My parents were in town last weekend, which meant that my Dad got to go to the Friday night tasting at Bin 75 with me and experience the fun I've been having. We were back to a more manageable group compared with the prior week, and ended up with a really great group of wines.
My contribution was our first wine of the night, the 1999 Domaine du Pegau Chateauneuf du Pape. The wine was great to start, but later we noticed something off on the nose, suggesting it may be corked. It wasn't, but there remained some funk on the nose that never went away.
Our second wine was definitely a Cab, but it seemed so young and a bit too forward to be Bordeaux to me. I was wrong though, and shocked when it was revealed as a 2000 Chateau Malmaison. Dad had nailed it was Bordeaux, but the fact that it was a 2000 and still so young was really amazing.
Dad's wine was up next, and it was a blockbuster - the 1997 Dal Forno Valpolicella. Keith had mentioned the prior week that he would love if Dad could bring a Dal Forno, and he was happy to oblige. Everyone agreed this was a truly special wine.
The next wine seemed to be a basic California Cab, and nothing really special, but turned out to be a Cab Franc, not Sauvingnon - the 2003 Keenan Cab Franc.
The next wine began a run of Italians and was obviously a Nebbiolo. There was a split between Barolo and Barbaresco, with my guess going for a 96 Barolo. The wine ended up being the 1998 Azelia Barolo Bricco Fiasco.
Up next was a wine that most of us identified as being Sangiovese, but varied on whether it was a Chianti, Supertuscan, or Brunello. Regardless, it was very good and ended up being the 1999 Felsina Fontalloro, a Supertuscan.
We remained in Tuscany for the next wine as well, this time for the 2003 Mazzei Siepi Supertuscan. Again, we zeroed in on Tuscany, but no one was quite right on it, and we were impressed by how well a wine from the 2003 vintage was showing.
Our next wine took us back to France, and after a bit of time I was actually able to nail the exact wine for the first time. I was lucky in that we had tasted it several weeks ago, but the combination of Syrah characteristic plus a strong sense of minerality led me to the 2005 St. Cosme Cote Rotie. I was again very impressed by this wine.
Finally, we wrapped up the night with a 2001 Chateau Lascombes Margaux. Everyone was on Bordeaux, and so we tried to get closer on the identification. Many were guessing the wine was from St. Estephe, and an older vintage of mid-late 90s. I didn't get the appellation, but did end up getting the vintage correct. Overall, it was a nice wine, especially for the vintage.
Overall, this was a great lineup of wines, maybe the best top to bottom of any night I've been at Bin 75. Dad had a great time, and most everyone enjoyed having him there. He definitely sees why I've been enjoying these tastings so much, and looks forward to joining me again.
No comments:
Post a Comment