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Wow, what an incredible lineup @AnaGramWords 
Tasting notes please!!
Friends over for supper - last-minute steak & chips - last night and we worked ourselves through this lot:
The white Rioja was really tasty. Very much regret only buying a single bottle. Lovely fruit, no discernible oak.
The Bordeaux was amazing at more than 50 years old for a simple Cotes de Blaye. Decanted for sediment just before drinking. Delicate but pure red fruit and silky smooth. Delicious.
The pure red fruit continued with the Barolo, albeit with far more prominent tannins - we popped and poured. Great with thick-cut sirloin and juicy ribeyes. On the list for consideration for the 2019s and might prompt the withdrawal of the mixed case of 2015s in my reserves.
The Madeira was enjoyed in lieu of pudding. Not really necessary but very, very tasty. A little sweeter than I anticipated but no worse for that.
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What a lovely evening! Where was the rioja from? (I love that Madeira, I’ve never had an H&H I wasn’t wowed by).
I’ve also just withdrawn the 2015 Barolo mixed case to investigate.
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White Riojas seem on the rise, with more variety of styles and producers. One to do more testing on.
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How did you come by possessing it ? Must have been a huge leap of faith to believe it might even be drinkable
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Tldr - it was plundered from an elderly widow’s cellar
Full story, our friends brought it with them. Originated from family friend who had hosted their wedding and were in possession of a mighty cellar. The husband died a few years ago and most of the cellar was sold off as the wife wasn’t half as excited about the contents as her husband had been.
When our friends last visited, she mentioned that there were still a few bits and pieces that the merchant who had purchased the wine wasn’t interested in and they were welcome to help themselves to a mixed case. Our friends offered to pay but she wouldn’t hear of it, as there was a very good chance much of it was knackered anyway. However the empty box of wine she give them to fill was from a particular producer and she remarked that it was her favourite wine…
Choosing wisely, my friend picked out a very mature selection of mostly German Rieslings and Bordeaux, with a couple of experimental Beaujolais (yes!!). I think the hit rate has been very good so far, maybe one duff bottle.
One box of the widow’s favourite wine was sent after six bottles of delicious wines were consumed.
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…you’ve piqued my interest…what was it?
This fantastic white blend yesterday evening, which accompanied pheasant in cider and cream sauce:
Principauté d’ Orange Blanc, Domaine de Saint Cosme 2020
What a gorgeous, delicious and highly enjoyable wine this was! 
I think my first white from Saint Cosme, and one of only a handful of wines I’ve had from this particular IGP (Vaucluse) - it ticked all our ‘white Rhône blend’ boxes, and some!
The nose was quite delicate, conveying pears, citrus blossom, camomile and a touch of ginger spice/warmth. Although it wasn’t particularly aromatic, I sniffed it for ages - it had such a pleasant and fruity/floral gentleness to it.
Loved the texture on the palate - a little chewy, a little creamy and honeyed - with a sort of ‘pears poached with ginger’ sort of flavour, and a fresh tangerine/orange zestiness, married to a slightly herbal camomile note. The last couple of glasses were simply wonderful - almost mercurial/slippery in texture, and with a note that was reminiscent of cashew butter. There was something so complete and harmonious about this wine, that despite its fairly modest price we felt there wasn’t much more we could ask from a white wine in terms of pleasure.
Extra bonus is that it is exclusive to the Society; a couple more bottles are going promptly into my February order
Happy weekend despite the horrible weather 
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I’m not sure. Don’t think it was anything particularly grand but I can ask my friends if you want to know.
It was from TWS, think it was pretty cheap as it was part of a cellar-defending white mixed case. Now out of stock 
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Ah never mind. I was wondering if the denouement of the story was going to be that a case of Haut Brion or something arrived at your friend’s house.
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Big fan of Cosme - but hadn’t spotted this, and never had any of their whites either.
This has gone straight on the wish list and may even provoke a small order!
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How was it? I took a bottle to my dad’s recently but we didn’t get round to it. I’m hoping it’ll still be there when I go back as I’d like to try it…
Last night we had this with a sort of Provencal fish tray bake with salmon, sea bass, prawns, Leek, tomatoes, peppers and fennel:
Maximin Grunhaus Herrenberg Riesling Kabinett 2020. Delicious. At the drier end of Kabinett I’d say. Alongside apple, lime and lychee I caught a hint of caramel and a sort of green tea-like flavour. So good I had to treat myself to a leftover glass with lunch. At 7.5% it’s practically alcohol free 
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Nice acidity and I could taste a backbone of some typically nice Loire fruit (for which you will pay a lot more), but overall not a very complex wine. I drank 1 1/2 glasses before putting it away nevertheless.
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@Inbar . Shhhh. Please delete your post immediately. The wine is awful and no one else should think about buying any.
I thought your tasting note was excellent by the way. I wasnt sure about buying this wine based on the official TWS note about lime and salt, but yours was much more in line with what I enjoyed when I decided to risk it anyway on the basis of the producer and that I’ve had a couple of other interesting bourboulencs so was curious to see what the blend was like.
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Cracking tasting note! I have to try that so I’ve added a bottle to my next exploration case (due next week).
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I bbought this after one of the first TWS tastings I went to in about 2005. It was a tasting of what were then all 9 ( I think) ‘Crus Bourgeois Exceptionnels.’ This was my favourite that night.
It’s lasted extremely well, now at that lovely stage where it’s balanced between fruit and savoury notes, with a long, dry finish.
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Had high hopes for this and boy did it deliver. This has sat in my wine fridge for 3 years, and now I ask "why on earth did I ignore it for so long".
Sylvaner, Domaine Albert Boxler 2017
Nothing overwhelming, but everything as it should be, all working together perfectly. Ripe fruit, sweet flowers, vital acidity and a finish that will last until next weekend, just delicious. I have to say this was a lot fuller than I was expecting i.e. med-bodied with a creamy chewy texture but this just added to overall experience.
Now the biggest problem, TWS has two other Boxler’s on offer but both are £40 plus 
Must resist the urge. 
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Excellent, thank you for the post, I have a 2014 and was wondering when to drink it, seems like there is no rush.
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@gabehiggins - those Boxlers (there seem to be three, not two) are all GC Sommerberg, though - a whole different level. Their 2011 Riesling Sommerberg was my wine of 2020. Everything from that domaine is delicious…
This evening, I cooked a bit of Ottolenghi, with some slight adaptations. Za’atar and sumac chicken, green beans and sugar snaps with orange and pumpkin seeds, and giant couscous. We drank a bottle of Mittnacht Frères Gewurztraminer GC Rosacker, 2011.
There’s a fair amount of botrytis going on, as evidenced by a golden colour that doesn’t show fully in the photo. Ripe lychees and pineapple fruit, but at heart this is a wine that puts the gewurz in gewurztraminer, with lots of peppery spice on the finish. All held in check by the acidity - there’s sweetness too, but that just made for a harmonious whole with the spices in the food.
Hope everyone’s having a good Saturday. Quite wild and windy here in Cambridge.
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