WTN: April Blind Tasting Lunch

April lunch notes:

1995 Stony Hill Napa Riesling – a surprise! Obvious Riesling nose, a bit flat on palate, ends softly but with enough acidity. I wondered if it might be an Oz wine.

2000 Albert Mann Gewurztraminer Steingrubler – excellent aromatics, not a dry finish but a bit off dry, with good balance – very nice wine that I am sad to note is now exhausted in my own cellar

1997 Kanonkop Paul Sauer – the flagship wine of this Cape producer. Showed a dark cocoa nose, a little ripe, but with time in glass it became more European with good clean acidity in the finish. Needs time.

2004 Black Widow Reserve – a BC wine (60 cases made) with 85% merlot, 15% cab. Unusual nose – smoked oysters and cinnamon! Sweet finish with a smoky custardy thing happening with a hint of licorice.

1997 Valdivieso Reserve Malbec – sweet nutty nose, middle weight, still fairly tannic and could use a little more time to take the remaining edges off.

1992 Sterling Diamond Mountain Ranch – a 76% Cab 16% cab franc, 8% merlot bledn made by Bill Dyer. This wine is only now starting to come into drinking range as the tannins have been pretty standoffish in youth. Slightly dusty cab nose, dark wine, quite dry finish.

1994 DeLille Chaleur – always a fave of mine, this wine had a voluptuous nose of fruit and spice, was rich and sweet on palate, with soft tannin. Drinking very nicely now.

1999 Colombo Cornas Les Myjeans – the earlier drinking brother to Les Ruchets, I’ve had this many times but was thrown on this occasion by the stinky nose. It was well developed, fairly smooth and ready to drink.

1997 Eileen Hardy Shiraz Mclaren Vale – the ripe minty nose was a giveaway to origin, obvious Oz. Nice weight, not too heavy and with nice clean acidity. A good vintage. Guess I better get stuck into my 1995.

2002 St. Hallets Blackwell Shiraz – we were detecting a theme by this time. Inky black-purple, sweet ripe wine but actually quite pleasant drinking now.

2003 Kirkland Pauillac – we ended on an unusual note with this Bordeaux shipped by a large US firm – bit of fruit in the nose but fell flat with a watery midpalate. Has tannin but low acid. Very forgettable wine. Well at least I am trying to forget it…..

[Jenise]

Bill, we reacted very differently to a number of these wines.

1995 Stony Hill Napa Riesling
Coconut and pine needle in the nose, fairly bright. Didn't find any flat spots. Of course, having brought it I knew what it was and so my take isn't objective, but I also think they have no business growing this grape in Napa Valley so considering that and its age, I thought it exemplary for what it was.

2000 Albert Mann Gewurztraminer Steingrubler – Has to be gewurz. Spiced peaches, mouth coating, rich and off dry.

1997 Kanonkop Paul Sauer – difficult cardboard and raw beet nose, empty mid palate and sour acid finish. It picked up some pepper and marginal fruit with time--there's a reasonable chance here the wine would have shown well after several hours of decanting.

2004 Black Widow Reserve – strong sweet perfumed merlot nose, dusty fruit, licorice and coffee finish. Some thought California but I have never had a finish like that on a California merlot. Very good.

1997 Valdivieso Reserve Malbec – hazelnut liquer nose, smooth and round with a sweet ripeness. My notes also indicate, amusingly, that we ruled out these points of origin in this order: Oz, Washington, and Yugoslavia before settling on Chile. Yugoslavia??? I don't remember nor did I note the tannins you mention: I thought it was drinking very very well.

1992 Sterling Diamond Mountain Ranch – Must be Cal Cab, early 90's. Excellent.

1994 DeLille Chaleur – My wine as well. I can live with your description.

1999 Colombo Cornas Les Myjeans – Mild brett, horsey, bacon. A 99? Yes. I then noted "pretty" which means some typical syrah fruit must have emerged.

1997 Eileen Hardy Shiraz Mclaren Vale – Cereal, eucalyptus, big berry, dill. Big wine. I like. Wasn't surprised when it turned out to be the Eileen--I've always liked this particular Oz wine.

2002 St. Hallets Blackwell Shiraz – Opaque purple-black. Violet nose, sweet, huge, sea salt. This is one to save for BBQ ribs, or to stand in as a dessert wine with crisp raisin bread and stilton.

2003 Kirkland Pauillac -- I had this once before and it was no better than this. Tastes like a weak D'Armailhac. Try the Margaux if you see it, though.