Terre da Vino 2009 “La Casa in Collina” Barbaresco

Posted by Keith Wallace on May 10, 2013 in Wine Reviews | 0 comments

Lange wine review

I am always looking for good values for Nebbiolo. The high quality $20 bottle is a rare and wonderful thing.  Typically that takes me to the larger Langhe region, plus Gattinara and Roero. The well-known regions of Barolo and Barbareso are rarely under $3o, and when they do dip below that price point  they  are almost never worth drinking.

This is the exception that proves the rule. Linear tannins that build out a complex structure of bitter herbs and tar. The plushness of sweet cherry and black fruit come open up quickly. Flavors and scents of toast and licorice are flowed by a salinity that finishes with burnt earth and   spices.

Philippe Collotte 2009 Marsannay les Champsalomon

Posted by Keith Wallace on Feb 14, 2013 in Wine Reviews | 0 comments

A remarkably aristocratic Burgundy, remarkable especially considering the price point (Burgundy is the bizarro world of wine, in which spending under $30 usually gets you an average everyday bottle). The wine boasts deep floral notes and even deeper fruit aromas. The balance of flavors here is wonderful, with fruit and tannin intertwined with a cooling salinity. The finish is pure and intense and long-lasting. I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone but Burgundy lovers, but they should grab as much of this Marsannay les Champsalomon as they can.

Pierre Amadieu 2009 “Romaine Machotte” Gigondas

Posted by Keith Wallace on Feb 4, 2013 in Wine Reviews | 0 comments

Gigondas is one of the most complex wine regions in France, terroir-wise. Some in the valley are remarkably similar to the princely Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Some have the imposing structure of the Hermitage. A few have the delicate filigree of Burgundy.

Coming from a high-altitude vineyard at the northern tip of the Gigondas AOC. Sandalwood and balsamic notes on the nose, followed by thyme and marjoram. Flavors of red cherry and cool blue fruit rise on the attack, with a delicate web of tannin holding them together. Finish continues with a delicate balance of tarragon and cola. A pretty and delicate wine, despite its weight.

Cuna de Reyes 2009 Rioja Crianza (Spain)

Posted by Keith Wallace on Dec 18, 2012 in Wine Reviews | 0 comments

Aged for a year in French and American oak,  this wine is mostly Tempranillo with some Garnacha and Mazuelo. Grapes are sourced from vineyards in Nájera,  in the southern edge of Rioja Alta.

The wine shows a great deal of finesse, showing classic Rioja vigor.  Aromas of ripe cherry and toasted spices are followed by a bit of dirty vanilla. Medium bodied with fine and linear tannins, the fruit flavors are bright red fruit with black pepper and a touch of savory herbs. The finish moves to vanilla and cedar. A very nice bottle and a best buy.

Available at Bacchus Selections

About Rioja Alta

Logroño and Haro, the principal towns of Rioja, are both in the Rioja Alta. Logroño is a very big town by Spanish standards, but Haro, at the western edge of the region, is an enclosed hilltop community and a much smaller, far more charming, older, and traditional place. The area’s wine is Rioja’s fullest in terms of fruit and concentration, and can be velvety smooth. Bodegas Muga makes fine examples of pure Rioja Alta, as do CVNE (Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España)—in the form of their Imperial line—in nine years out of every ten.

South African Wine Review: Neil Ellis 2009 Chardonnay

Posted by Keith Wallace on Sep 24, 2012 in Wine Reviews | 0 comments

Tasting Notes

A reviving style of Chardonnay. Exotic spices and fruit lead the charge into a flashbang of crisp acidity trailing a contrail of wood smoke. Ginger, kiwi, and peach are balanced out by traces of cinnamon and toasted vanilla seeds. Hops-like grapefruit notes in the finish are married with an edge of minerality.

A hint of earthiness in the finish highlights the fact that this was partly fermented with wild yeasts in French oak barrels. An exceptional wine in this price range, and manages to balance itself between modern and classical styles of winemaking.

About South African Chardonnay

Via Wikipedia. Although this is South Africa’s most improved varietal, it was originally so bland that it could only get better. The trouble was that as soon as new oak became widely available for the first time, many winemakers went over the top, producing heavy, overwooded Chardonnays. These wines also suffered from poor raw material, but this situation improved with clonal selection and matching this variety to more suitable terroirs. The best oaked Chardonnays are often barrel-fermented, rather than just oak-aged, with just a kiss of creamy new oak, although some less refined, if just as lipsmacking, wines dominated by yummy, coconutty-oak are also to be found. The top unoaked Chardonnays are very pure and exquisitely balanced, and they often belie their hot-climate origins.