Scheurebe and baby Bandol

Notes on a couple wines I've had lately. Both unusual but very nice.

First, the 2005 Weingut Ch. W. Bernard Scheurebe HackenHeim Kirchberg Spatlese, AP 06 06. Translation: Bernard is the producer, Scheurebe is the grape, Hachenheim is the town in the Rheinhessen region of Germany where you find this particular Kirchberg vineyard, and the grapes were harvested at spatlese ripeness level (at least). Serious geeks pay attention to the AP number, which tells you the number and year of this specific bottling.

Ok, now the wine. Scheurebe is known for its opulence and low acidity, and this example shows that fully. Round, honeyed and moderately sweet, this wine has nice grapefruit pith and sweet lemon cake flavors. It's simply delicious, and pairs nicely with spicy food. The pleasant bitterness seems to work with the low acidity to balance the sweetnees. Just 10% alcohol.

Then a red wine from the Kermit Lynch imported Bandol producer Terrebrune. This is the 2007 Terre d'Ombre Vin de Pays du Mont Caume, labeled Delille vigneron without reference to the Terrebrun label. What fantastic red wine, and a terrific bargain at $12.99 locally at Liner & Elsen. I found it interesting to see this wine retailing elsewhere in the country for $15, even $20.

For those who wonder if "brett" can be a good thing, yes, this wine shows it. Brett is of course a wild, perhaps "spoilage," yeast that gives a wine a bandaid or barnyard quality. It's the latter in this case, the pleasing scent of horse blanket marrying nicely with the sweet lavender, herb, and raspberry aromas. The flavors follow, with ripe tannin and a slight bitterness that again pleases. I wouldn't age this wine, because the brett might take over. The wine is already so lush without being sweet, there's no reason to cellar it. But with a nice cut of beef, it's delicious, the fruit coming forward and the tannin clearing the palate for the next bite. This is my kind of bargain red wine. Thanks for the reccomendation Neil.