My palate has established itself and I got lucky

As for the lucky part I am not TCI sensative so I am in the 1/2 to 1% corked group.

This weekend we drank a lot of wines and there were no themes at the dinner parties so it was wide open. I loved the '88 Hermitage, '05 Siduri "Gary's" and '97 Clos Vougeot. I was not crazy about the '03 Ch St Jean Cepages, '05 Lange PN and '90 GPL (this was a surprise as some is in my cellar waiting). These were all very good wines but the difference was in the body, I like the more subtle wines and disliked the fuller bodied wines. Some would say old world vs new world or maybe blame RP but there were two domestic PNs, one I liked and three French wines, one I did not like. Maybe this is just a "duh" realization but explains why I am generally not a fan of hot climate wines and lean towards the lighter bodied stuff. Maybe with global warming I will have to start drinking Canadian wines.

Part of the problem is food and wine. I have no idea what to drink with the Ch St. Jean Cepages or the Lange PN for that matter. My best approach would be by itself or maybe with a full bodied cheese and baguette. Maybe to bring this thread to a close I would ask what do people on this board drink with big cabs or fruit driven reds from any country and do you enjoy bigger bodied wines or lighter bodied wines. Maybe you swing both ways??

Walt

Hi Walt,

One of the best cabs I have had was 97 Cinq Cepages with steak at MoCool - California Dreaming. Great match.

I too tend to favor more subtle wines in the pinot category, but I do love big Lorings because they are well balanced.

As to Canadian wines and global warming. I have been breaking my own rule of thumb (whites from Ontario reds from BC) recently and been buying reds (pinots, mind you) from Ontario from the warm summers of 04 and 05. I just had one for Canadian thanksgiving from flat rock cellars 2004 pinot gravity that was very good to borderline exceptional. Most burgundian Ontario pinot I have ever had and its main qualities were forest floor fragrances and minerality with nice but background fruit. Continuing hot summers will continue to produce good and better reds in Canada. The reports I hear for 2007 is that will likely be an exceptional year for both Ontario and BC harvests. Lets hope that promise is borne out in the wines.

What do I do with fruit driven big bodied cabernet? Generally, I avoid them, and I definitely try to avoid them if they are low in acidity. Those few I do occasionally acquire, I drink with big fat steaks or similar hearty fare. Or on their own at the end of a wine tasting. Or I give them away. My preferences lie with medium bodied wine of good balance, because my wine is meant to accompany the excellent meals Beth makes for us, and with my waistline, that is rarely a big fat steak.

I tend towards lighter or more mature reds for the most part, but there are times I'm in the mood for a young fleshy CalCab or Bordeaux. And that tends to make me grill a thick porterhouse. Rare ("bleu") meat and big Cabernet fruit resonate with me.

Walt -

I am happy and maybe a bit surprised to see the Siduri Gary's in the group that you enjoyed, the subtle and not as full bodied. I have to retry them, I haven't tasted a Siduri pinot in a few years.

As to fruit driven reds, I love Beajolais and rarely have a week go by without drinking one. I think their defining feature is the upfront lovely fruit. Of course the acidity they bring makes them great at the table. I think with superconcentrated low acid reds I would agree with you, tough to match with a lot of foods.

Best,
Marc

I am happy and maybe a bit surprised to see the Siduri Gary's in the group that you enjoyed, the subtle and not as full bodied. I have to retry them, I haven't tasted a Siduri pinot in a few years.

Don't hold your breath, Marc. Both the vineyard and winery argue against it being subtle. I recently opened an '01 Siduri Pisoni that could have passed for cherry cough syrup.

I'm with Dale on the pairing with big, fruity reds: red meat, the bloodier the better. Rare lamb is also a great match.

Mark Lipton