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Showing posts from January, 2016

Donnas 2011 Vallee d'Aoste

This is a highly unusual wine from the Valle d'Aosta DOC (or Val d'Aoste DOC, in French ) located in the northwest of Italy. Surrounded by the Alps , the Valle d'Aosta is home to the highest  elevated vineyards in all of  Europe. The principal winemaking region of the Valle d'Aosta is found along the eastern banks of the Dora Baltea(fr, Doire baltée ) river with the city of Aosta serving as the central winemaking location. Donnas is a local co-operation who has created this silky and well balanced  Alpine Rosso. A blend of 85% Picotendro (the local name for Nebbiolo) and the rest split up between local varieties Freisa and Neyret. This wine complements its demanding tannins from the Nebbiolo grape with pure red fruit, provided by the other two components. Grown in rocky soils on steep slopes, this Rosso is considered to be the Barolo or Barbaresco of Vallee d’Aosta. Aged for at least two years in 25 HL oak casks, the wine gives a beautiful nose full of ...

Richebourg 2001 by Dominique Laurent

Richebourg is a small appelation with Grand cru status in Burgundy in the commune of Vosne Romanee. Only 7,4 hectares with a total of 26.000 bottles produced by different producers. Prices vary from 300$ per bottle to 24.000$ bottle. I bought this bottle together with some friends from a local wine shop in the east of Norway. The same shop also rented us 4 Burgundy glasses !!! What a service! Let it be said at once: this is a stunning wine! Just super delicious and enormously complex. The 2001 vintage is drinking perfect now. Medium red colour with rusty red rim.  The aromas are just wonderful with many variations like: red meat, cellar, wet wooolen socks, chocolate, dark cherries and burnt wood. The taste is just as great and I have never tried such a powerful Pinot Noir. Silky and elegant tannins with a super sharp balance and very long and decadent  aftertaste. Great great stuff! Stunning really and worth every penny of the roughly 300$.... At the time of writi...

Andromeda 2008 Pinot Noir by Sean Thackrey

This is just a gourgeous Pinot Noir made by the magician Sean Thackrey.The grapes are from the Marine County in California and the wine has quite a medium to dark red colour to be a Pinot. On the nose is earthy with ripe red fruit, some chocolate and tobacco. Hints of dark cherries is also present. This is a big, solid and very smooth Pinot with a beautiful balanced fruit. It's also an unusual Pinot due to the density and full body. It would be difficult to believe it's a Pinot if it was served in a blind tasting. It's thus perfect if you want to play a trick on your wine friends. Price starts at 40$ and the 2008 can still keep for many years.

BattenfeldSpanier Riesling 2014

This is just a glorious and cheap Riesling from Rheinhessen in Germany. The producer, Hans Olivier Spanier, has made a fruity, fresh and elegant Riesling which has an elegant acidity and balance. some hints of minerality and grapefruit as well. Medium yellow colour and a bouquet ofripe apples, sitrus and peach. This wine will go well with fish, seafood, asian food and sushi. A bargain at 150 NOK or just 8€...