Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

I have mentally thought about doing this post for quite awhile. Opening this 2003 Verdignan brought on the appropriate moment. I am a believer in paying respects and it’s the basis of this post.

We learn to drink certain wines from the regions we live near or from the people we learn & enjoy wine with as we walk the road to understanding what we really enjoy. I started as an exclusive CA Chardonnay drinker for many years before moving on to nearly every varietal and regions offer. Next was Napa Cabernets which, led me to my true love, red Bordeaux. It was a bit of curve getting there but, once I had them with proper aging, I was hooked for life.

While my curiosity got me to Bordeaux wines, there one person that helped shape my Bordeaux palate and I agreed with more than anyone else’s, including every well known wine critics at that time and even today after spending 10 weeks learning from several Master Sommeliers on my way to passing the Court of Master Sommeliers exam and becoming a Sommelier myself. This person is Clyde Beffa Jr., Owner of K&L Wine Merchants.

Clyde has been traveling to Bordeaux for over 40 years and sometimes multiple times in a year. His palate and experience are second to none. Especially, when it comes to Bordeaux.

I owe him a lot. He taught me the importance of letting good Bordeaux’s age 20 years plus. What were the jewel value producers. Brought in Bordeaux wines direct from the Chateaus that had 10 years of bottle age and older. Bordeaux’s that critics did not like young but, he knew something special had taken place over time as he was tasting them much later in their lives and often. I bought and drank a lot of these wines. They also kept temptation at bay in me reaching for my too young and more expensive wines.

He is very kind and kind enough to allow me to travel with him & key staffers to the 2014 En Premier to taste what was a very difficult 2013 Bordeaux vintage. You can go to En Premier and then there is going with Clyde. You have all the key appointments, Chateau accommodations/dinners and taste somewhere around 1500 plus wines in 6 days. He is loved by the Bordelais and for good reason.

So, I dedicate this post to him. He is the one who told me to buy this little known 2003 Verdignan at the same “Affordable Bordeaux Tasting” I mentioned in my Chateau de Candale post on Friday. As of Friday, that was the wine of the tasting. Well…until I coravined this slowly over the weekend. This 2003 was under $25 and it is one of the very best Bordeaux’s I had in some time. As well, perhaps the best QPR in my over 20 years collecting wine. Clyde knew that day just how good it would become. He said, forget about this for 20 years. So, I am a little early here.

Clyde has recommended more great Bordeaux’s to me that most people don’t hear about, let alone try. He told me to buy the poorly reviewed 91 Pichon Lalande when he brought more into the store seven years ago Chateau direct. It was a very difficult vintage with spring frost, hail storm and a difficult growing season. He described as “Heaven in a Bottle” and It most certainly the case. To this day, Pichon Lalande is my favorite steak wine and the 91 is still my favorite vintage. I purchased a 3L from him recently that he brought in direct from the Chateau for my 60th next year. Can’t wait to open that with our good friends and celebrate.

As for the Verignan, the nose reveals; dark brooding & slightly bake fruits of; blackberries, black raspberries, dark cherries, black plum, some poached strawberries & haunting blue fruits. Black tea, forest floor with leaves, anise, limestone, moist clay, dry crushed rocks, dry stones, beautiful, mid intensity dark spice, dry tobacco, graphite, mixed dark berry cola, understated, well layered baking spices; clove, nutmeg, cinnamon & vanilla, dry herbs, mint with candied; dark, red, blue and purple florals.

The body is full, rich, lush, satiny with plenty of well rounded, soften tannins. The tension, structure, length and balance are excellent and will continue to improve. This will last another 15 years and beyond with proper storage. This is a very classic Bordeaux well balance in fruit and earth. It is sheer elegance on the palate. It’s why I love Bordeaux more than Napa and I love Napa Valley Cabernet. Dark brooding & slightly bake, ripe fruits of; blackberries, black raspberries, dark cherries, black plum, boysenberries, some poached strawberries & haunting blue fruits. Black tea, dark chocolate bar, touch of mocha powder, light caramel notes, Expresso notes, forest floor with leaves, anise, limestone, moist clay, dry crushed rocks, dry stones, beautiful, mid intensity dark Asian & Indian spices with just right amount of palate heat, dry tobacco, graphite, dry twigs with a little sap, mixed dark berry cola, understated, well layered baking spices; clove, nutmeg, cinnamon & vanilla, dry herbs/sage, mint with candied; dark, red, blue and purple florals. The acidity is round and nearly perfect. The long finish is, classic, elegant, well balance fruit and earthy Bordeaux that persists softly on the palate for minutes with just the right amount of spice.
This is a heady wine that you really think about as you slowly sip and it affects your whole body. Can’t wait to have another in five years.

Photos of; Chateau Vergignan in Medoc near St. Estephe, their vineyard that reveals where Bordeaux gets its earthiness, Owner Jean Miaihle who acquired the property in 1972 and a wide shot of their vines. — 5 years ago

Andrew Keenan

9.4

Moores. 2016. $18 on special. Surprisingly complex for a Macon Villages. Apparently an early frost helped super concentrate the surviving grapes. — 8 years ago

Patrick Vanhoucke

9.0

LONGING FOR THE SOUTH

Yesterday I drank this very nice Macedonian semi-dry T'ga za Jug red wine.

The wine is made of the native grape variety Vranec. It has an intense red color, and the distinctive taste of raisins and raspberries, which make it a nice sweet treat (hence: semi-dry).

The wine is named after the poem ‘Taga za Yug’ of the Bulgarian poet Konstantin Miladinov (1830–1862), one of the Miladinov brothers, who originate from Ottoman Macedonia. Both brothers are thought to have laid the foundation of the Macedonian literary tradition.

‘Taga za Yug’ means ‘longing for the South’ (el anhelo por el Sur): "If I had an eagle's wings, I would rise and fly on them to our shores, to our own parts [...] Here are frost and snow and ashes, blizzards and harsh winds abound [...] There the sunrise warms the soul".

When it is cold outside, and fiercely raining, I can assure you that it makes you long for the sun that warms the soul. Drinking the T'ga za Jug wine in good company and nice surroundings makes for a wonderful or sometimes even better alternative.
— 8 years ago

Jena S

9.0

Sweet, bubbly — 9 years ago

Andrew Holod

National Sales Grapes of Spain

9.1

Winery: Luna Beberide
Wine: Fina Luna Beberide
Vintage: 2017
Denomination of Origin: Bierzo
Grape: 100% Mencia

This wine has changed names with the 2017 vintage. Former called Finca la Cuesta, this is sourced from the same, estate vineyards on clay and broken slate. The winery has reduced the amount of new oak and time in wood with this vintage lending a fresher fruit character. Good thing as 2017 crop was drastically reduced by frost.
Medium opaque purple. Nose of plums, graphite, a hint of gamy/butcher block. On the palate this is fleshier than previous vintages, with a silky, Merlot-like character. Persistent and concentrated while maintaining a sense of levity. — 5 years ago

j a

9.0

a delightful explosion of cherries and bitten fingernails. mmmmm — 5 years ago

October Cleveland

9.1

Yeaaahh boooii — 6 years ago

Jonathan Wall

9.3

Bad frost killed the vintage but the few grapes that prevailed made a stunning wine! So fresh. It just explodes out of the glass. Opened years too soon. — 6 years ago

Delectable Wine

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9.1

The 2016 Irancy is 100% Pinot Noir. It was cropped at just 10hl/ha because of the frost and spent 14 months in Burgundy pièces. It has an attractive bouquet of confit-like red cherries, iodine and a touch of brown spice. The well-balanced palate presents sappy red berry fruit, fine but grippy tannin and a harmonious and quite persistent and fresh finish. This is a really impressive Irancy that does the AOC proud. (Neal Martin, Vinous, August 2018) — 7 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.0

New ice wine producer for me from Yakima Valley. Paired well with Hedy's ice cream & sorbet creation. Nice array of stone fruits, marmalade, nuts, dry pineapple, wet stones, very good soft minerality, beautiful acidity, a thick, rich well polished finish with just the right amount of (RS) sugar. — 8 years ago

Ericka Johnson

10

Great Raspberry Wine — 8 years ago

Cecilia Kern

9.0

Tastes good, easy to drink. Scott got drunk on 1.5 glasses. (Tried 11/11/2016 when we were being lazy and stayed in) — 8 years ago

Heritage Fine Wines

9.4

Last of the last bottle of this unusual vintage. I miss this 2009 easy vintage, when we don't have any hail or frost 😢 — 9 years ago

Jonathan Salky

9.3

This wine was great. Smooth, no tannis, restrained dark fruit and leather, like a pomerol. Perfect age. Wish I had more! — 5 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.4

No. 8 in the 9 wine Gevrey Chambertin Grand Cru bracket tasted blind. Candied red fruits on nose and palate. The palate of Medium plus to Profound intensity. Not as impressive as most of the others in this bracket. This domaine is owned by 3 sisters and has developed somewhat of a cult following. Ruchottes being slightly higher up the slope than most of the other Grand Crus they might have suffered more frost damage. — 5 years ago

David Kline

9.2

Solid black base with cappuccino frost. Fine bubbled spring snow-melt-on-medium-range-mountain lacing. Just shy of sweet, chocolate nose with coffee dusting. Cocoa shell, sprouted barley grain toast, dark rye, medium grilled beef loin. On the palate, cocoa nibs, dark chocolate shavings, mocha grind, with a zippy chocolate effervescence throughout. Top-notch porter, with a balanced body and great depth in a fine porter. — 6 years ago

Jody Scharf

9.5

Nose of apple and plum. Ready but young in color. A little acid, medium body, fruitier than minerals. — 6 years ago

Katharine Scott

9.0

Such a well balanced Sauv Blanc! Very pleasantly surprised, I️ really loved this one. Crisp and smooth with a wonderful oiliness and a bit of acidity but not too much. Makes my heart warm on these cold winter nights 😅 — 7 years ago

Antoinette

9.5

Really enjoyed this while on vacation in Bucyrus Ohio and at Cedar Point. — 8 years ago

Eric L.

9.0

Nice, but I think it was better a couple of years ago. — 8 years ago