Planet Stoppenhagen

Regina Spektor - a must see

Amazing show, check her out! http://www.reginaspektor.com/

Lemonheads show -

A nice Thanksgiving visit from Gramps Wolff
Check the gallery for some nice shots.

Halloween with a BAT

Ethan the bat and the other ghouls.

We tried for a day at the beach but this is what happened...

Return of the Wine of the Week

We'll see how often, but it's back for now. I figured I would do another Wine of the Week, even if it's not on a Wednesday. Although, as a matter of fact since I am writing this on a Tuesday night, the first readers will likely be on Wednesday, anyway. But, you know? I am tired of the restraints heaped on me by the man and ain't gonna be weighted down by the constrains of his time and his schedules!

Ok. Enough of my ranting. I feel better now.

I thought I would open up a wine that we have had for a little while that happens to get good scores and see how it has been holding up.

2000 Chateau La Roque Pic Saint Loup "Cupa Numismae" Coteaux du Languedoc

This is a wine that is from the southern area of France called Languedoc. An under-appreciated area of France that has historically been an equally under-achieving area of wine production. Most wines, even as recent as only 10 years ago were regarded as insipid and lifeless. Nothing more than cheap swill in a bottle. My how things have changed. Now, Languedoc wines are commanding higher scores, higher respect and to a somewhat lesser degree, higher price tags. I say somewhat because the wines are still really cheap when you compare the quality of the wines, the craftsmanship and the accompanying scores. This particular bottle of wine received a stellar score from Wine Spectator of 93 points and the price of the bottle was still under $20.00. The 2000's are hard to come by, but the subsequent vintages are still highly rated and just as inexpensive.

We searched high and low for this Chateau when we were in the South of France in July of 2004. Our efforts were rewarded with a private tasting of the Chateau La Roque wines by a non-English speaking host to non-French speaking guests. For 45 minutes we sipped and swirled, inhaled and imbibed the wines all the while trying to communicate the nuances and impressions through hand signals and over-emphatic dramatization. It was like charades with voices. All in all it was one of the best wine tastings I have ever attended.

Here are the tasting notes for the 2000 we opened last night...

"One of three bottles purchased in 2004 at the Chateau. Deep intense color. A deep mahogany core leading to a paler light plum-colored rim. Numerous slow-moving legs descend lightly around the inside of the glass. Initially, upon first opening the bottle, the nose was a profound and distinct scent of cured olives. After the wine was decanted for about an hour, the nose developed a more fruit-centered aroma of plums, some aged characteristics like brown sugar and figs. The wine is dry with subtle and graceful tannins. Full bodied, the wine is nicely balanced with moderate acidity and harmonious flavors of plum, chocolate and more of the same brown sugar notes. The finish is relatively short and the oak comes through a bit more on the back end."

So there you go. Another wine of the week. Maybe if the man gets off my back, we'll see more. Until then, Cheers!

PS - you could read about the aforementioned France trip by clicking on these two links:
#1 - http://www.planetstoppenhagen.com/archives/000018.html
#2 - http://www.planetstoppenhagen.com/archives/000020.html