On Nov 12, 11:17�am, Mark Lipton > wrote:
> Bi!! wrote:
> > Thanks for the notes. �I still have one bottle of 1974, 1976 and 1978
> > left in my cellar. �When last tasted the 1974 was getting tired.. �Glad
> > to hear that the '76 is still holding up. �I once made the mistake of
> > commenting to Joe Heitz at an in-store tasting about the eucalyptus in
> > Martha's and he became enraged, he turned beet red and virtually
> > screamed at me.."Goddammit, eucalyptus smells like cat's **** and my
> > wine doesn't smell or taste like cat's ****!" �The wine rep that was
> > driving him around told me later that the same thing had happened at
> > virtually every tasting that he had been to with Joe over the years.
> > FWIW, I still think it has an abundance of eucalyptus notes.
>
> Very amusing Joe Heitz story, Bill. �Many get a strong mint element in
> Heitz Cabs, especially the Martha's. �I'd hazard a guess that one
> person's mint is another person's eucalyptus, as both are produced by a
> related family of small molecules known as terpenes. �I often have a
> hard time deciding between the two descriptors for the wines of Cline
> and Penfolds (and, more recently, Phelps) where they seem to be nearly
> omnipresent. �Perhaps if you'd used "mint" instead, Joe wouldn't have
> erupted. �For my part, I'd have responded that there are over 200
> different varieties of eucalyptus and that he clearly was referring to a
> different variety than I was ;-)
>
> Mark Lipton
> (Who still regards the '74 Martha's as one of his all-time great wine
> experiences)
>
> --
> alt.food.wine FAQ: �http://winefaq.cwdjr.net

I usually get mint in Aussie wines and I think of menthol as
eucalyptus-like and mint is a bit sharper or finer than menthol. 1974
Martha's is my #1 wine of all time.