We tried last week at Pig+Fig some Forlorn-Hope Whites:
1. Forlorn-Hope CheninBlanc RorickVnyd/CalaverasCnty (13.37%; 125 cs; InaugralVintage) 2015: Med.gold color; rather honeyed/mature CB/smokey/old Loire rather graham cracker slight pear/pear blossom quite complex lovely nose; rather tart/tangy pear/mature CB/honeyed/honey graham totally dry quite complex mature CB flavor; very long/lingering finish that mimics flavor; tastes like a 20 yr old Loire CB but not the chalky minerality; a CB that has matured into a lovely fully-mature CB. $32.00
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2. Forlorn-Hope Baron von Verm Vermentino RorickHeritageVnyd/CalaverasCnty/SierraFoothills (12.35%; www.ForlornHopeWines.com) 2017: Med.gold color; lovely very fragrant perfumed floral/Verm/gardenias some spicy/perfumed talc lightly nutty/honeyed very spicy complex beautiful nose; fairly tart/tangy strong floral/Verm/gardenias/spicy some honeyed/honey grahams slightly nutty rather complex beautiful mature Verm flavor; very long/lingering finish that mimics flavor; still lots of youthful Verm floral fruit but showing some evolution; should go another 3-6 yrs. $32.00
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3. Forlorn-Hope Batiscafo Verdelho DeWittVnyd/AmadorCnty (13.82%; 27 cs) 2012: Med.gold bit hazy color; slight funky/earthy/chalky/plasticizer bit floral/marigolds/pungent light nutty/honeyed/graham cracker bit quiet/low-key/subdued some complex nose; soft slight tangy/metallic some earthy/funky slight floral/marigolds/pungent bit tired flavor; rather quiet/low-key & showing a bit of age but still somewhat interesting & not over-the-hill but headed that way. $45.00
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4. Forlorn-Hope Verdelho RHV RorickVnyd/CalaverasCnty (14.51%; 43 cs) Murphys 2015: Med.gold perfectly clear color; strong floral/Verd/carnations spicy/nutmeg/cardamon slight honeyed some complex nose; lightly tart/tangy some floral/Verd/carnations slight spicy/cardamon slight nutty/honeyed bit rustic fairly complex flavor; med.long lightly tangy/metallic finish that follows flavor; a rather interesting bit rustic fully mature Verd that should go another few yrs. $48.00
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5. Forlorn-Hope Trobairises Picpoul RorickVnyd/CalaverasCnty (12.13%; 52 cs; 50 cs) 2016: Med.light gold color; lightly earthy/stony some floral/marigolds/pungent bit herbal/Kansas haymow rather attractive/interesting still youthful nose; very tart/acidic lean/pinched some stony/chalky lightly floral/marigolds/pungent some herbal/grassy/haymow bit complex flavor; lonf finish that mimics flavor; definitely a lip-stinger but somewhat interesting & can use more age. $38.50
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6. Forlorn-Hope Moresque Picpoul RorickVnyd/CalaverasCnty (52 cs; skin-frmtd for 8 mo. in egg-concrete tank; 12.72%) 2016: Med.dark gold/burnished bronze color; rather phenolic/resinous/VM bit graham cracker/honey grahams slight herbal/floral/marigolds rather complex nose; quite tart/tangy/acidic/lip-stinging very strong phenolic/VM/resinous very slight herbal/floral/dusty haymow somewhat rich/lushbit hard/tannic some graham cracker/complex flavor w/ some hard/bitey tannins; long resinous/VM/phenolic rather hard/tannic finish; dominated by the VM character & not very pleasant drinking right now; showing only a slight evolution but loads of VM character; needs probably 5-10 yrs of age yet. $32.00
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7. Forlorn-Hope Gemischter Satz MokelumneGlenVnyd/Lodi (13.39%; 52 cs; 35 different varieties; Growers: Koth Family; last vintage) 2016: Light gold color; very fragrant/perfumed rather floral/R-like/mango/pineapple slight earthy/chalky very Austrian/Germanic light honeyed rather complex nose; bit soft rather perfumed/floral/mango/R-like/pineapple slight metallic bit earthy/chalky fairly complex somewhat youthful flavor; very long/lingering complex finish that mimics the flavor; a beautiful youthful GS that is a dead ringer for a NiederOsterich GS but not the minerality they usually show; should go a few more yrs. $30.00
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More zicklerork from TheBloodyPulpit:
1. These are the wines of Matt Rorick. The whites can be rather underwhelming and fairly lean on release & on the acidic side & not very interesting. But I was fairly impressed as to how well these whites were developing. The Batiscafo Verdelho was the only one to be a bit shakey.
The Gemischter Satz was easily my favorite of these wines. It comes from a Lodi vnyd that has a whole range of aromatic German varieties. Of course, the Austrian authorities have been on his case about using their GS name on this wine. GS was first a DAC for wines from around Vienna which were a field blend of grapes from old mixed planting vnyds. It has been since extended to be used in NiederOestrich wines as well.
I was impressed by this GS as showing a lot of fragrant perfume for a white wine from Lodi. Strange place to plant a bunch of German varieties.
Tom