Betsy's away for concerts in NH, time to rid the freezer of the
venison sausage. I brown then braise in tomatoes, garlic, etc, open a
375 of the 2005 Domaine du Vieux Lazeret Chateauneuf du Pape. No
apparent oak, lighter styled CdP (blind I'd probably guess Cotes du
Rhone), red fruit, a bit of lilac and herb. Quite pleasant, though not
especially deep or long. B

Over to Roger's for the local wine group's monthly meeting. Roger
greets us with the 2005 Von Hovel Oberemmeler Hutte Riesling Spatlese,
Limeade, baby. Sweet citrus, rich and long. There's a little hint of
honied apricot, citrus and peach fruit. Really a child of the vintage,
this drinks like a big Auslese. Really tasty, and actually my wine of
the night by a good margin. A-

On to the blind wines, the theme was Africa.

#1 (Rob's offering) Soft and low-acid, big in mouth, fairly plush
texture though with some grainy tannins. Cassis and blackberries, I'm
guessing Cab or Bdx blend, it's the 2004 Uva Mira Merlot/Cabernet
Sauvignon. B/B+
When unveiled it turns out to be the same wine Roger bought, he points
out. Too bad he said something, always fun to see if we notice it's
the same wine. We did try his bottle later unblind, showed similarly.

#2 (Fred) Whoa, is Big Daddy Don Garlits in the house? Burnt rubber
dominates, with a hint of VA and some black plum fruit struggling to
make itself heard. Both Fred and I say Pinotage within seconds of
first sniff. It's the 2006 Bon Cap Pinotage. C

#3 (Alex) So Alex arrives late, wants to serve his white. It's too
cold, but comes across as very very floral (with some vanilla). I say
it doesn't remind me of Steen/Chenin, Sauvignon Blanc, or Chardonnay,
the only South African whites I've encountered. Alex looks very
confused. Apparently he never read a flurry of emails while he was in
Paris where theme was changed, he thought we were doing Australia.
Fred guesses Viognier, he's close. It's the 2006 d'Arenberg Hermit
Crab Viogner/Marsanne. Slightly oily texture, a bit more oak than I'd
like, but not bad. B

#4 (Dave) Lighter styled, red fruits, high acids, with just enough
rubber notes to have table declare Pinotage quickly. I thought maybe
it was a Cape blend as the Pinotage was more subdued, but it's a
single cepage, the 2005 Golden Kan Pinotage. B-/C+

#5 (My wine, so no guessing). Fred pretty quickly says Bordeaux blend.
Nice balance of acids and light tannins, this is quite ready. Black
and red currants, some cedar and a hint of mocha, not especially long,
but my favorite red of the night. It's the 2000 Meerlust Rubicon. B+/B

Fun night with the guys. It was well past midnight when we all walked
home.

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. Furthermore, I offer no
promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.
*