Joel Stewart
Joel Stewart
No, we did not discuss environmental issues, aside from the Xmas tumbleweed tree. No Ayn Rambo either. We went to Atlas, in Scottsdale, where the byob service is good, the food excellent and an ambience befitting geeks...not sure if we caused any ruckus in the kitchen, tho we sent back many of what follows....and left the place devoid excepting our lovely hostess, at the 11th (or 12th) hour. Thanks To BB and VV for several great pulls:
2008 Le P'tit blanc du Tue-Buf (Touraine)..menu pineau and sauv.b......ripeness and a bit of funk on the nose recognizably puzelat blanc style. decent balance between acidity, musk and a touch of fruit. not bad....but this bottle seemed softer and more sauvy more than elsewise. need to check on the percentages. (note: a later bottle showed better...i think this wine needs a bit of air and some chilling to to strut it's near-romorantin electric acidity.) not bad, for a warm up sip.
2002 Andr Clouet Champagne Millsim (Bouzy)....super clear, delineated toast, toast and then toast on the nose, plus a bit of musk down below....clean attack, fullness in the mid without being heavy and nice acidic lift on the finish, well structured. I would put this in the category of fuller, more robust bubblies, with plenty of mid-to-bass notes matching the citrus on top. want more and love that label. (is this p.n.?)
2003 Movia Pinot Nero (Gorika Brda) after a great start, this wine took it all higher...a whole lotta individuality on the nose and nothing but pure pinot finesse on the palate (nevermind the dissonance between the two...which was fascinating actually). pine sol when swirled, quiet, floral and a touch earthy when not....delightfully as pure a pinot in the mouth as i've had and a wonder to behold. want more.
2006 Moric Blaufrnkisch (Burgenland)..not 07? (my notes)....interesting, almost "starchy", young semi-spicy red nose with similar notes on palate. much going on here and i could taste the wine behind those notes, but maybe not a great time to judge it? esp. next to the Movia. (V's "clay" is my "starch"? i think i got something like fresh peeled potatos...) this was maybe my 3rd bf, so i definitely do not have a handle on this grape yet.
Atlas stretches....
N.V. Egly-Ouriet Champagne Brut 'Les Vignes de Vrigny' (Vrigny / Petite Montaigne de Reims) - compared to the Clouet, was this in a much more mineral vein? seemed that way to me.....higher toned, some leesy notes, a lovely textural wine, but the cool thing was the voluminous expansion of flavors whooshing out in the mid-palate. fine, lengthy mineral/citron on the finish....very nice. want more.
White Knights
Holy crap was this a great opening flight of whites (I could say that again...and again...)
1990 Blackwood Canyon Chardonnay (Yakima Valley, Washington) - this wine really caught me off guard...i was not expecting it to be this good, as the purchase was made way back when RP held sway in my life...like 7 yrs ago....mind you, RP never really touched these wines...just politely called them something like iconoclastic. winemaker scratches his balls when you visit. Ask other WA winemakers about him and they cough.
"Multi-dimensional nose and palate which developed, yet held it's core of fruit, acidity, aged/oxi'd nuts/lees notes, and spices all night long. large in scope, but not at all a bomb. descriptions fall short. a work of art and a wine fully developed. probably at the peak of it's powers. i don't think i've had a more enjoyable chardonnay." - notes fall way short of how good this was. one of the few wines which merit $60 in my starving artist's book. would be interesting to compare this to a jurassic chard actually.
1988 Kalin Cellars Chardonnay Cuve LV (Sonoma) - subtle attack, and an interesting marine salinity thing goin on....robust sherry-like nutty notes and an impressive major citric finish with extension. my palate was being overshadowed by the BC, so i found myself wishing for a little more something from this wine (no doubt one of the potential pitfalls of multiple wine tastings). in the "very good" category nonetheless with caveats noted. i would like to see what a horizontal kalin chard tasting from their various vineyards would reveal.
1990 Chateau Musar Blanc (Bekaa Valley) - not surprisingly, this was the "odd man", but i wouldn't say "out". softest nose of the bunch, echoed on the palate and much lower acidity. not inherently negatives, just how it fit in the lineup with BC cranking up my palate. i wondered if this wine was a bit in-between stages, or needed more air (let's face it, more time with all of these wines would be a good idea some day...but we were going for the smorgasbord). my limited experience is that day two is when the musar blancs start to rock and roll.....this baby was just starting to wake up...and had a lot of "noise" to shine thru. prob an unfair tasting, but glad to have tasted.
Interlude -Roses and Rosados
1995 Roses (Musar and RLdH) - the RLdH showed pretty much right in between the youthful peachy fruitiness of the '97's i've had and the deeper, brothy umami driven '93's. RLdH really rocks their rosados I think....nobody on the planet seems to make anything like these. i simply continue to buy this stuff without a second thought...(at least the 93, which is still available here). the 93 can morph, but there has never been a bad bottle...only "good" to "great". one of the worlds wine steals. maybe the 95's and 97' will eventually show this....maybe not. the '93 covers the depths of what "umami" can mean in a wine, and yet it can soar right up there with the house blancos when the bottle it right. it is this capability which keeps me coming back (that and both my wife, Sachiko and her mom (ie non-geeks) adore it....while some of my local self called RP focused wine geek friends "just don't get it"....Atlas laughs?)
following the whites and the RLdH, i thought the Musar was nice, but comparatively pretty tame,....a decent rose, but not in a league with the uniqueness of the Musar rouges and blancs. as mentioned, this flight seemed a little out of place after such a strong blanc lineup.
Reds -
1977 Chateau Musar Rouge (Bekaa Valley) .....lovely, lovely wine....well defined, subtle, pleasing and youthful....no way to guess the age. hard to send the bottle to the kitchen. I'm officially hooked now....not that i wasn't before. Musar is a mystery. Rhonish without noise. Each year ever more youthful. Magic.
1981 R. Lpez de Heredia Via Bosconia Gran Reserva...developed yet still youthful, a haunting, elegant, pinot-esque wine unlike anything i've ever had. loved it. i still recall this wine and want at least one more bottle, to confirm i've made it to one level of RLdH's red heavens. Hard to find, B?
1981 R. Lpez de Heredia Via Tondonia Gran Reserva.....not old as a wine, but more upright and perhaps as yet underdeveloped? needs more time, more air, a touch more middle body? one thing was that i found this wine lacking in vivacity compared to the Bosconia and, well the Bosconia had a core to it i thought missing here. interestingly, this felt closer to a cab. would like to try more...but so far Bosconia rocked the house for me.
1998 Alois Kracher Scheurebe TBA #12 Zwischen den Seen (Burgenland) - This was intense and lovely. Apricots floating down a river of butter. Superb paired with a desert made up of foie gras set on pumpkin spice bread.
2008 Le P'tit blanc du Tue-Buf (Touraine)..menu pineau and sauv.b......ripeness and a bit of funk on the nose recognizably puzelat blanc style. decent balance between acidity, musk and a touch of fruit. not bad....but this bottle seemed softer and more sauvy more than elsewise. need to check on the percentages. (note: a later bottle showed better...i think this wine needs a bit of air and some chilling to to strut it's near-romorantin electric acidity.) not bad, for a warm up sip.
2002 Andr Clouet Champagne Millsim (Bouzy)....super clear, delineated toast, toast and then toast on the nose, plus a bit of musk down below....clean attack, fullness in the mid without being heavy and nice acidic lift on the finish, well structured. I would put this in the category of fuller, more robust bubblies, with plenty of mid-to-bass notes matching the citrus on top. want more and love that label. (is this p.n.?)
2003 Movia Pinot Nero (Gorika Brda) after a great start, this wine took it all higher...a whole lotta individuality on the nose and nothing but pure pinot finesse on the palate (nevermind the dissonance between the two...which was fascinating actually). pine sol when swirled, quiet, floral and a touch earthy when not....delightfully as pure a pinot in the mouth as i've had and a wonder to behold. want more.
2006 Moric Blaufrnkisch (Burgenland)..not 07? (my notes)....interesting, almost "starchy", young semi-spicy red nose with similar notes on palate. much going on here and i could taste the wine behind those notes, but maybe not a great time to judge it? esp. next to the Movia. (V's "clay" is my "starch"? i think i got something like fresh peeled potatos...) this was maybe my 3rd bf, so i definitely do not have a handle on this grape yet.
Atlas stretches....
N.V. Egly-Ouriet Champagne Brut 'Les Vignes de Vrigny' (Vrigny / Petite Montaigne de Reims) - compared to the Clouet, was this in a much more mineral vein? seemed that way to me.....higher toned, some leesy notes, a lovely textural wine, but the cool thing was the voluminous expansion of flavors whooshing out in the mid-palate. fine, lengthy mineral/citron on the finish....very nice. want more.
White Knights
Holy crap was this a great opening flight of whites (I could say that again...and again...)
1990 Blackwood Canyon Chardonnay (Yakima Valley, Washington) - this wine really caught me off guard...i was not expecting it to be this good, as the purchase was made way back when RP held sway in my life...like 7 yrs ago....mind you, RP never really touched these wines...just politely called them something like iconoclastic. winemaker scratches his balls when you visit. Ask other WA winemakers about him and they cough.
"Multi-dimensional nose and palate which developed, yet held it's core of fruit, acidity, aged/oxi'd nuts/lees notes, and spices all night long. large in scope, but not at all a bomb. descriptions fall short. a work of art and a wine fully developed. probably at the peak of it's powers. i don't think i've had a more enjoyable chardonnay." - notes fall way short of how good this was. one of the few wines which merit $60 in my starving artist's book. would be interesting to compare this to a jurassic chard actually.
1988 Kalin Cellars Chardonnay Cuve LV (Sonoma) - subtle attack, and an interesting marine salinity thing goin on....robust sherry-like nutty notes and an impressive major citric finish with extension. my palate was being overshadowed by the BC, so i found myself wishing for a little more something from this wine (no doubt one of the potential pitfalls of multiple wine tastings). in the "very good" category nonetheless with caveats noted. i would like to see what a horizontal kalin chard tasting from their various vineyards would reveal.
1990 Chateau Musar Blanc (Bekaa Valley) - not surprisingly, this was the "odd man", but i wouldn't say "out". softest nose of the bunch, echoed on the palate and much lower acidity. not inherently negatives, just how it fit in the lineup with BC cranking up my palate. i wondered if this wine was a bit in-between stages, or needed more air (let's face it, more time with all of these wines would be a good idea some day...but we were going for the smorgasbord). my limited experience is that day two is when the musar blancs start to rock and roll.....this baby was just starting to wake up...and had a lot of "noise" to shine thru. prob an unfair tasting, but glad to have tasted.
Interlude -Roses and Rosados
1995 Roses (Musar and RLdH) - the RLdH showed pretty much right in between the youthful peachy fruitiness of the '97's i've had and the deeper, brothy umami driven '93's. RLdH really rocks their rosados I think....nobody on the planet seems to make anything like these. i simply continue to buy this stuff without a second thought...(at least the 93, which is still available here). the 93 can morph, but there has never been a bad bottle...only "good" to "great". one of the worlds wine steals. maybe the 95's and 97' will eventually show this....maybe not. the '93 covers the depths of what "umami" can mean in a wine, and yet it can soar right up there with the house blancos when the bottle it right. it is this capability which keeps me coming back (that and both my wife, Sachiko and her mom (ie non-geeks) adore it....while some of my local self called RP focused wine geek friends "just don't get it"....Atlas laughs?)
following the whites and the RLdH, i thought the Musar was nice, but comparatively pretty tame,....a decent rose, but not in a league with the uniqueness of the Musar rouges and blancs. as mentioned, this flight seemed a little out of place after such a strong blanc lineup.
Reds -
1977 Chateau Musar Rouge (Bekaa Valley) .....lovely, lovely wine....well defined, subtle, pleasing and youthful....no way to guess the age. hard to send the bottle to the kitchen. I'm officially hooked now....not that i wasn't before. Musar is a mystery. Rhonish without noise. Each year ever more youthful. Magic.
1981 R. Lpez de Heredia Via Bosconia Gran Reserva...developed yet still youthful, a haunting, elegant, pinot-esque wine unlike anything i've ever had. loved it. i still recall this wine and want at least one more bottle, to confirm i've made it to one level of RLdH's red heavens. Hard to find, B?
1981 R. Lpez de Heredia Via Tondonia Gran Reserva.....not old as a wine, but more upright and perhaps as yet underdeveloped? needs more time, more air, a touch more middle body? one thing was that i found this wine lacking in vivacity compared to the Bosconia and, well the Bosconia had a core to it i thought missing here. interestingly, this felt closer to a cab. would like to try more...but so far Bosconia rocked the house for me.
1998 Alois Kracher Scheurebe TBA #12 Zwischen den Seen (Burgenland) - This was intense and lovely. Apricots floating down a river of butter. Superb paired with a desert made up of foie gras set on pumpkin spice bread.