01 Friday Mar 2019
Posted in Wine reviews
Medium color and opacity. Nose of plum, earth and licorice. The initial palate is quite sour, acidic but refreshing with blueberry, plums and creosote. The mid palate is more sour cherry-like with that bracing acidity really taking over. The finish has more cherry than blue fruits and is where the tannins finally appear. Slightly unbalanced but tasty nonetheless. 88 points and 3 stars- $22. Drink now. Salut….
23 Saturday Feb 2019
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Super light yellow in the glass, made me look twice. The nose is floral with lemon and pineapple notes. On the palate I get peach right off the bat. Apricot and citrus hit me on the midpalate where the acidity starts to kick in. The wine is really light and bouncy with nice crisp mouthfeel. The tail end is more subdued on the flavors, mainly a pear component. This wine is intriguing in its multitude of flavors, definitely worth looking out for. I’m pairing it with salmon Alfredo. It begs for a hot summers evening outside with some oysters and chorizo. 89 points and 3 stars for this $18 bottle. Salut….
22 Friday Feb 2019
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Very dark in the glass. The nose is plummy with sweet black currant syrup hints. The palate has black currants, espresso and nutmeg notes. Mouth drying tannins appear on the mid-palate where I get big doses of coffee and charcoal. The tannins really grip on the finish. The wine begs for aeration or a juicy ribeye. The acidity is there, somewhere. I just can’t sense it. Overall- quite tasty, young and in need of cellaring or aerating. Drink till 2026 with hearty fare. 88 points from me which is in stark contrast with the monster 92+ points the pros gave it. I think a re-taste is in order. For now this $20 effort gets 3 stars. Salut….
20 Wednesday Feb 2019
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This was the next bottle up at the Tapas restaurant. We needed something light and easy yet flavorful. I was thinking Portugal for it’s budget, tasty reds. This one did not disappoint for the price.
Tinta Roriz, Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional and Tinta Barroca make up the blend in this medium bodied wine. Floral, purple fruits, and some balsamic syrup come to mind. Very mild acidity and meek tannins make out an easy quaffer. A touch of leather, which I love, comes across on the mid palate. The finish is rather short and fruity. Nothing too flash here but for the $12 price point that is to be expected. 88 points and 3 stars from me. Drink now, obviously with Tapas! Salut….
20 Wednesday Feb 2019
Posted in Wine reviews
Moxie and I met up with an old high-school friend at a Tapas bar in Massachusetts. This wine was recommended by our waiter so we dove in. I did not write too many notes so bear with me:
Nose of smoky plum. Lithe and fruity with some complexity but not overpowering. Dark fruits galore and lithe tannins make it an easy drinker with 5-10 years of cellaring potential. We obviously ate it with Tapas, which was a great pairing. Strangely enough, the pros vary between 88 and 92 points. I would go with 89 personally. $25 makes it a 3 star wine for me. Blend of 30% Garnatxa, 27% Merlot, 20% Samso, 18% Syrah, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. Salut….
26 Saturday Jan 2019
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$39, 3 stars, 89 points, california, pinot noir, sonoma coast
I wrote about the 2016 Failla recently so it was interesting to sample the younger version. Strawberry coulis nose from this darker red Pinot Noir On the palate I get raspberry, strawberry and crunchy tannins. The mid palate has a pepper component alongside bing cherry. The finish is medium in length with that strawberry core flavor returning. The acidity is decent and the mouthfeel is good. A touch young- it could benefit from some cellaring. Drink till 2029. 89 points $39 make this a solid 3 star wine. Consistent with the previous vintage. Salut….
21 Monday Jan 2019
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$50, 3 stars, 90 points, california, carneros, chardonnay, Napa
A very gorgeous dark yellow in the glass gives way to waxy lemon, peach stone and pineapple core on the nose. On the palate it is quintessential Napa Chardonnay. Citrus, yellow apple, pear and lanolin hit me on the initial palate. The wine has a medium weight mouthfeel, with decent but not piercing acidity. The mid palate is mostly lemon and grapefruit. The finish is quite long, with more of that citrus component as well as that waxy note. This wine is nice and will pair well with Salmon, Moussaka even Osso Bucco (Hard to believe I know). I am thinking this wine is worthy of 90 points and 3 stars for the $50 price tag. Drink till 2025. Salut….
07 Monday Jan 2019
Posted in Wine reviews
I have enjoyed numerous bottles of the 2015 Koyle Syrah, so when I saw the ’16- it had to be done. Very dark and opaque in the glass. Brooding , almost. The nose is fruity, with a touch too much of that jam I dislike. Black berries, raspberry reduction and a touch of wood also hit. On the palate I get sour cherry sauce with very astringent tannins- the wine is somewhat astray. It appears someway disjointed, not quite ready to come out. There is a nice core of dark fruits under that tannic veil, perhaps I will aerate.
Yeah, that’s much better. The nose is still not to my personal tastes but the wine smooths out, the tannins are more in order and the flavors of fruit take front row. More black fruits than red and a touch of oak are now the order of the day. This wine is very young and needs time to meld in order to settle down but should be decent in a year or so…. unless you are like me and have access to an aerator at all times. I am going with 89 points for now but plan to re-visit in a while. If you drink one, pair it with a hearty meal, something fatty. 3 stars for an initial impression of this $23 wine. Salut….
08 Saturday Dec 2018
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Medium opacity with good color and nice legs. On the nose I get blueberry jam, cedar, juniper. On the palate there are notes of blue fruit, cinnamon stick and that woody, cedar note I got on the nose. The mid palate introduces some acidity along with- dare I say- wintergreen? Tannins are mild and unobtrusive, giving the wine a bit of astringency on the finish. The wine drinks nicely, what it lacks in depth it makes up for in mouthfeel. 88 points and 3 stars for this $20 wine. Drink till 2022 with meat, tapas or stew. Salut….
08 Saturday Dec 2018
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$40, 3 stars, 90 points, chardonnay, oregon, willamette valley
Light golden. Buttery, lemony and laced with yellow apple on the nose. The palate is round, full and very smooth. It offers up buttered popcorn, quince, butterscotch. It is a classic Chardonnay that has undergone malolactic fermentation and a dose of wood. Very smooth, with very low acidity makes it somewhat flabby but delicious nonetheless. I like it. 90 points. It’s rings up at $40 making it a 3 point wine, but if you can get a hold of a few on sale- stock up. Salut….
