Wines that have got 5,0 NJP of 5,0 NJP (09-09-2020)
Gérard Bertrand, Rivesaltes Ambré, 1985 (11 EUR/12 USD in Sweden; 375 ml) white sweet fortified wine, Rivesaltes, Languedoc-Roussillon, France, 5,0 NJP of 5,0 NJP (100 points of 100 points) (30-04-2020 by Nenad Jelisic)
This is without a doubt the best white sweet fortified wine that I have tasted from Languedoc-Roussillon so far. It is absolutely fabulous. Bravo Gérard Bertrand! Regardless of the age of 35, it shows no signs of age. The balance between its sweetness, acidity and fruitiness is absolutely fabulous. This fabulous balance does that Gérard Bertrand Rivesaltes Ambré 1985, after its 35 years, still has at least a 20 years long life (aging potential). The aroma is very sweet, concentrated and sweet spicy. Clear aroma of sweet spices, dried apricots, dried figs, dried grapes, burnt sugar, sweet tobacco and walnuts. The flavour is very sweet, full and bitterly acidic. Clear flavour of sweet spices, dark chocolate, tobacco, burnt sugar, walnuts, dried apricots, dried figs, dried grapes and jam made from oranges and bitter oranges. The aftertaste is very long, sweet and in the end bitterly fresh. Thanks to that the burnt sugar feels clear in both the aroma and the flavour of the wine and that the wine has a good acidity, it will fit incredibly well with crème brûlée. In addition, it will fit really well with grilled duck liver or with blue cheeses like Gorgonzola, Roquefort and Stilton or with tiramisu or with black forest gâteau. Or just enjoy it without any food as a dessert in itself. Gérard Bertrand Rivesaltes Ambré 1985 consists of 80% Grenache, 10% Maccabeu and 10% Muscat. The grapes have grown on granite and gneiss soils. The wine-making process is as follows: the grapes are harvested and selected by hand and after the harvest they are delivered to the winery where they are destemmed and then crushed. After the destemming and crushing process, the grape must, which consists of pulp, skins and seeds, is fermented in the stainless steel tanks until it has an alcohol strength of 6 to 8% when it is fortified to 19 to 21% with 77% grape spirit. The wine is then separated from the grape must and aged in large oak barrels for about 30 years and then in bottle for a few months before it is released on the market. I recommend that you start drink this fabulous white fortified wine at 8°C (unlike what most of web wine pages recommend) and allow it to slowly grow/open in the glass while you drink it. If you can drink Gérard Bertrand Rivesaltes Ambré 1985 from Riedel Vinum Port or Orrefors Difference Sweet or Orrefors Elixir.
Churchill's, Late Bottled Vintage, 2015 (18 EUR/19 USD in Sweden) port wine, Porto, Portugal, 5,0 NJP of 5,0 NJP (100 points of 100 points) (03-03-2020 by Nenad Jelisic)
It is incredible that four consecutive vintages of one and the same wine get more than 3,5 NJP of 5,0 NJP (2012: 4,0 NJP, 2013: 4,0 NJP, 2014: 5,0 NJP and 2015: 5,0 NJP). The probability that NJ Wines would give more than 3,5 NJP to four vintages of one and the same wine in price range under 190 SEK is as great as someone would win 100,000,000 SEK in a lottery. The probability is even less that such a wine would get 5,0 NJP of 5,0 NJP (100 points of 100 points) two vintages in a row. Everything that has been mentioned before confirms again that very talented employees work for the Churchill's wine house. And it cannot be just that. The vines and terroir from which the grapes to this wine come have to be exceptional. Else how Churchill's wine estate would succeed produce such great wines (port wines) during not so good vintages as vintage 2012, 2013 and 2014. This vintage has a perfect balance between the sweetness, the acidity and the fruitiness as well as a perfect tannic structure. As the vintage of 2014, this vintage has one of the best aging potential of all Late Bottled Vintages that I have tasted from Churchill, at least 15 years, if not even more because it has everything that is required from a wine with a long aging potential. Furthermore, the aging will only make it more complex and irresistible to drink. The aroma of the wine is characterized by cocoa-rich dark chocolate, sweet spices such as vanilla, cinnamon and cardamom as well as dried black cherries, dates, grapes, blue plums, sweet tobacco and white pepper. The wine's flavour is characterized by rum raisins, sweet spices, black pepper, cocoa-rich dark chocolate, sweet tobacco, dried black cherries, dates and blue plums. The wonderful taste of cocoa-rich dark chocolate, black pepper and sweet tobacco stays in the mouth forever. Churchill's Late Bottled Vintage 2015 is an absolutely fabulous wine. The wine is a blend of six different grape varieties: Tinta Barroca, Tinta Francisca, Tinta Roriz, Tinto Cão, Touriga Franca and Touriga Nacional. The wine's production process is as follows: the grapes are harvested and selected by hand, after the harvest, the grapes are delivered to the winery where they are destemmed and then placed in the low stone tanks (lagares) where they are treaded (crushed) by mechanized feet. After the destemming and crushing process, the grape must, which consists of pulp, skins and seeds, is fermented in the stone tanks until it has an alcohol strength of 6 to 8% when it is fortified to 19 to 21% with 77% grape spirit. Then the wine is separated from the grape must and aged in large oak barrels 4 years before it is released on the market. With Late Bottled Vintage, it is meant that the port wine comes from a single vintage and that has been aged in oak barrels between 4 and 6 years. Do not worry about the sediment of the wine in the second to last or the last glass. The sediment only shows that the producer has not filtered the wine at all. The wine will brilliantly fit with a lot of different cheeses like Castello Blue, Gorgonzola, Parmigiano Reggiano, Roquefort, Stilton, and Västerbotten. Or with less sweet cherry pie, blueberry pie and apple pie or with cocoa rich dark chocolate or with pancakes filled with Nutella, very fine grated dark chocolate and walnuts or with Swedish kladdkaka, but so little sweet as possible. Or just enjoy it without any food. I recommend that you start to drink this fabulous port wine at 8°C (unlike what most of wine websites and the producer itself recommend) and let it slowly grows/opens in the glass while you drink it. If you can drink Churchill's Late Bottled Vintage 2015 from Riedel Vinum Port or Orrefors Difference Sweet or Orrefors Elixir.
