Symposion

The setting: a small island just outside Helsinki

The group: classicists and orientalists (though I really hate this term, but that's enough Said about it)

The reason for meeting: food and "croquet," but as the classicists always point out, symposion doesn't really mean croquet, so there was lots of booze.

I brought a couple wines, including the last of my friend Asko's new set of wines from Crushpad, Töövi Syrah White Hawk Vineyard 2008 from Sta Barbara County California. This smelled of prunes and mulberry, more S. Australian than US from my limited experience of both areas - but pretty good for Ozzie stuff, though, with good structure backing up all that primary fruit. It is fruit forward and primary but it isn't an amorphous, gobby blob. Chilled, with a chunk of bloody meat it was actually rather enjoyable (I had double decanted it in the morning, however - I'm sure that made it somewhat approachable). Needs time.

Since even evening temperatures are well above 20 C, we opened up some good whites. First up was Pieropan's Soave Classico Calvarino 2008. Light gold. Splendidly mineral scent, floral and citric. Quite rich on the palate, but it is also racy and invigorating, pure and moreish. Very nice.

I bought some Muscadet, because it rocks. Domaine de la Pépière (Marc Ollivier) Muscadet de Sèvere-and-Mean Les Gras Moutons Cuvée Eden 2008. Either this smelled like the lovely sea breeze I was inhaling on the island or then the sea breeze completely overwhelmed the aromatics: whether my nose was in the glass or out, it all smelled the same: all rocks and sea - lovely. Awesome purity, crispness and richness (for Muscadet) mixed together. Outstanding wine.

And of course I brought a Domaine de la Pépière (Marc Ollivier) Muscadet de Sèvere-and-Mean Granite de Clisson 2007 to compare. Beautifully aromatic with amazingly vivid citric aromas, almost like crystallized citrus fruits but with without their sweetness. Leesy and mineral. Crisp, rocky, wonderfully intense but never crossing the line to become painful. This is actually a very friendly Muscadet despite all the citric sensations.

At this point I could clearly see my croquet balls defy the laws of physics so I went home. Fun evening it was.

Disbelief

Strangely, I had not come across this documentary before. Jonathan Miller's Brief History of Disbelief

Part I - Shadows of Doubt

Part II - Noughts and Crosses

Part III - The Final Hour

3 from Texier

Éric Texier Côtes du Rhône 2007 & 2008
After a forward and voluptuous 2007, the 2008 was not appreciated by most - but I loved it. Slightly too lactic at first, but it cleared up by the second glass. It is much more savoury than the 2007 with lovely pepper and camphor aromas instead of the '07's dark, sweet, strawberry aromas. Good richness despite only 12,5% abv, lovely tannins, refreshing and palate-cleansing. It isn't lacking in fruit IMO, it just isn't as obvious as the 2007, which also had good structure and no excess fat or flab or heat (which is rare for this year in my experience in the South). I liked both, but will probably open more 2008 at home because I love the savouriness and the structure.

Éric Texier Opâle 2009
7% abv; 100% Viognier; from Condrieu; moût de raisins partiellement fermenté (partially fermented grape must). Lovely scent: very appley and mineral like a BdB Champagne, except with a vivid, crystallized fruitiness more akin to Mosel Riesling. Slight sweetness (I have no figures, sadly), good tartness and minerality; almost endless. There is a slight yeastiness to the palate that one of us found a little off-putting - and though I noticed it, too, it was in such small amounts that I didn't find it annoying at all. I had thought of Viognier as usually overly perfumed and under-structured, but this peachy, stony delight was a great antidote to my previous, mostly bad experiences. This is lovely and moreish.

Two more Crushpad wines from Töövi

Crushpad Cabernet Sauvignon Töövi Kiona 2007 - USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain
14,39% abv; TA 6,7g/l. On opening, it is almost absurdly minty, but it calms down to a quasi-Bordeaux style with much loam and wet earth aromas. Of course, it is fruitier than traditional Bordeaux, but it never seems like a super-ripe, overblown caricature of the grape despite the very high alcohol. On the second day, sadly, the oak becomes a bit more pronounced and there is a dark chocolate sheen to the Cabernet lift. Rich, full bodied, pleasantly tannic and with moderately high acidity which means that despite its size this is very easy to drink. The alcohol isn't noticeable. Nice, but needs time.


Crushpad Syrah Töövi White Hawk 2007 - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County
13,7% abv; 5,6 g/l TA; 95% Syrah, 5% Viognier (cofermented). Some nice dark fruit, black olive, pepper and meat aromas; very full bodied, sweet and smooth. The base wine seems very nice, but the seemingly oak-based aromas rear their head too much. Apparently this spends time in 2-3 yo oak before being transferred to completely neutral oak, so perhaps this is the torrefactive qualities of Syrah (apparently easily mistaken for oak) being forward rather than actual oak? Anyway, for now, the blueberry aromas were a bit much for me. It would be fun to try this in a few years, though.

Ibn Battuta & Tim Mackintosh-Smith

Anticipating the publication of Tim Mackintosh-Smith's Landfalls, the final part of his journey in the footsteps of Ibn Battuta, it is time to watch his documentary on IB again:


Part I - Wanderlust



Part II - Magicians and Mystics



Part III - Trade Winds

Marsanne-Roussanne from Töövi

Crushpad Töövi Alder Springs 2008 - California, Mendocino
13,7% abv; 50/50 Marsanne - Roussanne. From forumite and friend Asko's project in Crushpad, California. Sees a little time in neutral oak. Quite a lovely scent: something refreshingly greenish yet the fruit is broad and honeyed. It manages to be savoury and mineral despite the fruit and generous richness of body. And best of all, the acidity seems on the high end for a blend of white Rhône varieties. I rarely say this about Rhône white grapes, but this was moreish. Very good.

Awful white Rioja

Agricola La Bastida Rioja Tierra de Fernández - Gómez 2007 - Rioja

14% abv. A sample kindly(?) given to me from my ex-job at the wine importer (I hope they won't start importing this!). Dark, looks like a urine sample from someone with serious nephrological problems. Smells of oak and banana. Tasted sweet and harshly oaky. At least it has fair acidity! I wonder why there is a correlation between how much emphasis is put on terroir on the bottle and how spoofulated the wine actually is? If this is the sort of stuff my ex-boss gives me, I must have been a very bad worker...

Gelber und Roter Traminer

Umathum Gelber & Roter Traminer 2007
c.25€; 13,5% abv; 4,9 g/l acidity; 4,7 g/l RS (yet on the back label it mentions "halbtrocken"!). A very floral scent of rose water and litchi, but also strong minerality and some bright citric notes. It is a very sweet scent, but is is sweet in a focused and refreshing way. Big and broad palate, it has a clear sensation of sweetness but is not overly sugary. There is enough acidity and minerality for it to be perfectly focused and even moreish despite its full body - a wine of restrained richness. Though the actual amount of RS isn't high at all, I do agree with the back label's statement that this tastes more halbtrocken than trocken. Very nice.

Marred Pinosity

Te Kairanga Pinot Noir Runholder 2007
19,95€; 13% abv. Very dark for Pinot. The 9 months in 35% new French oak sadly shows: it is an oaky, smoky scent. But it also has some nice lingonberry and vegetal aromas that are more like what I enjoy with this grape. Quite rich and marked by oak, but there is also an attractive acidity and liveliness. Sadly, the cherry-chocolate predominates, Nice Pinosity marred by oak.

Töövi Marsanne-Roussanne 2009

Töövi Alder Springs Vineyard Marsanne-Roussanne 2009
From my friend Asko's project at Crushpad, California, this being from Mendocino. No oak that I can see; lovely mineral and herbal tea aromas. Rich but not flabby; for a white Rhône blend, the acidity is delightfully high. I thought it was very good.

Half an Albariño

Bodegas Eidosela Albariño 2009 - Rías Baixas
c.7,5€ / 0,375; 12,5% abv. A pretty decent scent at first: a ripe style or year with lots of peach and tropical aromas mixed in with the minerality. After a while open I start to notice the annoying pear-drop scent that so many cheaper, unoaked whites have, no matter where from or from what grape (anyone care to explain this annoying aroma? - fermentation temperature?). Quite rich (perhaps this was a hot year here, too?) but with decent acidity. Not a bad wine, but quite uninspiring compared to the other Albariños I have had.

Still, this was a pleasant way to spend an evening: a half-bottle, rereading an excellent book, and exploring some new names (to me) in jazz:

avec ... ou sans ...errr? The damnèd mountain

Henri Bourgeois Sancerre Le MD de Bourgeois 2008
MD stands for Les Monts Damnés.
The other Bourgeois I have had have seemed like NZ Sauvignons with their mix of over- and under-ripe aromatics. This seemed to me mineral, ripe but not tropical, delightfully grassy; crisp, greenish (smells like peas to me) but still full bodied for Loire SB - yet it manages to still be moreish. Like the Gaudry, it seems to me almost tannic with its grippy structure. I liked it.


But I do admit that generally I still dislike this grape (even in the Loire) and that my positive experience might simply be due to inexperience.

Joseph Drouhin Beaujolais-Villages 1982

Thanks to my friend Asko for this rare treat:

Joseph Drouhin Beaujolais-Villages 1982
A bit of ullage, but nothing scary for this age; filthy cork, but came out cleanly; the colour seemed excellent.

To put it mildly, the first sniff was not promising: sewage. But just a short while open and the bottle stink disappeared.

It is old, seemed much like a Cantillon Kriek with its elegantly oxidized and lifted aromas of cherry. And with our bookshop group being all beer enthusiasts, this bottle went down very well - probably more so than it would have with more wine-oriented friends.

Where the scent seemed old in a pleasant way (i.e. lovely aromas, but not in any way recognizable as Gamay), the palate was sweetly fruity (still!), pleasantly acidic, low in tannin and gravelly - very Gamay.

For us Kriek-geeks and us lovers of old aromatics, this was an extremely pleasant drop. Thank you Asko.

The Beauty and the Beast (sorry for this unruly employee being in the way):

Punctuated Equilibrium

Lapierre's VdPdes Gaules 2007 seemed a bit tired last weekend. I guess I should have drunk these earlier as this one is a bit tired, too. How strange that just a month ago (from the same purchase, stored perfectly) it was fresh, lively and joyful but now it is becoming a bit flat and rye-bread-like. I guess punctuated equilibrium is not restricted to sexually reproducing species, but can apply to wines, too. Its remains shall be used in cooking tomorrow. Happily, I only have one more '07 left.

Since the '07 wasn't terribly appetizing, we also opened the '09 (renamed Raisins Gaulois), but sadly this would need time for its overt sweetness to fade. A shame we don't have the vilified '08 available since it might be in a phase of its evolution that I would enjoy. (Did anyone actually like the '08 that we never saw? I only remember negative things said about it.)

Brun Roussanne

Jean-Paul Brun / Domaine des Terres Dorées Roussanne 2008 - Vin de Table Français

21,90€; 12%. Much more expressive than in March when I last tasted this. A lovely scent, somewhat appley but sweetly so, perfumed like an oolong tea, honeyed - yet despite these sweet descriptors, the overall effect is of savoriness. There is an underlying richness in the wine, but it is steely and structured and refreshing, delightfully mineral. Wonderful.

Slovenian, orange, beer-wine

Čotar Malvazíja 2002 - Slovenia, Primorska, Kras
13% abv. Light orange colour. The scent is lovely, but not exactly mainstream: despite being very vinous my thoughts kept turning to imagery familiar from beer. It smells malty and slightly funky à la Orval. Earthy aromas are coupled to vibrant orange/sweet citrus scents. Quite steely on the palate, very well delineated, refreshing and moreish. But it is actually quite full bodied, I find upon reflection, though my initial impression was an illusion of lightness. Lovely.

Contadino 7

Frank Cornelissen Contadino 7 - Vino da Tavola Rosso, Etna

The 7 on the label means that this is the 7th vintage of this bottling, so it is of the 2009 vintage. 13% abv; 23,90€; a blend of practically everything, both red and white, that Cornelissen grows (Caricante, Inzolia, Cataratto, Nerello Mascalese, Alicante, Nerello Cappuccio and more...). Much like the MunJebel 6 I recently had, this has a lovely aroma of pomegranate, sweet but not cloying fruit and a pepperiness slightly reminiscent of Syrah.

Fairly full bodied and with plenty of fruity sweetness, but it is wonderfully light on its feet, very refreshing and has attractively palate-cleansing tannins so the fruit never seems cloying - there is no sucrosity here. Dangerously moreish.

A slight criticism I would have about Cornelissen's wines is that I don't really see all that huge a difference between the Contadino, MunJebel and Magma! Hence, I'm perfectly happy drinking this, the cheapest of them.

Australian Mosel

Tamar Ridge Riesling 9 Degrees Riesling Devil's Corner 2008 - Australia, Tasmania

13,75€; 9,5% abv; 65 g/l RS; 7 g/l acidity. I think it was wonderful fun to try a low alcohol, off-dry Riesling from somewhere else than Germany. My first impression of the scent was decidedly un-Germanic, however. With its very strong lime aromas it reminded me of the few other Aussie Rieslings I have tried. But the scent is not that of crystallized lime but fresh, so I was actually expecting a dry, forceful style of Riesling, so the palate came as a bit of a surprise: gentle, sweetish, with some nice grip on the finish, Spätlese+ level of richness. I would enjoy higher acidity in order to make it a bit more refreshing and moreish. Thought a perfectly decent drop, there is a discontinuity between the dry-promising scent and the sweetish palate; and crucially there is not enough acidity.