Browse Month

July 2009

Creek summer

[label]Tablas Creek 2006 Roussanne (Paso Robles) – Wax, ripe stone fruit, coppered cashews, and surprising balance; the usual fat and alcohol-tinged headiness is well-countered by fair acidity and a certain deftness of fruit. I suspect that this could age, and I’ve no reason to doubt it based on the raw materials at hand, but it’s quite approachable now. (7/09)

Home, home on the Grange

Luneau-Papin “Domaine Pierre de La Grange” 2004 Muscadet Sèvre & Maine “Sur Lie Vieilles Vignes” (Loire) – Already showing movement in its broadening, fuller palate and increasingly shell-like minerality. It’s still sharp and forward, but less direct than it was in its youth. Long, columnar, and delicious. There’s more time left in it, but it’s very enjoyable now. (7/09)

Tissot boring, oh, Tissot boring

[vineyard]A&M/Stéphane Tissot Crémant du Jura Brut (Jura) – Tastes like skin, and smells like the dried nut residue from a long-empty tin of peanuts. A bit stale and really, really boring. Damaged? Mildly corked? If so, there’s no sign of either. But a half-glass is more than enough. (7/09)

Torrozza less traveled

Ferrando 2007 Canavese Rosso “La Torrozza” (Piedmont) – Fulsome and juicy; an explosion of mixed berries (red and black) with clover, just a hint of tar, and a slushy swath of acidity. There’s a slightly acrid overlay that’s just a little off-putting, and detracts from the boisterous pleasure, but it’s still a most enjoyable wine. Watch that acridity, though, because I don’t think it’s going to improve as the wine lingers. (7/09)

Teddi bare

Poli-Julliard 2007 Patrimonio Clos Teddi (Corsica) – 100% niellucciu (sangiovese). Strawberry and dirt, a bit blackened (not in the Cajun sense, thankfully), with a heady column of liqueur-like fruit (blueberry, perhaps) minus the alcohol. Despite this, the overall impression of the wine is fairly light and relatively simple. This is the sort of sangiovese you’d want with a very slight chill, served on a beachfront patio as a red wine accompaniment to seafood. (7/09)

Great years think alike

[bottle]J. Lassalle Champagne 1er Cru Brut Rosé “Réserve des Grandes Années” (Champagne) – Bubbles aside, this could be a somewhat mature red Burgundy from a “lesser” appellation – Givry, perhaps – for all the earthy, mushroomy softness to its red fruit. There’s a fullness that combats against this sensation of age, and a hint of orange rind for focus, but this is compelling as much for its otherness as for its characteristics. A lovely wine, perhaps more so than a Champagne. (7/09)

Mallo yellow

Mallo 2002 Riesling Rosacker (Alsace) – The minerality of the vineyard, reminiscent of the sea yet crystalline and vibrant, is fully present. There’s fine acidity and good length. I just wish there was the will to push the boundaries a bit…a little more intensity in the vineyard, a little less happified sweetness in the finished product. An underachievement, albeit a tasty one. (7/09)

Heart of Glas

[grapes]Glas “Domaine de Poulvarel” 2005 Costières de Nîmes (Rhône) – Redder-fruited than some of its neighbors tend to be, with fair acidity, yet also heftier than its fruit can quite withstand. It’s of its place, and I don’t mean to suggest that it should be lighter (or, heaven forefend, ultra-concentrated), but there’s a struggle for balance that’s not resolved within the wine’s confines. (7/09)

Gateway wine

Piñol 2007 Terra Alta “Portal” (Cataluña) – 70% garnacha blanca, 20% sauvignon blanc, 5% viognier, 5% macabeo. Simultaneously fat and wiry, which is quite an achievement, and not an entirely welcome one. Kiwi and melon, perhaps some lemon, some heat on the nose, and a bit of stick to the finish. Not as good as the various reds from this producer. (7/09)