Wine of Merit: ****Parusso, Bussia, Barolo, nebbiolo, 2003: Wow. Quite the pugilist. I admit to being a huge fan of Armando Parusso and his wines. They go from wonderful examples of their varietal and region to wines that are downright otherwordly. This is a wonderful example. Black cherry fruit, tar, tobacco, briar, espresso coffee. Violets. Great chewy texture. Full and deep wine. Clearly a wine that can be cellared for a long time. Powerful yet graceful.
****Daniel Rion, 1er cru, "Les Vignes Rondes", Nuits St. Georges, 2002: Really lovely and showing perfectly right now. Mature, red fruit and garrigues notes. Black olive, violets, balanced and integrated palate. Just a gliding sensation on the palate. Fine, perfectly integrated finish. Grace exemplified. A wine I will seek out and cellar.
****Alban Vineyards, estate, Edna Valley, roussane, 2006: Wonderful; a true delight. Great concentration and balance. SQN-esque, actually. Baked apple cobbler with vanilla ice cream notes, nutmeg, hazelnut, cinnamon, lavish. A round, filling mouth feel perfectly integrated to a yummy, citrus finish. Just dynamite. Again, a wine I will seek out and cellar, though I am unsure of the cellaring window here.
***++JJ Prum, Spatlese Wehlener Sonnenuhr, riesling , 2006 ; Just great. The 2006 vintage has gotten lost between the stellar 2005 and 2007, meaning it is most likely easier to find at retail and a buy. Honeysuckle, petrol, grilled peaches, pineapple. Perfect concentration. Long, mineral finish. I could drink this for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
***(*)Vincent Dauvissat, "Le Clos" chablis, 2006: A similar comment to the Prum here in reference to vintage. I found this wine chiseled and a bit austere, as a young Chablis often is. Excellent minerality, linden and lemon pith, bracing acids and tart white Asian pear. Powerful, with telltale, briny crushed oyster shell that I find a central characteristic of many great wines from this region. Firm and most likely a wine that will benefit from years of cellaring. Statuesque.
***+Ca' Marcanda,, Magari, Toscana IGT, 2005: This is a stand by I can always trust...and I thought this was showing very well. Red berry and black stone fruit, floral, spice box, clove, pipe tobacco and chocolate. Velvety and lush. Fine tannins on the finish. Delicious. It has become pricey of late, which is too bad. A lovely example of what used to be a very sensibly priced "Super Tuscan" IGT.
***+Ridge, Lytton Springs, sonoma, zinfandel, 2005: This is really not a zinfandel as much as it is a field blend of zinfandel, grenache, mouvedre and petite syrah. I found it lovely. Harmonious, red and black berry fruit, black pepper, lavender, tagine spices and briar. Wonderful balance. A wine that can age well or be consumed young. I thought it was great.
***Cheval des Andes, Mendoza, malbec, 2005: Made by the folks that make Cheval Blanc in Bordeaux. A very powerful, deep wine. Mostly Malbec with other Bordeaux varietals in the assembly. Perhaps a bit over the top for me. A brute. Clearly in need of cellar time to sort itself out a bit. Wonderful purity. Could be excellent.
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