TRADE SHOW UBER ALLES: ROUGHSHOD AMONGST THE WINOS AT THE RNDC TRADE SHOW IN LOUISVILLE, PART FOUR (A BIG BAD BLUES CRESCENDO)

I could spend infinite amounts of time on the RNDC tasting, because they have a pretty expansive book, but the remainder of the wines I managed to taste in the short amount of time I had (the tasting part of the show lasted 3 hours, more than enough time for the amateurs to end up shitfaced), my coverage amounted to skimming the surface of International waters, so to speak.

Correntoso Pinot Noir Reserve Patagonia 2009. Grade=Outstanding. Brand new for Banville & Jones, this Patagonian PN is a delicious, light-bodied homage to red Burgundy with its bright cherry-berry fruit aromas and flavors, hints of spices, red tea and cola nut.

Enrique Foster Ique Malbec Mendoza 2008. Grade=Outstanding. This has more in common with Cahors than Bordeaux, showing a lot of bright red currant notes and earthy tones; a very old world delivery of Malbec.

La Capra by Fairview Chardonnay South Africa 2009. Grade=Outstanding. Brand new from South Africa, this mostly-tank-fermented Chard possesses vibrant tropical fruit notes, a hint of meringue, a bit of orange zest and fresh apricots.

La Capra by Fairview Shiraz South Africa 2008. Grade=Outstanding. Clean, tart Rhone-styled red with clean red and blue fruit flavors and aromas, a hint of black truffles, white pepper, and fresh-baked rhubarb pie.

Warre’s Otima 10 Year Old Tawny Port NV. Grade=Amazing. Yes, I am a sucker for the stickies, and this delicious fortified shows off loads of golden raisin, toffee, caramel, and roasted, toasted hazelnuts and almonds. The finish lingers long and far.

Easley Blueberry Wine Indiana NV. Grade=Average. A decent fruit wine done not an hour or two away from our store, this is blueberry preserves, pure and simple. Finishes sweet of course, with not much in the way of acidity.

Las Rocas Garnacha VV 2007. Grade=Outstanding. A beautiful, Rhone-themed red with fresh, juicy red berry and blueberry notes, loads of baking spice, black pepper, fresh earth, truffles, and olive tapenade undertones. Finishes well-balanced and slightly dry.

I apparently missed any and all French wines there at the show, for no other reason than I had already reached my limited (39 wines in less than 2 and ½ hours and my tongue feels like 3-day old road kill) so I packed it in, said a few goodbyes, and hit the road back to Covington, listening to a blues CD I picked up downtown before the show.

Later this week, I’ll have a round-up of this week in barrel top exploits, some Austrian stuff from Winebow, a behind-the-scenes look at the wine store’s first ever Twitter Tasting/Tweet-Up with our friends at Airfield Estate, and whatever other tawdry wine hullabaloo into which I can get in.