WTN: My usual mish-mash, including the worst wine ever

[Jenise]

2002 Betz Family Cabernet Sauvignon Père de Famille Columbia Valley
One of Washington's best and more traditional producers. Mineral and earth, blackberry and tobacco, leather and dust. Very resolved--the last and best of six bottles purchased on Winebid for a ridiculous $10 ea (retail on the Pere runs around $80 these days) about eight years ago, and which seem to have aged on a faster curve than some I've read about on CellarTracker. So I got an advance look, you might say, at what 289 CellarTrackerers are still waiting for--and it's very much worth the wait.

2012 Chateau Ste. Michelle Cabernet Franc Cold Creek Vineyard Columbia Valley
Purchased for drinking during a show at the Chateau (you buy bottles to take to your seat and self-pour throughout the evening). Strong and sappy with super-ripe fruit, overt oak (as most CSM wines are) and scant acidity. Not a pleasant drink for me at this time--neither of us could drink more than one glass.

2007 Tua Rita Perlato del Bosco Toscana
Plush style with voluptuous blackberry and some red fruits, spice and integrated oak. Tamed tannins, sensuous. Still more oak than I generally prefer, but Bob loves these wines and I get why he does.

2012 Zenato Rosso Veronese Alanera Veneto IGT Red Blend
Here's the opposite of the Tua Rita--a good everyday Italian. Bright, polished red fruits with cinnamon and bay leaf notes, medium pinot-like body, no apparent oak. Refreshing.

2014 Le Vieux Pin Pinot Noir Rosé 'Vaïla' Okanagan Valley
Light pink with balanced acidity and pretty strawberry fruit. A good wine, but I miss the Tavel-like seriousness of a previous vintage.

2009 Scholium Project Riquewihr Lost Slough Vineyard, Clarksburg, CA
Never in my life of group tasting wine have I ever seen six tasters' faces practically implode from schock and dislike the way they did when I poured this putrid, vile excuse for a gewurztraminer. Tasted like a compost tea of bitter raw artichokes, rotten peaches and charcoal lighter fluid. Hideous, absolutely hideous. Possibly the worst thing called 'wine' I've ever had.

2004 Domaine de la Vieille Julienne Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Very secondary right now, light on the palate with a bit of barnyard. Slightly past peak and isn't a distinguished CdP in the least, but it was pleasingly restrained compared to the high octane WA wines also on the table. Drink up.

2008 Corvus Cellars Syrah-Petite Sirah blend, Red Mountain, WA
My first Corvus. Big/gobby/purple wine with a slightly sappy finish because the acids aren't sufficient to carry it. Rather over-the-top for me. Headed down, not up.

2008 Sparkman Cellars Syrah 'Ruckus', Red Mountain, WA
Powerful, big bodied syrah. Violets and smoke, smooth tannins. Needs 2-3 years more to show best.

2010 Domaine de Fondrèche 'Persia', Ventoux/Rhone
Rich black fruit with under notes of coffee and wood, polished mouthfeel. Was quite drinkable with a bacon and potato gratin, but time and secondary development will bring more elegance.

2010 Domaine de la Colline Saint-Jean Vacqueyras
Drinks beautifully right now. Elegant, lacks Vacq's usual rusticity. Should hold or become even more interesting over the next two years or so.

2009 Château La Tour de Mons Margaux
Opened and decanted for several hours, then due to change in plans put back in bottle and drunk five days later. By which time we thought it might be dead: but, surprise, it improved and showed well. Has developed nice body and tertiary characteristics in addition to the bright piquance of preserved morello cherries. This wine will continue to improve. Between this and the next wine, by far my favorite. Strangely, Bob much preferred the other:

2010 Château de Marsan Cadillac Côtes de Bordeaux
Opened and decanted for several hours, then due to change in plans put back in bottle and drunk five days later. Surprisingly little change during that time. Big and loamy with strong flavors of black cherry and something scorched like some syrahs. No idea where it's going, but it's not quite the delight it was a year ago.

2011 Beringer Vineyards Chardonnay Private Reserve Napa Valley
Has settled nicely into middle age: harmonious, blended notes of caramel, creamed corn and lemon. Richness nicely held in check by the cool vintage.

2009 Scholium Project Riquewihr Lost Slough Vineyard, Clarksburg, CA
Never in my life of group tasting wine have I ever seen six tasters' faces practically implode from schock and dislike the way they did when I poured this putrid, vile excuse for a gewurztraminer. Tasted like a compost tea of bitter raw artichokes, rotten peaches and charcoal lighter fluid. Hideous, absolutely hideous. Possibly the worst thing called 'wine' I've ever had.

I always find Scholium wines "interesting" but seldom tasty. And usually hot. What was ABV? From Riquewihr in name sounds like he was aiming for an Alsace style. I think Clarksburg is a tad warm for that.

2009 Scholium Project Riquewihr Lost Slough Vineyard, Clarksburg, CA
Never in my life of group tasting wine have I ever seen six tasters' faces practically implode from schock and dislike the way they did when I poured this putrid, vile excuse for a gewurztraminer. Tasted like a compost tea of bitter raw artichokes, rotten peaches and charcoal lighter fluid. Hideous, absolutely hideous. Possibly the worst thing called 'wine' I've ever had.

Hmmmmm...Jenise. You don't like Science experiments???

It probably said "GWT" on the label and you tried it w/ certain expectations. And they didn't meet them.
It also said "ScholiumProject" on the label and you should have tried it w/ a whole nuther set of expectations.
You have to taste Abe's wines w/ a very/very open mind.
I suspect it was a skin-contact GWT and probably unlike any GWT you ever done had before. W/ absolutely no
GWT character whatsoever.
And it was probably not cheap.
Tom

Wow, from the sound of it that Scholium Project Riquewihr could give the infamous Tepusquet Vineyards Hock and Chateau St. Jean Blanc de Blancs serious competition for worst white wine ever.

-Paul W.

Yikes, 15.8% Gewurztraminer
https://www.thepartysource.com/express/ ... p?id=30791

Yikes, 15.8% Gewurztraminer
https://www.thepartysource.com/express/ ... p?id=30791

Well, Dale... back in the olden days (pre-Z-H), it was not at all uncommon for VendangeTardive GWT, frmtd
out to dryness, to be above 15%. Nowadays, when they make a VT GWT, they usually go the Z-H route and leave
a few % RS so the alcohol doesn't get that high. But, certainly in Alsace, 14% GWT are not uncommon.
That said...I doubt Abe's GWT is going to make the cool-kids/IPoB gang...no matter how cool Abe is.
Tom

[Jenise]

2009 Scholium Project Riquewihr Lost Slough Vineyard, Clarksburg, CA
Never in my life of group tasting wine have I ever seen six tasters' faces practically implode from schock and dislike the way they did when I poured this putrid, vile excuse for a gewurztraminer. Tasted like a compost tea of bitter raw artichokes, rotten peaches and charcoal lighter fluid. Hideous, absolutely hideous. Possibly the worst thing called 'wine' I've ever had.

I always find Scholium wines "interesting" but seldom tasty. And usually hot. What was ABV? From Riquewihr in name sounds like he was aiming for an Alsace style. I think Clarksburg is a tad warm for that.

I've had three or four Scholiums to date, and understand the challenge. But this was really 'out there', further than anything prior Scholiums could prepare me for. The only thing surprising when we looked at the alcohol number was that it was ONLY 15.8%--tasted like 20.

[Robin Garr]

I've had three or four Scholiums to date, and understand the challenge. But this was really 'out there'.

Yeah, I tasted a batch of Scholium Project wines with Abe here in Louisville a few years ago, and I enjoyed them a lot. Of course, I'm AFWE (I love Gravner, too), and I can guarantee you that he didn't open anything remotely like what you described.

A few weeks ago an old poster to this board and I were wandering around NYC and stumbled into Astor Wines to catch a tasting with a few Scholium wines. In the past, I've always found these wine to be somewhat pricey 'Science Experiments', and not always successful ones (so it goes with experiments). But the three wines we tried were quite decent: two sparklers, one from a blend of Verdehlo and Gruner and another from Sauvignon Blanc, plus a blanc de noir still wine from something like Cinsault, IIRC. The wines are expensive considering you don't know if it will even be drinkable.

Also agree with Tom that GWT can get pretty blowsy at times, even good ones. Don't always judge it by the ABV (just like Zinfandel).

I don't expect Gew to be lean or low alcohol, but I think when you are approaching 16% it's getting a little crazy. And likely gets worse with age. I've recently had 3 Gewurztraminers that aged well- 89 Trimbach Reserve (13%), 85 Trimbach SdR (13.5), and 99 Burn Chapelle/CSI/Goldert (13%). Higher than equivalent Rieslings (89 CFE VT is 12.5) but nowhere near 15.8 (or even 15).
I assume by pre-ZH you mean pre-Olivier, I remember a '81 or '83 Leonard VT that was around dry and 14, we laughed that if it were today it would be 15% with RS./

I'm not a ABV fanatic (I love both Cotats, who tend to have highest alcohol in Sancerre) but I can't remember a 15.8 % wine from any grape that I thought well-balanced. And again, I think age makes it worse .

I can't remember a 15.8 % wine from any grape that I thought well-balanced.

I've had one, a 16.5% Zin deliberately made into a port-style desert wine (6% RS) from its natural sugar content. It was actually quite good. But, just the idea of 16.5% and still 6% RS leftover - yikes!

The recent Michel-Schlumberger Zin was well over 15 but did not taste hot or overblown in any way. It was even somewhat lithe for a Dry Creek zin!

On the other hand, Mendocino-based (Hopland) winery Campo Vida had a Grenache they (or the grower) let get way out of hand, and the Grenache came in at 16.3% somehow someway. (They are a "naturalistic" winery. How did the yeasts even survive it?) It tasted really, really hot. Luckily, they allowed me to swap out my allocation for the lovely Nero D'Avola.

I have had a couple of Abe's wines that I liked. I think he does well with Petit Sirah, which I thnk is Suisun Valley's sweet spot grape.

[Jenise]

I have had a couple of Abe's wines that I liked. I think he does well with Petit Sirah, which I thnk is Suisun Valley's sweet spot grape.

Interesting to know. Oddly, I have a bottle of that. Not sure why--but was just in my cellar and groaned when I saw that bottle, remembering the awful Riquewihr.