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Dale Williams
 
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Default TN: Week's wine - some decent QPR Burgs and others

After* a long day , I came home at 9 to find Betsy had saved me some pasta
tonnato. With it, the *2002 Ch. Grande Cassagne "Le Triage " Costières de
Nîmes. Red berry fruit, very ripe, low-acidity, hint of earth. Simple, and I'd
be disappointed if a $20 Chateauneuf-du-Pape, but* this is pretty decent for an
$8 wine.* B

Also once again the 2002 Clos de la Roilette* Fleurie (regular bottling).
Violets and red fruit on the nose, cherry and raspberry fruit dances across
one's palate. Just a beautiful light food-friendly wine. B+/A-

Wednesday I grilled pork chops along with peaches (after grilling peaches were
topped with a mixture of molasses, lime* & butter), we had the 2002 Willi
Schaefer Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Qba. Crisp acidity, lime fruit, just a
pleasant simple wine that had just enough sweetness to temper the acidity. B

After dinner we went to a local place where a pianist friend's jazz group was
playing. I got a glass of Deloach Cabernet (2000 I think), which was heavy,
oaky, and non-descript. Betsy got the 2001 Castle Rock Russian River Valley
Pinot Noir. Ripe and sweet, fruit almost dense, would make a nice Merlot. I
switched to the 2001 Bouchard Bourgogne Blanc. Oakier than I expected, apple
and fig fruit, not memorable.

The following night we headed up to Peekskill for dinner. After a long walk
with our Basset Lucy and their Bichon Bijou, we came back for a dinner of
kielbasa and 'kraut. Dick asked me "do you want some wine? I have some Shiraz?
Or I could open the Spanish bottle you brought?". Now normally I think of wines
I carry as host gifts, and would never say open. But I know they don't drink
much wine (more Martini-centric), and spotted an open magnum of Yellowtail.
It's not that I wouldn't try the Yellowtail, but I KNEW it had probably been
open a week plus, and I couldn't face oxidized Shiraz. So I said I'd like to
try the Spanish, and they opened the 1997 Abadia Retuerta (Sardon de Duero).
*Still shows as somewhat oaky and tannic, blackberry fruit and vanilla aromas.
I really liked this wine on* release (the '96 too), but it doesn't seem to be
aging that well. Ok in a spicy/oaky kind of way, but not much on the finish,
and not really developing any complexity. B

Friday night was duck breasts, and the 1999 Drouhin Gevrey Chambertin . Nose of
dirt and cherries, plenty of black cherrry fruit with a hint of raspberry.
Earthy with some light oak aromas; nice balance of acidity, fruit, and light
tannins. Sublime match with the duck, and an excellent example of $25 Burgundy.
I went back and got more Saturday(sale at Zachy's). A-/B+

Saturday night some friend's came over for dinner, we had a fish mixed grill
(salmon steaks, swordfish steak with a lemon/orange/mango/soy marinade, and
Chilean seabass/Patagonian toothfish) , grilled eggplant with peanut sauce,
grilled squash, and Aidell's sundried tomato sausage. Called for a variety of
wine choices, we had:

2001 Camille Giroud Savigny-lès-Beaune
Startlingly acidic at first, but just a little air time shows a much more
rounded wine. Violets, forest floor, and cherries on the nose; somewhat ripe
red fruit on palate. Nice finish, another nice inexpensive ($16) Burgundy. B+

2001 Françoise and Denis Clair "Les Murgers des Dents de Chien" St.-Aubin 1er
Cru. Hazelnut and honey nose, white fruit and flint/minerals on palate.
Wonderful balance of acidity and fruit. I think this wine could age for a few
years quite well, but am afraid it's so tasty now I'll never find out. A-/B+

2001 Robert Mondavi Napa Chardonnay
(unfiltered if there's more than one Napa bottling)
Some toasty oak, though not overwhelming. Very ripe tropical (guava meets
pineapple) fruit and a kind of canned-fruit-cocktail note. I try to balance my
antipathy to the style with a more objective view, but really can't get past
that fruit-cocktail thing. Possibly better as a apertif than a food wine. B-

Sunday Betsy did lamb with a basil-anchovy sauce on the side, and we had the
2000 Ch. Lanessan (Haut Médoc). Very dark wine, almost black in the decanter.
Floral nose, blackcurrant fruit, with balanced acidity, moderate tannins, and
good finish. A little oak, more on the cedary than the toasty-sweet side. Very
good $15 Bdx, though I think I prefer the Coufran for now, this should have the
edge in 5 years or so. B+

Also, Saturday afternoon some quick tastes at Zachys:
2002 Brothers in Arms "Blend 6" Shiraz Cabernet
Soft, sweet, rich cassis fruit with a minty finish. Not my style, but not bad
at $16 if you like the style. B
2001 Brothers in Arms Shiraz
Monster-style Shiraz, certainly impressive. I have to find water before I can
taste any more. B
1999 Greysac (Médoc)
Pleasant well-rounded wine with typical Bordeaux nose, a little light on the
fruit, but a good deal at $11. B

1996 Cantemerle (Haut-Médoc)
Happy to taste this one, as I have a couple stashed. Medium-bodied with dark
fruit, some cedary oak, graphite, and nice finish. Some unresolved tannins but
not harsh, good acidity keeps it lively. B+

2000 Cantemerle (Haut-Médoc)
A little tight, more primary and tannic than the '96 (duh), but nice earthy
structured wine. B/B+

1999 La Lagune (Haut-Médoc)
A bit disappointing. Light oak, light fruit, light finish. Would have expected
more from this usual QPR winner. Flawed bottle? B-/C+

2000 La Lagune (Haut-Médoc)
Ah, more like it. Complex mix of blackcurrants, plums, and even a hint of
prunes (thought not "pruney"), ripe tannins, nice finish. Needs time. B+/A-

1996 Phelan Segur (St-Estèphe)
A real winner, the only red from tasting I bought (on a qualitive level I
probably preferred '00 Lagune, but for this week's buying a $25 wine nearing
maturity is better than yet another '00 Bdx that needs time for $39). Fairly
forward for a '96, though there's still a good hunk of tannin there. Lots of
cedar, cassis fruit, pleasant herbal edge. B+

2000 Phelan Segur (St-Estèphe)
Quite tight, not showing much. ?

1997 La Chapelle de Lafaurie-Peyraguey
I really liked the '97 Lafaurie-Peyraguey. The second wine is , as expected,
quite a bit simpler. But a pleasant wine with some apricot and peach fruit,
simple but clean finish. Ok enough that I buy one bottle- even just ok
Sauternes is a relative deal at $16/750.

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent* wine, B
a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party
where it was only choice.
Dale

Dale Williams
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