Blind tasting notes
2015 Domaine Pascal Cotat Sancerre Les Monts Damnés – this was damné good! Grassy sauvignon blanc nose, with a tropical fruit underlay, impeccably balanced with a long lip smacking finish.
1998 Bouchard Aine et Fils Gevrey Chambertin – this village wine handily outlived it’s expected drinking window, and showed some ripeness in the nose with a hint of vinyl (as in kid’s pool) along with some earthy notes. It developed some dried cherry on palate and finished medium long, drying at the end. Likely better a few years go.
1997 Woodward Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon Artist Series #6 – fairly dark in colour, with rich ripe fruit in the nose, then surprisingly only medium bodied on palate (the nose made one expect something heavier). Fairly clean finish, only medium long. Needs drinking.
1994 Henschke Cyril Henschke – this is their top cabernet, at about 1/3 the cost of the top shiraz, Hill of Grace (which is now c.$700 Aus). It is a cab, cab franc and merlot blend and it was dark, with a vanilla, raisin, and smoke nose, with some interesting earthy mint undertones. It is now fully mature (timed it right – first bottle I’ve opened) and on palate is a mélange of cocoa, not too sweet fruit, and spice, in a very nice place now, with a very long finish. Excellent showing.
1994 Azienda Agricola Taurino Patriglione – another fairly ripe dark wine (the negroamaro grapes are dried a bit before pressing to concentrate flavours, although not, I believe, to the degree that they are for Amarone in the Northeast). Full in the mouth, and with good terminal acidity. Great cheese wine, or with hearty food like the braised oxtails with polenta).
2005 Andrew Will Ciel du Cheval Vineyard – this Red Mountain cab blend was dark, with a nose of dark fruit and blueberry and currant notes on palate. A compact wine, it showed a chalky mouth feel, a decently long finish and good balance. No reason to hold this one.
2008 Beaulieu Vineyard Tapestry – dark, slightly ripe nose, ton of concentration mid-palate, massive long ripe finish. A cudgel compared to the epee of the more sophisticated George de Latour, but an enjoyable one.
1998 Ch. Suiduraut – something was up with this mahogany coloured wine, possibly some earlier heat damage. A kind of rancio nose reinforced this impression, although it was reasonably balanced on palate and finish a tad hot.
2009 Domaine des Baumard Quarts de Chaume – I was delighted to taste this as I’d recently added some to my cellar. Totally different dessert wine style from chenin blanc, with a strong citrus nose, along with some dried apricot and a fair bit of residual sugar but nicely offset by balancing acidity. I expect that this one is just hitting stride now and should rink well over the next decade.