So last night was exact 10th year anniversary of our little local wine group (I joined in Sept of 2004, making me longest-serving non-European, but not a charter member). We gathered at Marc's for our tasting. Theme was Reds from 2004. Marc greeted us with charcuterie, and David brought along the 2004 Roederer Estate "L'Ermitage" Brut. I'm shocked how much I like this, one of the best California sparklers I've ever tried. Full but with good acids, elegant and long, could easily slip into a tasting of vintage Champagne (at the Taittinger/Pol Roger end of spectrum). A-

Blind Red #1: I was totally at sea at this one, my guess was Italian. Cherries, spice, this showed lengthened and better as night went on. 2004 La Rioja Alta "Ardanza" Rioja Reserva. B+

Blind Red #2: Mediumbodied, red plums and a little cedar, I redeemed myself with a Bordeaux guess, and got St. Emilion. Not very long, a good luncheon claret. 2004 Ch. Haut-Simard. B-

Blind Red #3: No guesses- it was mine. Opened about 7 hours before serving, in a decanter for middle 2 of those hours (lots of sediment, including one strange glob), a rather tannic wine had softened a bit. Red fruits, a little tar, some oak notes, this seems somewhat modern, but not over the top. Good acids, some floral notes as it gets more air. I'm a little disappointed but at end of night like more. 2004 Einaudi "Nei Cannubi" Barolo
B+/B

Blind Red #4: Medium bodied, red fruit and bell pepper, some earth and a mild edge of brett. Pretty easy to guess Loire CF and then Chinon. But then if you had asked me "what wine is Fred likely to bring" I'd have probably guessed Loire CF, so this was just prejudice reaffirmation. New producer to me. My red of the night. 2004 Lenoir "Les Roches" Chinon A-

Blind Red #5: Burlier, black fruits, some wood and tannin. I didn't find this very charming, some others liked more. Someone got Bordeaux quickly but no clue re appellation- I would have thought Medoc. 2004 Ch, Fougas Maldorar (Cotes du Bourg) B-/C+

Blind Red #6: One of the more intense instances of the Greenie Meanies I've encountered, so I got Burgundy quickly (if it had been other way around, a Burgundy tasting, getting vintage would have taken 8 seconds or less). Midbodied, cherries and sandalwood, but the GMs dominate especially on the finish. very interesting to see the different reactions. 2 intensely disliked ("most disgusting wine served in this group," others were "there's strange flavor but I kind of like it" to "what green?" I'm betweent the former 2, but unfortunately if seems I own a couple of bottles of this. 2004 Chevillon "Les Chaignots" Nuits St George 1er. C+/B-

Blind Red #7: Oaky, cassis and kirsch, vanilla galore, low acids, plush tannins, a touch jammy (but only listed as 14.5 abv- I would have guessed higher) -well, we probably could have guessed Napa just from the heavy bottle. Popular with some, 2004 Round Pond Cabernet Sauvignon (Rutherford) C+

My tastebuds were shot as we retired to the fire, but I had a pour of the 2007 Quinta do Noval Vintage Port (375), though I had mine in my glass rather than the little Canadian chocolate shells that Marc provided. Big, powerful, marvelous acids, big fruit, I'm a terrible judge of Port but this quite impressive even at early stage. A-?

Fun night with the guys. Dave even gave each of us a bottle of his wine (the Haut-Simard) as a memento.

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.