SteveTimko
Steve Timko
1992 Ridge Carignane Whitten Ranch - USA, California, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley (6/29/2011)
This turned out to be pretty interesting. I got a slight mustiness on the nose. Glenn concluded it was slightly corked. The fact that I perceived the mustiness is evidence to the contrary because I have almost no TCA perception. Whatever the flaw, we continued to drink this wine and enjoy it. It's still holding on and has several years to go.
For me, the wine was a nice contrast. There were some bright red fruit flavors and there was also some distinctive southern Rhone=style garrigue. Also maybe some mushroominess. Good finish.Kind of a lighter style and definitely food friendly. Aging helped this wine. I look forward to drinking my other bottle.
1988 Karthäuserhof Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer (6/29/2011)
Initially it seemed tired but it got better with air. The wine retains a nice core of acidity but there's not much to balance that against. Besides the acidity the dominant flavor was a burnt marzipan.Not much on the nose. Balanced and a decent finish. Definitely seems to be on a downhill slope and probably would have been better a couple of years ago when I bought it. A Rudi Wiest import.
2006 Dehlinger Pinot Noir Goldridge - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley (6/29/2011)
Still young but this wine shows a lot of promise. Glenn I suspect made sure it got plenty of air so the wine showed well. The two things that stood out for me on this wine were the Russian Russian spiciness and the finish. The spiciness on the nose added nice complexity to the tart red fruit flavor. Also, it had a tremendous finish. My Spidey senses tell me this is a finish that will only improve as the wine ages. This was a good wine now, especially with the sockeye salmon, but I suspect this will really come together well in three to five years.
2006 Franco Noussan Valle d'Aosta Pinot Noir - Italy, Valle d'Aosta (6/4/2011)
Tasted like pinot noir to me, albeit a spicy one. It didn't have much subtlety. Fairly straightforward and one dimensional. A Burgundyphile complained it did not taste like pinot noir. He said he liked it but thought it tasted like a generic red blend. The spices were what stood out for me. Balanced and inoffensive but unremarkable. A Lous/Dressner import.
2007 La Crotta di Vegneron Gamay - Italy, Valle d'Aosta, Chambave (5/29/2011)
This evolved nicely over an hour. Initially it tasted neither gamay nor Italian. Not even European. I would have guessed a California grenache blend if I had tasted it blind, I think. After an hour the acidity came to the forefront. So much so it really needed food. As far as the fruit, it didn't taste like gamay from Beaujolais but it did have some rusticity to it. Dark fruits. Shortish finish. A spicy, mildly fragrant nose. Needs food but otherwise balanced.Remains fairly generic. This is from a cooperative in Valle d'Aosta. Imported by Villa Italia wines.
This turned out to be pretty interesting. I got a slight mustiness on the nose. Glenn concluded it was slightly corked. The fact that I perceived the mustiness is evidence to the contrary because I have almost no TCA perception. Whatever the flaw, we continued to drink this wine and enjoy it. It's still holding on and has several years to go.
For me, the wine was a nice contrast. There were some bright red fruit flavors and there was also some distinctive southern Rhone=style garrigue. Also maybe some mushroominess. Good finish.Kind of a lighter style and definitely food friendly. Aging helped this wine. I look forward to drinking my other bottle.
1988 Karthäuserhof Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer (6/29/2011)
Initially it seemed tired but it got better with air. The wine retains a nice core of acidity but there's not much to balance that against. Besides the acidity the dominant flavor was a burnt marzipan.Not much on the nose. Balanced and a decent finish. Definitely seems to be on a downhill slope and probably would have been better a couple of years ago when I bought it. A Rudi Wiest import.
2006 Dehlinger Pinot Noir Goldridge - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley (6/29/2011)
Still young but this wine shows a lot of promise. Glenn I suspect made sure it got plenty of air so the wine showed well. The two things that stood out for me on this wine were the Russian Russian spiciness and the finish. The spiciness on the nose added nice complexity to the tart red fruit flavor. Also, it had a tremendous finish. My Spidey senses tell me this is a finish that will only improve as the wine ages. This was a good wine now, especially with the sockeye salmon, but I suspect this will really come together well in three to five years.
2006 Franco Noussan Valle d'Aosta Pinot Noir - Italy, Valle d'Aosta (6/4/2011)
Tasted like pinot noir to me, albeit a spicy one. It didn't have much subtlety. Fairly straightforward and one dimensional. A Burgundyphile complained it did not taste like pinot noir. He said he liked it but thought it tasted like a generic red blend. The spices were what stood out for me. Balanced and inoffensive but unremarkable. A Lous/Dressner import.
2007 La Crotta di Vegneron Gamay - Italy, Valle d'Aosta, Chambave (5/29/2011)
This evolved nicely over an hour. Initially it tasted neither gamay nor Italian. Not even European. I would have guessed a California grenache blend if I had tasted it blind, I think. After an hour the acidity came to the forefront. So much so it really needed food. As far as the fruit, it didn't taste like gamay from Beaujolais but it did have some rusticity to it. Dark fruits. Shortish finish. A spicy, mildly fragrant nose. Needs food but otherwise balanced.Remains fairly generic. This is from a cooperative in Valle d'Aosta. Imported by Villa Italia wines.