Category Archives: Spain

Triassic Tasting at Pangaea

Pangaea Upstairs Dining Room

Pangaea Upstairs Dining Room

 April 24, 2012

http://blogs.canada.com/2012/04/27/triassic-tasting-at-pangaea/

Pangaea Restaurant, 1221 Bay Street, (416) 920-2323

Chef du Cuisine: Derek Bendig, Sommelier and Manager: Benjamin Hardy

 

The group of seven. Sorry. Not THE Group of Seven. This group of seven. Our new format is really taking shape. We no longer each bring wine from cellar to share. Now one leader, one cellar, nine wines. Plenty to share with Mr.’s Hardy, Bendig and crew. Seamless sally forth through five courses. Godspeed to Pangaea for an all out effort in syncopated rhythm. This tasting the high water mark (of the new era) to date, with no disrespect to what came before, but the senescence has reached the early stages of maturity. Laud and applaud to AZ for coordinating food and wine synergy. A coup de foudre from the get go.  

Nine Wine Night

Nine Wine Night

 

Amuse Bouche, radish ‘ravioli’ stuffed with chèvre, tomato, basil

Chef’s Creek (Fanny’s Bay, Vancouver Island) Oysters, on the half shell, horseradish, lemon, shallot mignonette

  1. Peninsula Ridge Fumé Blanc 2008 wants to be 1er Cru Chablis in my universe but sweats heat and spice, “green cardamom pod and roasted salsify,” adds AM. Nutty lemon custard and did someone say Boxwood? Not quite Sauvignon Blanc but PR brings out enough mineral to do this style proud up on the Bench.  88
  2. Domaine De Congy Cuvée Les Galfins Pouilly Fumé 2009 tasted blind is undoubtedly old world but the lack of grass and oak leads me to Muscadet. Wrong! Oh the marl and fossilized oysters of it all! More Sauvignon Blanc to confront my tasting demons. Solid, if not as cursive as the PR.  87

 

Ahi Tuna Tataki, seared tuna, blood orange and fennel salad, avocado pureé

  1. See Ya Later Ranch Brut NV strikes a match from the outset and never wavers. The other MG senses After Eights but for me that possibility is smothered by a leesy, cheesy lard maigre et fromage. Gismondi calls this BC bubbly “a Champagne ringer.” Not so much. Flat finish so s’ya later, “s’alright ma’, i’m only sighing.” Just tasting.  85

 

Intermezzo, grapefruit and tarragon flavoured ice

 

Quebec Duck Breast, pan-roasted, seasonal vegetables, potato rösti, game jus

  1. Fontanabianca Barbaresco Sori Burdin 2004 the blessed and confounded queen Nebbiolo is the totipotent master of the moment. Italianate yet without animale, rosy cheeked and impossibly elegant, it still manages to anesthetize the mouth. So pretty it hurts. Along with the Sori Paitin, easily the best value in Barbaresco. On this night my allegiance is to the queen.  92
  2. Renatto Ratti Barolo Marcenasco 2004 of the famiglie Pola e Ferro is polar as compared to the non of the Burdin. AM and D nose “car exhaust.” I am tricked by its charm and think New World Syrah, but am reminded that the colour lacks gloom. Hugely muscular, girded by plastron and decades ahead of itself. “Leave it open all night and it’ll be amazing” says Dr. C.  91
  3. D’arenberg Ironstone Pressings 2001 holds the title of GSM pop star of the Mclaren Vale. Eponymous iron filings and pressed fruit roll up. A mixed bag of Grenache, Syrah and Mataro, the IP’s warm, berry and balsamwood address is veiled by a touch of oxidation. “Stinky feet” corrects AM. Good integration of fruit, acidity and tannin present proper balance.  90
  4. Mas Doix Salanques 2006 is a revelation. A Pegau-esque perfume aux gasseuse leans Rhône but an amazing (65%) Garnacha sweetness veers Priorat. Iodine (Syrah and Carignan) of black slate soil, tar, smoked meat and bacon. A Parker and Galloni thesaurus of descriptors must be bequeathed on this candied (Merlot) wine loaded with acidity in magnums.  CVR** WOTN.  93

 

House Made Cheeses, goat camembert, blue haze, cloth bound cheddar, truffle tomme

  1. Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf du Pape 1998 would be my wine of choice walking a boulder strewn vineyard on a misty morning in the Southern Rhône. Expressions are hurled around the table, “candified Pinot nose” and “tutti frutti.” For Beaucastel? I can’t believe the tripartite fruit freshness, ambient funk immersion and pencil lead sharpness. This ’98 is “light as a feather, heavy as lead.” The Beaucastel will brighten up your tomorrow. WOTN  96
  2. Tablas Creek Espit de Beaucastel 2008 the worthy adversary is just a dude from California. A honey pot of stewed prunes and “Seville oranges” notes the quote machine. A sinkhole of 38% Mourvedre, 30% Grenache, 26% Syrah and 6% Cunoise, the Esprit does admirable expatriate yeoman’s work and I wouldn’t even think of marking it zero.  88
Tasting Table

Tasting Table

 

IVR* – Vintage Direct Intrigue-to-Value Ratio

CVR** – Vintage Direct Curiosity-to-Value Ratio

 

 

Good to go!

Bodegas Roda – Raven of Rioja

Mideastro Yorkville

Mideastro Yorkville

 April 17, 2012

Mideastro, 27 Yorkville Ave, 416.477.2427, Chef Benny Cohen

http://wp.me/p1N3EI-cvj

The Spanish Wine Society and Halpern Enterprises precipitated a four-course, eight-wine pairing by way of Chef Cohen and Bodegas Roda. Chef”s Italian/Israeli/Mediterranean inspired fusion holds food sacred to stimulate the brain. Plates as Modigliani canvas, sauces of the fruitful earth, proteins enriched deeply by herb and flora. Bodegas Roda matches the culinary caws with wines possessed of stunning clarity, consistency and the subtlest of variance from the lowly Sela through to Roda’s Unico challenger, the Cirison. For Agustín Santolaya, playing winemaker at Roda must be a dream, like Cusack as Edgar Allen Poe. Here his wines one through eight, including two from Ribera del Duero (Corimbo and Corimbo 1), all Malena Costa beauties of viscous, long-legged concentration. Barcelona FC’s Carles Puyol is likely drowning his sorrows in a Roda vertical after this past weekend’s crushing loss to Real Madrid and the fading memories of his one time, raven-haired, Mallorcan model girlfriend.

Loud shout out to Doble B, the Marxist (as in Brothers) Spanish Wine Society maestro Barry Brown for an afternoon tasting at the Yorkville eatery. Roda’s eight great were presented dissertation style by the Bodega’s Export Manager, Gonzalo Lainez. Later that evening by member’s invitation, in flights, as guest to my liege AZ for comida and comedia.

Bodegas Roda at Mideastro

Bodegas Roda at Mideastro

 

Confit Quail, watermelon, spinach, red onion, with a light touch of ruby grapefruit vinaigrette and wild oregano, dauro olive oil

  1. Sela 2009 ($34) the new kid on the Roda of Haro block combines Hibiscus spiced charcoal, tar and roses from 89% Tempranillo with sherry, scented, savoury caramel apples of 11% Graciano. Gracious me.  88
  2. Corimbo, La Horra 2010 ($41) of ever red catholic fruit and pine tar migrates to a spice of an exotic edge. Floral and radiant Riberan of indeterminate florescence. High tide of Caribbean funk and vanillin fudge.  100% Tempranillo.  89 

 

Roasted Veal Sirloin, three colour potato, vermouth porcini jus

  1. Roda Reserva 2006 ($56) aligns velveteen, well-rounded Garnacha with smokey Tempranillo and thoughtfully astringent Graciano. Adds up to a promising future because at present this may be the most backward wine of the lot.  Shut down line built for a long playoff run.  91
  2. Roda Reserva 2007 ($51) the pensieve of reductive tomato and juiced violets has the most tang for the buck. Flirts with the vermouth porcini jus at night and runs away with the veal.  90

 

Tempranillo Braised Lamb Cheek, pomegranate risotto, zucchini papardelle, aubocassa olive oil

  1. Roda 1 Reserva 2005 ($90) is a tale of two bottles. First one slightly oxidized, second absolutely stunning. Mr. Lainez’s commentary, “fruit must play a prominent role and the oak is supporting actor” is evidenced by this ’05. Acidity and freshness incarnate.  93
  2. Roda Reserva 1 2006 ($80) like its ’06 brethren exemplifies the anthropomorphic personification of the vines polymer. Sweeping tannins on the loose, hexagonal, hooked tongue and cheek. A local anaesthetic in the mouth, syrupy, needing carne.  92
  3. Cirison 2009 ($292) according to Gonzalo is “the best wine we have ever made.” Impeccable balance, perfect polymer, fruity, smooth. “The ultimate Tempranillo,” says Roda man. Whereas the rest of the portfolio are rotating single vineyard entities, the Cirison is made from the best bunches of grapes from Roda’s holdings. Expensive, refined, delicious.  94

Assortment of Artisan Spanish Cheeses, manchego, picón, mahon

  1. Corimbo 1 2009 ($80) is sweet thistle pie. A cracker jack Tempranillo and nothing but Tempranillo. Candy coated with red licorice and an inexplicable apple flower sensation as if molecular gastronomy of the Ferran Adrià or Heston Blumenthal kind. Exotic and spicy, seeing through me, it “knows my name but calls me ginger.”   95

 

 

Good to go!

Titanic Rioja for Friday The 13th

Friday, April 13, 2012

http://blogs.canada.com/2012/04/13/titanic-rioja-for-friday-the-13th/?postpost=v2

 

That the calendar’s folklorique confluence should coincide with this weekend’s 100th anniversary of the tragic Titanic’s sinking does not bode well for the superstitious kind. If you are one of the many inflicted with paraskevidekatriaphobia then this may not be your favourite day. If you also suffer from oenophobia, I feel for you. My solution? A big, bad, traditional Rioja from the April 14th VINTAGES release for and with supper.

Modern Rioja has its place but rarely speaks of its place. Youngish versions (Crianza and Reserva) often display good balance, treble clef acidity and red cherry fruit but are too often heaped with drying qualities. A second glass is like the towing of  a dead barge. I prefer Chianti at this level. The Gran Reserva of Rioja is another animal.

 Bodegas Franco-Españolas was founded in 1890. This an outfit of the low and slow fashion. Tempranillo aged in oak barrels for many years before release. No bucking of tradition; stubborn, sure, old-school. Not since the 2001 release of the 1991 Montecillo Gran Reserva at $19 has VINTAGES procured a titanic, complex concentricity of traditional Rioja, vintage and price.

Bodegas Franco-Españolas Rioja Bordón Gran Reserva 2004(114454, $22.95) whiffs salve-scented snuff, “gets you hooked and trifles with your mind.” The spicy cereza blossoms and heads straight south to the heart, followed by a sexy, brown sugar, saxy, Bobby Keyes note. “I’m no schoolboy but I know what I like.” I wouldn’t hesitate to visit this every couple of years up to the age of 15. Much ado about this Rioja from Beppi Crosariol (93), JR-IWC (91), Gord Stimmel (91) and WE (90). A blend of 80% Tempranillo, 16% Grenache, 2% Mazuelo and 2% Graciano. Aged in American oak for 36 months. 13.5% abv. $22.75 at the SAQ.  90

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good to go!

April Wine: Top VINTAGES Values to Buy Right Now

April 12, 2012

How many times have you found yourself standing in the LCBO dumbfounded and lost in ambient wine distraction? Do you feel knocked upside the Medulla Oblongata by a monopoly’s shelves bedecked by every race, creed and colour of wine known to Ontario kind? Don’t get caught on The Bad Side of The Moon. Have no fear. Head straight to the VINTAGES section and choose one of these great IVR* and CVR** top picks.

http://blogs.canada.com/2012/04/12/april-wine-top-vintages-values-to-buy-right-now/

 
REDS
 
Current In VINTAGES Stores
Pietro Marini Malbec 2008 (268045, $13.95) Argentina
Petra Zingari Toscana Igt 2008 (244228, $13.95) Italy
Michele Chiarlo ‘Le Orme’ Barbera D’asti Superiore 2009 (265413, $14.95) Italy
Bodega del Abad Dom Bueno Crianza 2001 (244699, $14.95) Spain
Taurino Riserva Salice Salentino 2008 (177527, $14.95) Italy
Domaine De La Janasse Côtes Du Rhône 2009 (705228, $15.95) France
 
VINTAGES April 14th Release
Jorio Montepulciano D’Abruzzo 2009 (134577, $13.95) Italy
Fabre Montmayou Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 (261891, $14.95) Argentina
 
VINTAGES April 28th Release
Sister’s Run Epiphany Shiraz 2008 (269464, $15.95) Australia
Cannonica e Ceretto Chianti Classico Riserva 2007 (275867, $17.00) Italy
 
 
ROSÉ
 
Current In VINTAGES Stores
Tawse Sketches of Ontario Rosé 2011 (172643, $15.95) Ontario
 
 
SPARKLING
 
Current in VINTAGES STORES
Louis Bouillot Perle D’ivoire Brut Blancs De Blancs (48801, $18.95) France
 
 
WHITES
 
Current In VINTAGES Stores
Fielding Estate Chardonnay Unoaked 2008 (164491, $13.95) Ontario
Featherstone Black Sheep Riesling 2011 (080234, $16.95) Ontario
Studert-Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese 2007 (114777, $17.95) Germany
Marimar Estate La Masía Don Miguel Vineyard Chardonnay 2007 (270090, $19.95) California
 
VINTAGES April 14th Release
Michael Delhommeau Cuvee Harmonie Muscadet De Sevre-et-Maine 2010 (164624, $12.95) France
L’Uvaggio Di Giacomo Vermentino 2009 (279281, $15.95) California
Tyrell’s Brookdale Semillon 2011 (269316, $19.95) Australia
 
VINTAGES April 28th Release
Vincent Girardin Vieilles Vignes Mâcon-Fuissé 2009 (264515, $19.95) France
 

IVR* – Vintage Direct Intrigue-to-Value Ratio

CVR* – Vintage Direct Curiosity-to-Value Ratio

 

 

Live Wine Chat on canada.com

April 12, 2012

Join in Today at 2:00 pm ET as I chat online about wine. I will be joined by Ruth Dunley (PostMedia), Rod Phillips (Ottawa Citizen), James Nevison (HALFAGLASS) and Gurvinder Bhatia (Vinomania)

http://www.canada.com/news/Live+Chat+wine+experts/6427822/story.html

We will be discussing wine media. Do you read wine reviews or make purchases based on what wine critics write … should you? 

 

 

 

Good to go!

KP Duty – Kosher For Passover Wines

April 4, 2012

http://blogs.canada.com/2012/04/04/kp-duty-kosher-for-passover-wines/

 

Lent? Forget about it. 12-day cleanses? Whatever. Try cooking with and having to eat nothing but Matzo, eggs and oil for eight days. To a Jew, Matzo is irresistible, consumed with über, hoover fervor and it leads to an awful syndrome. Matzo Belly.

(1998) Dry Bones cartoon: Passover, Pessach, Pesah, Holiday, Shuldig, Yom Kippur, over eating, over weight, dieting

Once a year due diligence calls so the apron goes on. Passover cooking is a science and an art unto itself. It is my form of penitence, tortuous, a culinary desert, horrific like a Fear Factor episode. Charred eggs, Haroseth, Chopped Liver, Kugel, Farfel Stuffing and desserts made with Cake Meal and Matzo Meal. My worst nightmare!

Recommending wines that are Kosher for Passover used to be similarly daunting but the field has certainly improved. Here five choices to get you through four cups, four questions, gamey gefilte and that wafer thin bread that tastes like forty year-old crackers. Be sure to click on the LCBO inventory links because the wines are only available in limited quantities and in specific stores.

 

ADAR DE ELVIWINES CAVA BRUT KP  (56737, $15.95) and its touch of residual sweetness will aid in the transition from a no beer, no scotch cocktail hour through to the traditional boiled potatoes and salt water. Why not go sparkling for Pesach?

HAFNER GRÜNER VELTLINER KP 2009 (157511, $12.95) is a newbie as far as Kosher for Passover is concerned. Touch of honey and upper level acidity is the key to this food and wallet-friendly Austrian white.

FIVE STONES SAUVIGNON BLANC KPM 2010 (218065, $23.95) may also be Mevushal but this Aussie SB is dry and worth the extra bucks. Beckett’s Flat is the producer of this aromatic beauty.

ELLA VALLEY VINEYARDS EVER RED KP 2007 (687897, $23.95) delivers the goods when the brisket comes to the Seder table. Ella Valley is Israel’s most consistent Kosher producer at a level most can afford. Their straight Merlot is their best but costs $10 more than this Bordeaux Blend.

GALIL MOUNTAIN YIRON KP 2006 (95075, $33.95) is the clear winner in VINTAGES Kosher choices for 2012. Tannins resolved, fruit still shining like the Galilee sun, Cabernet and Merlot lifted by the addition of Syrah.

 

 

 

Good to Go!

Seeing Red on a Green Day

 

Friday March 16, 2012

 

http://blogs.canada.com/2012/03/16/seeing-red-on-a-green-day/

 

A link to the March 17, 2012 VINTAGES release:

http://www.vintages.com/circular/circ_main.shtml

 

If only it were just the reds of Spain falling mainly on these VINTAGES pages. Kudos to our very own Friendly Wine Giant David Lawrason for calling out the LCBO by noting that something is amiss in the land of the monopoly. The catalogue does indeed look like a Food and Drink issue, minus Lucy and Nancy’s journalistic integrity. Perhaps it’s the social responsibility stance that drives the heavy food component but this is the business of wine promotion and selling. So the question begs. Who’s penning this plane crash with no survivors? Poor Bob Homme must be rolling in his grave. That said, four big picks for Pattys everywhere.

 

Bodega del Abad Dom Bueno Crianza 2001 (244699, $14.95) the red is my 2nd Abad reco and Godello abides. My favourite Wine Ponce exclaims “…most $15 wines are not built to last, but this red still has the good stuff.” From Bierzo, a Mencia munificent spice box of aromas and flavours, savoury, herbal, smoothed out by its age. Great IVR* I say.  mjg 88

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

San Filippo Le Lucere Brunello di Montalcino 2006 (146175, $49.95) is the better of the two ISD Brunelli. Suckling (95) calls it “…refined and gorgeous.” Sanderson of WS (93) says “…dense and tannic, with a long spicy finish.” Kyle Phillips-IWR (2 stars) writes “…it’s an austere wine, in a traditional key, and very young.” Biggest shout out comes by way of Jonathan of the Grape Life (97), “…excellent finesse. Balanced fruit, acidity, tannins…rather moreish.” Entrenches me in that recurring dream, the one inside Enotecca La Fortezza, tasting through an endless sea of Brunelli.

Lucere Brunello 2006

 

St. Hallett Blackwell Shiraz 2009 (535104, $29.95) bests Barossa at this price point and on that limb for matter, anywhere in the land of Oz. From lands Ebenezer, Seppeltsfield and Greenock, receives extended elevage (20 months) in American Oak and shows off like a multi-coloured bruise. A favourite of Aussie writers from Perth to Sydney. RJ (96), JH (96), GW (94), JL (94), KG (93) and Sarah the Wine Detective, “…well-defined and bright, it’s a thoroughly modern Barossa bruiser!”

Hallet Blackwell Shiraz 2009

 

 

Other Wines Of Note:

Opus One 2008 (158063, $364.95) is what? 

Quintarelli Valpolicella Superiore 2002 (986117, $79.95) price is spot on

Concha Y Toro Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 (315176, $79.95) tag has burst through the roof. I paid $42 for the 2001!

 

 

 

IVR* – Vintage Direct Intrigue-to-Value Ratio

 

 

 

 

Good to go!

Vin-terra Incognita, The Wines of Celler Piñol

21st Century Wines from Inveterate Vines in Terra Alta

http://blogs.canada.com/2012/02/28/vin-terra-incognita-the-wines-of-celler-pinol/

February 23, 2012

 

If Bordeaux, Napa and even Malbec have your nose wedged in the close-minded glass of life then Terra Alta is certainly not on your radar. Just a stone’s throw away, as the crow flies, a singular and estimable cradle of wine civilization promulgates in the commingling regions of Montsant and Priorat. Stretching its legs from out of the shadow of proximate antediluvian cellars, Celler Piñol aims to broaden horizons, roll over stones, reset the compass. Organically motivated, Piñol is a vintner for the New World. Here nine wines tasted at Barque Smokehouse with partner in wine Jascha Baraness, the indubitable Juanjo Galcerá Piñol and markedly too legit to quit, Spirit Tasting Challenge Winner Mark Coster of Profile Wine Group.

Juanjo Galcera Pinol

L’AVI ARRUFI 2009 ($32) the Garnacha Blanco immortalizes Piñol’s patriarch abuelo. A bold (14.5% alcohol) statement and in tune with the old vine style (Beaucastel) of the Southern Rhône. Composed in peachy, tree-fruit floral tones, the Arrufi tastes like almonds soaked in cider and mel de romani. Essence of white Mediterranean wine. Ancient. Sephardic. Biblical.  91

LUDOVICUS TERRA ALTA 2010 ($14.95) molds Cariñena, Merlot and Syrah around a 50% frame of Garnacha. Grizzled vines for this entry level beauty claw, scratch and rope-a-dope their way through arid and unforgiving limestone soils. A fighter this Ludovicus. Dusty, rocky, bearded and sharp-dressed for the neoteric world. Climbs to the top of the hill and rips off a riff.  87

RAIG DE RAÏM 2010 ($14.95) with increased Cariñena in the mix is a deeper, darker, hemic descendant and displays more bullish animal. Cabernet Sauvignon here too joins Merlot for a cigar note. Begs to be paired with fatty meat, drippings and seared on spice.  88

PORTAL 2009 ($20.95) while not defined, is essentially a Reserva, composed of 50% Garnacha, 20% Cariñena and the remainder Tempranillo, Merlot and Syrah. Jascha says “feral” so I think of the King of Limbs, “…abstract, loopy, throbbing.” Foggy, hat wearing portal to the brain of a braised landscape, demanding short rib, rich broth, slow wine. “Take it easy.”  91

Portal 2009

 

SA NATURA 2009 ($21.95) is a blend of 50% Cariñena with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Tempranillo. The qualities imparted by geomorphic wacke, anticline crag and orogenic Keuper translate to a natural wine, down to earth. Another Piñol made in the vineyard despite the varietal bag.  90

L’AVI ARRUFI VI DE GUARDA 2007 ($39.95) spends 16 months in French oak so the power of 60% Cariñena is unleashed. Combined with 30% Garnacha and 10% Syrah, the Guarda is an architecturally driven, linear and precise specimen. Menthol, eucalyptus and chewy, resinous berries swim out from the arid, desert soils where little rain falls, the days are hot and the nights cold.  92

MATHER TERESINA 2006/2007 ($49.95) is indeed a blended vintage bottling, now a lost art and set to disappear. 40% Cariñena and 30% Garnacha are joined by indigenous Morenillo and the combined effect is an early Cubist smoke, ash and tar affair. Cocoa and cream too.  90

FINCA MORENILLO 2009 ($64.95) is the diamond in the rough. No other wine in the line up buzzes as much with the warmth from humidity that is maintained in Terra Alta’s Mesozoic soils. Made from 100% Morenillo, this Pinot Noir like, thick-skinned, late-maturing grape here shows as a wine of distinct clarity. Very cherry, reminiscent of Bierzo but precisely concentrated and elegant. Here the Canaletas flowing gracefully to the Fontcalda Spa.  93

Finca Morenillo 2009

JOSEFINA VI DOLC 2009 (500 mL, $29.95) is black cherry pie, orange peel scented, late harvest dessert anti-syrup. While the pecan pie match is certainly viable, 76% chocolate would do just fine. That and a Persian Princess.  91
 
 
 
 
Good to go!

Family Day, Snow Forts and Sangiovese

It appears frozen but the lake likewise tempts as a precarious proposition. Look out and note just one (who is that guy?) ice hut, a solitary walking man and (thankfully) no snowmobiles.  Chewing repeatedly on the cud of weary winter thoughts has become this coming vintage’s obsession. Yet for one glorious weekend a foot of snow falls, the temperature hovers around a degree of perfection and the sun cozily kisses rosy-cheeked faces.  The family fortifies the wood garrison with brandy spirits. Pardon me, that was the Port. The fort is buttressed with more fallen branches. Best of all, packing snow is available so we fashion a brick house. “Mighty mighty, just lettin’ it all hang out.”

CASTELLARE DI CASTELLINA CHIANTI CLASSICO RISERVA 2006 (508507, $26.95) was released through VINTAGES back on June 12, 2010. A CC Riserva that resides in my wheelhouse and rings my bottiglia bell. This unassuming yet infamous winery first entered my Sangiovese psyche when I tasted the ’90 Riservas (including the wonderful SV Il Poggiale) with the proprietors’ daughter in their tasting room back in the summer of ’95. The price here is perfect; it’s over $30 US in Europe and very little is shipped to the States. Now fully resolved, suspended in mellow sanguis Jovis animation, plums floating in a cloud of vanilla hinted cream foam. The afternoon sun lighting up the face of an exhausted and content child laying down in the snow after a day of  igloo construction.  90

BODEGAS ALEJANDRO FERNANDEZ TINTO PESQUERA CRIANZA 2007 (341461, $27.95) sold through at VINTAGES beginning on November 13, 2010. Fernandez does Tempranillo in the Ribera del Duero like no one else. While Parker’s Pesquera moniker from 1985 “the Petrus of Spain” may have been hyperbole, the lively and silky quality of this campesino Crianza never disappoints. My vertical goes back to 2001 and I find myself pining for a Pesquera on every visit to the cellar. Baking spices are a common aroma denominator and like Ridge‘s noticeable Draper “perfume” there is always a distinct Pesquera “bouquet.”  The wine is now showing Crimson and Clover, “over and over.” It is beginning to change colour, like maples in October. Also sugaring, as after a few hours in the kettle in March.   91

PETRA ZINGARI TOSCANA IGT 2008 (224228, $13.95) from the VINTAGES August 6, 2011 release deals value in quarto from varietals Sangiovese, Merlot, Syrah and Petit Verdot. An unusual blend from the Maremma coast for sure but throw me down in the snow if it isn’t unmistakably Tuscan. Iron, leather, pure snappy, fennel fruit and tannic tang are all there. Primary yes, but what more can you ask from $14? Held up 24 hours later for a second go round.  88

 

 

Good to go!

 

Rat Pack Picks, List of Icons, VINTAGES Classics, February 2012

 

PAUL AUTARD CUVÉE LA CÔTE RONDE CHÂTEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE 2007 (221911, $59) arrives en retard and my elation is ushered in by a bard’s prose. Cassis in all its gratifying forms is the critical buzz code. Noticeable oak for CdP, black beauty, decadent filly. The coast is clear for the Côte to cellar for a decade or more. Côte Ronde is a cuvée fellow Rhône winemakers line up to purchase, the wine equivalent to restos local chefs go for grub on days off. JM-WS (95), RP (95), RJ (93), JR-ST (92+), CT’s (93) and RR (94) noting “…not a hard edge to be found. The wine has stunning balance.”

Autard Cote Ronde 2007

BODEGAS SAN ROMÁN 2006 (250985, $49) is the toast of Toro, Mr. T. to me. A $60+ US release that is so freaking CVR** I pity the fool that takes a pass. Displays black, inky and masculine like a Gombe Chimpanzee, tannins thrashing madly. A dictator with a stern warning that no challenge to power will occur for a minimum five to ten. Touted by TM-WS (93) and MS-WE (94) who claims “San Román is once again one of the two or three best wines from Toro.” Iberian conociendo Quentin Sadler of now defunct Catavino calls it “a great wine.” RP (93) and JR-IWC (92) round out the reviews.

San Roman 2006

Another Wine Tasted:

CASTELLO DI AMA, CHIANTI CLASSICO, VIGNETO BELLAVISTA 2007 (163337, $159). Now this is something other. One foot not just in the new world inhabited by the likes of Kosta Browne, but in the future of what Chianti Classico will be. The other sends me back to an August 1995 afternoon in Lecchi, beckoned down a narrow flight of stairs by una signora vecchia and offered a taste of the ’90 Bellavista in Ama’s cluttered enoteca. Lorenza Selasti-Pallanti tells me the woman still pours in that shop and is now 80 years-old. Guess she wasn’t so old in ’95…this ’07 shares an affinity with that ’90, of burgundy plum, earth, spice and smoke. Would like to read its tea leaves in 2025.  mjg 93

Other icons of note:

CHÂTEAU D’YQUEM 2007 (99382, $895)

E. GUIGAL EX-VOTO ERMITAGE 2007 (54130, $325)

DOMAINE ZIND HUMBRECHT VIEILLES VIGNES BRAND RIESLING 2007 (271866, $89)

HENRIOT CUVÉE DES ENCHANTELEURS BRUT CHAMPAGNE 1996 (83774, $225)

IL CABERLOT 2007 (167296, 1500 mL, $354)

ROMANO DAL FORNO AMARONE DELLA VALPOLICELLA 2004 (711440, $399)

QUINTARELLI AMARONE DELLA VALPOLICELLA CLASSICO 2000 (224485, $399) 

PENFOLDS GRANGE 2005 (336388, $499)

ACHAVAL FERRER FINCA BELLA VISTA MALBEC 2008 (178103, $95) 

CATENA ZAPATA NICOLÁS CATENA ZAPATA 2007 (662702, $99)

JONATA LA SANGRE DE JONATA 2007 (220517, $145)

JOSEPH PHELPS INSIGNIA 2007 (737346, 1500 mL, $575)

STAGLIN 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTION CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2007 (716258, $229)

SHAFER HILLSIDE SELECT CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2007 (735712, $279)

Disappointed by the Price Increase:
CIACCI PICCOLOMINI D’ARAGONA PIANROSSO BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO 2006 (162958, $95)

IVR* – Vintage Direct Intrigue-to-Value Ratio

CVR** – Vintage Direct Curiosity-to-Value Ratio

Good to Go!