As is usually the case, we started off with a few whites.

1998 Francois Villard Les Terrasses du Palat Condrieu, 13.5% alc.: Pale – medium gold, with the faint taint of cork, but not so much that a good read couldn’t be taken. Pretty bouquet of rich pear, gussied up with floral hints; rich and viscous in the mouth, with flavors of not quite candied pear, mineral and a certain mustiness that turned out to be TCA. Nice long finish; too bad about the taint, this is otherwise a very pretty wine.

2001 Saint Cosme Côtes du Rhône Blanc, 13.5%alc.: Medium straw, not much on the nose; slightly floral pear really picks it up on the palate with added mineral, good acidity and a nice finish. Should gain some nuttiness with age; nice summer wine.

1992 J.L. Chave Hermitage Blanc, 13% alc.: Golden, with hints of amber; nutty, candied, licorice and pear flavors and aromas; low acidity and a long finish. Exotic and delicious.

1998 Pride Viognier, 14.1% alc.: Medium straw, with a sweet oak peachy pear character; ripe. Almost fat on the palate, despite decent acidity. Decent finish; not great, not bad. 

1999 Schoffit Clos Saint-theobald Riesling Rangen de Thann, 12.5% alc.: Now here’s the kind of white I can sink my teeth into…, or something like that. Medium gold, with a bright rich apple and pear bouquet showing floral overtones; flavors echo with added minerality and a hint of detergent on the long finish; slightly oily, with good acidity. Excellent!

1987 Ridge Geyserville, 13.7% alc.: Mitch Tallan brought this slightly rusty ruby garnet along, possibly as a peace offering to a certain surly olive oil guy; it isn’t a Rhône, but oh is it good! Hints of cedar over rich raspberry and plum, and of course, all that Draper perfume; takes on claret-like qualities from the mid-palate on back. Tim Thomas added an impression of brown sugar, while Bill Paumen added a note of mint, and I wouldn’t disagree with either of those gentlemen. Wonderful stuff; one of my two favorites of the evening.

1993 Ridge Zinfandel Maple Vineyard ATP, 14.9% alc.: Ruby dark garnet, with deep, dark, slightly poopy black raspberry and plum aromatics that relegate the Draper perfume to the background; some nice mint comes out with swirlatude. Chewy flavors echo, and though it’s not as complex as the Geezer, and could finish a little longer, it’s nice nevertheless. Still needs some time.

1996 Jean-Michel Gerin Côte Rôtie Les Grandes Places, 12.5% alc.: Dark garnet, with a hint of the barnyard over rich dark black currant and plum character; hints of smoke and underbrush add interest and complexity. Silky, and not too tannic to drink now, but the best is yet to come. Very nice.

1991 Jasmin Côte Rôtie, 12.5% alc.: Slightly cloudy bricked garnet; musty, with some cedar on the nose, and not much else. Gains a good dose of prune and plum on the palate, with mostly resolved tannins, good acidity and a nice finish. Nice, but don’t wait too long to drink it, if this bottle is any indication.

Mystery Wine: Brownish bottle; Italian? Just a hint of rust to the dark garnet color, with licorice, black cherry and road tar flavors and aromas, in something of the international style. Lively tannins, a nice acid backbone and quite pleasing overall. Turns out to be: 1994 Ferrari-Carano Sienna.

1991 Ogier La Rosine Syrah Vin de Pays Des Collines Rhodaniennes, 12% alc.: Rusty garnet; a funky, musty quality blows off quickly to reveal smoky bacon and plum. Nice core of rich, slightly dusty plum, with soft tannins, fairly low acidity and a decent finish. Pretty nice for what it is. "A little rusty, a little peaked." - Larry

1991 J. L. Chave Hermitage, 13% alc.: Rusty dark garnet, with smoke, bacon and plum on the somewhat reticent nose, but the lovely flavors echo and expand on the palate with a substantial core of plums and prunes. Drinking beautifully right now, and it disappeared quickly. My other favorite of the evening.

1992 J. L. Chave Hermitage, 13% alc.: Slightly rusty ruby garnet; like a slightly less intense version of the ’91; excellent for the vintage, and also drinking well right now.

1999 Domaine les Pallierres Gigondas, 14% alc.: I wondered at a certain, somewhat odd "woodiness" when we first tried this dark garnet last fall, so I brought this along to get another read on it, and sure enough, it was still there, along with chocolate, cream, spice and plum flavors and aromas. Seemed quite oak-y compared to the last several selections, with plenty of tannins and good acidity. Not bad for $20, but I’m not sure I like the direction in which the Lynch – Brunier team is taking this.

1995 Domaine l’Aiguelière Coteaux du Languedoc Montpeyroux Côte Doree, 12.5% alc.: Squid-y garnet, with black currant, plum and blackberry on the nose, along with a bit of heat and little of the coffee noted in other vintages of this. Big chewy flavors echo with lots of tannins and good acidity; needs years yet, but has a ton of fruit to ride them out.

2000 Texier Côte Rôtie Vieilles Vignes, 12.5% alc.: Dark garnet, with plum, underbrush, rhubarb and chocolate flavors and aromas; not as tannic as I’d expect, nor as intense. Good, but not quite up to some of the competition on this evening.

1989 Edmunds St. John Sonoma Syrah, 12 ½% alc.: Mitch says that this slightly rusty dark garnet is from the Durrell Vineyard; it shows plum and tobacco flavors and aromas, with tannins mostly resolved. Pam Patt and I agreed that we’d like a little more substance and intensity here, but still, it’s a decent syrah.

1987 Ridge Devil’s Hill Petite Sirah ATP: Inky garnet, with beautiful Draper perfume; all dark berries and plums, fiercely tannic, but approaching drinkability after 4 hours in a decanter. Needs a lot of time yet, but should be great.

1990 Clos des Brusquieres Châteauneuf du Pape, 14% alc.: Dark garnet with a hint of brick; tastes weird, slightly oxidized and Port-like, and not in a good way. Bree doesn’t like it, and neither do I.

1995 Pignan Châteauneuf du Pape Reserve, 14% alc.: Chateau Rayas 2^nd label; dark garnet, not showing much on the nose. Silky and plush on the palate, with rich, deep, dark black currant, blackberry and plum flavors that are most impressive, despite the ample tannins. "The finish just sucks the moisture right out of your mouth." – Jeff Faunce

1998 Paloma Napa Syrah, 13% alc.: Deep dark garnet, with huge plum, blackberry, chocolate oak character that gains hints of coffee with air. Drinking well now, but should be better in a few more years.

We tasted a little more wine after that, but I was through taking notes, so don’t ask me what they were. There were a number of Graeter’s Ice Creams on hand, however, and this taster was infatuated with the Peach (who says peach doesn’t have punch?!) and at least one of the Chips, either Black Raspberry or Mint Chocolate, or maybe both! Any way you look at it, Bob’s family makes the best ice cream Kim and I have ever had, and we brought a bunch home to further investigate various other flavors.

Many thanks to Chairman and Mrs. Moe for hosting a most enjoyable gathering, and to all the participants for their contributions. This group just gets cozier with every get-together, and to think; we all met over the Internet…