WineLovers Discussion Group

You mean the wine geek gods will not strike me down if I open a bottle of the fdp?

Go for it.

Or, pull one of your 2010 Breton FDPs - I like that even more than the 2011 Baudry, and that's just a glorious wine to drink now. (Already gone through 4 bottles... no regrets )

2008 Souverain, Sonoma County, Merlot ($8.99 U.S. at NH Liq Store Sale): Alcohol level: 14.8%. Don’t know why it sold at this price because it was a very nice wine.

The wine gave you black raspberry on the nose and upfront. Across the palate you get more fruit, hints of vanilla, herbs, and pepper. The finish lingered. The alky level was not noticed at all because of the near perfect balance.

We matched it with grilled loin ends Teriyaki, rice pilaf, and green beans. It was a splendid Saturday evening dinner.

The third Brussels Salon (roughly = Show) of la Revue du Vin de France (RVF) was even more Bordeaux weighted than the first two. As well as taking up space which I would prefer to see filled by promising and achieving producers from less well known regions, I find young Bordeaux from all but lightest vintages like 2007 very difficult to taste because of burgeoning oak and tannins, both of which bring the additional disadvantage of paralysing my palate in record time. Fortunately two leading Loire producers of Cabernet franc based wines were exhibiting and I will concentrate on these here. Other ranges which I enjoyed were Jacky Blot’s superbly focussed Chenin based Montlouis and Vouvray (Dom. de la Taille aux Loups), Dirler Cadé’s excellent Alsatians and the Bandol from La Bastide Blanche, whilst Chanson’s Burgundies were good but I didn’t care for their rather condescending presenter.

The two CabFranc estates were Jacky Blot’s Domaine de la Butte and Domaine Charles Joguet. The contrast in styles was quite marked and was accentuated by the fact that the wines of the former were younger. Blot goes in for exuberant fruit and delightfully tangy acidity, whilst the Joguet wines seem more serious and subdued with a focus on a longer haul. My earlier post shows that Joguet’s top Chinon cuvées are capable of very graceful ageing with an ethereal elegance out to 20 years in good vintages and I think that they are not at their best at ages of 3-6 like those on show here. I have no experience of how well Blot’s Bourgueil ages because I drink mine so quickly , but I have no reason to believe that the fact that they show so well when young means that they will have a short life; Madame Blot claims that Mi-Pente has a 30 year potential.

Domaine de la Butte (Jacky Blot) – Bourgueil

Pied de la Butte 2011. This is their early drinking cuvée. The 2010 was superb and this 2011 will not be much inferior in spite of the vintage’s acid deficit (Blot also did a wonderful job keeping his whites fresh and lively). There was vibrant fruit, minerals, nice tangy acidity and a typical charcoal touch; 15.5/20.

Haut de la Butte 2011 added leather touches and more substance and structure to the previous; already drinking well but with potential; 15.5/20 with + potential.

Mi-pente 2010 already showed more suavity, complexity and elegance than the previous together with firmer tannic structure; should become a very fine bottle; 15.5/20+ now and potentially 16.5/20++.


Domaine Chales Joguet – Chinon

These wines are never more than medium+ in body but are usually beautifully shaped with good tannic support for the finish. No new wood is used. My impressions about their potential is based on experience of previous vintages.

Cuvée Terroir 2009. This is the entry level cuvée. Being three years old it was already quite evolved in a positive way with round ripe fruit and discreet tang; 15/20+.

Several 2008s and a mini-vertical of Clos du Chêne Vert follow. In general I found the 2008s quite well constituted with good structure and lively non-astringent acidity but quite subdued aromatically. I guess that they are in a closed phase and will become more expressive in a few years.

Les Petites Roches 2008 showed boiled sweet touches on the nose but the palate was quite austere at present; 14.5/20.

Cuvée de la Cure 2008. I have greatly enjoyed this cuvée in earlier vintages and this one was more open than Petites Roches showing liqueur hints and more complexity and structure; 15.5/20+ with + potential.

Les Varennes du Grand Clos 2008 showed similar quality of fruit and perhaps more structure than the Cure but was aromatically more closed; 15/20 now with ++ potential.

Clos du Chêne Vert
- 2006 was the most open and best drinking from Joguet on show. The nose showed red fruit, grilled meat and leather notes and the palate was charming with fuller body, rounder and sweeter fruit and more complexity than any of the others. I love the 06s but wonder about their longevity; 16.5/20+.
- 2008 was notably more austere and tannic than the previous and is still aromatically quite closed. I wouldn’t open this now if I had any but believe that it will be a 16/20+ wine in a few years.
- 2009 was even more closed aromatically but fuller bodied, sweeter fruited and more tannic than 2008. It definitely needs time but I can see it becoming 17/20+.

Clos de la Dioterie 2009 was already more expressive and generous aromatically than Chêne Vert but otherwise similar. Nevertheless I wouldn’t drink it now as I would expect the tannins to become rounder and better covered in a few years; also 17/20+ potentially but a bit sooner than the previous.

bear in mind the context. This is maybe my 5th or 6th Loire red.

Yannic Amirault, Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil, Le Mine, 2009

Some of these Loire appellations sure have long names, don't they? Juicy, succulent red fruit, that is already developing a touch of iron, tobacco leaves, with soft tannins and a succulent finish. I've had more multi-layered and structured Loire Cabs, but this is most likely the tastiest. (Nov. 15, 2012)

18.5 GBP. Oh yes, I'd buy more if it were available here.

Ordered the 2009 Buty CF/merlot blend in a restaurant a few nights ago. I'm definitely an admirer of this Washington winery, but this bottle was underwelming for $36 for a 375 ml. An approximately 60/40 blend with merlot on top, it lacked weight to the point of seeming a bit watery, and we longed for not just more flavor overall, but for richness and nerve to match the acidity and minerality. We had it along side a Long Shadows Pirouette, the 2006, a Bordeaux blend with a small percentage of Syrah, that had the complexity we desired but too much sweetness. Best wine on the table? A blend of the two.

2002 Reininger Merlot, Walla Walla Valley, WA. Purchased at The Wine Merchant, Raleigh for $31.99 some years ago. 14.1% alcohol by volume. Very dark purple; opaque. Black-fruited on the nose and palate--seems closer to boysenberry and blackberry than dark plum. Fruity and ripe tasting with a sense of earthiness to ground it. Medium to full body. Leaves a strong impression both in taste and olfactory senses. Gives a hint of red wine vinegar but not to where it seems flawed or over-the-hill IMHO. I've been favorably impressed by the few Reininger wines I've had.

2008 Sunce Cab Franc, Mazzera Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley.
I don't know when they started using fake corks, but this one had one, and it's a shame.
Started off with a bit of tingle, almost petillance. That blew away, and in an hour it was quite a good CF., just a bit ripe.
I took it to K & L Bistro in Sebastopol, a favorite restaurant of mine, and chose a grilled ribeye to go with the wine. Their menu changes often enough that I'm never sure what will fit the wine I want to drink.
It worked out fine,and the local cheddar with apple chutney for dessert was probably the best thing of all!

Bought at the winery 14.4% alcohol

2009 Domaine Bernard Baudry Chinon Franc de Pied
Turkey day Cab Franc from one of my favourite producers.
Aromatically reticent and rather restrained at first, but with air this really opens out, revealing pure dark fruited flavours seasoned with cedar, tobacco and earth on a frame that's incredibly elegant and polished. The balance here is superb; there's wonderful presence and persistence to the flavours, and I expect this will be really special with more time in the cellar.

Shinn Estate Vineyards 2008 Nine Barrels Merlot (Northfork Long Island)- Clear and brilliant in appearance. Dark black and red fruit, with a hint of chocolate, dominates the nose, which is complimented and integrated nicely by pleasant toasty oak notes. Very well structured and nicely made medium bodied wine with a nice spicy edge to it. Pleasant and lingering aftertaste. (15)

Salute

JC (NC) wrote:2002 Reininger Merlot, Walla Walla Valley, WA. Purchased at The Wine Merchant, Raleigh for $31.99 some years ago. 14.1% alcohol by volume. Very dark purple; opaque. Black-fruited on the nose and palate--seems closer to boysenberry and blackberry than dark plum. Fruity and ripe tasting with a sense of earthiness to ground it. Medium to full body. Leaves a strong impression both in taste and olfactory senses. Gives a hint of red wine vinegar but not to where it seems flawed or over-the-hill IMHO. I've been favorably impressed by the few Reininger wines I've had.

I've had a great 2003 Reininger Cabernet and it seems to be a solid brand, but I'm surprised that I haven't been served more of their wines since moving here. They're widely distributed, but most of our friends hereabouts seem to either be more California or European influenced in their buying decisions. I buy most of the Washington wines I drink.

Victorwine wrote:Shinn Estate Vineyards 2008 Nine Barrels Merlot (Northfork Long Island)- Clear and brilliant in appearance. Dark black and red fruit, with a hint of chocolate, dominates the nose, which is complimented and integrated nicely by pleasant toasty oak notes. Very well structured and nicely made medium bodied wine with a nice spicy edge to it. Pleasant and lingering aftertaste. (15)

Salute

Nice to see a note about a Long Island wine.

Salil wrote:2009 Domaine Bernard Baudry Chinon Franc de Pied
Turkey day Cab Franc from one of my favourite producers.
Aromatically reticent and rather restrained at first, but with air this really opens out, revealing pure dark fruited flavours seasoned with cedar, tobacco and earth on a frame that's incredibly elegant and polished. The balance here is superb; there's wonderful presence and persistence to the flavours, and I expect this will be really special with more time in the cellar.

Thanks for the note! I have three bottles, but haven't tried one yet.

1986 Château Figeac
Just a fantastic claret. A stunning fragrance that keeps building with air, combining sweet mature red and dark fruits, cigar smoke, earth, higher toned herbal elements and a savoury dark chocolate element, and a remarkable palate presence matching power with elegance. There's great depth here, superb balance and this is drinking incredibly well now - it's not particularly tannic, and seems fully mature with the structure and different flavour elements all coming together seamlessly. Wow!

Salil, how did you allow bottles of the 2009 Baudry Franc de Pied to get west of the Mississippi river?

Must have gotten distracted hunting Verset or Alzinger.

Or maybe those were Kermit bottles that sneaked into the west coast out of the reach of the NY-area FDP geeks. I'll try and make sure it doesn't happen again.

2009 Knapp Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc:Very nice juice giving red berries on the nose and upfront; more fruit and a hint of oak in the middle, and a nice finish. Matched it with broiled lamb chops, roasted potato sticks, and eggplant salad. Hmm good!

Hart Wine Cellars 2010 "Bordertown Red" - 70% cabernet franc (Manning Vineyard, Niagara Escarpment), 30% merlot (Watson's, Niagara-on-the-Lake), seamless, lots of cool crisp blackberry-ish fruit over a hint of damp earth and, alas, lightly corked. Sigh.

Jeff Grossman/NYC wrote:... and, alas, lightly corked. Sigh.

ach! Well, perhaps we can share one in the future.

Howie Hart wrote:

Jeff Grossman/NYC wrote:... and, alas, lightly corked. Sigh.

ach! Well, perhaps we can share one in the future.

I hope so too. I saved it for the end of the month, hoping for a big finish to the Wine Focus.