Browse Tag

sweet

Dutch trading companies

[bottle]Lustau “East India Solera” Sherry (Jerez) – Very sweet, molasses and maple with heat-concentrated brown sugar but a fairly uninteresting finish of simplistic sweetness. (5/08)

Aragorn

Hidalgo “Alameda” Cream Sherry (Jerez) – Nutty syrup, thinned and with a slightly varnished texture, with the wine’s intense sweetness balanced by an airy midpalate. Finishes a little disappointing, though. (5/08)

Especially for you

Ordoñez & co. 2004 Málaga Moscatel “Seleccion Especial” (Andalucía) – Intense. A warm expression of pure muscat, taking flowers strongly into the realm of orange blossom, and adding a thick, powerful backbeat of spice and warming body. Not complex, but then muscat is far too primary and boisterous to allow much complexity in the vast majority of its expressions. (5/08)

Calendar girl

[barrels]Ramonteu “Domaine Cauhapé” 2004 Jurançon “Ballet d’Octobre” (Southwest France) – Gros manseng, picked very ripe at the end of October, and fermented in slightly older wood. This is meant to be the early-drinking entry in the sweet lineup, which is demonstrated by the lightness and balance of the wine; “ballet” is an excellent name. There’s sweet apple and sugared walnut, some of that unmistakable almond, and crystallized peach skin (both fruity and texturally bitter). Long, fresh, and clean. (10/06)

Ramonteu “Domaine Cauhapé” 2004 Jurançon “Symphonie de Novembre” (Southwest France) – A first pass at petit manseng picked in the early weeks of November, fermented in a mixture of new and two-year wood, than given an additional nine months in wood, plus another six months in tank. Concentrated peach and pear with a healthy layer of spice, apple, and even some clementine. Very rich, but with fine acidity preserved throughout. Lovely. (10/06)

Ramonteu “Domaine Cauhapé” 2001 Jurançon “Noblesse du Temps” (Southwest France) – Dried-on-the-vine petit manseng, picked after the first frost and in multiple passes from late November through early December, vinified in new wood and spending an additional eighteen months in wood (I think not new, but our host isn’t clear). Spiced honey – said spices being mostly cinnamon and nutmeg, both in a rich, freshly-baked form – with an apple-tang edge to a fruit syrup palate that’s energized by firm acidity. There’s a bit of caramel at the tail. A beautiful wine. (10/06)

Ramonteu “Domaine Cauhapé” 2000 Jurançon “Quintessence de Petit Manseng (Southwest France) – Petit manseng (of course), picked in multiple passes in the latter half of December, from grapes well past mere passerillage or normal icing and into an advanced state of shriveling and water loss. Fermented in barrique and aged for two years more (not sure in what). Absolutely noble, with incredible density. Peach essence, apricot, orange marmalade, and bursts of flowers. This explodes with character. Texturally, it’s lusciously creamy, but still with a backbone of acidity for support. The finish is all honey, fresh cream, and nut oil, and it’s long, long, long. Majestic. (10/06)

Kitaen

[barge]Burmester Tawny Porto (Douro) – More oxidized than I’d like, showing little other than stale nuts and an acrid sharpness. (2/08)

Burmester “Jockey Club” Porto “Reserva” (Douro) – Brown sugar and maple syrup. OK. (2/08)

Burmester “10 Year” Tawny Porto (Douro) – Complex at the outset, sugary sweetness, with stale fruit but good length. Actually fairly tasty, though it seems older than its constituent parts. (2/08)

Burmester “20 Year” Tawny Porto (Douro) – Spiced brandy but pleasantly mild overall, with complex sugars and a long, creamy finish. (2/08)

Burmester 1985 Colheita Porto (Douro) – Cigar and old Armagnac, very spicy, with balanced sweetness but a touch of heat on the finish. Impressive length. (2/08)

Alexander Bell

Graham’s 1994 Porto (Douro) – Pure sweetness, mixed cherries. The finish is decent. It appears to be open, but it’s not showing much, so maybe it’s all an illusion. (2/08)

Ruby Dee

[cases]Burmester Ruby Porto (Douro) – Simple dark cherry syrup with dual burning sensations of acidity and alcohol. (2/08)

Burmester “Sotto Voce” Porto “Reserve” (Douro) – Spiced walnut and good, dark fruit. Nice. (2/08)

Burmester 2001 “Late Bottled Vintage” Porto (Douro) – Balanced and structured, full-fruited (black cherry, blueberry, boysenberry), with a long, spicy finish. Very nice. (2/08)

Burmester 2005 Porto (Douro) – Tannin and tarragon-dominated, with spiky acidity, stale nut skins, and an odd finish. Weird. (2/08)

Rectorie ball

[glass]Parcé Frères “La Rectorie” 1998 Banyuls “Cuvée Léon Parcé” (Roussillon) – Long, opaque sheets of cocoa-dusted raspberry fruit paste baking in the Catalan sun. Only mildly sweet, with most of its structure faded, leaving an easygoing core of fruit-derived blackness bracketed by softness. Quite good, but needs to be consumed. (It must be noted that the provenance of this bottle was questionable; perfectly-stored bottles may be fresher.) (4/08)

A gris to disagree

[vineyard]Hugel 1990 Pinot Gris “Vendange Tardive” (Alsace) – Thick and soupy. Spiced pear, of course, but little else of note. There’s nothing refreshing about this wine, which is rather leaden up front, then thins, then re-hefts for a big, dull finish. (4/08)