Jedlička a Novák Rulandské modré 2008 výběr z hroznů

Variety: 100% Pinot Noir
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Velké Pavlovice sub-appellation, Bořetice village, Terasy vineyard
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol content: 14.0%
Color: light bricky red with orange meniscus
Bouquet: subtle,canned cherries,strawberry marmalade, cranberries, vanilla
Taste: fuller body, strawberries preserve, dry cranberries, supported by vanilla tones, longer finish
Recommended food pairing: pork loin with plum sauce
Overall score: 86
Price: CZK 190
Stopper: cork
Very good PN with more vanilla and strawberries and less cherries style of Binder PN tasted about 20 min ago.
 

Pavel Binder Rulandské Modré 2009 výběr z hroznů

Variety: 100% Pinot Noir
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Velké Pavlovice sub-appellation, Velké Pavlovice village, Trkmanska vineyard
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol content: 13.0%
Color: medium red with lighter meniscus
Bouquet: very expressive, cherries, vanilla
Taste: medium body, harmonic round tannins, red cherries, supported with touch of vanilla and toast, soothing after swallowing with medium finish
Recommended food pairing: game food
Overall score: 87

Price: CZK 200
Stopper: cork
Very good PN. I really like it. It reminds me the style of Stapleton and Springer does, but for better price:)

Víno Mikulov Pálava 2006 výběr z hroznů

Variety: Pálava

Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Mikulov sub appellation
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol content: 12.5%

Color: light golden

Bouquet: dry orange peel in sugar, hint of mango

Taste: medium body, canned tropical fruit, touch of lichi with spiciness in the mid palate and medium sweet tones, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: Asian food
Overall score: 83
Price: CZK 180

Stopper: plastic cork

Sweeter style of Palava, however not dull and with good structure balancing the fruit and spiciness with proper bottle maturity.

Chateau Valtice Pálava 2010 pozdní sběr

Variety: Pálava

Wine appellation: Moravia, Mikulov sub appellation, Brod nad Dyjí village, Brodské stráně vineyard
Vintage: 2010 

Alcohol content: 12.5%

Residual Sugar: 12.5g/l

Acidity: 7.1g/l
Color: light yellow
Bouquet: rose petals with slight citrus tones

Taste: medium body, spicy, white grapefruit with very good balance of high acidity characteristic for 2010 vintage with slight residual sugar, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: Asian food
Overall score: 84
Price: CZK 180

Stopper: cork

Hi Andrew, this is the bottle that you left here. We just opened it for red curry meal and it was very good pairing. The wine due to higher acidity and residual sugar will age well and should improve in 2 to 3 years.

Tesco Finest Viña Mara Rioja Reserva 2003

Fantastic wine, for tasting notes and label please refer here. Overall score: 87

Moulin de Gassac Guilhem White 2005

This was the last bottle and still amazingly drinkable with slightly more peach tones than in the last tasting notes from January last year, otherwise it was very similar so I will not reproduce them. For label please refer to October 2009 tasting of the same wine. Overall score: 82.

Michel Torino Coleccion 2004 Shiraz

Tasting notes are almost the same as in November 2011 so plese refer there.

Sacha Lichine Le Coq Rouge 2007

Variety: Merlot (45%), Cabernet Sauvignon (32%), Syrah (15%), Grenache (8%)
Country of origin: France
Wine appellation: Languedoc
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol content: 14.0%
Color: medium ruby red
Bouquet: predominantly fruity nose with violet flowers and cherries
Taste: medium body, dominant black cherries underpinned by blackcurrant and touch of spices and very soft tannins, very drinkable, straightforward with black chocolate medium  finish
Recommended food pairing: venison pate
Overall score: 84
Price: CZK 249
Stopper: screw cap
Very good blend  combining typical Bordeax and Cote du Rhone vearieties. It is so drinkable, that after 15 minutes third bottle is drunk:)

Rosemount Estate Rosemount Road Shiraz 2005

We tasted the wine almost one year ago in February 2010. If I compare my notes they differ only slightly in color, which is now deep ruby red with garnet meniscus. Otherwise nose, taste and final scoring is almost the same so I will not reproduce it.

Reverdito Barbera D'Alba 2005 Delia DOC

Variety: 100% Barbera
Country of origin: Italy
Wine appellation: Piemont, Alba
Vintage: 2005
Alcohol content: 14.0%
Color: deep black garnet with bricky meniscus
Bouquet: very expressive and complex, coffee, vanilla, black chocolate, toast, canned cherries
Taste: medium to full body, excellent tannins, coffee, canned fruit, cranberries, very rounf and structured mouth feel, long finish
Recommended food pairing: dry salami, sausages
Overall score: 88
Price CZK499
Stopper: cork
Excellent complex, full with amazing tannins. Old world is an old old world:)
Barbera is generally esteemed for its deep color, low tannins and high levels of acidity, which is unusual for a red grape growing in a warm climate. When young it offers fresh flavors of cherries, blueberries and raspberries. Unlike Barbera d'Alba's counterpart, Barbera d’Asti DOCG, which is generally considered more feminine in nature (and produced in the classic, lively style associated with Barbera), this red is characteristically richer, bolder and fuller in flavor. It is usually made more in line with a Barolo or Barbaresco, coming out powerful and rounded. Due to its high acidity, this wine is considered to be better with some age, to allow the fruit, oak, tannins and acidity to integrate.

Víno Tomáš Tetur Zweigeltrebe 2006

Variety: Zweigeltrebe
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Velke Pavlovice sub-appellation
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol content: 12%
Color: lighter rube red
Bouquet: dominant fruity character with red cherries playing the main role supported by plums
Taste: light to medium body, very good fruits, raspberries, small red cherries, red currant, very slight tannins in the mouth and at the end surprisingly longer finish with pinkgrapefruit tones
Recommended food pairing: pate
Overall score: 80
Price: CZK 120
Stopper: cork
One of the Zweigeltrebe I got from Grobovka tasting back in 2007. Milder in color and gentle in taste it would be suitable for occasions when you do not feel like power reds.

Cave de Beblenheim Pinot Gris 2007

Variety: 100% Pinot Gris

Country of origin: France
Wine appellation: Alsace
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol content: 12.5%
Color: medium yellow
Bouquet: tones of orange marmelade, good bottle aging, dry orange peel  
Taste: medium body, good balance of acidity and fruit, similar to nose adominant fruit in the taste is orange with good structure and hint of bready tones, at the end grapefruit and very light residual sugar, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: Asian cousine
Overall score: 84
Price: CZK 139
Stopper: cork
It is interesting if you compare the notes with the ones from December 2009, where you can find the botlle and labels. The wine developed significantly and went from teenage shape to more mature adult expression. I like it more as it has more structured body and less pure fruit as it had 2 years ago.

Tesco Finest Viña Mara Rioja Reserva 2006

Variety: Tempranillo  
Country of origin: Spain
Wine appellation: Rioja
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol content: 13.5%
Color: medium ruby red
Bouquet: expressive,  raspberries, good balance of fruit and oak
Taste: medium body, very good structure, similar to taste there are raspberries with wild sour cherries dominant in the forefront of the mouth, mid palate brings structured and visible tannins balanced by good and layered acidity with vanilla accompanying the overal experiance and pink grapefruit having the final say, longer finish
Recommended food pairing: pork
Overall score: 85
Price: CZK 249
Produced by Baron de Ley this is very different from 2003 vintage tastedin November last year here. It has much more fruit ad less layered structured, but still holding very good complexity with amazing longer finish. I.e. it is not new world borring fruit bomb, but rather wine, which needs its time:)

Catapereiro Vinho Tinto 2004

Variety: Castelão x Alicante Bouschet x Trincadeira
Country of origin: Portugal
Wine appellation: Ribatejo
Vintage: 2004
Alcohol content: 13,5%
Color: garnet red with brown meniscus
Bouquet: coffee, canned cherries, earthiness
Taste: medium body, canned strawberries and canned cherries in the front of the mouth, still good tannins considering the age, very dry,good structured acidity hold the wine considering the vintage, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: venison
Overall score: 84
Price: EUR 6
Stopper: cork
It is very interesting if you compare the tasting notes of the same wine with the ones from almost exactly one year ago, the wine developed significantly since then. It is more matured with fruits more in preserved  or canned form. It is amazing that the wine has still loads of tannins, not unpleasant, but drying your mouth feel with good acidity at the end, it is just something unusual and kind of wine not everyone would love it, but I do. For the label please refer to tasting one year ago here.

Marqués de Cáceres Crianza 2005 DOCa

Variety: Tempranillo, Garnacha Tinta, Graciano
Country of origin: Spain
Wine appellation: Rioja
Vintage: 2005
Alcohol content: 13.0%
Color: medium garnet with orange meniscus
Bouquet: lively red fruit with cherries being the most notable accompanied by gentle touch of vanilla and spices, at the centre of the glass there are notes of orange marmelade
Taste: medium body, very smooth, round, dominant wild sour cherries with a bit of pink grapefruit, which adds the proper acidity to the taste, good integrated tannins after swallowing and longer finish
Recommended food pairing: pork knuckle
Overall score: 86
Price: CZK 300
Stopper: cork
Typical for MdC wines this crianza has excellent balance of fruit, acidity and vanilla. It is not not overpowering, but rather sofisticated lighter color, good structure and acidity style of Rioja.

 

Vina Jaraba Crianza 2007 DO

Variety: 70% Tempranillo x 20% Cabernet Sauvignon x 10% Merlot
Country of origin: Spain
Wine appellation: La Mancha
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol content: 13.5%
Color: dark garnet
Bouquet: black cherries with black currant, gentle touch of vanilla and chocolate
Taste: medium bodied, canned black sour cherries my mom used to make with a touch of alcohol supported by black currant with good tannins, touch of chocolate and vanilla, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: fuet
Overall score: 85
Price: CZK 180
Stopper: cork
Similarly to 2003 vintage tasted here it is expressive with black sour cherries accompanied by nice fruit. This vintage does not have as much chocolate and vanilla tones as 2003 and is more fruity, but some people may prefer this one. I have one more bottle and I can guarantee this would only gobetter in 1 to 2 years.

Jacob's Creek Shiraz Cabernet 2001

Variety: Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon
Country of origin: Australia
Wine appellation: South Eastern Australia  
Vintage: 2001
Alcohol content: 13.5%
Color: dark garnet color with bricky meniscus
Bouquet: black currant jam, spices, pepper
Taste: medium to full body, round, structured tannins, black currant, blackberries, black pepper, medium to longer finish
Recommended food pairing:  steak
Overall score: 87

Price: CZK 199 in 2004

Stopper: cork
We had this wine just after we opened 2000 vintage so we could really compare it. This (2001) vintage is better, it has more structure, roundness, body and tannis. It is similarily delicate andf properly aged, but it has more in it.

Neoklas Šardice Augustiniánský Sklep Svatomartinské Svatovavřinecké rosé 2011

Variety: 100% Saint Laurent
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Slovácko sub appellation,
Vintage: 2011
Alcohol content: 12.0%
Color: very pale salmon pink
Bouquet: gentle, forest strawberries, grapefruit
Taste: lighter body, red currant, higher acidity, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: salad
Overall score: 81
Price: CZK 99
Stopper: cork
Pleasant young fruity and flowerly rose.

Spielberg Frankovka & André 2008 pozdní sběr

Variety: Frankovka, Andre

Country of origin: Czech Republic
Wine appellation: Moravia, Slovacko sub-appellation, Žarošice village, Maliny (FRankovka) and Nové hory (André) vineyard
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol content: 13.0%
Color: lighter ruby red
Bouquet: vanilla, cherry, red bell pepper
Taste: medium body, cherries with dominant tannins, which are stil  young and most likely are stremming from Andre grapes, in the mid palate slight spiciness, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: venison pate

Overall score:  82

Price: CZK 239

Stopper: cork

Some people will relly like it, some would not be huge fans of this wine (Andrew I beleive you would be in this group). It does not taste like typicall Frankovka, it has more tannins from Andre, but the hard feel comes from  Frankovka. Although it got seal of aaproval from AWC vienna, i gave it only 82. The problem is in recent months we opened wines from 2000 to 2004 and I cannot rerally accommodate young harsh tannins as my palate got used to soothing aged reds:)

Jacob's Creek Shiraz Cabernet 2000

Variety: Shiray, Cabernet Sauvignon
Country of origin: Australia
Wine appellation: South Eastern Australia  
Vintage: 2000
Alcohol content: 12.5%
Color: dark bricky color with light meniscus
Bouquet: red currant jam, pepper, clove, aged tones
Taste: medium body, soft and silky tannins, red currant, raspberries accompanied by spices from black pepper, medium  finish
Recommended food pairing:  venison
Overall score: 85

Price: CZK 199 in 2004

Stopper: cork

This wine is the finding from my cellar. It was interesting when opened, the cork was absolutely in perfect condition with no saoking at all. The wine is still very drinkable with stil good fruittransformed towards jammy tones supported by spiciness of Shiraz.

Turner Road Cabernet Zinfandel 2004

Variety:Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel
Country of origin: USA
Wine appellation: California - Nappa
Vintage: 2004
Alcohol content: 13,5%
Color: medium garnet red with bricky menscus
Bouquet: raspberries jam, cassis, touch of coffee
Taste: medium body, very smooth, rounded, strawberries preserve, chocolate, typical sweet tanins, hint of coffee at the end, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: chocolate desert
Overall score: 83
Price: CZK 149
Stopper: plastic cork
Typicall sweet tannis style American style of CS and Zin blend. It is really good even after 7 years in bottle, which I did not expect it, no bottle tonees at all, just strawberries jam and touch of coffee.
P.S. The bottle looks exactly the same with only stopper being cork and no screw cap as on this one from net.

Vinum Moravicum Sauvignon Hibernal 2007

Tasting notes are almost identical to one in June 2011. This could be due to bottle being in my wine fridge at 7°C from June till now.

Azagador Reserva 2004 DO

Variety: 70% Tempranillo x 20% Cabernet Sauvignon x 10% Merlot
Country of origin: Spain
Wine appellation: La Mancha
Vintage: 2004
Alcohol content: 13.5%
Color: medium red with garnet meniscus
Bouquet: nicely aged, coffee, cherry marmelade
Taste: medium bodied, canned fruit, mainly cherries, cofee, pleasant tannins with good acidity probably from tempranillo, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: jamon serrano
Overall score: 85
Price: CZK 200
Stopper: cork
Reasonable value, not as good as Jaraba Crianza tasted here, but overall very pleasant drinking.

Anakena Carmenere Single Vineyard 2003

Variety: Carmenere

Country of origin: Chile
Wine appellation: Rapel Valley
Vintage: 2003

Alcohol content: 14.0%
Color: dark black garnet at the centre with lighter hues at meniscus
Bouquet: spices, canned black cherries, touch of vanilla and slight smokiness
Taste: medium to full body, very round, good structure in the mounth balancing the fruit, acidity, tannins and wood, in mid palate there are visible spices with canned cherries being dominant fruit, pleasant and still visible tannins stay in the mouth after swallowing, medium to longer finish

Recommended food pairing:  

Overall score: 89
Price: CZK 340
Stopper: cork

Excellent example of Carmenere with big fruit, vanilla and tannins in balance due to proper aging in bottle. I remember tasting it about 5 years ago and it was almost perple in color and still too much oaky. Now it is perfectly balanced and it is a joy to drink it. Pitty we did not open it in our Carmenere tasting 5 days ago, if so I guess this would be the winner.

Chateau Pey La Tour AOC Bordeaux 2009

Variety: 77% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8%Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot
Country of origin: France
Wine appellation: Bordeaux
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol content: 13.5%
Color: medium ruby red
Bouquet:fruity, sour cherries with the hint of black currant, hint of smoke
Taste: medium body, dominant sour cherries, slight spiciness, in the mid palate accompanied by gentle oak, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: pate
Overall score: 84
Price: CZK 277
Stopper: cork
Fruitier style of Bordeaux with dominant sour cherries in the nose as well as in the taste. You can get better values for the same money.

Viña Undurraga Carménère Reserva 2005

Variety: Carménère
Country of origin: Chile
Wine appellation: Colchagua valley
Vintage: 2005
Alcohol content: 14.0%
Color: deep black garnet
Bouquet: expressive, chocolate, vanilla with cherries marmelade
Taste: medium body, nicely round tannins, cherries marmelade, vanilla, coffee, canella, medium to longer finish
Recommended food pairing: venison
Overall score: 87
Price: CZK 250
Stopper: cork
This was the last bottle on tasting and almost the same as Casa Silva but with more bottle aged, coffee, chocolate and vanilla tones.

Santa Rita 120 Carmenére 2004

Variety: Carmenere
Country of origin: Chile
Wine appellation: Rapel valley
Vintage: 2004
Alcohol content: 14.0%
Color: deep ruby red at the meniscus going towards  garnet
Bouquet: intense black cherries with spices
Taste: medium body, canned dark black cherries, cranberries, spiciness and pleasant tannins, good acidity, medium to longer finish
Recommended food pairing: easily venison
Overall score: 85
Price: CZK 245 
Stopper: cork
This was the last bottle of this wine, surprisingly we scored it on blind tasting the same as in December here.

Casa Silva Carmenére Reserva 2009

Variety: Carmenére 
Country of origin: Chile
Wine appellative: Colchagua valley
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol content: 14.0%
Color:  dark ruby red
Bouquet:  black oveeripe cherries, touch of vanilla and chocolate
Taste:  medium body, nicely round and structured, sweet tannins, vanilla, black cherries mullberiies with vanilla, longer finish
Recommended food pairing: chocolate fondant
Overall score: 88
Price: CZK 280
Stopper: cork
Clearly the best wine tasted. Very good structure and balance of fruit with vanilla.

La Minga Carmenére 2009

Variety: Carmenére 
Country of origin: Chile
Wine appellative: Central valley
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol content: 13.5%
Color: ruby red with violet hues
Bouquet: cherries, very fruity with green pepper tones
Taste: medium body, dominant is fruit, black sour cheries, slightly rough, a bit of spiciness, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: BBQ
Overall score: 78
Price: CZK 169
Stopper: cork
First wine tasted in our blind tasting and this was the base wine, very fruity with no complexity in it.

Cave Kouroum Syrah Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

Variety: 50% Syrah, 50%  Cabernet Sauvignon
Country of origin: Lebanon
Wine appellative: Kefraya village
Vintage: 2004
Alcohol content: 13,5%
Color: darker ruby red
Bouquet: canned black berry and black currant, with almost tones of black currant in dark chocolate
Taste: medium to full  body,dominant black crrant supported by blackberries and dark black sour cherries, very good tannins and structure, surprisingly good acidity considering the climate in Lebanon, medium to longer finish
Recommended food pairing: venison
Overall score: 87
Price: CZK 250
Stopper: cork
Comparing  to Syrah tasted about 30 minutes ago here it has much more structure and finesse. It has a character and very good and pleasant balance of tannins, fruit and acidity, which more and more I tend to lack in some new world wines.

Cave Kouroum Syrah 2003

Variety: Shiraz
Country of origin: Lebanon
Wine appellative: Kefraya village
Vintage: 2003
Alcohol content: 14,5%
Color: medium ruby red
Bouquet: spices, forest fruit, partially wood
Taste: medium to full  body, very smooth properly aged, but still persistent tannins, canned forest fruit, mainly blackberries, full mouth feel mainly due to higher alcohol, which is however not unpleasant, wood tones but not vanilla ones, medium finish
Recommended food pairing:steak
Overall score: 84
Price: CZK250
Stopper: cork
Very interesting wine, It received gold medal in Vinalies Internationales 2007. It is more powerful and less sweet tannins when compared to Mondavi tasted 10 minutes ago.

Robert Mondavi Woodbridge Shiraz 2006

Please refer for the tasting notes from February last year here. It is almost the same in color, slightly less intense and the taste is exactly the same. Interesting how it did not develop a lot in 1 year. Score is the same of 83. To be honest I prefer Zin or Cab Sauv from the same producer, somehow Shiraz is not their strength.

2010 being beaten by 3 bottles!!

If I just had time to write the review for all bottles I tasted in the year I could have had around 365 for sure. But you know it sometimes you do not write any notes and you regret it later sometimes you write them on paper and store it somewhere and not reproducing on this blog. Anyway, I ve beaten 2010 year and ended with 266 bottlles reviwed on this blog, which is not a bad score. hope it is usefull for all of you coming to this web. Wine Specialist

Torres Sangre de Toro 2003

Variety: Grenache, Carignan
Country of origin: Spain
Wine appellation: Penedes
Vintage: 2003
Alcohol content: 13.5%
Color: garnet red with bricky meniscus
Bouquet: canned red berry fruit, red current jam, hint of coffee
Taste: medium body, canned cherries, canned red currant with touch of spices, good texture and pleasant acidity, medium finish
Recommended food pairing: venison
Overall score: 81
Price: CZK 199
Stopper: cork
Good properly aged red with nothing like sharp steel tannins currently present in majority of the young wines on the market. I found this in my cellar and and although not designed for extensive aging it is very drinkable and has still very good acidity in it.