More Cote du Rhone and new found worry

Since returning from France, I've had a new found appreciation for French wines.
They are less overtly fruity with a more woody, dirty, stony palate than US or Australian wines.

In the last few days I pulled two bottles from my wine fridge from the Cote du Rhone. And despite that neither was terribly impressive on an individual taste or sip, I found myself rather enjoying having multiple glasses of each.

I'm worried my palate is evolving to enjoy more restrained (aka elegant) wines, and that my existing collection of big fruit forward wines will be less attractive. I guess we'll see.

Domaine De La Renjarde 2001, Cote Du Rhone Villages ($?, ?) : I'm completely guessing I paid around $12 for this as it only bears the "Cote du Rhone" moniker and not the specifict region instead. Minimal fruit with a reserved earthy flavor. Some acidity and minerality. Nice finish. Nothing impressed me, but I wanted to keep drinking this until the bottle was finished. [B+].

Chateau de Montfaucon 2001, Cote Du Rhone ($10, KL): From near Chateauneuf Du Pape, this blend of Grenach, Syrah, Carignan and Cinsault was a bit more austere than the Renjarde, but otherwise fairly similar. [B].

Zin Q3/Q4 2006

Seghesio 2005 Sonoma, Zinfandel ($15 WC): (This was tasted at a restaurant at $20/375ml). Seghesio continually annoys me and this was no exception. Their wines usually tastes very good to fantastic, except at home, when they are always dissappointing. It has happened too often to be a coincidence.

1. Old Vines 2001 - WS 92, Thanksgiving out of town. Luscious. So good, I had to look up this wine when I got home. The beginning of the Seghesio curse. (We also tried the Justin 2001 Paso Robles, Cabernet which was one of the best cabs we've had in the last 5 years, so it was a trip with good wines thanks to P&S). I bought some Seghesio Sonoma Zin (I didn't want to pay the $20+ for the Old Vines) and it was not anything special.
   
2. The Sonoma 2002 ($15) is rated a huge WS 92, so I get 6 bottles. I've stopped drinking them because none of them have been that good. Leaner than I expect, and jammier than I want. I'm hoping they'll improve with age.
3. On a Sonoma wine tasting, we hit the Seghesio tasting room and have the $25 food appetizers and wine tasting. They serve some very high end wines (01 Old Vines, 03 Old Vines, 03 Venom, 99 Omaggio and the 99 Port) in a elegant wood paneled room. The snacks are diverse and high quality. Just a wonderful setting. And (of course) the wines taste fantastic. I joined their wine club (the Centennial Club).
   
4. Blind wine tasting at the Wine Club with different varietals from around the world. Among our favorites was the Old Vines 2003; a big rich flavorful with nice woody, spice tones. Bought a bottle (I'm now willing to pay the $27) and had it at home later that night. Disappointing of course.
5. Dinner last night. The 2005 Sonoma was quite nice. I'll buy a few bottles of course, curse be damned.
   
6. And surprisingly at the Seghesio tasting room, which is super nice, the wines didn't taste that good. Perhaps because it was morning. Perhaps I had tasted too much the night before. But none of the wines were that good. This is the first time, an external tasting of Seghesio has been unimpressive.
   

Buehler 2004 Zinfandel ($14?, WC): The 2003 got a 93 from WS, so I was looking forward to trying the 2004. It was disappointing. Interesting nose of woody, pruny, spicy nose with a similar subdued taste. I was hoping to let it breathe but I was tired and didn't get much tasting done. Tried the remaining half bottle (filled to the top and recorked) two days later. Still disappointing. Gentle stewed prunes. [D]

Vive la France

Returned from a vacation in France. Two of my goals were to eat authentic French cuisine and to learn about French wines, esp paired with food. I succeeded with not much effort on both counts. I have always prefered new world (US, Australia, possibly Latin America) wines
over the old world (Europe). New world wines have a riper, fruitier, bigger style, due climate, namely more sun allowing the fruit to ripen. But I was once again ready to sample French wines with an open mind.

In Europe, they often have wine at lunch and dinner, but they typically serve a table wine that is a far cry from the high end bottled wines they export. Their table wines are typically simple, minimally oaked whites, light reds or a crisp rose that can be produced economically. These refreshing wines go well with food but would receive a low score as there isn't much there. As an analogy, these wines are like light (non-heavy) blond beers in the vein of Bud/Miller/Corona/Kirin. In China, they make and serve a light beer that goes wonderfully with the local food, especially after a day of exertion (OK, it was sightseeing).

Their use of table wines really resonated due to 3 incidents.

1. At restaurants, there typically was a cheap table wine sold by the "pot" or in 25cl, 50cl or 75cl quantities. Despite everybody telling me about the wonderful cheap table wines, I was disappointed over 1/2 the time. But in all cases I got a light-colored crisp red that was obviously meant to be drunk young.
   
2. In the wine regions, they have caves (pronounced: kauvs) where they sell bulk wines and cheaply priced bottled wines. We stayed in Vaison La Romaine (Cote du Rhone/Provence) and at this cave, I was astonished to see spigots in the wall for wine selling for 1 euro per liter (about $1 for a standard 750mL bottle). This is cheaper than bottled water in many cases. You're expected to bring your own plastic container and they just fill it up.
   
3. We met a couple (Harry and Antonia and Sophie) who had spent some time in both France and Italy. At one point, in Italy, Harry had brought a nice bottle bottle of Italian wine to a family dinner, but no one else would drink it. They all chose to drink the "table" wine the hosts uncle had made. It was like bringing a fancy Belgium bottle beer to a Midwest BBQ and everyone preferring to drink the Bud Lite.
   
   

So the vaulted Bordeauxs or Burgundies I read about really aren't what daily french wine is about.

Ironically, let me start with two wines available locally tasted here (N Calif), both from La Ferme Julien available at TJs for $5. They are both excellent and should go well with food. I had them before the France trip, and tried the Rouge (red) again

La Ferme Julien, 2004, Rouge, Cote du Ventoux ($5, TJ): Grenache 50%, Syrah 20%, Carignan 15% and Cinsault 15%. There is a rooster on the label as the winery mascot. From the south Cotes du Rhone region in the north Provence region (Mt Ventoux) near where we visited. Aroma of red and black fruit with a stony freshness (like a peach pit). Tastes of red fruit with a solid minerality (though ironically I only noticed this after returning from France) underneath. Medium bodied for this style. Noticable acidity but well balanced. Good on its own and even better with food. Has a bigger body than many wines I tasted from this region, which I like. Tastes like a nice version of the table wines available at all restaurants in the Cote du Rhone region, including Lyon. Still good after a day or two in an open bottle. [A].

La Ferme Julien, 2005, Rose, Cote du Ventoux ($5, TJ): Dry crisp rose. Nice. WS like it a lot too giving it an 86 (?). A good everyday rose. [B+].

Australians in Q4 2006

Rosemount 2000 McLaren Vale Barossa Valley, GSM ($18?, WC) : WS 91. Started out closed with simple dark fruit and leathery earth. After 2 hours has opened up quite nicely. Medium bodied with a hint of richness amongs the smooth complexity of fruit, spice, wood, leather and more. In the GSM profile. Long elegant, slighty acidic finish. Alcoholic nose of sweet fruit, pepper and more. An interesting wine. [B- to B].

Two Hands 2003 Barossa Valley The Lucky Country, GSM ($11?, WC) : WS 84. Low-medium bodied. Medium flavors of classic low-end GSM flavors of darkish fruit with leather and a hint of hot spiciness. There's absolutely nothing wrong with this wine but I'm still not thrilled. [C+].
In contrast, the Cab-Shiraz based Lucky Country from the same winery was rich and wonderful.

Penfolds 2001 Winemaker's Reserve South Australian, Shiraz ($8, TJ) - Found this in a TJ in Sonoma, which surprisingly had a lousier wine selection than the outlets in Silicon Valley. Overall a tasty medium bodied Shiraz with a nice lingering after taste. After 30 min, classic Shiraz fruit with some brown spice and oak. I'd get two more bottles. [B].

D'Arenberg 2002 Footbolt, Shiraz ($14 WC) - WS 88. Light body, jazzy (aka acidic) style of shiraz. Red berry with some pepper. Minerality on the nose. Not my style of shiraz. [C].

Marquis Philips 2004 Sarah's Blend, Shiraz/Cab ($13 WC) - WS 82, Parker 91. Hmm... which critic would I agree with? Their 2003 SE Aust Cab was a favorite of mine but their 2003 Shiraz not so much. Needless to say this was a dense, rich dark berry with bits of leather, tar and black olive and some noticable smooth tannins. I liked it alot but didn't love it. It did not soften much after 90 minutes. I got several bottles for $9 at the WC making this a [B+].
Had a second bottle a few days later (10/24?/06) and it was even better if anything. Slightly smoother with a hint of sweetness, but less of the complexity and tannins. Tasty stuff. [A-].

Jacob's Creek 2002 ReserveShiraz ($9 WC) - WS 88. Back in 2005, I had a few bottles and I liked each one more than the previous. Rich, lush with purple berries, some oak and obvious vanilla. Wow. [A]. I tried to find more but it was pretty much sold out. I got the impression a few years of bottle age would helped soften it, too based on a similar experience with the 2001 Shiraz.

Jacob's Creek 2003 ReserveShiraz ($9 WC) - WS 91 making this a super deal. I tried a bottle 6 months ago and was disappointed [B-]. But given my fondness for the 2002, I bought bit more and tried another bottle on 10/23/2006. This big, burly, dark purple wine definitely needs to age a bit. Initially: dark berries with a hint of sweetness and chocolate off and on throughout. The big tannins got stronger over the next few hours and the wine closed down a bit (maybe my taste buds were tiring). Next morning, it had softened a bit but was still very big. The next night after sitting out in an open bottle for 24h it was still very drinkable. The finish was decently long throughout. I was impressed enough to buy 6 more bottles, but don't tell my wife. [A-].

Lehmans 2002 Shiraz ($14?, WC) - Mineral and purple berry nose. Med-big and rich with a nice smooth finish. Refined shiraz flavors of berry with spice. Gains some oaky vanilla notes. Nice. [B].

Lehmans 2001 Shiraz ($18, Bottle Shoppe) - I found tha bottle of the 2001 on a business trip to West Lafayette (Purdue) Indiana, whch has a surprisingly good wine store (Bottle Shoppe). I snapped it up, as I hoped it had some nice bottle aging. It was everything I could have hoped for in a mature Lehmans: a burnished color with a rich texture with a long finish. A rusty berry fruit (in a good way) that was big and smooth. The aftertaste kept running through my mind at the restaurant I was at 30 minutes later. Gorgeous. Sadly, I don't think I'll find another bottle, ever. Would be ranked higher but it was a bit pricy. [B+ to A-].

Pirramimma 2001 Mclaren Vale, Shiraz ($18, WC; WS90) - Had high expectations. Opened up after 45 minutes. Not much nose and little initial taste. Everything was in the finish. Dark wood with dark fruit followed by a smooth tannic finish. Probably could have used another few years. Best after 2 hours. Not so good the following day. [B-].

Some good ones from Aust and NZ.

At work:

Seghesio 2003 Old Vine, Zinfandel ($30 - winery): I had liked this wine alot at both a tasting at the winery and at the Wine Club. But it always seemed disappointing from the bottle at home. Needed time to open up in the (plastic) cups. After 30-40 min was fruity, med rich. [C+].

Jim Barry 2004 The Cover Drive, Cab ($14? - WC): Started simpler with a big plum, jammy taste, but after 30-45 min and continuing for 3 hours, developed a nice spice, and woody (eucalyptus?, cedar?) vein to go along with the rich fruit. I wish I hadn't drunk so much initially. [A-].

Drylands 2005 Sauvignon Blanc ($14 - WC): My favorite SB. Crisp citrus with good acidity and a roundness not usually found in such a NZ SB. Some sips tasted downright sweet, which a few other also said. Hard to go wrong with this wine at this price. [A-].

Who needs port with a wine like this?

R.L Buller NV Fine Tokay 375ml ($12, WC) - Superb. This is what I think a dessert wine should taste like. A tawny, gold with noticiable viscosity when pouring. Luscious, thick, smooth with no bitterness or edge that inexpensive dessert wines/ports often have. Tastes: Obvious honey and raisins, with hints of walnuts, maple syrup. Some in the group smelled pistachios (?) . [A-/A]

A good one from Spain

Had this last Thurs with some co-workers:

Castano 2003 Solanera Vinas Viejas ($11, WC) - Monstrell (Mouvedre?) 65% and Cabernet Sauvignon 35%. Soft, med-big, lush with fruit and spices on the palate. Very drinkable. Don't remember the aroma. [A-]

Retried this last week as Costco had it for $10 a bottle. The second bottle was OK with some of the rich softness of the first bottle [B-], but the third bottle was quite disappointing, with a muchmore brittle texture and a rougher taste [C]. Bought another bottle (hidden under some others at CC ) and retried this again 10/16/2006 and this bottle was much bettter [B+].

Tried a french wine today.

Galius 2000 St. Emilion Grand Cru ($20? - WC?) - I'm guessing this is merlot based, being a St Emillion. Aroma of meat and tobacco. Thin-medium body with a firm woody flavor with meat, tobacco and perhaps a hint of leather. Some tastes had spice and a hint of sweetness. Tannins were generally low. Med finish. [C+]


Had a couple of Languedoc's at a cousin's wedding recently.

Chateau St Martin 2003 de la Garrigne Cuvee Tradition () - nice smooth wine with fruit and woody flavor. Nice. For $20 I'd give it a [B-].

Domain D'aupilhac 2004 () - bigger and hints of meat vs. than the St Martin. For $20, [C].