TN: Yarra (Jan. 18, 2016)

J

Jeff Grossman

Jeff Grossman
attendees: Jay, Ira™, Winton, Craig, Gary, James, Jeff, Three Denizens, and Yarra

It's MLK Day and I guess Jay isn't working too hard, as he has summoned us to the cellar for a blind tasting. I arrive well after things have started but I make an effort to catch up (and I put a bottle in a bag, too).

See if you can spot a theme.

"The sweeter white" - Apparently, this was nice enough but kinda closed for the first hour and a half. By the time I arrived this was going very floral-fruity-paisley-nasally and just a little sweet. Nice bottle of Maximin Grunhauser (von Schubert) 1990 Herrenberg Riesling Spatlese.

"The white in the decanter" - After much fruitless guessing, we are told this is chardonnay. If it is, it's not ripe. The wine is lean and clean but only one person immediately calls the region right on Raveneau 2001 Chablis 1er "Chapelot".

"Red 1000" - Stinky old Bordeaux. Really stinky. We've had better bottles of Ch. Magdelaine 1995 St-Emilion.

"Red 2000" - This is a better Bordeaux or, at least, Bordeaux blend. Mid-weight, nicely ripe, no one guesses it's a down under unicorn wine, Mount Mary 1995 "Quintet", Yarra Valley.

"Great nose red" - Several people call out the 'hot weather' nose on this one. Jay even places it in Sicily but Ira™ is geographically-challenged and says 'no'... Anyway, it's a lovely bottle of Calabretta 2002 Etna Rosso.

"Pale old red" - I'm back in the land of riffling through obscure Italian grapes. This wine is pale, though not transparent, and the nose is delicate like an older wine. But the texture is also light and the flavor is spicy but not spicy enough to be pineau d'aunis or cerasuolo. We flounder a bit and no one guesses this is another down under rarity, Drake 2011 Pinot Noir "Samson", Yarra Valley.

"Chopped vegetables red" - Nailed for 2004 Burgundy right away, it's funny how some people get a really green thing and some don't. In either case, it's not great wine and this one is pretty affected so I dump out Bachelet 2004 Cotes de Nuits.

"Young Italian" - My contribution. This is improving with air, becoming more recognizably barolo. As it stands, it's a suave package, somewhat weighty and luxurious, and way young. Despite all that, Jay immediately calls 'young nebbiolo' on G. Conterno 2001 Barolo "Cascina Francia".

"Too cold white" - I drank this while too cold because the clock was ticking. There was a lingering waxy note that made me think of ribolla gialla but Winton nixes that idea. It really is Marques de Murrietta Rioja Blanco "Cappellania".

"Jura white" - The oxidation is very delicate, not troublesome for me at all, and it's really highlighting the citrussy aspect of the savagnin grape. Later, I read that this is made sous-voile for 3 years and came from Chambers Street: Villet 2011 Savagnin.

"Really obvious young N Rhone" - Just a slurp as I'm heading out the door. I've had the 2005 of this wine, which was a nice little wine. This is built on a bigger frame, and it's good, but it's still a simple wine: A. Verset 2009 Cornas.

And I'm out. For all I know, the rest of them are still there, drinking wine from Yarra.
 
1990 von Schubert Maximin Grunhauser Herrenberg Spatlese - very nice from the start, this opened steadily to become quite remarkably beautiful with an expansive nose and perfectly balanced joy. No petrol on the nose at first, perhaps a touch later on but nothing that distracted or detracted.

2001 Raveneau Chablis "I don't remember the vineyard" - while I got Chardonnay on my second guess (Sauvignon Blanc was my first) I never would have guessed Chablis. Quite rich, very good especially after getting some air.

1995 Chateau Magdelaine - I think this has seen some heat damage along the way. Nothing like the bottle I opened 3 years ago.

1995 Mount Mary 1995 "Quintet" - lots of pure ripe (but not overripe) raspberry fruit. Perhaps a touch candied on first pur that note disappears with air. Beautiful balanced wine, all the initial guesses were Bordeaux left bank. Ira's favorite.

2002 Calabretta Etna Rosso - I really enjoyed this wine, so I wasn't surprised when I saw it was a Calabretta. Once I heard it was in Italy I immediately guessed Sicily.

2001 Drake Samson Pinot Noir - Cheating a bit here I noticed it was a screwcap wine and guessed NZ pinot noir. Quite nice lighter styled pinot.

2000 Leroy Bourgogne - almost completely shut down. Surprising.

2004 Bachelet Hautes Cotes de Nuit - Tasting it I looked at Craig and asked
"Pinot Noir?" "Yes."
"Burgundy?" "Yes."
"2004?" Wryly, "Yes."
Not all 2004 red Burgundies are coming around.

2001 G. Conterno Barolo "Cascina Francia" - I guessed youngish nebbiolo on this one. Still very tannic, not especially pleasureable on its own but it was very good with some Dickson's rotisserie chicken.

And a nod to the only casualty of the evening. A beautiful nose on the 1993 Faiveley Chambertin Clos de Beze which leaped to its death while I was putting bottles away. I did manage to rescue the 2001 Brundlmayer GV that attempted to follow suit (if all your friends were jumping off a cliff would you do it too?).
 
originally posted by Jay Miller:
Jeff - what is the actual vineyard on the Raveneau?
Click to expand...
If I knew, I would have put it in originally.

Updated the original post with some of the missing particulars.

You're welcome for the typing assist.

Updated now with the Chablis vineyard.

And, for those who did not crack Jay's decanter code... 1000 is 'M' for Magdelaine while 2000 is 'MM' for Mount Mary.
 
originally posted by Sharon Bowman:
Ah, nothing like the smell of '59 Ausone wafting up from the concrete floor.
Click to expand...
Or my only bottle of '74 Sterling Reserve that decided to die by smashing neck first into the cellar floor. Wonderful nose, though.
 
I once used a wine storage company that managed to drop a bottle of 2007 Gonon Vieilles Vignes. They promptly offered to pay me what I paid for the bottle. As if I could take the $54 and go buy another bottle of Gonon Vieilles Vignes.
 
On the upside, whenever I gaze at the labels of my 2010 Clos des Lambrays, waiting for the wine to be mature, I will not worry that the labels are splattered with red wine stains - it is only Gonon Vieilles Vignes on there, not Clos des Lambrays.
 
originally posted by Andrew Zachary:
originally posted by Sharon Bowman:
Ah, nothing like the smell of '59 Ausone wafting up from the concrete floor.
Click to expand...
Or my only bottle of '74 Sterling Reserve that decided to die by smashing neck first into the cellar floor. Wonderful nose, though.
Click to expand...

Ouch. I've lost a couple of bottles, one of which was a '97
Jaboulet Thalabert, that way. The nose was great but a bit sharp on the palate.

Mark Lipton
 
The only bottle I've dropped was a bottle of '05 ESJ Wylie-Fenaughty Syrah. Somehow, it broke and landed so that the lower 2/3 of the bottle was standing up and intact. There was still about 1/2 bottle of wine in there. I got a funnel, filter paper, wine glass,and decanter from the storage facility guy (along with a mop and pail).

Drink and hold.
 
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