80% Sauvignon Blanc, 20% Semillon. Silvery gold in color. The nose is nice with slight tropical fruit. Also some pears. On the palate, this is nice. Round. Not a lot of acidity. Tasty though and easy to drink. Drink it cold and it will be refreshing. Food friendly. This is under $20 and a pretty good value. Drink over the next few years to enjoy its freshness.
Ruby in color. The nose is a bit old. Lighter with cherries, tobacco, dried fruits. bell pepper and slight celery. On the palate, this is tart and dried cherries. A bit of a bell pepper streak. Still drinking ok but getting a bit long in the tooth. Probably better ten years ago.
This wine has notoriously been slow to come around. This is a very masculine but classic Bordeaux. This was decanted for sediment (not a lot) and then allowed to breathe for an hour or so, it opened nicely although the best days are still ahead for this wine. Purple in color. The nose has cassis, tobacco, some earthiness and a fair amount of oak coming thru as cedar and slight fresh cut timber. On the palate, this was tight initially. Eventually opening up to show a classic, if still on the young side of mature, Bordeaux. Cassis, black licorice, black cherries and slight earthiness.
From an excellent vintage whose wines are slow to come around, this one is drinking well. Seems to be shy of peak but getting close. Purple/ruby in color. The nose has cherries, slight tobacco and spice. On the palate, this has medium body. Cherries with some intertwines tobacco. Some depth if not a lot. Good acidity. Worked well with food. Nice finish. I believe this was under $30 on release which is a fair price.
From the venerable Chateau Haut Brion, this is an inexpensive rose. A blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Light salmon in color. Strawberries on the nose. The palate is clean with "red berries", mostly strawberries. This is easy and drinks well. Perhaps not the energy or brightness it had last year, so these should probably be drunk sooner than later. Works well with food.
This is an inexpensive Sauternes that retails for around $20. That is a great value for a nice dessert wine. Light gold/green in color. The nose has apricots and slight honey. It has just a hint of sweetness. Some apricots on the palate. Nice acidity. A nice choice for large groups or just a nice finish to a meal.
This is one of my favorite wines from Pomerol. They have gotten crazy expensive over the years and this was probably the last reasonably priced vintage. 2002 was not a great vintage. What is good about it though is that the wines drank well in the short term and were evenly good if not great. This bottle is at peak right now or maybe just shy. It will probably stay there for another few years, so if you own any, be thankful and drink up. It won't get better and depending on the bottle, may start to fade. Purple in color. The nose has dark cherries, chocolate, slight spice and a bit
On opening the cork fell into the bottle. It was fished halfway out and removed with a Durand corkscrew. Anytime one gets the opportunity to try a Cheval Blanc it is truly a treat! Of course, this is not a great year and it might be getting a bit old but it still has plenty to offer. It took about 15 minutes to really open up. Purple in color, slight browning at the edges. There is some initial bottle stink but that blows off leaving cherries, slight dried cherries, spice, dust and blood. Interesting. On the palate, this has nice tart cherries layered with dry forest floor and some
Pop and pour. This is very solid but given the release price ($50) and ten years from a great vintage, it seemed to under perform a bit. Purple in color. The nose is tight at first but eventually opens up to cassis and spice. On the palate, this has a nice enough texture. Nice cassis fruit but a bit one dimensional. Perhaps there is still time to develop but it seems that if that was the case, there would be glimpses. Still, it is enjoyable and if straightforward, at least that is a good direction.
This was a treat. Lafite was not at the top of their game back in the 60's but still a first growth is cool. I believe this came from a private collection that was sold to a wine store. No idea about storage. The cork was soaked to the rim and the very bottom disintegrated upon opening. The wine was then decanted for sediment. Purple in color which was surprising. The nose took about 30 minutes to blow off all of the bottle stink. At first it seemed corked but that blew off so clearly it was not (TCA doesn't blow off). Eventually showing some tobacco, dried fruit, some cassis, and
