Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Misiones de Rengo Sauvignon Blanc 2008

Variety: 100% Sauvignon Blanc  
Country of origin: Chille
Wine appellation: Central Valley (Maule Valley)
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol content: 13.0%
Residual sugar: 2.44g/l
Acidity: 4.16g/l
Color: very pale zellow
Bouquet: very fresh, lime, yellow melon, grapefruit, white currant, acacia flowers
Taste: medium body, white grapefruit, lime, white currant,  nice astringency, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: see food, fish
Overall score: 82
Price: CZK 99
Stopper: cork
Excellent value/price ratio Sauvignon Blanc. Typical nose of SB, when it is chilled slightly more it reminds white grapefruite and lime. When warmer it goes towards tropical fruit tones, yellow melon maybe even passion fruit. In taste it is not complicated, but very straightforward refreshing SB, which must be excellent for summer parties:)

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Raimat Chardonnay 2003 DO

Variety: 100% Chardonnay
Country of origin: Spain
Wine appellation: Costers del Segre
Vintage: 2003
Alcohol content: 13.5%
Residual sugar: unknown
Acidity: unknown
Color: golden
Bouquet: pineapple, cream, butter and toast
Taste: medium to full body, very nice ripe tropical fruit (mainly pineapple) with a hint of apple and nice toast tones, very balanced, round, medium to long finish
Recommended food pairing: pork chops
Overall score: 85
Price: ???
Stopper: cork
This was very  nice Chardonnay. Excellent color, almost like a gold. Nice bouquet of dry pineapple combined with vanilla. Very full body, pineapple with toastiness from the barrels nicely integrated with the fruit and properly aged.

Lamberti Bardolino Chiaretto 2007 DOC

Variety: Bardolino
Country of origin: Italy
Wine appelation:
Veneto
Vintage:
2007
Alcohol content: 12.0%
Residual sugar: unknown
Acidity: unknown
Color: strawberry pink
Bouquet: grapefruit, strawberries
Taste: light body, red currant, strawberries, nice acidity, refreshing
Recommended
food pairing:
salads, smoked salmon
Overall
score: 81

Stoppper: cork
Price: CZK 149
I was just comparing my notes with the notes I wrote last year in autumn about this wine and they are almost identical. I preserved it n the wine fridge at 9 C and it helped to preserve it so nicely that there was almost no difference in taste and it still has this nicely acidity. In case of scoring I scored it this time slightly lower, 81.

Friday, May 21, 2010

Moravska Ruzenka Merlot 2008 Rose

Variety: Merlot
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Mikulov sub appellation, Drnholec village
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol content: 11.5%
Residual sugar: n/a
Acidity: n/a
Color: salmon
Bouquet: over ripe mango,
Taste: light body, pleasant acidity, pink grapefruit, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: fruit salad
Overall score: 79
Price: CZK129
Stopper: plastic cork
This was not a bad choice for Friday evening to accompany our search on youtube re old TV soap operas...

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Cono Sur Sauvignon Blanc 2009

Variety: 100% Sauvignon Blanc  
Country of origin: Chille
Wine appellation: Central valley
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol content: 13.0%
Residual sugar: n/a
Acidity: n/a
Color: very pale almost like a water
Bouquet: very fresh, lime, green apple, white grapefruit, gooseberry
Taste: light to medium body, white grapefruit, lime, lively acidity accompanied by nice astringency, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: see food
Overall score: 83
Price: CZK 179
Stopper: screw cap
Very fresh, lime and more citrusy style than passions fruit style, which is typical for the New Zealand.

Vinařství u Kapličky Veltlínské Zelené 2008 kabinet

Variety: Gruner Veltliner
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Mikulov sub appellation, Milovice village, Milovické terasy vineyard
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol content: 11.5%
Residual sugar: n/a
Acidity: n/a
Color: pale yellow
Bouquet: very strange, not expressive hard to detect with some thinner tones or medicine as well
Taste: medium body, grape flavor, with almond bitterness at the end
Recommended food pairing: spinach quiche
Overall score: 76
Price: CZK ???
Stopper: plastic cork

This was the second sample and it was rather different from the first one, the nose was rather strange hardly detect that the wine is GV with some chemical tones in it. In taste it was rather flat, not expressive.

Baloun Veltlínské Zelené 2008 pozdní sběr

Variety: Green Veltliner
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Mikulov sub appellation, Starovičky village, Nová hora vineyard
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol content: 12.0%
Residual sugar: n/a
Acidity: n/a
Color: pale yellow
Bouquet: freshly cut grass in the meadow, white peper
Taste: medium body, spicy, green pepper, almonds, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: salads, fish
Overall score: 82
Price: CZK ???
Stopper: plastic cork
This was quite typical GV for Moravia, rather spicy than citrusy style, but very nicely done. It ended on the second place.

Vinařství Volařík Veltlínské Zelené 2009 pozdní sběr

Variety: Greenur Veltliner
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Mikulov sub appellation, Perná village, Věstoňsko vineyard
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol content: 14.0%
Residual sugar: n/a
Acidity: n/a
Color: pale yellow , almost seethrough
Bouquet: very concentrated, dry apples, in the back elderberries, spicness
Taste: medium to full body, spicy, sharp zesty acidity, minerality, in the back slight burning tones from the alcohol, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: asparagus
Overall score: 84
Price: CZK ???
Stopper: plastic cork
This GV ended up on the first place, I liked it, but to be fair it was not typical GV in the smell at all, in the taste it had the nice spiciness typical for GV combined with the minerality of Palava area. If it had lower alcohol it would have scored even higher.

Arte Vini Green 2008

Variety: Green Veltliner
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol content: 11.5%
Residual sugar: n/a
Acidity: n/a
Color: pale yellow with green hue
Bouquet: very fresh citrus tones, lime, grass, white grapefruit, needs time to open up
Taste: medium body, crispy acidity, lime, white peppers
Recommended food pairing: salads, fish
Overall score: 82
Price: CZK 150
Stopper:screw cap
This was the first sample of our Gruner Veltliner blind tasting. This wine took really long to open up as it was probably slightly over-chilled at the beginning. It is nice fresh and zesty type of  Gruner Veltliner. It ended up on the 3rd place. For pic please refer to previous tasting of the same wine from February. It is actually very similar to this tasting. In February I remember the wine being younger, nicely zestiness on the tongue.

Vinselekt Michlovský Pálava 2004 pozdní sběr

Variety: 100% Pálava (Gewurtztraminer x Muller Thurgau)
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Velké Pavlovice sub-appellation, Přítluky village, U Majáku vineyard
Vintage: 2004
Alcohol content: 12.0%
Color: straw yellow
Bouquet: overripe fruit, flowers, orange, honey, towards dry fruit, on the nose it appears sweet
Taste: light to medium body, very different from the nose, dry, with spicy tones of ripe elderberries, higher acidity, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: Asian cousine
Overall score: 80
Price: CZK 120
Stopper: plastic cork
The nose was very nice, overripe dry fruits, muscatel type of spiciness and lots of ripe fruit, it actally smelled like sweet wine:). In the taste it was not confirmed and the wine was dry with higher acidity and slight bitterness at the end like some dry Gewurtztraminers can be.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Chateau Valtice Aurelius 2004 pozdní sběr

Variety: 100% Aurelieus (Neuburger x Rhine Rieslig)
Country of origin: Czech Republic  
Wine appellation: Moravia, Mikulv sub-appellation, Dolní Dunajovice village, Kraví hora
Vintage: 2004
Alcohol content: 12.3%
Residual sugar: n/a
Acidity: n/a
Color: medium yellow
Bouquet: ripe grapes, tones of apricot
Taste: medium body, minerality, lively acidity, nicely round, at the end peeled almonds, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: turkey
Overall score: 83
Price: CZK 170 (in 2006)
Stopper: cork
Very nice round food style of wine, quite round in the taste with Riesling complexity and more grape type like bouquet.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Trivento Tribu Pinot Noir 2005

Variety: Pinot Noir
Country of origin: Argentina
Wine appellation:
Mendoza
Vintage:
2005 Alcohol content: 13.5%
Residual sugar: n/a
Acidity: n/a
Color: brownish red with the bricky meniscus
Bouquet: red currant, coffee, jam, vanilla
Taste: medium body, strawberry preserve, coffee accompanied by tones of chocolate, medium finish
Recommended
food pairing:
pork loin wrapped in bacon and baked with rosemary
Overall
score: 83

Nicely done Pinot to accompany this stunning Pork loin we had:)

František Foretník Agni 2006 pozdní sběr

Variety: 100% Agni (Andre x Irsay Oliver)
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Slovácko sub-appellation, Šardice village, Padělky vineyard
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol content: 13.5%
Residual sugar: g/l
Acidity: g/l
Color: medium red with ruby hues
Bouquet: very aromatic, rose buds, red currant
Taste: medium body, very fruity, cherries, red currant, hint of blackberries, spiciness, short to medium finish
Recommended food pairing: duck liver pate
Overall score: 80
Price: CZK 150 in 2009
Stopper: cork
Absolutely strange wine. This is the first time I tasted this variety and it was a bit surprising, the bouquet was very similar to Gewurtztraminer with the rose buds, but accompanied by juice of red currant. In the taste it was very fruity and nice example of lighter red.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Cantine di Bertiolo Chardonnay Conti di Colloredo Mels 2007

Variety: 100% Chardonnay
Country of origin: Italy
Wine appellation: Friuli
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol content: 12.5%
Color: medium yellow
Bouquet: mineral, zesty, lime
Taste: light to medium body,very fresh and zesty type of , lime acidity, green apple, medium finish
Overall score: 4+7+11+5+6+50= 83
Price: CZK 150
Stopper: screw cap
Fresher style of Chardonnay.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Jacob's Creek Chardonnay 2008

Variety: 100% Chardonnay
Country of origin: Australia
Wine appellation: South Eastern Australia  
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol content: 13%
Color: light yellow with green hue
Bouquet: fresh, citrus, green melon
Taste: medium body, quite fruity, melon, pineapple, white grapefruit, touch of oak, feels young
Overall score: 3+7+10+5+5+50=80
Price: CZK 189
Stopper: screw cap
Young and slightly unbalanced Chardonnay.

Cassa Vinicola Bennati Corte Pitora Chardonnay 2007 IGT

Variety: 100% Chardonnay
Country of origin: Italy
Wine appellation: Veneto
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol content: 12.0%
Color: medium yellow
Bouquet: round, ripe peach hint of pineapple
Taste: light to medium body, fairly simple, hint of pineapple, ripe melon, medium finish
Overall score: 4+6+10+5+5+50= 81
Price: CZK 165
Stopper: synthetic cork
Regular Italian quaffer:-)(tasted in 2010 now putting it on blog)

Mikrosvín Mikulov Traditional Line Chardonnay 2007 pozdní sběr

Variety: 100% Chardonnay
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Mikulov sub-appellation, Dolní dunajovice village, Zimní vrch vineyard
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol content: 12.5%
Color: Medium yellow
Bouquet: very expressive, overripe tropical fruit, honey with secondary notes of dried fruits especially bananas and dried herbs.
Taste: Medium to full body, round, pineapple, similar to nose bananas supported by good acidity and minerality, longer finish
Recommended food pairing: turkey salad
Overall score: 4+8+12+6+7+50=87
Price: ~CZK 280 in 2009
Stopper: single piece cork
Very nice complex Chardonnay. Shows how good Mikulov appellation and Mikros producer are.