We had company for dinner last night and tried (among others):
1. Dom.Zind-Humbrecht GWT ClosWindsbuhl/Hunawihr (14%) 1993: Deep golden color; beautiful/complex honeyed/very spicy/cinammon/nutmeg/lychee bit nutty aged GWT very perfumed/fragrant nose; rather soft off-dry rich/lush/powerful very spicy/cinammon/GWT/nutmeg rather hair oil/lychee complex/nutty/old GWT flavor w/ a noticible bitterness; very long/lush/powerful/rich/off-dry soft/fat intense hair oil/lychee/GWT/nutmeg/cinammon/very spicy oldGWT/nutty finish w/ strong bitterness; a pretty classic aged GWT but the Z-H style makes the wine seem somewhat over-the-top and overblown and fatiguing on the palate. $15.00
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2. PierreGaillard Clos de Cuminaille AC: StJoseph (12.55; MeBalP) Malleval 1988: Med.light color w/ some browning; quite smokey/roasted/NRhonish/mushroomy/earthy/roasted meats/bacony complex bit tired nose w/ little fruit; tart bit lean/dried-out/tired smokey/roasted/smoked meats no fruit complex flavor w/ light tired/astringent tannins; med.long bit bitter/dried out/tired smoked meats/roasted/bacony/NRhone finish w/ light bitter/astringent tannins; some very interesting oldRhone character but getting pretty tired & thread-bare.
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3. Weingut Gottardi Blauburgunder Mazzon DOC: Sudtiroler (14%; www.gottardi-mazzon.com) Egna/Neumarkt/Bolzen 2010: Med.light color; quite earthy/dusty some mushroomy light black cherry/licorice/PN/spicy/cherry bit alcoholic classic Sudtirol red nose; soft lightly tangy/metallic earthy/mushroomy/dusty slight tangy/grapefruit/sharp/lean light black cherry/PN/licorice flavor w/ light sharp/bitey tannins; med.long quite earthy/loamy/mushroomy light black cherry/plummy finish w/ sharp/angular tannins; lods of Sudtirol earthy character and whispers of PinotNoir but a big disappointment for the price. $50.00 (AV)
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4. Produttori del Barbaresco DOCG: Barbaresco (14%; ViasImports) Barbaresco 2003: Med.light color; very light floral/Nebb/lilacs mostly earthy/dusty/mushroomy bit fusty nose w/ little complexity; rather tart very light floral/Nebb rather earthy/dusty/mushroomy/loamy little fruit flavor w/ ample hard/unyielding tannins; med.short earthy/dusty/loamy/mushroomy very slight floral/Nebb finish w/ lots of hard/coarse tannins; one of the ugliest Nebbs I've had in some time; no fruit to speak of & loads of hard tannins.
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. The Z-H GWT was from my orphan stash in the garage...a whole box of Alsatians. Last btl. It was not the best of those Alsatian GWTs...but it was showing no signs of abusive 20 yrs of storage. It was a typical Z-H over-the-top GWT. If you served it at cool room-temperature to show its complexity, it was pretty cloying & overblown on the palate from the RS. If you cooled it down to a lower temperature to improve its impact on the palate, the bitterness in the finish really came to the forefront. A lose/lose situation.
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2. The Barbaresco, a gift btl brought by our company, was a huge disappointment. The 2003 was a very torrid vintage, but I was expecting a little pleasure to be found. But it was not to be. Decanted an hour ahead of time. Even worse the next morning w/ nothing but tannins. So much for breathing Nebb.
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3. Gottardi: Not familiar at all w/ this producer so wanted to try it when I spotted it at ArroyoVino. At $50, it must be danged good. It wasn't.
Tom