Wine tasting of July 25, 2008

This was the first wine tasting after Uncle-N’s return. No more sideway label pictures. We blind tasted 5 wines. Present were Uncle-N, Piroca, Winepath, Jimmy, and a guest appearance of Uncle Ozi (his family temporarily abandoned him, so he is free to attend wine tasting).

1. Château Destieux Saint Emilion 2005, score=3

Nose is nice with black fruits, cedar and slight dirty sock/sweaty feet smell. Palate is a bit austere with restrained but good fruits. Tannin is rather strong with a bit bitter finish but the finish is long. Overall, it is a very good one. Consensus was Bordeaux or Bordeaux-style California red. For Bordeaux, the funky nose is rather slight. This turned out to be 05 Ch Destieux from St. Emilion.
Quoting from WA (RP); After Destieux’s brilliant 2003, I thought proprietor Christian Dauriac may have hit the highest peak possible at this old vineyard (average age 45 years). However, the blockbuster 2005 may well eclipse the 2003. Consultant Michel Rolland’s final blend consists of 66% Merlot, and equal parts Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. A flamboyant, muscular, seriously concentrated wine of great intensity, it possesses a dense black/purple color as well as a gorgeous nose of smoke, truffles, blackberries, earth, new saddle leather, and grilled meat juices. The wine is amazingly dense, rich, and powerful yet also elegant and fresh. The 14.5% alcohol is the highest this estate has achieved. Blame the 2005 drought for that characteristic. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2025+. Score range: 92-94 points. Score: 94. —Robert Parker, April 2006.

2. Orin Swift “Papillon” Red blend 2005, score=3

Nice nose with lots of black fruits and “sardine” action. Palate is similar to the previous one but more fruits forward with predominant back fruits and firm and big tannin. Again finish is bit bitter with plenty of tannin. Style is very similar to the previous #1 wine. We thought this to be Bordeaux-style Cali blend. Some thought this to be South American Malbec. This turned out to be one of Prioca’s favarites “Orin Swift”, 2005 Papillon which is their first release of a true Bordeaux style blend consisting of 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, 7% Malbec and 2% Petite Verdot. Some liked Ch Destineux better and some liked Papillon better.

3. Astrale E Terra “Arcturus” 2002, score=2+

Nose is bit closed as compared to the previous two but nice black fruits and cedar coming through without any funk. Palate is nice with forward fruits and nice tannin, which is much smoother than the former two. French Rhone, Spanish, Italian were mentioned. This is also Bordeaux blend from California. Astrale E Terra (Heaven and Earth) is located in the Atlas Mountain in Napa touting “mountain” fruits. 2002 vintage is a blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot. Fruits were harvested in October 31 – November 3, 2002. 
Appellation: Napa Valley /Atlas Peak 
Production: 
Cooperage: 100% Small French Oak (25% New) 
Aging: Barrel Aged for 30 Months, Bottle Aged for 12 Months 
Release Date: Spring 2006. WE 93.
Among these three Bordeaux and Bordeaux blends from California, it is interesting to know which one we liked best. Although all three are solid wines, options were between Ch Destieux and Papillon followed by Arcturus.

4. Casa Lapostolle Cuvée Alexandre Merlot 2005, score=2

Nose has septic tank, arm pits and dirt mixed with cherry. The funk has dissipated some what after a while. Palate is better than the nose with nice mixed red and black fruits, plum and good firm tannin. Because of the funky nose, European red blend with possible syrah component (south of France?) was suggested. This happened to be Merlot from Chile. Winepath has brought this before but obviously we could not identify it as usual. According to the their webpage, the grapes are 85% Merlot and 15% Carmenere. Cold skin contact maceration for 5 days at 28-30C followed by a two week post-fermentation maceration. All the wine was aged in French oak Bordeaux barrels for 11 months (40% new oak and 60% second and third fill barrels). Bottled in July 2005. WE 86.

5. D&N Primitivo del Salento 2007, score=1+~2

This is a special contribution from Uncle Ozi. Nose is bit grapey with floral and perfumed but not much of oak-derived nose. No earthiness or funk. Palate is like popular California reds, bit of sweet fruits with mild tannin. Not much oak-derived flavors. We are surprised to learn this is Italian. Primitivo is related to Zinfnadel and that may explain the floral nose. Not bad for the price especially as compared to similar price point among the California reds but in the same time we are astounded that Italian make this type of wine (probably for export to meet the American tastes). This is quite good especially for barbeque or pizza. The label is made in a very low budget and the fonts show obvious jagged edges (did not even use edge smoothed scalable fonts, what kind of PC are they using? 8088 running DOS??).

FRIDAY NIGHT TASTINGS, JULY 18, 2008

THE WINE CLUB MET FOR THE FIRST TIME AT A NEWLY OPENED WINE BAR/RESTAURANT: REDWOOD-IN BETHESDA. PRESENT WERE: Uncles E, Piroca and Winepath. The place is huge, the bar is all marbletop, the staff is very friendly, the winelist is miserable (courtesy of Mongomery County's dictatorial liquor laws) the food expensive, $46/steak. We had a glass of a malbec (quality: nosobad). Uncle Piroca went for some white, dry wine (he was sorry!). Then, he decided to get us a bottle of a nice, if slightly tannic and smoky Syrah with some petit verdot,( RP=94). Strompltft wineyards (or something unpronounceable like that). Good nose, not too peppery, like a la Downunder, great on the palate, long finish. Uncle P thought it was a good "table wine". For cholesterol, we had freshly cut french fries and vidalia onion rings. Uncle E was too busy smelling the moules marinieres of his barstool lady-neighbour. It was all in all a great night!

FRIDAY NIGHT TASTINGS, JULY 10, 2008

Present were: Jimmy, Piroca, Uncles E and Winepath and a cameo appearance by our anatolian wine conosseur, Uncle Ozi. The latter was in great form, telling us about his early life experiences aboard a train in Europe. Uncle N was sadly away, on his way to Napa Valley. I am sure he will bring us back lots of amazing Harlans, Bucellas, Araujos and Screaming Chickens.

They all thought that this wine is a malbec or meritage, including syrah. Had a screwcap, so it was thought to be from the southern hemisphere. I brought it in because I did not like this wine very much. We have had before, a Barossa valley shiraz, "cat among pigeons". Uncle Piroca was moved by the cat motif. Not bad but an average wine. A 2+.

Great wine, it was identified as "Behrens & Hitchcock" by Uncles Winepath and E. Smoky nose with ripe prunes and lavender. Of course, we were wrong as usual, this was a Chapellet from Napa, 3+ or 4. I had bad experience in the past with Chapellet cabs, but then I am only a young winemaker who has a lot to learn.

Uncle E brought this wine. Had a floral, wonderful nose. The taste was not far behind. All were impressed. thought that this was a novel spanish or something. It was Georges Latour, Napa cab-easily a 3+.

This was the generous gift of Uncle N, in absentia. The reason it is sideways, (it is not because of the movie), is that we stole this from Uncle's wine cooler. And it is a Bordeaux, Chateau Lugagnac, 2005. It had a reasonable nose, vanilla, whatever. But the taste was dreadful , I don't think the consesus was more than 0.5. I was longing for my first-made wine, (which was real enema water, useful before colonoscopy).

THIS ONE WAS NOT BLINDLY TASTED. It tasted like Clio before, the fact that it got cooked did not seem to matter. A 3, probably one of the best tonight.

Health Benefit of red wine

Winepath sent this to me (which came from his friend). I figured that the original article appeared in Economist. (Jul 3rd 2008 From The Economist print edition). All red meat eaters out there, this is another reason to have a good cab with it. For your convenience the entire text is quoted below.

Red wine exercises its benefits before it enters the bloodstream

"FINE food sings on the palate, but pairing it with the right wine creates a chorus. Among those in the know, the plum, chocolate and spice flavours of Cabernet Sauvignons, Merlots, Pinot Noirs and Sangioveses best accentuate the rich flavours of red meats. Now, however, a group of researchers led by Joseph Kanner of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has discovered that pairing red wines like these with red meat appears to be more than just a matter of taste. If the two mix in the stomach, compounds in the wine thwart the formation of harmful chemicals that are released when meat is digested.
The idea that red wine is actually good for your health is irresistible to the average tippler. But it appears to be true. In particular, red wines are rich in polyphenols, a group of powerful antioxidants that are thought to protect against cancer and heart disease by destroying molecules that would otherwise damage cells. How the polyphenols in wine exercise their beneficial effects, though, has been mysterious. That is because they do not seem to travel in any quantity from the stomach into the bloodstream.
The answer, Dr Kanner has found, lies in the stomach itself. The digestion of high-fat foods such as red meat releases oxidising toxins. One in particular, called malondialdehyde, is implicated in arteriosclerosis, cancer, diabetes and a host of other serious diseases. Dr Kanner suspected that the key to wine’s protective effect is when, precisely, it is consumed. He hypothesised that if the polyphenols arrive in the stomach at the moment when the fats are releasing malondialdehyde and its kin, then this might stop these toxic materials from getting any farther into the body.
To test this idea, he and his colleagues fed a group of rats one of two meals—either red meat from a turkey (a foodstuff shown by previous research to raise malondialdehyde levels in humans) or such meat mixed with red-wine concentrate. An hour and a half after the rats had eaten, they were killed. Dr Kanner then removed their stomachs and analysed the contents. As he reports in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the wine concentrate did indeed reduce the formation of malondialdehyde. It also cut the level of hydroperoxides, another group of oxidising agents that cause cell damage.
Based on these results, Dr Kanner and his colleagues argue that looking for antioxidants from wine in the bloodstream was a mistake; they do not need to be there to be useful. Their research also suggests that the habit of eating fruit at the end of a meal is a healthy one. Many fruits, too, are rich in polyphenols (wine is, after all, just fermented fruit juice). By treating them as dessert, these fruits arrive in the stomach at the point when meat-digestion is poised to do its worst—nipping the problem in the bud, as it were."

Wine tasting on 7-5-08

Present were Uncle-N, Winepath, Piroca and guest appearance of Brother-M, Lady-SEA, and JBug. It was held at Uncle-N’s for a change. We started with two sauvignon blanc; one from Loire and another from Napa. Then blind tasted 4 reds. Finally we tasted syrah-based sparkling wine (Goose bumps). Uncle-E was absent and Jimmy went to beach with his family. We are not going to score these and we did not really taste but we were just enjoying the wines and the intent of this note is purely for the record so that we know what we enjoyed.

1. Domaine Merlin Cherrier Sancerre 2005

A classic Sancerre from Merlin Cherrier. Nice mineral nose. Crisp tart acidity without any wood derived flavor.

2. Rudd Sauvignon Blanc 2006

This one is quite different in style. Very crisp with acidity almost feels like effervescence. Nice green apple.

These two nice summer wines were enjoyed with many interesting and tasty assorted cheeses each with a different distinctive character; one particular smelly cheese later became a bit of a problem (quarantined in double-fastener zip-lock bag) but while we are tasting the cheese, the smell did not bother us. Nice acidity of both sauvignon blanc went very well with the rich taste of these cheeses.
We also enjoyed “smoked salmon” pizza. The base of which is made of pizza bread with chives in it, crème freche, smoked salmon and topped with more chives. Again, the smoked salmon went very well with these crisp whites.
One more pizza hot from the oven; caramelized onion with goat cheese black olive, and pine nuts. Again the sweetness of the onion went very well with the sauvignon blanc.
Now we are into the reds.

3. Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Nuova Sangiovese Grosso 2001

Nose has nice vanilla and caramel with very slight earthiness. The palate is nice with good black fruits, long finish and supporting firm tannin. We thought this is a high-end Cali cab and were astounded to learn that this is Brunello. Here are quotes from all the experts;

92 points, Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (December 2006): The 2001 Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Nuova is Neri’s modern-styled Brunello. It is made from vines planted in the southern part of the zone and aged in small oak barrels. It displays a darker, almost saturated color and notable concentration with masses of sweet dark fruit, smoke and licorice flavors that flow onto the palate with exceptional length and balance in a powerful, brooding style. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2021.

91 points, Wine Enthusiast (April 2006); A beautiful showing thanks to rich red fruit, pomegranate, blackberry, plum, menthol and heavy toasted notes such as clove, vanilla, almond and coconut. Rich, supple and inky, this is a big, bold wine that should be opened 5–10 years from now.

97 points, Wine Spectator (April 2006); Dark color with intense blackberry, chocolate and lightly toasted oak. Full-bodied and ultravelvety, with caressing tannins. Vanilla, chocolate and berry. Goes on for minutes. Best after 2010. 4,830 cases made. (JS).

3. Lokoya Mount Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon 2002

Nice wine and mostly because Uncle-N contributed it, two tasters thought this was Spanish--but they were wrong. Piroca had tasted this before. Big tannin was mellowed out but could have bottle aged more. Here are what experts said.

96 points, Robert Parker, Wine Advocates (February 2005); The magnificent 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder boasts an extraordinary perfume of lead pencil shavings intermixed with charcoal, blueberries, blackberries, and cassis. This provocative Cabernet possesses the highest tannin level, but also the most concentration, texture, and depth. As it sits in the glass, scents of flowers, espresso roast, and black fruits emerge. A tour de force in Cabernet Sauvignon, it requires 4-5 years of aging, and should last for two decades.

93 points, Stephen Tanzer (June 2005); Good full ruby. Elemental, extremely primary nose features grapey blackberry, licorice and violet pastille. Big, sweet, broad and creamy; a huge, powerful wine with slightly rustic flavors of dark chocolate and minerals. Finishes with compelling sweetness of fruit, and very broad tannins that arrive late. From a block of vines that was recently torn out due to phylloxera. The richest of this trio of cabernets. Winemaker Chris Carpenter notes that the intention here is to make three wines of place by using "neutral" winemaking techniques. "The only difference among the wines is maceration times," he added. All three of these bottlings are close to 15% alcohol. 93(+?) points

94 points, Wine Enthusiast (May 2005); There’s something almost Zinny about this wine, with its brambly, briary notes of wild blueberries and blackberries and sun-warmed summer bark and dust. It possesses fabulous intensity, but those mountain tannins are palate-numbing, and they shut down the finish...

3. Veraison Stagecoach Vineyard Synchrony 2002

We had this before (please see the previous blog entry) but both Uncle-N and Winepath (as usual) could not identify this wine. Definitely new world style with nice almost sweet fruits. Cab and Syrah blend were mentioned. This is cab blend including cab franc, Marbec and Merlot. Then we tasted #4, Uncle-N and Piroca said they tasted very very similar and even suggested they could be the same wines.

4. Veraison Stagecoach Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2002

This is from the same vineyard and same vintage but 100% cab.

These wonderful reds were paired with;

Fillet mignon Carpaccio-style (medium rare) with tangy sauce (soy source, mirin, balsamic vinegar with grated ginger and au jus) and sautéed garlic bits accompanied by baby arugula and black bean corn salad (cilantro, cumin and jalapeño pepper).

Chicken meatballs flavored with shitake mushroom and nutmeg in Italian tomato sauce and fresh basil; Shitake mushroom risotto (unfortunately, this was made ahead of time and sat in the pan and then finished but it was over cooked and had the consistency of rice porridge).

5. Mollydooker Goosebumps Sparkling Shiraz 2006

Very interesting sparkling wine. The color is dark red like any Shiraz but bubbly. Not sweet (no sugar sweet) as you may expect but has lots of sweet fruits with creamy bubbles. “The Shiraz has been selected from Scott & Cheryl Longbottoms' vineyard in Padthaway and Darren & Belinda Joppichs' vineyard in Langhorne Creek, both of which are producing grapes which exude incredible flavor and complexity.”

This was paired with wonderful desserts contributed by Winepath and Lady-SEA; Winepath brought the most spectacular cake. It was a flourless multi-layer walnut cake. The rich taste of caramelized walnuts suffused the cake’ unctuous texture combining with the butter icing melting in the mouth. The decoration was intricate and professional. The favor and texture paired beautifully with the wine. Its hard to imagine such a cake can be made outside a Viennese pastry shop. Lady-SEA contributed a collection of Pennsylvania Dutch cookies; miniature shoo-fly pie cookies, soft sugar cookies and date nut bites.