A 'Blends' Theme Lunch

No one else has started a thread on this, so I'll give it a go. The theme for this blind tasting was any blends - that is, any wine with two or more different varietals.

The starter wine was very light in colour, clean and crisp on the nose with stonefruit and apples. Similar flavours on the light-medium bodied palate and a hint of oak (B+). I guessed an Okanagan Bordeaux blend, but it was an Okanagan Rhone blend, the Terra Vista Figaro 2019. Went very nicely with a leek/avocado/hazelnut salad.

Jenise was next up. The wine was light ruby, with some bricking, a wine with some age. There was a killer nose with a mix of black and red fruits and hint of mint. A mix of black and red fruit (sans mint) on the silky, elegant, classy, lovely, medium bodied palate (A-/A). I was thinking Bordeaux again, but it was the Ridge Geyserville 1992. This was the wine of the day for most tasters, really a lovely bottle.

Bill poured his main wine next. Medium brick/ruby in colour. Cheery and herbs on the nose, and some of that on the palate too, with more depth and ripeness than the previous wine, and again elegant and silky too. Great minds think alike, this was the Ridge Geyserville 1994! There were some similarities, but differences as well. A wonderful, blind chance to have the 1992 and 1994 together.

Coop's wine was quite deep in colour, a younger wine it seemed. The nose was quite tight, but there were ripe black and red fruits on the medium to full bodied palate (B+/A-). Could this be another Zinfandel blend? It was the Bedrock Evangelho 2013.

Bob A poured his wine next. This was also dark in colour, with blackberries, herbs, nice concentration and a long, mouth filling finish. You could sense the cabernet sauvignon was dominant, but what else was in here (A-)? Well, 20 other varietals to be exact, as it was the Mas de Daumas Gassac 2011. A very interesting, unique wine. I nearly spit my wine out when this wine was revealed (see below).

I poured next. Another very dark wine, with game and black fruits on the nose and these together with healthy tannins, good concentration and a nice finish. Coop said right at first taste that it was very similar to the previous wine. Good call, as it was the Mas de Daumas Gassac 2010 that I had brought! First two Geyservilles, now two of this Languedoc wine: funny how blind tasting work.

Bob S poured a dark coloured wine. with again a gamy nose, herbal notes and black fruit. The herbal notes continued with black and red fruits on the medium bodied palate. Still some tannins, rather Loire-like, I thought (A-). But it was the Cantemerle 2000. We all expected it to be a bit riper and less herbal, but that's the way the bottle crumbles.

A poured his last. Again, quite dark in colour, with more gamy notes. A smooth, rather oaky palate, with blackfruits and silky tannins and cedar from the oak (B+/A-) This was the Muga Reserva Especial 2009. A little too modern and oaky for my style, but still a nice wine.

With the cheese course, Bill poured a lovely port, the Burmester 1994 'Extra Selected'. None of use had seem the 'Extra Selected' before. Medium ruby in colour, with sweet red fruits, tar on the nice nose. A medium bodied, medium sweet port with a silky smooth finish. Lovely with the cheese course!

Fun tasting with the two double repeats. All the wines showed well, and the Shepard's Pie made with a chicken base by Coop was wonderful as well.

[Jenise]

Great notes! I'll dig out my notepad out and respond shortly.

Notes from a blind tasting – interesting theme – blended wines with two or more varietals. I thought that this might have mediocre results but in fact it turned out very well!

2019 Terravista Figaro – a BC wine made from white Rhone varietals – 45% Roussanne, 28% Viognier and 22% Marsanne. Light yellow colour, a nose of stone fruit with citrus highlights, and some ripe pear. Good length and perfect with the food (I did a braised leek, and sliced avocado salad garnished with a butter stuffed salted radish, all dressed with a tarragon olive oil, garlic and black pepper vinaigrette.

1992 Ridge Geyserville – I have always enjoyed this wine and continue to cellar some old vintages. The 92 was 65% zinfandel, 20% carignan, 15% petit sirah. Medium colour, an initial nose of dusty mint, rather claret like, and the fruit seemed to get riper as it opened up.Medium length.

1994 Ridge Geyserville – my wine, cellared since release. 68% zin, 20% carignane, 8% petite sirah and 4% field blend mataro (mourvedre). Also holding up very well with good fruit and a bit darker colour than the 92. Bright, also clatter like and it picked up caramel with time in the glass. Both wines resembled Bordeaux, both were in excellent shape and it was a toss up as to who preferred which wine. I still have some 95 and 98 to get into soon.

2013 Bedrock Wine Co. Heritage Wine Evangelho Vineyard – this was a blend of zin, carignan, and mourvedre, dark with a pleasant nose of typical zin fruit. A tad ripe and sweet, it is ready to drink now.

2011 Mas de Daumas Gassac – this classic wine from Languedoc contains around 80% cabernet sauv. With the rest being a melange of a dozen other varietals Big dark minty wine with ripe plum and a floral element with black currants coming out with a bit of air. Nice wine, good length.

2010 Mas de Daumas Gassac – the second ‘great minds think alike’ moment of this tasting. Slightly funky cab based nose, good colour, no funk and no cedar, fresh on palate but the nose not as enticing as the 2011.These rustic wines are just hitting prime time with no rush to drink them.

2000 Ch. Cantemerle – this Medoc was the sole Bordeaux entry – it is mostly cab sauv and merlot with some cab franc and petit verdot. Completely mature noe, it showed well with a very slightly funky capsicum nose, consistent with an over all impression of greenness, and a very dry finish. Showed some cola and smoke with time. Ready to roll, no point in long term cellaring.

2009 Bodegas Muga Rioja Seleccion Especial – inky dark with a cherry cough drop nose, and fully developed tannin – now soft medium long pleasant wine. Pleasant.

1994 Burmester Port – I had only the one bottle so didn’t know what to expect. It was a tad pale in colour but showed good concentration and length now with some pleasant chocolate cherry notes. Tannins very soft and medium high acidity at the end, but pretty good showing.

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[David M. Bueker]

FYI, the Bedrock Evangelho is essentially equal parts Zin, Carignan and Mourvèdre. It is also exactly zero grams of residual sugar.

[Jenise]

Dave, even without the residual sugar that wine was young and fruity after the Geezers. My notes:

2019 Terravista Figaro white blend: brilliant balance of fruit, acidity and minerality as so often is the case with B.C. whites. The viognier doesn't show at all here though I'm sure it brought something to the party; it's all about the roussanne and marsanne.

1992 Ridge Geyserville My bottle. Cork condition: whole and clean. First questioner: Rhone? No. Cabernet? No. Grenache? No. Effusive nose with dark cherry, plum fruit and mint. Rich and lasting on the palate. As good a bottle as one could hope for with many more years left on it.

1994 Ridge Geyserville Great acidity, cherry fruit sent everyone to Italy. When that came back 'no' we struggled with it until we backed out of Europe altogether. Silkier than the '92 and showing more age. Developed a lot of caramel sitting in the glass. Still excellent, though.

2013 Bedrock Evangelho This time we went straight to zinfandel and once Ridge was ruled out I went straight to Bedrock Evangelho. Excellent dark fruit which, as John said, seemed sweet after the two old Ridges. Great stuff.

2011 and 2010 Mas de Daumas Gassac Complex barnyardy noses and red fruit detoured us to the Southern Rhone before landing in the Languedoc. Bob A counted 21 different grapes listed in the mix. Really gorgeous. The '10 showed some green notes I didn't detect in the '11.

2000 Cantemerle The recent five or six notes on this wine all promised something very evolved and different than what we found in this bottle. Gamey and greenish on dark cherry fruit with dry tannins and acidity up front: as Coop said, "if you told me this was a Jouget I'd believe you". No obvious flaws of the typical kind, just showing like an underripe wine from an off vintage. Disappointing.

2009 Muga Gamey, blackfruited, ready. Easy to enjoy.

1994 Burmester Port: What John said.

[David M. Bueker]

Evangelho has a snappiness to it regardless of who makes it and what blend they do. I have had 90% Carignan wines from Evangelho, and they had that same sappy quality as 90% Mourvèdre wines. There is something about those own rooted vines on sand.