Browse Tag

muscat

Arcese poofs

Bera 2006 Canelli “Arcese” (Piedmont) – Pours with a near-explosion of tiny bubbles, which take a while to recede. Uh-oh. The nose is, at first, absent, then quivering with volatility, then once again absent. And there’s a staleness to the wine. First approximation: corked and refermented. An hour later, the secondary-fermentation stink starts to emerge, as does the wretched reek of TCA. The poor wine, which is usually full of appealing life, never had a chance. (1/09)

Haardt & soul

[label]Müller-Catoir 2007 Haardt Muskateller Kabinett Trocken 09 08 (Pfalz) – Perfumed, of course…mostly orange blossom…with huge acidity and a lovely slosh of iron flakes. Rather huge for a muscat that’s not fortified or otherwise enhanced, and absolutely stuffed with muscatty goodness. The finish is lengthy, which (again) isn’t what one usually expects from the grape. I’ve had a few muscats that were better than this, but only a few. (12/08)

Schröck & awe

[vineyard]Heidi Schröck 2006 Muscat (Austria) – Actually 40% gelber muskateller, 40% sauvignon blanc, and 20% muscat ottonel. Quite reduced (under screwcap), and offensively stinky when first opened; this takes a good long while to blow off, and I’m not sure it ever quite abandons the wine. Nor am I a fan of the blend…the sauvignon has all its sharp edges filed off by the muscat, while the muscat delivers a pale shadow of its usual aromatic exuberance thanks to the guillotine effect of the sauvignon blanc. Is there a point to this wine? (12/08)

New clothes

Signal Hill 2005 “Vin de l’Empereur” (Paarl) – Sweet muscat d’Alexandrie, and already very dark brown, with moderate floral notes and an exotic, botrytis-laden aroma. However, all the reward’s in the nose, because the hollow and rather light palate doesn’t follow through on any of the former’s promises. Good, but only just. (11/08)

San

Pellegrino 2004 Moscato di Pantelleria (Sicily) – 375 ml. Perfume with a heady edge of pine, lemon curd, and dry ice. Not as simple as everyday moscato, and an incomparably massive improvement over the horrid 2003. A fun finish. (11/08)

Frick & frack

[vineyard]Frick 2005 Muscat (Alsace) – Muscat through a filter, with its perfumes and exotica dominated by a firm acidic core. Dry. This would all be fine, except that within an hour of opening the wine rather rapidly oxidizes, turning absolutely undrinkably so by hour two. I want to like this producer, given the admirable vineyard work, but wine after wine is, for me, a massive disappointment. Or, like this, an abject failure…though of course, other bottles may perform differently (such are the blessings and curses of “natural” wines). (10/08)

Balbi, ball girl

[vineyard]Balbi Soprani 2006 Moscato d’Asti (Piedmont) – Flowers and powdered apple. Soft…too soft…with more gentility than I’d like; the laughing sweetness of moscato d’Asti needs a little more self-confidence. (9/08)

For he’s a jolly good moscadello

[bottle]Capanna 2006 Moscadello di Montalcino (Tuscany) – Very, very sweet, with floral/perfumed aromatics but a density approaching that of white pedro ximénez. It’s immediately appealing, but the lack of complexity, acidity, or any other sort of structure make it a chore to drink more than a few sips. (8/08)

Mon Dieuvaille

[label]Miquel “Domaine de Barroubio” 2004 Muscat St-Jean-de-Minervois Dieuvaille (Languedoc) – A single-parcel muscat (or so I’m led to believe) named after an historic church near the village. Intense essence of muscat, with life and plenty of nerve. Very intense, and while it’s heavy it’s got the structure to support itself. Terrific. (10/06)