Essex County Wine Society

WINE PRESS

                          ESSEX COUNTY WINE SOCIETY

October 14, 2008

Two Society events have taken place since the last Wine Press. Our Fall dinner was held at Verjus in Maplewood on September 14, 2008.  We served the Henriot Champagne Brut Souverain with a selection of hors d’oeuvres. The first course, filet of sole with scallop mousse en croute, was accompanied by the 2005 Newton Chardonnay Unfiltered – an excellent example of full-bore California Chardonnay, if that is a style you prefer. The wine of the night was probably the 1996 Pichon Baron, served with a fork-tender daube de boeuf. This was followed by an excellent 2000 Arnoux Clos de Vougeot, which should be even better with a little more time. With dessert, we finished the remaining bottles of the 1927 Pedro Ximenez Alvear Solera from the Society’s cellar.

The first tasting of the 2008-2009 year introduced us to some of the great white wines of Austria. Henrietta Moore-Roland gave us the insider’s tour to some great wines from a country where she lived for 15 years.  We tasted through 3 examples of Grüner Veltliner and 6 Rieslings – in each case using the exceptional 2006 vintage to demonstrate classic characteristics and terroir– but also tasting an aged example of each to provide a tangible sense of where these wines might be heading.  Based on attendee votes, the wine of the night, by a large margin, was the 2006 Knoll “Kellerberg” Riesling Smaragd. In a distant 2nd and 3rd, were the 2006 Hirtzberger “Singerriedel” Riesling Smaragd and the 1996 Salomon “Pfaffenberg” Riesling. This was a great evening of education, enthusiasm, and wonderful, intense, multilayered wines.  In tasting one of the wines, an ECWS ex-president was overheard mumbling “That’s almost Burgundian…,” not that great white wine needs to be from Burgundy.

Our second tasting of the year will be Australian Shiraz, on November 6^th, led by members Mahesh Lekkala (also an Essex county wine retailer) and Stacey Rudbart (the Society’s current Secretary). Please respond by October 31^st.

Stacey and Mahesh have arranged flights of nine wines (plus the aperitif) to cover several major growing areas for Australian Shiraz. Thus, we will have the opportunity to compare the wines within each area as well as the characteristics between different areas (if we can determine them from this tasting). Most of the wines are from recent vintages, but once again we will have the opportunity to try some wines with a little more age – with examples from 1994 and 1997.

Wines being tasted will include:

2004 Peter Howland Wines Shiraz Parsons Vineyard Frankland River, Western Australia.

“Dark red. Initially reduced nose opened quickly to display pungent ripe cherry and dark berry scents, with subtle floral and mineral nuances. Juicy blackberry and cassis flavors show a light touch, with fine-grained tannins adding shape. Focused, understated and pure shiraz, finishing clean and brisk, with sneaky sweetness. This boasts impressive balance.” 91 points (Josh Raynolds, IWC).

1994 Mount Langi Ghiran Shiraz

“Another boutique Australian winery…tiny yields, very ripe fruit, and no fining or filtration prior to bottling. The results speak for themselves. It exhibits an opaque black/purple color, followed by an aromatic profile offering up head-spinning levels of smoke, bacon fat, over-ripe cassis, licorice, plum, and black pepper aromas. Those scents can also be found in the flavors of this huge, intensely concentrated, Gorgonian Shiraz. It is silky enough to drink, but it should age effortlessly for two decades.” 94 points WA.

2005 Kay Brothers Shiraz Block 6

“The winery flagship 2005 Shiraz “Block 6” is sourced from an estate vineyard 113 years old. It spent 28 months in oak, 90% American and 50% new. It offers up an ethereal perfume of cedar, tobacco, Asian spices, tar, licorice, bacon, blueberry, blackberry, and milk chocolate. This leads to a voluptuous, full-bodied, layered, complex and totally hedonistic Shiraz that can be enjoyed now but will evolve for at least a decade.” 97 points WA.

The cost for the tasting will be $53 for members, $64 for guests.

The tasting after this will be of 2005 red Bordeaux led Gary Schwarz on December 4, 2008.

I look forward to seeing you all.

De gustibus non disputandum est (There is no disputing matters of taste),

Gil Bauer

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“Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been brought to the greatest perfection, and it offers a greater range for enjoyment and appreciation than, possibly, any other purely sensory thing.”
Ernest Hemingway
Death in the Afternoon

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