A few wines with friends

Last SAT I got together with some good friends at the cozy Escargot bistro. What started as a calm reunion ended up as a pretty entertaining party with plenty of good wines and tasty food. The wines were served in a descending order by vintage. Here are the tasting notes.

2010 Simonsig Chenin Blanc

This wine has a very good QPR. For about 7-9 EUR per bottle, the wine is amazingly good. The wine has a pale yellow lemon color. The nose is very fresh with plenty of floral aromas, lemon zest and green apples. In the mouth the wine is off dry with a very nice balance, nice freshness, good acidity, has a medium body and good concentration with pleasant aromas of citric fruits, green apples, white and yellow flowers. A medium aftertaste makes this wine a killer for the price it sells for. Very good+ and everybody loved it.

2007 Trapiche Single Vineyard Vina Domingo Faustino Sarmiento

Coming from the Single Vineyard collection chosen by Trapiche each year from their top 3 producers, this young 100% Malbec spent 18 months in new French oak. I did write tasting notes about the other 2 bottles of the 2007 vintage here: 2007 Trapiche Malbec Single Vineyard Vina Fausto Orellana de Escobar and 2007 Trapiche Single Vineyard Vina Adolfo Ahumada.

The Domingo Sarmiento has a dark purple color. The nose shows aromas of sweet caramel, mocha, a lactic note from the oak, cream and cinnamon. In the mouth the wine is full body with lavish aromas of red and small dark fruits, mocha, sweet tannins and a round mouth-feel. The wine has a pleasant finish with a fruity long aftertaste. Very good+ wine on its way to become Excellent with more aging in the bottle. The wine comes from yields of about 7000-8000 kilos per ha.

2006 Trapiche Single Vineyard Vina Federico Villafane

100% Malbec from yields of about 3500 kilos per ha aged for 18 months in new French oak. The wine has a darker opaque purple color. Last time I drank this wine was about 16 months ago and there is significant improvement in here. The wine has a very interesting nose, more evolved with good balance of the oak, plenty of dark berries, tobacco, plum, with slight hints of chocolate and coffee, really balanced. In the mouth the wine is round, full body with plenty of concentration and thick layers of red fruits, mocha, caramel, with elegant, velvety but powerful tannins, really polished. A long aftertaste makes this wine a beautiful example of a high quality Argentinian Malbec. Excellent+

2005 Antinori Chianti Classico Riserva

This is one of my favorite wines for under 25 EUR with an amazing QPR.  The wine has a dark red/purple opaque color. The nose is complex with dark ripe sour cherry, cassis, hints of oak, earth, dark chocolate and spices, very nicely balanced. Everything is dark about the nose and very intriguing. In the mouth the wine is full body with lots of dark fruits, black currant, dark chocolate, very Bordeaux style, black pepper and finishes in a medium plus aftertaste with a pleasant bitterness from dark chocolate and tea leaves. Always an Excellent wine.

2005 Chateau Puech Haut Tete de Belier rouge from a Magnum

This was the Wine of the night for me. A blend of 75% Syrah, 15% Grenache and 10% Mourvedre aged for 18 months in French barrels coming from Languedoc. Gerard Bru, the owner of Chateau Puech Haut, works with Michell Rolland and Philippe Cambie as consultants. Chateau Puech Haut provided the wines in Magnums for the 2008 Cannes festival. In the past I tasted the 2004 Chateau Puech Haut Tete de Belier rouge.

The 2005 Tete de Belier has an opaque dark red color. The wine has a very complex nose, a mix of small ripe red and dark berries with earthy, toasty and spicy flavors. In the mouth the wine is very concentrated, full body, with plenty of glycerin, spicy, ripe pure red fruits with tobacco and earthy tones, polished and firm tannins, but everything in a perfect balance. The finish is long and spicy on this big wine. Exceptional bottle of wine. The 2005 Tete de Belier is a better, more focused and concentrated wine than the 2004.

Thanks for reading!