WTN: Miscellaneous August notes

Bodegas y Viñedos Alion Ribera del Duero Reserva 1994
My last bottle, which I opened for my sister. Plummy ruby with some black reflections, looks youthful. Integrated nutty oak (now oakier again than in it prime), softly tannic plummy cherry and tarragon. Well-balanced wine, still harmonious and very pretty, but I liked it best until a couple of years ago, when it showed a little more fruit and complexity. In no immediate danger of falling apart of course, but personally, I would drink remaining bottles up. Rating: 90-/89-?

Charvin Côtes-du-Rhône 2003
Thanks to my parents again. Now consistently sweeter Kirsch and Burgundian raspberry than at release, with the very minor tannic bitterness merely setting it off and giving it shape. As my dad said, this puts many a Châteauneuf-du-Pape to shame. Rating: 87+/88?

Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona Brunello di Montalcino Vigna di Pianrosso 1999
Luminescent ruby-red with some orange at the rim. Complex and subtle smoke and mineral notes to attractive sweet and dry red currant and black cherry. Lovely dried herbs and minor roast beef top notes with airing. Well-balanced wine, fairly racy tannin and nice if relatively soft acidity. Good length. Almost as good as the 1990, I believe. Rating: 92+/93

Château Clos de L'Oratoire St. Emilion 1996
Thanks to my parents. Deeply coloured, opaque at the centre, quite good gloss. Started out too oaky for my taste (a style in which the oak absorbs the fruit over time instead of vice versa), but tasty enough with airing, sweet, oak-spicy (albeit less nutty now, more mulled wine Christmas spice box) and more jammy than racy fruit, reasonably fresh for a modern-styled 1996 St. Emilion, faint metal underpinning to the low acidity, tannin with little depth, medium-plus length. Drink up! Rating: 87-/86
AND:
My last bottle a week later was even fruitier, livelier, more refreshing, less oaky and longer on the more subtly-fruity (not really finesseful, of course) finish, and all that on a yet hotter summer day. Lovely, even if made in a modernistic style of wine where I will not even buy the occasional sample bottle anymore. Rating: 88-

Château Ducru-Beaucaillou St. Julien 1995
Ordered from a restaurant wine list with Remo. Full, almost opaque ruby-black. Lead pencil, less licorice than the Lafite from the same vintage, but again, the similarity in terroir expression is undeniable. Has cut and freshness. Firm blackcurrant, racy cherry, grassy herbs, faint tobacco leaf and bitter chocolate. Nice medium-plus body. Impressive minerality. Pretty, well-integrated oak. Youthfully tannic yet subtle. Quite long, fruity-subtle, finesseful, the kind of Bordeaux I like (food-friendly and impossible to get bored with, in complete contrast to all those modernistic atrocities...). A bit plummier, more voluminous, sweeter and more complex with airing. Ducru is one of my favourite St. Juliens, and the 1995 really seems to me to be one of the finest in years (I find it as good or better than the 1982 and the variable but classy 1986 at its best). Rating: 93+/94(+?)

Dusóczky Pincészet Tokaji Aszúessencia 1993
Amber-orange. Medium-complex tobacco, tannic, orangey rancio oxidation, cocoa and coffee dust, soft nutmeg, dried date and fallen autumnal leaves. Rather light for an AE. Good alcohol, not much body, and the subjective sweetness balance of a lesser 6P. Very minor viscosity. Lemon rind bitter note and acidity. Fairly short on the finish. Patrick loved it, Remo did not like the rancio oxidation note. Rating: 88-

Gaja Langhe Costa Russi 1997
Ordered from a restaurant list with Oliver and Remo. Reportedly contains about 5% Barbera. By far the oakiest and most modern of the four crus in 1997, but also the sweetest and fruitiest – this will please those with a more internationalized palate. Ruby-red-black, opaque at the center, thin watery-pink rim. More one-dimensional in terms of finesse and minerality, but not fruit complexity – thick, dense, Burgundian (think modern Richebourg). Marzipan and chestnut purée, lightly marmalady black cherry and rose-hip jam, melted asphalt, faint bitter chocolate. The Costa Russi is the only 1997 cru that is overtly warming with alcohol, although not in a negative sense, as this is quite full-bodied and powerful, especially also on the (less long) finish. Less fine-grained tannin. Some blood-orangey acidity. Some oak characteristics return on the finish (both in flavour and the tannin). From the perspective that 1997, to me, appears to be Gaja’s break-through vintage in terms of barrique management (the other three crus are utterly perfect in this regard), the Costa Russi may be seen as a very minor disappointment, but then, this is not oakier than Gaja crus from vintages like 1982, 1985, 1988, 1989 and 1990, most of which managed to absorb their barrique characteristics to an amazing extent (so much so, but I have told this story before, that we successfully duped Piedmont experts serving 1982s and 1985s, that is, serving these wines blind along with traditional Barbaresco and Barolo, made them believe it was fuder-aged as well). From a purely stylistic point of view, in that ideal world in which I were able to put my money where my mouth is, this I would dispense with the Costa Russi and own a cellar full of the other three 1997 crus, although it is clearly a great wine in its own right, and one of the vintage’s most successful efforts. Rating: ~95

Gaja Langhe Sorì Tildìn 1997
Ordered from a restaurant list with Oliver and Remo. Reportedly contains about 5% Barbera. Precisely the same as earlier bottles here, storage is really pristine – not need to type another tasting note really. What depth, subtlety and finesse in a wine of this size! A perfectly toned racehorse of a wine, Lafite-like especially in direct comparison to the Costa Russi. I am increasingly convinced this, the 1997 Sperss and perhaps most of all the 1997 Sorì San Lorenzo are the greatest wines Gaja has ever made. Of these, the Sorì Tildìn is the most aromatic and finesseful (at least at this early stage), the Sperss the most minerally, and the Sorì San Lorenzo the most structured. Rating: 98+?

Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Rabajà 1998
Thanks to Remo. Let me put one thing straight: as grateful as I am to be offered opportunities to taste and retaste fine wine by generous friends, believe me, I do try to dissuade them from pulling corks on bottles that could only be in the most shut-down closed phase. This is one such example. Raspberry hue to the medium ruby-black colour. Very closed especially on the nose, but also the palate. Charcoal, crystallized marzipan and black cherry, lightly bitter-dry tannin that can be smelled but does not yet show much black tea-like finesse. Chewy green licorice stick. Faint rose-hip sweetness, fennel and anise, and dried/cured beef spice notes. Alluring alcohol that only makes itself felt because the wine is so prohibitively shut down. Revealed deeper and at least a fraction sweeter (nowhere near what it was like at release) fruit with airing, along with yet greater bitterness. Rating: 91+/92(+?)

Gould Campbell Vintage Port 1983
A pristine bottle I opened for Patrick, who was born in 1983. This is in just as terrific, youthful shape as other top 1983s. Violet-tinged ruby-black, opaque at the center, medium-wide ruby at the rim, Patrick admired the colour’s intense, youthful gloss. Sweet cassis, fig and plum juice and milk chocolate. Grapey-mild acids, lovely curranty tannin. Nice body and length. Walnut note on the finish and aftertaste. Increasingly sugary-viscous with airing, and even more so after 24 hours in the decanter. Delicious! Rating: 91+/92?

Château Pavie Macquin St. Emilion 1999
Thanks to Remo. Deeply coloured, opaque at the centre, looked youthful, but smelled and tasted a bit bland, partly overripe, and quite frankly tired. A tiny uncleanliness and bitterness on the finish, which only showed once the wine was allowed to warm up in the glass, made Remo think this may have been cork-tainted, whereas I wondered if it was a bit too warmly stored (he bought it only recently, and says this bottle shows exactly the same as the last). Quite concentrated, barely medium complexity and persistence, soft meatiness and spice, fairly low-acid, flaccid tannin, and most importantly, virtually none of the highly attractive terroir expression one gets here in top vintages. Rating: 86+/-? (or: N/R)

Albino Rocca Barbaresco Brich Ronchi 1997
My last bottle, which I opened on occasion of Patrick’s qualification for the World 10-ball Championship in Manila next month. Pulled from the cold cellar, decanted and poured directly, this started out a bit unyielding, tannic-bitter, dry and short, but it did not stop growing in sweetness, length and complexity, until it showed as well (or almost) as any bottle I have had (the more primary early ones showed the most complexity thanks to thicker fruit in hindsight). Still opaque deep garnet-ruby at the centre, black reflections. Faintly nutty marzipan oak to the lightly plummy fruit, a modern style I am not buying anymore (and that, frankly, I like best young, which is not what I expect from high-quality Nebbiolo), perhaps best on the perfumy nose. Nice, quite finely grained tannin, sound alcohol, more mouthwatering than drying with airing. Rating: 92-

Château Troplong Mondot St. Emilion 1994
Full ruby-red with purple-black reflections, tiny watery rim. Soft violet and plum, now very well integrated oak, sweet cherry fruit, pretty herbs, finesse notes of olive and caper. Nicely tannic. Fine little minerality. Nice body. Nicely firm and mouth-cleansing. Quite a well-concentrated wine, but my experience with Troplong Mondot is such that I would rather not wait until they dry out: drink this now and over the next few years. Rating: 89+/-?

Guy Wach Domaine des Marronniers Riesling Andlau 2006
Thanks to my parents, already their last bottle. Consistently pleasing little wine, truly a fine QPR buy. Medium-plus concentration, quite refreshing, with good acidity, some character, soft lime, aged apple and straw fruit, soft minerals. That very slight hole in the middle is of comparatively little consequence. Rating: 84

Weinbach Riesling Schlossberg 2004
Thanks to my parents. Finally showing some tertiary characteristics, more Alsatian herbs and lime, although only after 24 hours in the fridge. Right after the cork is pulled it was its usual lightly Germanic-floral and lightly tannic-minerally self. Tasty, quite complex, pretty terroir expression, good length. Rating: 88

Greetings from Switzerland, David.
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„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti

Notes as enjoyable as always, David. I loved my one bottle of Charvin CdR 2003. Are you finding most 99 Brunelli fully ready to drink? Do I remember correctly from an earlier post that you recommend (with appropriate caveats) drinking Brunello earlier rather than later?

Notes as enjoyable as always, David. I loved my one bottle of Charvin CdR 2003. Are you finding most 99 Brunelli fully ready to drink? Do I remember correctly from an earlier post that you recommend (with appropriate caveats) drinking Brunello earlier rather than later?

I don't know about "most" (because I haven't had all), but with the exception of Soldera's Riserva, I haven't had one lately that would have been a huge pity to drink on the early side. Good 1999s should be and still are youthful (as the Ciacci mentioned here), and can be (ideally should be) held on to for a few more years. Ultimately, I believe, it's a question of whether one likes the way the more modern-styled Brunelli evolve in bottle in the long run (the rare traditional-styled ones are never a problem: they're the ones that behave just as we're used to). Those wines in particular, I prefer right after they open up again (= come out of their closed phase, counterbalance their new oak etc.), but then, you remind me that much the same can be said of those traditionally-styled ones that simply don't have the fruit to outlive their tannin (much less their acidity). Those too tend to be best right when they come out of their closed phase, and a few years thereafter. 1999 is a quite early-harmonious vintage whose top wines never closed down as severely as (more traditional) wines/vintages of the past - but that, if anything, should be the advantage of modern wines, that they "always" drink well (or at least that their drinking window is wider, at least on the early side of the spectrum).

Greetings from Switzerland, David.
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„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti

Nice notes, David.

Regarding 1999 Brunello, I had a Valdicava about 5 months ago and thought it could use a little more time to soften the tannins. It seemed to have abundant fruit, so I hope to hold on to my remaining bottles for another year or so, although there is no harm in drinking it now.

Too bad about the 1998 Giacosa Rabaja. I had a 1997 last December that was gorgeous, and truly put the 1997 Produttori to shame.

Nice notes, David.

Regarding 1999 Brunello, I had a Valdicava about 5 months ago and thought it could use a little more time to soften the tannins. It seemed to have abundant fruit, so I hope to hold on to my remaining bottles for another year or so, although there is no harm in drinking it now.

Too bad about the 1998 Giacosa Rabaja. I had a 1997 last December that was gorgeous, and truly put the 19997 Produttori to shame.

Thanks! 1997 is an unusually early-evolving (some will say light) vintage or pretty, Burgundian/Pinot Noir-like wines for Giacosa, though. I'm not surprised and glad to hear it showed well for you. The 1998 showed more promise at release than it possibly could now, shut down as it is. While neither from the greatest vintage of all time, some good wines were made in either, and I believe it is worth making sure one doesn't drink them up too early.

Greetings from Switzerland, David.
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„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti

Hi, David, over the last twelve months I've opened a few bottles (and given away others) from a case of 1999 Castelgiocondo Brunello. I always found them disappointing. I didn't take notes, so all I remember is that they were harsh and gave me little pleasure, having none of the brunello hedonism I love so much. Do you have a sense that I should wait several years for the remaining five bottles to soften, or this was never a particularly good brunello to begin with (or too international)? You can be ruthless with me! Though I disliked the movie Mondovino, I came away from it with an even worse impression of the Frescobaldi's integrity, so I am ready to call this purchase a mistake...

Hi, David, over the last twelve months I've opened a few bottles (and given away others) from a case of 1999 Castelgiocondo Brunello. I always found them disappointing. I didn't take notes, so all I remember is that they were harsh and gave me little pleasure, having none of the brunello hedonism I love so much. Do you have a sense that I should wait several years for the remaining five bottles to soften, or this was never a particularly good brunello to begin with (or too international)? You can be ruthless with me! Though I disliked the movie Mondovino, I came away from it with an even worse impression of the Frescobaldi's integrity, so I am ready to call this purchase a mistake...

While Castelgiocondo is rarely a favourite of mine and indeed I know it as one of those Brunelli that tend to dry out with bottle age, if you've found it to be harsh at this stage, in all likelihood meaning it must be beyond its youthful, primary stage - what else can you do now other than give it a chance to soften somewhat in bottle, and keep your fingers crossed for the best? No use being impatient: assuming good storage conditions, I'd try a bottle each year or two until the wine comes around (if it doesn't, and it is already too late now, there is nothing you can do anyhow; if it does, I'd then drink up the remaining bottles within a few years).

Greetings from Switzerland, David.
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„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti