A family reunion celebration

12 Wednesday May 2021

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I have not seen my folks in a year and a half. My mother suffers from Alzheimers and my father has been her stalwart. They finally made the trip from Florida to PA after all parties got the COVID vaccine. We spent five days driving around to visit cool sights, pick strawberries at my friends farm, and visit family. The finale was a dinner with my cousin who encouraged me to start the Virtual Wine Tasting Club. I grilled a whole Beef Tenderloin on the Weber, Moxie made a batch of Henry Bains sauce and we opened some stunning wines.

I started with the 2016 Schramsberg Blanc De Blancs 2016, a bubbly Chardonnay from the North Coast of Cali made in the Methodè Traditionelle. It was delicious as you may have read my post on it.

Next up was the amazing 2001 Cos D’Estournel. Simply stunning. Fully mature at 20 years of age it showed tertiary flavors of cigar box, leather, dried sage and traces of cassis. Fully integrated tannins are still perceptible and the wine’s acidity has held the whole thing together beautifully. Rich in flavors, it has shed the primal fruit, treating us to the gorgeous mature notes of aged Bordeaux. Delicious stuff.

Next up was the Don Melchor 2000- This is the last bottle of a three case purchase I made many moons ago. Unfair to the wine, it was served after a bottle of the sublime Cos D’Estournel ’01, which garnered 95 points. This one was stunning as well, fully melded and showing waves of tertiary flavors- just a touch less concentrated than the Cos. It gets 94 points from me. I will remember drinking this penultimate bottle, what an amazing 21 year run this vintage has had for me. I look forward to starting the next series with a few bottles of the 2017 vintage of one of my favorite wines.

Memories are made by the people you share the moment with, reinforced by the little things like special bottles of wine. I am grateful I have cellared such treats and can share them with friends and family. Salut….

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Schramsberg Blanc de Blancs 2016, North Coast, California

11 Tuesday May 2021

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My wine course is finishing up with sparkling wines and fortified wines. This particular bottle was brought over by our friends Arty and Keef. It’s been sitting in the fridge, waiting for the right occasion. Dinner with my cousin and Aunt after a nearly two year COVID hiatus is a good time to pop this bottle.

It’s a medium lemon shade in the glass with nice mousse. The nose has a good intensity of pink grapefruit, lemon, bananas, bread dough and almonds. The palate is dry with juicy acidity, is medium bodied with pronounced flavors of green pear, grapefruit, lemon, brioche and almonds. The finish is decent in length and the wine is very good. I am giving this Chardonnay based sparkler 91 points and for $32 it’s a great deal that gets 5 stars from me. Thanks guys at the 204! Drink till 2030. Salut….

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Dominio de Pingus Psi 2018, Ribera del Duero, Spain

11 Tuesday May 2021

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The last and best wine of the night at our 17th Virtual Wine tasting was this Spanish gem from a famous winery. It is predominantly Tempranillo but they added some Garnacha to the blend. It is a rich purple color that is nearly opaque in the glass. The tasters noted Oregano, funk, pepper, earth, dried plum, green olives, white pepper and a minerality from slate on the nose. The palate gave us that stone hint, coffee, tobacco, black tea, blackcurrant, black cherry, dried fig and blueberry. I noted the wine was quite acidic and others mentioned it as not being overly tannic. A medium finish was enjoyed by all. I feel this wine has already started to display tertiary notes and will mature nicely over the next few years. It is not a blockbuster but we all thoroughly enjoyed it. It gets 91 points from me which jibes with the pros and at $30, its a decent drop that’s a 5 star effort in my books. Salut….

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Jules Taylor Pinot Noir 2019, Marlborough, New Zealand

11 Tuesday May 2021

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In our wine tasting group (virtual), there are many of us who enjoy Pinot. I ventured to New Zealand for this tasting of the varietal. New World without a doubt, this wine was 70% opaque and dark purple in the glass. On the nose, the tasters got rich strawberry, deli meat, tobacco, black tea, straw and some subtle barnyard notes. On the palate we tasted cherry, oak, funk, black pepper and Macha Green tea. Overall I thought it was a little too extracted for my taste but others really enjoyed it. 89 points from me and at $20 it gets 4 stars. The pros went 92 on this steal for Pinot. If you like the style, go for it! Drink till 2030 as this baby packs some well integrated tannins, balanced by some decent acidity. Salut….

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Chateau Puech-Haut Prestige 2017, Languedoc, France

11 Tuesday May 2021

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Next up for the Virtual Wine Tasting was this Grenache from the same producer as our Rosè. A light garnet color and 50% opaque. We got earthy leather, caramel, black cherry, white chocolate, fresh cut mushroom and forest floor. The palate was mineral driven with some black cherry, smoke, cloves and black licorice. It was decent but not as earth shattering as I was hoping for ( it got 93 points from the pros!). 89 points and for $17 this wine got 3 stars from me. Drink till 2025. Salut….

Edit: It much gamier and smoother on day 2. I upgraded the score to 90 points and 4 stars.

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Chateau Puech-Haut Argali Rosè 2019, Languedoc-Roussillon, France

11 Tuesday May 2021

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We kicked off the next Virtual Wine Tasting with a Rosè. As usual, we tasted it both chilled and at room temperature. The wine is a Grenache from Languedoc that is a clear, light orange/pink. On the nose, the room temperature version had group notes of pear, melon, apricot and strawberry. I noted that it was off-dry. On the palate we got strawberry, melon, green apple and my taste buds caught some papaya. A short finish was timed and it was a touch bitter. I did not care for it very much at this temperature but things got better once I tried the chilled stuff. It was peachier on the nose and had cotton candy, honeysuckle, strawberry, apricot and canned pineapple. The palate gave us apricot and orange pith (there was a bitterness we all got). I noted it as more dry when chilled. The finish was longer and this wine garnered 89 points from me. At $16, it is a 3 star effort that will serve you well in the hot summer months. Drink now. Salut….

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Harveys Solera Sherry NV, Spain

11 Tuesday May 2021

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It has been 41 years since I last necked some Sherry. Those of you who know me will realize how old/young I was, and you could probably cotton-on to the fact that it was not a good experience. It’s taken this long PLUS an assignment in my wine course to get me to buy and taste a glass of the stuff. I must say, I kinda liked it.

This particular brand is like the Budweiser of Sherry, mass produced, generally okay stuff and cheap enough. My intro back into the world of fortified Spanish wine was easy enough. This wine is rather straightforward and basic. It is tasty without too much complexity and should be served chilled. We missed that part of the equation. I would not even know how to score this wine, but if you are looking for an aperitif- try some….it’s unique and won’t break the bank. You can use the leftovers to make a Lobster bisque! $16 is a nice price to boot. Salut….

Appearance : 

  • Intensity : Light
  • Color : Tawny

Nose : 

  • Intensity : Medium 
  • Aroma characteristics : Primary notes of Orange peel, Fruitcake and raisin.  Tertiary aromas of Caramel and walnut.

Palate : 

  • Sweetness : Medium
  • Acidity : Medium
  • Tannin : Medium 
  • Alcohol : Medium
  • Body : Light
  • Flavor intensity : Light
  • Primary flavors of Fruitcake, raisin, fig.  Tertiary flavors of walnuts.  No secondary flavors detected
  • Finish : short

Conclusions : Quality : Acceptable

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Kirkland Asolo Prosecco DOCG NV, Italy

10 Monday May 2021

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One of my course requirements this week is to taste a Prosecco. I had previously bought some very reasonably priced bottles at Costco so I thought I would rate one. I enjoyed the wine- it’s rather basic but fresh and light. We are ordering some spicy Thai dishes tonight, this has to be one of the best pairing options. At $ 7, it’s a steal that gets 88 points from me. Stock up and enjoy chilled in the summer- 5 star stuff. Salut….

Kirkland Asolo Prosecco DOCG NV, Italy.  11% ABV

Appearance : 

  • Intensity : Pale
  • Color : Lemon

Nose : 

  • Intensity : Medium 
  • Aroma characteristics : Primary notes of Green Apple, Grapefruit and lemon

Palate : 

  • Sweetness : Off-Dry
  • Acidity : High
  • Alcohol : Low
  • Body : Light
  • Flavor intensity : Medium with Primary notes of pear, lemon and grapefruit. 
  • Finish : short

Conclusions : Quality is Acceptable

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Dr. H. Thanisch Berncasteler Ley Riesling Auslese 2017. Mosel, Germany

06 Thursday May 2021

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As you may have read in my last post- the assignment for the wine course I am taking has a comparison between a dry Aussie Riesling with a sweeter German Auslese. Here is the official review that I submitted:

Dr. H. Thanisch Berncasteler Ley Riesling Auslese 2017.  Mosel, Germany.  8.5% ABV

Appearance : 

  • Intensity : Pale
  • Color : Gold

Nose : 

  • Intensity : Light 
  • Aroma characteristics : Primary notes of Mango, Passion Fruit and Apricot.  Secondary aromas of Gingerbread.

Palate : 

  • Sweetness : Medium
  • Acidity : Medium
  • Alcohol : Low
  • Body : Medium
  • Flavor intensity : Pronounced Primary flavors of  Peach and Apricot.   Tertiary flavors of Honey and Marmalade.
  • Finish : Medium

Conclusions : Very good quality, unctuous but not overly sweet.

Moxie was tasting with me but she thought this wine was too sweet for her. It’s a good quality drop if you are in the market but it runs $32 right now, getting 92 points makes it a 5 star sweetie. This one will last a good while, till 2035. Salut….

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Alkoomi Riesling 2019, Western Australia

06 Thursday May 2021

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In my wine course there is a definitive method to tasting wines. This week our task has been to compare an Australian Riesling with an Auslese version from Germany. Here are the notes, in the correct format, for the Aussie one.

Alkoomi Riesling 2019, Western Australia.  12.0% ABV

Appearance : 

  • Intensity : Pale
  • Colour : Lemon

Nose : 

  • Intensity : Medium 
  • Aroma characteristics : Primary notes of Grapefruit, Quince and Lemon.  Secondary notes of Papier Machè and bread dough.

Palate : 

  • Sweetness : Off-Dry
  • Acidity : High
  • Alcohol : Medium
  • Body : Medium
  • Flavor intensity : Medium with Primary flavors of  Lemon, Pink Grapefruit and Peach.   
  • Finish : Long

Conclusions : Good Quality

For $17, this 90 point wine is a 5 star effort if you are in the market for a crisp, juicy Riesling to pair with grilled Mackerel or Oysters on the half shell. Drink till 2025. Salut….

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