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WTN: Quilceda Crk, Opus One, Ridge, Ponsot, other stuff

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WTN: Quilceda Crk, Opus One, Ridge, Ponsot, other stuff

by Jenise » Tue Sep 02, 2014 5:51 pm

NV Vilmart & Cie Champagne Grande Rèserve Brut Premier Cru
Fresh and racy, front-end loaded with red apple and citrus, and more minerally than bready.

2006 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Palengat Vineyard, Horse Heaven Hills, WA
There are better values in WA state, but this is a very elegant cabernet and it's drinking well now.

2011 Mount Eden Vineyards Chardonnay Santa Cruz Mountains
Pear fruit with vitamin B minerality and a whiff of sulfur on the nose. Super dry. Interesting and different in a six-chard tasting, but not popular.

2012 L'Ecole No. 41 Chardonnay
A poster child for well made WA chardonnay--equally apple and pear, light oak, good concentration, elegant finish. Very good value at $19ish. Will buy more.

2013 Adelsheim Chardonnay Willamette Valley
My favorite in a six-chardonnay blind tasting. Almost clear color, clean and precise on the palate. No apparent oak.

2011 Domaine des Terres Dorées (Jean-Paul Brun) Moulin-à-Vent
A surprising MaV--smooth and low tannin. Rich strawberry flavors--at first I thought it was Grenache--with just a hint of that bubble gum note I used to find in DuBouef wines. Not sure I'd hold these long-term.

1982 Opus One Napa Valley Red Bordeaux Blend
Stunning wine. Wowed me a lot more than I'd have expected an Opus to be able to do, let alone one from an unsung CA year like '82 at a time when few 82 Bordeauxs are holding up half as well. Relatively youthful black cherry and blackberry fruit, leather and cigar box. Elegant with velveteen mouthfeel--just glides over your palate. Bottle actually signed by Phillipine de Rothschild.

2009 Ridge Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel Blend
PnP'd. Black fruity with licorice and herbs in the nose, but the palate's asleep, showing little but some jam--that will change, so HOLD.

2006 Domaine Ponsot Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Clos des Monts Luisants Vieilles Vignes
Exquisite. Have had few white burgundies as profound as this--and it's aligote? That's what Cellar Tracker says, though I was unaware of any aligote ever getting Cru status. I thought I hated that grape! Incredible nose of apricots and flowers, exotic but not tropical. Long long finish.

1998 Gaston Chiquet Champagne Brut
Fully mature; all pie crust and old baked fruit. Acidity remains good and I enjoyed it thoroughly, but it's owner who prefers more freshness was disappointed.
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov
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Lou Kessler

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Re: WTN: Quilceda Crk, Opus One, Ridge, Ponsot, other stuff

by Lou Kessler » Tue Sep 02, 2014 8:59 pm

Mt Eden chard usually takes a few years to develop. Year in and out it's usually one of the CA chards I buy each year. It's one of the least typical CA Chards as a rule.
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Re: WTN: Quilceda Crk, Opus One, Ridge, Ponsot, other stuff

by Jenise » Wed Sep 03, 2014 3:03 am

Agreed. I'm a regular buyer too, and my note doesn't really convey how much I liked it--it was in my top three. I didn't even post on the 2012 Ramey--group first choice and decidedly so. Me? Last place, the only wine I didn't really care for.
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov
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David N

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Re: WTN: Quilceda Crk, Opus One, Ridge, Ponsot, other stuff

by David N » Thu Sep 04, 2014 12:17 am

Jenise,
Following on your note on the Brun 2011 Moulin-a Vent, I opened our first bottle tonight. Loads of strawberry on the nose, although I didn't note any bubblegum or banana. In the mouth really good structure and balance, although I thought that it was a bit tight. A note of pepper which, except for the weight, might have led me to the Rhone. A touch of light tannin at the end. Nothing here which indicates early maturity or need to bring these forward in the line-up.
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Re: WTN: Quilceda Crk, Opus One, Ridge, Ponsot, other stuff

by Jenise » Thu Sep 04, 2014 1:10 am

David, interesting--and sorry for what turns out to be a false alarm. Must be bottle variation, or possibly sources. I liked our bottle, but was surprise by how 'loose' it was for an MaV.
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov

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