Tasting: Sirius 2001
Eyes: Red brick colour, going from maroon to orange-edged.
Nose: Aroma is inviting, I get orange, marmalade and animal. Juicy and savory stuff. I got lured in too early...
Mouth: On the palate the fruit is fairly closed, yet there's a sense of fine structure. I recorked it and put in aside. The next night I got rounder sensations, deeper and less austere: dusty fruit turns into cassis. Mint notes were elegantly rendered. Medium-full body. The acis was in the right place and proportioned. Nice grip on the finish with tannins that usher in a hint of vanilla for a lovely long finish. A nice wine.
Food: After uncorking this wine, decant it for about an hour while you prepare a green salad and grill a fresh lamb chop. Then put on a pot of water and boil quartered grelot potatoes. Add them, red onions, black olives and a balsamic-and-herb vinaigrette to your lamb salad, and violà!
A rewarding meal for a bargain-priced Bordeaux that needs only minimal nurturing.
Maison Sichel, Bordeaux, France. 12%.
3 comments:
did you say "animal"?
I didn't say "animal" -- I wrote animal and I smelled it. :P
"Barnyard" is the typical American expression for this aroma, but I find that the French go different directions with it: Animal as in barn-smelling, earthy and such; and animal as in musky, which is more what I recall getting out of this Bordeaux. While barnyard might not seem like a selling point, it often is, at least to me. And as for musk, what's not to like? But balance is key, as always.
Further reading for you:
1. resource on wino lingo
2. Bay-area flavour wheel for odd aromas
3. really expensive wine aroma kit -- go to the SAQ in Cours Mont-Royal to try these things out (they're kind of cool but way more expensive than the finest wine that's ever touched my lips which is a bit perverse, no?)
Right with you on 'animal' vs 'barnyard.' i don't know if this is what the aroma wheel, or aroma experts would say, but when i say (or read) animal i think of musk and fur, that feramonal smell i remember from the zoo as a child (i grew up in a zoo, actually). barnyard, to me, is more a manure/compost smell, called 'brett' by the less scatologically inclined, i believe.
sounds like a great salad, by the way. i was wondering what to do with the hangar steak i couldn't stop myself from buying yesterday...
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