Italy and Chile

2007 Petrolo Galatrona

This has aged well and is drinking nicely. Beautifully balanced blue fruit with a soft underlying minerality. Delicious.

2000 Concha y Toro Cabernet Sauvignon Don Melchor

On the far side of the aging curve. Time to drink up. Mocha and cassis on a very mellow finish. Not the most defined palate at this point but still enjoyable.

Cru tasting Oct 2024

 

2018 Castell d'Encús Acusp (100% Pinot Noir, Spanish Pyrenees)

2016 Cobb Pinot Noir Coastlands Vineyard Old Firs Block  - FAVORITE 

2019 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Roserock Pinot Noir Zépherine 

2010 Louis Jadot Chambolle-Musigny Les Baudes

2009 Jean-Marc and Hugues Pavelot Savigny-Les- Beaune Les Serpentieres 

2005 Nicolas Potel Volnay Champans- SECOND FAVORITE 

All wines double decanted back into clean bottles 4 hours prior to single blind tasting. 

The 2016 Cobb was totally in the zone. I agreed with the group that it was showing best. My second favorite was the 2010 Jadot which took a while to really open up...

Dinner in Sevilla, 8 Oct 2024

 

Highly recommend Cañabota in Sevilla. One of the most memorable dining experiences that we've enjoyed since Tickets (Albert Adria's place in Barcelona...  closed when the covid shutdown hit).

We did the omakase menu with cocktail or wine pairings for each dish. Tiny place. Reserve a counter seat to see all the incredible action. 

Chef Fernández was a gracious host as he greeted us personally during the early evening seating, thanking us for coming all the way from North Carolina. The service and attention to detail from his floor team is simply astounding. I do not remember the number of courses ...the experience  overwhelmed us with delight.

Being seated at the counter puts you right in the midst of professionals operating at the height of seafood cuisine excellence. It is truly a unique experience.

I prefer to avoid using a phone for photos at the table. I think it detracts from the flow of a lunch or dinner. However, the one course that I did pull out my phone to get a quick shot of was the grouper course. There was what looked like a lamb chop with the rib bone sticking out, but it was a hunk of grouper with a piece of the fish rib or backbone sticking out. An absolutely wondrous preparation and so delicious. 

The wine service for the course pairings was THE BEST I've ever seen. Each wine was served in a high end piece of super delicate stemware designed for the type of wine served. No stemware types were repeated since each wine was unique. This may sound like a minor detail until you experience it across 15 or 20 courses.

https://azahar-sevilla.com/sevilletapas/canabota/

2021 Bodegas Hermanos Peciña Señorìo de P. Peciña Cosecha Blanco

The Bodega was founded in 1992 by La Rioja Alta’s long-time vineyard manager, Pedro Peciña.
12.5% abv
100% Viura from San Vicente de la Sonsierra. Fermented and aged in stainless steel tanks. No oak.
Fresh and tasty tart lemon palate with nice salinity. 
Awesome QPR at $20 / btl.

Cru Tasting Sept 2024

 

No formal notes, however I must give a shout out to one of our Rayas afficionados @"Philippe Richer".

First time I've enjoyed a Rayas wine. This 2012 Pialade CdR (80% Grenache, 15% Cinsault, 5% Syrah) was my favorite of the bunch this evening. Beautifully lithe in body, with raspberry palate up front followed by a complex finish with an impossible to resist garrique accent.... Paired with duck confit hash.

My second favorite was the 2015 Ex Voto with the 2000 Guigal La Mouline in 3rd place. 

That's a white Burgundy shown and it was really nice...

2011 Produttori del Barbaresco Asili Riserva

 

Opened and decanted to aerate this evening ... paired with dry rub smoked pork ribs and collard greens.

Beautiful wine and quite giving at first. Tannins started kicking in and shutting the wine down on the finish after a couple of hours of air. 

Overall, a nice showing with solid balance for a "warmer" vintage. The fruit should outlast the tannins, IMO. A keeper for the cellar. 

2016 Chapelle St. Théodoric CdP La Guigasse

 

Producer notes from Josh Raynolds:

"..One of the most exciting new projects in the Rhône Valley, these wines are the result of a collaboration of Domaine de Cristia’s Dominique and Baptiste Grangeon and American importer Peter Weygandt, who are seeking to harness and express the singular aromatic complexity and delicacy provided by Grenache grown on the sandy soils of the vaunted Pignan vineyard.

To that end no new oak is used, just neutral foudres and the wines are bottled without fining or filtration. The wines are made with whole clusters and their light color belies the flavor intensity that is delivered, making this a highly appealing source for those who usually steer clear of this region’s wines out of fear of their being too rich, too heavy or too dark-fruited in character.."

15% abv. 100% Grenache. Whole cluster.  Decanted to aerate. Paired very well with spicy Asian chicken and steamed pork dumplings. 

Warm, luscious fruit nose. On the palate, the impression is one of very high quality raspberry inflected fruit. The inclusion of whole clusters is a welcome balance to the richness of the fruit. Fine grained, elegant tannins are quite resolved at this point. Although, I would not hesitate to cellaring this wine for another decade or more. 

I'd still appreciate any effort to moderate the alcohol content to perhaps a more reasonable 13.5%.

With this wine, I'm just not getting the beautiful garrigue or black tea notes that I so prize in traditional CdP. 

As a reference point, one of my favorite CdP producers is Laurence Féraud at Domaine du Pégau, who I believe incorporates all or most of the 13 varietals permitted in CdP into their Réservée cuvee to create a truly magical wine.