Monthly blind tasting lunch notes.

2004 Springfield Estate Life from Stone Sauvignon Blanc – first
guesses (mine included) were for New Zealand, as the style is the same
– lots of crisp acidity, although no cat’s pee at all, just SB
grassiness. Very clean and much more approachable now than a couple of
years ago.

2006 Nikolaihof Gruner Veltliner Hefeabzug – waxiness in the nose,
with some pineapple, soft in the mouth, pleasant and quaffable.

1985 Dom. de Comtes Lafon Volnay Champans – this was a follow-up to
wines we’d had previously – the Lafon 2005 village wine and the 1988
Dom. de Comtes de Lafon Volnay-Santenots du Milieu last month.
clearly pinot nose, light colour, lots of acidity and a bit low on
fruit, but pleasant.

1990 Tignanello – people seem to be following trends – I brought the
1994 last month. The 90 is a wonderful wine (I’m glad to see I still
have a six pack in the cellar). It showed a single minded sangiovese
nose, sweet and with both fruit and earth notes. Medium colour,
smooth, with high acidity (works beautifully with food), ending with a
hint of spice in a long finish. No rush on this one.

1997 Luigi Einaudi Barolo – an excellent traditional producer, this
wine showed a nice garnet medium colour, slightly elevated acidity
(the only hint of origin) and a nose that was fairly floral, though
not the rose petals you sometimes see and none of the tar. No rush
here either. Nice long finish.

2003 Monpertuis Cuvee Cunoise – I actually got the varietal after we
wallowed about in the southern Rhone for awhile and we were told it
wasn’t Grencahe or Syrah. This one showed a simple sweet nose with a
hint of pepper and some coconut, and was soft and medium length on
palate.

2003 Renard Truchard Vd. Syrah – when I got this, it was one of the
most Rhone stye California Syrahs – it could serve as a ringer for a
Crozes. It has somehow transmogrified itself into a more typical CA
wine, however, and while I knew that, having subsequently tried a
bottle, the person who brought this wasn’t aware of it. The nose was
good varietal syrah, big bodied, long and pleasant, but no longer a
candidate for any blind tasting of the Northern Rhone.

1988 Ch.Beychevelle – very faint TCA whiff off this, but everything
else seemed to be in order. A reasonably typical claret nose, decent
fruit and medium length. Good luncheon weight claret.

1995 Ciacci Picolomini Brunello di Pianrosso – fairly dark wine with
an initial impression of rubber in the nose, giving way to herbal dark
fruit. Surprisingly sweet in the mouth and with good length. Delighted
to find I have some in my cellar! Drinking well now but no rush.

1995 Leonetti Merlot – big coffee, mocha, caramel and dill nose. Fair
bit of acidity and not too tannic. Others felt it was at plateau but I
wondered if it would have been a little better a couple of years ago.

1995 Gallo Sonoma Cabernet – many people seem to forget that Gallo
does this vintage dated varietal wine and further that they generally
do a good job with it. Sweet cocoa nose, friendly and warm on palate.
Ready now.

1991 Quinta do Noval Port – the medium mahogany colour of this had me
thinking it was an 83 or maybe 85. Medium bodied, and slightly hot in
the mouth, though I didn’t find it so in the nose, this is lighter
than I’d have expected but very decent. Good way to end a lunch!