January Lunch Notes

[bills]

2000 Benchland Chardonnay – this BC Chard 3was getting a bit long in the tooth. It had a faint metallic note in the nose, but beyond that it was excessively oaked, had fair acidity and finished short. No thanks.

1994 Mas Champart (St. Chinian) – this Languedoc-Roussillon wine lacked the quality I’ve seen in other examples. There was little of note in the nose, bar a slight rubberiness, and while it showed some sweetness in the midpalate, it tailed off too quickly and was simple.

With smoked buffalo carpaccio:

1992 Murietta’s Well Vendimia – tons of mint in this nose, so much so that we were considering whether it might be Australian. Elegant and ready, it struck none of us as an American wine.

1996 Sean Thackrey Pleiades VI – “this wine contains Syrah, Zinfandel, Carignan, Petit Sirah, Sangiovese, Nebbiolo, Grenache, Mourvedre, and Merlot, to name just a few”, and the back label indicates that it “goes well with anything red wine goes well with”, which doesn’t really add much! The nose was eucalyptus with a hint of barnyard, and the medium weight wine had good bright fruit in the middle.

With pork tenderloin a la Portuguese (w. clams)

2000 Clos l’Oratoire des Papes Chateauneuf du Pape – a nose of rich herbs and sweet fruit, with a bit of heat. Lots of tannin, sweet fruit medium long. It showed more complexity on palate than it did in the nose.

1999 Ch. d’Aiguilhe (Cotes de Castillon) – I was the only one that suggested this might be a Bordeaux! Big, black and impenetrable, with nutmeg in the nose and soft tannins. It is an atypical wine, but drinks well now.

With cheese:

1994 Dom. Tempier Cabassau (Bandol) – good sweet nose with leather and spice, obviously hot climate, still lots of soft tannin and very good length.

1997 Jose Ferrer Veritas Grand Reserve (Mallorca) – this wine, brought back by a frined from vacation in Spain, had a bottle so heavy that it felt like a full bottle when it was empty. Ripe nose, tannins forward, tad astringent at the end. Interesting curiosity (and not cheap) but not serious cellaring material. ‘Mantonegro’, Callet and Cab Sauv.

2002 Golden Mile Merlot – an inexpensive BC wine that was showing a lot of coconut and mint in the nose, quite sweet, and the sweetness carried over in the mouth. OK with cheese but really a bit too sweet.