Paul Forget

Bodegas Alejandro Fernandez Tinto Pesquera Reserva 2004

Quinta Do Quetzal Reserva 2007, Do Alentejo

This wine is a blend of 40% Trincadeira, 40% Alfrocheiro and 20% Alicant Bouschet, maturation taking place in French oak for 12 months plus an additional 8 months in bottle before release, alcohol comes in at 14%.
Great nose on this blend with aromas of ripe berries, cherry, plum, sweet spices, floral and wood spice notes. On the mouthfeel, medium bodied, soft seductive fruit flavours, spicy with balanced acidity and silky tannins. The wine finish is long, fruit driven, slightly spicy, very smooth with good energy. This wine doesn’t scream Portugal to me, definitely not rustic for sure but well made, not overly manipulated, made in a more modern style. There is a real elegance and sophistication about this wine, I did enjoy two bottles of Quinta Do Quetzal Reserva 2007 and both were consistently good.

Michele Castellani Cinque Stelle Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico 2006, Doc

Oh my! What a lovely maturing exotic bouquet on this Amarone with aromas of dried cherries, prune, raisins, soft leather, cola, clove and vanilla notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied with a fantastic mid palate richness and weight, low acidity and velvet tannins. This wines finish is long, very smooth, savoury with a silky texture. I think this Amarone is drinking pretty much at its peak right now, I agree with David here, slightly verging on oxidation. I paired this wine with a tomato based pasta dish with sausage and it work very well. This Amarone is the perfect remedy for a cold winter evening, an absolute beauty.

Te Mata Coleraine 2007, Hawkes Bay

When we opened this wine, I thought that it might be oxidized, the foil was covered with dry wine, half of the top of the cork was covered with dry wine and two separated lines of wine were running the length of the cork, through to the top. The quality of the cork appeared very good and the length was good, but it might not have been as tight as it could have been. This wine opened up with aromas of black cherry, blackberry, blackcurrants, roasted coffee beans, damp earth, smoky, exotic spices, cedar and mineral notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied, bone dry with great structure and energy, balanced acidity and fine grainy tannins. A very good length on a long finish, with a rich combination of smoky dark fruit, minerals and mild tannins. A gorgeous Bordeaux blend (think Graves here), robust, yet approachable, this wine just keeps getting better the longer it breathes. This bottle was definitely not oxidized, who knows if I would have keep it for another year or two, but today, this wine was much enjoyed by all four of us.

P B Hein Cabernet Sauvignon 2005, Napa Valley

This wine is made with 100% estate grown Cabernet Sauvignon grapes with maturation taking place in new French oak for 26 months and alcohol coming in at 14.5%. This wine is from a small boutique winery that only produced 293 cases of this Cabernet.
This Cabernet opened up with exquisite maturing aromas of dark cherry and plum, black currants, toasty with peppery-sandalwood notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied, rich, velvety texture with balance acidity and chewy tannins. This wine finish is very long, creamy with soft seductive fruit flavours, vanilla, gentle wood spices and light tannins lingering.
A superb, very tasty California Cabernet where the extra cellaring and the quality work at the vineyard paid big dividends for the consumer, strongly recommended. Planning to buy a few more bottles before they all disappear, Enjoy on December 28, 2012.

Domaine Terlato & Chapoutier Lieu Dit Malakoff Shiraz 2010, Pyrenees

This cool climate shiraz made with low yielding vines and opened up with aromas of black fruit, tar, saddle leather, black pepper, dried herb de Provence and black pepper notes. On the mouthfeel, full bodied, dry, layered dark fruit and smoky flavours, balance acidity and fine structured tannins. A great length on the finish, with concentrated and robust flavours. This Shiraz is built for the long haul, I would say 4-5 years for the texture to soften up and all elements of this Shiraz to fully integrate. Excellent addition to any cellar.

Montes Purple Angel 2007

An impressive wine to be sure, very catchy label, big and heavy bottle, deep purple color with robust texture and flavours. This wine opens up with aromas of black cherry, blackberry, dark chocolate, tobacco, spices and burnt wood notes. On the mouthfeel, full bodied with alcohol coming in at 15%, low acidity and chewy tannins. This wine as medium length on the finish with concentrated dark fruit and toasty oak flavours. This wine got better as the evening continued, decanting would have been a good idea. My verdict, it needs another 2-3 years to shed some of its oak, to soften the texture and acquire more sophistication, finesse and complexity. An interesting and enjoyable wine but I am not sure it represents good value, score

Yalumba The Signature Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz 2005, Barossa, South Australia

This wine is rich, concentrated and robust, yet approachable. On the nose this wine opens up with aromas of black fruit, plums, menthol, leather, chocolate, earthy and savoury notes. This blend has a full bodied mouthfeel (14.5% alc.) is rich with creamy but well integrated flavours, balanced acidity and velvet tannins. Great energy and length on the finish with chocolate, black fruit and wood spice flavours. This wine is drinking well now, but there is still a lot of life left in this bottle with its best days still years away.

Pirramimma Shiraz 2006, Mclaren Vale, South Australia

This great Shiraz walk a fine line between rich fruits and oak flavours, without going into the jammy characteristic. On the nose; blackberry, cherry and vanilla coke. Medium to full body, with balance acidity and velvet mouth feel. The finish is smooth with long concentrated dark fruit flavours. This is definitely a great value. Yummy

Mount Eden Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2006, Santa Cruz Mountains

Aromas are a little muted at first but after taking some air, an expressive nose of blackberry, plum, dried currant, sage, leather and smoke. The mouthfeel is full bodied with spicy oak, savoury flavours, fresh acidity and firm tannins. A long finish with pepper, bitter chocolate, dark fruit all wrapped up in a fine dusty tannins. This Cabernet simply getst better and better over the evening and has all the elements to be an outstanding wine in a couple of years.