Building on the success of SuperBOWL 2002 and SuperBOWL 2003, SuperBOWL 2004 was bigger and for the most part
better.
Nothing to do with bowling or some obscure American sport, this was a meeting
of British On-line
Wine Lovers,
and it was super.
On 23rd October 2004 a number of those wine lovers, readers of and
contributors to the wine-pages.com
forum, attended a day of tastings, seminars and a grand dinner
at the Corinthian in Glasgow. The event was organised by Tom Cannavan of wine-pages.com,
to whom huge thanks is due.
There were several off-line meetings and tastings over dinner the previous
night: you can read my notes from the off-line at Restaurant Rococo, featuring a
remarkable collection of old wines, by following
this link.
seminar 1: The Wines of Vina Bajoz (I didn't attend this - for
notes on the wines, see the
report on Tom's
website (I know it names me as reporter: it's wrong!)
The wines were supplied by those attending and by a number of sponsors: see
the report on wine-pages.com
for further information.
Walk round tasting
These are not in the order tasted, though I did start with the first one.
It's worth pointing out at the beginning that, combined with the seminars, this
was a huge collection of wine (and, as you can see, there were dozens that I did
not taste - I ended up ignoring all the Burgundies and almost all the clarets,
for example). Inevitably some wines suffer either by
comparison or just by the sheer bulk of competition. Others suffer from the
speed of tasting, my being distracted by something else, or the lack of repeat pourings to reassess at leisure. Others suffer from not being drunk with food.
Caveats over, here we go ...
Bodegas Masia Serra (Spain) Ctonia Garnacha Blanca 2001 not tasted
Clos Rougeard (France) "Breze" Saumur Blanc 2000 not tasted
Attila Gere (Hungary) Kopar 2002
Soft sweet, delicately scented cherry fruit on the nose. Soft and fruity
palate. Lacking depth and structure. Inoffensive.
Carl Reh (Germany) Bernkasteler Kurfurstlay Riesling
Spätlese 1971
Deepish gold. Not a lot of nose: some oxidation, some petrol. Lovely ripe
flavours on the palate. A rich old riesling. Very Good Indeed.
Messmer (Germany) Muskateller Kabinett (trocken) 2003
Very very pale straw. Really nice fragrant muscat nose. Very racy acidity on
the attack. Bone dry. Remarkably elegant and clean. Very impressive.
Fritz Haag (Germany) Braunenberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr
Riesling Kabinett 2002
Watery clear. On first tasting, just after opening, it had a stinky, slightly
sulphurous nose and not exactly a pleasant drink. Later (around 17:50) it
showed a very fresh nose, but some vegetal notes. Fresh and spritzig. Lively.
Quite closed – needs plenty of time.
Müller Catoir (Germany) Grauburgunder trocken 1989
A whopping 15% alcohol! Not a lot on the nose other than death, decay and
rotting. A hint of pinot gris fruit on the palate, but otherwise dead.
Zind-Humbrecht (France) Gewurztraminer 2002 not tasted
Sylvie Spielmann (France Alsace) Riesling Grand Cru
Kanzlerberg 1999
Mid straw. Quite a closed minerally nose. Good weight on palate with a nice
ripeness. Not earth shattering, but Very Good Indeed.
Josmeyer (France Alsace) Riesling l'Exception 1995
(50cl bottle)
Mid gold. Very closed nose with some riesling minerality coming through. Light
and fresh. But very very closed and not giving much away at all.
Schlumberger (France, Alsace) Pinot Gris Cuvée Clarisse
1989
Beatiful rich pinot gris nose with quite a lot of sweetness. Rich, ripe
tropical fruit on the palate, with nice complexity. Very Good Indeed.
Cullen (Australia) Margaret River Chardonnay 2001 not tasted
Chateau La Nerthe (France, Rhone) Clos de Beauvenir 1990
(white)
Deepish gold. Slightly oxidised, slightly honeyed nose of great depth and
complexity. Seems a touch over the hill: slightly too oxidised for me and
lacking fruit.
François Villard (France, Rhone) Condrieu Le Grand
Vallon 2001
Very delicate nose, a bit closed but with some fragrance. A bit too cold. Nice
body and weight. Very good balance. Restrained ripe fruit. I like it.
Rene Rostaing (France, Rhone) Condrieu la Bonnette 2000 not tasted
Chateau La Lagune
(France, Bordeaux) Haut Médoc 1967
Remarkably youthful appearance. Good, old claret nose with some sweet VA.
Lovely fresh, clean attack. Nice fruit. Soft tannic structure. Lovely.
Chateau Pichon-Baron (France, Bordeaux) Pauillac 1985 not tasted
Chateau Rauzan Segla (France, Bordeaux) Margaux 1985 not tasted
Chateau Leoville-Barton (France, Bordeaux) St Julien
1988 not tasted
Chateau d'Issan (France, Bordeaux) Margaux 1988 not tasted
Chateau Mouton-Rothschild (France, Bordeaux) Pauillac
1994 not tasted
Chateau Cissac (France, Bordeaux) 1995 not tasted
Chateau Camensac (France, Bordeaux) Haut Medoc 1995 not tasted
Chateau Malartic-Lagravière (France, Bordeaux) Grand Cru
Classé 1995 not tasted
Chateau Du Glana (France, Bordeaux) 1997 not tasted
Penfolds (Australia) Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon 1991
Lovely intense cabernet sauvignon – fabulous nose with hints of cedar.
Excellent fresh ripe fruit. Lovely body. Stunning length. Excellent.
Penfolds (Australia) Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon 1993
Rich dark colour. Smoky cedary cabernet sauvignon nose. Very good, but
slightly less together than the 1991.
Penfolds (Australia) Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon 1999
Inky black. Very very deep cabernet nose. Very ripe fruit. Lots of tannins.
Rather raw flavours. Needs time.
Wolf Blass (Australia) Platinum Label Shiraz 1998
Blimey, this is a real oak bomb, but there is some ripe fruit behind. Very
ripe, high quality fruit on the palate. Very well made. Big hefty fruit.
Lovely if you like the style, which I don’t really.
Howard Park (Australia) Cabernet/Merlot 1998
75% cabernet sauvignon:12% merlot: 13% cabernet franc
Slightly flat nose with sweet fruit behind. Sweet ripe fruit on the palate.
Good structure. Very nice finish. Seemed simple initially, but with some
further contemplation while nattering it ended up being really rather
interesting.
Grant Burge (Australia) Meshach Shiraz 1993 not tasted
Wynns (Australia) Michael Shiraz 1994
Looks younger than 1994. Slightly closed nose with good fruit. Decent fruit.
Massive tannins. Good.
St Hallett (Australia) Old Block Shiraz 1994 not tasted
St Hallett (Australia) Old Block Shiraz 1995 not tasted
David Wynn (Australia, Eden Valley) Patriarch Shiraz
1996 not tasted
Rosemount (Australia) Balmoral Shiraz 1996 not tasted
d'Arenberg (Australia) Dead Arm 1998 not tasted
d'Arenberg (Australia)
Dead Arm 2001 Not the most giving of noses, and actually seeming quite cabernetty, which
is a bit odd. Ripe fruit. Very big. Big tannins. OK – and probably very good
indeed – if you like this sort of thing.
Frux Frugis (Australia) McLaren Vale Shiraz 2002 not tasted
Brokenwood (Australia) Hunter Valley Graveyard Vineyard
Shiraz 2001 Lovely elegant nose. A very interesting contrast to the Wolf Blass. Soft
clean red fruit on the attack. Lovely balance. Good length. Beautiful, well
made wine. Excellent.
Domiane de Vallouit (France, Rhone) Cote-Rotie "Les
Roziers" 1998 not tasted
Cave de Tain Hermitage (France, Rhone) Hermitage
Gambert de la Loche 1999 Very nice syrah nose. Quite simple and very young.
M. Chapoutier (France, Rhone) Hermitage “Sizeranne” 1978 not tasted
Doudet-Naudin (France, Burgundy) Le Corton Grand Cru
1971 not tasted
Domaine de la Pousse d'Or (France) Volnay 1er Cru Clos
de la Bousse d'Or 1990 not tasted
Olivier Leflaive (France, Burgundy) Volnay Clos de la
Barre 1990 not tasted
Jean-Marc Pavelot (France, Burgundy) Savigny-les-Beaune
1er Dominode 1996 not tasted
Lupe-Cholet (France, Burgundy) Chateau Gris Nuits Saint
Georges 1er Cru 2000 not tasted
Clos de Gamot, Jean Jaffreau (France, South) Cahors
Cuvee des Vignes Centenaires 2000 Lovely intense nose of ripe mulberries. Initial impression is of smooth,
silky easy drinking, but then it also has a rather nice structure and hefty
tannins on the finish.
Les Vignes de l’Arque, VdP d’Oc Cuvée des Boissières
2002 Ripe young grenachey nose. Soft easy drinking. Nothing special, but very
pleasant.
Bourdy (France, Jura) Chateau Chalon 1979 not tasted
Domaine de la Perriere (France, Loire) Chinon vieilles
vignes 1996 not tasted
Selvapiana (Italy) Chianti Rufina Vigneto Bucerchiale
Riserva 1990 A very even mature ruby nose. Stinky nose. A bit dried out on the palate.
Ca' del Monte (Italy) Amarone della Valpolicella 1990 Closed dried-fruits nose. Light and clean. Remarkably elegant and light
for an Amarone. Not one to hold onto.
Frescobaldi (Italy)
Nipozzano Chianti 1964 Brown dead brick colour. VA nose of very sweet apricot kernels. Soft and
feeling very old on the palate. I think I hear the undertakers polishing the
hearse in readiness.
Masi (Italy) Recioto di Valpolicella Mezzanella 1993 Glorious fragrant nose. Light and elegant. Possibly a little simple.
Castelliere delle Gaite (Italy) Valpolicella
Primoripasso Montresor 1999 Ripe forward fruit nose. Ripe fruit on the palate. Nice structure.
Softish tannins on the finish. Not a world shaker, but very competent
attractive, ready wine.
Viña
Albali (Spain) Gran Reserva 1997 Served blind, as the mystery wine. An even youngish ruby. Rich
fruity nose. Decent fruit on the palate. Good structure. Spicy on the
finish. God knows what it is.
Muga (Spain) Prado Enea Rioja Reserva 1981 Very mature colour. Decent old Rioja nose. Very very fine mature Rioja.
Excellent balance. Just gone over its peak.
Marques de Murrieta (Spain) Rioja Castillo Ygay
Especial 1994 A deepish maturing ruby. Splendid nose with sweetish black fruit and lots
of rounded vanilla. I would guess that this was older than 1994. Good round
fruit with good tannic structure. Massive tannins on the finish, but spicy
sweet fruit returns after.
Lopez Heredia (Spain), Vina Bosconia 5º Ano, NV Very mature colour, with evident bricking. Slightly tired nose of dried
sour cherry fruit. On the palate, this has lost its fruit. Past it.
Trefethen Vineyards (California) Napa Valley Cabernet
Sauvignon 1978 Pale mature ruby, just starting to brick. Gorgeous old claretty nose. This
is class. Very elegant, light, yet with complex depths. Lovely aged cabernet
sauvignon. Fab.
Joseph Swan (California) Steiner Vineyard Sonoma
Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 1990 Amazing purest extract of cabernet sauvignon on the nose. Really OTT on the
palate and not to my taste. I’ve had other Joseph Swans that I’ve been very
content to drink, but this is verging on DNPIM for me. Though the others have
been Zins … perhaps their winemaking style doesn’t work as well for cab as it
does for Zin?
Sterling (California) Diamond Mountain Ranch Napa
Cabernet 1991 not tasted
Mayo Family Winery (California) Reserve old vines
Zinfandel, Russian River 2001 not tasted
Turley (California) Lodi Dogtown Vineyard Zinfandel 2001 not tasted
Rupert & Rothschild (South Africa) Baron Edmond 2000 not tasted
Vergelegen Estate (Stellenbosch, South Africa) 'Vergelegen'
2000 not tasted
Tom Lubbe (South Africa) The Observatory Syrah 2001 not tasted
Sweet
Tement (Austria) "Zieregg" Morillon
Trockenbeerenauslese 2000 Smoky, not entirely pleasant nose – a bit cabbagey. Elegant concentrated
fruit on the palate: quite melony. A touch simple.
Hunt County (USA) Finger Lakes Vidal Blanc Ice Wine 2002 Very attractive nose with elegant rich citrus. But on the palate, it’s
merely sweet and simple.
Southbrook (Canada) Vidal Icewine 375mls 1999 A very in-yer-face orange marmelade nose. Intensely sweet, floral citrus
palate.
Domaine des Aubuisieres (France, Loire) Vouvray Moelleux
Cuvee Alexandre Selection des Grains Nobles 1990 An iridescent deep yellow. Floral, honey nose. Lovely sweet richness on
palate with a fascinating complexity. Very fine and elegant. Excellent.
There really is absolutely no comparison between this and the two North
American ice-wines: this is elegant and pure class; the ice-wines are tarty,
flashy, showy and lacking depth and breeding.
Kurt Hain (Germany) Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Auslese
Goldkapsel 2001 not tasted
Muller Catoir (Germany) Gimmelbinger Meerspinne
blauburgunder auslese 1989 not tasted
Wm. & J. Graham & Co (Portugal) Graham's Vintage Port
1977 Remarkably mature lightish colour. Good nose with lots of restrained fruit
and no spirit. Quite light on the palate with good elegance. Good clean attack
with nice fruit. But starts to disintegrate a bit on the finish.
Lustau (Spain) Single Cask Amontillado Sherry 2000 A light teak colour. Good, attractive nose. Very nicely balanced. Lovely.
Unfortunately, the Pedro Romero Manzanilla Aurora and Oloroso Prestige didn't
arrive in time, but it was still a remarkable selection that Toby had assembled
for us, including some bodegas that I'm not at all familar with.
I seem to recall quite a bit of bottle variation, which led to some lively
debates!
Not tasted entirely in this order (the last two slotted in somewhere earlier)
Puerto Fino (Lustau)
Very flor-y on the nose: powerful, intense almondy nose. Light and fresh. Very
dry. Round and spicy on the finish. Really nice and complex on the finish. Very
Good Indeed.
Fino Inocente (Valdespino)
Much lighter than the Lustau Puerto Fino, with a fresher nose with some iodine
notes. Very very light and fresh. But a bit simple. Very Good.
Amontillado Tio Diego (Valdespino)
A very nutty nose. Very very light on the palate and - for me - doesn't really
seem to have any point to it. OK
Manzanilla Amontillado, Almacenista Jurado (Lustau)
A lovely light teak colour. Very interesting nose - nutty and complex with dry
vanilla notes. Interesting on the palate too. Quite fresh, with a clear
manzanilla style. Deep flavours with greath length. Very Good Indeed.
Antique Palo Cortado (Fernando de Castilla)
A slightly deeper teak colour. Less interesting nose than the previous wine,
with more smoky overtones. Very interesting flavours. Nice depth of flavours.
Excellent complexity. Very clean on the finish and very very long. Very Good
Indeed.
Antique Oloroso (Fernando de Castilla)
Slightly deeper colour again. Dullish nose. Unimpressive on the palate - a bit
hollow. Better on the finish and after, when citrus peel and a hint of coriander
appear in the mouth. OK.
Amontillado Viejo Pastrana, VOS (Hidalgo)
An orangey light teak colour. Fantastic nose - fresh and vibrant. Quite lovely
in the mouth. Clean and fresh with interesting depths.
Amontillado Coliseo (Valdespino)
Gorgeous colour: orangey light mahogany, fading to a bright yellow at the rim.
Nutty and full on the nose with some mixed peel. Very fresh on the palate.
Unbelievably intense and long. Really long. I mean amazingly, surreally long.
Absolutely excellent. Did I mention it had fantastic length.
Oloroso Viejo (Hidalgo)
A mid brown. Rich raisiny nose, but a very dry nose. Not impressing me. OK.
Amontillado 51-1a (Pedro Domecq)
Mid teak. Fair amount of sediment in suspension, which ain't doing it any
favours. A lovely nose - deep and complex. Interesting palate, with a sort of
strange combination of richness and really dusty dryness (think of a piece of
cheese fallen in some old wood dust). Very deep and very long. Not really sure
what I make of this.
Palo Cortado Sibarita (Pedro Domecq]
An old decaying nose, though the decay lifts a little to reveal some dried
orange peel. Feels a bit over the hill. Nutty and deep. Again, this puzzles me
and defies any sort of rating. (Yeah, cop out, I know!) Not one I'd rush to have
again, though.
Pichler
have a 13 hectare estate in the Wachau, producing around 100,000 bottles a year.
All wines are now stainless steel fermented (the last wine below was fermented
in large oak casks, before the move to stainless steel fermentation).
Riesling is generally planted at the top of the vineyards; Grüner Veltliner on
the lower slopes.
Pichler use a clone, developed by Elisabeth's grandfather, of GV with a smaller
berry than normal. This means more skins (of course) and a higher must weight.
It was good to have Elisabeth Pichler there as it was really interesting to hear
what she had to say and to hear her responses to questions.
To be frank, listening to Elisabeth was more interesting than the wines, which
while all very good indeed, didn't really thrill or excite and were really all a
bit samey. For me, however, the main stumbling block regarding these wines was
the price (included below: Raeburn's prices) of these wines - really lovely
stuff to drink, but not exactly very good value.
1. Sauvignon Blanc Smaragd 2003 £20.99
Due to the minor cock up on the ordering of the wines on the tasting sheet, I'd
actually finished this note, thinking it was wine 4, before the correction.
Glorious fragrant nose - aromatic, slightly muscatty, green, gooseberry notes.
Rather odd <i.e. for the GV I assumed it was). Fresh fruit on the attack. Nice
complexity. Lovely finish. Huge length. A very impressive start. Very Good
Indeed.
2. Riesling Steinertal Smaragd 2003 £27.50
Waxy floral nose. Lovely fresh light Riesling palate. Very nicely balanced. Very
Good Indeed.
3. Riesling Kellerberg Smaragd 2003 £35.00
The south-east facing Kellerberg vineyard is always picked late, usually in
December.
Minerally, light riesling nose. Really lovely, fresh, bone-dry riesling with
excellent balance. Much richer (a bit fat even) and with more depth thanthe
Steinertal, though a touch less elegant. Very Good Indeed.
4. Grüner Veltliner Kellerberg Smaragd 2003 £33.00
Rich, melony nose. Very rich on palate with a white peppery spice. Enormous
length with lots of lively acidity. Very Good Indeed.
5. Riesling Kellerberg Smaragd 2001 (no price - not available)
Elegant floral nose with a bit of smokiness. Quite rich on the attack, but also
very restrained. Good balance; good depth, good acidity. But rather curiously
generically white-wine-like, and scarcely overladen with riesling
characteristics. Did they forget to put the riesling in? Very Good.
6. Riesling Steinertal Smaragd 1999 £27.50
Waxy, very minerally riesling nose, clearly starting to show some mature notes.
Lovely elegant refined palate with lots of rich riesling fruit. A swirling
vortex of immense length that fades then returns, then fades again, then
returns. A superb wine. Excellent.
7. Grüner Veltliner Kellerberg Smaragd 2002 £34.50
Apparently a difficult vintage.
Very rich nose: melony with raisiny resiny notes. Very nice on the palate. Rich
and complex Very big on the finish with enormous length. Very Good Indeed.
8. Grüner Veltliner Loibnerberg Smaragd 2000 £22.99
A south facing vineyard and Pichler's warmest site.
Quite a vegetal nose, though turning a touch blossomy. Lively and fresh. Rich
fruit. Huge length. Very together. Maybe a touch flabby. Very Good.
9. Grüner Veltliner Loibnerberg Spätlese 1983 not commercially available
In 2 litre, unlabelled bottles as once used in the Pichler Heurige for the young
heurige wines, though they closed their Heurige a good few years ago.
Amazing colour for a 21 year old - hardly any different to the earlier, much
younger wines. A vegetal nose, dominated by asparagus. Very smooth and silky on
the palate. Very integrated with great complexity. A wine that has aged
beautifully - and remarkably little. Very Good Indeed.
A pressing of chicken and cauliflower wrapped in Parma
ham (not especially memorable – at least I don’t remember much about it)
Roast Rump of Hillside lamb (nice, generous bit of
lamb, accurately cooked)
Caramel Parfait (in a chocolate cup – sweet and
restorative at that stage in the onslaught of wines)
Cheese Plate (they seemed to have forgotten this, the
one plate to circulate round the table was distinctly mean given that there
was no more than 4-6 oz of each)
I didn't think the food was as good as in previous years when the SuperBOWL
had taken place at the City Inn in Glasgow.
Of necessity some of these notes are rather brief! More or less in the order drunk.
2003 Grüner Veltliner Loibner Klostersatz Federspiel, FX
Pichler Reticent nose – light and fragrant (though a bit cold). Very full and spicy
on the palate. Powerful but lacks elegance. Good.
1991 Chavignol La Grande Cote Sancerre Light fragrant nose. Very rich. Refreshing. Good acidity. Very Good
Indeed.
2003 Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Auslese
Trocken “S” Young ripe waxy riesling nose. Aggressively dry. Despite being rather too
warm to appreciate it properly, this was rather good for a trocken. Very Good.
1999 Lorenzhöfer Riesling Auslese, Weingut Karlsmühle Very light nose: crisp, ripe fresh riesling. Really nice rich full
character, but with lots of balance and finesse. Very Good Indeed.
2002 Riesling Brut Sekt, Kurt Hain Nice crisp appley nose. Very crisp. Very clean. Very nice. Very good
riesling fizz.
1960 Riesling Réserve, Léon Beyer, Alsace (half
bottle)
Very old, slightly oxidised riesling nose. Initially it seems merely a bit old
and dried out, although far from dead. But tasted again, about two and a half
hours later, it reveals a bright clean mature riesling nose hinting at sort of
BA type levels of ripeness. On the palate it is more clearly a fine Alsace
riesling. Very full, with nice balance. Excellent.
1988 Corton Charlemagne, Domaine du Martray Very elegant, soft old white burgundy nose. Lovely and round. Very well
balanced. But very even and a bit uni-dimensional. Rather good though. Very
Good.
2002 Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Kabinett, Kurt
Hain Lovely sherbetty appley nose. Spot on Hain PGT. Very Good Indeed.
1989 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Slightly animalistic refined nose. Quite meat and rich on the palate. But
not really sufficiently together on finish. Soft tannins with lovely
structure. Very Good Indeed.
1987 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Much more intense, less gamey nose than the ’89. Very elegant, quite light.
Very well structured. Lovely soft tannins on the finish. Very Good Indeed.
1958 Marques de Riscal Elciego (Alava) Mature ruby colour, but it doesn’t look anything like as old as 1958.
Lovely old Rioja nose: nutty and slightly sweet. Going over the hill, but not
gone. Touch of sweet fruit with the silkiest of tannins on the finish. Very
Good Indeed.
1996 Petaluma Coonawarra Unfiltered 66% Cabernet
Sauvignon: 34% Merlot
Next to the ’58 Rioja, this looks like Beaujolais Nouveau! – a youngish even
ruby. Very clean blackcurrant and plums nose – quite sweet smelling. Lots of
forward ripe fruit, but not at all OTT. This is a very good wine: not only
complex, but also very enjoyable. Very Good Indeed.
1991 Penfolds Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon Good even ruby colour starting to mature. Intense minty blackcurrant nose.
Lovely clean rich flavours. Very clean and pure. Lovely. Very Good Indeed.
1962 CVNE Imperial Mature looking with a touch of bricking. Animalistic VA nose but still some
soft fruit. Light on the palate, with lots and lots of fruit still. This is
really lovely. Excellent.
1994 E+E Barossa Valley Black Pepper Shiraz Quite young looking (especially next to the ’62 Cune!) Very nice attractive
ripe nose. Very ripe fruit on the palate. Possibly a bit simple, but
enjoyable. Good.
1995 Ch. Pichon Longueville Comtesse du Lalande To judge by the colour, this is just starting to mature. Very nice,
attractive nose. Quite rich and elegant, but seems far too young. Good.
2000 Vieux Télégraphe Very very young looking. Smells like a grenachey young Cotes du Rhone
plonk. Soft, still quite grenachey, fruit on the attack, but for the rest it is
totally dominated by tannins. Complete infanticide.
2000 Chateau du Trignon Gigondas A youthful purple. Nice attractive nose. This is very nice. Lovely
fruit. Lots of structure. Massive tannins on the finish. Very Good.
1995 Chateau La Tourette, Pauillac Lovely nose – slightly goaty with a real sweet undercurrent. Very soft
attack. Lovely fruit. Good structure. This is really very nice indeed. Very
Good Indeed.
1999 Don Melchior, Concha y Toro, Chile Deep and inky. Smoky, leathery nose. Lovely rich sweet ripe fruit attack.
Builds into a really structured lovely wine. Very Good Indeed.
Something blind from Ali Downes, but I think plied on me
by Ray Abercromby. Youthful purple. Highly perfumed cranberry syrup nose. Highly fragrant
sweet palate, still dominated by cranberries. Totally bizarre. Is this
homemade or something? Turns out to have been
2003 Visner di
Pergola, Marche, Italy.
2002 Bandol Cabassou, Domaine Tempier Very young looking – a bright youthful purple. Rather closed violetty
nose. Wow! What depths. Very elegant. Superb. Very Good Indeed.
1978 Ch. De Fonsalette Réserve Nice mature colour. Animalistic and VA on the nose. The VA even comes
through on the palate ruining it. Sweet and just a bit nasty.
1964 ‘believed Gevrey Chambertin’ No label other than the date slip. White capsule, no information on the
cork. Very soft pinot noir nose, so perhaps not too much Hermitage in this!
Golly, this is so alive. Lots of fruit, no VA and remarkably little ageing
apparent. Still plenty of fruit on the palate and some good structure. Really
lovely. Could easily put it twenty years younger. Very Good Indeed.
1999 Gravner Venezia Giulia IGT Ribolla Gravnera,
magnum
Deepish gold. Very unusual nose, also a touch of oxidation. A certain dry
sherryfied ripeness of fruit, but not entirely pleasant for me.
1995 Goldackerl Trockenbeerenauslese, Willi Opitz,
half bottle
Rich coppery gold. Rich, elegant orangey honeyed nose. Rich and sweet, but
just enough acidity to keep it good. Really lovely to drink. Luscious
richness, but just saved from OTTness. Very Good Indeed.
1982 Hermitage, Chave Lightish colour. Gorgeous nose, though with a touch of VA and oxidation.
Rather old on the palate and a touch sweet from concentration. Very Good.
1996 Niepoort LBV A rather simple nose. A straightforward decent LBV. Good.
1989 Bandol Cuvée Migoua, Domaine Tempier Fabulous soft complex fruity nose. Feels nicely mature on the palate. Soft
and very attractive. Loads of life left in it. Very Good Indeed.
1990 Ch. Guiraud 1er Cru Sauternes Really nice elegant nose. Fantastic balance. Gorgeous, clean, fresh and
totally lovely. Very Good Indeed.
1966 Pommerner Sonnenuhr Auslese Naturrein Riesling,
Gebietswinzergenossenschaft des Kreises Cochem Very even deep gold. Smokey, slightly honeyed old riesling nose. Even,
clean old German riesling. No particular outstanding characteristics; old but
very palatable.
