Featured Wines - February 2004

A dollop of pure ripe Chardonnay fruit, a cachet of light but lovely spice, a touch of butter, and a double dose of elegance and flavor are the words that best describe the 2000 Lynmar Quail Hill Vineyard Chardonnay. From this wine's inviting nose that emanates lime, papaya, spiced apple, and more to its clean, elegant finish that haunts rather than lingers, Lynmar has captured all the beauty, charm, and drink ability of the finest Russian River ...

Oh baby, is this a Cabernet, or what? Opaque, purple, and loaded with flavor, the 1998 Turramurra Estate Cabernet is a gift from the Land Down Under. Produced on the Mornington Peninsula of Victoria, this Turramurra Cabernet offers up rich, complex scents of blackberry, current, cedar, and tobacco, the likes of which are hard to come by in Australia or elsewhere. In the mouth, this wine explodes, revealing layer after layer of blackberry fruit, m...

Semillon Sauvignon Blanc is barely a year old (wine is made in February and March south of the equator rather than in August, September and October), but already it is delicious and ohhh so easy to drink. A blend of 70% Semillon and 30% Sauvignon Blanc, it aptly combines the varietal characteristics of both grapes. Melon, fig, gooseberry, and pineapple all are evident in the wine's aroma. On the palate, this same mélange of scents is deftly woven...

A deeply colored and provocative wine, the 2001 Gérard Bertrand Les Matins D'Aurore (meaning morning sunrises) is nothing short of profound. Amazingly rich, smooth and enticing, this fabulous Minervois tantalizes the senses with the aroma of black fruits and garrigue, evoking the quintessential scents of the Provencal landscape and recalling the glory of traditional Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Highly extracted, but utterly mouth filling, there is nary a...