Author Archives: caspernick

Domaine Thierry Mortet Gevrey-Chambertin 2005, Cote de Nuits, France

31 Sunday Mar 2024

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Pale garnet with brick highlights and a medium viscosity (13% ABV).  The nose has medium (+) intensity aromas of chocolate covered cherry, barnyard, orange peel, vanilla bean, mushroom, Rooibos tea, caramel, desiccated strawberry, petrichor, a touch of leather and some dried cranberry.  The palate is dry with medium (+) acidity, a medium body and medium (-) tannins that are fully integrated.  Surprisingly fresh after 19 years of resting, this wine still shows loads of primary red fruit with deft oak and great structure.  The tertiary notes are still developing and this beauty has tons of aging capacity left.  The finish is sublime- a touch tart from the cranberry, there’s also a baked cherry pie thing going on.  Stunning stuff that gets 94 points from me.  I bought this bottle so long ago, I cannot remember pricing.  Modern vintages run $90, which would make it a 5 star wine.  I’m pairing this Pinot Noir with Rack of Lamb on this glorious Easter Sunday.  Salut….

Xavier Vignon – Barbare ‘Cuvee XL Premier’ 2012, Turkey

30 Saturday Mar 2024

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Medium ruby colored with slight bricking, some staining and a high viscosity (15% ABV).  The nose of this Grenache/Syrah/Mourvedre blend has medium intensity aromas of black raspberry, vanilla, baked red apple, rhubarb crumble, blueberry pie, coffee, baking spice and garrigue.  The palate is dry with medium (+) acidity, a full body and medium (-) tannins that are plush.  The baked nature of the fruit comes out on the initial attack and then I start to get oak nuance by way of coffee, vanilla and baking spice followed by that earthy garrigue note and some meaty hints of game.  The red and blue fruit are ripe and slightly desiccated but then I get a tart finish that is medium in length, intriguing.  The high alcohol hits on the back end, I normally don’t sense it but this case is different.  I like it all things considered- 92 points and for a wine that is already 12 years old, it’s just starting to show methinks.  Drink till 2030 with stews, lighter grilled meats or even pasta.  At $20, worth looking out for this 5 star effort.  Salut….

Dingac Skaramuca Plavac Kvalitetno 2022, Peljesac Peninsula, Croatia

28 Thursday Mar 2024

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Medium garnet with copper highlights and a medium viscosity (13% ABV).  The nose has medium intensity aromas of coffee, bramble, blueberry pie, vanilla, baking spice, smoke, acai berry and clove.  The palate is dry with medium (+) acidity, a medium body and medium tannins that are fine grained.  Flavors of blueberry, acai berry, bramble berry, vanilla, baking spice and coffee abound.  It finishes with a hint of tartness on the blue fruit but with decent length.  The tannins are intriguing- very present yet unobtrusive.  Very fine indeed.  I really like this bottle that I’m pairing with charcoal grilled Sirloin chunks.  91 points, drink till 2028.  For $29, this Plavac wine gets 4 stars.  Salut….

Sena 2015, Aconcagua Valley, Chile

23 Saturday Mar 2024

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The penultimate wine at our 35th virtual tasting- medium ruby to garnet colored with a high viscosity (13.5% ABV).  The nose had medium (+) intensity aromas of barnyard, Sweet Baby Rays (from a fellow taster!), capsicum, cardamom, licorice, coffee, bramble, blackberry, smoke, leather, vanilla, baking spices and green pistachios.  Quite a complex array of aromas!  The palate was dry with medium acidity, a full body and medium (+) tannins that were fully integrated.  Flavors of tobacco, coffee, cranberry, bramble, blackberry, leather, vanilla and creamy milk chocolate that led to a medium (+) length finish.  Everyone loved this wine- they should.  It was $140 and got 100 points from one pro.  For me, it fell short on the finish so I gave it 19/20 on our score sheet.  Technically speaking it got 94 points and therefore it is a 3 star wine.  Lovely and age-worthy, this is an iconic Chilean blend that is right up my alley.  Drink till 2030.  Salut….

Torbreck Woodcutter’s Shiraz 2021, Barossa Valley, Australia

23 Saturday Mar 2024

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The third wine at our tasting event was this Shiraz from the Barossa Valley.  I picked it as I have tasted this wineries offerings in the past and feel they exemplify Aussie Shiraz.  I was not disappointed.  Deep ruby colored with medium staining and medium viscosity even though it sports a 15% ABV!  High intensity aromas of game, prune, coffee, licorice, dark chocolate, and chocolate covered blueberries were the comments from the crowd.  It’s technically a dry wine that shows off ripeness on the palate with a sweet sensation- medium (-) acidity, medium (+) body and medium tannins.  Ripe blueberry and blackberry, coffee, creamy chocolate, oak notes and very nicely melded tannins.  The finish was medium (+) in length.  A beautiful wine that scored 17 points on our sheet.  For $23, this wine is a steal that gets 91 technical points from me and therefore a 5 star rating.  Drink till 2029.  Salut….

Rippon Mature Vines Pinot Noir 2019, Wanaka, New Zealand

23 Saturday Mar 2024

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The second wine at our 35th tasting was this Kiwi Pinot.  It is pale-to-medium garnet colored with medium viscosity (13.5% ABV).  Medium (+) intensity aromas of black cherry, cherry Coke, barnyard, cranberry, white pepper, licorice and leather.  On the palate it was dry with medium (+) acidity, medium (-) body and low tannins.  Flavors of cherry cola, Rooibos tea, white and black pepper, clove, cedar, cough medicine and yet more cherry led to a medium length finish.  I loved this wine for its beautiful mouthfeel and great balance and gave it 15 points on our scoring sheet.  We paid $55, which is quite pricy but the quality and purity of this wine was worth it- 92 points from me which makes it a 4 star effort to drink till 2028.  Salut….

Hyland Estates Old Vine Gewurztraminer 2022, Willamette Valley, Oregon

23 Saturday Mar 2024

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We held our 35th Virtual Wine tasting last night and it was one of the best yet.  Kicking it off was this Gewurztraminer from Oregon that we tasted chilled and then at room temp.  Normally, I have found more expression and wider appeal with the room temp versions of white wines, but that was not the case.  Pale lemon colored with high viscosity (13.7% ABV).  You could smell the aromas from a mile away- so intense!  Lychee, yellow apple, nectarine, peach, red grapefruit, rosewater, apricot and honey- quite a melange.  On the palate this wine was dry with medium (-) acidity and a medium (+) body.  This varietal is often made in an off-dry style but this one was fully dry and slightly viscous in the mouthfeel.  Notes of apricot, honey, lychee, rosewater, grapefruit and pear went on to a medium to long finish.  It was delicious and got 17.5 points on our scoring sheet.

The room temp version was far less aromatic, which is counterintuitive.  More lychee  but less overall aromas that consisted of grapefruit, cotton candy, apricot, (Laundry detergent- in a fresh sense), crayon (not my words btw).  On the palate it was fuller in body but the acidity was somewhat even less pronounced.  Primarily honey and lychee driven, we also got cotton candy and some apricot.  I gave it 13 points on our sheet.

Overall this wine was a success, but drink it chilled!  I scored it at 91 points and for $20 it’s an excellent intro to this highly aromatic and wonderful grape.  5 stars.  Drink till 2027.  Salut….

Great Western Ravat 51 (Vignobles) 1993, Finger Lakes, New York

21 Thursday Mar 2024

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Medium amber colored with high viscosity (11% ABV).  The nose of this 30 year old dessert wine has medium intensity aromas of prunes, dried figs, caramel, bruised red apple, loam, desiccated mushroom, hazelnut, stewed apricot, spun honey and aged balsamic.  I’m blown away- as this wine has spent countless years sitting upright in my buddy Rewt’s garage, countless Summers and Winters.  The palate is sweet, with 6g/100 ml residual sugar at bottling (aka 60g/L of RS).  There is a veiled level of acidity, it’s quite high but you can’t tell right off the bat.  The flavors are not as complex as the nose but I do get prunes, dried figs, caramel, stewed apricot, dried citrus pith along with it’s bitterness, caramel and a strong Darjeeling tea note on the mid palate (that would explain the loam I got on the nose).  The finish is long and savory, the mushroom and balsamic notes reappearing.  This is a very unique bottle that has stood the test of time and has given me pause- it’s almost like a tawny port with a hint of maderized Riesling.  It’s hard to explain.  I wouldn’t want to settle down to a whole bottle of this stuff, nor do I think it has the structure to pair with rich desserts but I will have a glass after dinner and see how it goes.  Salut….

Castelli del Grevepesa Clemente VII Riserva 2019, Chianti Classico DOCG, Tuscany, Italy

20 Wednesday Mar 2024

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Medium ruby colored with high viscosity (14% ABV).  The nose has medium (-) intensity aromas of cherry, pomegranate, red licorice, rose, dusty earth and dried green herbs.  It’s kinda muted and one-dimensional.  The palate is dry with high acidity, a medium body with medium (+) tannins.  Flavors of red cherry, rhubarb, pomegranate and dusty earth dominate with some chalky tannins bringing grip to the tart, medium length finish.  To me this is an 89 point Sangiovese that runs $20 making it a 4 star effort.  Drink till 2028.  Salut….

Bodega Garzon Reserva Cabernet Franc 2021, Maldonado, Uruguay

19 Tuesday Mar 2024

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Medium ruby colored with slight staining and a high viscosity (13% ABV).  The nose has medium (+) intensity aromas of capsicum, bilberry, black raspberry, red plum, coffee, caramel, vanilla and smoke.  The palate is dry with a medium body and medium tannins.  Flavors of blueberry, plum, black raspberry, coffee and a remnant of the green pepper go on for a medium length finish.  This $16 bottle is delicious and well balanced, albeit not overly complex.  I would say it is worthy of 90 points and therefore- 5 stars.  I have always enjoyed the wines from Bodega Garzon and find them to be exceptional value for money- their Tannat is awesome.  My pairing tonight is a grilled Tri-tip with steamed Japanese yams.  Drink till 2028.  Salut….