By: AJ McClellan
I had a blast yesterday with our members. It was a great night with a lineup of beautiful wines which were shared across the table. One in particular really stood out for me… The 2012 Big Table Farm Resonance Vineyard Pinot Noir. This wine was Rocking! Only around 100 cases of this fantastic Oregon were produced, the BTF Pinot was stellar reminding me of some of the great Eyrie single vineyards I have had in the past. We opened the bottle and drank it over 7 hours and this little $50 bottle just kept going and going. Soft red cherries with a morsel of violet and notes of strawberry patch and a slight hint of bitter nut skin. I have the feeling that this wine will age very well and I look forward to coming back to it in a few years…
While the BTF Pinot was great I have to mention a few other bottles that grabbed my eye as well. The 2011 Feraud Brunel Rasteau Cote du Rhone was one such bottle. A little $30 wine that blew my socks off! A classic Rhone wine that packed a wallop. With leather, sour cherry, horse hide, and crushed stone, this bottle punched way above its weight! Watch your emails because pretty soon I will be offering this wine out for everyone to stock up on!
Another wine that would be remiss of me not to mention is the 2006 Paolo Bea Montefalco Sagrantino. I have written about this wine a multitude of times and have always been a big supporter. However, last night this wine was even better than the lofty standards I have always held it to. With burnt orange rind, black currants, warm leather, and roasted cocoa beans this wine was unstoppable. Huge tannins gripped the palate but the crisp acidity kept the wine in balance. A real stunner. I must open another bottle soon to see if I am just catching it in a good window or if this particular bottle was extraordinarily great.
Other wines of the night included…
2012 Benoit Ente Bourgogne Blanc Golden Jubilee, 2011 Jean Michel Ganoux Genevrieres, 2010 Joseph Voillot Pommard Epenots, 1997 Ceretto Zonchera Barolo, 2010 Michelle Gay Savigny Les Beaune Vergelesses,