Second time tasting this vintage. Compared to the 2015 and 2017, this is the most elegant but could be a good sign that there is even more depth to come in the future as this could be tightly wound. Simply incredible to drink right now. Gave this an hour in the decanter. Last vintage of the original owner Foucault.
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Yet another Terroir Tuesday at Table, Donkey and Stick ft. Clos Rougeard (Chicago, IL): Not a very convincing showing, and clearly the least favourite of the three vintages on show tonight. Dirty, thin, and weedy, with pronounced barnyard notes. The lightest of the three on the palate, with good acidity but the flavour profile just isn't working out here. Maybe atypical?
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BTG at Wine Universe by Little Somm (SH): A little tired and oxidised, probably because it was the last pour from coravin. To the bar’s credit, they took it back. But don't think even a perfect bottle would have matched the elegant red-fruited older Rougeards that I've had, seemed too dark and alcoholic.
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These wines have unfortunately been trending toward a more polished style for awhile and it's hard to say how much of the vintage's crazy heat at its tail vs manipulation is responsible for what here but the 2016 shows a glossy, juicy profile trending black with minimal Cabernet franc characteristics. Deep purple in color. Finishes with a bit of spice.
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Drinking incredibly well right now, such a different wine from some of the Chinon cab francs I've had (Baudry, Raffoult, etc). MOst of the table thought it was a northern rhone as it had darker fruits, white pepper, even some bacon.
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always a treat to drink this. Served blind and was way off. Typical. But so darn tasty - it has that ethereal haunting finish that belies its weight. The taste and aroma linger.
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Incredible bright ruby, never seen so much luminosity on a young red wine, just stunning. The nose is all primary fruit, dark cherries, tart raspberries and redcurrants. The typical vegetal aromas are very subtle, with green bell pepper and and black pepper taking center stage, with much more complexity underneath, spices, graphite and forest floor. On the palate it's all tart fruit, with black pepper and tobacco, super classic Cab Franc. Long, juicy and memorable, it will age for a very long time.
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Pop and pour. Had some a couple of glasses with lunch, but took the rest home to enjoy after it really opened. This was a fine example of Saumur red to start, but nothing to write home about: intense nose with rose, softly vegetal cab franc, and soft perfume. On the palate: lovely acidity, but more rustic than expected.
After about 10 hrs open, this is really singing.The nose just soars from the glass with a dense, musky perfume. The vegetal notes are now attenuated and come off more as a spicy flourish. On the palate: lovely acidity, soft and caressing, finely grained soft tannin on the finish. Fantastic.
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2023 Napa in the City: Tasting & Lunch (The Pool/Grill): One of my favorites but I am a huge Cabernet franc lover. This was a leftover magnum from the night before and so it had had some air. Thankfully it’s a wine that can more than handle that. Has all of the vegetal and intensity going now. Nicely balanced. Really delicious.
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Aggressive pyrazines at opening, thinner and greener, with two hits of air, it’s red apple and mint. Thinner, cinnamon bark and root beer. It’s a great wine but there are also other strong competitors for this. It’s not excellent bc of intensity but instead elegance
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First bottle of Clos Rougeard. Opened for an hour prior to drinking. Clearly high quality stuff, but a bit young and initially had a slight veneer of oak. This blew off and then showed cassis, blackberry, a hint of pepper, spice, and violet. Good concentration and good balance. Overall I thought it was delicious. Best Saumur Champigny I've had, but not at all worth the price. The difference between this and a really good $40 Saumur is not huge for me.
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This is drinking beautifully and really improved with time in the glass. There is delicious subdued red fruits with a touch of bell pepper that faded some with air. The texture is so ethereal and fine and that's what really got me about this wine. Off the list at Claud, NYC.
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So much green bell pepper! I liked this, but it wasn't as good as other vintages I've had, at least not at this stage. The green pepper was a bit overpowering and it was hard to focus on anything else! Still tasty.
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First time having this wine and this is pretty damn impressive. Drank and smelled like Burgundy initially, but really opened up and displayed that quintessential Loire Valley Cab Franc character. Hard to describe what was going on here as this was a very complex wine. A little funk initially that eventually blew off. As I mentioned, drank and even tasted like a pinot at first, but slowly evolved displaying very classic flavors of strawberry and bell pepper. Very nice texture, which was silky while also displaying a decent amount of grip and tannin.
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Surprisingly this has a little more zip and freshness than the Les Poyeux (and also less vegetal). Black cherry, tea traces, olive brine, mineral and mint. Moderate acidity but still needs five plus years to show itself.
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4/25/2024 - UFGators wrote:
Second time tasting this vintage. Compared to the 2015 and 2017, this is the most elegant but could be a good sign that there is even more depth to come in the future as this could be tightly wound. Simply incredible to drink right now. Gave this an hour in the decanter. Last vintage of the original owner Foucault.
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1/10/2024 - soyhead wrote:
nose -lovely cranberry, orange peel, earthy. smells like a good burgundy
mouth- lovely very fresh red fruits, sophisticated, would not guess cabfranc
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12/19/2023 - acyso wrote: 88 Points
Yet another Terroir Tuesday at Table, Donkey and Stick ft. Clos Rougeard (Chicago, IL): Not a very convincing showing, and clearly the least favourite of the three vintages on show tonight. Dirty, thin, and weedy, with pronounced barnyard notes. The lightest of the three on the palate, with good acidity but the flavour profile just isn't working out here. Maybe atypical?
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12/16/2023 - melvinyeowq wrote: flawed
BTG at Wine Universe by Little Somm (SH): A little tired and oxidised, probably because it was the last pour from coravin. To the bar’s credit, they took it back. But don't think even a perfect bottle would have matched the elegant red-fruited older Rougeards that I've had, seemed too dark and alcoholic.
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10/21/2023 - rlove wrote: 91 Points
These wines have unfortunately been trending toward a more polished style for awhile and it's hard to say how much of the vintage's crazy heat at its tail vs manipulation is responsible for what here but the 2016 shows a glossy, juicy profile trending black with minimal Cabernet franc characteristics. Deep purple in color. Finishes with a bit of spice.
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9/28/2023 - Tubulus wrote:
Drinking incredibly well right now, such a different wine from some of the Chinon cab francs I've had (Baudry, Raffoult, etc). MOst of the table thought it was a northern rhone as it had darker fruits, white pepper, even some bacon.
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8/15/2023 - lolo66 wrote:
always a treat to drink this. Served blind and was way off. Typical. But so darn tasty - it has that ethereal haunting finish that belies its weight. The taste and aroma linger.
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7/2/2023 - EDO89 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Incredible bright ruby, never seen so much luminosity on a young red wine, just stunning. The nose is all primary fruit, dark cherries, tart raspberries and redcurrants. The typical vegetal aromas are very subtle, with green bell pepper and and black pepper taking center stage, with much more complexity underneath, spices, graphite and forest floor. On the palate it's all tart fruit, with black pepper and tobacco, super classic Cab Franc. Long, juicy and memorable, it will age for a very long time.
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5/8/2023 - WineScars Likes this wine: 98 Points
like asphalt and watermelon rind and mint and dried cherries and and black pepper and iron and stone so ethereal
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4/4/2023 - Aravind Asok wrote:
Pop and pour. Had some a couple of glasses with lunch, but took the rest home to enjoy after it really opened. This was a fine example of Saumur red to start, but nothing to write home about: intense nose with rose, softly vegetal cab franc, and soft perfume. On the palate: lovely acidity, but more rustic than expected.
After about 10 hrs open, this is really singing.The nose just soars from the glass with a dense, musky perfume. The vegetal notes are now attenuated and come off more as a spicy flourish. On the palate: lovely acidity, soft and caressing, finely grained soft tannin on the finish. Fantastic.
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3/11/2023 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
2023 Napa in the City: Tasting & Lunch (The Pool/Grill): One of my favorites but I am a huge Cabernet franc lover. This was a leftover magnum from the night before and so it had had some air. Thankfully it’s a wine that can more than handle that. Has all of the vegetal and intensity going now. Nicely balanced. Really delicious.
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3/2/2023 - vintage_whine wrote:
Aggressive pyrazines at opening, thinner and greener, with two hits of air, it’s red apple and mint. Thinner, cinnamon bark and root beer. It’s a great wine but there are also other strong competitors for this. It’s not excellent bc of intensity but instead elegance
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2/28/2023 - jnewman77 Likes this wine:
First bottle of Clos Rougeard. Opened for an hour prior to drinking. Clearly high quality stuff, but a bit young and initially had a slight veneer of oak. This blew off and then showed cassis, blackberry, a hint of pepper, spice, and violet. Good concentration and good balance. Overall I thought it was delicious. Best Saumur Champigny I've had, but not at all worth the price. The difference between this and a really good $40 Saumur is not huge for me.
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12/10/2022 - dream Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is drinking beautifully and really improved with time in the glass. There is delicious subdued red fruits with a touch of bell pepper that faded some with air. The texture is so ethereal and fine and that's what really got me about this wine. Off the list at Claud, NYC.
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9/30/2022 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 93 Points
So much green bell pepper! I liked this, but it wasn't as good as other vintages I've had, at least not at this stage. The green pepper was a bit overpowering and it was hard to focus on anything else! Still tasty.
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8/22/2022 - GrapeCrusader Likes this wine: 94 Points
First time having this wine and this is pretty damn impressive. Drank and smelled like Burgundy initially, but really opened up and displayed that quintessential Loire Valley Cab Franc character. Hard to describe what was going on here as this was a very complex wine. A little funk initially that eventually blew off. As I mentioned, drank and even tasted like a pinot at first, but slowly evolved displaying very classic flavors of strawberry and bell pepper. Very nice texture, which was silky while also displaying a decent amount of grip and tannin.
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6/20/2022 - MAXIMUM SATISFACTION wrote: 93 Points
Surprisingly this has a little more zip and freshness than the Les Poyeux (and also less vegetal). Black cherry, tea traces, olive brine, mineral and mint. Moderate acidity but still needs five plus years to show itself.
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