The Absent Minded
J. Bouchon
Superior Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
At $14.99 New Jersey retail, what a QPR steal. Med/med+acidity, red and black fruit, pepper, subtle tannins, absent any overloaded oak notes. 12.5% abv. (This is Bouchon Winery, healdsburg, CA) — 2 years ago
Domaine du Pegau
Cuvée Réserve Châteauneuf-du-Pape White Rhone Blend 2021
Popped and poured; no formal notes. As a long-time admirer of Laurence's Cuvée Réservée Rouge, this was my first time trying her Blanc. Admittedly, I have often struggled with white wines from the Rhône as they too often lack the acid I want. This is partly why I haven't made it a priority. However, I've had some very impressionable moments with well-aged Hermitage Blanc so I have remained open minded. Which leads me to this bottle of 2021 Cuvée Reservée Blanc; a blend of mostly Clairette with some Grenache blanc, Bourboulenc and a touch of Roussanne. From the very first smell, I was convinced that I had been clearly missing out. Beautifully perfumed with white flowers, cantaloupe, apricot and just a little citrus. This was so fresh, so sexy. It was equally sexy on the palate where all the notes were packaged in the most delightfully silky texture. The finish was long. It should be noted that we paired with rainbow trout, zucchini, summer squash topped with yuzu tobiko. This pairing slapped. Based off this experience, I would drink these now. That's not to say that they will be undrinkable with a few more years of age but I guess, why wait? The freshness is awesome and super compelling right now. — 3 years ago
Domaine La Grande Ribe
Cuvée Centenaire Côtes du Rhône Villages 2009
What a delicious $15, 10 year old baby CdP!! Wonderful mix of fresh herbs and dried read fruit. Wish I had a case for all the lamb and Mediterranean minded food. Thank you Mike the golf pro for the tip so long ago — 5 years ago
Sojurn
Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2018
We had the 2018 Wallala Pinot. One of the best wines we have had. Mild, smooth and absent of any acidity. Great drinking wine. — 6 years ago
Mad Duck
Lodi Zinfandel 2017
Fantastic fruity top note, light bodied, great finish. Absent on tannins, soft on pallet, would definitely buy again. — 7 years ago
Château Fontesteau
Cru Bourgeois Haut-Médoc Red Bordeaux Blend 2010
Very good, budget-minded Bordeaux. Perfect w grilled filet. Even stood up to a vinegar chimichurri.
Feels more of Cabernet family than merlot, with slightly leafy dark fruit and a hint of herbal undertone. Drinking great now at age 9. — 7 years ago
Tassi
Rosso di Montalcino Sangiovese 2019
Delightful rosso! Pleasant elegant nose of cherry strawberry and rose. Light bodied with many layers fresh strawberries dark cherries leather earth tobacco and mineral with fruit dominant on the front end and earthy and tannic notes on the finish. Softened on the finish after a couple hours of air. Many characteristics of a Brunello absent some of the body density and oak influences. — a year ago
Clos Erasmus
Laurel Priorat Garnacha Blend 2021
This is a stunning Garnatxa blend from Priorat (Catalonia), Spain!!
It’s comprised of mostly Garnatxa (Grenache), along with Syrah, and, to a lesser extent, Cabernet Sauvignon, sourced from three parcels in the sun-soaked village of Gratallops, where Daphne Glorian purchased her first vineyard – Clos Escales – back in 1989 when she founded Clos i Terraces. 🍇
In making this move, she joined equally passionate and pioneering winemakers Álvaro Palacios (L’Ermita) and René Barbier (Clos Mogador) in a rebirth of production practices in the region; as a group (with other similar-minded producers) they altered the trajectory of Priorat’s profile as a source of tip top quality wines rivaling the best on the world stage. 👏🏻
Priorat is one of only two regions carrying the “DOCa” / “DOQ” quality designation (the other is Rioja), subject to various stipulations including regular auditing by a tasting panel. ✅
This particular wine is “Laurel” which is Clos i Terraces’s second wine, next to Clos Erasmus, one of Priorat’s finest and most sought-after wines. Yet it tastes like a flagship wine in and of itself.🫶🏻🫶🏻
It is absolutely beautiful, with a medium ruby hue, medium (+) intensity of ripe and fresh strawberry, red cherry, red plum, violet, black licorice, fennel, clove, baking spice aromas and flavors. It’s dry, with medium(+) acidity, a medium(+) body, high alcohol (14% ABV), and medium tannins that are fine-grained. 😆
This wine vinified and aged in a combination of vessels, including, large oak vats, concrete tanks, second and third fill French oak barrels, and clay amphorae, lending to its texture and complexity.👌🏻👌🏻
— 2 years ago
Garage Wine Co.
The Ploughmen Sauzal Vineyard Carignan Field-blend 2016
Better than my first bottle last June.
Parker 95 Wine Maker notes,
Derek Mossman began Garage Wine Company at a time when there were relatively few smaller, family owned wineries in Chile. He not only started his venture to produce hand made wines on a human scale, but also to buy fruit from and support farmers with great quality fruit throughout the country. Along the way, he also banded together a group of like minded wineries to create MOVI, a platform to promote smaller production wineries in Chile.
Tantalizing aromas of blueberries, violets, orange peel, raspberry leaf and aniseed with a touch of aromatic herbs that provide freshness. The palate is electric, with pulsing acidity, ultra-fine tannins and very good length. Both rustic and elegant, wild and subtle, it has precision, elegance, balance and life. Shows no alcohol nor wood. A fresh, Mediterranean blend from a vineyard that was forgotten, revived, regenerated and today shows what the Maule is capable of. — 6 years ago
Krupp Brothers
M5 Stagecoach Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2012
A good wine. But on the heels of the Hobbs Winery 2014 CS, this one just didn't stand a chance and kind of put things into perspective a little bit. Might I have given this a 93 or 94 if the Hobbs hadn't spoiled it? That's very possible. This one still had a terrific blackberry core, and some hints of cola, iodine, black licorice. Was still very nice and balanced. The intensity wasn't there, and the complexity was a little absent as well. It was a bit out of balance, as it was very complex up front and seemed to fade towards the rear. IMO the tannin on this wine is still quite present. Does it need a couple more years for integration? Very likely. Does it have the potential to be a 98? No. But 94 is quite possible. Just not today. Drink 2023-2030 — 6 years ago
Takasago Shuzo
Ginga Shizuku Divine Droplets Junmai Daiginjo Sake
Clean aromas of licorice, mint, and rice porridge. Licorice and sweet rice pudding on the taste with white chocolate. Like a dessert. Refreshing, the banana note present in lower end sakes is absent. Unique and delicious. — 7 years ago
Marc Hébrart
Special Club Brut 1er Cru Champagne Blend 2018
This is the 2018 Marc Hébrart Brut ‘Special Club’ – a beautiful bottle of vintage bubbles hailing from a collection of premier and grand cru sites in the Marne and Montagne de Reims regions of Champagne, France.
When you see “Special Club” on the label of a bottle with this distinctive shape, you’re dealing with essentially a prestige cuvée of a grower-producer who’s a member of the “Club Trésors.”
Marc Hébrart joined the Club Trésors in 1985, which is an association of quality-minded grower-producers. Grower-producers operate differently than the big champagne houses (e.g., Veuve-Clicquot) in that they are smaller-scale vignerons who own the entire production process from the vineyard to the winery and cellar.
They have helped raise awareness and appreciation of artisanal champagne wines that speak to a sense of place and personality, unobscured by extensive, widespread blending.
To achieve the status of “Special Club” a wine must undergo a rigorous application process and meet minimum quality metrics culminating with in two blind tasting panels – the first tasting evaluates the base wine after the first fermentation; the second and final tasting occurs after a minimum of three years aging sur lie.
From our studies we’ve learned the 2018 vintage bore above-average fruit; the warm and dry summer paved the way for a riper expression in an otherwise marginal climate. This wine is made with 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay.
The bouquet has a medium (+) intensity of yellow and green apple, lemon zest, white peach, gardenia, almond biscotti, nougat, pastry, biscuit, and toast notes. The palate is creamy with vibrant acidity, adding lift, a fine-beaded, persistent mousse and long, elegant finish.
— 2 years ago
La Serena
Rosso di Montalcino Sangiovese 2017
Single minded but complex. Berries and acid in a nice balance. A straight line with a zag. — 5 years ago
Burle
Les Pallieroudas Gigondas Red Rhone Blend 2017
This one's not a monster. Maybe a little fat, and absent giant tannin, but quite a nice match for my spiced pork entree. Spicy. — 6 years ago
Domaine Pierre André
Chateauneuf du Pape Red Rhone Blend 2010
Robe noire
Nez olive noire ciste épicé garrigue
Bouche dense mais moelleuse ronde avec des note de jus de viande et de tapenade l alcool semble absent car la matière l entoure
Finale longue avec une petite amertume rendant le vin plus frais
Très beau cdp — 7 years ago
San Giusto a Rentennano
Chianti Classico Sangiovese 2015
An exceptionally elegant, old school Chianti with a great combination of power and finesse. Intensely palate-coating black cherry, violets, cinnamon, anise and peppermint candy. Very long and vibrant finish. Some subtle nuances of orange rind, menthol and fresh herbs. This wine is supercharged with acidity and freshness, making it very hard to put down. Absent from my notes was any palpable sense of new oak. Those who appreciate this style will want to drink the whole bottle. Bravo! — 7 years ago
Vanessa
Weingut Wittmann is a longstanding member of the VDP – an association of quality-minded producers in Germany who impose upon themselves more rigorous rules than are imposed under German wine law, in pursuit of excellence, authenticity, & a purity of terroir expression.
This is the “GG” 2021 Wittmann Morstein Riesling, made with fruit from a Große Lage-designated vineyard site (i.e., Morestein) pursuant to the VDP classification system, which means it’s a top quality site, akin to a “grand cru” vineyard in Burgundy, capable of producing fruit for age-worthy wines of distinction.
We’re drinking it in a youthful (and still delicious!) state now – stored in the right conditions, it could age for a decade+…
In appearance, this wine has a medium lemon hue with medium (+) intensity of precise and lifted aromas and flavors including white peach, apricot, mango, kumquat, green apple, lemon peel, lime zest, blossom, honeysuckle, wet slate, flint, oystershell, saline, and petrol notes.
The palate is bone dry with medium alcohol (12.5% ABV), a medium body, and racy acidity.
It’s elegant, angular, & nuanced.
We’re pairing it with grilled, spice-rubbed pork tenderloin and roasted brussels sprouts. — a year ago