WTN: Elk Cove, Leflaive, Kosta Brown, Caceres, Falesco

October Lunch notes:

2005 Jean Paul Brun Beaujolais Blanc Domaine des Terres Dorees – showing considerable colour and a hint of oxidation in the nose, with some lemon and vanilla. Decent length and balance. One taster familiar with this wine thought it had seen heat at some point.

1997 Tyrells Vat 1 Semillon – also some colour, cheesy nutty notes in the nose, fairly light weight, pleasant in the mouth with a long citrus acid finish.

1998 Elk Cove Pinot Noir La Boheme – medium colour with a great nose of sweet cherry, ripe, balanced and delicious. A lean style but with good flavour concentration. Good Burgundy ringer possibilities here.

2005 Olivier Leflaive Volnay – purple edges slightly warm nose of fruit, warm in mouth, smooth juicy and long. lean but not mean.

2006 Kosta Brown Sonoma Pinot Noir – lighter colour, with a lightly fruited nose, lighter body, pleasant and fresh. Finishes sweet with a cough drop impression and seemed slightly hot.

1994 Marques de Caceres Rioja Gran Riserva – dusty fruit nose with good depth and a very slight hint of mint, medium hard tannins, good length with an impression of some pepper in the mouth.

1988 Robert Michel Cornas La Geynale – this had been fairly rustic and old style in youth so I’d opted not to take it to a northern Rhone tasting recently but rather try it here. Pale edges, a hint of pepper and green notes in the nose, lots of flavour concentration and soft tannins, this has matured nicely. Drink now.

2001 Falesco Montiano – dark wine, dark chocolate nose with anise elements, huge concentration and excellent length. needs time.

1999 Mastroberardino Taurasi Radici – dark, nice nose of some tar and black cherry, very dry finish and decent length.

1999 Kracher #2 Traminer TBA Nouvelle Vague – apricot nose and colour, sweet and long with lots of acidity for balance. This should last for years!

1997 Willi Opitz Opitz One Zweigelt Strohwein – odd colour – red brown – warm nose, simpler than the Kracher and sweet, but not too heavy. Given the recioto treatment on mats, this wine wasn’t too hot and had uplifting acidity at the end. Great way to finish with two unusual dessert wines.

[Jenise]

Great lunch--a very interesting bunch of wines. And uncharacteristically warm October weather brought out the lighter reds. Interesting!

With oyster and chorizo stuffed baby squid in a tomato-balsamico sauce:

2005 Jean Paul Brun Beaujolais Blanc Domaine des Terres Dorees – Golden, nutty, showing considerable oxidation. Very drinkable as is, but all wrong for this wine.

1997 Tyrells Vat 1 Semillon – Great nose, shy midpalate, lanolin, grapefruit on the finish. This bottle definitely lacked the multi-facetedness of the last bottle of this we had about two years ago. Either a lesser bottle, or this wine's going down.

With deep fried wedges of polenta topped with sauteed chanterelles and herbed goat cheese:

1998 Elk Cove Pinot Noir La Boheme – Jammy pinot noir nose with a hint of bug spray and barnyard. Body on the big side. Much more typical of a California mid-coast pinot like Santa Cruz, which I guessed it was from, than Oregon. More dried fig and dark cherry on the palate than plum. Quite delicious though, and an outstanding showing for a wine this age.

2005 Olivier Leflaive Volnay – Served in a flight with the next wine. Both were obvious (to me, anyway) as pinot, but equally obviously not from the same parts of the planet. Younger purplish color, with a pretty nose of red fruit and flowers. As you say, lean but not mean.

2006 Kosta Brown Sonoma Pinot Noir – Great nose that spoke to me immediately of not just California but Sonoma and the Russian River, though there was a vague possibility of Carneros fruit here from the cola nut on the finish. Quite sweet and hot with tomato and caramel, and when I turned out to be wrong on my first guess of 2005 for the vintage I went to 04 and then 03. Very developed for a wine just three years old.

With grilled veal tenderloin and roasted winter vegetables:

1994 Marques de Caceres Rioja Gran Riserva – Mellow, elegant red fruit with a hint of coconut on the nose that made me suggest American Oak, for which I was roundly booed. Until they found out it was a Rioja--oh those doubters! Lovely wine.

1988 Robert Michel Cornas La Geynale – Burnt rubber, black cherry, white pepper, raw green pepper and violets. Clearly a northern Rhone; enjoyed this tremendously.

2001 Falesco Montiano – This was Coop's wine. It sucked. Honestly, I couldn't have finished my modest pour: dark, huge, strong, licorice and cocoa, black current and blackberry, very sweet over the top finish. Coop said all the comments on Cellar Tracker indicating a wine very Bordeauxish and drinking well now. What were those people smoking?

1999 Mastroberardino Taurasi Radici – Ah, this one's back to reality. Good nose of tar, cherry and some fruitcake spices, very dry but with a good mouthfeel. Nice.

With the cheese plates:

1999 Kracher #2 Traminer TBA Nouvelle Vague – Okay, here's my wine. Tangy apricot with pumpkin, meyer lemon and hazelnuts, great viscosity and an immortal finish. I'm very pleased: it's a terrific wine, and I stumped the chumps! No one could guess the grape.

1997 Willi Opitz Opitz One Zweigelt Strohwein – Madeira-ish reddish brown color. Tasted of date bar and root beer with a tangy orange note that reminded me of a blood orange vinegar I bought recently. Delicate in the mouth and sweet, but without the Kracher's viscosity--a wine I'd love to pour chilled as an afternoon aperitif, the way Hungarians drink Tokaji. This was the restaurant's contribution to the lunch and kudos are due Mr. A. for such a intellectual contrast.

Bill, think you have posted on the 1997 Tyrells Vat 1 Semillon before?

I passed this up earlier this year downtown, silly me.

Bill, think you have posted on the 1997 Tyrells Vat 1 Semillon before?

I passed this up earlier this year downtown, silly me.

Yes, I think we have had it maybe 3 times from the person that had the foresight to buy some.