On Saturday night we shared three syrahs with friends:
2015 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Côte-Rôtie Domaine des Pierrelles Syrah
First bottle of a case. Mild barnyard nose with plums, bacon, meat, lavender and fennel. Decanted for an hour and it didn't need more. Excellent.
2010 Château de Beaucastel Côtes du Rhône Coudoulet de Beaucastel Red Rhone Blend
Third bottle opened in the last 18 months. Surprisingly, it lacks the intensity of earlier bottles; drinkable but softer and imprecise. Drank half; leftovers the next day were pfffft. Drink up.
The third bottle was a 2014 MTR Syrah from Reynvaan winemaker Matt Reynvaan, which I reported on another bottle of two weeks ago. My guest was the guy who introduced me to Reynvaan wines back in 2008, so it made sense.
2018 Vignoble Malidain Muscadet-Côtes de Grandlieu Sensation de Grandlieu Melon de Bourgogne
Closer to the 2 or 3 California Melon de Bougognes I've had--no sharp corners--than a Pepiere Muscadet, but very good nonetheless. Elegant.
And then on Monday I had my book group over for afternoon nibbles and wine. None of them are wine savvy, so I opted for a pair of Guigal Cotes du Rhones. My local market had the red and white side by side in two separate boxes. I took one from each. Not until I'd opened the second bottle did I realize that I hadn't paid enough attention to what was in each box: I ended up with two reds. Dang it, but a guest brought a white, a 2017 Semillon from Chateau Ste Michelle's reserve club, which had a lot of grapefruit and pear aromas.
2017 E. Guigal Côtes du Rhône Red Rhone Blend
Ripe and sweet, cloying finish. I love this wine in some vintages, but not this one.
So after my guests left Bob poured himself a glass of this, and I poured myself a glass of the Semillon and put it on ice. We took them outside to enjoy a sunny evening. Not entirely happy with what I was drinking, I reached over and poured enough of Bob's wine into mine to stain it a pretty pomegranate red. The result? Delicious. I mean: DELICIOUS. Didn't just make something drinkable, it made something cravable. No longer sweet, but dry plummy fruit with a savage backbone from the semillon. And delicious cold. Who'da thunk it.