by Tom Hill

A self-admitted wine geek, Tom lives in Northern New Mexico and works as a computational physicist at Los Alamos National Laboratory doing numerical neutron transport & large scale code development. He has been tasting wines since 1971, participates locally with a couple of large tasting groups in his area, and is practically a fixture at most California wine festivals, such as the Hospice du Rhône, Rhône Rangers, and ZAP. Other interests: Tom is heavily into competitive sport fencing (foil & epee), biking, cooking, basketball, skiing, backpacking, mountain climbing.

 

Rhones
Tasted last week some Rhones:
Philippe Pichon Condrieu (13.5%) '97: Med.light yellow color; attractive pear/spicy/ bit minerally/floral rather subdued nose; fat very spicy/pear light minerally some glycerined flavor; very long rather minerally/pear/Viognier finish; rather light/ subdued low-key Viognier nose but lovely Condrieu flavor. Good price at $28.00
Alban Vnyds Central Coast Viognier The Heavyweight (14.4%) '98: Med.gold color; strong toasty/pungent/oaked/smokey rather perfumed/floral/Viognier nose; big rich/powerful pungent/toasty/smokey/oaked tart/lean light floral/honeyed flavor; very long very strong smokey/pungent/toasty/Fr.oaked some floral/peachy/pears/Viognier finish; much like the SQN O&P w/ a lot of toasty oak.
Alban Vnyds Central Coast Roussanne (14.8%) '97: Med.gold color; ripe honeyed/honeysuckle/ floral/spicy bit almondy very lovely nose; tart/stoney some metallic ripe honeysuckle/ floral/spicy perfumed flavor; very long tart/stoney honeysuckle/floral flavor; a big rich mouthfilling w/ a pretty tart/stoney backbone; needs some age; almost mead-like in character. Good price at $18.00
Tablas Creek Tablas Blanc Paso Robles White Wine Estate Bttld (13.5%; Roussanne/Viognier/ Marsanne) '98: Med.gold color; lovely floral/Viognier/perfumed/fragrant slightly volatile nose; strong aromatic/perfumed/floral bit stoney/hard very spicy flavor; long bit metallic/stoney lovely floral/aromatic/peachy/pear finish; seems to be dominated by the Viognier character but has an underlying hardness/leanness. Really lovely wine and one of the best white Rhone blends I've had.
Eberle Paso Robles Viognier Fralich Vnyd (13.8%) '94: Med.gold color; rather toasty/oaked some earthy/piney/resiny bit mineral oil/perfumed talc interesting nose; soft/fat some oaked/pencilly slight piney/resiny flavor; long resiny/piney some spicy/cinammon some complex finish; a rather rich oily/textured wine but a bit clunky and short on flavor; drink up.
Eberle Paso Robles Syrah Fralich Vnyd (12.3%) '92: Dark color; pretty strong bretty/ horsecollar rather cinammon/cloves slight blackberry/Syrah nose; tart rather bretty/ horsecollar pencilly/oaked/cinammon/cloves rather funky/Rhonish flavor; med.long bretty/horsecollar/earthy funky pencilly/oaked slight blackberry finish w/ little tannins; rather on the funky/bretty/unclean side but sort of Rhonish in character.
SantaFe Wine & Chile Fiesta Qupe Central Coast Calif Syrah (13.5%; "BigHats, NoCattle") '98: Med.color; spicy/fragrant slight Syrah/blackberry bit oaked peppery/earthy nose; tart some peppery/spicy bit earthy some toasty/pungent/oaked flavor; med.long earthy/peppery light toasty/oaked finish w/ light tannins; seems more like Zin than Syrah; a bit lacking in blackberry/Syrah fruit; pleasant wine.
Ramsay Calif Syrah (13%) '90: Med.dark color; bit fecal/dirty diaper pail nose (the Rasmussen stench again) clears to fragrant/blueberries/complex bit peppery/pungent/ toasted oak nose; tart peppery/blueberry/spicy some toasty/oaked bit complex flavor; long toasty/oaked/pungent/smokey some blueberry/Syrah finish w/ some tannins; developed quite nicely and probably about its peak.
Ojai Vnyd Calif Syrah (13%) '91: Med.color; very spicy very dusty some blackberry/Syrah Fr.oaked/toasty bit coffee/espresso/roasted rather Rhonish/complex nose; soft very spicy some toasty/Fr.oaked/pencilly complex light blackberry bit smokey/Rhonish/espresso/ roasted flavor; long spicy/dusty light blackberry/Syrah rather toasty/pencilly/Fr.oak slight roasted/espresso finish w/ light tannins; a bit like an aged Pinot and and old Hermitage w/ some Rhone-like character from the toasty/Fr.oak.
Sylvain Bernard Domaine de Fauterie St.Joseph (12%) '90: Med.color; beautiful/complex very roasted/espresso/smokey/pungent complex nose; soft very strong roasted/espresso/ smokey/charred classic NorthernRhone flavor; very long bit drying out intense roasted/ espresso/coffee/smokey/pungent finish w/ light tannins; drying out a bit & ready to drink but that classic roasted/espresso NorthernRhone character.
Alain Graillot Crozes Hermitage (12.5%) '97: Dark color; rather herbal/dusty/dried oregano & basil/spicy/smokey slight roasted oaked nose; very hard tart/lean rather spicy/herbal slight roasted dusty/earthy flavor; long hard/lean/tannic bit green some herbal/spicy/oaked finish w/ ample tannins; not as toasty/charred oaked as previous ones; somewhat on the green/herbal/almost vegetal side; this is a pretty intense wine but very hard/lean/austere and most unattractive on the palate; suspect this will mature into a pretty tasty Rhone w/ 5-10 yrs of age.
Andrew Murray Santa Barbara Cnty North Slope Syrah (13.5%; 100% Syrah) '97: Black color; rather volatile/fumey/EA/hot very strong blackberry/Syrah some toasty/Fr.oaked nose; soft rather hot/volatile intense blackberry/Syrah/dusty/boysenberry light toasty/Fr.oaked flavor; long bit hot/volatile/fumey intense boysenberry/blackberry/Syrah finish w/ some tannins.
Alban Vnyds Alban Estate Syrah Reva (14.5%) '97: Black color; very intense blackberry/ Syrah/gamey/boysenberry/dusty/loads of fruit/dusty bit toasty/pungent/Fr.oaked complex nose; huge rich ripe/blackberry/boysenberry/licorice/very spicy/cloves very gamey some toasty/Fr.oaked flavor; very long toasted/oak intense boysenberry/blackberry/spicy/ gamey/dusty/complex/licorice finish w/ ample tannins; a huge Syrah that needs 2-10 yrs; killer Syrah.
Alban Vnyds Alban Estate Syrah Reva (14.1%) '95: Very dark color; very intense/blackberry/ boysenberry/Syrah some roasted/toasted/complex bit gamey some toasty/charred/oak nose; big rich/ripe/intense/blackberry/boysenberry/very spicy/light gamey tannic some toasty/ oak flavor; very long blackberry/boysenberry/gamey/very spicy finish w/ ample tannins; a bit more complexity & harder tannins than the '97; killer Syrah.
Tablas Creek Tablas Rouge Paso Robles Red Wine Estate Bttld (14.3%; Mourvedre/Grenache/Syrah/ Counoise) '97: Very dark color; rather spicy/lots of fruit/licorice/plummy/strawberry light toasty/oaked nose; soft some oaked bit licorice some pungent/spicy/plummy flavor; med.long rather spicy/plummy/licorice/strawberry fruit light toasty/oaked finish w/ light tannins; a quite nice bright spicy blended red but a bit pricey at $34.00

And then a few dessert wines to celebrate Kevin Hubbard's 39'th (really!!) BD:
Mark West Russian River Vlly GWT Creek Side Vnyd (11.5%; RS:7.0%; SaH: 26.8%) '91: Deep gold color; strong musky/fragrant/some botrytis peachy/apricotty bit earthy nose; soft rich sweet/dusky/apricotty/peachy/musky GWT bit earthy flavor; very long glycerined musky/GWT/peachy/apricotty earthy finish; really developed into a lovely dessert GET.
Bonny Doon Vnyd Vin de Glacier Oregon GWT (11.9%; RS:16.3%; Made from Post-Harvest Frozen grapes) '88: Med.light gold color; strong very grapey little GWT or complex nose; very sweet very grapey/spicy light GWT/musky flavor; med.long very grapey/musky finish. $14.50/hlf
And the usual drivel from the bloody pulpit:
Dave Jones & his entourage were in town for SantaFe Chile & Wine Fiesta, so this was a good excuse to try some new Rhones and then check in on a few from the archives.
The Qupe CentralCoast Syrah used to be one of my favorite Syrahs from Calif. Thru the '96 vintage, it had a fair amount of SantaBarbara fruit in it and lots of blackberry/ Syrah character. When the '97 came out last yr at SFC&WF, I actively disliked the wine, felt it was lacking in Syrah character and had too much Lodi Zin/Carignane character. By the following January, I had grown to really like the wine & felt the Syrah was coming to the forefront. It's now one of my favorite restaurant wines. I like this '98 version much better than the '97, at this same point in time. The wine seems to me have some of the Lodi character but more dominated by the Paso Robles/ FrenchCampVnyd (the Millers of BienNacido) fruit. This vnyd is far east in Paso, out towards Shandon, near the ShellCreekVnyd. I think this is rather hot for growing really good Syrah, IMHO. But I expect the '98 CentralCoast will develop in the bottle & I'll really like it by January again. It's a good/tasty drinking red but not the wine the CentralCoasts of the early-mid '90's were. This SFW&CF bottling is identical to the standard Qupe CentralCoast Syrah and marks the first release of this wine to the public. The artist's label of BigHats/NoCattle makes fun of all the pseudo-cowboys that populate SantaFe.... of which I am NOT one!
The Ramsay Syrah: This is Kent Rasmussen's second label. As I recall from Kent, this was made mostly from the last crop of Syrah from EstrellaRiver (Meridian) afore it was ripped out because of phyloxera. It reminds me a bit of the early BonnyDoon Syrahs from these same grapes. It was a pretty rustic/hard/tannic wine in its youth, but has evolved quite nicely into pretty tasty wine. Sometimes you win one!
Ojai Calif Syrah: This wine, in its last few vintages, continues to be one of the real Syrah bargins around. Now up around $18 or so. The '98 should be released in January and promises to be another great one. I've followed Adam & Helen Tolmach's wines from the very start in the dairy barn up in LosAlamos (not the real one!). His early ones were strong on toasty Fr.oak and made more like a Calif Pinot I thought. Not nearly as big & rich & extracted as his more recent ones. But quite well made & interesting Syrahs w/ some nice Rhone-like character. This '91 version was one of Adam's first Syrahs that mightly impressed me. As I recall, it has about his last crop from his OakView/Estate vnyd afore it succumbed to Pierce's disease. This wine has really evolved into a lovely/beautiful wine.
AndrewMurray NorthSlope Syrah: This is a special bottling Andrew did for his Best Barrique club and not generally available. It's pretty much a dead-ringer for his '97 LesCoteaux, except perhaps a bit more intense in the Syrah/blackberry/fruit department. It's sort of an over-the-top/Aussie-style of Syrah that Andrew made by not keeping the barrels perfectly intentionally. It's packed w/ Syrah fruit but the volatility/EA makes it a bit too fumey for some tasters and makes its longevity suspect. I sort of like this wine for its over-the-top character and w/ something like BarBQue ribs, think it would go pretty well.
AlbanVnyds: These are all recent AlbanVnyds releases, so was particularly looking forward to trying them. John Alban is one of my most favorite persons in the Rhone galaxy that I occupy. Although his bowling skills are a bit lacking; when it comes to growing Rhone varietals in Calif, nobody does it better. And his wines reflect that. The CentralCoast HeavyWeight Viognier was inspired by the previous yrs visit of Yves Cuilleron. It is Viognier from the Paso Robles(WestSide) vnyd John farms plus a small amount of 30 Brix slightly botrytised Estate Viognier. It, presumably, is meant to compete mano-e-mano, or at least emulate, the richness & texture Yves gets in his Condrieu. It's a pretty amazing Viognier, unlike any others I've had. Some tasters thought the toasty Fr.oak was too strong for Voignier. Although the oak was pretty dominating in the nose; I thought the richness & texture was able to carry the oak quite well on the palate. But for those looking for the Dolly Parton style of Viognier, this will not be their (size 48EE) cup of tea!! Since the whole question came up of the authenticity of Roussanne in Calif, I've been tasting them a lot more closely. Roussanne has been sort of a mystery to me in Calif. I have, in general, been pretty impressed with them. Many of them I've felt have been better Calif Viogniers than most Calif Viogniers. But John Alban's Roussannes have always been outlyers to me. They seem to have a lots of richness & powerful fruit, but also an underlying hardness (much like I find in Calif & Rhone Marsanne) and minerally character which I just sort of dismissed to the cool EdnaVlly growing conditions. This CentralCoast '98, from his Paso vnyd, is a pretty terrific wine at a very reasonable price. And the Reva Syrahs (named after John's mom, a really neat lady that I met in Paso last yr) are some of the best Syrahs being made in Calif. They have a backbone & a structure, despite all the loads of ripe Syrah fruit, and a unique spiciness that I find in few/none other Calif Syrahs. I was expecting the '95, what I consider John's first great/world-class Syrah to be a little further along in its development. It seems to be a slow developer, but its a killer. Forgot to include the '97 Estate Grenache, but the barrel sample in June was pretty amazing. We'll taste it in a few weeks. The '98 Estate Roussanne and the '97 Lorraine (named after this Irish lass that is now John's wife) will be released next month. With the '98 vintage, John will have more Grenache and Syrah coming from Seymour's Vnyd (named after his Dad) atop the hill above the wnry. From barrell, they're also killer wines. One of my favorite people, one of my favorite wineries. Alas, not enough of their wine.
TablasCreek: This is the property owned by importer Robert Haas and the Perrins of Beaucastel fame. This is the first wine, I believe, entirely from their own estate high up in the SantaLucia highlands in WestSide Paso. The vnyds are absolutely beautiful in a limestone soil and impeccably maintained. This is a wnry I suspect, as the vnyds mature, will be producing some of the top Rhone wines in Calif. The Blanc seemed to be dominated by the Viognier at this point in time but it has an underlying hard/minerally character I suspect is from the (authentic) Roussanne and will allow this wine to age quite well. The Rouge seemed a bit less interesting. Lots of bright fruit but not the deep/dark character I find in the Qupe LosOlivosCuvee or the deep/gamey character of the Beaucastel. However.... I found their '96 TablasHills Rouge (non-Estate grapes) to be pretty underwhelming upon its release and then when I was served it by Bob Senn some 6-8 months later, was quite amazed at the depth and richness the wine had developed. I suspect the same will be true of this '97 version.
Aging the Stickies: I've long felt that the high sugar levels of these sort of wines would permit them to age very well & live a long time. This BonnyDoon IceWine seems to be in sort of suspended animation; not showing any development or evolution at all. A recent Quady Essensia OrangeMuscat '82 was much the same; just not seeming to go anywhere at all. Maybe I need a bit more patience and just drink my Screaming Eagles and Arajuos whilst I wait for them to come around!!
From the paucity of his recent posts; looks like I badly scooped Bernie on the wines. Present score: TomHill-396 Bernie Roth-2 (living in SantaBarbara worth one point; being a rocket scientist loses you a few points).