Tasting Notes From August 2007
Mitolo
2004 Shiraz
G.A.M.
$50;
Pride Mountain
1999 Merlot
Sonoma County
Throwing lots of sediment.
Much more restrained than upon release with nice dark fruit and secondary mocha and herb
character. Medium-full bodied. Drink now. $48;
Bijoux Restaurant
Dallas, TX
We dined at Bijoux for the first time and it
exceeded our expectations. For me, the weak link is the wine list, which has too many
underperforming major labels at silly markups, but its possible to cherry pick the list somewhat.
The food however was top notch on almost every course. A starter of scallops had some of the
biggest, juiciest scallops I've tasted and the outside was seared perfectly - almost like it was done
with a blow torch. An entrée of veal tenderloin was also delicious. The cheese course was weak,
and I would have liked more fresh vegetables, but all in all, an outstanding meal. James' Birthday
Carlisle
2004 Syrah
Pelkan Ranch, Knight's Valley
This may be my
favorite Carlisle Syrah. Lush, dense, and juicy with tons of sweet black and red berry fruit. Tending
toward Australian in its outright fruitiness, but without the heavy syrup and with more nuance. Nice.
$36;
Chateau Monbousquet
2001 St. Emilion
My tastebuds and this wine weren't
on the same wavelength tonight. The wine is nicely dense and concentrated, but is dominated by a
somewhat weedy, high-toned lead pencil quality which overshadows the currant fruit underneath.
Will retaste tomorrow…and its tomorrow. A night in the fridge seems to have softened this wine up
some. Less high toned, but more dark fruit and menthol. Maybe needs more time. Shame it was my
last. $40;
Mitolo
2005 Jester, Cabernet Sauvignon
McLaren Vale
Bit
disappointing. Simple, red fruit. Uncomplicated and not much structure. Not offensive, but not great
for the money. $20;
Loring
2005 Pinot Noir
Cargasacchi Vineyard, Santa Barbara
County
13.6% ABV. Very smoky, scorched earth aromas. Dark red fruit underneath. The
roasted coffee, smokiness was a little overwhelming. Okay. $45;
L'Aventure
2006 Rose
Paso Robles
14.5% ABV. Moderately deep in
color with pretty watermelon and watered down red berry flavors. Pleasant. Somewhat large-scaled
for Rose. $12;
Lafaurie-Peraguey
2001 Sauterne
Corked. Bummer. $35;
Zaca Mesa
2005 Viognier
Santa Ynez Valley
A pleasant surprise.
Focused peach nose with a flamboyant peach, apricot, fruit cocktail palate. At times it flirts with
soapy. Nice. $20;
Dama
2004 Montelpuciano d'Abruzzo
Light to medium-bodied red wine with
a faint tank-fermented aroma. Mediocre. Served with casual Italian food at the Prego restaurant in
North Dallas. Notable Margherita pizza. This is probably a $6 bottle of wine. $30;
Sauvignon Republic
2005 Sauvignon Blanc
Russian River Valley
Nicely
made Sauvignon with the right amounts of gooseberry fruit, lime, minerals and intensity. Tending
toward New Zealand in style, but with flavors that speak a bit more of northern California, if that
makes any sense. $17;
Pax
2004 Cuvee Moriah
Sonoma County
This was pretty much a
knockout wine. At nearly 16% ABV, it sneaks up on your too. Delicious floral notes on the nose,
intense fruit, nice secondary characteristics. Notes are postmortem, so they lack in specificity, but
the wine is tasty. Served with shrimp and scallops at the lakehouse, it was more at home for
sipping after dinner. $55;
Noon
2005 Shiraz
Reserve, South Australia
With dinner at Pappas Bros
Steakhouse. Seemed a good choice at $140 from their list. Massive, slutty fruitbomb of a wine.
Went fairly well with our rich food of steak, mashed potatoes, creamed spinach, etc. Full-bodied, a
little hot (16% ABV), and concentrated. I like it for what it is, but it seems like it doesn't have anything
that a lot of other similar Aussie Shiraz have. Dinner at Pappas Bros
Vieux Mas de Papes
2001 Chateauneuf du Pape
Pleasant strawberry and
garrigue herb flavors. Medium-bodied with slightly tangy red fruit. Silky textured. Pretty good. Bit
pricey from this list at $80. Served with dinner at Tramontana in Dallas.
Parson's Flat
2002 Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon
Pathadaway
Sweet dark
black fruit with a slight high-toned pickle barrel quality. Satisfying, overall. $36;
Belovedere
2001 Montelpuciano d'Abruzzo
Large scaled wine with a nice
extracted, dense profile balanced fairly well with dark fruit. Seems to have had some oak influence.
More international in style. Pretty impressive if a bit expensive. I purchased on closeout for $25. $45;
Avignonesi
2001 Desiderio
Cortona, DOC
Impressive wine. This
tasting, I found the wine slightly hollow at first, but with a nice chewey mouthfeel, Old-world style
dark fruit, and some charred wood and licorice. Medium-bodied. Enjoyable to sit around and
contemplate. $40;
Mollydooker
2006 Gigglepot
Cabernet Sauvignon
Brief notes from
memory - 16% ABV. This is a big, dense wine. I didn't detect anything that suggested Cabernet.
Extremely fruity and primary. Unmistakeable as Aussie. Not excited vis a vis other Aussie wines on
the market with a similar flavor profile and lower cost. $50; At the lake with friends
Loring
2004 Pinot Noir
Durrell Vineyard, Sonoma Coast
15.2% ABV.
Starts off smoky, like the Cargasacchi we tasted a couple weeks back. This seems to subside and
the fruit comes forward. Very nice strawberry-raspberry flavors with a good acid balance and
concentration. Finishes with tangy cranberry. $45; At the lake with friends
Loring
2004 Pinot Noir
Rancho Ontiveros, Santa Maria Valley
15.1%
ABV. Decent Pinot which starts with a smoky earth nose but shows nice tangy red fruit on the palate.
$45;
Produttori del Barbaresco
2001 Barbaresco
Ovello, Riserva
14% ABV.
Unmistakably Nebbiolo with its waxy, firm slight violet aroma. Dense, and rather tannic with a slight
core of dark fruit sweetness. Needs time. $40;
Cheers!
James
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