WTN: Knoll Riesling, Azelia Barolo

Grilled shrimp, quinoa, braised red cabbage, and carnival squash, with the 2011 Knoll Pfaffenberg Steiner Riesling. Bone dry but not austere, the ripe peach fruit accented with citrus zest,long finish with a mountain stream rock minerality. B++

Friday we both had big days, I grabbed marinated pork belly and chicken breast from HMart to grill, with some quick Chinese broccoli and rice. Wine was the 1996 Azelia Barolo, decanted about 2.5 hours before dinner. This is a de Grazia wine, from height of modernista era, I’ve had a few trainwrecks from then, but this is not OTT, quite drinkable if maybe a tad anonymous, Sweet cherries, red plum, moderate acids, not much tannin left. Ready to drink, juicy red thst doesn’t scream Piedmont but is fun to drink. B/B-

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C
drinkable. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice.Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.

[David M. Bueker]

Huh…did Azelia ever back away from the modernista school? I have a few bottles of 2004, and didn’t know they were that style?

I don't really follow Azelia, but I think what I was told was that the normale now is more traditional, while the single vineyard wine (or wines?) is still in newish barrels. But I'm not sure of that and have no clue when they went back to botti for the base (if they did)., In other words no clue!