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Subject: Wine Tasting with Rick Joyer (including a 100 pointer and other gems)

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Winetex

Austin, Texas

Master of Wine
Posts:10573

09/26/2006 3:30 PM
These are notes from a tasting/dinner I attended last Monday night. The quality of wines was very good and thanks to Steffan for working out a good blind tasting. My notes on each wine are below his. 9/18/2006 (Asti Trattoria - Austin, TX) The notes and comments below originally published by Steffan Pelz except where I've inserted my comments on each wine. When I found out that fellow board member Rick Joyer was coming to Austin on business, I wanted to show him just how good we Texans take care of our guest. With his approval, I put together a small tasting of 8 Austinites and Rick at one of our favorite BYOB haunts on short notice and we had a great evening. The food was outstanding as always, but the lineup of wines was among the best we have ever had at any of our tastings. All wines were served blind (except me since I coordinated the serving order and wrote the tasting sheets) and the lineup was as follows: 2003 Aubert Pinot Noir Reuling Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast Wine #1 / Tasted Blind: Dark hued ruby red color. Nose of candy and spice. Flavors of tree bark, sweet red and dark red fruit. Solid structure and tannins to resolve. Very good wine, but not as good as I would have hoped for a wine of this reputation. (89 pts.) winetex note 2003 Aubert Pinot Noir Reuling Vineyard* - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (9/18/2006) Wine #1 of the tasting, not blind because I brought it and it was the only Pinot: Dark, clear garnet in color; Complex and interesting but a bit ponderous with loads of alcohol. A bit of the cherry lifesaver candied note. Double decanted 1.5 hours in advance and needed it. I will probably wait a while to open another. (92 pts.) ************************ 1985 Joseph Phelps Insignia - USA, California, Napa Valley** Wine #2 / tasted blind: Dark ruby color. Intoxicating nose of leather tobacco or cigar box, some mild spice and noticeable menthol and eucalyptus notes. On the palate, this wine delivered all the promise the nose offered. Still has amazing stamina, but is definitely ready to drink. Awesome wine. (95 pts.) winetex note 1985 Joseph Phelps Insignia* - USA, California, Napa Valley (9/18/2006) Wine #2 of the tasting/ tasted blind: Immediately apparent was the dark color and wild aromas coming out of the glass. I wrote "a little stinky" early on but it opened up. It had the classic Bordeaux cigar box aroma and flavors. I had this one pegged as a Bordeaux all the way. It was very good wine and clearly well-stored in its life. Ready to drink. A treat!! (93 pts.) ************************ 1990 Dominus Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley** Wine #3 / tasted blind: Super dark red color with no signs of bricking. Had awesome aromas and flavors of cassis, berry, and classic leather and cigar box. Very focused and pure fruit and clearly reminiscent of medoc Bordeaux. This bottle must have been stored impeccably. Still has upside potential IMO and can be cellared for a few years without being in decline. (94 pts.) winetex note 1990 Dominus Estate* - USA, California, Napa Valley (9/18/2006) Wine #3 / tasted blind: I also had this one as a Bordeaux although there was something about the fruit that made me doubt that. This one tasted aged but I would have never guessed 16 years post-vintage. Again very well-stored. It still has some life in it although I would probably drink these in the near future. (92 pts.) ************************ 1990 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape** Wine #4 / tasted blind: What can one say about this wine...super tannic still, but awe-inspiring flavors of kirsch liqueur, garrigue, lavender, and other dried herbs, mixed with earthy undertones and absolutely stunning fruit that is accompanied by an animalistic rusticity. I would be a happy man to own even a single bottle of this. The wine still needs time to resolve the tannins and consensus seemed to be that another 5 years would really benefit it. (97 pts.) winetex note 1990 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée* - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape (9/18/2006) Wine #4 / tasted blind: Unmistakeably a Rhone wine that I have tasted before. I knew it wasn't Beaucastel but that left a lot of options. Steffan's glass must have been better than mine because I found the wine classic aged Rhone but missing some key characteristics on the nose and the finish. It was good but not as good as I remember from a previous tasting. A great wine to own and drinking well now. (90 pts.) ************************ 1996 La Jota Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain Selection - USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain** Wine #5 / tasted blind: First wine of the night with a color that was verging on purple. Lots of cassis and blackberry fruit that is very pure and sweet. Tannins are surprisingly fine grained and resolved. Has definite cigar box aromas and an interesting taste of beef blood that gives the wine a slightly saline and rustic character without even so much as a hint of barnyard. This is drinking very well right now and although the wine will likely develop for many years, there is no reason not to drink it now IMO. (92 pts.) winetex note 1996 La Jota Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain Selection* - USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain (9/18/2006) Wine #5 / tasted blind: Clearly Cali Cab and very tasty. I was surprised to find out the vintage on this one because it had no nuance of age as far as I could tell. A big wine in style without being overdone. Drinking well now but could probably age for some time. (91 pts.) ************************ 2001 Fontodi Flaccianello della Pieve Colli della Toscana Centrale IGT - Italy, Tuscany, Colli della Toscana Centrale IGT** Wine #6 / tasted blind: Color seemed almost impenetrably black. Berry flavors of balckberry, verging on blueberry. Some distinct tar and tobacco flavors. This is a tannic, dense beast of a wine that I suspect should not be consumed for at least 5 years. Certainly a wine in the modern style. Seemed to be loved by some at the table and less liked by others...a crowd splitter. (91 pts.) winetex note 2001 Fontodi Flaccianello della Pieve Colli della Toscana Centrale IGT* - Italy, Tuscany, Colli della Toscana Centrale IGT (9/18/2006) Wine #6 / tasted blind: The color was noticeably different from the previous wines in the tasting and was a dark purple. This wine struck me as very complex yet not typical as the color threw me off. In past vintages this wine is more of a garnet color. I had no guess on the varietal or region but thought it might be Italian. It had spicy, floral aromatics and lots of fruit but a certain leaness and acidity that didn't lean toward New World. This wine has loads of potential with further aging and would have merited a higher score but the finish was entirely clipped and somewhat metallic to my palate. Good wine and distinctly different from the other wines in the tasting. (91 pts.) ************************ 2002 Twomey Merlot - USA, California, Napa Valley** Wine #7 / tasted blind: Huge wine with massive extraction. Cherry, plum, mocha/espresso. Really very fruit forward right now, but has a good structure underneath if I detected that correctly. Probably not a wine for pure traditionalists, but this taster enjoyed the wine for what it was. (90 pts.) winetex note 2002 Twomey Merlot* - USA, California, Napa Valley (9/18/2006) Wine #7 / tasted blind: Clearly a California wine but I couldn't guess the varietal between cab and merlot. Chunky, young, fat and primary. Probably not a good food wine due to the amount of extraction. Good but not much more than that. (89 pts.)[/list] ************************ 2003 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon - USA, Washington** Wine #8 / tasted blind: At first, this wine was served a little too warm and I found it nearly undrinkable. There was brabmbly fruit and a touch of heat, which immediately reminded me of bad Aussie Shiraz. Interestingly enough, one of the tasters suggested we chill the Quilceda down to cellar temp via an icebucket. The result was a totally different wine IMO. The heat was gone and the wine seemed much better integrated. I could still taste the primary fruit, but I could also see the potential the wine has. Interesting blueberry flavors and some plum and tobacco. Very pure. I wonder if some who have tried and hated this wine may have drunk it without sufficient air exposure and at the wrong temp. I also wonder how this is a 100 point wine. I can definitely see why it is a controversial wine, but can only say that I really enjoyed it, see its potential, but don't think this is even in the same league with the other 95-100 pointers I have been privileged to taste. (93 pts.) winetex note 2003 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon* - USA, Washington (9/21/2006) Wine #8 / tasted blind: As Steffan notes this wine was too warm from the outset. An alcohol bomb on the nose until it was cooled down. Once I tasted it I realized that it was different from the other wines because of its extreme focus and clearly defined flavors. There was minerality, violets and blueberries and it changed rapidly in the glass. The most complex wine of the evening.I thought it might be Shafer HSS but the blueberry flavors didn't match up with HSS. Again this vintage is different from other QC wines and aging is could be a tough call - probably one to open along the curve if you have a few. Drinking well now at the proper temperature. Not a 100 point wine for me and probably never will be but good none the less. (94 pts.) ************************ 2004 Mitolo Shiraz Reiver - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley** Wine #9 / tasted blind: Dark monster of a wine. Black, purple, impenetrably opaque color. Smelled heavenly of pain grille, tar, and camphor mixed with pure blue and black fruit. Slightly roasted coffe bean flavors and massive structure. Not even a hint of alcohol in this wine, despite incredible viscosity. I loved it and will buy some of this. (93 pts.) winetex note 2004 Mitolo Shiraz Reiver* - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley (9/18/2006) Wine #9 / tasted blind: No light was visible though this very dark wine. I couldn't guess the origin on this one. There was just too much oak in this wine for my preferences leading to strong coffee aromas and flavors. There was an impression of high alcohol on the finish but just a hint. Considering the amount of alcohol that was probably in the wine achieving balance was an uphill battle that they mostly won. Extremely primary and would probably improve with some age. (90 pts.) ************************** Many thanks to the Rick for gracing us with his presence. Thanks also to all the Austinites who made this a night to remember with their presence as well as their generous vinous contributions. We shall do another tasting in the very near future. Cheers.

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