April 11, 2024 - Tasted double blind from a small capped bottle as part of a zoom tasting Really wooly. Damn. Nose has something steely and chemically along with honey and pollen and other floral elements. Dried apricot smells like a lot of extect powder and dry. Dry and funky. Cheesy and bitter with apricot pits and some dried apricot. Pollen and flower components. Finish is bitter and apricot. Maybe better when first poured? (Took this note about 2 hours after pouring). Nose - 5/6, Palate - 4.5/6, Finish - 4.5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 15/20.
December 25, 2018 - I have a very strong emotional attachment to this wine related to my grandfather who passed away 20 years ago today. Putting aside as much as possible how much I wanted to enjoy the wine . . . it was a great bottle. Deep golden color, raisins and herbs, and very lively acids. I don’t know that there is a compelling reason to hold, it is so delicious now, but despite the advanced depth of color I also wouldn’t see any urgency to drink now. Still, it’s fully mature at this age and good bottles like this one are profound (though in fairness there has been some inconsistency in the case and a half I’ve drunk through).
May 23, 2017 - Textured and vibrant with honey, quince, lemon preserve with tons of acids left. As a demi-sec, just a touch of sweetness .Paired beautifully with some creamy VT goat cheese and foie gras ! Pour ma puce...
April 26, 2016 - Two visitors, three birthdays and seventeen wines from all over. (ABA Turkish Restaurant): Alright. False alarm. This bottle, from the same source as my previous bottles, was terrific and the best bottle of it that I've had in years. It did take a little while to get going, but it blew up big. Fresh, vibrant and with an intensity that the past few bottles have lacked. It shows ripe quince with orange citrus and a hint of stone fruits and candied ginger along with the usual mineral notes. Terrific length and showing firmer acids than usual that balance out the light sweetness perfectly. A wonderful showing. A/A-.
March 18, 2016 - TN: Terrific wines (Loire, Germany, Austria, Alsace & Rioja) as Jeff & Dena Morris return to NYC. (Royal Seafood, NYC): My last bottle and a disappointing showing. This bottle was even more advanced than one two years ago. Oxidized flavors dominate, though one can see that there's some apricot fruit trying to punch its way out, but it's losing the battle and there's no freshness whatsoever. Air didn't help it rally either, as it often does for the '95 and '96 Huet Sec and Demi-Sec when they start off a little oxy. Perfectly stored since release and bottles opened in the past have shown beautifully. When I visited Foreau in 2010, he blind tasted me on the '97 Moelleux Reserve as he was concerned it was advancing quickly. It was and now, it appears, so is the Demi-Sec. B/B-.
March 18, 2016 - Mostly-Riesling jeeb with Jeff and Dena Morris visiting NYC (Royal Seafood, NYC): This is surprisingly dark in colour with a burnished honeyed and botrytised character to the flavours, and a faint oxidative note in the background. There's some ripe Chenin fruit beneath, but the botrytis and oxidative elements are a bit distracting, and this comes across a little awkward and disjointed.
December 26, 2015 - Another great bottle. Amber colored, viscous, toffee, butterscotch, hazelnuts. Rich and fresh at the same time. There has been some variability with a few oxidized bottles, but the good ones, like this one, are really, really good.
February 15, 2015 - This bottle was even better than the last one (or maybe the one before last -- I have a strong recollection of drinking a bottle in December 2013, but no record of having done so.) Enjoyed it with family last night, and did not take notes. There were no corners this time, yet all of the complexity of the previous bottle. A truly great bottle of wine.
June 5, 2014 - Deep yellow in color and while there's still plenty of quince and mineral flavors and aromas to enjoy, this bottle lacks some of the freshness other bottles have shown. Lightly oxidative with solid acidity and just a bit of sweetness. B+.
February 10, 2013 - Golden, headed to a coppery color. There was a touch of oxidation present, but it was managed fine when drunk from a Riesling style glass. Bouquet of ginger, apple and orange peels, baked pear, lanolin, with some spice and petrol. Big rolling mouthfeel with flavors echoing the nose. Good lively acidity, and a finish that quite finely marries a little piquant bite with a trace of sweetness.
We were making a homemade Tom Kha Gai soup, and I thought this might match well with the spicy heat, the coconut milk, and the fresh galangal and ginger components. And indeed the wine most truly shined enjoyed with the food.