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Annual Tasting Group Holiday Party
St. Genevieve, Mpls, MN
Tasted December 10, 2023 by rocknroller with 79 views
Introduction
Tis was the annual holiday party for the big group. We had a nice group of around 22 with a lot of couples. I love the Champagne reception every year. It is so fun to catch up with everyone over bubbles. The food was good as usual and it is hard to beat the atmosphere and space. Sorry for mostly short notes and many that i did not get. Thanks to everyone and Happy Holidays!
Flight 1 - Table 2 Wines (our table) (8 notes)
Red
2015 Domaine des Roches Neuves Saumur-Champigny Clos de L'Echelier
93 points
Dark red color. PNP, drank a glassover an hour. Well, I really liked this. Truffles, dark red fruit, perfumed, roses on the nose. The palate is simply juicy, with red cherry, dried earth, spice and wood notes on a medium body. This was bright and engaging.
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Red
2015 Domaine Bernard Baudry Chinon Les Grézeaux
92 points
Very dark red color. PNP, drank a glass over an hour plus. Cherry, currants, soil, a little herbal on the nose. Darker fruit on the palate, more black cherry, touches of blue fruit, iodine, and some dark red fruit too. Nice, more introspective.
White
2012 Aubert Chardonnay Ritchie Vineyard
93 points
Light gold color. Drank a glass over an hour plus. Same bottle as Bellissimo, see his notes for more details. I founds this delightful; rich and full bodied, stone fruits, round and balanced with complimentary spice notes. 93+pts.
White
2010 Domaine Louis Michel Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos
95 points
Light gold color. Drank a glass over an hour. Wow, this is bright, limestone, in fact a cornucopia of mineral notes, tart green apple, amazing florals, slightly savory, subtle fennel, touches of stone fruits, long and intense on the finish. This is a beautiful expression of Les Clos in just a stellar vintage -splendid. Right in the sweet spot.
White - Sparkling
2012 R. & L. Legras Champagne Grand Cru Présidence Vieilles Vignes
93 points
Pale gold color. Drank a glass at the holiay party reception. Consistent with previous notes. This has such nice toast and brioche notes with plenty of brightness and acidity. Glad there's more in the cellar. I'm curious to see how this will compare to the St. Vincent, though the notes so far are disappointing on that. 93+ to 94pts.
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Red
2008 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Asili
91 points
Same bottle as Bellissimo. Drank a glass over an hour. One hour decant and several hours of slow-O time. Lacquer, cherry liqueur, aromatic on the nose. This was a bit sharp and angular on the palate to start; it blossomed after a good 30-60 minutes in glass showing a layered, deeper dark red fruit profile, savory, full bodied, still grippy.
Red
2000 Pavillon Rouge du Château Margaux
92 points
Very dark red color. Drank a glass over an hour. This had a 1 hour double decant. I thought this drinking pretty well, open and giving, pretty dark fruits, it had some volatility on the palate, so I still think maybe this is a better short term drinker.
Red
1986 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande
94 points
Very dark red color. Double decanted for an hour plus. Lovely pencil notes, damp forest floor, dark fruits, cassis, blackberry, still poised and long. 93+ to 94pts.
Flight 2 - Champagne and Table 1/3 Wines (11 notes)
White - Sparkling
N.V. Laherte Frères Champagne Ultradition Brut
91 points
Had a small pour at the holiday party reception. No notes, but enjoyed it. 90+ to 91pts.
White - Sparkling
N.V. Vilmart & Cie Champagne Premier Cru Grand Cellier Brut
92 points
Had a small pour at the holiday party reception. Excellent as always, taut, balanced, energetic, nice orchard fruit. Brad declared it COTN, so that's pretty good praise. 92+pts.
White - Sparkling
N.V. Louis Roederer Champagne Collection 242
93 points
Had a small pour at the holiday party reception. This was the same bottle as galewskj and Chablis28. Pure, fresh, pear, citrus, creamy texture, vibrant. This was a great bottle tonight. Love this wine.
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Red - Fortified
1994 Dow Porto Vintage
Had a small pour at the holiday party for dessert. This was pretty intense, good...but still firm and aggressive for me.
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White
2015 Kistler Chardonnay Kistler Vineyard
94 points
Had a small pour at the holiday party. Lemon and more citrus notes, lemon curd, full bodied, crystalline, vanilla panna cotta, excellent. In a nice spot. 94+ to 95pts.
Red
2004 Domenico Clerico Barolo Ciabot Mentin Ginestra
Had a small pour at the holiday party. This was just ok. The balance wasn't quite there, lotsof tannic structure and plenty of volatility coming through too. however, I didn't have much or for a long examination. I've had much better bottles, may not have been quite right.
White
2014 Jean et Sébastien Dauvissat Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses
92 points
Had a small pour at the holiday party. Lemon, a little reductive, lemon peel, very stony and mineral driven, long finish. Nice!
White - Sparkling
N.V. Bérêche et Fils Champagne Brut Réserve
90 points
Had a small pour at the holiday party reception. This was good, but not great for some reason tonight. I was expecting big things from the mag, but it just didn't have the pop it ususally does.
White - Sparkling
N.V. Jean Laurent Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut
91 points
Had a small pour at the holiday party reception. Had not had this before. Enjoyed it, quite nice.
White - Sparkling
N.V. Bernard Lonclas Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut
89 points
Had a small pour at the holiday party reception. Pretty good, not as memorable as others tonight. 89-90pts.