In a week’s time, I taste a boatload of wine (seriously). A lot of my friends think I’m lucky. Well, they’re right and I wouldn’t give this job up for the world. The only thing that makes my job hard, is my feeling of responsibility to taste the samples given to me as quickly as possible and to put my reviews either in my Moleskine, on my YouTube channel (Stan The Wine Man TV), or on Stanthewineman.com. Here for your reading pleasure, are five wines that I have reviewed in my Moleskine (good or bad), this past week.
2018 Tascante “Buonora” Etna Bianco (Etna, Italy)… $21.
Wet rocks, lemon and melon on the nose with a touch of apple. Creamy in the mouth that morphs into a steely, crushed rock finish. Melon and apple notes on the front of the palate with dusty wet rocks underneath front to finish where lemon-lime notes join up and linger. Nicely balanced and well-integrated acidity. 100% Carricante (B+)
2018 Taska d’ Almerita Catarratto (Sicily, Italy)… $19.
Aromas of fig and nuts with a hint of melon and oranges. Fresh acidity supports lemon and bright orange notes front to a steely, bracing finish. Orange notes linger with a kiss of filberts. (B+)
2016 Maloney Cabernet Sauvignon Quintessence Vineyard (Red Mountain, WA)… $43.
Currants and red cherries on the nose with a touch of raisins, licorice and red flowers. Smooth structured tannins support notes of currants and licorice with tobacco notes in the background. Tobacco notes sneak out on the long finish with a hit of leather coming through. Excellent balance. This baby will age ten years plus. (B+)
2013 Zero One “Wild Sky” Cabernet Sauvignon (Columbia, Valley, WA)… $30.
Aromas of dark currants, tobacco, prunes and a hit of rust. Ripe dark currants on the palate with a little dirt action underneath. The tannins are a little edgy. The fruit expands on the mid-palate into the finish where a kiss of veggie comes through, joined by notes of tobacco, earth and currants that linger. The tannins show some attitude from the back of the mid-palate into the finish. (B)
2014 Thurston Wolfe “Conglomerate” Cabernet Sauvignon Upland Vineyard (Snipes Mountain, WA)… $30.
Oak, currants and oatmeal cookie on the nose. Oak dominates on the palate, with currant notes pushing through underneath. There is a freshness to the mouthfeel. The currant notes are held back a bit by the oak and tannins. Not over-powering, but it hinders the fruit. It could come together with a couple of more years, but I have my doubts. (C)
Cheers!
Stan The Wine Man
