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.

3/26/06 - Friday afore RR, we got together w/ SteveEdmunds and Oliver McCrum over lunch at BayWolf in Oakland and tried a few wines:

1. Garlider Sudtirol Eisacktaker Sylvaner (14%) 2004: Light yellow color; very attractive fragrant/floral very aromatic almost R-like nose; rich rather minerally fragrant/floral slight chalky flavor; med.long minerally/floral finish a very attractive minerally Sylvaner at a good price. $18.00
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2. Niedrist Sudtirol Terlaner Sauvignon (14.5%) 2004: Very fragrant terpentine/minerally/very spicy very perfumed nose; soft/rich very lush/floral/minerally/fresh paint exotic very spicy bit chalky/earthy/valve oil flavor; very long rich/lush fairly tart minerally/spicy/bit herbal finish; very unusual/exotic rendition of Sauvignon. $30.00
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3. EdmundsStJohn TablasCreekVnyd PasoRobles Roussanne (14.5%) 2004: Med.light gold color; big/fragrant/floral very minerally/lanolin almost Riesling/valve oil very perfumed nose; rich/tart/lush floral/minerally/valve oil/honeysuckle very spicy/slight nutmeg flavor; very long rich/tart floral/perfumed finish; this wine will be a killer w/ more age. $30.00
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4. EdmundsStJohn Bone-Jolly WitterVnyd/ElDoradyCnty (13.1%) 2004: Med,dark color; lovely floral/violets/spicy bit earthy/mushroomy rather BeaujolaisGrandCru-like nose; soft earthy/floral/violets/lilacs very perfumed flavor; rather like a BeaujolaisGrandCru but w/o some of the rough/rustic character many show; another wine that's really developed nicely over the last few months; good value at $14.00
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5, IgnatzNiedrist Berger-Gei Sudtiroler LagreinGries 2003: Very dark color; big black cherry/boysenberry/plummy bit earthy/dusty fragrant nose; big/dusty/earthy black cherry/boysenberry/plummy/perfumed/cola bit rough/tannic slight rustic flavor; needs several yrs of age; loads of black cherry/Lagrein fruit w/ an underlying minerally/dusty character; interesting/well-made wine. $35.00
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6. EdmundsStJohn BrandlinRanch/MtVeeder Zin (12.8%) 1990: Dark color w/ little bricking; beautiful SouthernRhone smokey/pungent/cedary very fragrant complex nose; rich fairly lush earthy smokey/pungent/cedary quite Rhonish/dusty smmoth/polished flavor w/ slight tannins; still in splendid condition and come together extremely well on the palate; one of those rare examples of an older Zin that has and great nose AND is still pleasurable on the palate.

1. EdStJohn Roussanne: When we first got this wine in & tried it, it seemed a bit hard & closed. But in the last few month, it seems to have really devoloped some terrific aromatics and really becomming a great drink. Even though it is rich & lush, it has an acidic backbone and minerally component that suggests it going to age for quite a long time. One of Steve's best whites yet.
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2. EdStJohn Zin: This was Steve's last Zin off the old vines on Brandlin afore PeterFranus bought the property. Amazingly good example of mature Zin. And an appalling-low alcohol. Hmmmmmm...?
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3. Niedrist: A relatively new Sudtirol producer for Oliver McCrum Imports (www.OMWines.com). I was impressed. Small producer but worth tracking down.
Tom