Sunday, April 18, 2010

Wine Musings Vol#97


Wine of Merit: ***+Les Pagodes de Cos, St. Estephe, Bordeaux, 2000: A lovely surprise from Cos D'Estournel's second label. While 2000 has earned the reputation for some hard-as-nails wines, this is not one of them. Rich, sweet blackberry, licorice, cedar and tobacco. A hint of minerals. The palate is full, textured, fruitful and not hard edged anywhere. Lovely integration front to back, to a medium long finish with fine tannins. A pleasure.

***+ Conn Valley Vineyards, Right Bank, Napa, meritage, 2007: Another incredibly pleasing wine. A merlot/cab blend. Similar notes, with the addition of youthful exuberance. Ripe, juicy, black cherry and berry fruit. A touch of vanilla pipe tobacco. A hint of nicoise olive. Lots of baby fat. Balanced nicely hinting at aging potential and the development of tertiary complexity. Yummy right now!

***+Eric Texier, Cote Rotie, Vielles Vignes, syrah, 2005: I admit right upfront that I am a huge Texier fan. His wines sacrifice goofy extraction and ripeness for balance, integration and nuance. This wine is no exception. Inviting in almost a polite way, it offers beautifully delineated syrah aromatics of blueberry compote, wildflowers and carbonara (well cooked pancetta, pepper, a touch of something richer and creamier). The palate has pinot like flow and the finish is elegant and focused. Clearly a wine that will age well as I muddle through earlier vintages. Just wonderful. Bravo.

***Kosta Browne, Koplen vineyard, Russian River Valley, pinot noir, 2006: From the sublime...Actually, while there is no mistaking these pinot noirs for Burgundy, they offer lots of pleasure in their own way. Thick black cherry and vanilla ice cream notes, here with a note of raspberry and a nuance of something not quite as sweet, perhaps Mariage Freres Marco Polo tea. The palate is thankfully not quite as blousy, with a nice core of cherry fruit but also some malabar pepper, cola and fine tannin to the finish. This wine is better than the RRV and can probably stand another year in the cellar, though it is meant for drinking in the nearer term. Nice.

***Chateau Fuisse, Puilly Fuisse, Les Combettes, Burgundy, 2006: The theme continues to be rich wines. Initial notes of struck match from liberal use of sulphur. Then, with aeration, spicy preserved lemons, Asian pears, grilled fennel and lily of the valley. Bright and racy on the palate. Good acids with minerals and a slightly more candied citrus element. Fine, focused, spicy finish. Delicious.