Miscellaneous Bottles

Some bottles tasted during the last couple of weeks, both at tastings and on their own at home.

(2012) Antea, Tenuta Anfosso
I tasted this unique wine during a visit to the estate this summer and found it to be great. On this occasion, back home, it performed on the same high level with a lovely nose with lime, summer flowers and chalk.
The taste is cool, fresh and fine with notes of lime peel, summer flowers, chalk and a touch of pear. A long, fine finish with a very fine, although not very high, acidity. Very, very good.
90p   (tasted 2013/10)

1998 Côte-Rôtie La Landonne, Delas Freres
R poured this blind after our tasting of Guigal´s La Landonne. The nose is deep, spicy and mature with notes of sweet lingonberries, blueberry bushes, crushed white peppers and rosehip. A very fine maturity.
The taste is younger than the leads you to believe. A long, tight and spicy taste with notes of blueberries, violets, white pepper and a touch of toothpaste. Very, very good. Should still evolve with 3+ years in the cellar.
90p   (tasted 2013/10)

2003 Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Rieslig Auslese, Dönnhoff
This stunner has a velvety, deep and semi sweet nose with notes of white peach, orange peel, dried honey and wet asphalt. Very racy. Refinement in a glass. Just great.
The taste is impressive with a soft, semi sweet entry that explodes in a myriad of lemon fruits and a acidity beyond words. Very, very pure. This is in a great drinking phase, just balancing the sweetness and acidity. Gorgeous.
93p   (tasted 2013/10)

2007 Riesling Kabinett, A. J. Adam
A young, fresh, pure nose with notes of yellow apples, ripe pears, pickled ginger and flint. Very good. Elegant.
The taste is cool and fresh with notes of lemon peel, pears, ginger and crushed rocks. A medium long, fine finish with good acidity. A fine bitterness at the end. Very, very good.
88p   (tasted 2013/11)

2012 Nierstein Riesling Kabinett -H-, Keller
This Hipping Kabinett is a divine wine. The nose is stellar, with great purity and elegance. Lovely notes of ripe pears, elderberries, liquorice, hazel nuts, rubber and sweet minerals - deep, complex and intoxicating. Just beautiful.
The taste is young, tight and refined with notes of lime juice, grapefruit, ripe pears, granite, grass and slate. A long, almost weightless, yet intense finish. Very, very fine. Still young of course, but impossible to resist today. Marvellous wine!
94p   (tasted 2013/11)

2002 Saarburger Rausch Riesling Spätlese, Ziliken
This wine was poured after the stunning Hipping above, and time stood still. A candidate of white wine of the year, this semi mature Riesling touched me. The nose is very deep and concentrated with wondrous notes of lemon juice, blood orange, oil cloth, melting ice, liquorice and a touch of rubber. Very aristocratic. Very exquisite. This is goooooood!
The taste is light on its feet, yet intense and focused with magnificent notes of sweet lime juice, liquorice, rain water, dried pears, crumbled biscuits and a touch of hay. The acidity is not of this world. Balance is a key word to describe this wine. Delicate. Wow!
96p   (tasted 2013/11)

2004 Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese, Dönnhoff
A deep, intense and solid nose with notes of dried apricots, orange juice, resin, cap gun smoke and white balsamic vinegar. Interesting and deep. Very good.
The taste is wide, tight and focused with notes of sweet lemon juice, orange peel, licorice, warm grass and minerals. A long, semi dry finish with a high acidity. Very, very good.
91p   (tasted 2013/11)

2000 Redigaffi, Tua Rita
This 100p Parker wine is a big mouthful of juicy Merlot, but it is not a perfect wine, not in my book anyway. The nose is deep, intense and full of sweet black plums, raspberry liquorice, moist earth, fresh herbs and some chocolate covered cherries. Very deep. Blood orange juice.
The taste is big and broad with lots of sweet black cherries and plums. Additional notes are sweet liquorice, autumn leaves, dark chocolate, expensive leather and warm tiles. Very big but extremely well polished tannins. There is a touch of alcohol in the end of the finish. Has started to mature a little bit, but I guess it will need 5+ years to really show its character.
92p   (tasted 2013/11)

2005 Chassagne-Montrachet Les Champs de Morjot, Château de la Charriére
A big, round, mature nose with notes of dried fruits in the shape of apricots, peach and pears. Some additional notes of smoke and saffron. A little front heavy on the nose. But a nice warmth.
The taste is big, ample and warm with notes of the above dried fruits, dried honey, saffron and moist forest floor. Long and warm. Marked of the warm 05 vintage. Ok drinking but a bit too heavy.
78p   (tasted 2013/12)

2003 Aloxe-Corton Les Maréchaudes, Domaine Vincent Sauvestre
A big, mature, warm nose with notes of (over) ripe lingonberries, cranberry juice, dried herbs, road dust and a burned character. Marked of the warm year. A bit rubbery from time to time. But the lingonberry fruit is nice.
The taste is warm, tight and dry with notes of lingonberries, dried raspberries, rosehips and forest floor. A good warmth in the medium long finish. The taste is less marked by the year. Good.
82p   (tasted 2013/11)