WTN: This & That: Alsace, Loire, New York, Austria

Note: All prices are in Canadian dollars, unless otherwise indicated.

2004 Dopff & Irion Gewurztraminer "La Cuvée René Dopff" (Alsace; $25.95)
The Vintages website almost raves about this Gewurz in their write-up, but I came away without feeling too much enthusiasm. 13.5% alc./vol. Clear bright straw colour. Varietally correct Gewurz nose of spice and rosewater; a bit of lychee, but with far less intensity than I was expecting. Off-dry on the palate with fair persistence and surprisingly low-key in terms of famous Gewurz perfume. Gentle and passable; not flawed in any way but severely overpriced at almost $26. I was expecting really concentrated aromas here but instead found an easy-going light Gewurz that could have passed for one of the better Ontario Gewurzes from a good year and a competent producer. I was expecting more focus and intensity from Alsace.

2003 Château de Chaintres Saumur-Champigny (Loire; $18.15)
This is one hell of an amazingly fantastic Loire red, and the absolute best Cab Franc I have ever tasted in my entire life. I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did, but have now had my vinous antennae permanently piqued in the direction of Loire Cab Franc. I cannot believe how interesting this Cab Franc is; it is an extremely complex wine and is so much more layered than any varietal Cab Franc that I've ever had from anywhere else. 13% alc./vol. Intense, almost opaque dark garnet. Amazing, layered nose featuring cured meat, spice, leather and minor whiffs of bandaid; gamey and sinewy on the nose, with red-fruit nuances holding the whole package together. Beautifully balanced on the entry and continuing so right across the palate; dry and supple with much substance right into the long, tasty, savoury finish. It was an unexpectedly fine match with the gigot d'agneau I had made for supper that same day, and I was greatly pleased with the unanimity of praise that came from my dinner guests for the wine match. It was coincidence at its best - I didn't plan the match to work as well as it did! I will be getting more of this wine for sure. We've heard all sorts of things about 2003 in Europe, but I have nothing but praise for it where this wine, at least, is concerned.

2004 Torrione Petrolo Toscana (Indicazione Geografica Tipica)
This apparently sells for around $30 US, maybe a bit less. At that price, I'm glad I didn't buy it but instead got it as a gift from my dinner guests. 13.5% alc./vol. Deep dark cherry-garnet colour with fine saturation. Immediately, however, I notice an oaky/jammy modern nose and find much of the same on the palate, with rather shrill acidity and not much substance beyond the familiar maquillage. What a diametric switch this was from the Saumur-Champigny which preceded it, and which I truly loved. The Torrione was a sound wine to be sure, but it was wholly international-style in nature. I later read that Wine Spectator gave it 93 points! Suffice it to say that this was no match for the Saumur-Champigny in my opinion and it wasn't my kind of wine at all.

Non-Vintage Willow Creek Dry Concord (Western New York)
I was given this particular bottle as a gift from Howie, though I first tasted this wine around 2005. I'm not sure what vintage is represented here if indeed any, but would guess 2003 or 2004. Folks know how much I stick up for our labruscana-type grapes and wines made from them, but I am strictly selective in my praise: most commercial labrusca wines that I've tried have not earned my favour, either for being syrupy sweet or having cloying, stewy aromas that don't represent the vibrant purity of the fresh grapes. Unfortunately, and I really hate to say it, this wine is among those by which I was not impressed. 11.5% alc./vol. It has light colour for Concord, and although varietally correct, the aromas lack freshness and vibrancy. I don't know by what methods this wine was made, but it tastes thin and watery compared to my 2002 homemade dry Concord - I never add water to my Concord musts and am philosophically opposed to the practice. Most sources to-date on making Concord wine posit "amelioration" (watering down the must) as a way to reduce aroma and acidity all at once. I believe that a better way to reduce acidity can be found in a combination of (1) strict crop control in the vineyard (something that labrusca rarely gets because people generally don't respect the varieties) and (2) cold stabilization. As for aroma reduction - if one doesn't like the aroma, I wonder why one would make the wine at all. Again, these are all asides; all I can say with regard to this particular wine is that I wanted to like it a lot but found it basically uninteresting.

2003 Souveräner Malteser Ritterorden Merlot (by Lenz Moser, Austria; $17.95)
Having read fawning reviews of this wine both online and at Vintages and having been told by the wine buyer at my local store that she personally reviewed the wine and gave it a 'WOW' (which she did, on the shelf talker), but mainly because I am in a perpetual Austrian mood and wanted to try a Merlot from Austria, I picked up a bottle of this wine. I'm glad I only picked up one. Massive 14.5% alc./vol. with copious tears. Very pretty, dark ruby-garnet with a distinct violet overtone. Shy on the nose, but identifiably Merlot; some oak spice comes through. First impressions on the palate are of a dry but somewhat thin wine, not in tune with the alcohol level. After that there's not much on the mid-palate, and then a huge whack of blow-torch flaming alcohol towards the finish. This is a 'wow' wine? Maybe for the cocktail and punch crowd, but I can't enjoy it no matter how much I try - and I didn't try more than a couple of times. This was disappointing.

Very interesting notes there Paul B and the Saumur sounds like a terrific wine. The Gewurtz seems to be all over the place? Vintage was OK, maybe a couple of years in the bottle but your notes do not seem to hold out a lot of hope! I always enjoy your Concord comments.

Good notes Paul. Too bad about the Concord. My guess is that they don't add water, but either use hot-pressed grapes or limited amount of maceration. However, it does confirm my long held belief that we home winemakers can sometimes do a better job than the commercial wineries. The 2003 Château de Chaintres Saumur-Champigny sounds wonderful. Too bad that more Loire Cab Francs aren't readily available. I had an '04 Rose a few months ago that I enjoyed tremendously, but somehow lost the empty bottle with the label, so I never posted a TN.

Thanks for the notes Paul. Too bad about the Petrolo. I have enjoyed the 2001 Torrione, which I liked quite a bit (even considering I don't care for too many Sangiovese-type wines). I concur with the Lenz Moser critique. The wines are shite. A disapointment, since the man himself is such an icon of Austrian winemaking. But...the same could be said for Gallo here in the US -'Icon' can have bad connotations as well.

Many thanks for everyone's feedback.

Bill, I had no idea that Lenz Moser wines were at that end of the barrel - the Gallo of Austria seems like a fitting title for this wine at least! It was a blow torch in a bottle, I tell you. How anyone can be a wine buyer and give it a WOW rating is beyond me.

The Gewurtz seems to be all over the place? Vintage was OK, maybe a couple of years in the bottle but your notes do not seem to hold out a lot of hope!

Bob, this wine struck me as a perfectly correct and clean Gewurz, but it lacked intensity - something that I really look for in Alsatian examples. It was touted as dry at the store, but it wasn't dry at all, but rather off-dry. Disappointment #2! I wouldn't have been disappointed had I spent ten bucks or so on it, but at over 2½ times that, I frankly was ...

Thanks for the notes Paul. Too bad about the Petrolo. I have enjoyed the 2001 Torrione, which I liked quite a bit (even considering I don't care for too many Sangiovese-type wines).

Bill, I'll add that the Petrolo was much better than the Moser Merlot, though it was very new-wordly in style. The maquillage really came through on the nose. Or, maybe I was duly spoiled by the fantastic Saumur-Champigny.

However, it does confirm my long held belief that we home winemakers can sometimes do a better job than the commercial wineries.

Howie, I clearly agree with you! Yes - I believe that this can be the case because when we make wine without the commercial factor as part of the scene, we are able to put our hearts into it and do whatever it takes to make the best wine we can. This is not to say that commercially-oriented winemakers don't put their hearts into their wines, but there are times when the bottom line rudely interrupts the creation of something potentially more beautiful ... and as we know, you can't put a price on beauty.