Chateau Tahbilk Goulbourn Valley Marsanne, 1992

This is one of the most unique wines I've ever had. And after four straight nights of contemplating its virtues, I still cannot say for sure how much I like it.

My wife passed on the wine as soon as she saw the color and tasted what she sensed as "too sweet." Tahbilk's Marsanne comes in a clear bottle, and it has been an old gold color for at least a decade. That is the way it is made. It is a dry table, not a dessert, wine, and it is made to be aged for many years. The estate is selling this wine on its web site for about $30 a bottle.

I admit that it is hard to get past the mature color. I keep expecting bitter, oxidized smells and flavors but don't find them. Honey, flowers and mineral. This is actually the ultimate of a "mineralized" quality in wine--not quite fruit, not quite anything else but interesting. Ripe dried apricot flavors. Rich and ripe; clings to the palate. Very ripe, long finish but definitely not a dessert wine. I like it but wish it had a bit more acid to bring it to life.

Seaglass Santa Barbara Chardonnay, 2010

There is an unoaked Seaglass Santa Barbara Chardonnay on the market. This one is "lightly oaked," as they state on the label, and very attractive. Hints of lime that often come from French oak barrels are prominent in the smells and flavors along with a slight bit of lemon butter. Not at all the big, buttery style of Chardonnay but uses those elements to their best advantage. Goes very well with broiled salmon.

Henry Fessy Cru Beaujolais Brouilly, 2009

There is a tendency among some who profess an interest in wine to speak of  Beaujolais as if it's trivial and unworthy of serious consideration. That may be because of the hype that surrounds the release of the Beaujolais Nouveau every year. I must admit that I have very little interest in Beaujolais Nouveau, but I love the potential of the Gamay grape and have had many fine Cru Beaujolais wines. This 2009 Brouilly from Henry Fessy is one of them.

Medium garnet. Bouquet of red berries, ginger and flowers--subtle and intriguing. More of the same on the palate. Ripe red  berries, finely focused. Pinot-like in delicacy. Perfect stage of ripeness and maturity. Dances lightly on the tongue. I could drink a lot of this.

Les Baux de Provence Mas de Gourgonnier, 2009

I had this wine a couple of years ago at Chez Panisse in Berkeley, and it was a heavenly match for the Provencal entree that I ordered. I've been dreaming about that wine and that meal ever since.

At home, alas, the wine did not have the same charm, but it is still very good. Medium deep color, darker than a typical Southern Rhone. Assertive gamey, earthy scents to go along with the Southern Rhone profile. Dark berries and spice but also a touch of dark chocolate in the middle, similar to a Cabernet/Shiraz blend. Maybe that's because there is 23% Cabernet along with Syrah (18%), Grenache (23%) and Carignan (24%) in this Mas de Gourgonnier.

Re-corked and sitting on the shelf, this wine gets even better over the next several days. Side by side with the Delas Cotes du Rhone, it seems like a much more mature wine, even though they are both from the 2000 vintage. I paid $13.99 for this at Binny's in Chicago on the trip home from Chez Panisse.

Delas Saint Esprit Cotes du Rhone, 2009

This wine is made from 70% Syrah, 20% Grenache and 10% Mourvedre and Carignan from vineyards in Cairanne. It's a great combination that has given me a good deal of pleasure since the 2007 vintage.

Clean, focused smells of dark fruits and herbs. Nicely understated but strong undercurrents of Syrah/Grenache. Could be mistaken for a Saint Joseph or Crozes-Hermitage from the northern Rhone...except for the price tag. Delas Saint Esprit and the Delas Ventoux (also a beautiful wine) are always available for about $10 at World Market.

Gilbert Picq Chablis, 2000

Gilbert Picq Chablis was well priced during the late 1990s, and I bought several cases of the village Chablis, the Vieux Vignes and the Premier Cru Vaucoupin and Vosgros. The wines were wonderful in their youth and seemed to have what it takes to age at least 10 to 15 years. Unfortunately, a good number of these wines, even the Premier Crus, started to show signs of oxidation at about 9 to 10 years of age, eventually becoming virtually undrinkable. I chalked it up to the "premox" phenomenon that spoiled a large number of highly regarded white Burgundy wines.

Whether the premature oxidation was caused by corks, poor storage or whatever, it did not extend into the 21st century. This 2000 Chablis is precisely what I expected the 1996 to become--a beautiful unoaked version of Chardonnay that typifies the Chablis appellation. Flinty is the usual term applied to Chablis; drink this wine, and you'll know why. Distinctive mineral, wet stone bouquet and flavors--I love it. Lemon, green apple--plenty of acid--but also the sweetness of hard candy. You can find new facets in this wine with every sip.

Gilbert Picq wines can no longer be obtained for $10 to $12 a bottle as they were in the late 1990s, but they are well worth the $20+ now being charged. This is wonderful old-style Chablis. Whatever happened to the wines from 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999 is a crying shame. I suspect now that it was poor storage and transportation.

2 Lads Old Mission Peninsula (Michigan) Pinot Grigio, 2012

If were doing the labeling for 2 Lads, I would have called this wine Pinot Gris. Pinot Grigio and Pinot Gris are the same group, of course, but the latter name is more associated with rich, broad-flavored wines from Alsace as opposed to the higher acid, herbal tinged Pinot Grigios of northeastern Italy.

The wine is young, and the color is still light, the smells and flavors, fresh and vibrant. Aromas of canteloupe, lychee and spring flowers; these remind me more of Gewurztraminer. But there is also a broad spicy, smokey quality that I often smell in a good Alsace Pinot Gris. Medium bodied. Persistent flavors and a racy finish.