Tasting on December 28, the last in 2007

The last wine tasting of 2007; present were Winepath, Uncle-E, Jimmy and Uncle-N. We tasted 3 wines blind. Very interesting combination of wines.


1. Clos Salomon (Givry) 2005, score=2

Nobody correctly identify this as Burgundy from Givry (in Cote Chalonnaise near Chalon-Sur-Saone) where Winepath has visited in the past. We noticed light color but rather dark for Burgundy. We thought (except for Winepath), nobody will bring Pinot Noir let alone Burgundy to our tasting. Nose is rather austere with crushed stone and faint tar with some red fruits. Again rather austere on the palate with some red fruits. Tannin is rather mild but tasted too acidic. This is Winepath effort to bring our group up to the level of other people who drinks "real" wines.

2. Penfolds Bin389 Cabernet Shiraz 2004, score=2+

The color is inky black. Black fruits and mint on the nose. Nice mouth feel with taste of mainly black fruits, balanced tannin and acid. No real peppery spice on the finish. Some thought this is Shiraz but lack of characteristic black pepper was noted.








3. Tignanello 2004, Score=2

From Antinori Winery, "Super-Toscan". Since 1982 Tignanello is said to have been made from 85% Sangiovese, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc but on the label, we could only recognize Sangiovese and Cab Sauv. This has interesting nose (to say the least) with sulfur, cattle manure and unclean toilet (by Uncle-E). Interestingly, these smells dissipated rather quickly. This is rather heavy wine; Sangiovese, Cab sauv, Syrah have been mentioned as possible grapes in this and the nose was definitely "European". The palate is rather austere with blanced tannin and acid with muted black fruits.

Extraordinary tasting of Integrity, Marquis Phillips Shiraz,2003

Well, have to post this: due to Uncle Piroca's generosity, we have tasted the 2003 Marquis Phillips's Integrity (2003 Shiraz from Mc Laren Vale) Present were JuneBug, Winepath, Taddy (you know who you are). Marvelous, a definite 4 to 4+. RP gave it 94 points. Velvety, darker than the darkest night, toasted blue fruit (whatever that means) long vanilla and blackberry. A truly great wine. And I am NOT crazzy about shiraz (usually). Best holiday wishes to all!

BARRELING DAY, AT UNCLE WINEPATH'S WINERY

Today, the Napa-derived merlot was placed in a year-old french 23-liter barrel. The cabernet sauvignon, from central California, was put into a brand new french barrel. Both barrels had a medium toast preparation. Both young wines have high alcohol content, 13-14%; the merlot tastes harsh and fairly acidic, while the cab has deeper color and more pleasant taste. Both young wines have undergone malo-lactic fermentation, following their regular maceration of 8 days on skins and three rackings in individual carboys. We hope to "oak" for approximately 6 months.

Wine Tasting on December 21, 2007

We tasted 4 wines blind and one white wine as an extra (#0). Present are Winepath, Uncle-E, Uncle-N, Piroca, Grasshopper, and Jimmy (full participation). It was a good tasting and all wines are good to drink.

0. Pride Viognier 2006

This was an extra before tasting real wines contributed by Piroca. Nice fruity nose of green apple and hint of citrus. Nice smooth viscous mouth feel with crisp acidity. You do taste some wood. It was said to be fermented and aged in "neutral" oak barrels, (I suppose "neutral" may mean old or used French white oak barrel). Nice long finish. As a white wine, definitely more interesting.

P.S. Carol an I tasted this wine the day after, the character imparted by oaking came out very nicely and more prominently; almost reminded of good old California Chardonnay. Nutty, buttery taste and smooth viscous mouth feel really got pronounced. This is a pleasant surprise from Viognier but this is from Pride after all.

1. El Nido Clio 2005 score=4

Monastrell 70% and Cab Sauv 30%. New world wine from Spain. Uncle-E thought this could be a boutique cab from California such as Bucella (may have been influenced by the heavy bottle).

We are so impressed with 2004. 2005 just came out. We had a big expectation and it did not disappoint. Nice cherry, minerals, and vanilla nose. Complex black fruits on the palate with nice tannin (will be milder with age). Long finish with mocha and chocolate. Compared to 2004, Piroca felt bit too tannic but the rest thought it was just fine. For about $40 right now, it is a good buy but if 2004 is an example, the price will go up as supplies get scarce.

2. Lewelling 2004 Cab Sauv, Wight vineyard, score=4 or (5)

This is the wine Piroca raved about in the previous post; to quote him "The tasting experience is beyond pleasurable and I would venture to say that it is almost orgasmic. ..... It revoked (meant to say "evoked"?..Uncle-N) all the flavors I have experienced throughout my entire life, good and bad. ...... be ready to experience your life parade in front of you." Not everybody reached the "orgasm". Mineral and Cherry nose. It is in old world style and complex but subtle on the palate. Long finish and excellent tannin structure. Piroca and Uncle-E (as being one of the most sophisticated) liked this one the best.

3. Linne Caldo 2005 Nemesis Syrah, score=3

Initially most of us thought this could be Chateauneuf . Slight funk; described by Uncle-N as "sweaty armpit with perfumey deodorant applied". Because of the funky nose, we thought this is European. Good red and black fruits on the palate with subtle spices. Pleasant tannin and relatively long finish. We noticed that sometimes, California wine may have slight funk (never like some of the French or Italian wines though). Old world style syrah (actually 85% syrah, with monastrell).

4. Chateau de la Gardine, 2004 Chateauneuf-du-Pape, score=3

Gutsy move from Winepath. This made an appearance with thick bown bag "burka" to conceal the Pope's hat-shaped bottle. Unmistakable funk on the nose with spice box (smells like somebody broke a bottle of Worcestershire sauce in the covered of musty wet basement, please note that we did not taste "Lea and Perrins", the label is just for reference). Old world style (obviously) nice balance of acid and tannin. Among the Chateauneuf we have tasted, one of the best.


5. Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce, non-vintaged

Tangy spice box, acid, and anchovy on the nose. Remind of some Chateauneuf -du-Pape.

Lewelling Cabernet Sauvignon, Wight Vineyard, 2004, Score = 5

This creature is superb and deserving of all RP's accolades. The wine has great color, deep garnet/purple, almost black. The nose is exquisite and resembles mixed berry jam with hints of tire rubber, smoke and vanilla. The tasting experience is beyond pleasurable and I would venture to say that it is almost orgasmic. This is truly a chameleon of a wine as far as tastes goes. It starts by coating the taste buds with strong and sweet mixed berry flavors associated with vanilla, caramel and some dirt. In the mid palate it creates a nostalgic flavor revolution. It revoked all the flavors I have experienced throughout my entire life, good and bad. The finish is very long, going for over a whole minute. I suggest that you have this beast by itself or with food and be ready to experience your life parade in front of you.

SATURDAY NIGHT SINGLE TASTING

This was a suprising Cabernet. Ferrari-Carano 2004, released last March. Disapointing nose, with mild rotten egg smell. But soon after, the smell dissipated. Tasted wonderfully, velvety chocolate, caramel dark fruit: guava, anis, vanilla, nutmeg, red curry, cillantro, cassis, mango and tamarind. There might have been some roast lamb, moose, venison and old scrawny chicken (the latter unmistakenly fed on roasted pine nuts). A definite 3 on the winepath scale. Finally, we are drinking some real wine.

Pre-party wine tasting on December 14, 2007

Before our departmental holiday party, we tasted few wines. Initially present were Piroca, Uncle-E, Winepath and Uncle-E then big crowd joined in. We also tasted Sauv blanc to start. Since these are not our usual tasting, no score was given.

1. Molly Dooker "Blue Eyed Boy" Shiraz 2006

One of the Piroca's new acquisition of 2006 M-D wines. In 2006, all M-D proudly crowns screw tops. This is a very nice wine. Nice nose of plum, meat juice and black pepper. Good blackberries, plum and black cherry tastes on the palate with finish of black pepper. Nice soft tannin. Very easy to drink without any edges. Compared to other M-D, prominent "sugarfied" fruits are not present. Although it is a new world wine, it is walking the line between new and old worlds.

2. Karl Lawrence 2004 Cab Sauv

This is a special contribution from Uncle-E; one of three bottles from the two cases in existence in the whole state of Georgia according to him. Many of us were not familiar with this winery. Cab Sauv grapes were from Morisoli Vineyard on the valley floor near Rutherford and the Lamb Family Vineyard on hillside of Howell Mountain. This is a classic big young California Cab. Nice nose of cheery, vanilla and caramel. Complexed black and red fruits on the palate with long finish with taste of chocolate, vanilla and caramel. Tannin is rather chewy leaving some edge on the finish. Piroca thought that it reminded him of Numanthia from Spain and Uncle-N Lokoya Howell mountain. We felt that it, definitely, will improves on bottle aging.


P.S. At the party, Wood bridge cab sauv tasted like classic jug wines with grapey somewhat sweet taste on the palate. Score=1+

Wine Tasting on December 7, 2007

We tasted 5 wines blind. Present were Winepath, Piroca, Uncle-E, Jimmy and Uncle-N. It was rather good tasting and we liked all 5 wines. They appear in order of tasting. For the first time in our history of tasting, Uncle-E arrived first.

1. Finca Allende Rioja 2004, score=2+ to 3

This is the wine that winepath raved about in the past post. Uncle-N found this and brought this to see if Winepath could recognize it (of course not). To quote Winepath, "it's what a Bordeaux should taste like when it grows up: fine nose of funky vanilla with undertones of clementine and tangerine dark-roast ethiopian coffee. Musty hints of green peppercorn and rubbing alcohol (isobuthanol, to be exact). The tannins reflected the 36 months spent in eastern-silesian bariques, followed by 400 days in in norvegian aspen barrels. Definitely spicy, peppery on the mid-palate with medium-toasted sesame, ginger afalfa and new mexican blue corn with a hint of lebanese cedar resin and european white oak acorns". The rest of us are not as astute to appreciate all this mambo jumbo but, again, we all like this wine. Spain is definitely doing better than other old world.

2. Cliff Lede cab sauv 2005, score=2+ to 3
Everybody agreed that this is a new world wine from Napa. Some thought it tasted like 2004 Neal. Nice nose with lots of red fruits and vanilla. It tasted like a good Napa cab with lots of fruits, vanilla and caramel. Some thought this is bit over oaked as many Napa cabs are. Rather young and tannin has bit of an edge. We agreed that bottle aging may do good.

P.S. Uncle-E brought 2004 Cliff Lede before which some of us have tasted (not Uncle-N) and gave score of 3.


3. Caro 2002, score=2+

We tasted this several times before but we could not identify it. Some thought this could be Bordeaux but lacking mineral or terriore taste. This was collaboration of French and Argentine; blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec made in Bordeaux style by two renowned wine families; Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) and Nicolas Catena. Nose has slight funk (reminiscent of Bordeaux) but by no means not too disturbing. Rather austere but nice complex taste of balanced tannin, fruits, and acidity. Finish is bit short. Again we will rather drink this than over-priced Bordeaux.

4. Contender 2003, score=4

We tested this in the past but none of us (beside Piroca who brought this) could not identify it. This is from famed Behrens and Hitchcock Winery. Blend of cab sauv (73%), cab frank (22%), Merlot (4%) and Petit Verdot (1%). Nice nose with cherry, vanilla and green pepper. This is by no means a fruits bomb and rather subtle but complex tastes. It tasted like good Bordeaux should be. Nice long finish and nice tannin structure. Our favorite of the evening.

5. Ghost Pine Sab Sauv 2005, score=3

It is 100% cab sauv, 61% from Napa and 39% from Sonoma. Nose is bit closed but no funk and slight red fruits. It was bit warm when tasted. Taste is rather austere at first but after some time, it opened up (as per Winepath and Jbug, the wine tasted better next day). with nice complexed tastes of berries, cherries with vanilla and caramel tastes in the finish. Nice solid tannin. To us, this is more subtle than many of the Napa or Australian fruits bombs but it is more sophisticated and complex.

P.S. Additional "floral" description by winepath showing off his innate ability to bullshit and his unwillingness of using spell checker. Quoted as is; "Ghost Pines, to me, had a definite boysenberry and soft parsimon jam finish. Underneath all that, a subtle, yet noticeable whiff of parsley, azalea and seared radicchio was also detectable."

Wine tasting on 11-30-07

We tasted 5 wines blind. Present were Winepath, Piroca, Jimmy, and Uncle-N.

1. Guido Porro Barolo 2003; score=1

What a disappointment. It is difficult to imagine that Antonio Galloni of WA gave 91! This is the wine only Uncle-E can appreciated but he was not here. Winepath is the only one who thought this is rather elegant. The color is very light and you can see through. Piroca wanted to shake it so that the pigment sank in the bottom may get mixed to make it darker. Nose has some floral note but has sort of chemical or tar-like smell (?characteristic for Borolo). Taste; what can we say. Some tannin and acidity; the rest you have to use your imagination but I (uncle-N) can not taste anything else. Wheres is the fruits??? Piroca gave -1 (minus one).

2. Castano Hecula Monastrell 2004, score=2+

This is a very decent everyday wine (at $10) and is a good value. Nose is nice with some fruits and slight funk. Taste does not blow you away but nice combination of tannin and acid with some black fruits and coffee in the finish. Piroca will not like me saying this but this is a good food wine.


3. Robert Foley Claret 2003, score=4+

Hands down this is the winner. What a wine! Remind us of Mollydooker but has more stronger tannin and "candied" fruits aspect is less pronounced. Nose is very nice with lots of black fruits, cherry and licorice, vanilla and caramel. Mouth feel is velvety smooth and silky. Fruits bomb but not over-the-top. Long finish with caramel and chocolate.
Only complaints we have about this wine is a terrible label and high price!



4. Ben Marco Expresivo 2003, Score=3

Malbec, Cab, Shiraz blends. We all liked this as the second best. Good nose with black fruits and slight smoked meat notes. Good mouth feel with black fruits and relatively soft but nice tannin.





5. Excelsior Cab Sauv 2005, score=2+

This cab from South Africa has been one of the favorite everyday wine of Winepath. This year it honors a "screw" top. Again, this is a solid wine although not anything extraordinary. Excellent value and good everyday wine.

Mollydooker Enchanted Path 2005

Last night, we had this at "Proof" (they call themselves a "wine-centric restaurant"). This is a 2005 red blend by the Marquis with 66% Shiraz and 34% Cabernet. We had to admit that we really like this one. Nice inky color (although the illumination in the dining room was too dim) with a good nose of black fruits with some "protein" or meat-like aromas. The mouth feel is extremely smooth (glycerin feel) with lots of fruits but not fake or "sugarfied" taste. Tannin has good structures but is rather soft and smooth. Long finish. It went particularly well with venison tenderloin. This is the wine that everybody can like. No funky basement nose and it does not require sensitive palate to extract subtle tastes from austere wine with only tannin as the taste you can have without much efforts or imagination. Despite many previous attempts (at appreciating old world wines), we like this type of new world wines!

NOVEMBER 23,2007

This was a supprisingly good wine, winepath thought it to be a Syrah-turns out to be a Petit Verdot made in Arizona by with imported California grapes! Winepath thought this was a definite 3, Jimmy thought a 2. But Petit Verdot?-you think this grape is only added in small amounts to give your Cab a kick! Great!

NOVEMBER 23,2007

Present were Uncles E, Piroca, Jimmy and winepath. Tasted two unusual wines, a spanish Jumilla and an Arizona wine brought by Uncle E (SEE DESCRIPTION ABOVE). The Jumilla was a Monastrell (5% Grenache), with suprisingly good nose, fairly tannic body with some dark fruit. "Acidic" (Uncle Piroca), "I taste citrus and rubber tyre" (Uncle E). Got a 2, from Jimmy and a 3 from winepath (he was biased, since he brought it). Cannot beat this wine, at $10.40/bottle.

10 overrated

Even the screaming chicken made it on the list


http://men.style.com/theupgrader/living/features/most-overrated-wines?mbid=mwn

November 2, 20007

Chilean carmenere. Outside France, this varietal has caught on very well in Chile. Suprisingly good, dark ruby in color; with cherry and slightly shirazzy nose. Pleasant, it was a supprise, thank you uncle winepath. It was a 3.

Caymus, at its best. Unanimously, a 4. What a wine! Super nose , rich, dark color, what can I say? You should have been there to make up your own story. Uncle Piroca, please bring two more bottles of this next time.

This is a Napa cab. Got a 3 for sure. Low-key nose, but velvety on the palate, coffee, chocolate. Long finish. Uncle E's contribution, we liked this one a lot.

Brooklyn, Saturday night, October 3, 2007

Uncle winepath hosted a night in a very cozy spanish/portugese restaurant in Brooklyn, called Osteria Convivium (68 5th Avenue) Lovely grilled octopus and excellent red snapper. With an atmosphere of old portugese azulejo wine cellar;we had two bottles of Rioja Allende, 2003, wow, it's what a Bordeaux should taste like when it grows up: fine nose of funky vanilla with undertones of clementine and tangerine dark-roast ethiopian coffee. Musty hints of green peppercorn and rubbing alcohol (isobuthanol, to be exact). The tannins reflected the 36 months spent in eastern-silesian bariques, followed by 400 days in in norvegian aspen barrels. Definitely spicy, peppery on the mid-palate with medium-toasted sesame, ginger afalfa and new mexican blue corn with a hint of lebanese cedar resin and european white oak acorns. Not bad for $100/bottle. Unfortunately, they did not accept credit cards, so winepath had to wash dishes to pay off the $600.00 bill, but who is complaining...

Chateau Lascombes 2001

We do not know why we do it but we are drinking Bordeaux again. This got RP 92. We are not sophisticated enough to enjoy this type of wine but we keep trying thinking that one day we may develop the taste. We have the correct food; fillet mignon (perfectly cooked), asparagus, mashed potatoes etc for this wine. We even had croc monsieur as Hors d'oeuvre. The nose; yes the nose, pure Bordeaux nose, that is to say "funk" or "basement" (our basement does not have this type of smell, by the way) and we can not smell anything beyond that. The taste; it tastes better than it smells. Again, Bordeaux taste with austere characters and with relatively mild tannin. But we can not get over the smell!

One day, when we grow up, we will appreciate this but until then, we will be happier with less sophisticated wines.

P.S. Last night, a strong myasma smell (happens rarely for whatever reason) arose from the nearby marsh...Initially, we thought the smell was from this bottle left on the balcony. We commented on how pervasive the funk from the wine had become.

Aalto Ribera Del Duero 2004

I hear that you guys had good wines on Friday (3 and 4?). This is from Ribera del Duero. On the label it does not say what kind of grapes but I guess mostly Tinto Fino (Tempranillo).
Nice nose with black cheery and slightest hint of "funk". Extremely smooth mouth feel. Not a fruits bomb but nice black berry and blueberry flavors. Good firm tannin and nice finish with moca or coffee. With food, the strong tannin appears to diminish. Among the Ribero del Duero wines we tasted in the past (including Vega Sicilia, thanks to Piroca), we like this the best. Very complex wine. we will give either 3+ or 4-. WA (Jay Miller) 94.

Rudd Oakville Estate 2002 Red

We had this with steak on the balcony overlooking Atlantic ocean and palm trees in candle lights. This 2002 Claret is Cab Sauv 79%, Cab Franc 11%, Petit Verdot 6% , Merlot 3% , and Malbec 3%. Aged 20 months in oak. We have a mixed feeling about this wine. The nose is very nice with floral, cherry, mineral and hint of camphor (cedar) and leather. We like the nose. The taste is rather austere Bordeaux-like. Oak and strong tannin are there with full mid palate and long finish. With the vacation atmosphere and nice steak, if this wine does not taste great, we are not sure if it is worth this price. We are not sure. By the way, RP 95.

D'Arenberg 2002 Shiraz "The Dead Arm"

Appreciate Prioca's covering for me Friday. Hope his taste buds recovered from fatigue. About the same time you guys were tasting "2" wines, we were tasting "Barrel Monkeys" (see previous post). While we are on the subject of Australian Shiraz, after we got here, we tasted "Dead Arm" Shiraz 2002 twice. In the past we tasted this several times. The memory of that and two additional tastings bring a good point. The wine tastes appear to change. The first time we tasted this, I felt it was too tannic. With recent tasting, the nose has plum, cedar, and some smokiness. The taste is very complex with plum, back fruits, and again spices with cedar note and slight earthy or smoky taste. The tannin structure was just right. Nice finish. We like this more than before. But again when you are on vacation, everything tastes better.
P.S. Nice view of the ocean and sunny day!!!

FRIDAY NIGHT TASTINGS (OCTOBER 26, ANNO DOMINI 2007)

A 2, AGAIN. A rather pleasant California cab. Uncle E thought it was a Cab. franc, Uncle Piroca thought it was "oakey" (but he was overworked on Friday, so most wines were oakey) Uncle winepath liked it, should have gotten a 3-, at least.
End note: the cheeese and the breads got a 3; one should remember that they enhance the taste of the wine, no kidding.
PS Uncle N was missed at the tasting, but it sems that he was feeling no pain- tasting wine at 9 am (Barrel Monkeys), at the Reagan National Airport...

OK, NOW THIS IS WORTH EASILY A 3, BUT GOT ONLY 2. Uncle winepath was taken with this Bordeaux (he brought it, of course) there was no chracteristic funk, it tasted as a dark, rich, young California Cab. Other comments: "Cab franc, New World" and "oakey Chilean". I was told that this has great promise, to be drunk in 2012 (if you are still alive, by then) RP gave it 92.

SO THIS IS A DEFINITE 2. Most people identified this as "italian", "thin". "sangiovese ,Toscan", "acidic", "short finish". Well, I agree; RP thought this was a 91. What was he drinking?

Another one from Red Head Studio

Just a quick note of this Australian Shiraz. We liked Amarone style Shiraz from this winery "Pierri Azzardo Shiraz Amarone Style" but wines from this winery are difficult to come by. Now this one "Barrel Monkeys" became available from Winelibrary.
This is very good for the price and a classic fruits bomb Shiraz from Australia. Nice plum nose with a hint of bacon and black pepper. Slightly sugarfied fruits but not over-the-top. Nice mild tannin and good finish. In the same group as Tait "Ball Buster" but we liked this one bit better. How can we not like with this kind of label!
We will give score of 3+. (At National airport 10-27-07 while waiting for the flight).

EFFECTS OF RESVERATROL AND DIETARY FIBER

A study conducted in Germany's Goethe University, showed that resveratrol, found in red wine and peanuts, seems to synergize with dietry fiber in helping prevent colon cancer. The fiber is broken down into butyrate by colonic bacteria. It is butyrate and resveratrol that have this prophylactic effect.

PROOF THAT RED WINE WORKS!

Uncle N, has detected the misspelled "E" in AGEING . This is direct proof that his eyesight is improving due to moderate consumption of red wine! Needless to say, the misspelling was a clever test inserted by winepath.

WINE AND AGEING

Remember when your mother used to urge you to drink up your wine? (Only in alcoholic families). Truth is, moderate consumption of red wine may prevent age-related macular degeneration, which is the leading cause of vision loss in the elderly. So if you want to become elderly, but maintain your eyesight (e.g. for microscopy, as an elderly pathologist), consider the benefits of moderate red wine drinking.

wonderful evening at Uncle N

As usual, Uncle N and Carol put on a delicious repast in their beautiful home and we were treated to superb wines! It was a delightful evening in wonderful company--what more can one ask for!
Jbug

Wine Tasting on October 19, 2007

Held at Uncle N's. The tasters are Piroca, Winepath, Uncle-N, and, special appearance of Carol and Julia. Six wines were tasted blind and the desert wine was also consumed with chocolate truffles and brownies. The wines appear as we tasted them.

1. Larkmead Napa Cab. Sauv 2003; Score=3
This was, at one time, our favorite, and we tasted different vintages including 2003 several times previously. No body (besides Uncle-N who submitted this) could not identify it. The best nose among the five with floral aroma and red cherry. The taste is pleasant with red fruits but mid palate is bit thin and tannin structure is weak.
*
2. Tait "Ball Buster" 2005 Austrian Shiraz; Score=3
Shiraz (82%), Cab Sauv (9%) and Merlot (9%)
Slight earthy nose. Hint of "sugarfied" fruits and some of us identified this as Australian Shiraz. Not as "over-the-top" as Molleydooker. Everybody liked this as a pleasant wine to drink.

3, Meadowlark Napa Cab Sauv 2005; Score=3-
The second label of Larkmead. Nose is rather closed with some red cherry coming through. Nice red cherry, raspberry tastes and firm tannins. Relatively short finish. Good everyday wine.
**
**
********
4. Clio Jumila Spain 2004; score=4
Monastrell (70%), Cab Sauv (30%)
Best of the tasting. We had this several times but we (except Piroca who submitted this) could not identify it. Unanimously the best. Nice nose with vanilla, caramel and mineral-laced fruits. Piroca describes as "baby powder" smell from his childhood. Complex taste with lots of fruits and structured tannin,good mid plate of berries and chocolate. Long lasting finish. definitely new world wine from old world (Spain).

Shame that this can not be obtained (or very difficult). Looking forward for 2005.


5. Axios 2001 Cab Sauv; Score=3+
Mineral on the nose with appreciable "funk" reminiscent of Bordeaux with some vanilla coming through. Good tannin structure with some fruits but rather austere (not austere as Bordeaux, though). Everybody felt this is either Bordeaux or Bordeaux-style California Meritage. New Old world wine.*
***
6. Olivia Brion 2003 Napa Cab Sauv; Score=2
Aromatically challenged with slight "funk". Thin taste with very mild tannin. We were not impressed with this one, although it is easy to drink.


7. Ch La Fleur Des Pins Graves 2005 (dessert wine); Not scored Sauternes-style dessert wine from Graves. Very pleasant aromas of pear, cantaloupe, pineapple and citrus. Sweet but not overwhelming. We (at least some of us) were impressed especially for its price range as compared to comparable quality Sauternes.

AMARONE

You all have an idea what Amarone is. Here is an actual description of how they make it:
Grape Type: 65% Corvina, 30% Rondinella, 5% Molinara.

Country: Italy

Region: Valpolicella

Vinification: Ripe grapes are picked at the beginning of October in "in rosso" with 8 to 10 days skins maceration, natural decanting and racking. They are kept in stainless steel until February. The "ripasso" (the must ferments on the Amarone skins) takes place in order to enrich the structure, the aromatic intensity and the softness. It is aged for 12 months in Slavonian oak, and a short period in new Allier barriques. It is bottled and kept in the cellars for 6 months before release.

DID YOU KNOW THAT:

All white grapes (about 55 different types) originated from red grapes, as a result of a rare mutation in a common ancestor? The mutation probabaly occured thousand of years (3,000) ago.

The French guest

Winepath's old friend, M, has evaluated this Saturday the 2006 Chateau Hartmann (which was bottled in a high-end Bordeaux bottle) and thought that it was definitely "Bordeaux-like", not bad and better than an Australian fruity "meritage" which was the competition. He polished off most of the bottle and took another one with him back to France.

Wine tasting on October 12. 2007

Three wines (all California Cabs) were tasted. We usually have more variations including Spanish, Australian, Argentinian even French wines but so happened that only California cabs were tasted. The tasters are Piroca, Winepath, Uncle N and E. There are some difference in opinion. All felt that these are decent California cabs but nothing extraordinary and no body wanted to buy these bottles again.

1. Spann 2003 Cab Sauv: score=3 (2 by some)

Nice nose of red fruits and floral. Nice balance of acidity and tannin with good red fruits. Thin mid palate but good long finish. Some felt that it tasted somewhat thin (due to thin mid-palate). Winepath and Uncle N felt this is most balanced among the three and therefore the best of the tasting by slim margin.
*

2. Plumpjack 2003 Cab Sauv; score=3 (2 by some)

Some controversy as to the nose. Definitely strong oak and some funk on the nose. Winepath felt that there is strong "sulfa" smell. Some fruites and vanilla. The majority felt the wine is very oaky (not by Piroca) but has good tannic structure with berries and good mid plate and long finish with vanilla and caramel. After exposed to air for a while both nose and taste improved. This wine may be the best of the three but may need decanting. Piroca liked this best (after all he brought this one).

3. Von Strasser 2004 Cab Sauv; score=3 (2 by some)

Pleasant nose of fruits. Good tannin and some fruits. Nothing remarkable or extraordinary.

LOOK AT HEALTH BENEFITS OF RED WINE, IN TODAY'S QUIZ

EVEN IF IT IS PINOT, IT LOOKS GOOD!

A FULLY RIPENED PINOT NOIR BERRY

BOTH IN CARBOYS

The Merlot was pressed late last night. Both the Cab and the Merlot are awaiting graceful ageing. The bladder press worked well and it now sits idle till the next season. First racking is not expected for 3-4 weeks.

MERLOT

The Brix having dipped below 0, the merlot is ready for pressing. hopefully, this will occur tonight. Considering the mess and the length of time this will take, we are hopeful that the product will eventually be drinkable. By the way, it tastes like acid-alcohol, so worst comes to worst-we could always use it for the acid-fast stain in the lab...

THE PRESS

The cab is being pressed-there was enough must to fill a 20-liter carboy. We hope to do the merlot soon.

THE LATEST FERMENTATION NEWS

Malo-lactic fermentation having started, the next step the winemaker is strongly considering is pressing the cab sauvignon, (possibly tomorrow) while leaving the merlot on the "lees" a little longer. The new bladder press is promissing gentle squeezing, so let's hope the 2007 vintage will be drinkable.
By the way, congratulatuions to the Wine Club: You all guessed that the Seavey was a Cal. Cab; beyond that we were not so sure, but we all liked the first three. The Clos du Bois had no friends, however, earning a miserable 2. What do you expect for $179/ bottle, anyway? Uncle N, you cannot use this one for coq au vin. Uncle Piroca is treating us next week to Chateau Petrus, 1992 and Screaming Owl, 1997 (not to be confused with Screaming Chicken, the best wine ever produced).

Tasting on October 5, 2007

4 wines were tasted blind. The tasters are Winepath, Uncle N, Piroca, and Jimmy.
This is ordered from low to high score.

All tasters, please edit as you see fit.

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4. Clos Du Bois 2004 Cab Sauv

Score=2

Mineral dust nose, Austere with simple tannin taste. Not much fruits.

3. St. Clement 2004 Cab Sauv

Score=3

Black cherry and funk (not as bad as European wines) on the nose. Sour cherry taste with good tannin structure. Skimpy mid palate and short finish. Skimpy?

2. Leviathan 2005 Red Meritage

Score=3

Nice dark fruits on the nose. Lots of fruits with slightly sugarfied taste. Rounded tannin easy to drink. Short finish.

1. Seavey 2003 Cab Sauv:

Score=4

Best of the tasting. Classic California Cab. Great nose of black fruits and vanilla. Lots of fruits (cherry, black berry, blue berry). Very structure tannin. Good mid palate but relatively short finish.

Fermentation News

Not that anyone cares, (except the dedicated winemaker), the cab has reached 0 BRIX, (from the original 24.5) by turning into an alcoholic sour mash in about 5 days of furious fermentation. It is awaiting a secondary fermentation kick by the malolactic bugs, hopefully to be started this Saturday. After that, it is up to Bacchus, who will determine if this batch will become a new bust or a "3". The Merlot is much slower, at 5.5 BRIX , not bad, considering it started with a sugar content of 26. It tastes sweet, like grapa, we shall see. This will surely get a 96 from RB.
The Ed

EXAMPLES OF GRADED WINES, AS PER UNCLE PIROCA

"5" HARLAN ESTATE, 2002

"4" CAYMUS SPECIAL SELECTION, 2002 OR 2004

"3"LARKMEAD 2001, 2002, 2003

"2" CHATEAU HARTMANN,2005

"1" FLORIDA WINES; SOME 1999 E. EUROPEAN REDS

IMPROVED WINE SCORING

The editor has gratiously agreed to some changes in the scoring method. It contains a 5-point grading. Please see updated scale in deep purple, above, the October 4 blog.
The Ed.

Health Benefits?

What are the benefits? Only side effect it has on me is headache.

Winepath Editor's Reply to the comments

Now that some people like non-big cabs and occasionally Bordeaux, we could always include those (reluctantly) in our weekly evaluations. I am afraid you won't be able to hide the lack of the "hawaiian punch" bouquet of the former nor the presence of the "basement funk"in the latter.
By the way, any of you aware of the latest, i.e. that women have a three-fold higher risk of breast cancer if they have more than three drinks a week? Surely, this excludes red wine. So is our prostates at risk as well? After all, we must be talking about estrogen induction by the alcohol? Thought that most prostatic tissue is androgen-responsive.

NEWLY PROPOSED GRADING SCALE FOR TASTED VINOS

"5" - SUPERB. It is so good, it makes you feel young again (or, if you are young, it is wasted on you). You won't get this often.

"4" - VERY GOOD. No need to explain. You will know right away.

"3"- GOOD. You like it. It is what you feel when you are pleased with yourself.

"2"- ACCEPTABLE. It is like going to work everyday. You don't much like it but got to do it.

"1"- BLEAACHH! Disgusting. Tell the winemaker to go back to his original profession, embalmer-in-chief to pharaoh Shishak.

The beginning

We had our first reportable tasting last Friday. Not a terribly impressive show. Some bottles were definitely stinky, or worse. Uncle N got bottle "A" smack bull's eye-he guessed it was a cab franc. I guessed it right away too-(which was not supprising since I brought it). The cheese was ok, but I am worried about the size of some of the wine club members' rear end due to heavy cheese consumption. Uncle E was not happy with his own bottle, it is due to the storage facility he has at home.
Saturday was the debut of uncle D's seasonal vinification process. Two cases of Napa merlot and 2 cases of Lodi cab sauv. were destemmed by yours truly, OJ (who serves as an assistant wine maker and wife) and uncle P. As part of the vinification process, the three of us were impressed by the libations brought by uncle P: El Moro, from Ribera del Duero, a great Aussie Shiraz from Clare valley and the masterpiece: Bond's 2002 Melburry. The last one, I am thinking to make it into my table wine. After the grape stomping and the polishing off the contents of the 3 bottles. none of us felt any pain. Except during the night, the massive headache, which must have been due to the chinese food I had last month.
So, all is well with the grape juice, the BRIX was 25-26, this promises to be a great year, broke the cap already, the fermentation is proceeding, keeping fingers and toes crossed! I am thinking $275/ bottle in terms of futures, should anybody venture to invest at this time.