C'mon folks it's the holidays, a time we're supposed to treating ourselves. I'm all in favor of a bargain, but January is soon enough for that, right now it's okay to pay up. I've had some good ones lately, here are a few that still qualify as thread appropriate:
2008 Cascina Degli Ulivi Filagnotti Vino da Tavola (18.69): Piedmont. Beautiful aromas of apricot and pear. Full bodied, complex, and quirky flavors of apricot, cel-ray, minerals. Long refreshing mineral finish. Absolutely wonderful wine, real funky when first opened, but smooths out after 45 minutes or so. Enjoyable either way. Not for everyone, but a treat for those who don't mind a bit of wildness.
1999 Domenico Clerico Barbera d'Alba Trevigne (19.99): Opened 1 hour ahead of time. Fragrant cassis and tobacco. Tight flavors of dusty black fruit. Long finish of sour cherry and licorice. Moderate acids provide adequate support and make it soft by Barbera standards, but normal by most standards. Continuing to develop at 2 hours. This does not have the brilliance of the Giacosa 2000 Barbera that I was fortunate enough to acquire from the same source, but it is a damn fine wine. Probably drinking at, or even slightly past, its peak. I ain't saying where I got this because I'm hoping to go back and buy more. A real find.
2008 Clos Roche Blanche Touraine Sauvignon No. 2 (13.69). Lovely stone fruit aromas. Apricot nectar flavors dominate up front, with minerals and kiwi. Great acid kick on the finish. Well integrated, solid structure, and about as much complexity as you can ever expect from non-botrysised Sauvignon Blanc. I don't know if my last bottle was flawed, or if I just caught it at a bad moment, but this bottle is outstanding and in a prime drinking window. I'd say this wine has a few years in front of it, but the plastic cork makes that a dodgy proposition. A moot point for me, this is my last bottle.
2010 Bera Vittorio E. Figli Moscato d'Asti Canelli (16.99): I should start by saying I have a soft spot for Moscato d'Asti. I can drink even the sweetest, most insipid examples without flinching. Having gotten that out of the way, I have to say that this wine is outstanding. If anything, it's too good for its type - after all Moscato is a wine you want to drink when focusing on a Prosecco would just be too much work. This has the requisite sweetness, sparkle, and unmistakable Moscato flavors, but it's got more than that. There is a bite and bitterness underneath, with almost a Cel-Ray tonic flavor to it. Nice long finish of sweet, smooth anise flavors. A unique, funky wine.
2009 Damiani Wine Cellars Riesling (13.99): Finger Lakes. Popped and poured. Clean, pure aromas of minerals, lime and a touch of resin. Sharp and complex palate of pears, lime and mineral. Lime and a bit of tingle in the finish. Bracing but with a bit of sweetness. Using German benchmarks I would guess this is in the Kabinett Trocken neighborhood. In any event, this has the quality of a QmP from a top German estate and sells for $14.
2006 Thierry Puzelat Touraine KO Clos de la Roche (18.90): 100% Cot, AKA Malbec. Intriguing aromas of cloves and berry. Tangy palate of raspberry and spicy chalk. Beautiful, feather light, finish. When first opened, this was closed with slight VA, after about 30 minutes it opened up and mellowed out. A lovely wine, just hitting its prime. |
