We had our GINI 16 back in Dec. 8, 2007. (And I'm blogging half year later, now how's that possible?) I suppose many things were happening; there was GINI 17 (and I missed it), and there was Vegas and Napa (so quite a bit of wine already) So now in June 2008, we are having GINI 18.

Our theme this time is the two Spanish Rs, Rioja and Ribera del Duero. Vincent W have this for introduction of them:

Rioja - A leading wine region in Spain. Main red varitals: Tempranillo, Garnacha, Mazuelo, Graciano
Ribera Del Duero - An up and coming region that challenges the importance of Rioja. Main red varital is Tempranillo, although Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec are also allowed.

Here are the wines we had:

1. Muga Rioja Reserva Selection Especial 1995
2. Muga Rioja Reserva Selection Especial 1998
3. Bodegas Alejandro Fernandez Tinto Pesquera Crianza Ribera Del Duero 2001
4. Flor de Pingus Ribera Del Duero 2003

According to Vincent W, the bottling 'Reserva Selection Especial' for Muga is made in better years with longer aging in oak barrels than their normal Reserva. Also, Flor de Pingus is the 2nd wine of the expensive "cult" wine Pingus, which is 20 times more expensive than the one we are having.

Andrew and Vincent W have their tasting notes of the wine in the blog SeaTourist blog (see December 12th, 2007). Following is the voting results for our favorite in this tasting.

The GINI Spanish R&R Index
We ranked the bottles 1 to 4, add up the numbers, whichever one has the lowest score is the best. Here is the list of participants: Aaron, Andrew, Kwong C, Kwong T, Naomi, Stephanie, Vincent M, Vincent W and his parents.

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The theme of GINI 15 is to compare cool-zone and moderate-zone Pinot Noirs.  The book Great Wine Made Simple ((Immer, Andrea. Great Wine Made Simple, New York, 2000. Pg 106)), outlines what we can expect from the wine in different climate zone.  For the cool-zone, we have two bottles of Burgundy (same wine in fact, just different vintage), and for the moderate-zone, we have one from California and one from South Africa.

The Look
In terms of color, we were expecting the moderate-zone ones to be darker than the cool-zone ones.  However, that's not the case for us; our Burgundy was darker and the New World ones have a lighter ruby color.  Notably the back label of the Burgundy has a comment of the wine having deep color, so it might be uncommon for Burgundy.

The Smell
Without a doubt, the Burgundy have strong scents of tangy berry.  It certainly taught us what to expect from the smell of Burgundy in the future.  As for the moderate-zone ones, they do have scents of berry or cherries, but definitely do not have the same bite as the Burgundy.  The book also points out that moderate-zone ones may have a bit of sweet oaky smell.  I wonder if that's what it is when I thought it smelled "Californian".

The Taste
Similar to the smell, the Burgundy have stronger, more spicy acidic taste.  The book uses the word "tangy"; I suspect it means strong and more intense taste.  The moderate-zone Pinot is more fruity and juicy.

From the rankings, I guess I prefer wine to be more fruity and juicy, while most of us prefer more spicy complex wine.  One strange thing happened in this tasting; quite a few of us were having trouble emptying our glasses, even though we all like the wine.  One of us even vomited.  I wonder if it is the "Fresh" fruit salad we had from that take out place.

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We just had our GINI 15 last night, Sept. 28, 2007.  (And I'm blogging the next day, now how's that possible?)  Our theme this time is to compare cool-zone and moderate-zone Pinot Noirs.  We got this theme straight from the book Great Wine Made Simple. ((Immer, Andrea. Great Wine Made Simple, New York, 2000. Pg 106 )) We have two bottles of Burgundy, the cool-zone, and two bottles from the moderate zones (California and South Africa)  Here are the wines we had:

1. Vincent Girardin Volnay 1er cru "Les Santenots" 2003 (Burgundy)
2. Vincent Girardin Volnay 1er cru "Les Santenots" 1999 (Burgundy)
3. Hamilton Russell Vineyard Pinot Noir 2005 (South Africa)
4. Calera Pinot Noir 2005 (California)

I don't think Andrew has his tasting notes of the wine in his SeaTourist blog yet, but I'm sure it'll be there soon. I am also posting more information of the wine in my Flickr pictures. For the wines in this tasting, here is the link. Following is the voting results for our favorite in this tasting.

The GINI Cool and Not-so-cool Pinot Noir Index
We ranked the bottles 1 to 4, add up the numbers, whichever one has the lowest score is the best. Here is the list of participants: Aaron, Andrew, Kelvin, Kwong C, Kwong T, Naomi, Stephanie, and Vincent W.

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As I mentioned in my previous post, we wanted to have a tasting of wine with distinct differences.  So we ended up focusing on the concentration part of the wine.

At first, I thought that's pretty easy, I thought it's about the concentration of flavour, whether it is weak or powerful.  However, as Vincent W explained to me, it's not exactly that; one wine could have stronger or bolder flavour, but with less concentration than another one.  It is like the concentration of juice made from frozen orange juice; the more water we have, the less concentration the orange juice becomes.

However, that is not quite a good analogy, as water is not part of any wine making process.  I continued to press, so are we talking about the concentration of the grape itself? Is it like talking about "concentration" of the orange (for fresh-squeeze OJ)? It's like trying to say how much is stuffed inside an orange, stuff like seeds, pulp, juice, or even the skin. 

Some other terms came to my mind, such as the body (as in weight, light like skim milk, heavy like cream), or depth (as in complexity, like deep or shallow, of layers of flavor)  I would think depth (or complexity) is closer to what Vincent means by concentration, just amount of stuff in the wine.  With that in mind, I wonder if a blend wine (with a mix of different grapes) will give more "stuff" because of different flavors coming from multiple kinds of grapes.

In our tasting, the 3 wines were Cabernet Franc, Syrah, and Shiraz.  We all agree that Cabernet Franc was the least concentrated, and the Shiraz was the most concentrated.  But then I think we were really thinking about the strength of flavor, and in this case, it's really a no-brainer.  Australian Shiraz is always bold and strong in flavor.

I do think concentration (or depth) is an attribute for more advanced drinkers to discuss.  With me having tasted so little of wine, I still need to learn to tell just what kind of flavor I can taste from one wine.  Or, as many wine writers say, not to think too much, just drink and enjoy the wine.

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GINI 14 was taken place on August 11, 2007, and so that was less than a month ago. And that means one thing, I have no more GINI tasting to blog (until the next GINI, which could happen quite soon) As you can tell, even though I have stopped blogging, we have not stopped wine tasting. (Don't you think we need a break?)

There is one thing different about GINI 14 from the previous ones; Vincent W was not the only person deciding the theme of the tasting (although he is still the only person getting the wine) This time, we requested for a tasting of wines with some distinct differences. In the end, we settled on differences of "concentration" (a separate blog is needed on this topic) Not only Vincent W prepared the selection of wine, he provided the place as well, being our host this time. Here are the wines we had:

1. Couly-Dutheil Chinon Clos de l'Olive 1999 (Loire Valley)
2. E. Guigal Crozes-Hermitage 2003 (Rhone)
3. d'Arenberg The Dead Arm Shiraz 2001 (Australia)

As usual, Andrew has posted tasting notes of the wine we tried in his SeaTourist blog. I am also posting more information of the wine in my Flickr pictures. For the wines in this tasting, here is the link. Following is the voting results for our favorite in this tasting.

The GINI Concentration Index
We ranked the bottles 1 to 3, add up the numbers, whichever one has the lowest score is the best. Here is the list of participants: Aaron, Andrew, Jim, Kwong C, Kwong T, Naomi, Stephanie, Vincent W.

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Unlike the wine labels in the Old World, the ones in the New world are easier to read (mainly because it's mostly in English)  But there are more names to the famous regions of Napa and Sonoma.  Within those big regions, there are quite a few sub-regions, or appellations, and they are called Approved Viticultural Areas (AVAs)

For GINI 13, there were two from Napa Valley; Stag's Leap and Sterling.  Stag's Leap is actually also name of the AVAs (Stag's Leap District).  Sterling is in an area called "Calistoga", which is not yet classified as AVA (maybe that's why is not on the label).  The most famous sub-AVA in Napa is probably the Carneros, where all the famous Chardonnay are from.  There is a map of the AVAs in Napa Valley http://www.13appellations.com/13appellations/page/newmap.jsp

The third Californian Cabernet Sauvignon we had, Ernest & Julio Gallo, is from Sonoma.  The AVA in this case is Dry Creek Valley, which is actually better known for Zinfandel.

Finally, the Australian Cabernet Sauvignon, Leeuwin Estate, is from Margaret River, which is in Western Australia.  The climate there is similar to Mediterranean, even though it is widely thought as having cool climate.  This region became Australia's first Appellation in 1978. 

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While I'm at it, I guess I should just keeping blogging. Who knows how long I can keep this up, before another long drought of silence (in my blog of course)

GINI 13 was taken place on July 14, 2007. It was the second time for us GINI group trying Cabernet Sauvignon. Andrew is the host this time, and he prepared us some snacks to go with wine. The snacks were an interesting mix: cheese and crackers, and a few Chinese dishes like chicken feet, pig's trotters (took me awhile to find the English name), and vegetarian fake meat (mostly bean curds). Interesting to go with Cabernet Sauvignon, I have to say. Anyway, here are the red wines:

1. Leeuwin Estate Art Series Cabernet Sauvignon 1997 (Margaret River, Australia)
2. Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon 1999 (Napa Valley)
3. Sterling Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 1999 (Napa Valley)
4. Ernest & Julio Gallo Stefani Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 1999 (Sonoma County)

As usual, Andrew has posted tasting notes of the wine we tried in his SeaTourist blog. I am also posting more information of the wine in my Flickr pictures. For the wines in this tasting, here is the link. Following is the voting results for our favorite in this tasting.

The GINI Cabernet Sauvignon II Index
We ranked the bottles 1 to 4, add up the numbers, whichever one has the lowest score is the best. Here is the list of participants: Aaron, Alex, Andrew, Kelvin, Kwong C, Kwong T, Naomi, Vincent M, Vincent W.

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As with French wine names, I am just as lost when it comes to Italian wine names.  There are tons of information about wine in the web and in books, but a lot of them require you to have some knowledge about wine already, so it's a little hard to follow.  Then a friend of mine recommend a book called Great Wine Made Simple by Andrew Immer.  It's a great introductory book on wine.  So I'm relying on this book again for Italian wines.

For simple Italian wines shopping, there are two categories: one is the classic style from famous regions (Tuscany and Piedmont), and the other category is also from those regions, but more widely available, cheap-but-good offerings. ((Immer, Andrea. Great Wine Made Simple, New York, 2000. Pg 196))

As for wine names, there are 3 ways it could be named: 1) by region name, e.g. Chianti; 2) grape name plus region name, e.g. Barbera d'Alba (Bar-BEAR-uh DAHL-buh), the Barbera grape from the Alba region in Piedmont; 3) by made-up name, like brand name. ((Immer, Andrea. Great Wine Made Simple, New York, 2000. Pg 197)) A few common Italian words we can see in wine labels: Riserva -- Reserve in English; Classico -- a geographical term referring to the historic heart and quality center of a particular growing region; Cantina-- Italian word for winery.

First bottle in GINI 12, Villa Cafaggio Chianti Classico Riserva 1997, seems to be the easiest to understand; Villa Cafaggio is the producer, Chianti Classico is the region, and Riserva means reserve. 

Second bottle, Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino 1997, is probably a little harder.  Castello Banfi (BAHN-fee) is the producer.  The name Brunello di Montalcino (Broo-NELL-oh dee Mohn-tall-CHEE-no) is the grape name plus region; Brunello is another name for the grape Sangiovese in Italian, also called Sangiovese Grosso (an especially high quality version of the Sangiovese grape, Grosso means big). Montalcino is referring to the region close to the town of Montalcino, in Tuscany region, of course.

The other two bottles are from Piedmont region, and they are by the same producer, Michele Chiarlo (Mee-KELL-eh Kee-AHR-loe). For the third bottle, La Court Barbera D’Asti 1997, "La Court" is the brand name. Barbera is the name of the red grape that is most widely planted in the region.  D'Asti refers to the region close to the city of Asti in Piedmont. 

For the last bottle, Countacc Monferrato 1997, "Countacc" is the brand name.  Monferrato is another region in the Piedmont region.  From the back label, it has roughly equal portion of 3 different grapes, Barbera, Nebbiolo, and Cabernet Sauvignon.  Nebbiolo is the most prized vine behind Piedmont's most famous wines (Barbaresco and Barolo) ((Immer, Andrea. Great Wine Made Simple, New York, 2000. Pg 211))

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As I mentioned in GINI 11, we were going to try some Italian Red wine, but then because Vince M, a big fan of Italian Red, couldn't make it, we had something else instead.  So for GINI 12, here are the Italian Reds.  And we made Vince M to host this gathering for us (Thanks, Vince!)

We had GINI 12 back in June 1.  This time being Italian, we got some pizza and pasta from Dante's. (I had to look at Kelvin's pictures to remember what we had, it was so long ago...) Anyway, here are the red wines:

1. Villa Cafaggio Chianti Classico Riserva 1997 (Tuscany, Italy)
2. Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino 1997 (Tuscany, Italy)
3. Michele Chiarlo La Court Barbera D’Asti 1997 (Piedmont, Italy)
4. Michele Chiarlo Countacc Monferrato 1997 (Piedmont, Italy)

As mentioned in my previous post, Andrew is posting tasting notes of the wine we tried in his SeaTourist blog.  I am also posting more information of the wine in my Flickr pictures.  For the wines in this tasting, here is the link.  Following is the voting results for our favorite in this tasting.

The GINI Italian Reds Index
We ranked the bottles 1 to 4, add up the numbers, whichever one has the lowest score is the best. Here is the list of participants: Aaron, Andrew, Kelvin, Kwong C, Rita, Vincent M, Vincent W.

MSN Sync from http://www.lightrelay.com/?p=78

One of the Rieslings we had in GINI 11 is Domaine Weinbach Riesling Schlossberg Cuvee Sainte Catherine Riesling from Alsace.  First, I want to decode the words here.  Domaine Weinbach is the producer. Schlossberg is castle hill in German. Cuvée is same as the English word Reserve.  In Rhone Valley, producers produce special, deluxe lots of wine or a lot of wine from a specific grape variety that they bottle separately.  These lots are often referred to as cuvées. ((Wein-Bauer, Inc.)) So I guess Sainte Catherine is the name of the reserve lots.  According to the producer's website, it situated half way on the Schlossberg slope. ((Domaine Weinbach))

I have always thought Alsace is a region in Germany, because Riesling is well-known in Germany.  Alsace is part of France, but it was part of Germany before.  In fact it changed hands a few times.  Riesling is probably best of Alsace's varieties.  It is clean, apple and lemon scents, and it can smell like petrol (in a good way they say)

The other Riesling we tried was Joh Jos Prum Riesling Spätlese Graacher Himmelreich Riesling.  Another decoding is needed.  The producer is Johann Josef Prüm (Joh Jos Prüm).  Spätlese is Late Harvest in German.  Himmelreich is the name of the vineyard, which is in a town called Gracch.  So the word Graacher on the label is to Graach as New Yorker is to New York.  Finally, the region is called Mosel-Saar-Ruwer (MOE-zul Zahr ROO-ver).  The Saar and Ruwer rivers are both tributaries (streams) of the Mosel, which is the main river in this region. ((Immer, Andrea. Great Wine Made Simple, New York, 2000. Pg 246-247))  Riesling from Mosel is often described as floral, racy, elegant and finesse; very much like perfume.

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Since the last time I wrote, which is more than 4 months ago, we had 4 more wine tastings.  So we have been consistently drinking, but I have not been consistently writing.  So I have quite a bit of catching up to do here…

We had GINI 11 back in May 11, at Vincent W’s place.  Since we were having white wine this time around, we figured we would like some seafood to go with it, so we ended up getting sashimi/sushi.  Originally we were going to have some Italian red wine, but since Vincent M, a big fan of Italian Red, couldn’t make it, we postponed those red wines until GINI 12.  Anyway, here are the white wines:

1. Le Clos Jordanne Village Reserve Chardonnay 2004 (Niagara)
2. Domaine Etienne Sauzet Puligny Montrachet Champ Gain 2004 (Burgundy)
3. Domaine Weinbach Riesling Schlossberg Cuvee Sainte Catherine Riesling 2005 (Alsace)
4. Joh Jos Prum Riesling Spatlese Graacher Himmelreich Riesling 2003 (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Germany)

During the 4 months that I was not writing, Andrew actually set up another blog to make notes for each wine we tried in GINI tastings.  <http://www.seatourist.com/gini-wine-tasting/> Since he is doing a great job with the taste notes, I’ll get lazy and not writing taste notes.  But I would post the results of voting for our favorite wine of each tasting.

The GINI Chardonnay/Riesling Index

We ranked the bottles 1 to 4, add up the numbers, whichever one has the lowest score is the best.  Here is the list of participants: Aaron, Alex, Andrew, Kwong C, Kwong T, Naomi, Rita, Stephanie, Vincent W.  Looking at the results, there was no clear winner; in fact 3 bottles got the same score, and the 4th one was just 2 points off.

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Canada's greatest pinot noir, that's how one newspaper columnist compliments wines from Le Clos Jordanne.  It just happens that first wide release of their debut vintage is on the same day as our wine tasting day.  So we tasted 4 bottles of Pinot Noir from LCJ's 3 different vineyards.  Two of the bottles are from the same vineyard, Le Clos Jordanne Vineyard, but one, called Le Grand Clos, is created from the vineyard's best parcel.  So accordingly it is more expensive, priced at $60 as opposed to $35 for each of the rest. We actually weren't all that sure if we can try all 4 bottles, because there are not that many around; only 470 cases of 6 were made for Le Grand Clos, the most expensive one.  Even for one of the $35 ones, Claystone Terrace, only 798 cases of 6 were made.  But because of the hard work of Vincent W and Naomi, we got all 4 bottles.  Unfortunately, they could secured one of each only. We did have full meal this time; in addition to the rotisserie chicken Andrew brought over, my parents prepared some soup and Taiwanese sasuage.  My dad even prepared some Chinese "Kung-fu" tea for us, but that's after we finished our wine.

 Also this time we did blind tasting.  Since all 4 bottles are from the same winemaker, same year, we thought it might be a challenge for us inexperience drinker to find the differences between them.  Thankfully that is not the case; in fact they came from 3 different vineyards.  And so there are 2 bottles from the same vineyard.  Hence another challenge to ourselves is to identify which two are from the same vineyard.  Finally, we also want to identify which one of them is the especially expensive one.

Bottle #1 was the La Petite Vineyard; and we all thought it is decidedly inferior to the rest.  Maybe it has resemblances of Canadian wines, which is we were looking for.  Reviews had been noted that LCJ is actually more like the Old World than the New World.  Bottle #2 was from the Le Clos Jordanne Vineyard.  This is one of the two that come from the same vineyard.  Most of us didn't think that would be the case.  That's probably because it was bottle #3 and #4 that really stand out.  Most of us thought #3 and #4 were from the same vineyard; both of them were so good they were like those nice Burgundy.  But in fact it is bottle #4, Le Grand Clos, that is also from the Le Clos Jordanne Vineyard.  #3 is from the Claystone Terrace.  We actually saw the area map of where the vineyards are.  Although they are all close to each other, but because of the area's microclimate, climates differs in such small area.  Hence the wines were not all the same.

It turns out that it was #4, Le Grand Clos, that is the most expensive one.  Vincent W noted that it is the finish that distinguishes Le Grand Clos from the other ones.  But given that most of us like both Claystone (#3) and Le Grand, Claystone is definitely a better buy.  But it's going to be hard find now. --KC  

The GINI Le Clos Jordanne Pinot Noir Index

  Dad's Chinese Kung-fu Tea never fails to impress

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Back to my old self, next wine taste is coming in less than a week, and I have yet to write an entry for the previous wine taste.  But what is worse is that I don't remember much from GINI IX.  I do remember turnout was low, so few people that we can only tried 3 bottles.  I also did not take the pictures myself, as I forgot my camera; so all pictures came from Naomi's camera.

Unlike previous times, we did not have full meal to go with the wine; but our host Andrew did prepare some nice snack (sushi, crackers, cheese), and of course we cleaned them up quite good. Not only did I not take any pictures, I didn't write down any notes while trying the wines.

For bottle 1, it was 1999 Shafer Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay Carneros.  Right the way, Naomi tasted a little salty/buttery.  She was wondering how could it be, since she has not had any of the snack.  I myself didn't taste much of buttery, maybe a little bit. Our 2nd bottle is 2004 Saintsbury Chardonnay Carneros.  I found this one refreshing and more oaky (or buttery?)  I guess I enjoyed this one the more.

Our last bottle is 1999 William Fevre Chablis Premier Cru Montee De Tonnerre.  I believe this is my first time having Chablis (although we did try a white Burgundy before).  It is I have looked up what the WSJ writers have to say about Chablis:

Chablis is one of the natural wonders of the wine world, but it's not appreciated much in the U.S. Partly that's because, for a long time, winemakers slapped "Chablis" on the label of every cheap, generic white that had the misfortune of being bottled. And partly that's because Chablis, at one point, was a chic "glass of white wine" at cocktail parties, and it suffered because Chablis, which has lovely acids, is never at its best without food. Chablis is made from the Chardonnay grape, but it's very different from most American Chardonnay. It's dry and clean and somewhat austere, with crisp, flinty tastes. Some have a taste of minerals and, in the best ones, there's an intensity of fruit that makes them seem almost tight. Most notably, there's a little something in the "nose" and the taste that we always refer to as sourness. We know "sour" doesn't sound very attractive in reference to a wine, but think of a perfectly ripe, very fresh lime drizzled over a crisp, savory slice of Granny Smith apple and you'll get the idea. ((Wall Street Journal. (Eastern edition). New York, N.Y.: Jun 8, 2001.  pg. W.13))

  In their article, they actually tried 1998 William Fevre Chablis, and they were quite happy with it.  Unfortunately, not many of us like our 1999 William Fevre.  Maybe we just prefer the American Chardonnay. --KC

The GINI Chablis/Chardonnay Index

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We don't even know when our next GINI going to be, and I'm writing this blog (What's going on??)  Actually I've meant to write as soon as we had our last tasting, but somehow I just rather to write something else.  I was more excited than usual coming to this wine taste, reason being, I was bringing one bottle from my "collection" (all of 3 bottles)  I have this Pinot Noir I bought about one year ago.  I bought it because I read it in a wine column from the Wall Street Journal.  The column was describing their wine country trip in Napa Valley.  So of all the wine they mentioned, LCBO carried only one of them, the Pinot Noir from Russian River Valley.  It wasn't cheap, well above $40, but I bought two anyway.  I gave one to my dad, and to my surprise, he finished rather quickly, and I didn't even have a sip.  I can only assume that it was good, him finishing it so quickly.

We had this wine taste on December 29, a Friday night, so naturally we had dinner as well.  To go with Burgundy and Pinot Noir, we went with rotisserie chicken.  We were gonna have Swiss Charlet, but Aaron read an article from Toronto Star, recommending a BBQ place and calls it the best rotisserie chicken in Toronto area.  The place is called "Joe Boo's Cookoos" and it's actually in Thornhill.  It was indeed very good chicken. BTW, thanks to Kwong T for providing his place, allowing us to eat and drink.

We went back to the blind tasting this time, so all bottles with brown bags covered up.  We just know one thing before hand; bottle number two had a broken cork in it (first time happen to us!) So we ended up having to decant the wine (to avoid getting the cork while drinking)  But Vincent W says that you don't usually need to decant Pinot Noir/Burgundy.

Finally the last bottle is a Burgundy.  Nuits Saint Georges, name of another village, is also Preimer Cru (I believe)  Truth be told, I was so impressed by the previous bottle, I kinda forgot about this one. --KC  

The GINI Burgundy/Pinot Noir Index

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1. Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2005 (New Zealand) $29.95
2. Joseph Drouhin Puligny-Montrachet 2002 (Burgundy, France) $57.95
3. Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt Riesling Kabinet 2002 (Moselle-Saar-Ruwer, Germany) $21.95
4. Zind Humbrecht Pinot Gris Herrenweg de Turckheim 2004 (Alsace, France) $38.95

 Since most of us are still quite inexperience in wine tasting, we like the idea of having distinctively differnet white wines, so that we can see the big contrast between them.  Also we didn't do a blind taste, so we could just openly asked Vincent what we thought about the wines while we were drinking them.

 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2005

Wine Enthusiast Rating: 91
This is the highest this benchmark wine has ever scored with our tasters, from what is beginning to look like an excellent year for Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. It's still in an early estery phase right now, marked by honeyed tropical fruits, nectarines and grapefruit, but you can sense the herbal-jalapeño flavors lurking in the background. Rich and powerful on the palate, long on the finish, with this wine, Cloudy Bay is on top of its game.

Wine Name: Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2005
Producer: Cloudy Bay
Region/Appellation: New Zealand, Marlborough
Grape Varieties: Sauvignon Blanc
Alcohol: 13.5%
Price: $29.95

Joseph Drouhin Puligny-Montrachet 2002

WSJ Dow Jones Index: Very Good
Best value. Serious wine. Plenty of fleshy fruit, but tightly focused into phyllo-like lyaers of taste. Seems expensive.

Wine Name: Joseph Drouhin Puligny-Montrachet 2002
Producer: Joseph Drouhin S.A.
Region/Appellation: France, Burgundy
Grape Varieties: Chardonnay
Alcohol: 13.5%
Price: $57.95

Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt Riesling Kabinet 2002

Wine Spectator Rating: 92
Rich and creamy, yet backed by tangy acidity, providing a stage for the pear, apricot and banana flavors. Really multidimensional and long, picking up a mineral aftertaste. Terrific '02 kabinett. Drink now through 2015.

Wine Name: Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt Riesling Kabinet 2002
Producer: Graach Josephshöfer
Region/Appellation: Germany, Moselle-Saar-Ruwer
Grape Varieties: Riesling
Alcohol: 9.0%
Price: $21.95

Zind Humbrecht Pinot Gris Herrenweg de Turckheim 2004

'First and foremost, you get a sense of genius in every glass of Zind-Humbrecht wine. But [Olivier Humbrecht] also has the amazing ability to explain the winemaking process from its origins deep within the soil, through the vine, into the grape, through harvest and fermentation, through ageing and bottling, and into your glass, so that even a wine novice understands exactly why the wine tastes the way it does ... [He is also a raconteur and comic genius. Asked how he knows his grapes are ripe, he replies] 'When the birds start eating the fruit.' (Robert Parker Jr., www.erobertparker.com, April 15, 2004) 'I'm going to suggest that Zind-Humbrecht is probably the best producer in Alsace, with a stunning line-up of powerful, rich wines that possess a real sense of place.'

Wine Name: Zind Humbrecht Pinot Gris Herrenweg de Turckheim 2004
Producer: Zind Humbrecht
Region/Appellation: France, Alsace
Grape Varieties: Pinot Gris
Alcohol: 15%
Price: $38.95

The GINI White Wine Index

Even though we didn't have a blind taste, we still rank them.  We ranked the bottles 1 to 4, add up the numbers, whichever one has the lowest score is the best.  Here is the list of participants: Aaron, Andrew, Kelvin, Kwong C, Kwong T, Naomi, Stephanie, Vincent W

	Bottle #	Vineyard	Region	Pts	Group Rank	My Rank
	1	Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2005	New Zealand, Marlborough	28	4	1
	2	Joseph Drohin Puligny-Montrachet 2002	France, Burgundy	16	2	2
	3	Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt Riesling Kabinet 2002	Germany, Moselle-Saar-Ruwer	22	3	3
	4	Zind Humbrecht Pinot Gris Herrenweg de Turckheim 2004	France, Alsace	14	1	4

Down the Drain

Of course we didn't let a single drop wasted; this time is the most we spent on wine (yet)

1. Château Marjosse 2000 (Bordeaux) $15
2. Château Beaumont Cru Bourgeois 2000 (Haut-Medoc) $19
3. Château Tronquoy-Lalande Cru Bourgeois 2000 (Saint-Estèphe) $29
4. Château Ferriere Grand Cru Classe 3rd Growth 2000 (Margaux) $59