We played what will probably prove to be the last game of bocce this weekend and then say down to a sort of Mediterranean melange of French and Italian antipasti – tapenade with garlic and the, a couple of different sausages, all sorts of olives, lovely rare beef slices with green olive sauce, and we reprised for the most part the Rhone wines we seem to have been focussing on for the last couple of weeks.
Whites with bocce:
2008 Dog Point Sauvignon Blanc – after a philosophical discussion about just how hairy gooseberries might be, we reached an accord that this did have an element of that in the nose, and that the cats had been absent the day it was bottled. We also concluded that while this sort of SB is certainly clean and crisp, it is never profound in the way that some Loires can be, so we should move along to something else.
2007 Quenard Chignin ‘Anne de la Biguerne’ (Savoie) – we se very few wines from the Savoy and I had to look this one up. Made from Jacquère, it had a wonderful nose of floral and lightly fruity nature along with a stony minerality. Very interesting.
Reds with grub – these were not blind either, except for the Marcoux:
1997 Domaine de Remizieres Crozes Hermitage Cuvee Christophe – fruit and some blood in this nose, followed by a balanced supple wine with lots of dark fruit and acidity. Drink now.
1998 Domaine de Remizieres Crozes Hermitage Cuvee Christophe – better fruit in the nose and some black pepper, darker colour, long sweet finish. Some liked this and some preferred the relative elegance and flavour definition of the 97.
2001 Jaboulet Les Jalets Crozes Hermitages – the Jalets is the easy drinking bistro weight wine while the Thalabert is the one for the long haul. This wine seemed odd in that the nose was markedly butterscotch and plums, the colour light, and the sweetness on palate was excessive though the finish was quite dry. Didn't like this one.
2003 Font de Michelle CNduP – interesting nose with nutmeg and cherries, good weight in mouth, slightly chalky feel, very nice.
1998 Dom. de Marcoux CNduP – slightly hot nose that reminded us of varnish and pine until it finally abated and sowed the underlying raspberry. Sweet entry, dry finish but with a slight reprise of the earlier sweetness right at the end.
1998 Dom. de la Roquette CNduP – a nice classic win with dark fruit and spice, full bodied and smooth with nice length.
1994 Vieux Telegraphe CNduP – I decided to pull something with some age and was glad I did. Absolutely classic Chateauneuf in every respect. Slightly gamey or bretty nose, with garrigue and herbal notes, still evident soft tannins, big smooth and ready to drink now, a perfect exemplar of this sort of wine in a way the Beaucastels we recently tasted can never be.
1989 Ch. Bastor Lamontagne – this Sauternes is a minor wine of no great distinction, kept for too long in my cellar, but on this day very presentable. Dark amber colour, caramel in the nose, sweet and smooth and fairly well balanced, it went down very well on this occasion.