TN: Here and there

[Florida Jim]

Whites:

2008 Anakena, Sauvignon Blanc:

13% alcohol, from Chili and about $7; smells of perm solution and tastes acidulated – other then that, it’s tolerable but barely.

Pinks:

2008 Domaine Guy Mousset, Côtes-du-Rhône Rosé:

Bright red fruit aromas with some mineral; crisp and clean in the mouth with good fruit, complexity and intensity, bone dry and fairly long. 13% alcohol and about $10 – and more than worth a try.

2007 Le Pont, Bandol Rosé:

Restrained nose; very dry almost austere in the mouth with just hints of fruit accenting a mineral/earth driven flavor profile; medium length. Much different from the preceding wine and not for everybody. But I enjoyed it – 13% alcohol and about $18.

Reds:

2007 Domaine des Versauds, Morgon:

A clean, soft gamay nose is followed by an initial taste impression of round, soft gamay fruit and then . . . nothing. Oh, it’s still wine-like but it’s lost all interest as it morphs into a sort of ultra-pasteurized, processed wine product. A very weird experience; it’s not bad, it just stops being even the least bit appealing. I think this is a Duboeuf product. Its 13% alcohol and about $14.

2007 Maipe, Malbec:

This smells dark and rich; tastes pretty much as it smells and finishes longer than I expect. There isn’t too much wood or alcohol, there’s ample flavor, most of it in the dark fruit spectrum, and the overall impression is that its hearty accompaniment. 14% alcohol.

2008 Maipe, Malbec:

Similar to the foregoing but with some volatility, some red fruit and a little more interest.

(Aside: Both of these wines lean heavily on the dark side of the grape; which is, IMO, a shame. This variety can produce such beautifully nuanced, elegant, graceful wines – almost pinot-like but with a bit more stuffing. And although neither of the Maipe’s are bad wines, they leave me thinking about Belushi’s line, “they could have given us so much more . . . but noooo!)

Best, Jim