AJ McClellan
As our members trickled in one by one and tasted the already impressive lineup we had out they decided to contribute to the array of wine with a few bottles of their own.
2006 Jones Family The Sisters – This is our go-to wine here at Graileys; when in doubt this is an easy-pleasing fantastic bottle of wine that is extremely well put together and is sure to bring a smile to your face. Originally made by Heidi Barrett and then accented with the finishing touches from Thomas Rivers Brown this has the makings of an instant cult classic but with one key aspect missing – it is not absorbingly expensive. Big blue and red fruits with a soft earthy minerality and a finish of milk chocolate; what’s not to love?
1999 Faiveley Clos de Voug Grand Cru – At first I was not impressed with this wine. It was shut down and just about the only thing I could get out of it was wet cardboard. However, after some time in the glass it bloomed into a bountiful wine full of barnyard, forest floor, green cocoa, smoke, red currants, cranberries, bramble, and rocky minerality. Patience is a virtue in this case; the longer this wine sat in the glass the better it got.
1986 Bruno Giacosa Falletto – Another favorite of mine, Giacosa constantly produces outstanding wines that are near the top of the wine world. Big barnyard with burnt hay and wet forest floor with loads of funk and sour black cherry, well worn leather, black liquorish, and not to forget the earthy mushroom and white truffle growing on the back end. Dark bitter chocolate on the finish with a hint of dry tobacco leaves.
1987 Jaboulet La Chapelle – This bottle goes to show that it’s not what’s on the outside but on the inside that counts. After an hour long decanting, this wine was rearing and ready to go. I was trying to concentrate on the other wines and all I could smell was the deep dark raspberries, currant, leather, tar, and tobacco seeping out of the decanter. Once I started pouring this wine into the glasses it filled the room with sour cherries, barnyard, and used tube socks. The palate had a massive smokey quality with cooked wild quail dressed with roasted cranberry smothered in gravy served on a bed of dried tobacco leaves.
1993 Mouton Rothschild – Classic Bordeaux with pencil lead, Asian spice, red liquorish, crumbled dark chocolate, sweet blueberries, cassis, forest floor, and toasty oak. After some time in the glass it opened up even more to reveal vanilla bean, roasted nuts, caramel, and a rocky minerality of crushed schist and pea gravel.