Vintus Portfolio Tasting 2024

Vintus, a company founded 20 years ago, is one of the many importers in the New York City area. Like most importers they will have a tasting of the wines and spirits in their portfolio to showcase to members of the restaurant/hospitality industry. Those tastings are usually a couple of times a year, in the Spring and in the Autumn.

On September 9th they held this season’s portfolio tasting.

The event was held at Saint Bartholomew’s church, a Protestant Episcopal church founded in 1835. It’s located at 325 Park Avenue in midtown Manhattan.

As far as trade tastings go, this was one of the most spectacular venues in which to host a tasting, the interior of the church where the tasting was held is beautiful. And many of the wines in their portfolio weren’t too bad either.

Some highlights:

2020 Far Mountain Myrna Chardonnay (Sonoma Valley): Clear light gold, floral, roast peaches on the nose, moderate body with roasted nuts notes and good acidity.

2022 Chateau de Nalys Chateauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Grand Vin (Rhone): Clear light gold, white flowers on the nose, spicy cinnamon fruit with a good grip.

2010 Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley): Opaque dark brick, cigarette smoke on the nose, silky, black olive fruit with silky tannins and a long finish.

2018 Hospices de Beaune 1er Cru Dames Hospitalieres (Burgundy): Clear medium brick, perfume of plummy leather and mint, tight with spicy tree bark fruit notes, goof grip on the long finish.

2018 Mondot (St Emilion): Opaque medium purple, dark chocolate and black olives on the nose, chewy black fruit, silky finish, nice balance.

2019 Tommasi Amarone Classico (Veneto): Clear medium brick, crushed green herbs on the nose, silky and juicy tarry leather fruit, balanced with a long finish.

2018 Chateau Troplong Mondot (St Emilion): Opaque dark red with a purple rim, crushed red fruit on the nose, concentrated and silky red fruit ending with silky tannins.

2020 E. Guigal Cote-Rotie Chateau d’Ampuis (Rhone): Opaque dark red, nose of sweet tar and dirt, chewy black fruit with a long finish and a great balance.

2020 E. Guigal Cote-Rotie Brune e Blonde (Rhone): Opaque medium purple, sweet roasted meat on the nose, concentrated and chunky with crushed stone notes on the balanced and long finish.

2020Le Macchiole Paleo Rosso (Tuscany): Cabernet Franc, clear medium red with a purple rim, dusty stone on the nose, juicy black licorice fruit, good grip at the end.

2020 Far Mountain Fission Cabernet Sauvignon (Sonoma County): Opaque black with a purple rim, black olives on the nose, concentrated black fruit of smokey leather with a long, tarry finish.

2020 Far Mountain Amotus Cabernet Sauvignon (Sonoma County): Opaque black with a purple rim, violets, dark chocolate and spicy black olives on the nose, concentrated with tobacco, pencil shavings and dark chocolate on the fruit, great balance, long finish. A big wine.

2021 Petrolo Galatrona (Tuscany): Opaque dark red with a purple rim, dusty red tar on the nose, tight and concentrated with a moderate finish.

2021 Lucien Le Moine Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Lavaux Saint Jacques (Burgundy): Clear light brick, nose of tar, dirt and cigarette smoke, juicy red fruit with bitter almond notes on the finish.

2021 Lucien Le Moine Chambolle-Musigny Rouge Reserve (Burgundy): Clear light red, nice perfume of tar, barnyard and smoke, tight black cherry fruit with a good grip at the end.

2021 Chateau La Fleur Petrus (Pomerol): Opaque dark red with a purple rim, woody, dusty sweet tar on the nose, silky red fruit, great balance with Asian spices on the long finish.

2021 Chateau Malescot St. Exupery (Pauillac): Opaque medium purple, perfume of slate and crushed black fruit, concentrated with dusty fruit, great structure, long finish.


Suckling Great Wines Italy NYC 2024

Wine writer and wine critic James Suckling, presented and hosted another one in his series of wine tastings.

The Great Wines Italy wine event was held in New York City on September 4 & 5 at the Altman Building, an event space at 135 West 18th Street in Manhattan.

The two-day event featured 380 wines from 163 Italian wineries that rated 92+ points on Sucklings rating scale, .

Most of the Italian regions were on hand but the region with the most representation on the Wednesday I attended was definitely Tuscany. That’s not surprising considering the popularity of the wines of Chianti and Brunello di Montalcino.

There was a nice selection of the Brunello and Chianti but not very many Super Tuscans. To begin with, I focused my energy on the selection of Amarone and worked my way to the Brunello’s.

Some of what I sampled:

2018 Ripa della Volta Amarone2019 Tinazzi Amarone Aureum Acinum
2018 Masi Amarone Costasera2015 Farina Amarone Mezzadro alla Fontana Riserva
2010 Tenuta St Antonio Amarone Lilium Est Riserva2016 Sergio Alighieri Amarone Vaio Armaron
2018 Paradiso di Cacuci Brunello di Montalcino Riserva2019 Picini Brunello di Montalcino
2019 Altesino Brunello di Montalcino Montosoli2019 Altesino Brunello di Montalcino
2019 Carparzo Brunello di Montalcino2019 Carparzo Brunello di Montalcino Vigna La Casa
2017 Castelli Martinozzi Brunello di Montalcino Riserva2018 Ruppiano Famiglia Berselli Brunello di Montalcino
2019 Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino2016 Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino Poggio alle Mura Riserva
2019 San Polo Brunello di Montalcino2019 San Polo Brunello di Montalcino Podernovi
2019 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino2019 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Montosoli
2019 Uccelliera Brunello di Montalcino 2019 Voliero Brunello di Montalcino
2017 Villa Matilde Taurasi Petrafusa2020 Inama Cabernet Colli Berici Bradisimo
2017 Perla del Garda Merlot Garda Leonatus2019 Nino Negri Valtellina Valgella Vigna Fracia
2019 Giusti Montello Tenuta Abazia Umberto2020 Marco Bonfante Barbaresco
2019 Casteani Maremma Terra di Casteani

An Afternoon of Global Flavors

On the afternoon of September 5th, I attended a wine luncheon sponsored by Wine Enthusiast magazine and Ventsiquero Wine Estates.

Wine Enthusiast is a wine magazine that focuses on wine and spirits related topics with the requisite wine and spirit product reviews. They run a series of “Sip” tastings for the trade and the consumer, the last tasting covered the wines of South America, and an upcoming tasting will feature the wines of Italy.

Ventisquero Wine Estates is a Chilean wine company with vineyards throughout the country including the Atacama Desert.

The luncheon was held at Naro restaurant located at 610 5th Avenue in Rockefeller Center. The restaurant specializes in the “subtle and delicate flavors” of Korean cuisine.

It was a sit-down lunch with wines paired with each course. Ventisquero wine maker, Felipe Tosso was on hand to explain the wines and the wine making philosophy of the winery.

Very often when I attend a mega tasting, I have to say that I usually bypass the Chilean wine tables, so I was looking forward to having a sit-down tasting of Chilean wines from a quality producer.

Menu & Wines

Summer Tomato: Summer Squash, Chopi Leaf, Tomato Eung-i

2021 Tara Chardonnay (Huasco Valley): Unfiltered, slightly cloudy light gold, barnyard, roasted hazelnuts and peaches on the nose, moderate fruit with nice acidity and balance.

Potato Jeon: Koreon Melon, Peanut White Wood Ear

2019 Herú Pinot Noir (Casablanca Valley): Clear medium red with a brick rim, perfume of stone and barnyard, silky fruit with crushed rock notes with bitter almonds on the long finish. Nice balance and acidity.

Pork Jowl: Pinecone Ssamjang Cilantro Salad, Gamchil Paste

2021 Vertice La Robleria Vineyard Carmenere, Syrah (Apalta/Colchagua Valley): Opaque dark red with a brick rim, crushed black fruit, mint, chalk and stewed fruit notes on the nose, juicy and concentrated with red leather and crushed rocks on the finish.

2018 Pangea Syrah (Apalta/Colchagua Valley): Opaque black with a purple rim, barnyard, crushed red fruit, mint and stewed fruit on the nose, tight with dusty and firm tannins, crisp acids.

Lemon Verbena Hwachae: Watermelon, Cantaloupe, Honeydew

Wines served with the hors d’oeuvres:

2023 Grey Single Block Sauvignon Blanc (Huasco Valley): Clear light gold, mowed grass, stone and kiwi on the nose, moderate fruit with slate notes, good acidity, easy drinking.

2021 Tara Pinot Noir (Huasco Valley): Opaque medium red with a brick rim, perfume of black tar and red leather, concentrated black fruit with crushed rock and tart notes on the finish.

Long Island Rosé

Nothing says “Summer” like a nice glass of rosé on a warm afternoon. All of the east end wineries of Long Island bottle a rosé and those wines fly off the shelf during the Summer months. That’s not surprising in a region that’s surrounded by beaches and beach towns (Hamptons).

I think that the rosé wines along with non-oaked aged Chardonnay are some of the best wines coming out of Long Island.

One Sunday afternoon I took a drive out to wine country out east to sample a few.

Croteaux Vineyards 1450 S Harbor Rd, Southold

At Croteaux they make rosé and only rosé, and they say that they are the only vineyard in the United States to do so. The tasting room is a unique “tasting garden” which looks like an outdoor antiques store.

2023 Merlot 314

The 314 refers to the clone number of the varietal, aged in 100% stainless steel. Clear Salmon pink in color, canned peaches on the nose, dry with some tannin notes on the finish, enjoyable glass.

Jamesport Vineyard 1216 Main Road, Jamesport

One of the first wineries you run into driving east on the north fork wine trail, founded in 1986 and still run by the same family, the tasting room is in a 165-year-old barn.

2023 East End Rosé

100% Syrah. Clear medium red, strawberry notes on the nose, some earth on the fruit, dry with good acidity.

Mattebella Vineyards 46005 Route 25, Southold

An off the radar winery whose motto is “wine, passion & craftmanship”, they have a tasting cottage and outdoor tasting garden.

2021 Rosé

Merlot and Cabernet Franc, pale copper in color, sweet, earthy melon on the nose, ripe fruit, moderate to low acids, dry, starting to taste its age.

California Sparkling

On August 6th, I attended the California Classic Sparkling Wines tasting which was held at Corkbuzz wine bar. The wine bar is located at 13 East 13th Street in the Union Square neighborhood of Manhattan.

The event was curated by Please the Palate, a marketing company for wine and spirit events.

It was a walk around tasting of sparkling wines from the California producers of Domaine Carneros, Schramsberg and Roederer Estate.

All the producers poured their entry level Rosé and non vintage Brut but what were the stand outs were their vintage and disgorged offerings. I was not able to attend the earlier seminar where they poured some older vintages. Fortunately they carried over some of those wines to the walk around tasting so I was able to sampled some of the older bottles.

Those vintage and disgorged wines stood up to anything that was produced in Champagne and in a blind tasting would be hard to tell the difference. Not unexpectedly, Corkbuzz put out some nice charcuterie and fried chicken to go with all that good sparkling wine.

Some of what I sampled:

Domaine Carneros

2016 Le Reve2020 Brut
2006 Le ReveNV Brut Rosé
1995 Le Reve

Schramsberg

2004 J. Schram Late DisgorgedNV Brut Rosé
2014 J. Schram NoirsNV Blanc de Blancs
2015 J. Schram Blancs

Roederer Estate

2007 L’ Ermitage BrutNV Brut Rosé
2017 L’ Ermitage BrutHarvest 2020 Black Road Vineyard

VinExpo New York City 2024

VinExpo is a wine and spirit event organized by Vinexposium. This year the expo has and will be held in Paris, Hong Kong and Mumbai. On June 24-25, the expo was held in New York City, “the trendy wine market that never sleeps”.

The event was held at the Jacob K. Javits convention center at 429 11th Avenue on the far West side of Manhattan.

It featured 260 exhibitors from over 30 countries including off the radar wines from Armenia, Georgia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic and Brazil. The vast majority of the wines at the event were definitely from France with Italy a distant second with the U.S. represented with only a small handful of producers. Spirits and beer were on hand as well with a large selection of Japanese whisky.

While most of the wines were French, the majority of those French wines were from the Rhone Valley. That’s not a bad thing since some excellent wines come from that part of that country. I particularly like the underrated white wines made from local grape varieties such as Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier while there were plenty of reds from Chateauneuf du Pape, Gigondas, Vacqueyras, Crozes-Hermitage and Cote-Rotie to name a few of the Rhone appellations that were present.

VinExpo was held in conjunction with the Fancy Food Show, so when I needed to cleanse my palate after trying several wines, I would make my way to the food show and graze on the numerous and excellent domestic and international cheeses.

I did attend one of the Masterclasses.

Crus Bourgeois du Medoc.

Crus Bourgeois are the unclassed growths of Bordeaux, as such they are usually a good value compared to the classified growths. They are red wines that come from 250 chateaux produced in 7 appellations. Bordeaux has had a string of good vintages up until the 2021 vintage and in good vintages, there is so much good grape juice that the quality extends to all the tiers of producers.

2020 Chateau de Panigon (Medoc): 50% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot. Clear medium red, crushed rock and petroleum on the nose, tight and tart with some green notes.

2019 Chateau d’Agassac (Haut Medoc): 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc. Opaque dark red to black, smoky black fruit on the nose, juicy with crushed rocks on the dusty, firm finish.

2019 Chateau Reverdi (Listrac Medoc): 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Petit Verdot, 30% Merlot. Opaque dark red with a purple rim, crushed black fruit and gravel on the nose, concentrated and dusty fruit with firm tannins on the dusty finish.

2022 Chateau Mongravey (Margaux): 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc. Opaque dark red to black with a purple rim, closed nose of herbs, concentrated and dusty with some cardboard notes on the fruit.

2019 Chateau Tour de Pez (St. Estephe): 63% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc. Opaque black with a purple rim, tarry dark chocolate on the nose, tight, minty red fruit ending with big tannins.

Zachys Escape to Tuscany Italian Tasting 2024

Zachys has been a family-owned seller of fine wines and spirits since 1944. As with most wine shops they will host tastings for consumers at their store. On occasion they will hold a more intensive tasting that you need to buy a ticket to attend.

I’ve been to a few of those ticketed events, and they have been worth the cost of admission and the hour train ride to Port Chester as they can be counted on to pour quality juice for whatever theme they are pouring for that day.

They held one of those ticked tastings on Father’s Day weekend last June. The “Escape to Tuscany” was a tasting of 50+ Italian wines from the (mostly) 2021 vintage.

In addition to the wines, they had a handful of premium spirts on hand to sample. That included single malt Scotch from Dalmore, Laphroaig and Port Askaig, Tequila from Hiatus and Italian malt whiskey from PUNI.

Some of what I sampled:

2021 Vallepicciola Bianco (Tuscany): 100% Chardonnay. Medium gold with a floral nose, tight with nice acidity with lime notes.

2021 Fattoria le Pupille Piemme Bianco (Tuscany): Clear yellow with a floral nose, moderate fruit with a touch of sweetness in the back end, good balance.

2019 Vallepicciola Migliore (Tuscany): Bordeaux Blend. Opaque dark red with tar, dark cherry and cigarette smoke on the nose, silky, smoky fruit with silky tannins and a good grip at the end.

2021 Tenuta Luce Luce (Tuscany): Opaque medium purple, closed nose of tarry meat, tight red fruit ending with big tannins.

2021 Le Serre Nuove Ornellaia (Tuscany): Clear dark red, earthy, black cherry nose, crushed dark fruit with oak notes, gritty tannins.

2021 Poggio Valente Le Pupille (Tuscany): Clear light brick, red cherry tar on the nose, juicy red fruit, good grip. long finish.

2021 Greppicaia I Greppi (Tuscany): Opaque medium red with a brick rim, tar, smoke and graphite on the nose, silky, violet and tarry fruit with a red cherry finish. good grip.

2021 Tenuta di Biserno Il Pino (Tuscany): Clear medium red, closed nose of tar and barnyard, chunky dark chocolate fruit ending with firm, gritty tannins.

2021 Tenuta di Beserno Berseno (Tuscany): Clear medium red, crushed red cherry on the nose, red cherry fruit, moderate acids, long bitter cherry finish.

2021 Voliero Rosso di Montalcino (Tuscany): Clear light brick, spicy tar on the nose, silky red fruit with moderate acidity and firm tannins.

2021 Antinori Guado Al Tasso (Tuscany): Clear medium red, black cherry and barnyard on the nose, cherry dark chocolate and dark black fruit, great balance and a long finish.

2021 Torre Alle Comete Campo Alle Comete (Tuscany): Clear medium red, perfume of earth and smoke, chewy, silky fruit ending with firm, silky tannins and a long finish.

2021 Montepeloso Nardo (Tuscany): Clear medium red, earthy tar on the nose, silky fruit, silky tannins with a good grip on the great finish.

2021 Montepeloso Eneo (Tuscany): Clear light brick, earthy, smoky dark chocolate on the nose, silky and smoky fruit with smoke notes on the balanced finish.

2021 Castello dei Rampolla Chianti Classico (Tuscany): Clear medium reds, earth, tar and leather on the nose, tight silky red fruit ending with dusty and firm tannins.

2020 Felsina Fontalloro (Tuscany): Clear light brick, earth and tar on the nose, chewy red leather fruit with firm acidity.

Decanter Fine Wine Encounter NYC 2024

Decanter is a British based wine magazine that covers news of the wine and spirits world. As with other wine-based magazines, they rate wines as well.

On June 8th, for the third consecutive year, they held the Fine Wine Encounter wine event in New York City. The event was held on the 60th floor at Manhatta restaurant located at 28 Liberty Street in lower Manhattan. Similar events by Decanter will be held later this year in Singapore and London.

The event featured a Grand Tasting which was a walk around event featuring award-winning wines from 50 producers with various masterclasses throughout the afternoon. In addition to the wines in the main room, they had a separate room that featured about 30 bottles of their Platinum, Gold and Best in Show rated wines to sample.

As in the past, it was an excellent tasting with a nice selection of top end wines of the world. I have to say, not in my top three but still an excellent tasting with the outstanding view in the venue as an added plus.

As is usual in the case of these big tastings, I focused on Bordeaux and Napa Valley Cabernet for the most part while sampling a few others. One good thing about this particular tasting is that many of the Bordeaux producers brought bottles of older vintage wines to sample and it’s always nice to try a Bordeaux with some age to it.

Some of what I sampled:

Old World

2003 Chateau Lagrange Magnum (St-Julien): Opaque dark red with a brick rim, pretty nose of crushed rocks and crushed black fruit, silky with slate notes on the firm finish.

2004 Speri Amarone “Sant’ Urbano” (Veneto): Clear medium brick with roasted nuts on the nose, leather notes on the balanced fruit with a good grip.

2010 Chateau Talbot (St-Julien): Opaque dark red with a brick rim, earth and mint on the nose, chunky with tight tannins.

2016 Chateau La Dominique (St-Emilion): Opaque dark red with a brick rim, perfume of crushed black, cooked fruit with silky red fruit, firm tannins and a long finish.

2016 E. Guigal Chateau de Nalys Chateauneuf du Pape Jeroboam (Rhone): Opaque medium red, perfume of tar, smoke, spice and mint on the nose, silky and juicy with stone notes on the fruit with great balance and finish.

2018 Chateau Giscours “La Sirene de Giscours” (Margaux): Opaque dark red to black, oak and crushed black fruit on the nose with chewy dark fruit ending with a nice grip.

2019 E. Guigal Chateau d’Ampuis Cote-Rotie (Rhone): Opaque medium red with roasted red fruit on the nose, chewy, sweet red fruit ending with a long finish.

New World

2004 Catena Zapata, Nicolas Catena Zapata Cabernet Sauvignon (Mendoza): Opaque black with a brick rim, toasty and chewy with ripe, cooked fruit notes.

2006 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon “Insignia” Magnum (Napa Valley): Opaque black with a brick rim, sweet tar and earth on the nose, silky, chewy fruit with silky tannins and dark chocolate mint on the finish.

2012 Santa Rita Casa Real Reserva Especial Cabernet Sauvignon (Maipo Valley): Opaque black with a purple rim, warm roasted meat on the nose, chunky with tight tannins.

2013 Quintessa Red Blend (Napa Valley): Opaque black with a purple rim, cooked black fruit, dark chocolate and roast nuts on the nose, silky red fruit with gun metal notes, good grip, long finish.

2014 Stonestreet Cabernet Sauvignon “Christopher’s Vineyard” (Alexander Valley): Opaque black with a purple rim, black tar and vanilla on the nose, fruit starts out silky and ends with big tannins,

2019 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon “Insignia” (Napa Valley): Opaque black, roast meat on the nose, tight and dense black fruit with a firm and balanced finish.

2019 Domaine Anderson Pinot Noir “Dach” (Anderson Valley): Clear light red, barnyard on the nose, dusty fruit with roasted nut notes.

James Suckling Great Wines World NYC 2024

James Suckling is a wine writer with the blog jamessuckling.com. The blog reports on news of the worldwide wine industry and reviews and rates wines using a 100-point rating scale.

Mr. Suckling hosts several wine tasting events throughout the year and on June 5 & 6 he hosted the Great Wines World tasting event in New York City.

It was two days of over 500+ wines from 380+ producers that have been rated 92-100 on the JamesSuckling.com website. Those wines and the producers were spread over the two days but if you only attended on one day, that was still enough time to try a couple of hundred wines.

The event was held at The Glasshouse event space at 600 12th Avenue on the far west side of Manhattan overlooking the Hudson River. It was an event space that I have never been to before.

I attended on Wednesday and the sprawling event space overlooked the Intrepid Museum which was docked right outside. There were more than enough excellent wines of the world to occupy the whole evening sampling them. I had wished that the organizers of the event had grouped the wine booths by country as they normally do instead of by alphabetical order as they did in this case which would have made things less confusing, but that’s a minor point when drinking so much good juice.

As usual, in mega tastings like this I focused my energies primarily on Bordeaux and Napa Valley Cabernet with the occasional foray into the other regions.

Some highlights:

2019 Pahlmeyer Chardonnay (Napa Valley): Medium gold, tropical fruit notes on the nose, green herbs and pineapple on the fruit with good structure.

2021 Merryvale Chardonnay “Silhouette” (Napa Valley): Light gold, lime and tropical fruits on the nose, tight, with lime notes on the fruit, good structure.

2021 Chateau Boswell Chardonnay UV Vineyard (Russian River Valley): Light gold, lime and green herbs on the nose, tight with crisp acids.

2010 Chateau Phelan-Segur (St. Estephe): Opaque medium red with a brick rim, pretty nose of mint and toasted twigs, silky and smoky fruit with a great balance.

2013 Quintessa Winery Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley): Opaque black, dark tar and leather on the nose, silky dark chocolate fruit with gritty tannins and a great balance.

2015 Chateau de Fieuzal (Pessac Leognan): Clear medium brick, ripe tar and cigarette smoke on the nose, toasty fruit with a long, tight finish.

2015 Chateau Prieure Lichine (Margaux): Clear medium red with a brick rim, barnyard and ripe red fruit on the nose, dusty fruit with a nice balance.

2016 Pym-Rae Red Blend (Napa Valley): Opaque dark brick with sweet cooked fruit on the nose, chewy, leather fruit on the long finish.

2016 Brane-Cantenac (Margaux): Opaque dark red with a red rim, roast meat and crushed rocks on the nose, silky fruit with herb notes ending with tight tannins.

2018 Heitz Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley): Opaque dark red with a purple rim, toasty and smokey on the nose with turned earth notes on the tight fruit.

2018 Pym-Rae Red Blend (Napa Valley): Opaque black with a red rim, barnyard on the nose, chewy graphite fruit ending with a good grip.

2018 Chateau Phelan-Segur (St. Estephe): Opaque medium brick, closed nose of earth and tar, silky black fruit with a bitter almon finish.

2018 Marques de Carceres “Gaudium” (Rioja): Opaque black with a red rim, barnyard on the nose with chewy graphite fruit and a good grip at the end.

2018 Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon “Fay” (Napa Valley): Opaque dark red with a purple rim, warm toasted nuts on the nose, juicy with a long, grippy finish.

2019 Pahlmeyer Red Blend (Napa Valley): Opaque black with sweet herbs on the nose, silky and dusty sweet tar on the fruit, nice balance with a good grip.

2019 Pontet-Canet (Pauillac): Opaque dark brick, earthy tar on the nose, silky, chewy and earthy fruit with a long finish.

2019 Chateau Batailly (Pauillac): Opaque black with a purple rim, sweet tar and roasted nuts on the nose, silky and tight with a firm, long finish.

2019 Chateau Lynch-Moussas (Pauillac): Opaque dark red with a red rim, earthy red fruit and roasted nuts on the nose, tight and smokey.

2020 Chateau Gris Nuit St-Georges 1er Cru (Burgundy): Opaque medium red, pretty nose of earth, smoke and leather with bright red fruit and firm acids.

2020 Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon (Puente Alto): Opaque medium red with a brick rim, toasty roast meat on the nose, tight and silky red leather fruit with a firm finish.

2020 Chateau Maillet (Pomerol): Opaque dark red with a purple rim, tar and dark chocolate on the nose, silky fruit with white pepper notes, firm tannins.

2021 BV Cabernet Sauvignon “Georges des Latour” (Napa Valley): Opaque dark purple, chalk and crushed raspberry on the nose with tight and dusty fruit. Still young at this point.

Scarsdale Music Fest 2024

The fourth annual Scarsdale Music Festival was held on June 1 in the village of Scarsdale, New York.

Scarsdale is one of the bucolic suburban towns in Westchester county located along the Metro North Harlem line. It’s about a 40-minute train ride from Grand Central Terminal.

The event was a benefit for the Daniels Music Foundation and featured vendors, a kids play area, a couple of stages with live music playing all afternoon, and more importantly for me, a Grand Tasting tent.

This year the tent had a new sponsor, Amici dei Vini, a local wine shop. It was a consumer oriented tasting with a good selection of wines and made for an enjoyable afternoon of wine and music. Some nice cheese too.

Some of what I sampled:

White

2019 Domaine Anderson Estate Chardonnay (Anderson Valley): Clear light gold, tropical fruit on the nose with moderate tropical fruit notes, easy drinking.

2021 Resonance Chardonnay (Willamette): Light yellow, floral nose with floral fruit with some lemon notes on the balanced finish.

2022 Nortico Alvarinho (Portugal): Light yellow with floral notes and nice acidity.

2023 Domaine de Piaugier Sablet Blanc (Rhone): Clear medium gold, white flowers on the nose, full fruit, good grip.

Red

2019 Silver Oak (Alexander Valley): Opaque dark red, mint, tar and cigar smoke on the nose, chewy dark chocolate fruit ending with firm tannins.

2019 Silver Oak (Napa Valley): Opaque dark red with a brick rim, toasty, dark chocolate nose, silky fruit with white pepper notes, good grip.

2019 Timeless Red Blend (Napa Vallery): Opaque black, pretty nose of earth, dark chocolate and stewed fruit, silky and firm with silky tannins and a long finish.

2019 El Enemigo Cabernet Franc (Mendoza): Opaque dark red with a purple rim, black pepper on the nose, juicy.

2019 Luca Malbec (Uco Valley): Opaque medium purple, roast nuts on the nose, tight, light fruit.

2020 Feudo Maccari Saia Sicilia (Sicily): Clear light red, earthy leather on the nose with bright red fruit.

2021 Twomey Pinot Noir (Dundee Hills): Clear medium red, dark leather and dark black fruit on the nose, silky red fruit with cola notes.

2021 Michael Chiarlo “Le Orme” Barbera (Piedmont): Clear medium red, dried herbs on the nose, bright red fruit with crisp acids.