Sheppard's Media Vita - I find repetition even more fascinating than the already fascinating initial encounter. It is also a wine that shows the idiocy of any point scale with extraordinary clarity: just as there are infinities of different sizes, if this is perfection, then there are 100 point wines where one 100p is greater than another. This was better on my second encounter than on my already perfect first encounter. I'm not Cantor, so I can't explain infinities well. But who cares, this is awesome.
2009 Planeta Cerasuolo di Vittoria
18€; 13% abv; 60% Nero d'Avola, 40% Frappato. A pretty nice Cerasuolo though it isn't on the level of COS or A. Occhipinti. I haven't had many Cerasuolos but I think I like them: the Frappato really seems to bring about a brightness and red toned freshness to the heavy, thick Nero fruit. And it also seems to bring a healthy dose of acidity that Nero almost always seems to need in my experience. Refreshing and crisp but ripe and sweet, never heavy. Nice! Yet I still have a feeling that this would suffer in comparison to COS or A. Occhipinti.
Finally, a tasting of forumite Asko Kassinen's newest releases:
2009 Crushpad St Töppö - France, Bordeaux, Bordeaux Contrôlée
Merlot-Cab Franc, c.14% abv. The hot year is obvious in this wine: it is big, sweet, sunny and very ripe. But it also smells of Cabernet Franc and Merlot in such a way that I can't imagine it coming from anywhere else where a right bank blend is made. Rich and sweet but properly structured, very concentrated but fresh. It needs time. Though moderate for Bordeaux, the oak still does obfuscate the wine a little and I prefer to see the wine clearly.
2009 Crushpad Pinot Noir Töövi Hayley Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
14,2% abv. Nice Pinosity! In contrast to the 2010 below, this isn't anymore just a barrel sample -like wine, though even this one could ideally use more age. But it has the sunny, ripe fruit one expects of California and it has pure Pinosity. The oak in these more recent vintages of Töövi are IMO better integrated than in earlier ones: even in such a young wine it doesn't bother me (IIRC, this has no new oak, but 2-3 times used, so not completely neutral either). Rich, concentrated fruit but good acidity and liveliness. Good stuff! More Cali Pinot we see over here should be made in this style!
2010 Crushpad Pinot Noir Töövi Hayley Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
14% abv. A very young and primary scent and strange in being so full of concentrated raspberry aromas. Rich and full bodied but with wonderful acidity making this very moreish despite its almost barrel-sample -like primary qualities. Sexy wine and a good example of a bigger, Cali style of Pinot.