2004 Rocca di Montegrossi Chianti Classico San Marcellino (Italy, Tuscany, Chianti, Chianti Classico)

Killer bottle of wine. Popped and poured to be consumed with some of my homemade Pizza. Stunning nose. Dark red color and a soaring nose of dark plum, cherry, earth, mediterranean brush, dried herbs and violets. Just as stunning on the palate as on the nose. Cherry, chocolate, earth, leather. Finish is sensational. A total home run Chianti Classico.

2001 Castello di Camigliano Brunello di Montalcino (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

Excellent Brunello in a more traditional style. Garnet red color and very nice nose of berry, spice, and earth. Good weight on the palate and silky texture. Finishes strong and has years of ageing potential. Really a great bottle of wine.

2006 Fontodi Chianti Classico (Italy, Tuscany, Chianti, Chianti Classico)

A reliable bottle of wine. Dark garnet red color. Seems tight on night 1. More generous with some air. Dark chocolate, cherry, earth, and dried herbs. Solid finish. Just about a perfect "pizza wine" at the $18 I paid for it.

Dinner Chez Shannon and David

Had dinner at Shannon and David's last night. Appetizers were Asian beef wrapped in Shizo and Radicchio, Baked Clams Portugaise, Tuna Tartare, and Parma Ham Antipasto. For the main course, Shannon and David prepared grille Tri-tip, roasted potatoes and carrots, and grilled yellow Squash. For dessert, there were Madelaines and strawberries in whipped cream. Fantastic food. Now the wines.
The Bubbles:

• 2000 Philipponnat Champagne Cuvée "1522" Grand Cru - France, Champagne
  
  This showed great last night with the various appetizers. I don't know that this is an intellectual Champagne, but it sure is a fun one. Imminently drinkable with a very fine, delicate mousse, toasty and citrus flavors with a medium length finish. It comes across as a serious Champagne though and nicely walks the line between opulence and finesse.
  
• N.V. Vilmart Champagne Rosé Rubis - France, Champagne
  
  After the more feminine Philipponnat, this Champagne roared over the palate with powerful strawberry and raspberry flavors. Long finish and lots of life ahead in this wine. Very nice, and certainly a good match for the heartier appetizers last night. Could be a good match for roast meat without problems.
  

The Reds:

• 2003 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie Brune et Blonde - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie
  
  Upon opening, this wine was surprisingly dark and opaque. Unfortunately, it was also completely shut down. Multiple decants and hours of aeration ended up yielding a really stunning wine. Purchased at release from a reputable merchant and cellared perfectly since, this is very very young. Tremendous nose of red fruit and black olive tapenade. On the palate, there's plenty of blackberry and red fruit with stern tannins and a nice dose of earth, leather, and spice. The tell-tale bacon fat that this bottling is famous for isn't really showing yet. Too young for that to be front an center. That said, this is a terrific bottle of wine that has 10 more years before it's really ready and another decade or even two of life left. Very impressive wine.
  
• 1998 Château Troplong Mondot - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
  
  Just like the Guigal Brune at Blonde, this came out of the bottle completely closed. I would actually describe the wine at first taste as "unyielding", "hard as nails", "massively tannic". and black as night. I purchased this bottle at Chateau Troplong in St. Emilion, I transported it home in the OWC and stored it at 55 degrees since. I was expecting it to need some decanting to be in the window, but even hours of aeration and multiple decants couldn't produce what I was looking for in the end. I will say that this still drank nicely. It had a great degree of typicity, showed of a really nice nose towards the end of the evening, and it was a great match for the grilled steak. It just never showed the sweetness of the fruit and voluptuousness that Troplong Mondot can show when it is singing. Based on my tasting of this bottle, I would say that my remaining bottle is at least 10 years away from being in the earliest part of its drinking window and that it should last another decade or two past that without any problem. This wine is made in an old-school, uncompromising fashion. I will enjoy this one on my 50th birthday.
  
• 1998 Tenuta dell'Ornellaia Bolgheri Superiore Ornellaia - Italy, Tuscany, Bolgheri, Bolgheri Superiore
  
  Very impressive wine. It's a hypothetical blend between a top-notch St. Emilion and a top-notch Napa Cabernet. The nose is entirely old-world and could be mistaken for Bordeaux (which I did). On the palate though, there is richer fruit and less acidity than Bordeaux usually shows, not unlike a very good Napa Cab. Bing cherry, chocolate, earth and spices on the palate and a long, long finish that has just a trace of the "funk" I love in Italian wine. Showed incredibly young. I had guessed early 2000s on the vintage, so I was off by quite a few years. Really quite a spectacular wine.
  

For Dessert:

• 2001 Château Rieussec - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
  
  Killer Sauternes. I might point out that I guessed this blind as Sauternes, upon confirmation, I correctly guessed 2001 as the vintage, and upon confirmation of that, I correctly guessed Rieussec...I was really lucky last night. As far as the wine is concerned, this is as good as Sauternes gets. Rich and creamy yet light and with plenty of acidity. Lemon custard flavors and a finish that goes an and on. I am embarrassed to say I don't think I quite finished my pour as I had to drive home, but it was as good as any YquemI have had the pleasure of tasting.
  

As always, thanks to Shannon and David for the hospitality and tremendous food. Next time, our house again.
Posted from CellarTracker

2006 Azienda Agricola Montevertine Toscana IGT (Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT)

Another stunner. Reminiscent of a very good Rioja, this has the same silky texture and complex palate with interesting dark berry, raspberry and dried herbs. It's fresh, yet powerful. Really one of the great unique wines of the world in my opinion, and it's right there with Chateau Simone in style, and it's unlike any other wine from Italy I have tasted. A curiosity, but an excellent one.

2006 Fattoria Le Pupille (Elisabetta Geppetti) Morellino di Scansano Poggio Valente (Italy, Tuscany, Maremma, Morellino di Scansano)

Well...my luck had to run out sometime. I opened this to go along with Spaghetti Carbonara, but this wasn't a treat. It's a decent wine that is very fruit forward, but slightly simple for my taste. Lacks interesting flavors. At $20, I guess I shouldn't complain.

2008 Tenuta San Guido Le Difese Toscana IGT (Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT)

I've already blown through 3 bottles of this in just a few weeks. It is an Italo-phile's dream. Second wine from Tenuta San Guido's Sassicaia. Same fruit sources, same wine-making method, but the fruit that didn't make it into Sassicaia. The result is a modestly priced Tuscan red that delivers in every category. Sweet fruit? Check. Drinkability? Check. Ageability? Check. Layered? Check. Classically funky? Check. If I tasted this blind, there's no way I would peg it as a $25 red. A wine to buy by the case and consume with Pizza, pasta, and Bistecca. Lovely.

2001 Fanti (Tenuta San Filippo) Brunello di Montalcino (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

Not what I had hoped for. Very dark, very big, very fruity, very angular, and very alcoholic. It definitely has a rocket fuel feel to it that I dislike. Extended aeration helped, but never quite cured the issues with this wine. The good news is that if you love dark berry fruit and dark/bitter chocolate, you will love this wine. Loaded to the gills in every aspect, lovers of this style should have a field day with this. A very modern and ultra clean version of Brunello that lacks some character.

2000 La Poderina Brunello di Montalcino (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

Brilliant wine. Mature Brunello that shows pretty cherry and plum fruit with leather, earth, and a hint of licorice on the finish. Long, warm, and comforting. We had this with my home made pizza, and it was a perfect food-wine pairing. I bought this for less than $30 and at that price, it was a steal. A more traditional version of Brunello, I believe. I would recommend this wine and its producer based on this experience. 

1999 Tenuta Caparzo Brunello di Montalcino Riserva (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

As always, a very solid wine. Great vintage, great producer, and riserva equals phenomenal wine. Juicy and sweet, this shows class, elegance, and the effects of the warm Tuscan sun on the fruit. Plum and cherries with balsam wood and a hint of earthiness and autumnal flavors. Delicious

2004 Rocca di Montegrossi Geremia Toscana IGT (Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT)

Had this with dinner of Fettuccine and Ragu sauce. Great wine to go with the food. Mostly Merlot and Cab, this IGT is a real crowd-pleaser. Somewhat Bordeaux-like, but with more weight of fruit and more funk than I am used to from Bordeaux at this young age. Black and red fruits like blackberry, black currant, plum, and some cherry. Tobacco, earth, and dried herbs. You can tell that this is young, still, as it has ferocious structure and fruit, yet it manages to stay in balance with ample acidity and a sappy, lip-smacking finish. Really a nice wine, especially considering the moderate cost point. Recommended.

1999 Fattoria La Gerla Brunello di Montalcino (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

Served with Fettuccine Alfredo and what a fantastic pairing. The wine's fruit, freshness, structure and spice really complemented the Fettuccine Alfredo. Lovely wine which shows a significant amount of earth and spice. The fine acidity helps cut through the butter and cream of the noodle dish. With this food pairing, the fruit does not get emphasized as the other parts of the wine, but there's still plenty of lovely fruit in it. Should be able to hold a while longer.

2000 La Poderina Brunello di Montalcino (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

Another day, another Brunello. And this one was very good, as well. Although it doesn't measure up to the Pertimali of a few nights before, it is still a very good wine. With 10 years of age on it, it shows nicely balanced, round, supple and soft, and it has a very attractive character of plum, cherry, dried herbs, earth, and barnyard. A touch of brett adds a little extra complexity to this wine. I purchased this at auction for about $29, which is a great deal for this wine.

2004 Pertimali (Livio Sassetti) Brunello di Montalcino (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

We had this at dinner at a local Italian restaurant favorite. And this wine didn't disappoint. It's hard to describe how this wine manages to deliver perfectly ripened fruit while at the same time delivering incredible finesse, elegance, and freshness. Apart from the wonderful fruit, the tobacco notes are very appealing and earthy notes help make this wine a benchmark young Brunello for me. As good as it is right now, it will only getting better for years to come. As highly recommended as any wine I have ever recommended.

1999 Fattoria La Gerla Brunello di Montalcino (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

Had this over the course of two nights. Started out surprisingly tight, but it unwound quickly. Nice plum and red berry fruit with tobacco, earth, and some dark chocolate. A funky wine in a good way, and a monster QPR. Only downside is that I picked up on a hint of bitterness/astringency. I think the tannins are beginning to outlast the fruit, so I think it's time to drink up with this wine. Certainly no need to drink it immediately, but I still think this needs to be consumed within the next five years.

2004 Pertimali (Livio Sassetti) Brunello di Montalcino (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

Brilliant wine. In a moment of heresy, I opened this to drink with a dinner of Pizza. That said, despite the simple and rustic meal, this wine is just unbelievably fun to drink. Although it is young, it has layers upon layers of ripe Tuscan red and black fruits along with tobacco, leather, earth, and some barnyard. Although one can taste that the fruit was ripened in warm and sunny Tuscany, the wine retains fantastic freshness and has a structure that can reward decades of aging (based on my drinking of older vintages of Pertimali). This is a must buy for lovers of structured, finesse Brunello.

Year-End Wine Salon (December 2009)

Our last Wine Salon of 2009. The MO was to have each participant taste three flights of wines with 4 wines per flight together with 3 other tasters. Impressions were recorded on the fly and presentations given from each team on each flight. Food was outstanding, and so were the wines. Kudos and props to Michael Villim of Mirabelle and Brian Owens for organizing and picking the majority of the wines out of his cellar. On to the wines.

Flight #1: Cabernet Franc

• 1989 Olga Raffault Chinon Les Picasses - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Chinon
  Pretty nose, leafy, very tannic, sour cherry, tobacco, earth, floral, and rustic. This was a good bottle of a very good wine. My favorite wine of the flight, although it started out very rough and angry. With air, it mellowed and the fruit plushed up.
  


• 1998 Le Petit Cheval - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
  Very oaky on the nose. Good blackberry fruit, cracked pepper, road tar, espresso bean, and floral. Was a decent drink with the food, but seemed a little odd when tasted on its own. Very technical wine.
  


• 1992 La Jota Cabernet Franc - USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain
  Truly a wow kind of wine. Beautiful, soaring nose, tobacco leaf and black cherry. Shows more alcohol than the previous two wines, but that's to be expected. Spectacular wine and only a smidge behind the Raffault for me.
  


• 2001 Le Macchiole Paleo Toscana IGT - Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT
  Oak, turpentine, primary fruit, classic Italian wine funk, briary underbrush and rosemary stem. Violets, charred earth and oak. Certainly not terrible, but too oaky and cloying for me to find it exciting.
  

Flight #2: 2002 Mosel Riesling Spaetlese

• 2002 Willi Schaefer Graacher Domprobst Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
  Flower petals, honey, green apple and early ripeness peach. Still slightly spritzy, but flat out delicious. My kind of Spaetlese.
  


• 2002 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
  I immediately disliked this wine. Very flat, boring, cloying, one-dimensional, oddly off-putting nose. Lacks definition, and was marred by very sweet, muddled fruit. Like drinking a wine cooler. I wonder if something was wrong with this bottle.
  


• 2002 Fritz Haag Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
  A much better wine than the preceding Selbach-Oster. Had that youthful spritz, definition, focus, orchard fruit, and lively acidity that the preceding bottle so desperately lacked. Lovely wine.
  


• 2002 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
  Orange zest, petrol, ripe app;e and cheese rind in a long-haul package that will reward ageing. My favorite and most complete wine of the flight.
  

Flight #3: Four vintages of Montelena Estate

• 1976 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon The Montelena Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley
  Velvety texture. Slightly raisiny flavors, low acid, leather, a tad vintage port-like. Still tannic. Smoke and meat juices, dark cherry, and a smidge of Brett. The wine was fun to drink, but it's definitely on the downslope.
  


• 1992 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon The Montelena Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley
  Not very good. Spice, cherry, cedar, hollow on the mid-palate and an almost Gluehwein-like flavor on the palate. To me, this was not just unexciting, but disappointing.
  


• 1996 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon The Montelena Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley
  Savory spice, cherry, blackberry, leather, tobacco and licorice. This wine had it going on and showed great balance.
  


• 2001 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon The Montelena Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley
  My favorite of the Montelenas. Cherry and blackberry with licorice, and all that tobacco and leather goodness that I found in all the Montelenas in varying amounts. Lovely wine and there's no way that this could have possibly warranted 69 points from Wine Spectator, even if I did taste some Brett like I did in most of the prior vintages.
  

1999 Castiglion del Bosco Brunello di Montalcino Campo del Drago (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

Brilliant wine. Velvety smooth texture, but focused, layered cherry and plum fruit. Good freshness and tell-tale Italian funkiness in this wine. You can taste the warm Tuscan sun and earth. Lovely wine. Although this can certainly be held for some time to come, this is drinking absolutely spectacularly right now.

Wine and Food with Friends on a Random Friday Night

Had friends over for dinner last night. I decided to grill some beautiful prime New York Strips, Cowboy-cut Ribeye, and a couple of types of fish. Alongside, I served hand-cut/baked/sweet potato fries, arugula/fennel/orange salad, and savoy cabbage. The wines were lovely with the food, and we had a string of three very nice bottles.

• 2001 Argiano Solengo Toscana IGT - Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT
  Great bottle. Relative to other bottles of this wine I've had, this one was very backward and youthful. Showed that tell-tale Italian funk, brooding red and dark fruit, and nice earthiness. The texture is somewhere between velvety and silky, with nice, fresh acidity and smooth tannins. Fantastic wine.


• 2000 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  Another winner. Also dark, backward, and brooding, but it shows terrific blackberry and plum fruit with loads of dried provencal herbs, truffle, earth, meatiness and licorice. Still very youthful, so plenty of tannins, fruit, and acidity to go around, but it is drinking spectacularly right now. Lovely bottle.


• 1996 Château Sociando-Mallet - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Haut-Médoc
  Opened this at the end of the evening. Still a baby in my opinion. Just beginning to show tertiary flavors. For now, the tannins still stick out a little and will need another 5-10 years before they'll settle into the right spot. Beyond the strong tannins, this is a very enjoyable wine that shows nice cigar box, black currant, and leather with a little earthiness. The weakest of the wines last night, but very good, still.

2000 Cerbaiola (Salvioni) Brunello di Montalcino (Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino)

What a great wine. Amazingly pure black and red fruit, superb freshness, and a killer finish. Plum and blackberry, leather, earth, and a tiny bit of tobacco. Quite rustic and funky, but in a good way. The fruit screams sun drenched, yet it's light on its feet. Laser focused and restrained. If this isn't the best Brunello I've had, it is definitely one of the very best I've tasted. Amazing stuff and a real treat on a Saturday night. And did I mention that this went terrifically with food? Has the structure to age many more years, so no need to hurry. If you have a chance to buy this at a reasonable cost, this is a no-brainer purchase.