Out with Charles

Great night with Charles. The waitress tried all our wines and even made some poignant comments about them. Great fun.

• 2006 Château-Grillet (Neyret-Gachet) Château-Grillet - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Château-Grillet
  Pop and pour. The nose is floral, delicate and complex. The palate is a little spicy but also a light delicate florality to it. It is dry with sufficient acid, but it is not acidic. Rather, the mouthfeel is quite rich and full. I've struggled to understand many white Rhones, but this one is actually quite pleasant to drink. (93 pts.)
• 2008 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  From a 375, pop and pour, drank a good sized glass over 90 minutes. Consistent with previous notes. Slightly modern but you can sense some CDP character. Nice minerality. I'd forgive you if you gave it a 90 or 91. (89 pts.)
• 2006 Château Suduiraut - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
  Bought this 375 for cheap and didn't expect much in an off-year. Wow, this Sauternes delivered. It is relatively sweet and rich, but there is a lot of spicy botrytis here. It strays from a GREAT Sauternes by being a touch thin in complexity and attack, but man, still quite pleasurable. Suduiraut and Rieussec seem to have stepped up their game in 2005+. (93 pts.)