Syrah based wines

Just around the corner of Ullis apartment is the small but charming French Vinotheque "La Cave". Every month interested wine lovers get the chance to sample some interesting wines from the "motherland" of wine. This months tasting was particularly important to us as one of our favorite varieties Syrah was on show. Best made examples can be found in the Rhone valley which are "always" showing a gorgeous bouquet with fruits and spices. But as everywhere doom and glory are very close neighbors.

1. Chateau de Gourgazaud 2006 (SY/Mourvèdre)- ok/good - €6,00 - Minervois

red with purple reflections, fruit, hints of spices, sour cherries, tannins poorly integrated, not very balanced on the palate, bitter finish.

2. Jean Michel Gerin 2006 (SY) - good - €11,50 - Vin de Pays

purple rim, plums, bit overripe flavors, slightly meaty, fruit in rum, good acid structure, easy drinking style.  

3. Domaine Fondreche "Nadal" 2005 (SY/Grenache) - good - €12,50 - Cotes de Ventoux

ripe, quite typical flavor compounds, bit overripe, hints of acetone, smooth, slightly alcoholic finish. 

4. Chateau Le Roc "Don Quichotte" 2004 (SY/Negrette) - yech - €12,50 - Cotes de Frontonnaus

moldy, rubber, microbiological unstable, maybe accidental fermentation in bottle.

5. Domaine de l´Aiguelière 2000 - yech - €12,50 - Montpeyroux

cloudy, oxidative, rubber hose, loads sediment.

6. Domaine des Entrefaux 2001 - still ok - €15,00 - Crozes Hermitage

sediment, pale brick red hue, very fragile aromas, balanced but definitely over the peak. 

7. Domaine de Courbissac "Pandora" 2003 - very good - €15,00 - Minervois la Liviniere

cloudy, fruity, meaty, hints of violets, soft tannin, good acid structure, lingering.

rank "2": Domaine Courbissac "Pandora" 

8. Chateau de la Négly "La Falaise" 2006 (Sy/Grenache) - ok - €16,50 - La Clape

very young, bit MLF touch, purple reflections, good acid structure, slightly alcoholic, bitter finish.

9. Dom. St. Antonin "Magnoux" 2005 (SY) - ok/good - €16,50 - Faugeres

still purple reflections, plums, bit overripe, simple, smooth tannins, middle length.

10. Chateau Lavabre 2000 (SY) - very good/delicious - €19,00

some tartrate crystals visible, loads of spices and herbs, pine wood, hints of toasted oak but very pleasant, very good acid structure and well integrated tannins.

rank "1": Chateau Lavabre 2000

11. Alain Graillot 2006 (SY) - good/very good- €19,00 - Crozes Hermitage

young, some MLF notes, hints of essentials oils, acid and tannin very good balanced, just ways too young.

12. Domaine Cazeneuve "Roc des Mates" 2006 (SY/Mourv/Grenache) - good/very good- €21,00 - Pic St. Loup

young, purple, sour cherries, some spices, smooth tannins, lingering.

13. Domaine de l´Aiguelière "Cotes Dorée" 2005 (SY/Grenache) - still ok - €21,00 - Montpeyroux

rubber, plasticine with some spices, hints of Brett, tannin prominent.

14. Jean-Michel Gerin 2006 (SY/Viognier) - yech - €35,00 - Cotes Rotie

Brett, thin, prominent tannins due to Brett infection, Brett flavors on the palate.

Boku Heim tasting

Boku Heim Midweek tasting. We opened the CH to complement our catfish filets.

1. Chardonnay 2008 from Weingut Lentsch - good

pale golden hue, fruitmix on the nose, hints of bananas and sweet melon, lemon and lime, acid structure but balanced, easy drinking.

2. Malbec "Estiba I" 2007 from Bodegas Esmeralda, Mendoza - ok - about €10 (Merkur) 

very dark red, nearly black color, smokey,  some acetone flavors, hints of cabbage, rather rustic tannin, alcoholic edge on midpalate, short.

Pub Klemo

Last friday we had some wines in our favorite wine bar. Beside some wines Roberts magic hands created a wonderful dinner. Tuna steak with fennel mousse and dill potatoes. If you really want to pair food and wine perfectly, don´t dine at a fancy restaurant ... Pub Klemo is the first place of choice.

Here are our tasting notes.

1. Sauvignon Blanc "Steinmühle" 2007 from Weingut Kollwentz - ok/good

ripe yellow apples, hints of fresh green flavors on the nose, very ripe, good acidity, bit phenolic, very pale hue.

2. Sauvignon Blanc "Zieregg am Grassnitzberg" 1989 from Weingut Tement - good/very good

honeysuckle, mature, extreme lychee flavors on the nose and on the palate, soft, bit smokey.

3. Sauvignon Blanc 2007 from Weingut Ploder-Rosenberg - good

fresh, bit bananas and cold fermentation flavors, good acid structure, light in style.

4. Sauvignon Blanc "Platter Rieden" 2007 from Weingut Fidesser - ok/good

hints of lychee flavors good acid structure but a bit undefined.

5. Sauvignon Blanc 2007 from Weingut Triebaumer - good

bit closed, black currant blossoms, rather low in acidity, melon and some other exotic flavors on the palate.

6. Sauvignon Blanc 2007 form Weingut Umathum -  ok/good

bit closed, very ripe flavors, exotic, melons, balanced.

7. Gevery Chambertin 2006 from Domaine Perrot-Minot - very good

Pinot stink on the beginning, spices and herbs, very good acid structure, lingering.

8. Furioso 2006 from Weingut Mad - good

spicy, sour cherries, good acid structure, oak a bit prominent.

9. Synthese 2006 from somewhere in the Roussilion - good

meaty, very ripe, good tannin structure, long, still young, purple reflections.

indigenous Austrian varieties ..

We opened 2 wines which seemed quite interesting.

1. "Himmelstiege" Riesling Federspiel 2007 from Domäne Wachau - very good - €6,90

minerality driven on the nose, peach and other stonefruits, hints of oranges, very flinty, good acid structure on the palate, good balance (6,7 TA; 2,9 RS)

2. Zweigelt Reserve 2004 from Weingut Dolle - ok - €10,30 (Interspar) 

from the beginning rather open on the nose (quite low sulfur level!!), very soft tannins, just little structure, rating on the border to yech! due to this low sulfur level, disappointing. Maybe this state of maturation was caused by insufficient storage conditions.

Anyway, it was really astonishing to us that this is the current winner of the "Zweigelt Reserve" category of the "SALON Österreichischer Wein 2008". 

3. Heulichin 2006 from Weingut Wagentristl - very good/delicious 

cherries and sour cherries prominent on the nose, hints of chocolate and mocha coffee, spices, black pepper, blackberries, a little bit of eucalyptus, some oak structure on the palate but driven by grape tannins, nice length.

Find more information on this winery: http://members.aon.at/weingut-wagentristl/

Energy drinks

Just for fun we tasted some Austrian energy drinks. Bernhard and I were pretty sure that we would perfectly recognize "Red Bull" but it turned out to be more difficult. Here are the results ...

1. Red Bull

bit soapy, sugar and acid in good balance, doesn´t taste "just sweet".

2. Burn Extra Strong

red color, overripe blackberries on the nose, same flavor plus red currant on the palate, ways to sweet.

3. S Budget Energy Drink

nearly perfectly similar as 1., just a little bit sweeter, astonishing. 

Energy drinks: