4th of July wines

Bare-bones impressions from memory:

2008 Donnhoff KREUZNACHER KROTENPFUHL RIESLING KABINETT (Nahe, Germany) -- This was a killer wine:  Unbelievable fragrance of ripe, lively fruit, flowers, and stony minerals.  Great verve in the mouth.  Ripeness, lightness, great buoyant acids.  Fantastic.  A.

2007 Saintsbury "Toyon Ranch" PINOT NOIR (Carneros, California) -- A soft, full, earthy and savory Pinot Noir.  Very much a Nuits-St. George style, but a bit riper and more approachable.  B+.

2008 Trimbach RIESLING Reserve (Alsace, France)

I LOVE this style of Riesling -- fragrant, lean, so crisp as to be zingy, bone dry yet with wonderfully ripe Riesling fruit.  Very much in the classic Trimbach style.

Very pale bright gold.  Classic Alsace Riesling nose of piercing green apple, tea, and powdered granite, it features crisp, bracing, intense flavors of fresh-crushed green apple juice poured over lemon drenched stones.  Very tight now, this wine will age effortlessly for another 4 years or so.  Not as full and ripe a style as a lot of Alsace producers are now trending toward, this really is a classic wine.  A.  I got this on sale from Zachys.com for $20.

2009 Schafer-Frohlich RIESLING "Medium Dry" (Nahe, Germany)

This wine shows off the ability of Riesling to reflect the mineral signature of where it's grown.

Bright, glistening light gold color. The first day, it showed off a complex and intensely slatey minerals drenched in lime juice, with peach pit and crisp apples in the background. There was still a prickle of CO2 in the wine, that lent a slightly bitter impression over lots of eartrhy, minerally-tinged apple fruit. The second day the wine was significantly different, and showed a lot more fruit. The wine displayed a soft, crisp fruitiness, and was mouthfilling yet incredibly light-textured, with great concentration and a long long finish. While the first day's CO2 bitterness hid a slight sweetness, the second day the slight sweetness showed through. Excellent now, this wine will age nicely for a few years. A. Was $24 from Zachys.com (Scarsdale, NY). Imported by Rudi Wiest ( a great importer of German wines)

2009 "Leitz Out" RIESLING (Rheingau, Germany)

This was a fantastic value. Lots of classic Rheingau Riesling characteristics shining through at a bargain price.

(NB -- this is a slightly sweet wine, so if you're one of those categorical, reflexive haters of this style, just skip it.) . . . but you'll be missing out!

Very pale gold with glints of light green and pewter. Very open, fruity nose with loads of crisp apple and lemon-drenched peach fruit. Very clean, minerally stone notes too. Lively, mouthfilling, with ripe but crisp fruit -- lots of peachey notes. Slightly sweet, but with very good balancing acids. Light-bodied. B+ I got this for $11 at Spec's on Weslayan. Imported by Michael Skurnick Wines.

2007 Albert Seltz RIESLING (Alsace, France)

A chunky, dry style of Riesling. Not elegant, but full of flavor.

Medium gold color. Earthy, peach pit and dark mineral nose. Round, mouthfilling, and ripe. Loads of peach/pear fruit and lots of earthy/chalky minerals. Full-bodied. Dry, or nearly so, with a long finish. Very good value -- this was about $18 at Central Market, if I remember correctly. 88. Domaine Select Imports.

2009 Schloss Lieser BRAUNEBERGER JUFFER RIESLING KABINETT (Mosel, Germany)

Very young and direct now, but needs several years to develop more complexity.

Pale light gold color with light greenish glints. Young, assertive nose of ripe Riesling fruit (mouthwatering white peach and apples) with a very deep-toned minerality. Fantastic ripeness of fruit (almost Spatlese in style). Mouthwatering, piercing acidity. Not complex but wicked fun. Amazing purity. Slightly sweet in the finish but with great balancing acids and that remarkable purity. Cellar this a few years. 89+. Imported by Rudi Wiest. Was $19.99 from B-21 Wines in Florida.

(Sorry, 2005 shown)

2005 Otter RIESLING Kastelweg (Alsace, France)

This was a heavily botrytised, ripe, heavy Riesling. The polar opposite of, say, the austere, bone dry minerally style of a Trimbach Reserve. Of course, as is usually the case with Alsace Rieslings, you have no way of knowing that by looking at the label. But once I got over my shock at the color, nose, and first sip, I liked this quite a bit.

Very dark gold with some amber. So the color was suspect, right off the bat. A tremendously rich, earthy, deeply-honeyed nose, with Alsace "gout de petrol" lurking underneath, along with nearly overripe apricot. Broad, mouthfilling flavors, with some noticeable residual sugar: tea, apricot, earth, honey, and gravel. Lengthy finish lacked only a bit of acidity. Very nice -- if you like this style. It actually went very well with a rich pasta (made "risotto style" by adding homemade turkey broth a bit at a time) that featured carrots and green beans. 88. Was about $25 at Richard's on Kirby/Westheimer.

(Sorry -- 2004 pictured)

Grandma, Nonno, and Molly's visit -- night 5

Every 5 years or so, I put a white in the freezer to chill it fast, but then forget I put it in there and by the time I remember it has frozen solid. The cork typically blows out as the liquid expands (water expands when frozen, and wine contains lots of water). It happened again. Good thing it wasn't a screw cap wine. It was an excellent German dry Riesling I previously reviewed, and after thawing it actually tasted pretty good, though not up to the standard of the unneglected bottle I had a few months ago. It was a 2008 Schafer-Frohlich RIESLING Trocken "Bockenauer" (Nahe, Germany). I won't review the frozen bottle.

Next up was the 2001 Chateau Haut-Bergey (Pessac-Leognan), one of my sentimental favorite estates in the Graves region of Bordeaux (I used to sell this when I worked for Paramount Wines in NY back in the early 80s). It's way more expensive now, but it's also stepped up in quality. It had a dark black, brickish ruby color befitting a mature Graves, and sported an intensely fragrant smoky, spiced gravel, and sweet cassis nose. Rich and soft, with deep, ripe fruit, and a smoky, earthy, oaky finish. It would have preferred the oak to be a bit less overt, but still it was very, very good, and peaking. 89.

Grandma, Nonno, and Molly's visit -- night 1

Grandma, Nonno, and our niece Molly are visiting. So we're breaking out the good stuff.

2007 Leitz Rudesheimer Klosterlay RIESLING Kabinett (Rheingau, Germany) -- Outrageous nose of ripe grapes and peach, slate and sea shells, and a lightly floral component. Piercing up-front fruit coats the mouth, wrapped in a thin veneer of minerals. Light to medium-bodied, slightly sweet, but with very good balancing acidity. A long, lithe, ridiculously pure finish. 91. Was around $18 at Spec's awhile ago, so I am not sure they still have it. Imported by Michael Skurnick Wines.

2007 Herman Story Winery GRENACHE "Larner Vineyard" (Santa Barbara County, Cal.) -- From a teeny, weeny winery, this was a brooding but civilized monster. Completely saturated ruby purple. Intense nose of crushed rocks, gravel, and spicy raspberry syrup, as well as warm, just-out-of-the-oven baking spices. Huge body, with almost port-like richness, but dry. Deep favors of liquefied stony minerals, dried raspberry syrup. Long, long finish, with some peppery warmth from the alcohol (16.1%), but it's actually hidden well. 90. Was $39 at Spec's on Smith.

2007 Hopler RIESLING (Burgenland, Austria)

A really refreshing, bone-dry Riesling. Very good value. Not as complex and deep as a good Alsace, but terrific for a hot day.

Very light gold with gorgeous greenish glints. Fun, lively nose of perfumey, powdered stones, crisp cool pears, and crunchy Macintosh apples, along with a peachy note. Light-bodied, mouthwateringly refreshing, and dry, it sports crisp, apply fruit and a clean, stony streak. Clean, crisp, medium length finish. 88. Was $16 at Houston Wine Merchant on South Shepherd.

2008 Schafer-Frohlich RIESLING Trocken "Bockenauer" (Nahe, Germany)

A terrific wine -- fragrant, vibrant, loads of flavor, and zingy as all get-out. I haven't had many Trockens (dry German wines) that I love, but this is one.

Light, silvery-gold streaked with bright, light green. Vivacious nose of limes, granny smith apples, crushed stones, and a hint of fresh tea leaves. Incredibly lively and crisp, with tightly-concentrated green apple/pear fruit. Long, minerally, pure finish. Loads of fruit, but dry and very crisp. Great fun with Asian food or as a hot weather sipper. 90. A Rudi Wiest Selection (He's a great German importer). Was about $25 at Spec's on Smith.

Sorry, 2007 shown.

2005 Charles Koehly RIESLING "Saint Hippolyte" (Alsace, France)

Aaaah -- good Riesling from Alsace. Always one of my favorite types of whites. This Riesling, while dry in the typical Alsace style, is actually a bit more fruit-forward, and less austere, than many Alsace Rieslings.

Light gold color. Beautiful, yet somewhat reserved nose of crushed white grapes, slate, and a hint of yeasty-cinnamon. Soft-textured and medium-bodied, it has ripe, almost exotic flavors of grape, peach, gingerbread, and milky tea. Good balancing acidity as well. Will easily hold for another 1-2 years. 88. Imported by Neal Rosenthal.

2006 Frey-Sohler RIESLING "Rittersberg" (Alsace, France)

A decent starter Riesling from Alsace.

Crystal light gold with greenish glints. Identifiably Alsace Riesling nose of apply fruit (hint of peach too), sweet Earl Grey tea leaves, and deep-toned minerals. Intensely minerally in the mouth -- a lot more austere than the nose would indicate. Long and zesty, but too lean and unidimensionally minerally in the finish. 86 (based primarily on the strength of the nose). Was $19 and change at Spec's on Smith. Importer: J&R Selections.

A whole bunch of good wines

Mom and Dad came for another visit, and for much of their visit I didn't have time to blog in real time or take detailed wine notes, but we did open up a lot of good stuff. Pretty much special occasion , not everyday quaffers, but what the hey. Here are my quick impressions of them:

2005 Daniel Dampt CHABLIS PREMIER CRU "Cotes de Lechet" -- A wine I reviewed last year, it was holding nicely, with lots of steely, earthy, austere and penetrating (unoaked) Chardonnay fruit. Was about $29 from Flickinger's Wines (on-line) in Chicago.





1989 Chateau Meyney (St. Estephe, Bordeaux) -- Despite non-optimal storage for the last 10 years, this wine has held together nicely. Loads of cedary-peanuty aged Bordeaux scents, with soft, earthy plummy fruit in the mouth.

















2006 Wine Guerrilla "Coffaro Vineyards Old Vine" ZINFANDEL (Dry Creek Valley) -- This Zin was really, really good. Big, spicy, ripe (almost jammy but not quite) nose. Rich and fat in the mouth, but with great balancing acidity keeping it from being ponderous. Spec's has some of this limited production gem for around $32.

2004 Casa Emma CHIANTI CLASSICO RISERVA -- This was a deep, brooding Chianti, with big earthy, gravelly, gingerbready notes augmenting seriously concentrated macerated cherry fruit. Long, austere finish with some well-hidden tannin. Come back and see this guy in 3-5 years and it will be amazing. About $40 at Spec's.

2005 Turkey Flat Vineyards MOURVEDRE (Barossa Valley, Australia) -- This had loads of deep, ripe blackberry fruit, with a distinctly saline minerality. Mouthfilling and deep. Was about $20 on sale at Kroger's (Yes, Kroger's!) on Westpark near Buffalo Speedway.

2006 Cristom "Eola-Amity Hills PINOT NOIR "Marjorie's Vineyard (Willamette Valley, Oregon) -- Another superb P.N. from this producer. Earthy, spicy sappy cherry nose. Mouthfilling yet exceedingly elegant, with a soft finish that lasted and lasted and lasted . . . . Wow. Was about $40 at Spec's on Smith.

2006 d'Arenberg "The Noble" RIESLING (McLaren Vale, Australia) -- This botrytised late harvest Riesling was a total surprise. Who would have expected an Aussie Riesling to compare with a German Beerenauslese? Not me. But this one did, and at a (relative) bargain price of $18 (Spec's on Smith). Honeyed apricots and peaches, very sweet, intense, flavors, yet with very good acidity for balance. Not as complex as the best German versions, but a bargain in comparison!

Wines from Grandma and Nonno’s visit -- Part 6 (short-form notes)

Grandma and Nonno returned to Massachusetts today, so this is the last entry for wines from their visit. I'm going to need something to rehabilitate my liver after this visit, so many good and excellent wines did we drink. (I'm also going to need to return to my more frugal, usual fare!)

2005 Chateau de Saint Cosme GIGONDAS (Rhone, France) -- This was a ripe, youthful, and highly structured Rhone wine. Had lots of minerality and was quite tight initially, but opened to show a concentrated core of ripe cassis and raspberry extract. Pretty tannic throughout. If you have a cool cellar, keep this one another 3 years and then enjoy.

2004 Verget CHABLIS 1er CRU FOURCHAUME “Vieilles Vignes de Vaulorens” (Burgundy, France) -- this was excellent and drinking beautifully now. Ripe and complex, yet with bracing, well-integrated acidity. Featured a nose of toasty chicken broth, dry pear extract, lemons, and crushed stones. Very good concentration and length.

2006 Alto Moncayo “Veraton” (Campo de Borja, Spain) -- This was a new-styled and very concentrated Grenache. I loved the soft texture, the concentration, and the ripeness, but it was just a tad too oaky for me. The 2004 I previously reviewed was better (similar but less oaky), but this was excellent in its own way.

2005 Hubertushof LEIWENER KLOSTERGARTEN RIESLING EISWEIN (Mosel, Germany) -- A youthful but outstanding icewine, with great minerality, wonderfully ripe peachy fruit, and mouthwatering acidity. Very enjoyable now, this fragrant jailbait of a dessert wine could easily last and improve over the next 10 years or so in a cool dark cellar.

Vacation wines -- Day 6

2006 Widmer Brickstone Cellars Semi-Dry Riesling (Finger Lakes, NY) -- This wine was a dead-ringer for a Kabinett from the Rheingau. Beautiful nose of bright green apples and slate-y minerals. Crisp, refreshing, and full of flavor, all in a wonderful, light-bodied frame.

2007 Cairnbrae "The Stones" Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, New Zealand) -- This wine had a striking and unusual color -- pure pewtery silver. Crisp scents of herbs and grass, with a nice artichoke component to the flavors.

2006 "Montenovo" Godello (Valdeorras, Spain) -- This wine was similar to a simple Maconnais white. Not bad, but not distinguished.


2006 Alvarinho Primaz Vinho Verde (Portugal) -- I'm usually not a Vinho Verde fan, but this had great minerally flavors and a crisp, beautiful texture . . . in other words, it had FLAVOR! Very nice.

Dinner: grilled red snapper, flounder, and shrimp (Marche style)

Vacation wines -- Day 4

2007 Anakena Pinot Noir (Rapel Valley, Chile) -- This was a simple, yet varietally correct Pinot from Chile. Soft and fragrant, with a pine forest earthiness.

2005 Mazzocco Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel "West Dry Creek" -- This was an outstanding Zin. Large-boned, ripe, soft, with rich spicy blackberry fruit and nice underlying mineraliness.

2006 Bassermann-Jordan Estate Riesling Trocken (Rheinpfalz, Germany) -- This was a very refreshing off-dry Riesling with lots of crisp, appley-peachy fruit and nice underlying steely minerality. I'm usually not a Trocken fan, as the wines sometimes tend to suppress Riesling's beautiful fruitiness in favor of just getting the damn thing fermented dry, but this was an exception. Very nice.

Dinner: Grilled T-bones and Strips with fresh chimichurri; sauteed greens with salt pork, garlic, rosemary, and oil.

2002 Charles Schleret RIESLING "Herrenweg" (Alsace, France)

This is a beautiful Alsace wine at its peak! And I am a sucker for a good Alsace Riesling, especially from the outstanding 2002 vintage. This wine would shine with seared tuna or any grilled or simply prepared fish.

Eye: Beautiful bright brassy gold.

Nose: Just after I pulled the cork, the nose was dominated by pungent mineral scents, but it quickly changed, and soon outrageously perfumed scents of sweet peach and pear, bergamot, and tea were wafting out.

Mouth: Bright, balanced acidity buoyed up the beautiful flavors of apple/pear fruit, with a subtle minerality and a hint of chalk dust in the very long finish.

Score: 90.

Cellar or drink? This is absolutely at its peak right now.

Price/score: Was $27 and change at Spec's on Smith (hurry, before they run out!)

2006 Cousiño-Macul RIESLING (Maipo Valley, Chile)

Cousiño-Macul apparently now makes two Rieslings -- this one, which just says "Riesling" on the label, and the "Doña Isadora" Riesling. Since I haven't yet had the Doña Isadora from the 2006 vintage, I don't know what the stylistic difference is (or may be). But this is a very nice Alsace-styled Riesling, and as usual for this winery's Rieslings, an excellent buy.

Eye: Bright medium gold with greenish glints.

Nose: Beautiful nose of apple blossoms, "gout de petrol" Alsace-styled minerality, and caramel.

Mouth: Fresh, round, and soft, with medium body, and flavors of apples and pungent minerals. In the long finish, notes of bitter grapefruit skin pop up, balancing the very slight residual sugar.

Cellar or drink: Drink over the next year.

Score: 88.

Price/Store: Was $12.62 at Spec's on Richmond, but I've seen this in other places as well.

2003 Domaine Ehrhart RIESLING GRAND CRU HENGST (Alsace, France)

This was a fully mature, complex white.

Medium dark brassy gold color -- which led me to think this might be past its prime. But it wasn't. Deeply honeyed nose, with minerally, marzipan-y, overripe pear and honeysuckle flavors. Excellent concentration, yet in a medium-light bodied frame, with nice acidity to keep things tasting fresh. Long finish, showing just the barest hint of oxidation at the tail end. Drink this right away, as it is certainly at or just past its peak. Very nice. 88. Got this several months ago at Richard's on South Shepherd for $24.