The 2004 Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Toro Pintia has been uncorked.

[JimHow]

A black beauty, uncorked as part of an upcoming Spanish wine experiment in the weeks and months ahead.

15% alcohol....

[JimHow]

I drank one of those hot high-end Australian wines last year that was completely stewed, i can't remember the name of it, I think it had something to do with brothers. This wine seems to be what that Australian wine could've been. In other words, more in balance despite the heat. It is still very early, though, the wine has been decanted and awaits some t-bone steak and pie de la whoopie....

[dstgolf]

Looking forward to the blow by blow review. I've also dabbled with some Spanish wines over the last few years. I've picked up the Pintia in the Fall knowing nothing about it thinking it had to sit a while. Let me know what kind of window we're looking at.

Danny

[JimHow]

All this talk about Whuzzup__.... There was a man.... Has anyone heard from him lately? I loved him like a brother, it was a Lennon and McCartney relationship, I haven't seen him in years, the last time I recall seeing him was in October 2004 at Yankee Stadium the night that Curt Schilling beat the Yanks in Game 6 in the famous "bloody sock" game. Surely I must've seen him since then, but nothing is immediately coming to mind. We watched the Fourth of July fireworks over the East River from the roof of his brother's Madison Avenue apartment, eating pizza and drinking 1998 Chateau Montelena, I can't remember if that was 2004 or 2005....

I hope we see him at Chicago '10!

This wine is opening up into something quite nice, Danny, without a doubt it will age for a considerable period, so I wouldn't worry about uncorking one any time soon. Very nice finish.

[JimHow]

Crazy, just as i was writing about whuzzup they were talking about Senator Ben Nelson on the Keith Olberman show.

By the way, can somebody tell me why Tiger was asking his mistress to take her name off of her own cellphone? I think I'm missing something here.

I don't know what to make of the Tiger situation.

On the one hand, he's just a golfer.

On the other hand, i'm thinking about that one commercial where they show all these athletes, like jordan, and the girl volleyball players, and Jeter, etc., in moments of victory, and then they show Tiger pumping his fist after nailing a clutch putt.

He'll never again be the emotionless robotic cyborg that we've all idolized.

Or will he?

Will this all be forgotten five minutes after he romps to victory in his next Masters?

Time will tell, I guess....

Myself, I think, fair or unfair, the brand has been damaged.

It'll be interesting to see how this all unfolds....

Concerning the wine....

Boy, these spanish wines have beautiful color, don't they? Very stunning inky black Mouton purple, here, the type where the tiny bubbles that accumulate at the top of the pour are themselves inky black purple.

[JimHow]

I'll be at PJs tomorrow in Manhattan buying a mixed case or two or RMP90+ Spanish wines that I plan on drinking in the next couple months as part of an assessment as to whether Spain is the real deal.

[JimHow]

i don't care what anyone says about him. I still like obama.

I wish he'd get out of afghanistan. And I wish he'd stop spending my money like it's Monopoly,
And I wish he'd show a little more maturity and stop blaming Bush for everything. You're the dude now, man, W is ancient history.

But otherwise, I like his soberness, his good nature, I do think he represents the country well, and I think the world is a little better because of him....

But, we'e still doomed....

[JimHow]

But Rachel Maddow is kind of a lightweight, don't you think?

Not a lot of depth there....

This spanish wine is holding up very nicely. Not breaking up at all. Not overheating with the 15% alcohol. lots of rich black fruit and jam. A very, very impressive finish.

the finely seasoned TBone is about ready, I think this will be a nice match with the wine.

[JimHow]

Mmmm, i really like this wine, i wish I could get more. 2004 seems to be an excellent vintage in Spain, no? I liked one of those Terrasses wines from '04, less so from '05.

This wine is quite stunning, actually....

[JimHow]

This is a steak and wine kind of wine. A Spanish Mouton....

[JimHow]

So who do you think is the greatest basketball player of all time?

I say: Bill Russell...

If you disagree, be prepared. I am ready to debate you.

[JimHow]

As best I can tell, if the word "Tempranillo" is mentioned, it is likely going to be a good wine from Spain....

[JimHow]

This wine is very impressive. As good as any five year old Bordeaux I've had lately. Makes me want to watch Vicky Christina Barcelona again.... It is a Scarlett Johansson kind of wine, you know, the rest of the world is starving to death but I'm sitting in some fine European restaurant with sweet Scarlett where money is no object, in some dreamy Woody Allen or Sofia Coppola film, where she's walking around in some hotel room in Tokyo or Barcelona in her pink panties showing off her perfect buttocks to millions in theaters around the world, with the impeccable Riedel stemware, and life is in balance because this 2004 Spanish red is matching up well with dessert and she's saying "yeah" or "Uh-hum" to Bill Murray or the Wood Man or some off-screen surrogate thereof, what is Scarlett Johansson like, anyway, do you think she likes red wine, or do you nthink she's like that girl in "Sideways," you know, the waitress who said wine was "so fucking good" when they go back to the other girl's house, but in the real world she knows nothing about wine, she did one of those back-of-the-magazine interviews once with Wine Spectator and it was clear she knows nothing about wine. But i digress.... This 2004 Pintia (is that the proper shorthand for his wine?) is a beauty, rich, black, tar and jam. Tremendous bouquet, A+ finish. Drink it with lamb, steak, or some exotic fatty duck dish with the mango salsa.... Quite impressive, actually, despite the 15% alcohol, which seems completely unobtrusive. We're all going to burn in hell, but this Spanish red has a nice finish, goddamn it. 94 points.

[JCNorthway]

Oh, the musings of a BD on a Friday evening!

I do not buy many Spanish wines, but I can appreciate your description of this wine. They tend to be pretty good for the price point.

Regarding your Obama comment, I believe he has done a pretty credible job given the circumstances he inherited. I agree that I'd like to see him find a way to get out of Afghanistan, but I fear there are not many viable options for doing so. Did you happen to see David Brooks" OpEd piece today about his governing style vs. campaign style? I found it to be insightful.

Jon

[JimHow]

I did indeed read it, Jon, Brooks is very thoughtful, unusual for a Republican. Like he said, "the clay is mostly dry" for anyone coming into the White House.

[Jay Winton]

I support our president but I can't get this out of my mind: Afghanistan "the graveyard of empires". But what do I know?

[JonB]

We watched Beneath the Planet of the Apes with James Franciscus and Charlton Heston, while sipping on an '06 Ken Wright Savoya Vineyard. Dark, earthy, minerally, dense and manipulated, the movie was a throwback in time. My kids were baffled.

I bought a couple of the '05 Pintia's on sale at PC, so enjoyed reading the notes on the '04.

[Rick]

Jim
quite an evening of musings

I was just offered a mag of this for $135 last week but had never come across it before so i was interested in your comments

How does it compare to the Numanthia?

rick

[JimHow]

I liked this wine a lot, it reminded me of the Numanthia. Very rich, concentrated and Parkerized, high alcohol but well-balanced nonetheless.

[Michael Malinoski]

I dig a lot of the Toro producers, most notably Maurodos San Roman ('01 is fantastic, in particular) and Dos Victorias Gran Elias Moro (again, '01 is highly recommended). I prefer both to the Pintias I've had and certainly to the Numanthias I've had (though '98 Numanthia is awfully good!).

Michael

[Rick]

Michael
Have you had the 04 Numanthia? It is the best I have come across - not had the 98.

Not farmiliar with "Maurodos San Roman ('01 is fantastic, in particular) and Dos Victorias Gran Elias Moro (again, '01 is highly recommended)" I will look for these if they are better than Numanthia I "need" to taste them.

Thanks
Rick

[JimHow]

I saw a 2005 Termanthia in NH the other day, Rick, but it cost like $230 and the bottle weighed about as much as a small child.

CabFan used to be a big Spanish wine drinker even before all the attention they've been garnering in the past decade or so, I wonder what he's been drinking lately.

[Rick]

Jeff ( who you meet at PLL dinner- I think) openned one at a Spanish dinner we did at TCG ........we also had a 04 Numanthia and the Termanthia was definitely the big brother that night
Mark and I like it so much we bought his last two "2 packs" for $175 per/btl
I think it was the 04 Termanthia that was a 100- pointer


I really seem to like the old vine Toro de Tinto grapes from the Toro region
rick

[JonoB]

I liked this wine a lot, it reminded me of the Numanthia. Very rich, concentrated and Parkerized, high alcohol but well-balanced nonetheless.

Jim- have you tried 03 or 04 Alion from Vega Sicilia... really is a big step up and usually not that much more expensive.
The 05 and 06 Pintia's I find have too much oak (and oak tannin as oppose to grape tannin) to be long term keepers like the 03 and 04s, which are superb. I think they'll dry out as there doesn't seem to be enough fruit or acid to carry the oak.

00 and 01 Numanthia if you can get hold of them are singing right now!

[JimHow]

I'm going to order a couple '04 Alion Vega Sicilia and give one a try, Jono. My experience with Spanish wines is very limited.

[JonoB]

Jim, you won't regret it.

Alion is a really wonderful wine, more rustic than the Valbuena/Unico/Reserva Especial (even from bad vintages these are better), but the Alion has a svelte character that is more appealing than the often bruising although tasty Pintia.