2002 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin

I was nutso over the 1996 of this so I snagged this bottle which currently retails at seventy bucks.

Very distinct yeast, orange marmalade, toast,

More yeast, toast, blueberry, orange, caraway, kiwi, all with a nuttiness, I'm going to go with pecan - complex and then some.

Strawberry seed, rye toast, grapefruit, even some cantaloupe way at the back end.

Damn good. Some reviews are short because the wines are dull, others are short because I just want to sit and enjoy the wine - this is the latter.

Score: 94

2006 Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Silver Oak - you have likely heard the name, it's a producer I think I've had by the glass somewhere, but really haven't had a chance to sit and enjoy.

Vanilla and cherry on the nose.

Solid. More of a plum thing on the palate, firm oak, bold tannins after six hours of air (though certainly approachable), black cherry comes through. Everything is well integrated and smooth, but it borders on too smooth, if that makes sense. I thought I'd have more to say about this one...

The finish fades with spices and eucalyptus.

A jolly good bottle of wine, but perhaps not as interesting as one would hope for in a $50 product.

Score: 89

N/V Louis Roederer Brut Premier

Shop around some good sales and you can snag this one for under $35 - I'm shocked to see we haven't had a Roederer Champagne yet (though the Roederer Estate from CA is damn fine).

A bit of grapefruit, a bit of blueberry, and a bit of rye toast on the nose.

More grapefruit, green apple, white cherry, lime, slate, a bit viscous on the mouthfeel, a quality a normally don't care for, but sometimes it work - here it does.

Lime lingers on the finish along with some ginger ale qualities.

One of the better non vintage Champagnes I've encountered and at the pricepoint - as low as thirty bucks - this is absolutely worth a look.

Score: 91

Moto Restaurant - Chicago, IL - April 16, 2011

Moto is a restaurant that serves a style of food called molecular gastronomy.

It's not for everyone - this is not a normal restaurant by any means....I compare it to dinner theater really. Our twenty courses meal with fourteen beverage pairings exceeded the five hour mark. Luckily, the chairs are comfortable and the room is not so quiet you're afraid to to talk, but not so loud you need to scream.

If it's before July 2011, and you're planning to go to Moto - take my advice and stop reading this. Go, have a good time, but stop researching it - you'll enjoy yourself more if you don't know what to expect. This is a spoiler alert.

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The menu doubles as a deconstructed peanut butter sandwich. I didn't take a photo of the flipside, but there is also a ten course option. We had the Grand Tour Moto - 20 courses not including the menu.

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What to drink with a twenty course meal? There's the list. I won't be commenting much on the pairings - mostly because with names like Shafer, Kracher, Laurent Perrier, and Goose Island you know everything is going to be solid.

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"SNOW man" - Yep, that's a snow man made of foam on top of raw tuna.

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"ROSE bush" - the rose was dehydrated beet (and tasted kind of bacony), micro greens, macadamia nut, with a parsley/goat cheese stem.

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"GOLDEN twist ale" before

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"GOLDEN twist ale" after. The liquid came out of a beer bottle that I swear the waiter uncapped at the table, the cap looked like a Three Floyd's cap...very odd. The broth tasted vaguely like a pretzel.

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"CHICKEN noodle soup" - a dumpling made with half chicken flour. Chicken flour. Weird.

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"MISO soup" before.

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"MISO soup" after. That's a piece of seared foie gras in a miso broth. I normally don't like my foie gras cooked, but this was awesome.

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"POTATO & leek" before.

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"POTATO & leek" after. Skate, potato, leeks, with a powder dipped in liquid nitrogen. What the powder is...I don't recall.

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"EGG3" - I don't know how to superscript on here, but that should read "Egg Cubed." Two types of fish egg with some micro greens and an egg bread.

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"CAPON & corn bread" - liquid corn bread along with capon prepared two ways. A capon is...sigh...a castrated rooster. It's lack of sex hormones give it a unique flavor.

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"BASEBALL snacks" - quail breast, a home made deconstructed Cracker Jack, plus some cherry flavored Cracker Jack inspired paper.

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"CUBAN cigar." Yep. That's a cuban cigar served in an ashtry. The ash is ground sesame seeds, the wrap is collared greens, and the cigar was stuffed with pork.

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"NUAC man" - pork belly with mushroom...that big piece of mushroom is actually pureed mushroom, formed into the shape of a mushroom, and fried to give it some texture. Yep. Why is this called Nuac man? I do not know.

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"ALLEY-yum" - Onions presented five ways plus venison.

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"MAI tai" - that's a brandy soaked maraschino cherry with two pieces of carbonated pineapple. That's right, carbonated pineapple.

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"COOKIE monster" - cookie crumbs are under the spoon, on the spoon...well, the waiter came out with a grill dipped in liquid nitrogen and squeezed some sugar cookie batter on top which "cooked" the cookie on the spoon.

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"FRITES, frozen & fried" - shredded sweet potatoes. Both crispy sweet potatoes and shredded sweet potato ice cream. Yep. Shredded ice cream.

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"GREEN CURRY lime" - a palate cleanser, that's not a real lime, it's lime jelly with a thai basil "rind."

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"BANANA split" - the squiggley thing is banana ice cream, the three pipes include cherry, caramel, and chocolate sauces.

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ACME bombs" - they bring out what looks like a cherry bomb, set it on fire at the table, and when the wick completely burns out you pop it in your mouth and you get a chocolate explosion.

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"COOKIE crumbs" - that's earl grey infused chocolate moose, early grey infused graham cracker crumbs, and earl grey ice cream. As a fan of earl grey, this ruled.

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"SODA du jour" - that's an edible packing peanut with soda (that was somewhat fufu berry like) served in a beaker.

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There you have it. Moto is a must visit restaurant - go for the grand tour, take your time, sit back and enjoy the five hour meal. Yes, it is expensive, but it's an incredible, unique experience that you should try at least once.

N/V Cristalino Brut Rose

Check that out - "not affiliated with Roederer or Cristal." Did some jackass buy this thinking it was a tremendous deal only to get mocked by their wine snob friends? Who knows. New label, new vaguely Blade Runner looking font reminds me of a friend of mine who had eyes that glowed yellow, but after four years we had a falling out and I never heard from him again - weird, no?

A little bit of cherry and perhaps some lime on the nose.

Clean, crisp, almost cherry 7-Up like - actually this reminds me of that Cranberry Twist Sierra Mists, one of my favorite sodas out there. In fact, beyond that, I'm not getting much else. When you think about it, this wine is somewhat sweet, but it doesn't really hit the palate that way - be it acidic balance or more fruity than sweet, it all really comes together nicely. A dangerous wine - half the bottle disappeared in a matter of minutes.

The finish, of Cranberry Sierra Mist, actually lingers for a reasonable amount of time.

This wine is why scores are stupid. It's simple, it's one dimensional, and it's incredibly drinkable. There's nothing here worth looking at academically, but considering that a case will set you back eighty bucks, are we really going to complain about such things? Serve it at a party or pop open a bottle with jalapeno poppers.

Score: 86

2006 Tabor Hill Dry Traminette

I had a few days off of work and had planned on heading up to Michigan, hitting wineries, and driving around, but when push came to shove, heading down the road to Meijer and sitting at home seemed more appealing. This was eight bucks and is perhaps a tad too old, but whatever.

Grapefruit, orange, apricot, peach - a rather bold nose.

To me, this is reminiscent of a slightly over the hill Gewurz from Alsace...vanilla, peach, apricot, lychee, orange blossom, chamomile, nice acid, thick mouthfeel, a touch of sugar, but nothing overbearing.

Stone fruit and lychee on the finish.

Pretty damn good, I'll definitely grab a newer vintage without question.

Score: 87

2009 Owen Roe Sinister Hand

I dig this label a lot - we had this wine a few years back, so let's see how the 2009 is - about $24 retail on this blend of 70% Grenache, 25% Syrah, 3% Mourvedre, 2% Counoise. (Wine Century Club nerds take note - you don't see Counoise often.)

Black raspberry (or perhaps super dark strawberry) in that stem, leaf, tea sorta way.

Raspberry dominates along with dark cherry, and almost a Juicy Fruit gum sorta thing - what flavor is Juicy Fruit? Something vaguely tropical, papaya or peach I suppose. A nice touch of oak, some vanilla comes through, and a reasonable acid, give it some balance, but it's definitely a juicy, fruit forward sorta wine.

Licorice, black and red, with some of the sweetness included, linger on the finish.

Certainly a lighter style red, but it's all put together nicely - if you like fruity, Grenache based wines, this is for you. If you haven't had a fruity, Grenache based blend, this is a good one to start with...some can be a tad over the top and this one is pretty well integrated.

Score: 88+

2006 Primus Veramonte

This half bottle ran me ten dollars - it's a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot, and Carmenere.

A somewhat muted nose - a bit of that petrol/gasoline thing, appropriate seeing as Jerry was a Racecar Driver, a bit of rainier cherry, and yes indeed, I do believe that's barnyard.

Plum, blackberry, big in terms of black fruit - cigar, brown spices mixed in, and on the back end some nice black cherry.

Vanilla and blueberry on the finish with some cherry cola qualities coming through as well.

I initially thought this wine was kind of blah, but with some time in the decanter it started to shine, and by the time it got really good, the half bottle was gone. At ten bucks for a half bottle, I could easily see buying a few more of these and pulling one out every year to see how it progresses.

Score: 88

2007 Domaine Charvin Le Poutet Cotes du Rhone

This bottle went for $18 - a reputable producer, a fair price, and a region we somewhat neglect, seemed like an easy choice.

When I say this smells like Dr. Pepper, I mean it in a way kinda like, I racked my brain to think if I recently drank Dr. Pepper from this glass and forgot to wash it, all along with some cassis.

Cassis dominates the palate....to a point that, dare I call it "jammy"? A touch sweet - sort of a raspberry, cranberry, blueberry thing - a bit of spice, some black licorice, virtually no oak, some brown spice, some eucalyptus, but all in all, fruity.

More of that cassis thing on the finish, some wintergreen mint qualities.

Tough to argue with at eighteen bucks - I dig it.

Score: 89

2005 Beringer Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon

Quick - what's the first thing you think of when you think of Beringer? I would not be shocked if the first thing was cheap wines you buy at the grocery store. This is one of their top of the line wines which retails at eighty big ones. Shall we see how it does?

Plum liqeuer, chocolate covered cherry - fruity, chocolatey, and even a bit funky.

Big! More of that straight up plum liqueur, perhaps some kir, more of that cherry cordial thing, a bit of vanilla, earth, all sorts of interesting spice notes - brown and green. I may be way off, but this does not really scream "California" to me...there's too much funk and earth.

Brown spice and a bit of a caramel thing on the finish fading away to raspberry tea.

A great wine to be sure. It would hold up in the cellar, but it's definitely ready now. I dig it.

Score: 92

Vinturi review #1

Of all the wine gizmos and gadgets, the Vinturi seems to get the least amount hate from the wine nerds out there. A deep discount and a gift card motivated me to buy this, while I believe it technically retails for $40, it can frequently be found for $25 on sale.

Here's how I tested it - I took three wine glasses from a set, exact same size, shape, and brand, so there was not glass variation. I then popped open the 2009 Dubeouf Fleurie, reviewed below, a good Beaujolais Cru. I immediately poured half into a 375ml bottle and capped it - this was the "control" and hopefully maintained as much of the first "pop and pour" character. I then poured a glass and let it sit for three hours.

After three hours, I left the room and had my lovely assistant pour one glass direct from the half bottle, one glass from the half bottle through the Vinturi aerator, and place them next to the aerated glass in whatever order she wanted.

The results?

1st place - the wine that went through the Vinturi
2nd place - the wine that sat out for three hours
3rd place - the wine from the half bottle

The difference between second and third was huge - the direct from the bottle wine was noticeably harsher and tighter. The difference between first and second was less pronounced - both tasted far more open and approachable, but the Vinturi wine just seemed a bit smoother.

This was the first time I thought to actually "test" how it aerates. I've done informal blind tests, and nine times out of ten it's obvious which wine went through the aerator, but I admit I'm shocked the Vinturi beat out on the good old fashioned air and swirl time.

I'll occasionally put it to the test and post results. My tentative judgment, though, is it certainly works to some degree. Is it worth $25+? Maybe, maybe not. I would, however, give it a recommendation for someone who wants to buy a gift for a wine love and doesn't want to buy a bottle.

2009 Georges Dubeouf Fleurie

Yet another 2009 Cru Beaujolais for under $15 - and not to sound like a broke record, but yet another quality wine for less money than many Nouveaus.

This smells almost exactly like strawberry Starburst.

Cola and root beer on the attack, with the strawberry Starburst on the mid palate, and some brown spices coming through towards the back. All that said, this wine is certainly not sweet - quite nicely balanced, plenty of acid and spice to work with the fruit.

I guess it's stuck in my head, but yeah...mild strawberry Starburst and a bit of cinnamon on the finish.

Thoroughly enjoyable - tasty, balanced, and priced right.

Score: 88

2007 Cantina Zaccagnini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo

I wanted something Italian and the shelftalker assured me this cheap - $9 - bottle was something worth trying...let's see.

Raspberry and cherry on the nose - but not straight up fruit, more of a fruit jelly kind of thing.

A touch sweet, a bit earthy, a bit trashy - imagine a fruit jelly candy sitting in some coffee grounds in the trash for a few days and take a bite...there ya go.

Coffee, actually mocha, notes on the finish with cinnamon and cherry.

I like Italian wines, I dig the funk and the acid, but sometimes they get a little too out there...I fault it on the sugar, it's a bit too sweet for me to get behind, but if that's your kinda thing this may be worth investigating.

Score: 81

2006 Robert Mondavi Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

As long as you dig in above the whole "Private Reserve" thing, Mondavi makes some damn fine wines, so I'm quite happy to pay $25+ for a bottle I haven't even tried since prior vintages have been strong.

The nose on this is kind of blah, it reminds me of very mild grape bubble gum - in fact, there's a Japanese grape bubble gum, basically gum balls, that this is strikingly similar to...along with sort of a charred steak sorta thing.

On the immediate attack is that Japanese grape bubble gum thing and it does remain throughout but some other things certainly come through...cinnamon, black cherry, cedar.

I must have it stuck in my head, but I'll be damned if I don't get more of that grape gum thing on the finish, it fades away with more cedar, more black cherry in an ice cream sorta way.

It's enjoyable, don't get me wrong, but under close scrutiny I don't think it holds up honestly - tasty, but simple, and at $25 perhaps this would be a fine wine to bring to Christmas dinner if your host is making a roast - something solid, but not groingrabbing (grabbing your groin is best left for New Year's Eve). We really dug the 2005, but this vintage I'm not quite so sure.

Score: 87

2008 Woot Cellars Adequite Gift Old Vine Field Blend

Another Woot offering, as with most of these they go for about $10 a bottle but you have to buy four to six at a minimum.

A bit of eucalyptus, sassafras, anise - a rather spicy nose.

Cherry at first, with some blueberry, even some mocha, it seems to progress into something vaguely cough syrup like, and then a burst of vanilla and creaminess on the back end.

Blueberry and cassiss linger.

I'm going to recommend opening this for at least four hours...or sitting on it for a while. Christmas season has passed, but for ten bucks, this would be more than an adequate gift for 2011.

Score: 87

2006 Beaulieu Vineyard Tapestry Reserve

My notes say I paid around $40 for this - I let this sit in the decanter for six hours before digging in.

A bit of boysenberry on the nose and some qualities I can only describe as well done steak - grill up a steak (on gas, not charcoal because it's not smoke) to medium well, cut off a slice and sniff - there ya go.

Tart cherry, blackberry, vanilla, plus some milk chocolate - all with very mild eucalyptus and mint. It's a quite smooth wine, and nothing much really jumps out at you.

Blackberry and vanilla on the finish, almost a blackberry sorbet with a bit of whipped cream on top with perhaps an Andes mint thrown in.

It's a good wine, very good in fact, nice integration of all the various parts, but it's just not interesting enough for me to get too excited about...perhaps in time?

Score: 90

2001 Fontanafredda Barolo Serralunga d'Alba

On Saturday, February 26, 2011 wine nerds are celebrating Open That Bottle Night - an excuse, basically, to open that bottle of wine you've been sitting on for a special occasion that just never came. I bought this wine years ago for a good price, but the shelf talker warned me not to open it for a while, arguably it's still too early, but I knew I had to sit on it until 2011 for ten years. Retail on newer vintages is about $55. We're pairing this with some deep dish pizza - hell yeah.

Dark chocolate, maybe baking chocolate is more accurate - super dark either way - burnt tire, asphalt, and way in the background some rose perfume

Far more approachable and less funky than the nose would suggest - cherry, strawberry, nectarine - medium body, solid tannins, and still some rather firm tannins. A white tea thing, combined with a bit of black tea, comes through.

More of that white tea and almost a sourdough bread mouthfeel. Impressive length on the finish, lasts for well over a minute with cinnamon and cedar notes.

I dig it...well worth the wait.

Score: 91

N/V Moet and Chandon Impeial

Imperial doesn't get much respect (it used to be called White Star), but neither does Veuve Yellow and I dig that stuff - this can be had for anywhere between $30 and $35ish.

The nose is kind of interesting as it seems to show shortbread and even some peanut qualities.

In one word, I'd call this boring. There are some bready and yeasty notes, some orange pith, but really, not a whole lot. Too sweet to be brut, certainly not sweet enough for dessert - the sorta wine I'd recommend with Thai or Indian food, but too expensive for randomly pairing (unless received as a gift).

A bit of a grapefruit with a bit of sugar on top thing on the finish, maybe some tangerine - the finish is far more interesting and flavorful than the palate.

You know, even if this was half price I wouldn't recommend it, it's certainly not an unpleasant wine, but it's just completely uninteresting and for this pricepoint, that is inexcusable.

Score: 78

N/V Croft Pink Port

This was $17. I snagged it because the notion of pink Port sounded too intriguing to pass up....though one should not take a wine too seriously if the label suggests serving over ice.

The nose has an artificial watermelon thing with some orange as well, can't quite place if it's fake orange or real orange...if I'm on the fence I assume that means reasonably good artificial.

This is kind of goofy...watermelon and sugarfied cherry, it's a heavy feeling wine, but there's really no heat or anything of that sort. There's still just an odd disconnect...it has the flavor profile of almost a White Zinfandel, but the weight of a Port. Peculiar. At 19% alcohol, this could be dangerous.

A Jolly Rancher watermelon finish with some heat finally coming through.

While it's certainly interesting, it's definitely not worth $17 and it's definitely not the sort of thing you should snag if you like Port. It's certainly pleasant tasting enough, but I can see why one would drink this over ice to cut down the viscosity and cover up the heat.

Score: 77

2010 Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc

This goes for about $11 - we don't drink enough Sauvignon Blanc and it seemed like it may be a good pairing with a buffalo chicken pizza.

A "tropical" nose - snow on the ground, this just doesn't smell right with grapefruit, pineapple, maybe even mango.

Fruity, perhaps a tad sweet, but great acid to balance it - a touch creamy, mostly tropical, mango is more pronounced, papaya, pineapple, pink grapefruit.

A bit of white grapefruit on the finish - some more tart qualities come through, stronger (yet less sweet) pineapple, and certainly papaya.

A nice bottle of wine to be sure...if you have one, save it for a warm day, it just seems cruel to open this in the winter.

Score: 88