|
| Vintages Pre-Release |
|
|
Summer VPRs are always great, because you get to sample some great wines and some great pizza! Reported by Dawn Harvie We started off the evening with the Pierre Sparr ‘Dynastie’ Crémant d’Alsace. For the most part, participants were not impressed with its old, yeasty nose or its sour acidity. It was followed by the first flight of whites which included the André Blanck Pinot Blanc, which again disappointed participants. At first sniff, it had a bit of floral and citrus, which disappeared quickly. In general, it was considered a boring wine. The second, the Hugel Muscat, was the favourite with its aromatics of perfume, honeysuckle, and melon, and its very persistent finish. A good buy at $15.95. The Turckheim Pinot Gris had a few fans in the group although many found it hard to define. There was a hint of gooseberry on the nose and in the mouth along with decent acidity, but it had a short finish. Of the two Pinot Noirs and one Pinot/Shiraz blend in the second flight, it was the latter that was the favourite hands down. The Pierre Sparr ‘Prestige’ Pinot Noir had some leather, smoke, tar, spices, and a bit of barnyard on the nose. It had good acidity, but was just a little too tannic giving an unbalanced wine. Many thought it would work quite well with food. The Henry of Pelham Pinot Noir had sweet wood, coffee, cigarette butts, smoke, and meat on the nose. There was a nice spice in the mouth along with good acid and tannins. Again, another good food wine. The 50% Pinot Noir and the 50% Shiraz (the ‘DA’ Alfred), the favourite, had a whack of fruit, strawberries, raspberries, and cherries, with a touch of earthiness. It had the best balance of the three wines in the flight and it had good weight and a decent finish. This rather different blend proved to be quite interesting. Flight three had Bordeaux-style blends as a theme. The Parés Blatà ‘Mas Elena’, a Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc blend, was closed initially, but the better noses got some spice, vanilla, pine, clove, and a little acetone. It was lip smacking! It had well-integrated tannins and a nice acidity creating a well-balanced wine. It was the favourite of the flight. The Zeni ‘Costalago’ Rosso, a Corvina, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon blend, had a few fans. It had some vanilla, strawberry, cherry, fruit leather, and a hint of candy floss on the nose, but was lacking acidity. The Château Meyre had lots of fruit, but overall was not judged to be very exciting or complex. Flight four featured three wines and three pizzas. The first wine, the Pio Cesare Barbera D’Alba was a little closed initially, but opened up with some tar and vanilla oak. The Penfolds Bin 2 Shiraz/Mourvèdre was easily the favourite of the flight. It had some sweet vanilla, tar, a bit of eucalyptus, and some dark fruit that all came through on the palate. The Barossa Valley Estates ‘Ebenezer’ had several fans with its sweet fruit and vanilla oak. Of the pizzas, the sausage pizza went best with the wines. Both the pesto-leek and the seafood-asparagus pizzas needed white wines. On their own, they were definitely enjoyed! Many thanks to Pierre Fournier, Guild Director, for presenting a group of diverse and interesting wines! Apéritif Dynastie, Pierre Sparr, 2000, Crément d’Alsace, France 952796 $19.95 Flight 1: Whites Anciene Cour des Chevaliers de Malte, André Blanck, 2004, AC Alsace, France (Pinot Blanc) 626606 $13.95 Tradition, Hugel, 2004, AC Alsace, France (Muscat) 956771 $15.95 Cave de Turckheim, 2004, AC Alsace, France (Pinot Gris) 686287 $16.95 Flight 2: Pinot Noirs Prestige Pinot Noir, Pierre Sparr, 2003, AC Alsace, France 960484 $28.95 “Unfiltered” Pinot Noir, Henry of Pelham, 2004, VQA Niagra Peninsula 268391 $24.95 Da’ Red, Domaine Alfred, 2004, Edna Valley, Central Coast, USA (Pinot Noir / Shiraz) 686741 $24.95 Flight 3: Bordeaux Blends Mas Elena, Parés Baltà, 2003, DO Penedès, Spain (Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot / Cabernet Franc) 687236 $15.45 Costalago Rosso, Zeni, 2004, IGT Rosso Veronese, Italy (Corvina / Merlot / Cabernet Sauvignon) 681767 $15.95 Château Meyre, 2000, AC Haut-Médoc Cru Bourgeois, France (Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot / Cabernet Franc / Petit Verdot) 955146 $16.95 Flight 4: Big Reds & Pizza Pio Cesare, 2003, DOC Barbera d’Alba, Italy (Barbera) 938886 $22.95 Bin 2, Pendfolds, 2004, South Australia, Australia (Shiraz / Mourvèdre) 468629 $20.95 Ebenezer, Barossa Valley Estates, 2002, Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia (Shiraz) 971705 $39.95 |
|
Special offers to (and from) Guild members! |
| Latest News |
|---|
| Upcoming Events |
|---|
| Moderation |
|---|
 The National Capital Sommelier Guild strongly supports moderate and responsible consumption of wine and spirits. Guild dinner events allow a designated driver to attend at a reduced price. The designated driver will not be served alcohol. Guild tasting events provide and encourage the use of spit buckets. |
|
||