ChangeMe  
Master of Wine
Posts: 11169
 | | 03-23-2003 06:30 AM |
| The wine had an intense nose of fresh grapefruit, with crisp, smoky flavors of dry citus and apples. 90 points. | | |
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Pool Boy
Laurl, MD (DC suburb)
Master of Wine
Posts: 13767
| | 03-24-2003 01:36 AM |
| | Hmm. I am not sure if I'll be buying this then at the prices I usually see down here in DC -- usually about $25-28. I think I can find 90 pointers from NZ for less than that. | | | www.roguefood.com -- www.cellartracker.com | |
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ChangeMe
Master of Wine
Posts: 11169
| | 03-24-2003 02:18 AM |
| | I paid $23.99 minus 20%. For the money, it's hard to beat Goldwater Dogpoint or Kim Crawford. | | | |
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KillerB
Barrel Racker
Posts: 1533
| | 03-24-2003 04:10 PM |
| | I paid £12.50 then got a 10% case discount - very happy and I loved it. More than happy to have ten remaining. | | | |
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Matt Letson
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1339
| | 03-25-2003 02:17 PM |
| I like the Cloudy Bay, to the tune of about 91 points. Certainly not an A+ in the QPR dept but still a great wine.
For my money it is tough to beat the 2002 Lawson's Dry Hills at $12/bottle--also 91 points IMHO. The best NZ SB QPR that I have seen thus far. I've been drinking this stuff for a few months now. Just saw it on the wine list at Plumpjack Cafe last Saturday night. | | | |
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JonesWineNo1
Sommelier
Posts: 8568
| | 03-25-2003 03:52 PM |
| | The 2002 is a very fine wine. A little overt sweetness is creeping into the style and that is a bit of a concern. Not as good as the 2001 but still a 90 plus point wine imo. Bought two cases at $16 a bottle and already a half case is gone. The most trustworthy mark of a quality wine is how fast it disappears from the cellar. Cloudy Bay is the quintessential "Sunday afternoon in the sun" wine in my home. | | | |
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Matt Letson
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1339
| | 03-25-2003 08:53 PM |
| At $16/bottle (vs. $24 for most of us) this wine's QPR rating goes up significantly.
Jones, you shouldn't complain about NJ prices (in relation to what you're paying) when you can get deals like that! | | | |
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JonesWineNo1
Sommelier
Posts: 8568
| | 03-26-2003 12:15 AM |
| | I have a relationship with the NorCal wholesaler of this wine thus my low cost of acquisition. At $16, frankly I don't bother buying other NZ SBs until I run out of Cloudy Bay. | | | |
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Pool Boy
Laurl, MD (DC suburb)
Master of Wine
Posts: 13767
| | 03-26-2003 02:22 PM |
| | Man, if I could get it at $16 per I would load up, too. It really bugs me that I can't even get it down to $20. Dagnabbit | | | www.roguefood.com -- www.cellartracker.com | |
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ChangeMe
Master of Wine
Posts: 11169
| | 03-26-2003 04:47 PM |
| TJ, remember when I had my first Cloudy Bay? Hint: It was followed by the '71 Petrus. | | | |
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Pool Boy
Laurl, MD (DC suburb)
Master of Wine
Posts: 13767
| | 03-26-2003 06:08 PM |
| | Oh I remember all right. I almost picked the Selak's though. Selaks is mighty fine, too. | | | www.roguefood.com -- www.cellartracker.com | |
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Gavin Trott
Grape Stomper
Posts: 112
| | 03-28-2003 12:17 AM |
| Hello
The three below from 2002 I found very good, and substituted for Coudy Bay. As a retailer the CB is so tightly allocated and getting more expensive, there are better options for myself and my customers.
I promoted
Dry Hills
Wither Hills
Isabel Estates
with, for my palate at least, the Dry Hills being best early, but the Withers Hills has come into its own recently and is the best of the trio IMO.
All are less pricey than the CB also.
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ChangeMe
Grape Fermenter
Posts: 672
| | 03-28-2003 12:21 AM |
| | I'll vouch for the 2002 Isabel SB. It's very good. | | | |
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JonesWineNo1
Sommelier
Posts: 8568
| | 03-28-2003 12:25 AM |
| | I would rather pay more and drink a Cloudy Bay than any of those three options. The Isabel consistently underwhelms me each vintage. | | | |
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Jeremy Matthew
Barrel Sampler
Posts: 2067
| | 03-28-2003 09:22 AM |
| Jones,
See what you think of the Staet Lantd from Marlborough, I think you will find this to your liking(Its also cheaper!! And recommended by a number of Wine critics down this way.). Isabel is %100 Sav Blanc where as Cloudy Bay uses a number of other varietals to make up about %20 of the wine. Also Isabel utilises a different training system and canopy management system, and with this varietal it has a huge effect. The style is less classic NZ and more New Age Sancerre -sort off. | | | |
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Sacred Cow
Wine Thief
Posts: 2764
| | 05-15-2003 04:25 AM |
| Tasted at the Denver offline with WIML on 5/12/03. One of the before dinner wines.
The color in this wine is pretty light. Citrus is evident on the nose, especially grapefruit. On the palate, this wine is herbaceous, light and fruity. Grass, grapefruit, and other citrus flavors make themselves known, and one taster noted passion fruit. Short to medium finish, this one is a nice summer quaffer.
Since I have not tried other vintages of this wine, I cannot make a comparison with them. However, I also had this when in Las Vegas at the Rio, and the grassiness did not seem as pronounced this time. A very good summertime wine, but I question its value compared to other NZ Sauvignon Blancs. Unless it can be found around the price Jones pays.
Mike | | | |
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wineismylife 
Arlington, TX
Master of Wine
Posts: 12412
| | 05-15-2003 01:05 PM |
| | I definitely consider this wine to be better than the 2002 Kim Crawford & 2002 Goldwater that I've had recently. However, I don't consider it as good as the 2001 Cloudy Bay. That was a slightly better wine than their 2002 effort. | | | Joe-----Wine is like potato chips around me...if it's open, it's gone. | |
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ChangeMe
Grape Truck Driver
Posts: 37
| | 06-08-2003 12:46 AM |
| I'm a couple of weeks late in posting my TNs. This was the first of my four bottles of 02 Cloudy Bay. I paid $23.99 US per bottle. Served with Sicilian 5-herb swordfish (Italian Parsley, rosemary, Greek Oregano, spearmint, and thyme--all fresh from MBD's deck garden.) Served out of Riedel Vinum Extreme SB glasses.
As others have noted, the wine had the LIGHTEST of greenish-gold colors. The wine is very aromatic, giving up lots of grapefruit, with occasional bursts of cooked spinach and white pepper. Tons o' flavors that include lemon-lime, pink grapefruit, and hints of black licorice. (Which I HATE, btw, but in the wine, were just fine! ) These aromas and flavors were a bit muted in the first glass, but intensified by the second glass. The finish is TERRIFIC, easlily lasting over 45 seconds! If the 2002 is anything like the 00 and the 01, it will continue to improve in bottle over the next 6 months or so. For this initial bottle, I give it an MBD rating of "92" with expectations of a few higher points on subsequent bottles. | | | |
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love_cab_chard
Master of Wine
Posts: 12582
| | 06-16-2003 04:34 PM |
| | Not much more to + here. Good blanc on a summer day. I liked it. 5 more to go. Thank You, MudPuppy. | | | |
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rmkam
Grape Fermenter
Posts: 524
| | 07-08-2003 02:00 PM |
| Is this really worth the price of admission? I 'll have to just grab a bottle and see for myself. Oh crap..what if I really like it  Not only do I overspend on Cab now SB! | | | |
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