1997 Penfolds Clare riesling. This was lovely, but maybe, just maybe, starting to go downhill a little bit. I think it could have used a bit more sugar or something.
2000 Charles Melton grenache. Even though the bottle was slightly flawed - too much C02 - it was still a delicious drink. Wow, spicy nose, totally lovely.
2004 Yalumba viognier. This was surprisingly pretty much the high point of the evening's drinking. You can get this for $9 at Cost Plus. This is soooo much better and more interesting than chardonnay it's not even funny. Screw-cap too, for emergency drinking anywhere, any time. Slight vanillin edges to a lovely, not overly floral wine with a hint of typical oily viognier texture. Incredible.
2001 Ridge Buchignani zinfandel. This was probably the 'best' wine we drank in that it was the most complex. From a small ranch somewhere in California, fermented with naturally occuring yeasts in American oak barrels. We had a blast comparing some of the smells to a glass of Knob Creek bourbon, and yup, you really can get a sense for what American oak does to wine if you do this comparison sometime. The zin was thankfully not in huge brambly blockbuster mode, but rather that special Ridge softer, complex, foresty mode. Beautiful stuff really.
And now... back to bed!
