2004 J. K. Carriere Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley
First time with this producer. This is a more extracted style pinot than what we've been drinking, with sweet black currant and violets on the nose and fairly firm tannins on the finish. Time in the glass coaxed some raspberry fruit out of hiding, but this wine really needs more time to come together. Paid $41 locally. Buy again? No.
2005 Cooper Mountain "Five Elements" Chardonnay, Oregon
Very dry, almost savoury in style, this golden chardonnay defies most of the stereotypes about New World chardonnay. Lots of body with gravenstein apples and a bit of pie crust on the finish. We loved it. $21 in Oregon.
1993 Ferrand Lartigue, St. Emilion, Bordeaux
We finally decided to take a break from The Month of Drinking Pinot and chose this wine to accompany a simple dinner of thinly sliced rare tri-tip and salad. Never had this wine before in any vintage so I have nothing to compare it to, but we found a sweet merlot nose (it's 90%) with rich black cherry and plum fruit, old book leather, and a quality that we first called bandaid and then decided was less medicinal, more food-like before deciding that the rind of aged Stilton blue cheese captured it. Tannins are mostly resolved and the wine's definitely at peak, but it's not at all tired. In fact, it's one of the best 93's I've had. (And from the FWIW Department: Parker rated this 88 and closed it's drinking window in 2000.)