2. 1990 Pindar Mythology Meritage. $22 (180 SEK) in N.Y.
Dark red, brownish rim. Unclean, oxidised smell with some fruit and smoky oak underneath. Quite full, fruit, and oak. Tasted better than it smelled, but difficult to rate.

3. 1995 Palmer Merlot. $20 (150 SEK) in N.Y.
Deep red, slightly brown-tinged rim. Meddium bouquet which developed. Spicy fruit, oak, flowery, prunes and black currant (15p)

4. 1993 Paumanoc Assemblage. $22 (180 SEK) in N.Y.
Deep red, dense rim. Big, developing bouquet, rich fruit, cedar and blueberries. Very full, rich, creamy, sweet fruit, full bodied (13,5%), soft tannins and a long aftertaste. Impressive (16p)

Comments: Not the first time Long Island wines impressed upon us. Look at tasting 287 on Nov 4, 1996! I first thought they were French. We rated the wines similar with Paumanoc coming out first. Lars Jonsson´s and my scores were almost identical, except for the Hargrave which I liked better than LJ (11p). They make good wines over there, but they are hardly any bargains. The Swedish currency is too weak.

1. 1996 Abadia Retuerta "Rivola". 60 SEK ( in Luxembourg)
Dark red. Powerful, tight, rich, fruity, spicy, meaty nose reminding of Syrah. Full, good acidity, some tannins, fruity and a reasonably long aftertaste, slightly bitter (15p)

2. 1993 Pesquera Tinto. 80 SEK( in Lux).
Dark red, orange tingeg rim. Rich, fruity, oaky, spicy bouquit. Full, quite tannic and good acidity. Fine, elegant, rather long taste. Well made wine (16p)

3. 1995 Abadia Retuerta. 80 SEK (in Lux)
Dark red. At first a bit restrained but later developed a rich, warm, fruity bouquet with almond paste. Full, fine acidity, some tannins, rich broadening taste, cedary. Well balanced (16p+)

4. 1992 Penfold´s Bin 707. Cabernet Sauvignon, 139 DKK (Kastrup airport 1996)
Dark, dark red, almost opaque. Powerful, rich, fruit-estery bouquet, prunes and varnish. Full, tannic, long chewy taste, prunes and black-currant. (17p)

5. 1989 Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva 160 SEK (in 1996)
Dark medium red, maturing signs in the rim. At first a bit peculiar nose, developed to some portlike fruit. Full, cherries, dried fruit, portwine, high acidity a bit tart (14p)

Comments: A bunch of pleasant wines presented by our lost son, emigrant to Luxembourg. We had some diverging opinions, but most liked the Aussie best and the Casillo Ygay least. Perhaps my marks are a bit high on the latter. I liked the Spanish wines from the Duero valley very much. There is a great potential for quality wines in this area. Robert Parker has recently praised the wines from Abadia Retuerto with marks in the 89-93 range. Nice price too!

1. 1981 Chambertin. Dom. A. Rousseau.
Medium red, orange rim. Fine, rich, spicy, perfumed, mature bouquet with some oak. Fullish, aromatic taste, still fruity with good acidity. Delicate, elegant wine in perfect balance, but no heavyweight champion. Kept well in the glass. (17p).

2. 1979 Clos des Langres. Côte de Nuits-Village. Reine Pedauque.
Dark medium red, brownish rim. A bit old, musty, woody smell. Tasted slighly better, medium full with some fruit, and some nice acidity. Too old, and fell completly apart at the end of the tasting (13p?).

3. 1995 Acacia Pinot Noir. Carneros. Dark red. Quite fruity bouquet, minty oak, quite distinct. Medium full, fruit and minty oak, good acidity and elegant. (15p)

4. 1989 Vosne Romanée. L. Jadot.
Dark medium red. Bouquet disappeared in glass, a refill from the bottle at the end revealed a pleasant, spicy bouquet. Medium full, good acidity and nice fruit. (14p)

5. 1993 Côte de Nuits-Village. Dom D. Rion.
Dark red. Young, immature, rich meaty, fruity raspberry nose, a bit like burned rubber. Fullish, young spicy, parfumed taste, long aftertaste. (16p)

Comments: KG Örndal invited us again to taste some interesting bottles from the cellar. (We tasted cabernets on Feb 17). All but wine no. 2 are still on the wine list. Old burgundies are quite difficult to have on tasting. They are so fragile and frequently looses the bouquet if decanted or if they stay to long in the glass. The Chambertin really showed its class, and retained the bouquet through the tasting. Rion's wine also performed well. Grand Hôtel has an interesting wine list, which is avaliable on the net: press here. There are some bargains like the 1978 Richebourg from DRC for 2450 SEK. Try to get it cheaper anywhere else! The people there are really nice too, so I can recommend a visit

331. Oct 16, 1998. Chardonnays. Håkan Olsson

1. 1996 Viña Casablanca. Santa Isabel. Chile (83 SEK)
Golden yellow. Quite powerful nose, oak, pears-tutti-frutti, like opening a bag of Basset's wine gums. Medium full, oaky, oily fruit. Less good when warmer (13p)

2. 1996 Planeta Chardonnay. Sicily (140 SEK)
Golden yellow. Big, powerful oaky, smoky nose with lots of fruit. Full, crisp, good fruit, and plenty of oak. There was enough fruit to match the oak, but I prefer less oak (15p)

3. 1992 Bründelmayer Chardonnay. Kamptal. Austria (139 SEK)
Palegolden. Big , flinty mineraly bouquet, lots of ripe fruit and a nice touch of oak. Full, supple fruit, good crisp acidity, nice length, lovely balance. One of the best nonfrench Chards I ever have tasted, and a nice price too (16p)

4. 1995 Torres Milmanda. Penedes. Spain (194 SEK)
Pale yellow. At first a bit weak bouquet, oak and some fruit. Medium full, some fruit, acidity and heavily oaked. Too expensive (14p).

Comments: Lars Jonsson and I scored the wines identical, except for Bründelmayer, which LJ only gave 14pts. The group had diverging opinions about which was the best wine: Planeta or Bründelmayer? Some liked the oak, some did not. It is a matter of personal taste.

1. 1986 Ch Mayne des Carmes. Sauternes. 69 SEK in july 1989
Golden colour. Fine, deep, honeyed, raisiny bouquet with a hint of ethyl acetate. Full, sweet, fine acidity. (16p)

2. 1986 Ch Rieussec. Sauternes. 173 SEK in Jan 1990
Deep golden. Deep, intense bouquet, slightly burned, citrus, honey, botytis. Very full, and sweet. Good acidity and long aftertaste. (17p)

3. 1988 Ch Lafaurie Peyraguey. Sauternes. 98 SEK en primeur in july 1989
Golden. Fine, a bit restrained bouquet with oak and good fruit: apricots and peaches. Lots of botrytis. Full, elegant, sweet taste with lovely acidity, in perfect balance.(18p).

4. 1994 Domaine Bellegarde Cuvée Thibault. Jurançon. 125 SEK
Paleish golden yellow. Quite bid, fruity bouquet: apples, grapes and mangoes, different. Fullish, medium sweet, high delicate acidity, grapes, apricots (15p)

5. 1995 Ch Haut Bergeron. Sauternes. 129 SEK
Deep golden. Fin, deep, very open, fruity nose with honey and apricots. Very sweet, soft, rounded, fruity, young taste. Maybe a bit low acidity, but delicious to drink now. Perhaps not for keeping for decades (16,5p)

6. 1995 Ch La Riviere. Sauternes. 78 SEK
Pale golden. Medium nose, fruity, peppery, some apples. Medium full, high acidity, sweet, some nettles "-catP", which means a high proportion of Sauvignon Blanc. Will it improve? (13p)

Comments: La Riviere was clearly the least liked by us, not really bad though. Haut Bergeron was liked by all, some ranked it first. Interesting to see how well the Mayne des Carmes performed. It is (was?) Rothschild (Lafite)-wine like Rieussec, sometimes considered a second wine but I can not find any reference to it on their homepage (www.lafite.com). The second wine of Rieussec is Clos Labére. Does anyone know? The difference in quality was minor and some of us liked it even better than Rieussec! The Jurançon-wine was interesting. It is perhaps not a dessertwine, but should be excellent with foie gras! It would have been interesting to include both d'Yquem and some foie gras in this tasting, but I just couldn't find any in my fridge. To bad!

1. 1995 Stonechurch Vineyards, Barrel fermented. 68 SEK
Medium golden. Quite developed nose, toasted oak and fruit. Full, good fruit but a bit feeble and not so good when getting warmer. (13p).

2. 1995 The Collector's Choice. Hillebrand Estates. 88 SEK.
Medium golden. Fine, grapy, fruity bouquet, lychees, some oak. Full, rich fruity, good acidity and a long aftertaste. Good. (15p).

3. 1995 Paul Bosc Estate Vineyard, Chateau des Charmes. 121 SEK
Medium yellow, greenish tinged. Quite a big bouquet, fruit, smoky oak, some petrol. Quite full, good acidity, fruit and slightly petroly. Long aftertaste. (15p).

4. 1995 Reserve. Cave Spring Cellars. 110 SEK. Medium golden. Medium bouquet, some fruit. Fullish, plenty of fruit and acidity but a bit anonymous (13p).

5. 1995 Barrel Fermented. Henry of Pelham Family Estate Winery. 127 SEK. Medium yellow. Fine fruity-flowery nose which developed nicely, some toasted oak. High acidity, medium full, good fruit and nice aftertaste. (14p).

6. 1995 Seeger Vineyard. Inniskillin Wines 99 SEK.
Pale yellow. Medium bouquet, toast and tropical fruit. Medium full, good acidity, plenty of fruit, some oak and well balanced. (15p).

Comments:All wines were purchased on the wineries in Canada. Generally they were very good with excellent balance. In style more Chablis-like than anything else. I found the the wine from Ch des Charmes a bit confusing, and one may wonder if not a few bunches of Riesling had slipped into the wine. I have to admit that we had great difficulties in putting them on the map, actually we could not. We agreed fairly well on the ratings. There is more than ice hockey in Canada!

1. 1994 Toso Cabernet Sauvignon. 70 SEK.
Dark red, brownish rim. Quite developed nose, fruit, oak, some volatile acidity. Medium full, goof fruit and acidity. Reasonably long aftertaste. (12p)

2. 1995 Trapiche Cabernet Sauvignon. 65 SEK.
Dark red, red rim. Quite a big fruity and oaky nose. Fullish. Juicy fruit, high acidity and a bit sweet jammy aftertaste (11p).

3. 1994 Trapiche Malbec. Oak casks. 77 SEK
Dark red. Fine bouquet, blackcurrants, oak and dill. Full, oaky, plenty of fruit, some tannins. (14p)

4. 1992 Señor de Robledal Malbec-Merlot. 69 SEK
Dark red. A bit weak nose, which developed slightly. Full, soft, a bit feeble, fruity taste but a nice finish (13p)

5. 1994 Weinert Cabernet Sauvignon. 89 SEK
Deep red, beautiful red rim. Good, rich bouquet, cassis and oak. Full, tannic, plenty of rich chewy fruit. Nice balance and a long finish. Very good, but not really complex. (15p)

Comments: A nice selection of wines. My first guess was Spain because of the soft fruitiness and oak displayed by these wines. We agreed fairly well on them, Weinert was preferred by most and Trapiche Cab least liked. Lars Jonsson and I gave them almost identical marks. Excellent price/quality ratio.

1. 1991 Conde de Valdemar Gran Reserva. Rioja. 137 SEK.
Medium red, brick-red rim. Quite big bouquet with lots of oak and some raspberry-fruit. Fullish, good acidity and fruit. Oaky aftertaste. A feminine wine as a sexist would say (14p+).

2. 1993 Conde de Valdemar Reserva. Rioja. 89 SEK.
Dark red, reddish rim. Rather powerful, blackcurrant-fruity bouquet. Closed at first, but later fullish, young fruit. High acidity, medium tannins. Improving in glass (13p).

3. 1990 Torremilanos Reserva. Ribera del Duero. 99 SEK.
Dark red, red rim. Nose a bit closed but later developed nicely. Fruit, some oak. Quite full, fine acidity, some well integrated tannins, balanced (14p).

4. 1995 Torremilanos Crianza. Ribera del Duero. 78 SEK.
Dark red, dense bluish rim. Medium nose, closed. Medium full, tannic, high acidity, improving in glass, but a bit unyielding. Slightly bitter aftertaste. OK with food. (12p).

Comments: Torremilanos made lovely crianzas in 1990 and 91, then things seem to have gone wrong. The '92 was not good, '94 and 95 are better but far from the nice wines they used to make.

1. 1994 Montée de Tonnére. Chablis Premiere Cru. J.P. Droin. 166 SEK.
Medium yellow. Fine, developed fruity nose. Medium full, high acidity, apples but seem to bee loosing fruit. Typical Chablis, but a bit disappointing, better with food though. (13p).

2. 1995 Les Chênes. St Véran. Dom. Auvige 99 SEK.
Light-medium yellow. Fine developed bouquet, smoky, minerals, champignons, some complexity. Fullish, rounded fruit, lost of extract, fine acidity, good length. A bargain! (15p)

3. 1994 Beringer Chardonnay, Napa Valley, 99 SEK (taxfree).
Medium-golden yellow. Powerful bouquet, lots of flowery fruits and honey. Quite full, tropical fruitsalad, some oak, good acidity. Typical New world with its rich fruit and oak, but well balanced and very good (15p).

4. 1995 Thelema Chardonnay. Stellenbosch RSA. 98 SEK (taxfree).
Light-medium yellow. Medium, fruit and minerals, some oak. Full, rich supple fruit, good length, well balanced. More of a old world wine in style, and Africa is of course by definition a part of the old world(14p+)

Comments: For the first time Lars Jonsson and I gave the wines identical marks. We seldom differ by more than one point however.

1. 1990 Riserva Ducale, Ruffino. Chianti Classico. 70 SEK.
Dark red, brick-coloured rim. Nice, developed bouquet, dried fruit, some oak. Medium full, quite tannic, fine acids, well balanced, but finishes a bit short (13p+)

2. 1990 Val di Suga Brunello di Montalcino. 174 SEK.
Dark red, dense red rim. Quite big, maturing, dried fruits, raisins, figs, licorice and oak. Full, tannic. Plenty of fruit and acids, well balanced, long aftertaste. (15p)

3. 1990 Coltassala Castello di Volpaia Vino di Tavola. 180 SEK.
Dark red, brick-red rim. At first a bit weak nose, develops some fruit, oak and perfume. Tannic, tart, bitter some fruit. Will this ever develop? (12p?)

4. 1990 Vino Nobile de Montepulciano. Carpineto. 115 SEK.
Dark red. Medium, quite fruity, raisins and oak. Medium full, fine fruit, very tannic, oak and a fine aftertaste (14p)

5. 1990 Flaccianello de la Pieve. Fontodi. VdT di Panzano. 199 SEK.
Dark red, bluish rim. Medium nose, fruity, vanilla, quite good. Full, fruity, poppy seeds(!), well balanced acids and tannins, oak. A bit bitter finish. (14p)

Comments: My nose wasn't quite OK this evening so my ratings may be a bit severe. These are wine that are made to drink well with food, rather than flatter at tastings. Still I wonder if the Coltassala will ever develop. I think we agreed fairly well on these wines.

1. 1995 Letra de Tango. Malbec. Argentina.1995 59 SEK
Dark red, bluish rim. Medium nose, young fruity. Fullish, fresh, some tannins, young, juicy fruit (11p)

2. 1996 Eagle Peak Merlot, Fetzer. 89 SEK.
Dark red, medium rim, red. Big bouquet with american oak and nice fruit. Full, round, soft. Oaky aftertaste, quite nice and attractive. (13p)

3. 1995 Portal da Águia. Almerim. Portugal. 64 SEK
Dark red, bluish rim, quite dense. Medium bouquet, developing nicely, good fruit: raspberries, blueberries. Medium full, fresh, good tannins. (12p)

4. 1996 Ch Canteloup, Bordeaux . 67 SEK
Dark red. Medium nose, young fruit, vanilla-butterscotch, cherries. Medium full, quite tannic, young fruity aftertaste, could develop further with some age (12p)

5. 1994 Foral Garrafeira, Doura. Cavas Aliança. 75 SEK
Dark red. Medium bouquet, a bit closed at first, fruit, cedar, develops nicely. Quite full, good fruit and well integrated oak, Nice acids and good length, well structured and could develop further. (13p) (See also tasting 310)

1. 1990 Vosne Romanée Premiere Cru"Beaux Monts". D. Rion. 238 SEK (Jan 94).
Medium-dark red. Quite big bouquet, fruit, coffee, blackberries, tobacco -a bit odd. Medium full, fresh, good fruit, blackberries, almost minty. Oak. A bit hard to judge (15p+?)

2. 1990 Hermitage "Monier de la Sizeranne" M. Chapoutier. 189 SEK (Oct 95)
Dark red, reddish rim. Powerful fruity bouquet, fruit, leather, stable-yard. Full, tannic, chewy fruit, long aftertaste, very well balanced. Great potential (17p)

3. 1990 Chateauneuf-du-Pape "Grande Cuvée". Caves St. Pierre. 148 SEK (May 98)
Medium red. Quite big, very fruity, spicy bouquet. Full, fine acids, some tannins, good fruit and a pleasant aftertaste (15p)

4. 1990 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. Pauillac. 195 SEK (July 91)
Dark red, dense rim. Big fruity bouquet, cassis, violets, stable yard, butterscotch. Full, tight, some tannins, balance and good length. (17p)

5. 1990 Ch Des Laurets. Montagne-St Emilion. 95 SEK (Mar 98)
Dark red, maturing rim. Medium bouquet, liquorice, blueberries. medium full. Soft taste, nice fruit maturing. Pleasant.(13p)

Comments: Parker is wrong on 1990 Pichon Lalande!! At first he gave it 87 (c 15/20) and recently he marked it down to 78! (c 11/20) It's a very good wine, believe us. OK, maybe one might expect Mme de Lencquesaing to make an even better wine in such a year, but it´s definitely a good wine. The Hermitage was great, and I think it may outperform Pichon in due course. The Vosne Romanée was odd. It's always dangerous to compare a burgundy together with a Bordeaux. But there was an odd tobacco-like smell to this otherwise well balanced wine. I've tasted this wine before and did not quite recognize it. Should I have decanted it earlier? There was some left in the bottle the morning after (believe it or not!), and the bouquet seemed much better. Finally, nice prices, wasn't it? Those were the days!

1. 1983 Lynch Bages. Pauillac. 215 SEK (in 1992)
Dark red, maturing. Big developing bouqet, warm, mature, raisins, some blackcurrants, very good. Medium full, softening, pleasant taste. Mature. (16p)

2. 1987 Caymus Special Selection.330 SEK (in 1992)
Very dark red. Big, oaky, fruity, minty bouquet with blackcurrants and blackberries. Full, fruity, chocolaty taste, long oaky aftertaste. (17p)

3. 1983 Ch Palmer. Margaux 360 SEK (in 1990)
Dark red, brownish rim. Medium, quite complex bouquet, some oak. Improving in glass. Medium full, blueberries, well balanced, with tannins, fruit, oak and acids in order (16p)

4. 1981 Ch Cheval Blanc. St Emilion. (500 SEK in 1992)
Dark red, Maturing orange rim. Medium, warm aromatic bouquet which does not improve in glass. Medium full, mature, wellbalanced taste, lacking something on the mid-palate. Past its best (14p)

(5. 1990 Ch Canon Chaigneau Lalande de Pomerol)
Served as an extra wine. Dark red. Fine, developing bouquet, pop-corn-with-butterish! Quite full, raisins. Nice (15p)

Comments:Nice wines, to say the least. Cheval Blanc (88 P-pts) a bit disappointing, and definitely past its best. Perhaps Parker was right from the start and the owners dog wrong - see Parker's Bordeaux. Parker also gave Palmer 97 pts which seems a bit high, but it was still a good wine. If only Lynch Bages had some more zest on the palate, the bouquet was wonderful!

1. 1975 Ch d'Issan. Margaux
Dark medium-red, brick coloured rim. Mature, pleasant, some aromatic fruit in the bouquet. Medium full, quite tannic, good acid, still some nice fruit. Mature (15p).

2. 1991 Cabernet Sauvignon. Philip Togni.
Deep, deep, red, red rim. Massive, tight, restrained, rubbery black-currants on the nose. Very full, chewy, very fruity, cherries, blackberries, blackcurrant, peaches. Massive. Some oak and a long aftertaste. Parkerwine(16p)

3. 1973 Ch Tronqouy Lalande. St Estephe.
Dark, brick-red. Medium bouquet, some blackberries and blackcurrants. Nice mature stable-yardy. Fullish, almost sweet, sof,t velvety taste. Elegant (15p).

4. 1992 Weinert Cabernet Sauvignon. Argentine
Dark red. Full, young fruit on the nose, blueberries, blackcurrant. Full, young, very fruity taste, a bit flabby though. (14p)

5. 1975 Ch Pontet Canet. Pauillac
Dark red. Brick coloured rim. Medium bouquet, quite complex: cedary, stable, leather. Full, balancing tannins, good fruit and nice length. Mature, harmonic, still vigorous(16p).

Comments: KG Örndahl at Grand Hotel, Lund found some interesting bottles in the cellars and invited us to a tasting. Nice that the '75s were drinking so well. They finally seem to have come around. Not great, but nice. Perhaps the greatest to us surprise was the Tronqouy Lalande. It was bottled in Sweden, and the house wine of the restaurant in the beginning of the 1980ies. Togni's wine is a blockbuster, 95 Parkerpoints. Impressive, but hardly elegant and refined. Will it ever develop? Should a wine really be like this? I havn't made up my mind yet

1997 Sauvignon Blanc. Constantia Buitenverwachting. Coastal Region 119 SEK
Medium yellow, slight reddish tinge. Quite big, fruity bouquet with goose-berries, nettles and elder-tree. Extremly typical. Fullish, crisp, nice fruit and well balanced (14p)

1997 Mulderbosch Sauvignon Blanc. Stellenbosch. 121 SEK
Light yellow. medium bouguet, smoke, fruit and mineral. Medium full, attractive mouth-watering crispness. Quite a long aftertaste. Some found the acids too intense. (15p)

1996 Macon-Village. G. Aligne. 92 SEK.
Golden colour. Toasted, tropical fruitsalad, perfume-incense. Fullish, rounded, quite fruity, some bitterness. A bit flabby. Medium aftertaste (13+p).

1996 Cathedral Cellars Chardonnay. KWV. Coastal Region 104 SEK
Medium yellow. Warm very fruity, oaky bouquet. Full, oaky, rounded, nice length and well balanced (15p)

1995 Meerlust Chardonnay. Stellenbosch 249 SEK Beautiful golden colour. Warm, oaky, smoky and tropical fruit salad. Massive oaky taste burying most of the fruit. Long aftertaste of oak. Easy to drink, but a bit overoaked (14p)

Comments: Another great South African line-up of wines with true varietal characters. The French reference wine was also good, and the price was nice too.

319. Jan 23, 1998. South Africa. Erling V. Jirle

1. 1991 Marlbrook Klein Constantia. Merlot/Cabernet Franc. 79 SEK
Mark red, maturing. Fine, maturing, fruity, aromatic bouquet with violets and cassis. Fullish, mature, well balanced tannins and acid. Nice aftertaste (15p).

2. 1992 Meerlust Rubicon. Stellenbosch. 119 SEK.
Dark red, maturing. Medium, developing bouquet, fruit, black currants, minty, toasted oak. Full, oaky, fruity, a bit flattering (15p).

3. 1993 Overgaauw Merlot. Stellenbosch. 84 SEK
Dark red. Fine maturing bouquet, warm raisiny, black currants. Full, tannic, fine acids, long velvety aftertaste. (16p).

4. 1995 Brenthurst Merlot- Cabernet Sauvignon. Paarl. 117 SEK.
Dark red, red rim. A bit closed at first, developed later. Fine, fruity bouquet. Fullish, rounded, nice length but finishes a bit dry. (14p)

5. 1995 L'Ami Simon. L'Avenir Farm. Stellenbosch. 84 SEK. Dark red. Farmyardy bouquet. Sour. A bit oxidised. Others rated it a bit higher, but not my glass of wine. Grape not mentioned on the label. Pinotage? (8p)

CommentsSurprisingly fine wines, which we all rated highly. The Marlbrook as well as the Overgauuw seem to be great bargains and I must retaste them.

1. 1991 Amarone. Allegrini. 178 SEK.
Very dark red, dense rim. A bit closed, developing yuong fruity bouquet, soft vanilla. Fullish, crisp fruity taste, some wood, raisins and long aftertaste. (14p)
2. 1990 Vigneti Casterna. F. Pasqua. 155 SEK
Dark red, maturing rim. Quite closed, a bit woody, developing some fruit. Full, soft fruit, some tannins and quite balanced. (14p)
3. 1990. Vaio Amaron. Masi. 225 SEK
Dark red, mature rim. Meduim bouquet, developing nicely, herbaceous, mineral, coffee,dried fruit. Full, toasted oak, dried fruit - figs and raisins, Good acid. Long aftertaste. 16p.
4. 1989 Amarone. Bolla 169 SEK
Dark red, brownish rim. Meduim bouquet, vanilla, some fruit. Medium full, crisp, clean straightforwad fruit, some tannins and a bit short (14p).

Comments: Interesting tasting of a kind of wine that we have only limited experience of. To me, they first seemed a bit closed on the nose , but the taste was good. They all began to open up at the end of the tasting. To be honest, I first rated these wine about 3pts lower. Periquita, our Portugese favourite, was served to the food. Good as it is (59 SEK and 12p+), it put the Amarones in another light. They are not cheap, but work very well with food, as Italian wines usually do.