A Mini Offline with Spain

A nice tasting of Spanish Wines on Sunday, January 16 in the Twin Cities. As always with our mini offlines no corked bottles as the power of previewing prior to attending! All of the Spanish wines scored at least a 92 or higher.

•2000 Château Daugay - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Drinking well right now and interesting. Tobacco, menthol, cherry, spice and soy sauce. Tannins have softened and medium finish with plenty of flavors to go around. A really nice that should provide pleasure for an additional five years. (91 pts.)

•2004 Viñedos de Páganos Rioja El Puntido - Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alavesa, Rioja
Better than a year ago. Mineral, raspberry, spice and cherry on the nose. The palate has plenty of flavor but not as intense as the other Spanish wines sampled today. Medium finish and I would grab another one of these to see it develop in five years. Again not a 96 WE gave but it is growing on me. (92 pts.)

•2004 Bodegas LAN Rioja Reserva Culmen - Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
Very nice wine and plenty of structure to go the long haul. Cedar, cherry, floral, oak and intense spices. The wine had a really interesting floral aroma at the beginning but 2 hours later it blew off. The wine was drinking better up front so I would recommend a light decant. (93 pts.)

•2004 Bodegas y Viñedos Maurodos Toro Viña San Román - Spain, Castilla y León, Toro
Second time tasting this wine and it is great. Raspberry, wood, spice and floral notes dominate the nose and palate. A few times we agreed it might be slightly corked but it was really the wood quality of the wine. This should age nicely for a decade or more. Very well made. (94 pts.)

•2001 Clos Mogador Priorat Manyetes - Spain, Catalunya, Priorat
The most old world of the bunch. Tobacco, floral, forest floor and cherry. The palate is intense and flavorful with additional wood quality coming into the picture. Medium finish and still tannic. Decanted 2 hours and this should further evolve with some time. (93 pts.)

•2006 Bodegas AAlto Ribera del Duero AAlto - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
Decanted 2 hours. Wonderful right off the bat but declined two hours later so my advice is one hour decant and drink. Floral, raspberries, spice and minerals. Big mouthful and long finish. I have been impressed with every vintage I have sampled of the AAlto base wines. For $35 well worth the price. (94 pts.)

•2005 Bodega Numanthia Termes Toro Termanthia - Spain, Castilla y León, Toro
Improved over time and needs to be cellared for a while. Spice, menthol, dirt, raspberry, oak and vanilla. On the palate it picked up some sweet fruits and has a medium to long finish. Do decant a while at least 3 hours as it got better over time. (92 pts.)

•2002 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Medium gold. Aromas of honey, peach floral and apricots. The palate is light overall with honey, peach cobbler, floral and minerals. Short to medium finish. I would not site on this vintage for more than five years as the acidity is declining since the last time I sampled this wine. (90 pts.)

A nice meal at McCormick & Schmick's

On 12/20 three of us dined at McCormick & Schmick's in Edina for lunch and had a very nice meal. We were able to get the corkage fee reduced to $15 and brought in a very nice Pinot Noir.

2006 MacPhail Pinot Noir Pratt Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (12/22/2010)A ripe style but balanced overall and no heat. Cherry, strawberry, blackberries, floral and mild oak on the nose and palate. Concentrated finish and went really well with grilled salmon. (92 points)

I started off with a bowl of the Clam Chowder ($5.50) and it was really well made and creamy. A nice alternative to a salad.

For my lunch entree I went with the Atlantic Salmon ($13.95) which came with fresh, steamed, vegetables. It was fresh fish and nicely grilled. The pairing with the Pinot was perfect.

Others order the Tartare ($9.95) which was wonderful and the fried shrimp ($13.95) was also good. Their French Fries were crisp and nicely salted.

Overall the meal was excellent and grand total for three people with tax, tip, corkage and wine was: $110 for three people

Service was average and stemware needs improvements.