Equipo Navazos La Bota de Manzanilla Pasada Bota "NO"

Manzanilla Pasada - occupying that important phase of maturity between Fino and Amontillada (not Amontillado, which comes after Amontillada. I think.). I didn't drink this with Broomie, I drank it with Andy. And then I saved a bit which I meant to bring into work, but then got greedy and finished before that could happen. Because it was very, very tasty.

Quite light, but with beginnings of brass.

Sea salt and hay with smoked nuts and toffee. There's some citrus there as well as butterscotch and dough.

The palate starts off quite invigorating. Fresh salt spray, citrus tang and the dust from the bottom of a bowl of dust. Then it softens, becomes quite velvety and textured. Melts on the mouth sort of like dried bits of seaweed with sushi. Fresh notes of mint, some other herby notes. Complex. Nuanced. Yet more amazing sherry from these folks.

*****

Tasted 8 & 11 January 2013 at Millers Court

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Equipo Navazos La Bota de Palo Cortado 34

I opened this and the Amontillado with my mate, Broomie. He and I went to Jerez together 8 years ago (seems like yesterday) and share a love and nerdery for sherry such that we occasionally get a bit lost. His fiancé was with us and thought we were a combination of amusing, boring and ridiculous. We waxed lyrical and philosophical for over an hour about this, pouring forth praise and pondering nuances. 

I have one more bottle of this left in the cellar. I'm trying to forget it's there; to leave it as a sort of surprise to myself, but it keeps calling to me.

Darker, like Greek honey and brass.

Deep, rich and inviting nose. Roasted oranges and maple-glazed walnuts. A touch of amaretto. Occasionally there's a bit of spearmint, often there's deeply varnished mahogany, leather and a bit of cured meat. Dust. Toffee. Pecan pie. Bonfire smoke. It's all there.

I don't think I've ever had sherry so red-fruit like. It bursts right out with roasted and raisined strawberries, plums and raspberries, all with baked orange rind acidity to lift them. Proper waxy honeycomb, with those hardened clumps of honey sugar. Bone dry but rich and leading you along that path to thinking there must be sweetness there somewhere. But there isn't, and it's better for it. This is incredibly complex - again, every sip is different. It draws the tongue right up to the roof of the mouth and makes you tug as much as you can from every sip. Nutty, intricate, powerful, delicate, and seemingly endless - the finish is hard to determine as you want another sip before it goes away. There isn't anything out of place with this. If this isn't the best sherry I've ever drunk, it's pretty bloody close.

*****

Tasted 26 & 28 December 2012 at Miller's Court

Equipo Navazos La Bota de Amontillado 37 'Navazos'

I secured a parcel of these as a sort of Christmas present to myself. It's expensive for sherry, but for what other wine can you secure some of the absolute best available for about £50 a bottle? We all have different priorities of course. I spent most of January living on muesli as a result, but there you go. 

Pale brass, with a bit of a honey hue to it.

Pecans and almonds on the the nose, with a hint of brûlée. There's smokiness there too, depending on the whiff. It changes with every sniff. Sometimes a bit of dusty, woody varnish comes out. Sometimes it's quite orange-y.

It clenches around the tongue, permeating the channels between tasted buds. It gets in there. Like drinking polished mahogany. Those nuts from the nose are roasted more on the palate. It's surprisingly elegant, delicate, with the structure somewhat like delicately spun sugar around the edges, but at it's core is beautifully rich, dry, salted caramel. There's something different with every taste. Long; incredible.

*****
Tasted 26 & 28 December 2012 at Miller's Court

Champagne Savart 'Calliope' 2006

This was a bizarre moment. I was at a grower Champagne tasting with my mate, Pete, the Champagne lunatic. We tried the wines, some of which were lovely and some of which were not-so-much. We were in the gallery where Ronnie Wood from the Rolling Stones hangs his art. It made for surreal surroundings to say the least, as did the presence of those working in the gallery. High fashion, ridiculously glamorous art nerds meet low fashion, low glamour wine nerds. Anyway, at the end of the tasting, our host pulls this bottle out and tells us we've got to try it. It's the first bottle to leave Savart's cellars and he's only made 600 or so bottles. It's 60% Chardonnay 40% Pinot Noir and zero dosage - he doesn't really know what he's going to do with it. After tasting it, I reckon cellar half and drink the other half: it was awesome.

Pale lemon gold with fine, quick bubbles.

Hay and lemon and apple and salted shortbread with just a hint of sweet butter.

Champagne shot through a laser. Incredibly tight, lemons rind spray, touches of salinity bit of quince, remarkable stone finish that lasts a good long while. Lean but powerful stuff. This is seriously fine Champagne - I'd put it up against a gamut of prestige cuvées without hesitating. I don't know if it's going to be available for sale, but if it is, you should buy it.

*****

Tasted in Mayfair, 14 December 2012

 

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Chateau Lafite 1955

This was a little too old. I was lucky to taste it anyway, but it would have been better 10 or 15 years ago. That's snobby and picky and hypercritical, yes, but I think people stand in awe of age too much with wine. I love old wine. But sometimes it's not at its best. That doesn't make it any less charming. 

Pale as burgundy, but clearly claret.

Stewed plums, some real bright ripe berry notes, lovely forest-y secondaries. Bit tarry. Quite sweet and rich. Something creamy about.

Charming and complete on the palate. Elegant with some nice life to it. Gentle and caressing. All red fruits, strawberry cream and leather.

***

Tasted 7 December 2012 at The Sampler

 

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Musigny Grand Cru VV 1999 de Vogüé

I love Musigny. I prefer Mugnier's to de Vogüé's these days, but that's totally academic as I cannot afford either. 

Dark, deep and gorgeous.

Quite mute to start. Slowly showing strawberries, cherries and some glazed ham.

Incredibly tight knit at the moment, with fruit and secondaries pulled taut like rope in the palate. Finely texture, like beautiful wood. Echoes long after it goes down. Intense. Focused. Precise, but still with elegant poise. Lifting. Glorious.

*****

Tasted 7 December 2012 at The Sampler

 

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Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses 1955 Bouchard Aine & Fils

A friend and I decided to try a few icons at The Sampler before Christmas. 

Lovely colour, still with some weight.

Young on the nose, but not too young.

Still quite juicy and elegant on the palate, gripping and structured, with bright dark cherries, leather and dusty herbs. Lovely.

****

Tasted 7 December 2012 at The Sampler

 

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Grands Echezeaux 1969 Leroy

Pale and beautiful.

Strawberries and mulch on the nose. Burgundian barnyard that gets heady cocoay and perfumey.

Ripe, candied strawberries with beeswax, a touch of rosemary and the most silky delicate texture that hides this tight, zingy citrus. Juicy still. Lovely length.

****

Tasted 7 December 2012 at The Sampler

 

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Quintarelli Amarone 2000

I've mentioned before the special place Amarone takes in my heart. Any chance to try Quintarelli should be cherished. The great man himself passed away this year, and the world is poorer for it.

Not as dark and broody as I was expecting.

Liquor-soaked raisins covered in chocolate with some meat behind it.

Awesome backwards and properly bitter. Intense sweet dried fruit mixed with plums and the most bitter of dark chocolate. Proper mole style. Chillies. Long. Powerful. Amazing. For such power to be so nuanced, for all that layered complexity to be so clear and pristinely structured is remarkable. 

*****

Tasted 4 December 2012 at SWiG

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Sassicaia Vertical

This was a treat. My boss was hosting a top flight Italian tasting and opened all the bottles at the office to make sure they were in good condition and give us a chance to try them. Sometimes it's not so bad being a wine-merchant.

Sassicaia 1988

I love 1988 as a vintage in a lot of places, particularly Champagne. Not had the chance to try many from Italy, so I was curious and not a little bit excited.

Lovely depth of colour still. Slightly paled with age.

Very cedar-y and leafy on the nose. Just underneath that is juicy cherry and cassis. Truffles.

Lovely, leathery and quite delicious. Texture is grainy and nuanced. Great length. Superb fruit purity, though I wish a touch more of the secondaries came through.

****

Sassicaia 1990

Bottle variation can be a blessing and a curse. This was a curse.

Darker but not by much.

Earthy, slightly animal nose. Of Brett? Should blow off. Doesn't blow off. 

Very tight. Something a touch off, sadly.

Can't rate.

Sassicaia 1999

Italy was blessed by some truly extraordinary vintages at the end of the last century and the beginning of this one. And with so much attention being paid to overhyped '97s, you could do worse than picking up some great '99s at pretty good prices. Not this, of course. This is stupidly expensive and never worth quite as much as you pay for it. 

Dark.

Big, meaty, savoury nose of Parma ham and perfumed edges.

Palate is huge, juicy with cassis and cherries. Softening tannins but still with lovely grip and a touch of tactile bite. It gets leathery as it goes on, with great wood integration.

****

Sassicaia 2001

Another of those great Italian vintages. I would be very happy with a cellar full of '01s and '04s. 

Darker.

Softer nose than 1999. Caramel notes and Ceps as well as dark forest fruits.

Beautifully integrated berry fruit that's wrapped tightly in cocoa and herbs. Forest floor. Soft right up until a bracing and gripping finish. 

****

All tasted 4 December 2012 at SWiG

 

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Barolo Granbussia Riserva Speciale 1978 Aldo Conterno

This was a bit of a genie out of the bottle wine. As you can see from my note, it absolutely astounded when first tried, but coming back to it shortly afterwards it was beginning to dumb down. Those first few moments, however, were magical.

Pale ruby and rust. Bright highlights. Very translucent.

Big, bursting nose of roasted cherries and oranges with cinnamon, wild forest, old wood (but not wet) and a lot of leather. Crunchy, piercing and brilliant.

Oh my god that's so fresh, elegant and youthful. Bright cherries in all shades - fresh and sour, stewed and sweet, dried and crunchy, with a tanned citrus acidity, brow-beaten leather, cedar and the sense of walking on crunchy dried pine needles in an autumn forest. Such a wonder of age and freshness. I'm speechless. The barest of sips and I could almost write a book about it.

*****

Coming back to it and its age shows somewhat. Far more muted, earthy and secondary ***. The genie fled the bottle, perhaps, but still - quite the experience. 

Tasted at SWiG, 4 December 2012

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Chateau Pichon-Longueville Baron 1985

I'm more familiar with the Comtesse de Lalande, but I do have very fond memories of '90 Baron at a stylish restaurant in north Kensington in the company of friends. The '90 was the laughable price of £60 on the wine list. So we had two. I don't know how afforded my lifestyle in my mid-late 20s, but it could go some way to explaining why I have no savings and still rent, rather than own. 

Colour is perfect for the age. Fading a touch, but still bright and playful in the light.

Nose is glorious, rising from the glass in all directions. Cedar and herbs, dark stone fruit, cocoa and leather.

Harmony. Fruit and secondary integration flows across the mouth effortlessly. From beginning to end, everything is in its proper place. All the nuance of the nose comes through but with more ephemeral notes, and small pinpricks of wood spice along the way. Lovely, proper claret.

*****

Tasted 28 July at The Sampler

Bourgogne 'Cuvèe Halinard', Bernard Dugat-Py 2009

I know these wines only by reputation, the reputation being exceptional. I picked this up as an introduction to the domaine as it was the most modestly priced of those available. And by 'modestly priced', I mean no such thing. It was hilariously pricey for AOC Bourgogne, at over the £30 mark. Still, with more senior village offerings well over twice that, I figured dipping my toes in at £30 would reward a Burgundy nut like myself, or prevent me from spending more on a disappointment. 

Dark Burgundian shade, laced with purple and a deep core. Broody looking.

Bushels of sweet red fruits with some darker plum and savoury tones on the nose. Very heady and quite floral - bit of violet to it. Intense.

The fruit has a piercing, juicy intensity to it, but it's surrounded by lush, soft gently textured tannins that don't show off their serious side until the beginning of the finish. The fruit gives way to the youthful hints of savoury notes, but they're still a bit under-developed at the moment. And just like they lingered on the edges of the nose, those violets linger and drift on the edges of the palate. This is luscious, sexy style Burgundy from the most luscious and sexy vintage in sometime. That focus of the fruit provides a great line to hold everything to it until it gives way to secondaries and tannin. Very long on the finish. Decadent, delicious stuff. 

Frightened to say it's worth the money. I know 1er Cru wines from lesser growers that cost more and deliver less. Horrifying, as it means I'm going to wind up buying more of these, and I can't really afford to.

*****

Tasted 21 August 2012 at Shorehead

Sassicaia 2001 (from half bottle)

I feel this is a good but not a great wine. I think maybe it should be priced around Tignanello level, and it isn't. I've tried four or five vintages of it now, and have enjoyed them, but feel its fame and status spring more from the incredible change it wrought, rather than the liquid in the bottle every year. Maybe I'm just grumpy. 2001 was a lovely year in Tuscany, the end of a great run of vintages that started in '95.

I've never had the '85, which is meant to be immortal. 

Dark. Young. A bit bloody.

Crazy nose. Butterscotch, toffee followed by dark black currants and chocolate.

Sexy palate. Everything is there from the nose, with it starting quite sweet and generous. The fruit appears mid palate, quite juicy, but it softens a bit too quickly in the mouth. Good length. 

****

Tasted 28 July 2012 at The Sampler

Gaja Barbaresco 1995 (half bottle)

I wish I had made it my New Year's resolution to drink more wines from Angelo Gaja, because that's what seems to be happening this year, much to my delight.

Still quite young looking. Pale, but vibrant. No Nebbiolo browning as yet.

Nose is forest and forest fruits that turn to cherries, with a bit of roasted herb. Beguiling stuff.

The palate doesn't follow through. It's good. There's that crunchy grip, but it seems a touch dried out. The finish does not linger, and stops a bit short. It's still charming and has bright spots, but is past it, sadly.

**

Tasted 28 July 2012 at The Sampler

A Guigal or two

I've been aware of The Sampler for some time, though fear for my wallet led me to avoid it. This was pure idiocy on my part, and I can only hope that the wine gods look down on my attempts at fiscal responsibility as a mere temporary lapse of reason. Bizarrely, I didn't browse much, but what I saw suggested a meticulous selection - names that were familiar brought glee, while the unfamiliar looked exciting and seemed to be screaming 'buy me'. That's about as good as it gets with wine shops.

The reason I didn't browse was because I was there to taste. The Sampler has several banks of enomatic machines. These machines keep wine bottles in a neutral atmosphere, allowing samples to be dispensed pretty much indefinitely without the wine oxidising. They're pretty much the most awesome thing since bacon. 

My mate Pete and I decided on two rather epic cuvées to kick things off. 1992 was not the greatest vintage in history of the Northern Rhône, but it was better than in Bordeaux.  

Guigal Côte Rôtie La Mouline 1992

Mature but no amber. Faded purple and ruby.

Nose is dusty and sweet, with piercing juiciness on the end, as though to remind you that there's still life there.

Intense, concentrated on the palate. The fruit is dark, ripe and knit tightly to the wood and secondaries. You don't just taste them together, you feel how they mesh with each other. Oak apparent, but feels old, tempered. Very long, with quite a fresh juiciness to it. 

****

Guigal Côte Rôtie La Landonne 1992

Darker than the La Mouline. More purple and less ruby.

Nose has a nice earthiness to it. It's a bit more rounded - less dust and more suede, softer fruit.

Palate follows the nose. More rounded and supple, with greater harmony between the fruit and the secondaries. It's like silk, plums and bitter chocolate. It seems gentler, but as the finish arrives it reveals a tight stoniness underneath. 

*****

Both impressive wines, and ageing with elegance. I think perhaps the Mouline wanted a bit more for food, though the Landonne was the sexier at the moment. The Landonne had me discovering more, hence the extra star, but scores are stupid anyway.

Tasted 28/7/2012 at The Sampler, South Kensington

d' Oliveira Boal 1908

We had been planning something like this for awhile. My mates and I wanted to drink old Madeira, and our suppliers were letting us down. We reserved bottles and they were sold to others. We ordered online and were told they were out of stock. We were beginning to suspect some sort of conspiracy. There must have been some plot to prevent us from buying old Madeira. It wouldn't surprise me. True Madeira fans are maniacal in their passion. 

I did some research and we secured this bottle from a merchant who, and I am not making this up, questioned our love of Madeira before letting us buy it. I fucking love the wine trade.

Dark, treacle. 

Dark moscavado sugar with balsamic vinegar, coffee grounds, pata negra. Very savoury. It starts off with an edge of varnish that gradually dissipates. 

Gripping, tight, viscous espresso/ristretto. Intense, savoury with salted caramel sweetness following only at the very end of the palate, though as the finish lingers it very much goes back to coffee. It's quite a simple note, really, but it's not a simple wine. All the flavours work like a fractal, as they follow a similar pattern/flavour profile that echoes on grander and lesser levels as they go on. Every sip it hits you differently. You clasp your lips close and press your tongue to your mouth as though you're sucking on a boiled sweet, trying to squeeze more and more out of it, even though as your mouth waters, your eyes tear up a bit. It lasts for five or ten minutes, but it's sad that I know that, because it means that I finished my glass.

***** wow

Tasted at Naughton, 29 April 2012

Warre's 1970

I'd not tried this in some time. If memory serves, this was their 'tricentenary' bottling, celebrating a staggering 300 years of making Port. 

Dusty looking and pale.

Hot on the nose with sweet cranberries.

Palate is gentle with cinnamon and dried, spiced apples with cranberries and sugar plums and more winter spice. Long and delicious and the best I've had it. Still a fair few decades left in it as well.

****

Tasted on Crawford Gardens, Summer of 2010

Chateau Mouton-Rothschild 1996

I've accidentally drunk a great deal more Mouton-Rothschild than I ever intended to. This isn't a bad thing.

The barest hint of fading on the rim, but still deep and dark.

Nose is savoury and minty and kind of brutish, with plums and wild herbs on the edges. It gets headier as it opens up.

The palate is backwards and ungiving at the moment. With coaxing, the ripeness of the fruit comes through, coated with sandy tannins. Leaps out with the food, but still seems to lack a bit of lift. I want to re-taste, as I was somewhat underwhelmed.

***(*)

Tasted on Crawford Gardens, Summer 2010

Leoville-Barton 2000

I tasted this with some trepidation. I have a case laying down and thought, 'you better be bloody good'.

Dark and unremitting.

Fantastic nose. Dark fruits with smokey edges and a tar note that opens to anise and cinnamon. The fruit is sweet.

Larger than life on the palate - big, rich, structured claret. Hints of all on the nose, but they're still all tripping over each other. Incredibly young, dark and unyielding. There's more to come. This was clearly infanticide, but the exciting kind. Years and years left.

***(**)

Tasted on Crawford Gardens, Summer 2010