Round Table – April ’09
April 10, 2009 by Wino
We are committed to not rating wines. That is totally up to you. However, we do want to tell you what wines taste like. Everyone has a unique set of taste buds, so how can we be objective? Group wisdom, my friends, group wisdom. The WINO Round Table is a wine symposium of sorts. This month, we invited a diverse group of winos over to taste various wines, take studious notes, draw pretty graphs, and then relax and finish off the rest of the wine. What we’re left with is an average of each taster’s flavor profile, and a variety of things you may pick up on when you try these wines. Have a look, and then go have a taste. This month: Jameson Fink, Erin Thomas, Josh LaRosee and Doug Haugen.
2007 Madeleine Angevine- $17.00
Crisp, grapefruit citrus on the nose, powerfully tart on the palate. Oyster shooters with a spritz of lemon juice and dab of sauce could very well be the Yin to this wine’s Yang. On the flip side, a hearty chowder wouldn’t stand a chance against this juice, but pitting the two against each other again and again would certainly be fun. Definitely a summer sipper, but only for those who prefer Granny Smiths over Fuji’s.
San Juan Vineyards
2007 Chardonnay- $14.00
Not overly aromatic on the nose, save for a bit of stone and some toastiness. Obviously well-structured, and it has a nice acidity that allows a little buttery goodness to edge its way in to round out the finish. Fans of neutral barrel and stainless steel Chards will find this to their liking. Drink with Puget Sound seafood, of course, or a friend when taking advantage of the ever more present sunny afternoons. (Anything above 63 degrees should suffice.)
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon – $20.00
Smells like leather and cocoa, reduced in butter. On the palate, a good, nimble attack. Quite juicy and a bit of a lip smacker, with kalamata olive notes chiming in if you’re careful to look. A full and solid mouthfeel develops at the mid-palate, which opens the door for a finish smattered with fine tannins.
2006 Cabernet Franc- $30.00
On-the-vine tomato and other “red fruits.” Lip-smacking tartness up front that gives way to roiling lushness. Not a spectacular finish, but worthy of a hand.
2006 Low Man Red- $30.00
Toast with jam on the nose, balanced and straight ahead like a tightrope walker over Niagara Falls. This wine can take you to young blackberries from the bramble. A nice table wine and an everyday drinker, but the finish could have you looking for bigger, riper berries.
2006 Potlatch – $30.00
Much like Low Man but a stronger finish.
2005 Merlot – $30.00
Like a spring morning breakfast back East—bacon drenched in maple syrup. It also has hints of wet earth and stone and blackberry reduction on the nose. On the palate, Bing cherries roll around amid structure and balance, big but not too big. More masculine than feminine as far as Merlots go, more staunch than lush.
2007 Lemberger “The Sentinel” – $20.00
Huge cherry ushers in a punchy yet unique mid-palate experience; spearhead stone smeared with loganberry. Big and well-structured, it isn’t overly serious, but it is a seriously strong effort.
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