recharge

had a lousy week at work, so friday afternoon couldn't come too soon. usual place and company.
1)chapoutier gigondas 2005 (gsm + other bits)

cherry/ ruby; cherry, plum, herb (?) and a bit of smoke on the nose; jammy plum and cherry, spice (hint of star anise?) on the palate with a minerally/stoney kind of finish; grippy tannins and refreshing acidity (made me hungry); not long (fruit disappears before arriving at the back with only the tannins and acid hanging around ... but not unpleasent); medium bodied. POP!

2)alex gambal nuit saint georges 1998

thought a base model with some age might be nice. with my losing streak in burgundies rolling, this was a gambal .... lost again. who let the dogs out ... woof, woof, woof woof ...; decanting and prayer failed; light cherry; get past the fur ... raspberry, cherry: could not get anything on the palate, no fruit only tannins and acid (tart, man); not long (thank god); light bodied; nuff said. FIZZLE!

update: on his site alex says:
1998 nuits st. georges – primarily from old vines on the vosne side of nuits; aux lavières and au bas du combe. a bit more red fruits in nuits in 1998; very ripe raspberries with smooth tannins. 100 cases made,

i wish .....

3) sette ponti oreno 2004 [it was either this or another tuscan... antinori's guado al tasso...chose this, fewer syllables] sangiovese:cab sav:merlot ... 2:1:1;

dark cherry; plum, blackcurrant, hint of coffee and vanilla, woody: loads of fruit, ripe plum, dark berries, wood, acid and very fine tannins to balance; lush, rich and creamy mouthfeel; medium/big bodied; long; its odd that the mountain of oak did not really bug me this time; not very italian (at least unlike most of the stuff normally drunk); 13.5%; normally dislike oaky stuff but hope to see it again. BANG! (update september: now only just ... price just skyrocketed ... bloody profiteers)

bit of roast pork and lamb chops tagged along.

nuther weekend ... could have been worse

1)tea time
confuron cotetidot gevrey chambertin 2004

cherry; plum, ... fur(?), dried flowers/ herbs; plum, cranberry (?) on palate, bit sweet initially; light bodied, tannins a bit rough, pleasant acidity (some might think it still excessive now); not very long; 12.5%; with the brett thing and the cost over here ...no joy. FIZZLE!

pio cesare barolo 2003 (their basic one)

garnet; plum, black/blueberries, flowers(violets?) on nose; plum,dark cherry, bit of cinnamon?, bit of stalkiness (woody not green) on palate; lots of tannin (but nice and ripe), crisp acid; medium bodied; long; nice drop even at this stage; comfortingly consistent, 13.5%. BANG!2) dinner ... tuna pasta, goat's milk cheese and homemade bread.

kumeu river chardonnay 2004

straw/light gold; peach/nectarine,citrus (lemon rind?), oak, caramel, bread on nose; juicy nectarine/peach (like biting into fresh fruit, impressive), orange/grapefruit and nuts on the palate, rich mouthfeel; lots of tannin, could do with a bit more acid to balance the fruit, wood and overall richness; longish; medium/big bodied; fruit and freshness seem to die off after 20-30 mins in glass, then it becomes somewhat dull and oaky; 13% or 13.5%, cannot remember; drink it very fast ... then its a blast. POP!

after the trainwreck

domaine roger sabon chateauneuf du pape reserve 2004

dark cherry; plum, cherry, blackcurrant, funky (mushroom, damp earth ... nice), vanilla, oak (bit smokey), herbs (rosemary? sage?... lambchops beckon); rich, almost fleshy fruit and wood follow onto palate; balanced acid and very fine tannins; very smooth mouthfeel; medium/full bodied; easy drinking (no negative connotations here);14%; delicious (even though grenache is not a fave); enough of everything to develop further, but what the hey, just drink up. BANG!

bbbad to the beaune (another brett attack)

domaine henri boillot beaune "les epenottes" 1er cru 2005

tried 2 bottles of the stuff a few months ago. man, it was ugly. due to my usual lapses in memory (... but then again, the mind has a way of blanking out really bad experiences), tried another on saturday. holy wet dog, batman. my fault entirely. FIZZLE!

many use equine terms to describe wines with this problem but the closest i've been to a gee gee is the horsehair stuffing in the seats of a friend's e21 bmw, whereas the canine odour of my dearly departed pets comes to mind...phew.

come to think of it, might break out the old camelhair jacket for a whiff ......"ah, chateau anchovy 2007, excellant bouquet, redolent of violets, blackcurrents, vanilla and dead dromedary" ......

friday evening

felton road pinot noir (otago) 2007
their basic one, apparently they have some individual vineyard bottlings.

deep clear cherry; raspberry, cherry, mushroom, alcohol on the nose; cherry (ripe and juicy), prickly acid, fine tannins, some oak, not bone dry; smooth, medium bodied; short, weird abrupt end ... the fruit just disappears after the mid palate, aftertaste that lingers at the back was woody and herbal (chinese herbs).14%. will probably develop but who cares (its not bad but theres lots of other stuff out there), won't be coming down this road again. POP?, FIZZLE! i guess.

weekend market, bangkok

slaves for sale?

sell both of them and quick, we need the dough.
one down, another to go.

monday night oasis

got to drink at last.
chandon de briailles pernand vergelesses 1er cru 'ile des vergelesses' 2005 (mouthful init?)
cherry, bright; raspberry, cherry, mushroom, damp earth (whiff), some stalkiness, alcohol on the nose; follows through onto palate; nice mouthfeel, lots of fruit, but not really rich or plump, acid very obvious, loads of fine and ripe tannins; light/medium bodied; long; does open up a bit when left to breathe for about 1 hr.; still a little young; better in a couple of years maybe even longer; better with food now; 12.5%; in all a very agreeable drop. BANG!

saffron

valhalla,no

had 2 glasses of valpolicella after dinner last night. not unpleasent but not something of choice. can never get over the ripe sweet fruit not being balanced by some decent acid. thank god for the company.

?

this cannot go on much longer, can it?

dinner at a lebanese place tonight ... am told the place is dry. lamb without alky ...

dry

not a drop for 6 days (unless you count a glass of overipe barbera d'alba). this is bad. shots do not help.

a 2 glass weekend

had a really tedious week. looked forward to getting a little blasted on the weekend but as luck would have it, disaster. . . still sober at 4 pm sunday. drinking mates unavailable for various reasons (weak i say, weak). solo sessions are unacceptable, not alcoholic.

saturday night
brancaia blu 2001, aforesaid couple of glasses at dinner (free, hah). pork loin wrapped in proscuitto and pastry (pork wellington?) with yorkshire pudding, salad and berry pavlova for dessert.

sunday, a bad coffee day,
1) alledged italian joint, the shot was so physically wrong [cremaless and watery, like someone made some long black (a piss weak one at that) and put a bit into the demitasse], that it was left untouched. thieves.

2)some "silly" stuff later. had some mouthfeel, smooth, some flavour ... (better than the usual sour stuff) but there was this wet fur/tea towel smell ... in both shots had.
also had some "iced coffee", weird, really seaweed smoky... islay? ... withdrawal symptoms? latter.

grey

gauntlet

elvis has left the building

jean grivot clos de vougeot 1998
dinner sunday; cold cuts and cheese; last bottle of "real" burg obtained some time ago;

garnet/slight bricking; nasty pong when uncorked, cork looked fine, in hope, left the thing standing in the decanter for about 30 mins., much less unpleasant but still bad ... heart sank although was mentally prepared for it before the corkscrew dived in ... sh*t happens ... and with this kind of drink, it happens a lot; smell of wet fur/cardboard/bark and plastic, [someone said sweaty clothes], cannot really get past it, brett? ... brett. surprisingly some of the others did not mind?!; this was definitely not the expected whiff of barnyard/truffly odour (quite nice actually) which is sometimes present, this was "Funkeee";

if you can get past the bad stuff ..., some cherry, plum, some tobacco/cedar, palate still fruity, wood not obtrusive, tannins fine and not very firm, still a little acidic, some stalkiness, but no mid palate plumpness; medium bodied; longish; would have been quite nice if ...... what a disappointment; 13% i think ... but who cares. FIZZLE!

earlier 96s, 97s and 98s were nice with food ... but details are elusive ... long term memories are not a forte, which is a pity as this punter does not expect to partake of these wines anytime in the near future.

saturday arvo

faiveley vosne romanee 2004
ruby; dried flowers, bit of strawberry, plum, [someone detected kiwifruit (?)], hint of smoke on the nose; mildly fruity palate, a little green tasting, some stalkiness, tannins fine, wee bit too acidic (needs food), mid palate not fleshy (ok , ok ... this is after all, a base model burg); light/medium bodied; medium length; 12.5% but the effects suggest it was higher ... POP!

mauro vanucci piaggia carmignano reserva 2001
sangiovese with a big dollop of cab sav and merlot;
opaque/inky black cherry; plum, blackcurrent, vanilla/butterscotch/[burnt caramel/someone mentioned sarsaparilla] on the nose; meager fruit (cherry, plum,raisin) and lots of wood the on palate, fine tannins, could do with a bit more acid, wood and fruit not integrated even at 7; smooth, medium bodied; short [shorter than a soda, that someone said!]; dull and flat overall; wood, wood, wood; a not very super tuscan ... disappointing. FIZZLE!

3D

squeeze

another playmaker for wengker?

hellooo ... we need fellas in front of and behind them!
update: we've already got our man in the middle. spain 3, russia 0.
here

further update: boy, was i ever so wrong ......... we've a hole in the middle too.

aroi maybe

slab

rising damp

bored

an hour in this sterile place will do that to you

last weekend ... very little joy

not a particularly successful one. nothing really refreshing ... not enough acid everywhere.

(A)

1)terramater unusual 2003

had coupla of bottles of chilean. carmenere/shiraz blend. dark red; smooth, big and fruity (plums, raspberries) but with lots of wood and vanilla (that means wood); oh, did i mention wood?; chunks of fruit and chunks of wood; unintergrated and unbalanced; not enough acid; longish with little bitterness at the very end. FIZZLE!

2)ceretto monsordo (la bernadina) 2002

then, a neb with some bourdeux bits blended in. easy, smooth and fruity. somehow a bit dull this time round. FIZZLE!

3)drouhin oregon pinot noir 1999

followed by a pinot. dull deep red; strawberry (hint), plum and cinnamon on the nose; palate of rich plummy fruit; tannins and acid (insufficient) intergrated; smooth and rounded; medium bodied; medium length; medium dull; the last bottle had many months ago was livelier. FIZZLE!

(B) slight relief

1)isole and olena chianti classico 2003

the only only thing that i really enjoyed this weekend. with lunch: pork chop. BANG! [only just, restaurant markup]

(C)

1)petaluma piccadilly chardonnay 2004 [adelaide hills]

being a dumbass, picked a stinking hot year. straw; citrus peel, pear, apple, caramel on the nose; lemon,ripe pear, creme brulee, caramel, wood; rich and buttery but where is the acid to balance things out?; not really dry initially; big mouthfeel; longish; 14.5%! FIZZLE!

an unpleasent drop. flabby and dull. the description on the rear label implied sufficient freshness and acid notwithstanding the boiled grapes that year... liars (croser should be ashamed he put his name on it).

messed up an otherwise simple but lovely (and free) meal of risotto with porcini mushrooms and parmagiano reggiano. this is usually such a superior and consistent drink ... really disapointing. heard ws gave it 92 !???

anyway, 2005's got a stelvin on it. hmmm.

botanical booboos

taphrom cliche

sidd

theft 2

wat singa

baksei chamkrong singa

phimeanakas singa

mo bayon

bayon b & w

theft

lunch saturday

at the usual place with one suspect only .... filial duties had the other occupied.

bricco asili barbaresco bernardot 2003 (ceretto)
garnet; dried flowers, cherry, plum, cedar, cinnamon?, mint/menthol, tar on the nose; a little cherry which quickly gives way to nice ripe plum and wood; nice acid and fine tannins but not yet intergrated; longish finish; slight bitterness at the very end; better with food, in this case braised pork ribs, where the fruit, acid and tannins seem to meld together; see it in 2-3 years?; 14%. BANG!then trapiche iscay 2003
some sort of merlot and malbec blend from mendoza.dark ruby; vanilla,vanilla, vanilla, wood, plum, blackcurrent on the nose; fruit, fruit, fruit, plum and blackcurrent; very fine tannins; nice gentle acid; longish; big wine; a very smooth drop but at this stage, too much wood for me; "food" wine ie. have it for lunch ... on its own. FIZZLE!

isn't wengker a lucky sod?

new brooms for the very rich,

blue
light blue

nu kit

... not so sure about this. not distinctive at all and where are the all white sleeves?

mo cheap plonk?

some Vino "Nobile(?)" di Montepulciano fellas are now being investigated.

reckon this is just a tuscan thing or could it get bigger ... ? anyway the bouquet of declassified wine hangs heavy in the air ... ha.

a po weekend

forsaken by the usual suspects last friday (okay, being overly dramatic ...), it was a dry day i tell you, dry...

anyway had a gg batie 2003 for dinner (which was great and free, again) on saturday .... jammy and tarry nose, flavourless, tart, flat and sad ... odd bottle methinks. FIZZLE!

had an isole and olena chianti classico 2003 for sunday lunch.
ruby; lifted strawberry and cherry, smoke and alcohol on nose; again, strawb, cherry, fine tannins and acid on palate; light bodied and of medium length; tart and fresh fruity finish (what did you expect from a std. chianti?); very nice; food wine, man; bucatinni amatriciana and pork scallopine with mushroom sauce; 13.5%. BANG! [only just, restaurant markup].

hen's teeth

looking for some party wine for a friend's 80th birthday do, about 130 pax. finding stuff that's good and reasonably priced in this place is hard, to say the least. fingers crossed.

update: drinking above their price, nice:
best's victorian shiraz 2003 and grant burge barossa vines chardonnay 2006. BANG! BANG!

tea time

been dry for days so it was off to the regular haunt. the conch blown and usual suspects tapped up.

bricco rocche barolo prapo 2001 (ceretto)
garnet, bricking; plum, cedar, tobacco (? was having the real thing), orange peel; palate fresh, cherry, plum (fresh and preserved), hint of coffee; medium bodied; fine tannins (lots but soft and not at all mouthpuckering); acid obvious but gentle; fruit and wood coming together; long finish; bit of roast pork with it; you can keep the darjeeling and scones. BANG!

14.5% ... but didn't taste like it.

liebfraumilch, not

had both of these recently. next-to-basic teutonic rieslings.
1) dr loosen bernkasteler lay riesling kabinett 2006
light yellow (citrine?...wanker); spritzig, lime rind, apple and a little kero on nose; follows through onto palate with some ripe pear (?); off dry is very nice but this one is just a little too sweet but luckily there's some nice acid which attempts to balance that; palate a little "disjointed" ie. starts tart, sweet and limey/ rind and then abruptly turns grapey, flabby, sugery and cloying (like 2 different drinks)...weird; light/medium bodied; medium length; need to give this one another try. FIZZLE!

2)dr loosen graacher himmelreich riesling kabinett 2006
much better ... again light yellow (well, the place i had it was dimly lit); lime/lemon rind and apple on the nose (but somehow not an emphatic as the one above); this follows through onto palate plus grape juice with some nice acid to balance things off; sweeter than off dry but bearable; light/medium bodied; long; balanced; nice indeed. BANG! [only just, bit too sweet].

both at 7.5% ...

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