April
Château Climens
Barsac 1er Cru Sémillon-Sauvignon Blanc Blend 2011
The 2011 Climens has a fresh, lifted, mineral-driven bouquet which has closed down a little. The palate is well balanced with a fine bead of acidity, taut and fresh. A lively, tensile finish, with hints of stem ginger thatlinger on the aftertaste. This is drinking beautifully. Tasted at the Climens vertical at the château in April 2022. (Neal Martin, Vinous, August 2022)
— 4 years ago
Borgo del Tiglio (Nicola Manferrari)
Ronco della Chiesa Collio Tocai Friulano 2019
The 2019 Ronco della Chiesa is smoky yet elegant in the glass with flinty crushed peaches, nuances of sweet spice and wet stone. It’s silky and polished in feel with a lovely inner sweetness and a slight tropical tone to its fruit, yet the balance is on point. The 2019 finishes long and floral, leaving hints of melon. This is an interesting vintage of Ronco della Chiesa, a varietal Friulano, as it has a distinctive confectionary character, yet comes across as completely harmonious. (Eric Guido, Vinous, April 2022)
— 4 years ago
Torre dei Beati
Giocheremo Con i Fiori Abruzzo Pecorino 2019
This captivating Pecorino shows a bouquet of candied ginger with dusty florals, wild herbs, incense and crushed green apple. Silky and rich, yet balanced by stimulating acids and mineral-tinged orchard fruits, it tapers off spicy with a hint of sour melon that keeps the palate wanting more. $22.00 (Eric Guido, Vinous, April 2021) — 5 years ago
Produttori del Barbaresco
Barbaresco Nebbiolo 2012
[Tasted on April 18, 2020 at Home]
Black cherry, strawberry and raspberry fruit. Floral wine with roses, tobacco and tar. Delicious Barbaresco, which was Highly Recommended by Wine Spectator. — 6 years ago
The Standish Wine Company
The Relic Shiraz Blend 2004
Happy Valentines Day!
If you have not looked for this wine on WineSearcher.com or other, you should. Dan Standish has no American Importer. However, you can mail order off his list. Good luck with the Australian/United States import costs. Very prohibited.
Most quality Barossa wines take 15 years in bottle to show their ultimate beauty. Dan’s wines are no different. His Estate vines are 100 years old and produce 500 pounds of fruit per acre...very concentrated. Contrast that to extremely expensive & high quality Napa fruit, those Napa producers are at 2,000-2,500 pounds per acre.
We visited Standish in April 2017. We found Dan to be extremely talented & definitely marches to his own drum. He is salt of the earth and has traveled & worked in many of the world wine regions honing his craft and landing as Torbreck’s Winemaker in Barossa before starting, “The Standish Wine Company.”
As good as the 04 is tonight, it has 15 years of good life ahead...properly stored of course.
The nose is very intoxicating. It is a nice blend of purple, black & blue fruits. Mulberries, olallieberries, boysenberries, black plums, plums, blackberries, dark cherries, deeply extracted raspberries, some baked strawberries, black licorice to anise, dark fruit cola, black olive skin, medium dark spice, black pepper, charcoal, graphite, dry tobacco & underbrush, some bay leaf, alluvial soils, grey volcanic minerals/limestone with fresh & only slightly withering, purple, dark, blue florals framed in violets & lavender.
The body is full, rich, ripe, lush and creamy on the palate after a two-hour plus decant. The structure, tension, length and balance are a little short of its peak and will hold there for 5-8 years. It’s a glorious glide on the palate. The fruits are ripe & lightly baked. Mulberries, olallieberries, boysenberries, black plums, plums, blackberries, dark cherries, deeply extracted raspberries, some baked strawberries, cherry kirsch, red & black licorice to anise, dark fruit cola, black olive skin, the dark spices are heavier on the palate & bring just the right amount of heat, sweet, dark tarriness, black pepper, used, dark expresso roast grounds, charcoal, graphite, dry tobacco & underbrush, some bay leaf, alluvial soils, grey volcanic minerals/limestone, moist clay, with fresh & only slightly withering, purple, dark, blue florals framed in violets & lavender. The acidity is round, flush & perfect. The long finish is a unique even balance of; lush fruits, spice, herbs and earth that persists on the palate for minutes.
Photo on the left of Sofia’s 2 dozen long stems. Love you so much!
@Oswald — 6 years ago
Dominus Estate
Dominus Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 1994
The Standish Wine Company
Single Vineyard Shiraz 2006
If you have not had this producer of Shiraz from Barossa, you are missing out on some special wines from very old vines. In the case of “The Relic” 100 year old vines. We walked the Standish Estate vines w/ Dan in April 2017. They yield a paltry 500 pounds of fruit per acre. Normally, very high quality wine are around 2,00-2,500 pounds of fruit per acre. So, his wines are from small concentrated berries.
You won’t find his wines in the US except on the secondary markets. He doesn’t have or need a US importer as he sells everything he makes through his mailing list. However, worth seeking out. Also, his wines need to age and you can find them this old. I have numerous times.
Dan started out in Barossa and then gathered much of winemaking knowledge working his way through Europe for several producers and a majority of them in France.
When he returned to Australia, he became the Winemaker at Torbreck before starting “The Standish Wine Company.”
I’ve posted several of his wines with detailed notes and will let them speak here. Cheers!
— 5 years ago
Casanova di Neri
Brunello di Montalcino Sangiovese 2015
Good deep red. Saline aromas and flavors of red cherry, blueberries, herbs, blood orange and sweet spices. Smooth and long on the bright, very sweet finish. Really quite good. (Ian D'Agata, Vinous, April 2020)
— 6 years ago
Mas Martinet
Menut Priorat Red Blend 2016
Deep ruby. High-toned dark berry, cherry and game qualities on the spice-tinged nose. Offers vaguely medicinal cherry and blackcurrant flavors that unfurl slowly and turn sweeter with air. Fine-grained tannins add gentle grip to the finish, which leaves notes of cracked pepper and dark chocolate behind. (Josh Raynolds, Vinous, April 2019) — 7 years ago
Chateau Montelena
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1995
La Cappuccina
Soave Garganega 2020
The 2020 Soave is subtle and delicate in the glass with dusty yellow florals and hints of peach skins. It washes across the palate, soft and round, with a lovely mineral and acid balance. This leaves a glycerol coating of fruit concentration, yet still finishes remarkably fresh. While not the last note on depth, the 2020 is really quite lovely. (Eric Guido, Vinous, April 2022)
— 4 years ago
Moss Wood
Moss Wood Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2008
See previous notes for the 2008 from April and October 2020. Always one of Margaret River’s better Cabernets that I have been buying for decades. Consistent notes from 2020. Fresh for a 13 year old Cabernet. — 5 years ago
Fossacolle
Brunello di Montalcino Sangiovese 2015
Good full red. Inviting aromas of ripe plum, red cherry nectar, leather and underbrush. Plump but graceful, with flavors of red fruit, leather and potpourri that are supported by polished tannins tapering nicely on the long, saline finish. In keeping with the warm year, this showy wine is round and creamy but slightly less well delineated than some past vintages of Fossacolle. (Ian D'Agata, Vinous, April 2020)
— 6 years ago
Jean Lallement et Fils
Grand Cru Brut Champagne Blend
80% Pinot Noir, 20% Chardonnay.
Disgorged April 19th 2017. — 7 years ago
Mario Zillner
Another grower favorite; 75% Pinot Noir / 25% Chardonnay, mostly from 2015 (50%) along with 2014 and 2013 (50%). April 2021 disgorgement (+45 months), which is very evident; 12.5% ABV. High dosage of 6.5g; medium+ body and quite round; crisp on and through finish. Tons of green apple, tangerine, and pear, with an aggressive flower bouquet on the nose. Shows much brighter than the strong Pinot Noir tilt would imply. Delicious …and an absurd value; crowd pleaser. Cheers! — a year ago