Some of the French vignerons that make wine imported by Louis/Dressner were in Seattle yesterday for a tasting.
Here are some brief snapshot impressions of the wines. The setting was perfect, uncrowded, and relaxed. Each Vigneron had their own table consisting of a barrel with a table top, with multiple bottles open to taste.
I started with Domaine de la Pepiere, and had the chance to talk with Marc Ollivier. He is the real deal, and probably should be given the legion of honor for what he is doing for Muscadet.
Muscadet Sur Lie 2007 was open and expressive, with lovely balance between seashell, citrus, and lees. Drinking great at the moment, and pretty remarkable for the wet 2007 vintage.
Muscadet Sur Lie 2008 was reserved, a little tart, and showing a lot of yeasty leesy flavors. It hasn't been bottled officially yet. Should be a good one, this was a little hard to read.
Muscadet Clos des Briords 2007 was richer than the regular 07, with a completely different mineral aspect than the regular cuvee, less fruit at the moment, and a diesel aspect that I don't remember tasting in Briords before. This needs some more time to come together, but I liked it. Briords is from a single vineyard that has granite soil.
Gras Mouton 2008 is a single vineyard Muscadet from gneiss and clay soil. It is from one of the five vineyards that used to go into the Cuvee Eden, which Marc isn't making anymore. He thinks the vineyard for Gras Mouton was the best of the five, and for fans of melon grown on gneiss this should be a great bottle to taste. There was a little more fruit in the nose compared to the other wines, but also this was very young with some dissolved CO2.
The next table was also a real treat to meet and taste with Jean-Paul Brun. I was doubly lucky yesterday, as Shawn Mead was tasting the Domaine des Terres Dorees wines the same time I was there. Shawn was the sommelier at Campagne restaurant in Seattle a few years ago, before she joined Louis Dressner as their west coast rep. JP Brun is another whose work should qualify him for a medal.
Both the 2007 and 2008 Terres Dorees Beaujolais Chardonnay were poured. The '07 is lively, fresh, with a citrus edge to its apple fruit. The '08 was closed, more reserved, but seemed to be in balance.
Also there were bottles of the 2007 and 2008 Beaujolais l'Ancien to try.
The 2007 was expressive and drinking well, with a little mineral edge to its tart red fruit. More of a classic lean style than the 2 prior vintages, and should be a good early drinking wine. The '08 was a little closed and the tannic structure was prominent.
I loved the Terres Dorees 2007 Cote de Brouilly here. Darker fruits, with doughy yeasty mineral side and just enough chewy tannin to give it some backbone. I could drink a lot of this.
The FRV100 Rose was lightly petillent, demisec, and gossamer. It is a rose sparkler made from Gamay. Perfect for brunch or picnics. Made in the Methode Ancestrale without chapitalization. Like Bugey Cerdon, it makes me smile.
The fun continued at the next table with Alain Coudert of Clos de la Roilette. He explained to me that the Cuvee Tardive is a selection of grapes from older vines that average around 80 years of age, but from the same vineyard as the regular Fleurie.
The 2007 Fleurie was already well developed and had a nice floral aspect to the nose. The 2008 Fleurie was less developed, but was more open than the 2008 from Terres Dorees. There was more fruit and less floral side in this young just bottled wine.
The 2007 Fleurie Cuvee Tardive was a little tight, but showing a darker side to the fruit and more minerals. Good concentration and length. Alain said he likes to drink this one 4-5 years after bottling, but they can age much longer. I liked this one a lot, and plan on putting some bottles in the closet to age.
Matthieu Baudry was pouring 4 wines from Domaine Bernard Baudry at the next table. For me these wines were a highlight, and I think this Domaine really captures the essence of Chinon.
2007 Chinon Les Granges was open and lively, with fresh brambly fruit with some tobacco leaf, with light structure that makes it easy to drink now. Matthieu said you don't need a steak to drink this one, and I agree. Classic bistro Chinon.
There were 2 vintages of Chinon Clos Guillot, 2005 and 2007. This vineyard is on a slope, with younger vines planted on a mix of clay and limestone soil. The '07 was a little closed and tannic. The 2005 was darker in color, surprisingly open, nose of dark brambly fruit, concentrated, good acidity and very polished tannin structure. Long minerally finish. A taster next to me said this reminded her of Bordeaux. I loved this, but it might seem too polished and ripe for some.
The 2007 Chinon Les Grezeaux was another winner for me. The nose was intense, minerally, with good darker fruits. This cuvee always seems like it is always tasty and accessible when young and the '07 is no exception. Grezeaux is from Cab Franc vines that are 50-60 years of age, and the soil is mostly argyle clay.
From Chinon to Bourgueil, the next table had Pierre Breton pouring wines from Domaine Catherine et Pierre Breton.
The highlight for me was the 2006 Bourgueil Perrieres. It had good deep fruit, concentrated, and lots of pent up energy. It was big and structured which seems typical for Bourgueil, but the tannins had a lot of finesse also. Definitely a wine to buy and put away.
Another standout here was the 2006 Bourgueil Franc de Pied. It is from vines that do not have a grafted root base. They are young, only 12 years old. Because they are ungrafted, the vines are more susceptible to disease. It had a wild complex nose of earth, mineral, bark, and dark fruits. Also this had a very nice texture and feel in the mouth. A unique wine.
The 2007 Trinch! will please Trinch fans. It is a wine made from younger vines and meant to be an early drinker.
A nose of twigs and fruit, it is easy to drink now, but has enough tannin that it will last a few years.
The 2006 Bourgueil Galichets was dark and tannic, a little impenetrable, and not easy to get a read on.
It was a great pleasure to have the chance to meet and chat with Eric and Christine Nicolas, from Domaine de Belliviere. They were very friendly. It was also a chance to check in on some of their epic wines from 2005, which for the most part were showing very well. The make whites from Chenin blanc, and reds from Pineau d'Aunis. Their vineyards are scattered around the Loir river, which is north of the Loire river in the Jasnieres appellation.
The wines started with the 2007 Jasniers Rosiers. For fans of dry Chenin, I get the feeling 2007 might be a good year for you. This wine was dry, with quince fruit, dried flowers, and light minerals. I like it.
Next came a few whites and one red from 2005. The whites all seemed demi sec to full on moelleaux sweetness. The wines stand out to me for their incredible textures and great balance. Most of the sweeter wines avoid getting too heavy or cloying.
2005 Coteaux du Loir Esparses has 20 grams of residual sugar. It was little closed aromatically, with good length and balance in the mouth.
2005 Rosiers had a ripe quince paste nose with some botrytis. Smooth texture and long finish.
2005 Jasnieres Calligramme was the star of the show for me. 30 grams RS with incredible balance, minerals and length. Also some botrytis here. Grand Cru level here.
2005 Coteaux du Loir Effraie had a vegetal aspect to the nose and was my least favorite of the bunch. Also big RS here, 50 grams IIRC.
Next were two red from Pineau d'Aunis.
2007 Coteaux du Loir Rouge Gorge was sprightly, peppery, some pleasant green flavors, and medium sized. A big difference from the big 2005 version.
2005 Rouge Gorge Hommage a Louis Dere had a wild nose with meat, pepper, and minerals, and just a little fruit. Very appealing and unusual.
I asked Christine about Les Giroflees, one of my favorite rose wines they make from Pineau d'Aunis. She said in the last few vintages the quantity of red grapes were down, and they only had enough to make the red wines. She said they add CO2 to the wine at bottling, to cut down on sulfites, and preserve the fruit. Hopefully there will be a new vintage of the rose soon.
Next were two wines from Domaine du Closel/Chateau des Vaults. Evelyne de Jessey was pouring. She is friendly and very elegant in person and it was a great pleasure to talk with her. I asked her about the differences of Savennieres now compared to 10 years ago. She mentioned they are paying a lot more attention to the vineyards, getting riper fruit and using more sustainable practices, but the big difference she thinks is in the cellar. The reason Savennieres is more approachable at a younger age is they are using much less sulfites than before, which makes the wines more agreeable young.
2006 Savenniers la Jalousie had a reserved nose, but a pleasant taste.
It seemed a little closed.
2005 Savennieres Clos du Papillon was also aromatically little shy, but had good concentration and length. Plenty of material here.
At a long table Kevin McKenna had a big assortment of wines open to try.
The highlights here for me were the two Champagnes, Larmandier-Bernier Brut Blanc des Blanc 1er NV and Ulysse Colin Extra Brut des Blancs (2005). The Larmandier Bernier was a little more expressive today, but the Ulysse Collin was superb too. Fine balance of fruit and brioche flavor.
The 2006 Francois Chidaine Vouvray Clos Baudoin was really good also. Sec tendre to demi sec level, with exceptional balance and mouthfeel, and tons of minerals.
I'm not a huge Condrieu fan, but I could happily drink the Eric Texier 2007 Condrieu Janrode. Exuberant playful apricot skin nose, it gets serious in the mouth as it is dry and structured, with good acidity and also some minerals. A great Condrieu.
There were plenty more wines, but I had to leave at that point.
Sorry for the length of the post.
