2/13/2024 - drwine2001 wrote:

New Zealand Trip; 2/10/2024-2/24/2024: Light yellow. Fragrant underripe pineapple and a dash of herbs on the nose. Medium+ weight. Seamless glycerine feel with some oak and butteriness. Deep pear, citrus, and pineapple with bright acidity. Some finishing astringency. Although the cooperage has a lighter touch than in many Chardonnays we’ve tasted, it still detracts from the overall impression created by this otherwise excellent wine. A question of preference rather than quality.

3/1/2024 - drwine2001 wrote:

Opened and decanted. Yellow. Young Raveneau aromas of beeswax and honeysuckle. Medium weight, obvious oak base. Ripe pear and vanilla with a curious lack of grip and intensity. Only average acidity and little in the way of other distinguishing Chablis character. Sound but a gross disappointment. This should be far better than it showed tonight.

3/12/2024 - drwine2001 wrote:

Deep yellow. Crystalline, clear, pure quince and honey. Off dry, rich, focused, and penetrating. Despite the color, nothing advanced about the palate. Classic Demi-Sec. Loved this bottle.

3/9/2024 - drrobvino wrote:

Wife popped this one to enjoy with her family from out of town (they thought it would be "sweet").

12/7/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

Dull red. Light to medium weight. Classic mix of faded red fruit and soil with some spice and fine acidity. Very good. Ready.

2/3/2024 - drwine2001 wrote:

2019 Barolo Masterclass at La Festa del Barolo (The Pool, New York): Translucent light ruby, clear edge. Powerful aromas of dark fruit and soil with warm spice joining later. Medium to light bodied. Soil runs through it from beginning to end. Tar, high acidity, and lean, dusty tannins. Surprisingly little fruit. I tried to coax it along, and it did sweeten slightly, but it remained stubbornly tart and dry. Not pleasing at all today and a disappointing first wine.

1/19/2024 - drwine2001 wrote:

Oregon Trip-Day 1 (Here and there, Willamette Valley): Medium yellow. Some reduction on the nose. Rich tropical fruit attack backed by leesy complexity, and a rush of citrus at the end. Terrific texture and depth. Tour de force for domestic Chardonnay.

1/19/2024 - drwine2001 wrote:

Oregon Trip-Day 1 (Here and there, Willamette Valley): Medium ruby. Green herb aromas. Light to medium weight. Full of stone, soil, and great acidity with delicate red fruit and pomegranate underneath. Saline finish. This is just bristling with youthful energy. I’d never have guessed domestic Pinot Noir.

12/17/2023 - IJC Likes this wine:

Lovely fruit-sweet Riesling; honeyed, yet light; perhaps a touch low in acidity, but just sufficient to keep it balanced.

Charming, but not cerebral.
Rated +1 on a scale of -1 to +3.

Note: Having now re-read my earlier notes, I am left to wonder if the wine has faded, or my reception has changed. These things do happen. Either way, this last bottle did not make me swoon as it had in the past.

12/16/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Saturday Afternoon Bordeaux (K&L Wines, San Francisco): Very deep ruby with slightly lighter outer 10%. Fascinating perfume of dark red fruit and herbs. Much less dense than any of the 2020 or 2019 wines, almost shockingly so. Gorgeous combination of fruit, minerality, and green herbs (? more Merlot/Cabernet Franc than the younger Pauillacs). Unresolved tannins leave a gritty, dry finish. Outstanding now and should be great in 20 years once it sheds its structure.

11/9/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

Miscellaneous Wines from Beaune and Chablis; 11/6/2022-11/10/2022: At Le Maufoux, Chablis. Curiously, no disgorgement date was stamped on the back, but the wine staff said it was the latest release-who knows. As always with Selosse, dynamic and evanescent. Right out of the bottle, a strong mushroom scent which dissipated to reveal ginger and bitter citrus. Full, creamy, dry, and drenched with soil. We returned to it in the evening 8 hours later and some faint oxidative notes had returned, but we were even more impressed with both its stoniness and full throated “Chardonnay-ness”. Superb wine-I wish I could tell you exactly what it was!

10/17/2023 - The Smith Family Likes this wine:

Good but should get better. Will leave for another year.

8/30/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Paso Robles Winery Visits; 8/30/2023-9/1/2023: Ruby. Floral and herbal aromas. Medium weight. Lively black fruit. Round and supple but it has a funny cigar smoke component that makes me wonder if it is smoke tainted.

10/21/2023 - chablis28 wrote:

This is one of those stubborn '05s still unwilling to show its best stuff. Even w/ 18 full years under its belt. So after a quick taste test on opening, I decided to give it a 2hr decant b4 serving w/ our cast iron pan seared Sockeye. This helped but I still think this needs at least 3 more years to hopefully reveal more layers & achieve complete silkiness. Enjoyable but there's a real sense of resistance to showing all of it cards, yet. Sort of like trying to land a determined big Brown trout only to have it snap off.

10/8/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Sunday Northern Rhône Survey (San Francisco): Fresh, lively, brioche and bitter citrus, excellent acidity, relatively dry.

7/30/2023 - pclin wrote:

Almost port like on the nose. I don’t like the pruney note, keep waiting for floral notes to take over but never arrive. Incredibly young though, maybe time will do wonder to this, who knows? Apparently old vines were ripped out in ‘56, so this would have come from 8 years old vines. How did they manage to make such a complex wine with young vines?

7/27/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Book Release Wine Dinner-“The New French Wine” (The Morris, San Francisco): Unknown disgorgement date. Unpleasant aromas-reduction, aggressively herbal, and some soil. Light, lively, and mineral in the mouth, but it comes across as sharp and jagged. I did not care for this at all.

7/5/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Dull medium yellow, very good fine bead. Citrus zest and a whiff of caramel. Medium weight, excellent line of acidity, and a stony finish. I really like the balance of fresh, dry lemon and incipient oxidative notes. Probably best over the next 5 years.

12/20/2022 - JustOneMoreGlass Likes this wine:

Disappointed. Expected fireworks. Did not get them.

6/5/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Medium yellow. A rich, rather sweet Kabinett that is really a Spatlese by any other name. Ripe citrus, peach, and even mango. A rush of stoniness on the finish compensates to some extent for noticeably low acidity. Too loose and blurry.

3/7/2020 - drwine2001 wrote:

La Paulée 2020 Grand Tasting of 2017 Burgundy (Pier 60, New York): Fat, sappy red fruit, blood orange twist, wonderful feel, and a ton of finishing earth. Young and packed with potential, but wildly delicious even now. The rare Clos Vougeot without any rough edges. One of my favorites today.

4/13/2023 - topherwhatever Likes this wine:

In terms of oaky rioja, this one is my favorite. Oak is well integrated and the tomato juice aspect adds complexity rather than detracts.

3/8/2023 - chatters wrote:

Coravin fun - Burgundy (My place, Kent Street): From Coravin. Touch of struck match reductiveness, sweet spice, dark berry and jubey cherry, smidge of sweet spice, oak. Quite red hued cherry fruit with plenty of woody spice and tannic grip in support initially before ascending to dominance. A little bitter on the finish. Hmm

3/13/2023 - aagrawal wrote:

Coravin. Light ruby; aromatic, red cherry, some floral, high toned; light bodied, tons of red cherry, high alcohol (14.5%, seems that high or higher), high tannins though not harsh, high acidity; medium finish. Enjoyable now or with a few decades, though for drinking today the alcohol seems a bit high for the palate density. 90

3/6/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Given 6 hours of air before pouring. Even ruby. Laid back nose of green tones, black fruit, and quite a bit of soil. Medium weight, marvelous underpinning of clay that adds richness and complexity. Poised, subtle blackberry and tart cherry fruit, the strong vein of soil, espresso, and some of the finest, most gentle tannins I've yet encountered in a 2005. This still could use another 5 years, but whoa, it was shockingly good tonight. Exquisitely refined Morey.

Tasted the next day, the aromas were more green, but it still had plummy fruit, the coffee note, excellent acidity, and that long persistent soil.

3/3/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

The Verticals Tasting at 2023 La Paulée (Eventi Hotel, New York): Light ruby. Sweeter, sappy red fruit, less soil, citrus twist, and drying tannins.

3/3/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

The Verticals Tasting at 2023 La Paulée (Eventi Hotel, New York): Pale red. Subtly sweet red fruit, full of earth, excellent acidity, gentle tannins. Delicate, delicious charmer.

3/3/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

The Verticals Tasting at 2023 La Paulée (Eventi Hotel, New York): Light color. Weird, funky aromas, all earth, stripped of flavor and fruit. Oh lord, please tell me this was an off bottle; this wine can’t be this awful. At any rate, did someone taste this before pouring it?

3/2/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Dinner with Iggy and Friends (Le Brasserie, New York): Dull maturing red. Perfumed aromas of mint and strawberry fruit. Much lighter than the Roty with a superb thread of soil. Gently sweet yet tart red fruit, blood orange, spice, light herbs, and faded tannins. Seductive wine with tremendous finesse. The wine of the evening. Thank you Michael!

3/4/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Méo-Camuzet Masterclass (Pier 60, New York): Light ruby. Somewhat aggressive fennel and smoky black fruit at first, but this calms and the aromas show more rich fruit later. Medium weight with some sap and oak present. Candied cherry balanced by excellent citric acidity that provides lift, salinity, soil, and ripe tannins. Really very good, and it’s interesting how the soil is different from the French wines in some hard to describe way.

3/3/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

The Verticals Tasting at 2023 La Paulée (Eventi Hotel, New York): Magnum. Medium yellow. Fragrant floral and citrus tones. Rich, round feel. Apple and pear, excellent acidity and saltiness, long dry finish. This is at least excellent and much better than the Fèvre Clos vintages poured today.

2/28/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Medium yellow. Gorgeous aromas of bright citrus, orchard fruit, and spice but no secondary aromas. Light, fresh, and pure as spring water. Crystalline orange peel, yellow apple, ginger, cinnamon and a zesty lemon/slate finish which leaves the tongue tingling. What a wine! My only regret is not being able to see this bottle in 20 years when it will be fully expressed.

2/5/2023 - Smooth Jazz wrote:

Bottle bought on release and stored in cellar - well past it’s prime with muted nose and a bitter finish - not particularly enjoyable if I’m being honest

Drink up

12/31/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

Opened an hour before pouring. Garnet to light red. At first, all stems, which receded somewhat. Surprisingly lighter weight, almost like a Gevrey Grand Cru rather than Vosne-Romanée. Light strawberry fruit and soil, real pepperiness from the stem inclusion, and it became more chocolaty over time. Great acidity for a 1990. I kept waiting over 2-3 hours for more texture and fruit, but they never arrived. Excellent but far short of amazing or exciting, which, of course, is what you want with DRC.

1/12/2023 - JonnyG Likes this wine:

2015 Produttori & Friends (Nella Kitchen & Bar, Los Olivos, CA): This wine distinguished itself very nicely, with dark fruit, licorice and thick tannins on the lengthy finish. I found it elegant.

1/7/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:

Opened 6 hours beforehand. Red center, faded edge. Ripe black cherries and fennel on the nose. Light to medium weight but with rising sappiness, tar, and soil. Not quite in perfect balance as a bit of alcoholic heat shows. Moderate tannin and pleasing finishing cranberry tartness. Overall still a bit clunky but good.

12/21/2022 - David Paris (dbp) wrote:

This has been open for three hours and in the glass for an hour. The wine is mostly red, but certainly does have some bricking. The aromas are on the lighter side, but perhaps with some stewed red fruits... like you're reducing strawberries on the stove. And really not a whole lot else on the nose... Palate is soft, pretty, and elegant, but pretty restrained with nice acidity. The finish dials in with a lot more acidity and quite a bit more tannins. The finish is a lot more integrated and complete than the palate, showing some pretty strawberry shortcake notes. By complete, you have integration of all the structural elements, you have integrated red fruits that are very pretty, you have tart, puckering acidity, and mild medium grained tannins. The wine feels properly structurally intact for its age on the finish, but there's something on the nose and the palate that feels more advanced than it should; just doesn't feel like there's as much there. Overall... it's just a bit... blah. Disappointing and surprising, because when I had a pour in 2014 it was wonderful and I saw a lovely future ahead of itself. I'll try and open another bottle in the next few months to see if it's consistent... if so, I may be drinking the rest over the next few years! Clearly I seem to be the anomaly score here, so I'm hoping something was just off with this first bottle from a solid case (doubtful...).

Drank before a 2009 Jean Foillard Morgon Côte du Py and the Beaujolais destroyed this wine... too bad I have a full case of this left and only 5 of the Morgon!

12/28/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

Morgon and Fleurie with Charcuterie and Cheese (San Francisco): Deeper red than the 2011 Lapierre. Spicy nose. Darker, more backward red fruit in combination with licorice and substantial tannins. Serious, still youthful wine that is a different animal than any other wine tasted today.

12/20/2022 - BradE wrote:

Sweet cherry, less expressive than vintage and vineyard would suggest. Good, far from great.

12/15/2022 - llink wrote:

Decanted for 3 hours, tasted and then consumed over the next 3 hours, it got better as the evening progressed. The nose is low volume and takes some swirling to bring out lemon, honey, sea brine and broth. On point palate, lightweight, crisp with medium acidity and a complex, layered lemon/citus rind core of fruit. Mouth puckering finish, this wine really delivered. Served blind the vintage guesses were 2013, 14 or 15.

8/19/2017 - drwine2001 wrote:

Young Beaujolais Flight (SF Wine Trading Company): Ruby. Lots of brettanomyces and lots of fresh cut flowers. It has the sappy, supple, vinous Foillard feel with excellent red fruit, but the brett gets in the way and gives an unpleasant, harsh finish. Foillard has become a crap shoot as far as the cleanliness of the wines goes. A bottle 6 months ago was great, but this one concerns me.

12/8/2022 - David Paris (dbp) wrote:

Bought on release 15 years ago and this is my first bottle of 8 to open... the early writers had me burry this one deep. The initial aromas on a pop and pour are absolutely gorgeous, and certainly showing wonderful development at this stage, offering plenty of mushrooms, earth and sous bois, but it blossoms like a beautiful flower even with the smallest pour. Really, a gorgeous nose and one that makes me think: This is why aged Burgundy! Palate is completely harmonized, perfectly in balance with a killer attack of acidity and tannin, just a hint of the mushroom, but it's primarily vibrant bright red tannic raspberries... an absolute gorgeous wine on the palate. Finish is still tremendously structured, robust, and nearly hard, showing massive piles of acidity and still fairly gritty tannins. This is still coupled with complete beauty and harmony, though, so I'm not offended, because it's still offering wonderful bright red fruits that are the lingering flavor minutes later despite the tongue still feeling the tannin as well. It does make the mouth water for more, though. This wine is at a beautifully elegant entry point of its evolution... I am indeed happy I waited so long for the first one, as this is just now entering what I'd call an early, but long peak drinking window. I'll continue drinking these for a couple decades. Surprisingly, I think this drank best on a pop and pour, and lost some of its complexity after a 3+ hour slow o and later into the night and the next day. This was poured alongside a 2017 Pierrick Bouley Volnay 1er Cru Santenots, and I believe the winemaking style with Pierrick has shifted so much you can hardly tell they're related. This is still very old school and required all this time to get to this point, whereas the 2017 was completely approachable (and quite a bit softer) at its young age.

12/6/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

Ruby. Some varietal olive and dill. Lean, tannic, mineral, and saline without a great deal of fruit expression. When I tasted this at the domain shortly after bottling, I had high hopes for it, but I must say that it has not yet fleshed out into something more than it was in its early days. FWIW, this was the Dressner bottling.

11/20/2022 - RojoVino24 wrote:

Over the hill. Last of my 3 bottles. Previous bottles were magical. This one not so much. Cork was crumbling and Bright orange/yellow Color showed during pour.
I have a few 2010 and 2011 vintages. Will jump into those soon.

11/12/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

After one corked bottle, this one was pristine. Light yellow/green. Lemony tones right out of the bottle joined later by vanilla and light iodine seashell too. Medium weight, not as broad as I recall it being when tasted out of barrel in 2016. Excellent acidity and soil, although this is not the highest acid 2014 you’ll run into. This wants for a little more intensity, and I think it comes in behind other top Montée de Tonnerre’s as well as Dauvissat’s own Premier Cru La Forest this year. It is still young, though, and further development may be in the cards.

11/8/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

Miscellaneous Wines from Beaune and Chablis; 11/6/2022-11/10/2022: At Maison du Colombier, Beaune. Dull red color. The aromas lead with tilled earth, and only with time does the red fruit start to rise. Medium body, silky feel that is anchored by the strong soil component. Tangy red fruit, some herb, excellent acidity, and a long, billowy tannic finish. Anyone who is able to identify this blindly as a 2015 is either lying or a genius since it has exactly no warm vintage traits at this point. This steadily expanded and improved over 2 hours. I look forward to trying the rest tomorrow.

By the second night, substantial changes. Now some citrus added to all of those soil aromas. It added weight and depth, now with a seamless feel and bitter chocolate anchoring riper black cherry fruit. Still, quite reassuringly, it is not a monster or overdone in any way. This is clearly more profound than it seemed at first, a casualty of not having adequate time to allow a young wine to unfold in a restaurant setting.

10/28/2022 - djhammond Likes this wine:

Coravin in a restaurant, this is something very special. From the nose through to the finish it is faultless. Sorry for the brief note but need to concentrate on the experience. 96+

10/25/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

Friends of Musique et Vin Gala (French Club, San Francisco): Light red with maturing rim. Lots of VA on the nose. Still some subtle sweetness of fruit and sous bois. Past its prime but definitely hanging in there.

3/25/2022 - rlove wrote:

Raveneau's 2007 Butteaux is aromatically appealing with a tide pool nose of iodine and oyster shell with a bit of honey. Palate is structurally balanced with bright acidity but the density of flavor doesn't match the nose, finishing a bit short.

9/1/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

Opened 4 hours earlier. Light ruby. Herb and sundried tomato aromas. Light weight, earthy, high acidity with tart cranberry fruit, soil, and gritty tannins. Not a lot of charm or pleasure. Completely disappointing and I don't think this was attributable to any particular flaw.