Tuesday 27 March 2012

Dolcetto D'Alba de Forville 2010 (Barbaresco)

Tasted 27/03/12, 13% ABC, synthetic cork closure. About £10 UK retail (e.g. Majestic).
Dolcetto plays second fiddle to Nebbiolo in Barbaresco but can make pleasant, everyday wines.
Light red in colour, reminiscent of a youthful. This is a wine that no doubt is best served young but this wine would probably benefit from another year in bottle.
After 2 hours of breathing, the nose had a hint of tar (like a young Barolo) with red fruits and violets. The palate was restrained red fruits, dry but well balanced. Slightly short finish. A great food wine - went well with my stuffed pasta and pesto.
15.5 / 20. From 2013.
Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Monday 26 March 2012

Vina Mayu Syrah Reserva 2007, Elqui Valley

Tasted 17th March 2012 with Neville Blech. 14% ABV, 75cl, cork closure, about £12 UK retail. I kept this wine for about 2 years and this has paid dividends. It is drinking extremely well now.
Deep purple, almost inky colour. Grilled meat, pepper and spice on the nose. Spicy thyme and cassis, brambly, dark fruits on the palate. The sweet oak shows through but does overpower. Full bodied but with a great balance, elegant. Truly lovely - one of my best wines of 2012, so far. A great winery from Chile’s ‘hottest’ region (actually, one of the coolest at altitude). From 2013, 18 / 20.

Monday 19 March 2012

Ager Sectus Hawkes Bay Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2010

Tasted 16/03/12. 13.5% £11.99 (Sainsburys Taste The Difference).
Supermarkets always fascinate me, as they clearly have a very rigid view of their potential customers....own label wines generally have varietal character / region emphasised ahead of producer - e.g. Douro Red, Bordeaux Red. As in this case but it's a very good effort - a lesser-known estate in an iconic area of the North Island.
Bright purple, the nose is bursting with cassis and raspberries: the palate well balanced, with pimento, dark fruits and mocha. Tannins are soft-ish, I expect this is from young vines. Good value, in as far as NZ wines go.....
From 2012, 16.5/20

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Ager Sectus Hawkes Bay Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2010

Tasted 16/03/12. 13.5% £11.99 (Sainsburys Taste The Difference).
Supermarkets always fascinate me, as they clearly have a very rigid view of their potential customers....own label wines generally have varietal character / region emphasised ahead of producer - e.g. Douro Red, Bordeaux Red. As in this case but it's a very good effort - a lesser-known estate in an iconic area of the North Island.
Bright purple, the nose is bursting with cassis and raspberries: the palate well balanced, with pimento, dark fruits and mocha. Tannins are soft-ish, I expect this is from young vines. Good value, in as far as NZ wines go.....
From 2012, 16.5/20

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Friday 16 March 2012

Château Monlot Capet 1962, St. Emilion Cru Classé

Tasted 22nd February 2012 at Broadway House Club at David Beguier-Barnett’s tasting of fine, old and rare St. Emilion.
Ruby to brick red in colour. Cured ham and dark fruit on the nose, not old at all in character. Liquorice and red fruit on the palate. Still quite heavy and fruity, surprisingly so perhaps. Tannins restrained and a long finish. Drink now, 16.5 / 20

Château Monlot Capet 1964 , St. Emilion Cru Classé

Tasted 22nd February 2012 at Broadway House Club at David Beguier-Barnett’s tasting of fine, old and rare St. Emilion. Light brick red in colour of mature claret, with brown tinges. Powerful nose of cherries and dark fruits and forest floor. Drink up. Well integrated with the fruit fading slightly but still elegant and quite well structured. Drink now 17/20

Château de Ferrand 1966, St. Emilion Cru Classé

Tasted 22nd February 2012 at Broadway House Club at David Beguier-Barnett’s tasting of fine, old and rare St. Emilion. Light purple with brown tinges. Appealing. Classic old claret cigar box nose. Quite spicy and promising, some cassis. Showing well. Very dry now but with some nice red fruits remaining. Well balanced with restrained tannins. 16/20

Château Monlot Capet 1970, St. Emilion Cru Classé

Tasted 22nd February 2012 at Broadway House Club at David Beguier-Barnett’s tasting of fine, old and rare St. Emilion. Brick red. Rather tarry, smoky nose, pleasing ‘old leather’ and farmyard nose. Still has some life. Pleasant tannins, very soft now. Still some red berries fruits, classy and elegant, just a very slight hint of madérisation. Drink now. 14.5 / 20

Domaine Vieille Eglise 1985, St. Emilion Cru Classé

Tasted 22nd February 2012 at Broadway House Club at David Beguier-Barnett’s tasting of fine, old and rare St. Emilion. Very light brick red, hint of farmyard. Perhaps a little past its best.
Fruit gone really but soft tannins and bone dry. Not unpleasant on the palate – perhaps 10 years past its best. Drink now. 14.5/20

Château de Ferrand 1996, St. Emilion Cru Classé

Tasted 22nd February 2012 at Broadway House Club at David Beguier-Barnett’s tasting of fine, old and rare St. Emilion.
Light purple with brick red round the fringes, showing some age. Nice hit of cassis and some red fruits, good whiff of vanilla and old leather. Ready to drink now. Very dry, a strong sense of cured ham with red berry fruits on the finish. Complex and quite elegant. 17.5 / 20