Tasted these over the last few weeks:
1. Jaffurs Roussanne StolpmanVnyd/SBC (12.6%; www.JaffursWine.com) 2014: Med.dark gold color; beautiful aromatic very spicy/Rouss/honeysuckle/honeyed slight herbal/thyme fairly complex nose; lightly tart quite rich/lush very strong honeysuckle/Rouss/honeyed/spicy light herbal/thyme very light pencilly/oak bit complex flavor; very long/lingering very strong Rouss/honeysuckly/honeyed/spicy lightly tart some complex finish; tons of ripe fruit that belies the 12.6% alcohol; showing some evolution but no signs of the toasted hazelnuts/oxidative character of a mature Rouss; a beautiful Rouss that'll go another 6-10 yrs.
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2. OjaiVnyd Viognier RollRanchVnyd/VenturaCnty (13.5%) Oakview 2014: Pale yellow color; strong apple/pear/slight Viog/floral bit chalky pleasant nose; quite tart/tangy rather lean/spare some pear/apple/bit Viog/floral/bit herbalk light chalky flavor; med.long apple/pear/Viog/bit chalky finish; a rather lean/spare light Viog w/ little charm; almost an eviscerated expression of Viog; pleasant enough Viog but not much joy in it.
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3. KloofStreet CheninBlanc OldVine WoO: Swartland (13.5%; www.MLFWines.com; L1118) Malmesbury/SouthAfrica 2018: Light gold color; bright pretty/CB/pear/poached pears slight herbal/chalky/mineral/perfumed talc quite attractive/perfumed nose; quite tart/tangy/grapefruity bright pear/apple/quince/CB some mineral/chalky/perfumed talc bit lean flavor; very long quite tangy/grapefruity strong CB/pear/quince some minerally/chalky/perfumed talc quite attractive finish; a quite interesting/pretty OV CB at a good price; reminds some of the Foxen Wickenden CB. $18.00 (PrimaIlC)
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4. Jaffurs Syrah SBC (14.8%) 2017: Very dark/near black color; very strong blackberry/boysenberry/Syrah slight peppery/spicy/roasted some toasty/Fr.oak/smokey lovely classic SBC Syrah nose; rather tart/tangy bit hard/angular very strong blackberry/boysenberry/spicy/Syrah some toasty/smokey/oak bit peppery/SBC Syrah somewhat structured flavor w/ ample tannins; very long/lingering strong blackberry/Syrah/spicy/peppery some smokey/toasty/oak finish w/ ample hard tannins; loads classic SBC Syrah character but rather hard on the palate and not as lush/forward as previous SBC Syrahs; needs at least 2-5 yrs yet.
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5. Abbots Delaunay Cumulo AC: Minervois (80% Syrah/20% Grenache; 14%; www.AbbottsetDelaunay.com; Maritine Wine Trading/SF) 2015: Very dark color; intense blackberry/Syrah/bit strawberry/Grenache bit spicy some earthy/dusty light pencilly/smokey/oak quite interesting/attractive if a bit rustic nose; lightly tart/tangy big/rich strong blackberry/Syrah/boysenberry some earthy/rustic bit pencilly/oak flavor w/ some rough/coarse tanning; very long strong/blackberry/Syrah finish w/ some rough tannins; plenty of earthy/rustic Syrah fruit w/ rather interesting character.
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. Been a bit AWOL for the last 3 weeks. Was on a 2 week wine hiatus because of the drugs I was taking after the knee replacement surgery. Didn't really miss the wine as other things were on my mind (like excruciating pain and rehab exercises, with Susan, who is from the "Suck It Up/Buttercup" school of rehab therapy) which distracted me. But I'm back in the saddle, now. As if any of you all really missed me around these here parts.
Tom