Last weekend, we went to Chicago for a little pre-schoolyear fun. We
ended up dining our first night at Le Colonial (French-Vietnamese chain)
after giving up on finding a quality Thai restaurant near the
Magnificent Mile. Somewhat to my surprise, the dinner was superb! With
our "tapas" plates of rather pedestrian shrimp "salad rolls," a
phenomenal stir-fried monkfish dish served with rice crackers and a
great seared sea scallop/garlic noodle salad, I had glasses of:

2001 Loimer Grüner Veltliner Lois Kamptal
color: pale yellow
nose: muted apricot
palate: surprisingly thin, hints of white stone fruits and vague
honeyish flavors, finishing rather abruptly

Overall, a disappointing wine. I didn't recognize the producer but
usually trust my luck with GVs. This one let me down. Still, it was
perfectly adequate with the food.

1999 Trimbach Pinot Gris Reserve
color: golden yellow
nose: pineapple, pear and honey
palate: rich, deep, pears and honey, finishing off-dry

Quite a contrast with the previous wine, this was mouthfilling but not
overblown, and also went quite well with the foods. When the main
course of shrimp stir-fried with chili sauce arrived, the remaining PG
proved to pair quite successfully with it.

The next night we ended up at Bistro Margot, a "meat and potatoes"
bistro. The food was rather lackluster (my duo de canard was OK, but
somewhat boring) and the wine list uninspired. I ended up with glasses of:

2001 MacMurray Ranch Pinot Noir
nose: ripe cherryish fruit, a bit pruney
palate: very ripe, almost overblown, with somewhat indistinct fruit
flavors, medium body

Not very much varietal character here. Cooked? Open too long? Hard to
say.

2002 Monthaven Syrah
nose: bright, fruity, spicy
palate: quite the fruit bomb, medium-full body, berryish flavors, decent
acidity

Well, I wasn't expecting much, so this was a nice surprise. Fairly
typical CA Syrah flavors but clean and quite acceptable with the duck.

Overall, Le Colonial was the highlight of our dining experiences and the
Trimbach PG the wine of the weekend. Good fun before this week's work load.

Mark Lipton

Mark Lipton > wrote:

> 2001 Loimer Grüner Veltliner Lois Kamptal
> color: pale yellow
> nose: muted apricot
> palate: surprisingly thin, hints of white stone fruits and vague
> honeyish flavors, finishing rather abruptly
>
> Overall, a disappointing wine. I didn't recognize the producer
> but usually trust my luck with GVs. This one let me down.

Sorry Mark, but "Lois" is Fred Loimer's cheapo quaffing Grüner,
meant to be drunk within the year of release and never meant to age
3 years.

It's *very* easy to discern the better Veltliners: Look at the
alcohol. Serious stuff begins at 12.5% or, better, at 13.0". Lois has
around 11.5%, iirc.

M.

Michael Pronay wrote:


> Sorry Mark, but "Lois" is Fred Loimer's cheapo quaffing Grüner,
> meant to be drunk within the year of release and never meant to age
> 3 years.

Yes, so I realized later.
>
> It's *very* easy to discern the better Veltliners: Look at the
> alcohol. Serious stuff begins at 12.5% or, better, at 13.0". Lois has
> around 11.5%, iirc.

Good advice, but in this instance I was ordering by the glass, so no
bottle was in evidence (I could have asked, I suppose)

Mark Lipton

Michael Pronay wrote:


> Sorry Mark, but "Lois" is Fred Loimer's cheapo quaffing Grüner,
> meant to be drunk within the year of release and never meant to age
> 3 years.

Yes, so I realized later.
>
> It's *very* easy to discern the better Veltliners: Look at the
> alcohol. Serious stuff begins at 12.5% or, better, at 13.0". Lois has
> around 11.5%, iirc.

Good advice, but in this instance I was ordering by the glass, so no
bottle was in evidence (I could have asked, I suppose)

Mark Lipton

thanks for the notes.

My experience with the "Lois" matches yours. I love GV, but the under-$10
retail ones in US are seldom exciting.

Thanks for Trimbach note. My note from Feb. 03:
1999 Trimbach Pinot Gris Reserve- hey, I know '99 wasn't greatest vintage in
Alsace. But I liked this wine, bought a lot, and am sad this was my last
bottle. Rich pear and lemon fruit, accents of ginger and mineral. Nice acidic
framework. For a $13 PG from so-so vintage I think this would actually age for
a few years (but I'll never know). B+

Enjoy start of school year, best to Jean.
Dale

Dale Williams
Drop "damnspam" to reply

thanks for the notes.

My experience with the "Lois" matches yours. I love GV, but the under-$10
retail ones in US are seldom exciting.

Thanks for Trimbach note. My note from Feb. 03:
1999 Trimbach Pinot Gris Reserve- hey, I know '99 wasn't greatest vintage in
Alsace. But I liked this wine, bought a lot, and am sad this was my last
bottle. Rich pear and lemon fruit, accents of ginger and mineral. Nice acidic
framework. For a $13 PG from so-so vintage I think this would actually age for
a few years (but I'll never know). B+

Enjoy start of school year, best to Jean.
Dale

Dale Williams
Drop "damnspam" to reply

Mark Lipton > wrote:

>> It's *very* easy to discern the better Veltliners: Look at the
>> alcohol. Serious stuff begins at 12.5% or, better, at 13.0".
>> Lois has around 11.5%, iirc.

> Good advice, but in this instance I was ordering by the glass

Oh, I see, so no greater damage :-)

M.

Mark Lipton > wrote:

>> It's *very* easy to discern the better Veltliners: Look at the
>> alcohol. Serious stuff begins at 12.5% or, better, at 13.0".
>> Lois has around 11.5%, iirc.

> Good advice, but in this instance I was ordering by the glass

Oh, I see, so no greater damage :-)

M.