This medium+ bodied St.Véran already seems better focussed and integrated and less woody than the first bottle allowing the creamy citrus and mineral tinged fruit with bracing acidity to express themselves more freely. Good+.
1996 Château Sociando-Mallet - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Haut-Médoc (4/24/2016)
I bought a dozen of these in their wooden case soon after release and congratulate myself on having held off breaking into the case until now, the wine's 20th year. IMO it is in its early prime with plenty more life left. Colour quite deep with a little browning at the rim. Classical mature Médoc nose of lively red fruit (a lot of plum) with fragrance together with mineral, cedar, balsamic and noble forestal green touches. Harmonious and classically shaped medium/full bodied palate with fruit, minerals, secondary notes, juicy acidity and aromas from the nose all beautifully integrated with an added hint of leather leading to a firm long finish with some tannins still apparent until after the first mouthful of steak. Excellent.
2012 Château de Carolle - France, Bordeaux, Graves (4/26/2016)
The bottle proudly displays gold medals from competitions at Bordeaux and Lyon but for me the wine is close to undrinkable. The problem lies in strong notes of dry caramel from clumsy oak ageing which smother what may be attractive and quite rich fruit underneath. The producer and competition judges may claim that the balance will improve with more age but is it unreasonable to expect a €7 claret to be giving pleasure in its 4th year? Ugh!
2012 Château Jolys Jurançon Sec J de Jolys - France, Southwest France, Jurançon Sec (4/28/2016)
This wine now looks and tastes like one much older than its 3 and a half years. Colour quite deep gold with notes of wax lacing its tropical fruit on the nose. Palate now quite evolved with fruit seeming more candied than before and more wax but minerals still present with lively acidity which makes for good balance and provides backbone for the medium length palate. No sherry like aromas yet but they may appear soon. I think that the Nomacorc closure may have something to do with this rapid evolution, which happened to pair well with a honeyed preparation of red tuna. Still good but drink up.
2014 Cuvée de l'Empi Crozes-Hermitage - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Crozes-Hermitage (4/30/2016)
Some nice round peppery fruit more savoury than sometimes with perhaps smoother acidity. This cuvée always seems to provide easy drinking at a good QPR price of c.€7.
2012 de Neuville Saumur Cuvée Louis François - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur (5/1/2016)
Decent crisp fruity bubbly.
1971 Domaine A.-F. Gros Richebourg - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru (5/1/2016)
A big disappointment. A musty skeleton. NR (flawed)
1996 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Charmes-Chambertin - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru (5/1/2016)
This bottle was aromatically dumb on opening and took some time in the glass to open up and never sang as well as the previous. However by the last glass it has filled out to medium/full body and was showing subtle Pinot fruit, minerals, some secondary development, fine acidity and minerals and good backbone. More time should be beneficial. Very Good.
2006 Franz Hirtzberger Riesling Smaragd Singerriedel - Austria, Niederösterreich, Wachau (5/2/2016)
I opened my previous bottle in 2009, liked it a lot and thought that it had potential to develop greater complexity and become really great with some more age. Well, on the showing of this bottle, I was wrong. The deficiencies, which I hoped would be backgrounded by maturity, have on the contrary been magnified, particularly low acidity and high alcohol (14%). Although theoretically dry, this quite full bodied Riesling now seemed subjectively a little sweet with a burnished cane sugar touch and burn on the firm finish. There were some lovely white fruit and flower aromas on the nose and palate but they were diminished by the lack of freshness and by the alcohol. It's probable that this wine is better balanced in some other vintages, 2006 being a flabby vintage for white wine in much of Europe. Quite good but should be a lot more.
2014 Feudi di San Gregorio Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio - Italy, Campania, Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio (5/8/2016)
I was surprised how good this was. Full/medium bodied with good density of attractive fruit, mainly raspberry and blackberry, fresh acidity, some mineral and hints of chocolate with decently grippy backbone. Blind, I might have guessed Côtes du Rhône of more bright and savoury character without cloying sweetness. Good wine but poor QPR at €16,50 from an Italian delicatessen but available at <€10 from a German web seller!
1995 Château Poujeaux - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Moulis en Médoc (5/10/2016)
This is the first of my originally six bottles performing as it should. Red fruit with a Balsamic hint, pencil shavings, minerals, smoothly fresh acidity and tannic support are better integrated than before and now very expressive. Still not on the same level of, say, 90 and 96 but very good.
2014 Château Tour de Bonnet Entre-Deux-Mers - France, Bordeaux, Entre-Deux-Mers (5/11/2016)
This wine represents cracking QPR at c.€4. Medium bodied with lively and gracious SB type fruit and spiciness enhanced by some "gras", crisp but juicy mouth-watering acidity and saline backbone. Superb pairing for a rather sharp tasting dish of colin fish with anchovies and capers. Will probably never be better than in this phase of its youth. Good+.
2015 Les Quéradières Côtes du Rhône Villages Sablet - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Villages Sablet (5/12/2016)
In spite of (or maybe because of) its extreme youth, I enjoyed this more than the '12. Dense colour, medium/full body, lots of sweetish dark fruit tinged with raspberry and blackberry, leather, pepper, garrigue, decent acidity to prevent cloying and touches of liquorice on a grippy finish. Not refined but ideal for a barbecue. Good wine and good QPR at <€6.
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