What are ya drinking tonight? II

@noshipsummer nuffin! Post what drink, don’t crap on my $5 bottles.

How was the Krug? I’m a bit jealous

@CorTot
Really something special imho. I will bring one to the next Pasadena pop’s concert

@noshipsummer That might be too classy for this group.

@noshipsummer Do we have to start typing a new name for you? (Assuming my read is correct as to who this is, of course)

@klezman
That would be correct, never liked the old name and my real name was taken! So this is what popped into my head and I figured it would irk some people so win win.

@noshipsummer Well, nicely done on the wine, as per usual. I guess we didn’t sort out meeting up while it was still 2017, but let’s get 2018 started right! What are you and the boss up to this weekend?

@CorTot

Oh man I think I love this new place cortot!

@TechnoViking how’s it holding up?

@CorTot it’s thinning out on a downward slope IMO. I’ve dabbled with older wines, I’m starting to get a feel where I like the age at. This is passing my preference buuut I still like it. Cork half soaked, mine broke trying to get that sucker out. It still holds that ardente flavor, not as much earthy funk to it like I remember there being a lot of from before, it seemed not as robust as expected. I have 1 96’ 1 06’ and 1 07’ left. I will open the other 96’ by the end of the year. Such great memories with Ardente wines… I still kick myself in the butt not going max on them when I could. Cheers!

@CorTot Thanks for the report, I better start drinking mine up if it’s starting the downside journey.

@TechnoViking We enjoyed our last bottle of this on Christmas Day with prime rib. I thought our bottle had a great earthy funk to it, but I also thought it was ready to be drunk. Now it’s all gone.

@baqui63 Rye…yum. I’m part way through a bottle of Willett, it’s delicious.

@klezman Not had Willett. Yet.

I finished off the Sextant Zin and decided to have some Basil Hayden Dark Rye with a splash of water, accompanied by jarlsberg cheese and ritz crackers.

@jmdavidson1
Any good? I see WL has some for sale.

@jmdavidson1 We had chicken and dumplings a couple nights ago.
kinda like this.
http://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/chicken-and-dumplings-72963

@noshipsummer I was looking for a red to pair with this and it was perfect. I think it’s worth $20 a bottle on WL, altho it was $15 on TSO when I bought it. It improved a lot over the last year.

@jmdavidson1
Thanks jm

@klezman
I get that a lot with Santa Barbara pinots and yes it’s a good thing!

@hscottk Mmmmm…one of my favorite favorites!!!

@hscottk Mine too…

@jbartus ginger and brandy

@jbartus
Does your brother know about this??

@ScottW58 I don’t have the heart to tell him.

Also to be more precise she’s his fiancee.

@jbartus lol.

Please note that I avoided the obvious comment.

It happens that I am drinking a ginger flavored rye tonight… not sure it is good as a rye, but with a shot of soda on the rocks would be nice during the Summer.

@baqui63 I should try Rye some time. I am partial to bourbon, how does it compare?

@jbartus Often rye is a bit spicier than bourbon, but the mash bill for bourbon can also include a fair amount of rye. I think you can be called Rye Whisky with only 51% rye, but Straight Rye Whisky requires 100%?

@klezman No. The term straight does not refer to the grain bill but rather how it is aged (in oak for at least two years, IIRC).

In the USA, you have to have 51% of the grain (corn for bourbon, rye for rye, etc.) for it to be called a bourbon or rye, etc. There are also requirements on the distilling side of things (IIRC, most whiskeys must be distilled to less than 95% ABV tho most whiskeys are distilled to 60-70%). For vodkas, the fermentable sugars matter not and the product must be distilled to 95% ABV or higher and then filtered with charcoal or some such to remove distinctive flavors.

Details are here if you are curious. (I’m seriously considering opening a distillery within the next few years, so I am much more than merely curious about such things.)

@jbartus What @klezman says regarding rye’s flavor is true. I find it more interesting than bourbon, less sweet with more character. I’ve had a number of ryes made with 85% or more rye and they are quite tasty.

Note also that Canadian rules are quite different. For example, a Canadian Rye need only have a loaf of rye bread somewhere within 2 kilometers for it to be called rye whiskey (I’m exaggerating, but not by much… canadian ryes do not have to have more than a few % of rye in the grain bill).

@baqui63 You’d think after I’ve looked these things up more than a dozen times I’d keep it straight in my head. Nope!
The Canadian rules, iirc, essentially let you recall fondly the days of old when most of our whiskey was made with rye. If you’re in a bar in Canada and ask for a rye, it means Canadian whiskey. These days, though, there are smaller Canadian distillers making the real deal.

@snapster @dave Someone get @Winedavid39 a decanter badge, stat!

@corrado He’s 10 years older now. @Winedavid49

@NightGhost How were the beans? Ive heard that brand is good but gets taken to the next level when cooked over an open flame still in the can under a bridge.

@CorTot I knew a troll who made them that way. He didn’t like wine, but he let me hang out 'cos he liked spirits…

@NightGhost

Troll? He? (Not!)

That was you?

I remember you from that night. You have a sense of humor, sort of?

Nice wine, BTW. I hope next time you come hang out there, you bring more of it.

/image drunk troll under bridge 2

@Cerridwyn 3:2:1 mix of Iced Tea (non-sweetened):Ginger Ale:Limeaid.

@ScottW58 There was a nice Brit sparkler at the Syrah face off at FMIII’s. I’d have to go and look at the WB thread to remember what it was tho…

@ScottW58 Oh, I’ve been wanting to try some of them also. You get from Rimmerman or is there another good source?

@klezman iirc, FMIII brought it back from a trip he made there. Not an inexpensive bottle, but I suppose that’s no surprise at all.

@klezman
I got a couple from garagiste but good only knows when I will get them… these came from wtso.

@alukan I just drank my last InZINerator 5 days ago with some pork ribs and homemade raspberry BBQ sauce. That sweetness in the sauce glided alongside the jammyness to that wine. It was a good time!

@WineDavid49 Get the Meekers and Hawleys back to this community!

@klezman Gotta agree with that, Lucas has some great juice!

@klezman I wonder how many dropped out, not due to their licensing, but rather the hyper-active lawyers at mothership?

Hoping we’ll regain some of the producers lost over the years, not that I’ll really have any room mind ya…

@rjquillin Sounds like a good story over a glass…kind of wondered what happened to Meeker over the years. Lucas was awesome to visit, we visited him a few times, gracious host and the guy can make wine!

@klezman I was expecting Latkes at your house a few weeks ago. I left saying to myself where the hell are the latkes?

@klezman its amazing to me how gracefully IH ages. Had a 2008 Russian Cuvee last year and it was fantastic.

@CorTot if I’d known how many were going to bail last minute I would have cooked up a few. I didn’t think I had enough for all

@mtb002 the fairy tail was good stuff, wish I had more!

@CorTot
Good work!

@CorTot my wife loves the NxNW rose. it’s a much better wine than the price should allow.

@CorTot how is the NxNW? Have 6 of those patiently waiting to be consumed.

@radiolysis Good to hear!

@ScottW58 the port was not good. Going back to the store.

@hscottk it’s really pretty good. We ordered 1 set, drank it all and are 1/2 way through the 2nd set. Very Solid for the price.

@CorTot left it open over night and smells and tastes way more integrated. Much improved and now very sippable.

@CorTot

left it open over night

The port or the NxNW?

@AnnaB
I used to do that… when I was younger

@knlprez

Yum! I used to like the Month Redon haven’t had on in a long time.

@ScottW58
I have been trying more French wines lately and have been drawn to Chateaunuef du Pape, really agrees with my tastes. It was a really nice score from Costco, I need to get bsck before they sell out!

@TechnoViking
Mmmm Cornish Hens

@ScottW58 you always drink well. I’ve been so sick since before Christmas I couldn’t tell the difference between a 20 year old white zin and a 40 year old BdX if it weren’t for the color.
It really blows not being able to drink over the holidays.

@rjquillin

Life is too short my friend! And sorry to hear you’re not feeling well!

@ScottW58 Yeah, the timing was/is, ahhh, sub-optimal. The plus side however was I got to retire some vacation time. woot I can now begin accruing time again, as I’m been maxed out for well over a year now and just loosing it.

Gonna be a strange paycheck, with only 40 hours.

@klezman
We opened a 2012 estate a few months ago and I think we will hold off on another until 2019 for the next. What were your thoughts?

@knlprez Following. I found and opened an '02 (don’t recall if it was Englandcrest or Estate) and it was past its peak. 2012 now seems like infanticide!

@corrado It was a bit young, but still very tasty! We double decanted, not much sediment, and it opened up after an hour or so, but was still quite young. We have a few bottles of '03 Cuvee R we haven’t opened yet, might need to give one a try and see where it is at.

@knlprez It was a little closed for much of the evening. I’ve got some left to polish off tonight so we’ll see. I hadn’t had one for a year and it’ll probably be most or all of a year until I open another.

@jmdavidson1

Inquiring minds want to know??

@ScottW58 I was skeptical. TSO purchase a few years ago. $30. Seems like a good value. Drinking very well, after an hour decant. The '12’s are approachable.

@jmdavidson1
Thanks good to know for future consideration.

@wineyum Curious how it was stored.
I’ve popped many Iron Horse bottles considerably over 10 years after vintage that were stellar, and were not stored with any reasonable providence.

@rjquillin Well, in my care, it was stored in a wine cooler with a steady 58 degree temp, located in a basement with no direct light. But I’ll admit I’m not sure when or where we got the bottle. I think it might have been a gift. I was bad for a couple years about keeping track of bottles in and out, but I just audited my collection a few months ago and my Cellar Tracker is accurate again! In fact, that’s how I discovered the bottle.

@Cerridwyn I just need to move to an AVA in California and ill never have to buy online again!

@chaosdreamer those were damn good. Mine disappeared long ago.

@CorTot Both the Syrah and Rose of Syrah were tasty.
I need to go and dig out some of those and some Ardente soonish; after I’m done with my meds and things will hopefully again taste normal.

@chaosdreamer one of my alll time favorites !

@ScottW58 That isn’t infanticide?

@knlprez
You don’t know me very well! And no it was delicious! But I have more for the future

@knlprez
Or infantAcide. : )

/image Infanta

Damn this is a nice Zin. Unless you want a fruit bomb or something with the weight of motor oil. This is light and elegant - a Pinot lover’s Zin, if you will

@klezman Sounds good! I’ll keep an eye out for it!

@swizzel Too much Wellington? Impossible to imagine.

@swizzel Just opened a 2000 estste zin 2 weeks ago. Wow. I need to resist on a few of the younger estates so I can see if they develop as well becase that was a really great bottle.

@knlprez nice! I thought the 2009 drank great, it’ll be a struggle not drinking the younger ones lol

@swizzel We got it in a mixed case, I have a hard time resisting any Wellington…

@alukan what do you think of the wine?

@alukan I was always very skeptical of these labels.

@CorTot I split 6 with my brother, I do not think we enjoyed 1 of them. As the last bottle of the night it was fine, but I don’t think I’d buy more no matter the price.

@alukan I liked it … but I will admit I tend to have a preference for Zin’s

@knlprez bottle 2 is a 2006 Haywood Los Chamizal zin. Cork saturated 95%, tons of blackberry jam on the nose, really incredible. Taste is a bit off, maybe corked…? Might need to breath a bit. I’ll report back.

@knlprez Humm, got some of the '09 and '10 sounds like I may need to visit soon. Do let us know how that '06 sorts itself out.

@rjquillin We had a few 2005s last year and they were in good shape. We had another 2006 a few months ago and it was good, thinking this is an off bottle.

Nose is great still, just very vegetal on the palate. I will open the other soon and report back, but I am really thinking this is an off bottle or a bad cork. Not bad, just not what I would expect from Haywood.

@knlprez “Corked” smells and tastes like wet newspaper. Little wine taste - no “jam.” But a lot of other things will make it taste “off.”

@Lighter I agree, this wasn’t corked. Just an off bottle I think.

@rjquillin our last bottle of 06 was very good. Not as much blackberry jam, more dark cherries and maybe some cherry cola, but it was drinking very well, none of the herbal characteristics of the other bottle. I wouldn’t be afraid of hanging onto a 2009 until 2020 if its stored well.

@karenhynes Very nice.

@heartny I think I finally drank all of mine, that was one of my more memorable woots, maybe because of the name, and maybe because I drank a lot around Halloween!

@rc70 Part of the 'tso vertical from back in '14?

@CorTot
Home, 0
Visitors, 2

@CorTot
Home, 2
Visitors, 0

@ScottW58

why doesn’t anyone use there real names?

Internet is such a completely safe and neighborly place? Or not?

@ScottW58 fun!
They are good people those Klezmans!
Most people don’t use their real names so their comments on a board like this don’t show up in a google search when a future employer is checking them out.

@CorTot
Ha! Oh yeah some of you people are young enough that you might have to find a new job someday

@ScottW58 This is actually quite humorous.
My curren job, last job interview, started with an ‘are you available part time’ email I received to which I replied. Email wage negotiation the following day where what they offered was less than what I was then currently getting paid (got matched), visited them the third day and signed papers. Told them I couldn’t start for ~10 days (rpm tour) and the first day of work was first day back from the '14 tour. Still there in my 4th year now.
I can’t even imagine, well, don’t want to, what younger social media active applicants may be subject to.

(in the interest of minimal thread creep) I think I may even pop a cork tonight; feeling a bit better.

@rjquillin
Funny thing is in my business a post about wineing and dining with friends would be beneficial to my career!

@f00l
Don’t worry if big brother wants to find you not using your real name will not help at all.

@ScottW58

I assume the NSA, the credit biz, Google, Apple (using an iPhone here), my cell carrier, Amazon, the large data mining companies, possibly the Dark Web, and a few others, and possibly some foreign govts, know all there is to know about me and then some.

It’s ok with me if things are not quite that transparent to the rest of the internet universe.
Esp the less polite portions of it.

@ScottW58 based on my current project requesting that I follow the engineering packages I produced into construction for about a year I may be looking for a new job sooner rather than later. On the other hand If I accept it I drink with @RC70 every Tuesday night.

@CorTot That would work for me, try as I might to drink inventory down it just keeps growing.

@rjquillin

Photo kinda sucks, supper didn’t.

Mushroom vermouth risotto, baked broccoli and red onion with a butter/fish/caper sauce.
The Ardente is still hanging in there, but neigh time to drink up.

@rjquillin
Why is there so much crap on the plate? and why is the steak so small?

@ScottW58 I cut it in half, and I’d already eaten some.

…and, as is tradition in our house, that is a generous pat of butter on top of the poutine.

@corrado
Oh mama that looks great! Love the instapot

@corrado that looks so good! I’m having a turkey sandwich and several swigs of NyQuil.

@karenhynes what vintage on the NyQuil? I’ve heard '16 is amazing. While so far '17 is a total sleeper.

@CorTot I’m hoping for the total sleeper.

@corrado Poutine! Now that’s a great idea

@ScottW58 are they typically at BD?

@CorTot
Sadly yes

@ScottW58

Well now that I know how

@rc70 I have a few bottles of this stashed away (Invino?), how’s it drinking?

@bsevern It’s drinking very nicely, no rush but in excellent place now don’t know that it will improve. Have 2 left myself will probably drink 1 in fall and the last about this time next year.

@klezman Tercero eh?

@Winedavid49 Larry does do good things.

@rjquillin @winedavid49 second this, Tercero is good stuff!

@Winedavid49 You know it’s true. If you can do better than club pricing you’ll have a lot of folks from WineBerserkers join in for the fun too!

@klezman nice. Looking forward to his offer on BD. Sure hope WD can lure him to ths site

@rjquillin around $5 at GO right now.

@rjquillin No more Esterlina. They went out of business a while ago, and invino has their remains. Sad story, actually, of the family essentially getting partially hoodwinked and partially too far ahead of themselves. I’ve got a case or so of their stuff waiting at invino…deliciousness.

@rjquillin how dry was this?

@CorTot Just a brief taste, and taster seemed off, so not a reliable effort.
Still in recovery mode it seems.
Gave the bottle away to a Riesling drinker and he was kinda meh as well. Gonna pick-up another tomorrow. At $5 I think I can afford it.
From memory, more like the regular '10 Cole Ranch we got, not the ‘dry’ Cole Ranch that I liked better.

@rjquillin
I’m so confused? Klez says great, you and another taster says meh?

@rjquillin hmmm. Maybe I’ll pick up 1 to try. But sounds off-dry which typically doesn’t do well here.

Had some recent strike outs at GO but a few winners. The manos Negras PN was a drain pour despite liking other vintages several years ago. The Concannon PS was really a nice bottle for the price though. The vina Robles 4 red was just meh.

@ScottW58 different vintages and different styles. The dry is, the non specified, not so much.

@ScottW58 I havn’t had the 2015 nor do I know whether it’s the dry or off-dry. I’ve liked both from them in the past, they just have different uses. At worst it’s cheap and enjoyable party wine.

@xandersherry what did you think of it?

@Twich22 I don’t have detailed tasting notes, so 9 days later, it’s going to be a bit vague, unfortunately. What I do remember: It was delicious, for a start. It was tart, not sweet, with strong cherry notes, and it is definitely still in its prime. I don’t recall a lot more that than. I will say I don’t drink a lot of PN, but if it were all like this, I’d drink a lot more.

@xandersherry Unfortunately, it’s not all like this…there may not be any like this

@bolligra Clark is a bit special, like his wines.

@xandersherry I love seeing all the updates and notes on some of the wines I also bought recently during WW final days. Quivering with excitement to try them myself…

@klezman Mmm. That was delicious as I recall.

@InFrom We had a bottle of the 2014 earlier this week and that was fantastic as well.

@mike808
That shit looks good!

@pjmartin It’s only 16:15 here. Well done.

@rjquillin Wellington Field Blend follows, a worthy companion. I find them similar. Wish I had more of these than I do.

@pjmartin Wellington Field Blend?

@pjmartin
Thanks for the note! I will break one out soon

@ScottW58 hopefully we can order more in a few weeks

@CorTot nice solid PS, good QPR!

@vaaccess especially when purchased with MdS’ club discount. Been missing the old D&D days on Oakland.

@vaaccess hard to pass up at $4 at GO. Pretty tasty too, especially since I wasn’t expecting much.

@sdilullo nice! We opened our first bottle of this as well, drinking great!

Also, why doesn’t Vivino have an entry for this yet?!

@ScottW58 this is not wine?!

@CorTot
And your point is?? I don’t even know why I talk to you anymore now that your better half is here

@rjquillin It’s sibling/cousin: 2012 Denier-Handal Zinfandel

@klezman How are those?
All mine, that I know of, are still with you…

@rjquillin This one is not as tasty as some of the prior bottles - a bit raisined for some reason.

@klezman of the '12, or earlier vintages?

@rjquillin Of the '12. I didn’t have any of the earlier vintages, or at least I don’t any longer.

@ScottW58 You keep talking about how tasty those are! Also, I didn’t know you went out for steak ever…where to?

@klezman
Delmonicos cause I be lazy and yes the wine is fantastic…ymmv

@CorTot for me that needed decanter time.
Halfway thru the Meeks.
At this rate, I may lose conciseness before the launch.
Tomorrow ~not~ a holiday.

@rjquillin tonight PNP was decent. I’m m guessing better tomorrow, not a holiday for me either.

@CorTot The '04 Merlot needed a decant as well.

10 minutes in the glass and it is even more delicious.

@mike808 That’s a big bummer! Oh well, enjoy it and strain for glass shards.

It’s super smooth. Good fruit, no real heat from the alcohol, just mild black pepper with minimal tannins on the front. Silky but not viscous mouthfeel. Pure lingering cabernet essence on the finish, and not a fruit bomb.

You can’t drink it when youre dead, so don’t feel bad at all if you open this while you’re still alive.

@mike808 I’m sad for your loss. But otoh, at least the rest of the bottle remained intact and you could enjoy most of it.

@mike808
Well thank you for tempting me, I will open one up soon for science! It’s not a loss if it’s delicious

@mike808 Ouch!

Tannins/oakiness are definitely more pronounced now, about 30 minutes in. Also seems to have picked up some warmth. Won’t finish this tonight, so I’ll note tomorrow how it’s going.

@vaaccess @CorTot @klezman @ScottW58 @f00l
Day 2. Aspirating (breathing/gargling) in the mouth gives either alcohol heat or acidity and dry tannins. Not bad, but more like a cheaper Cab and past the sweet spot.

Now, sipping with a closed mouth and swirling is completely different. It’s smooth with big grapey cab fruit flavor. Little of the acidity or puckery tannins like when mixed with air in your mouth. Also leaves nice flavorful cab almost like a coating in your mouth for the finish.

Wouldn’t know it’s been sitting on the counter for a day. Very drinkable this way. My palate isn’t a big Cab fan, but this is still spot on quality juice.

Will probably not finish tonight, so I’ll post notes from Day 3 here as well.

@vaaccess @CorTot @klezman @ScottW58 @f00l
Day 3. Really surpised today. It drinks a lot like Day 2. A little more acidity and pronounced tannins. Definitely in the woodsy taste. Still drinkable in a table wine way. Definitely usable in cooking if I were able to use it in a recipe.

No ragrets going into day 4.

@mike808 It’s always nice when a wine outperforms expectations like this. I usually can’t drink a wine the second day, beyond the second day is pretty unheard of from my experience.

I remedy this by ensuring I drink the bottle the night it’s open.

@vaaccess I’m pretty sure people drank wine over several days for centuries before we had 2-day delivery. Especially when it was shipped in amphoras and sent across the Aegean. I think the same-meal 2-hr consumption window we’re used to now is a historically recent thing. I also wouldn’t be surpised if we now make wine differently because of that.

@vaaccess It’s funny, but I fairly regularly find I like a wine better on the second day than on the first. An indication that I’m drinking it too young, perhaps.

@vaaccess Ar to the rescue!

@xandersherry There’s definitely a lot of things that could be in play here…i TYPICALLY grab wine to drink that is at or near the end of projected life just to prevent wine from going bad that I have. So, TYPICALLY, I’m drinking wine at the end of, not the beginning of their cycle. Certainly not always the case.

There’s also large variations on types of wines and personal taste.

All that said, since I have had bad experiences I typically don’t give any wine the chance to go bad overnight…So, who knows, maybe I need to try it again more often.

Out of curiosity, are you doing anything to it because closing it up? Refrigeration? Gassing it? Etc…

@mike808 Sure, people have consumed a lot of stuff centuries ago that would probably make us all vomit today. Just because they did it then doesn’t mean it tasted good. There’s no doubt that we’re spoiled more than we realize…that’s for sure.

And yes, I could technically probably drink wine for weeks and months after it’s been opened and if that’s all I had, I’d probably “enjoy” it.

@rjquillin Indeed. I got a single bottle WineSaver several years ago, with a Nitrogen tank. FOR ME, I thought the Nitrogen affected the wine and so I didn’t continue to buy replacement bottles. I’d much rather go with an Argon system, as I’ve drank wine at various establishments that need me to believe I wouldn’t be negatively impacting the wine with Argon (versus Nitrogen), but the costs for those systems are prohibitive in my opinion, when you factor in the total cost of using it and continuing to buy canister refills. I really want to convert the Nitrogen dispenser spout that I have to work with a food-grade tank that I can fill with Argon locally…I’ve done the research inclusive of talking to the people at WineSaver regarding the type of pressure that needs to get passed onto the spout…Just have to buy the regulator and tank…I really wish I could stumble across a commercial setup that is getting liquidated!

@vaaccess No, I don’t do anything special, but I think you probably nailed the main difference regardless. I drink mostly heavier reds, at room temperature, that are not near the end of their drinking window. So, all I do is stick a stopper in them and leave them on the counter. I don’t know that I’ve ever observed liking a wine that was nearing the end of its prime better on the second day.

@xandersherry @vaaccess
Well, day 5 here. Wasn’t in the mood yesterday. The last glass is acidic with hard tannins and earthy bitters from the oxidation. Drinking airless in the mouth minimizes all of that to tolerable levels. Still lots of that pronounced fruit CS is renowned for. Definitely in the drinking because you don’t want to pour it down the drain category, though.

I couldn’t cork it, so it sat open on the counter for the last 5 days of this experiment. It wasn’t a total loss and I’ve got a solid idea of how this wine develops once I pull the cork.

Conclusion? Open 30 minutes to an hour before diving in, and a joyful phase for probably 2-3 hours after that. Which is pretty much any meal’s pacing. Anything left over will be just fine and pretty darned good even the next day or in a recipe.

No regrets at all, and I’m glad I’ve got more of Cathy’s juice laid down to enjoy a few more times. Planned, though.

@mike808
Horrors about the busted bottle. Glad most if it was still there for the drinking.

We might want to start a new “What are you drinking?” thread for each month.

Hope you all do monthly topics for daily consumption choices and notes. Even tho I have little to contribute, I love reading it.

@f00l I was just observing that we’re already at 300 posts and we’re only halfway through January. That makes this a 7,200 post thread by next year. I’m not optimistic that can be usable or not have page load problems, both server side and browser side.

@mike808

Yup.

And pity my poor phone!

(Even tho I paginate to make it easier to deal with long topics on mobile.)

@mike808 Simple enough to start a what are you drinking February, etc. No?

@ScottW58 never took you got a singer…

@CorTot
??? what you say rjq???

@ScottW58 I said that I wish I knew how to proof read.

@ScottW58 I think @cortot needs a grammar lesson. He’s starting to sound like @losthighwayz

@rjquillin
haha

@rjquillin pistols at high noon. Thems fighten words!

@ScottW58

@ScottW58 That looks great!

@mtb002 Could you have used the chard in the risotto?

@jmdavidson1
I drank it before I realized what he was making. Don’t judge me.

https://wine.woot.com/offers/engracia-sonoma-coast-chardonnay-3-4?ref=w_cnt_odet_pic_2#fullsize-1
I went with this for the risotto, I have no regrets.

@ScottW58 nice work!

@CorTot
I’m getting old I deserve it YMMV

@ScottW58 I remember my first Rioja on a winter night. I swear I could taste the summer sun on the Spanish hillsides in that juice. Good choice.

@ScottW58 That is a tasty wine.

@TechnoViking Yum! Dr Heidemanns makes some of the best Riesling I’ve ever had.

@klezman We keep trying to get MdS to visit, but he says he’s a delicate flower.

@ddeuddeg One of these days…although you’ll have a lot more luck with a day in May-June with him Did get to meet jenludwig, which was very nice.

@kray05 Any tasting notes?

@mike808 sorry I’m not good at describing wines and I didn’t write anything down this time. from what I remember it was good, not high on tannins, mild and somewhat closed. Took a bit to open and in second pour got a little earthy/dusty. This is why I just Drink the wines

@mike808 It’s a nice, everyday CS. It isn’t complex, not a lot of tannins, some bright fruit, and a bit raisiny with air. It isn’t going to improve much with age, I don’t believe…It’s one that you should drink now. That said, I really like it right now, and it’s going to be one of my go-to every day drinkers this year.

On day 2 it was a lot more approachable. it had warmed to room temp and the fruit was much more open, balancing out the acid and tannins.

@Twich22 On day 3-4 it was super smooth. It was gone before I even noticed it.

@Twich22 rather following the '13 Victory profile, and not surprising, since both are from the same juice, but just different blends.

@rjquillin good to know. I think i will let them both sleep a while

@Twich22 You did know the Revelry was blended by wooters on the '14 rpm tour, I assume.

Still sipping on the '12 and '13, and trying to formulate thoughts, but too much Ardente preceded the Wellington.

@rjquillin yea I knew that you guys and gals blended it. A pretty cool thing! Do you know how many of you were involved?

@Twich22 We had 8 teams of 4, proceeding in two rounds of 4 teams each. The first group did “half” of the blending and the second group “refined” the initial blend however they saw fit. The editorial quotes are necessary because essentially the second groups did away with the first groups’ blends and started from scratch. The group then tasted all four blends and voted. There was a tie. Then we had a second round that broke said tie.

@klezman very cool indeed. A good story too!

@CorTot Thanks!

@CorTot great advice! Great first glass ~40 mins after decanting and the last glass some 3 hours later is even better! Went out for dinner but paired well with a smoked Gouda.
How do the ‘12 and ‘13 drink now? I’m in a small apartment so I don’t save much wine, but I can try to hide these in a closet if they need time

@grantunderland I just popped open the 13’ a couple nights ago. It needs time to open. At 4 hrs I thought it started to come around. I should have come back to it the next day but I was thirsty and it was good. I opened the 08’ about 2 weeks ago, I think I liked the 13’ better.

@TechnoViking I rarely have 4 hours to let a wine breathe, hopefully I can just hang onto these for another year or two but my tiny apartment doesn’t afford good space. I need to just find a good wine fridge and hide these in the back. Thankfully the launch offers so far means I shan’t be out of good wine for a good while!!

@grantunderland Sometimes I open the bottle in the morning and pour off just enough to get below the neck (i.e. shoulder the bottle) and then put the cork back in. Should be closer to ready by dinnertime. I refer to this as slow ox.

@trifecta thanks for the tip!!

@trifecta Agreed, but I leave the cork out.

@trifecta Same here. Especially for heavy tannin/young wines like the Tuscan Brunellos (Sangiovese, for the Vino Noceto fans).

Just pop the cork in the morning or at lunch and by dinner they’ve unwound.

@mike808 If I did that I think come dinner the bottle would have “evaporated.” Better open two just to be safe.

@CroutonOllie I had a 2012 screwcap Qupe syrah last week. It was excellent. I have had half a dozen Qupe syrahs and all have been enjoyable.

@pjmartin I’m still having some right now, and am impressed by the wine and qpr.

Will get more, cheers!

@InFrom I had a bottle of that over the holidays. It was the first Viognier I have tried. It was a really cool experience. Unlike any wine I have had before.

@Twich22 I really liked it, but on Friday along with all the other interesting things it had going on, I detected a very slight hint of age (not that there’s anything wrong with that! WineSmith Faux Chablis taught me that a well-made white can age in interesting ways.) I put the vacu-vin’d bottle back in the fridge and revisited on Saturday, and the note was even more noticeable. Reminded me a bit of fino sherry. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that either, I love fino sherry.) It certainly was still enjoyable at that point. Curious to try another bottle soon.

@InFrom Hrm, I dont recall anything like that but then I was not in a great setting to ponder the complexities of the taste. It was christmas eve and there were too many bottles to choose from.

@dbarrym

@ScottW58 I like the way you drink/think.

@ScottW58 i didn’t think you liked PS, those tannins can be pretty face crushing…

@ScottW58 @cortot At first I read that as Barolo Carbonic.
~that~ would certainly be in-your-face.
Need morning coffee…

@rjquillin I was just pointing out that he doesn’t mind face smashing tannins but hates PS. Seems so wrong. As a matter of fact I’m headed over there now to talk some sense in to him. I’ll bring Kyle as back up.

@CorTot you guys are just too far away, but I’m not moving back to LA just for that. Will be up at JPL on 2/1 arriving the evening before and may hang Thursday evening waiting on traffic, but need to be back early Friday.

@CorTot
It’s not the tannin that I don’t like in PS it’s the mouthful of chalk I get everytime! And Kyle won’t save you but maybe your lovely wife can