Tag Archives: $24

Heidi Schrock & Sohne Spatlese 2024, Burgenland, Austria

26 Sunday Oct 2025

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Pale lemon colored with a watery sheen that shows high viscosity (11.5% ABV).  The nose has medium (+) intensity aromas of honey, tangerine peel, orange marmalade, white blossom, peach candy, lanolin, lemon verbena, and candied ginger.  The palate is  sweet, with medium (+) acidity, and a full body thanks to the residual sugar.  The flavors mirror the nose and run through to a long finish that sits nicely on the palate.  The acidity is masked on the back end but my mouth is watering!  It’s not overly heavy- the body is very nice and balanced.  It’s well made and delicious, worthy of 93 points from me.  I liked it at the winery when we tasted there, but it’s gotten better since I opened this bottle two nights ago.  I wish I had a few for the cellar to watch the evolution.  I found it online at $24 making it a 5 star effort to sip with dessert.  Salut….

Heidi Schrock & Sohne Spatlese

Monchiero Langhe Nebbiolo 2022, Piedmont, Italy

12 Sunday Oct 2025

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Pale ruby colored with copper highlights, and medium (-) viscosity (14.5% ABV).  The nose has medium (-) intensity aromas of red cherries, green herbs, orange peel, rose, and tobacco.  It needs coaxing.  The palate is dry, with medium (+) acidity, medium (+) body, and high tannins.  The flavors are slightly more intense than the nose, yet there is a one-dimensional aspect along with some bitterness.  The tannins grip for ages, but the astringent feeling is midpalate driven and fades before the tannins.  It’s not my favorite.  The finish is medium in length and concentrates on red cherry and herbs.  I am planning on pairing it with roasted tenderloin, it should work okay as I have a Rösti on the side that might tame the tannins.  87 points from me for this $24 effort makes it a 3 star wine.  I would cellar a bottle or two and re-taste in 3-5 years.  Salut….

Monchiero Langhe Nebbiolo

Winzer Krems Kellermeister Privat Blauer Zweigelt 2022, Niederosterreich, Austria

03 Tuesday Sep 2024

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Medium garnet colored with high viscosity (13.5% ABV).  The nose has medium intensity aromas of sour cherry, cranberry, tomato stalk, white pepper, red licorice and a hint of strawberry right at the end.  The palate is dry with medium (+) acidity, medium (-) body and medium (-) tannins that are a touch astringent.  Flavors of red fruit with that crispy greenness and some spice make for a very interesting and refreshing taste profile.  The finish is tart and carries on for a decent length.  A delicious wine that is counter to heavy, oaked, tannic wines- this one will pair beautifully with my leftover BBQ Ribs and smoked chicken wings.  The acidity will sort out the sweet and tangy sauces and temper the smoke.  90 points from me for this $24 effort makes it a 4 star wine to drink till 2028.  Salut….

Brezza Barbera d’Alba Superiore 2018, Piedmont, Italy

24 Saturday Feb 2024

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Medium ruby colored with medium viscosity (14% ABV).  The nose has medium intensity aromas of cranberry, raspberry, black cherry and pomegranate. The palate is dry with medium acidity, medium (-) tannins and a medium body.  Flavors of red fruit with cedar, red licorice and dusty earth to a medium length finish.  89 points for this $24 effort makes it a 4 star wine to drink till 2028 with pasta, Cornish hen or grilled/plank salmon. Salut….

Quinta do Crasto Superior 2016, Douro, Portugal

06 Saturday Jan 2024

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This is the third time I have tasted the Crasto Superior 2016.  It started out horribly the first time I drank it in 2022, the second bottle being far better so I ordered this one for our tasting group in hopes it would redeem itself.  Deep ruby colored with medium viscosity (13.5% ABV).  The nose had aromas of blueberry, violets, vanilla, black cherry and was a touch jammy.  On the palate it had medium acidity, medium tannins and a medium body.  Flavors of blueberry jam, tart cherry and powdery cocoa greeted us.  The finish was medium (-) in length.  I wrote to drink this bottle now as I feel the structure has nearly reached its end game.  At 11 points from on our grading sheet it was unimpressive, until later.  This wine opened up nicely over the next few hours and I have upgrade my initial score of 88 points to 90.  We paid $24 for it and I would say it’s a 4 star effort.  Salut….

Domaines Schlumberger Riesling Les Princes Abbes Alsace, France

06 Saturday Jan 2024

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We tasted this wine at the 34th Virtual Wine tasting event, served both chilled and at room temp.  Pale yellow with medium viscosity (13% ABV).  The nose gave us aromas of petrol, lanolin, anise, yellow apple, ripe pear, pink grapefruit and lychee.  I made a side note say it smelled waxy and oily.  The palate is dry with high acidity and a medium body.  The petrol, wax and lanolin are immediately discernible followed by lemon, yellow apple, green apple and a sweet tart note from one of the group.  It finishes medium (+) in length with cutting acidity.   I gave it 16 points on our grading sheet.  The room temperature glass was a different beast, some preferred it over the chilled but I was unimpressed with its more muted nose and palate.  It seemed funky and medicinal but I still got petrol and citrus.  It felt heavier on the palate and displayed more acidity which was interesting/counterintuitive.  The finish was curt.  I gave it 10.5 points on our grading scale.   Overall I think this is a beautiful wine that needs to be served chilled.  It gets 92 points from me and for $24 a bottle- 5 stars.  I might need more!  Drink till 2035.  Salut….

Ixsir Grande Reserve White 2019, Batroun, Lebanon

18 Saturday Nov 2023

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We tasted this Viognier based blend last night at the 33rd Virtual Wine Tasting event.  As per usual it was scored at room temp as well as chilled.  We normally see a preference for room temp whites but this bottle was the opposite.

Pale lemon with high viscosity (14.6% ABV).  Medium (-) aromas of minerality, honeysuckle, peach, pear and nectarine.  The palate was dry with medium (+) acidity and a full body.  Stone fruit dominant there were also flavors of honeysuckle and that rocky minerality.  A medium (-) length finish detracted some points for an overall rating of 10 for me on our scoring sheet.

Served chilled- the wine really took on its own with more noticeable peach, a touch of lemon and that honeysuckle.  On the palate is was slightly less acidic but fuller bodied, opposite of what I was imagining would happen.  The palate mirrored the nose with the addition of a pithy bitterness towards the mid palate.  The finish seemed to linger longer and the wine scored higher, 12 on the sheet.  Overall this is a 91 point wine for me and at $24, it gets 4 stars.  Grilled salmon or a Cornish hen would pair nicely.  Drink till 2030. Salut….

Clarendelle Blanc 2021, Bordeaux, France

15 Sunday Oct 2023

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Pale lemon with titanium edges and a low viscosity (12.5% ABV).  The nose has medium (+) intensity aromas of lemon, waxy lemon peel, gooseberry, yellow apple and lanolin.  The palate is dry with high acidity and a media (-) body.  The fresh citrus combines with a waxiness that has both a tart and silky mouthfeel.  The apple and gooseberry add dimension.  It’s delicious and refreshing with a longish finish.  This Sauvignon Blanc/ Semillon blend gets 90 points from me and at $24- 4 stars.  Pairing is baked Trout and Jolly rice with seafood.  Drink till 2026.  Salut….

Pakravan Papi Prunicce di Riparbella Super Tuscan 2020, Toscana, Italy

26 Tuesday Sep 2023

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Medium ruby with some staining and high viscosity (13.5% ABV).  The nose of this Sangiovese/Cabernet Sauvignon blend has aromas of leather, cherry, rose, vanilla extract, iron, plum and red licorice.  The palate is dry with high acidity and medium (+) tannins that are a touch gritty.  The body is medium with flavors of rose, leather, red fruit, oak nuance and a graphite/iron streak.  The finish is medium in length and the tannins are more appealing on the back end, they caress rather than attack.  I like this $25 wine that will get better with a touch of cellaring.  Drink with pasta dishes from 2024-2030.  89 points makes it a 4 star effort.  Salut….

Real Companhia Velha Quinta das Carvalhas Late Bottle Vintage Port 2018, Portugal

14 Monday Aug 2023

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Deep ruby colored with high viscosity (20% ABV) and heavy staining on the walls.  The nose has aromas of macerated blackberry, caramel, raisins and dried fig.  The palate is  sweet with high tannins that are well integrated, and a full body.  Flavors of raisin, fig, desiccated blackberry, caramel and butterscotch.  Medium length finish on this $24 bottle that gets 91 points from me makes it a 5 star effort to drink till 2030.  Salut….