Tasted these 4 new wines over the Weekend w/ Susan:
1. Wittmann Albalonga BA Westhof Steingrube/Rheinhessen (7.5%; QmP: BE; A.Pr.Nr 4 327 231 008 99; TerryTheiseSlctns) Wittmann/Westhofen/Reheinheesn 1998: Med.gold color; very strong botrytis/honeyed slight pineapple very fragrant intense nose; bit soft very rich/lush intense botrytis/honeyed quite sweet bit complex flavor; very long/lingering quite sweet/botrytis finish that tracks flavor; doesn't show a whole lot of evolution; loads of intense botrytis & should go another 10-20 yrs. $34.00/500 ml
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2. Ingrid Groiss Gemischter Satz Braitenpuechtorff (12.0%; http://www.Ingrid-Groiss.At; VnydBrands/Birmingham/AL) Ingrid Groiss/Braitenpuechtorff/niederosterraich 2024: Light yellow color w/ lots of tiny bubbles that dissipate; quite fragrant floral/carnations some GV/white pepper fiarly intense lovely nose; somewhat off-dry rather tart/tangy some citric/lemony some floral/carnations/GV very bright/spicy bit rich/lush lovely flavor; very long floral/GV finish that mimics flavor; very lovely fragrant nose but rather off-dry on the palate; much more interesting t& intense than the '23. $23.00 (SFW&S)
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3. IruaiVnyd Shasta-Cascade Mystery Lodge Trinity Alpes/OR Siskiyou American WW (12.5%; Sauvignin/Chard/CheninBlanc/Sauvignon Rose Musque/GrunerVeltliner) Methode Sauvage/Etna/CA 2024: Light yellow color; lightly earthy/stoney lightly floral/Viog-like fragrant pear/peach almost R-like quite attractive/interesting nose that reminds more of Viog than anything; a bit of Savoie Apremont; lightly tart fairly rich some floral/stony/appley slightly off-dry flavor; fairly long earthy/floral finish; reminds a lot of Viog or Savoie Apremont; quite an interesting white at a very fair prce; a bit on the rustic side but an intreresting white. $22.00 (SFW&S)
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4. Dom.Bibich CRNO Croatia (13%; 80% Syrah/20% Plavina; Aged: 1 yr. in Fr.oak) Croatia 2021: Very ark color w/ slight bricking; strong Syrah/blackberry some earthy/dusty/rustic bit Southern Rhone interesting nose; strong blackberry/Syrah/earthy dusty/OV fairly rustic bit coarse flavor w/ ample tannins; very long/bit alcoholic strong blackberry/Syrah finish that follows the flavor; a somewhat interesting some rough/coarse expression of Syrah; lacks the high-toned fragrance of many Syrahs. $22.00 (SFW&S)
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More kikklefrat from TheBloodyPulpit:
1. Albalonga is a cross between Rieslaner X Muller-Thurgau. Found mostly in the Rheinhessen.
I was a bit disappointed in the Ingrid Groiss GS '24. It had just showed up here in NM & (I was eager to try it. It was much more interesting than the '23 but I found it just a bit too sweet on the palate to be food-friendly. Maybe age will help. Great nose but not on the palate.
Iruai was a winery that was recently written up by Eric Asimov in the NYTimes. It was hard to characterize this wine but I found it quite interesting.
Tom