2000 Château Rollan de By Médoc
Ripe blackberry fruit in the nose, but dry and savory flavors in the mouth. Quite a bit of rustic tannin, and seemed a bit drying on its own, but absolutely perfect with rosemary grilled lamb chops. Really a nice value bordeaux. Drinking well right now, and probably over the next 2 - 3 years. It didn't hold up overnight, oxidized and not tasty on day 2.
2004 François Chidaine Vouvray Les Argiles Clos Baudoin
Some bottle funk and wet woolly aromas initially, but as it opened this developed nice minerality and some white fruit smells. Dry (sec) style and refreshing in the mouth, but not austere. The wine showed a lot of changes over 4 hours which kept it interesting. Good effort for a tough vintage.
2005 Domaine Chignard Fleurie Les Moriers Beaujolais
One of the best 05 Beaujolais I've tried yet. Very Fleurie with beautiful fresh fruit aromas and a crunchy acidity. It really needs a 2 hour decant to show its stuff and I think will be great drinking over the next 2-5 years.
1999 Clos du Bois Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma CA
Pretty true Cab Sauv aromas, maybe a tiny bit of green bell pepper. Plenty of grip left. Not overtly oaky. Really overall was quite decent for a $20 Cali Cab.
2002 Buty Merlot/Cabernet Franc Washington, Columbia Valley
Brought over by Joe. 90% Merlot, 10% Cab Franc. Some prominent new oak followed by dark fruits and some mocha. This is a big rich fruit forward wine that got better as it opened, developed a spiciness to the finish that I liked. Not a lot of structure but some tannins and oak flavors that integrated as it opened. Probably will improve or at least hold up for 2-3 years.
2001 Rizzi Barbaresco Boito Piedmont
Seems to be closing but with swirling some lovely floral violet notes emerge, then some red fruit. Firm acidity initially followed by lots of drying tannins. Very good but needs years. I saved a little to try the next day.
More open on day two, very pretty violet aromas, delicate fruit, almost a sweet brown spice smell. Still acidic attack and gum coating tannins. The wine is very solid through the mid palate and should be great in 7 years or so.
2004 Joseph Drouhin Beaune Grèves 1er Cru Burgundy, Beaune
Pretty firm structure and not showing much fruit at first. It opened a little over a couple of hours but I would hold this for a while rather than open another right now. Tight and tough to judge at the moment. There is a real energy to the acidic structure that makes me think this is potentially very good.
2002 Manuel Manzaneque Finca Elez Nuestra Seleccion Spain, Castilla-La Mancha
This wine is a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Tempranillo, and 5% Merlot. Dark red color, the Cabernet dominates the nose with cassis and a little bell pepper. The wine has nice acidity and a rich mouth feel. The tannins are ripe and not too astringent. The tempranillo and merlot soften the cab and make this a pretty easy drinker. Nice match with grilled marinated tri tip steaks. Decent value for $25. I didn't notice any heat from the 14% abv.
2001 Melville Pinot Noir Estate Santa Rita Hills, CA
Ripe almost syrah like fruit, smoke, a bit hot on the finish. Not my favorite style, but the others I drank this with really liked this one.