Trapiche Broquel 2005 Bonarda (Mendoza) Grape, red cherry, and strawberry jam, lushly fruited with significant, but not overwhelming, oak. Finishes sticky. Balanced in its goopy New World idiom, though I do have suspicions about the acidity, but absolutely one-note and as varietally and geographically anonymous as a wine can be. (1/09)
Hillau Domaine Etxegaraya 2002 Iroulguy (Southwest France) Clinging to relevance. Sharp-tongued animate blackberries, a sort of meat residue aroma, some fairly luscious darkness, but its all on the verge of drying out. This would likely be much better under another closure than its synthetic cork, and while this is the best-preserved of the four bottles thus far, given the circumstances it would have been better to drink it at release. (1/09)
Easton 2006 Zinfandel (Amador County) Upon first opening, a huge rush of bubbles and massive volatility seems to indicate an in-bottle refermentation. I put it aside and open something else. Two days later, its still a little prickly. A full week later, at room temperature something I would not generally recommend it has come into full form, shedding some of the wood along with the volatiles and knitting itself into a far more cohesive and more winy wine, full of dark, wild berries and that pine bark-edged touch of pruniness, twisted and sauvage, that so often seems to mark the region. Im not sure what was going on at first opening, though. (1/09)
Charvin 2006 Vin de Pays Principaut dOrange ct (Rhne) If the Charvin Chteauneuf-du-Pape is a concerto, and the Ctes-du-Rhne is the orchestra without the soloist, this is the first scribbling of the composer on an otherwise blank page. Suggestions of Rhne-osity come in the form of dark, earthy undertones, a bit of leather and smoke, a hint of herbbut none of these ideas are developed or fleshed out. In other words, the wine lives up to its position in the hierarchy. Its quite drinkable and seems admirably unspoofy, but this is a wine for enjoyable quaffing en pichet in an Avignon bistro, not for shipping across the ocean to acquire a series of markups and a marketing budget. Still, if you have to drink something, you could do a lot worse. A lot worse. (1/09)
Castellani Collezione Ca del Pipa 2004 Valpolicella Classico Superiore San Michele Ripasso (Veneto) Corked. (1/09)
Montebuena 2006 Rioja (Center-North) Corked. (1/09)
Aubert Chateau Hoyt 2005 Ctes de Castillon Cuve Prestige (Bordeaux) Corked. (1/09)
Ridge 2007 Three Valleys (Sonoma County) 76% zinfandel, 8% petite sirah, 7% syrah, 6% grenache, 3% carignane. 14.3% alcohol. Monotone berries, ranging from deep red to deeper black, dusted with a bit of black pepper but otherwise fairly anonymous. A heavy winenot hot, but ponderous and lifeless. Boring. (1/09)
Delta Vineyard 2006 Pinot Noir (Marlborough) Another bargain pinot noir from one of the few countries that seems to be able to do it well. Here, however, the blood orange and beet characteristics that seem so prevalent across the range of New Zealands pinot noir terroirs are left a little exposed by a not-quite-sufficient quantity of berries. In the presence of better overall fruit, these characteristics add a dollop of interesting complexity to such wines. Still, this isnt bad, and will do quite well in a pinch. Finishes with a touch of bitterness. (1/09)
Domaine de la Terre Rouge 2005 Syrah Les Ctes de lOuest (California) Big and pleasantly blundering. The roasted coffee overlay isnt too dominant, and the stew of sun-baked red fruit underneath is quite pleasant. Its neither long nor particularly complex, but then thats not really the point. (1/09)
Marietta Old Vine Red Lot Number 47 (California) Its hard to say if this perennial blend lives up to its ancestors reputation (the oldest Ive tasted was, if I remember correctly, the 18, though not in its youth), because it seems difficult to see the appeal of holding it long enough to find out. Big but not overblown California berry fruit, with a bit of softening in the cellar and a good measure of approachability. And thats really all there is to say about it. (1/09)
Hillau Domaine Etxegaraya 2002 Iroulguy (Southwest France) Clinging to relevance. Sharp-tongued animate blackberries, a sort of meat residue aroma, some fairly luscious darkness, but its all on the verge of drying out. This would likely be much better under another closure than its synthetic cork, and while this is the best-preserved of the four bottles thus far, given the circumstances it would have been better to drink it at release. (1/09)
Easton 2006 Zinfandel (Amador County) Upon first opening, a huge rush of bubbles and massive volatility seems to indicate an in-bottle refermentation. I put it aside and open something else. Two days later, its still a little prickly. A full week later, at room temperature something I would not generally recommend it has come into full form, shedding some of the wood along with the volatiles and knitting itself into a far more cohesive and more winy wine, full of dark, wild berries and that pine bark-edged touch of pruniness, twisted and sauvage, that so often seems to mark the region. Im not sure what was going on at first opening, though. (1/09)
Charvin 2006 Vin de Pays Principaut dOrange ct (Rhne) If the Charvin Chteauneuf-du-Pape is a concerto, and the Ctes-du-Rhne is the orchestra without the soloist, this is the first scribbling of the composer on an otherwise blank page. Suggestions of Rhne-osity come in the form of dark, earthy undertones, a bit of leather and smoke, a hint of herbbut none of these ideas are developed or fleshed out. In other words, the wine lives up to its position in the hierarchy. Its quite drinkable and seems admirably unspoofy, but this is a wine for enjoyable quaffing en pichet in an Avignon bistro, not for shipping across the ocean to acquire a series of markups and a marketing budget. Still, if you have to drink something, you could do a lot worse. A lot worse. (1/09)
Castellani Collezione Ca del Pipa 2004 Valpolicella Classico Superiore San Michele Ripasso (Veneto) Corked. (1/09)
Montebuena 2006 Rioja (Center-North) Corked. (1/09)
Aubert Chateau Hoyt 2005 Ctes de Castillon Cuve Prestige (Bordeaux) Corked. (1/09)
Ridge 2007 Three Valleys (Sonoma County) 76% zinfandel, 8% petite sirah, 7% syrah, 6% grenache, 3% carignane. 14.3% alcohol. Monotone berries, ranging from deep red to deeper black, dusted with a bit of black pepper but otherwise fairly anonymous. A heavy winenot hot, but ponderous and lifeless. Boring. (1/09)
Delta Vineyard 2006 Pinot Noir (Marlborough) Another bargain pinot noir from one of the few countries that seems to be able to do it well. Here, however, the blood orange and beet characteristics that seem so prevalent across the range of New Zealands pinot noir terroirs are left a little exposed by a not-quite-sufficient quantity of berries. In the presence of better overall fruit, these characteristics add a dollop of interesting complexity to such wines. Still, this isnt bad, and will do quite well in a pinch. Finishes with a touch of bitterness. (1/09)
Domaine de la Terre Rouge 2005 Syrah Les Ctes de lOuest (California) Big and pleasantly blundering. The roasted coffee overlay isnt too dominant, and the stew of sun-baked red fruit underneath is quite pleasant. Its neither long nor particularly complex, but then thats not really the point. (1/09)
Marietta Old Vine Red Lot Number 47 (California) Its hard to say if this perennial blend lives up to its ancestors reputation (the oldest Ive tasted was, if I remember correctly, the 18, though not in its youth), because it seems difficult to see the appeal of holding it long enough to find out. Big but not overblown California berry fruit, with a bit of softening in the cellar and a good measure of approachability. And thats really all there is to say about it. (1/09)