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Family dinner with Le Francophile |  (701 page views) | | | - 2008 Marie Courtin Champagne Efflorescence Extra Brut - France, Champagne
One woman, one vineyard, one variety, one vintage. The '08 Efflorescence has opened up and developed in a nice way since last New Year's Eve. The nose reveals that the base wine was fermented in used oak, and it also shows a good brioche-style autolysis, over some fine mineral, white-citrus and red forest-strawberry fruit aromas. On the palate it behaves more like a blanc-de-blancs than the 100% pinot noir it actually is, with a razor-sharp and very precise acid cut, courtesy of the kimmeridgian soils of Polisot (Côte des Bar). Even though the final wine wasn't dosed with any sugar at any stage, it has an admirable balance with well-concentrated and highly elegant fruit. This gem of a champagne will be a pleasure to follow for at least a decade ahead. Did we say biodynamic? (94 pts.)
- 2011 Arianna Occhipinti Il Frappato - Italy, Sicily, Terre Siciliane
Transparent cherry red with high luminosity. Wide open nose, distinctly floral with notes of violets and roses, and kind of a beaujolais feel to it. The palate is positively gushing with red cherries, forest strawberries, maraschino, pomegranate and blood orange. The fruit is one size bigger than the 2010, but still very youthful, freshly acidic and tad austere, or stony. There's also a bitter herbal twist to the finish - somewhat like quinine or bitter orange (as in chinato or tonic). This kind of "bite" is something we quite often notice in wines grown on chalky soils - Keller's in Westhofen for example - and it's also a feature of the frappato grape itself. This totally charming frappato only tastes better after a night in the fridge. (91 pts.)
- 2010 Giuseppe Rinaldi Nebbiolo Langhe - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Langhe DOC
Slightly reticent at first - after nothing but una volta in the decanter - the nose opens up to textbook nebbiolo aromas such as dried roses, earth, raspberries, tree bark, liquorice, sandalwood and big used barrels. It enters the palate as light and slender as a dancer, with refreshing acidity, beautifully pure red-berry flavours and wonderfully fine-grained grippy grapeskin tannins. It is oh so elegant, and such an unspoilt expression of the variety, the area, the traditions and the vintage. This is the real deal! (93 pts.)
- 2008 Luigi Pira Barolo Marenca - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Mentholated sensations over fully ripe and quite rich nebbiolo fruit on the darker side of things. Complex aromas of cherry cores and bitter almonds, dark raspberries and liquorice, dried roses and wood polish, chocolate pralines and cherry coke. Tastewise its' well built, with good density, refreshing acidity and a firm, stony tannin structure. The medium-size part new oak was handled well and doesn't take over, with just a hint of wood and dark bitter chocolate on the finish. Tasted blind it is quite easy to place in Serralunga, it shows the typical structure of that terroir. Stylewise it comes pretty close to Cascina Cucco's vineyard barolos, but with a bit more body to it. As it most likely isn't a Cascina Cucco, Luigi Pira would be a good guess. Maybe a 2006 Marenca? This is seriously good semi-modern barolo that definitely merits cellaring. To drink it today a grilled piece of meat would be the obvious companion as it has a bit too much weight to pass alone or with lighter fare. (92 pts.)
- 2010 Montevertine Toscana IGT - Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT
It's not an easy task for a light-bodied cool-grown chianti to follow up on a powerful Serralunga barolo, but Montevertine does a good job at it. The nose is floral and fresh, with beautiful aromas of violets, tart red berries and earth. We get some understated versions of cherry cores, cranberries, redcurrants, black tea, dusty gravel and tree bark. On the palate it's pure and slender, with cool and focused red berry flavours, fresh red-currant acidity, light black-tea tannins, and a small but very precise bitter bite. The finish is transparent, pure and perfectly cleansing. As several times before, this wine conveys an almost burgundian impression. Imagine a chalky chambolle-musigny made with sangiovese in big barrels. Anyway, another great version of Montevertine. Still very young, this will go for decades. (92 pts.)
- 2011 Wind Gap Wines Pinot Noir - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Unfiltered looks, and hands-off nose. Perfumed, dark-berried pinot with notes of hiprose, rhubarb, liquorice, and ginger, besides a veritable abundance of undergrowth and fresh herbs. Silky smooth on the palate, with a really soft and user-friendly balance. Rich in flavours, low in alcohol (12,4%), acidity not higher than medium. Our only objections would be a slight lack of midpalate focus, a slightly soft-cooked quality to the fruit, and a hint of soapiness to the mouthfeel. But that's just minor complaints to a highly drinkable wine in a sympathetic and interesting style. By what we hear, the winemaker Pax Mahle uses at least 35% stems, and sometimes up to a 100%. (91 pts.)
- 2010 Cerbaiona (Molinari) Rosso di Montalcino - Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Rosso di Montalcino
Compared to the '10 Montevertine in the previous glass, the '10 Cerbaiona has a riper, fruitier, sweeter, and richer nose - but otherwise it has the same blue-print botti-sangiovese profile. We get a lovely display of aromas such as raspberries, dark cherries, bitter almonds, tree bark, gravel dust, blond tobacco, fresh herbs, long black tea, and a slightly sweaty note that has to come from the big oak barrels. It's nothing but super-harmonious to drink, with generous amounts of shining fruit, ripe tactile tannins, fresh acids, slightly drying/salty minerals, and the little bitter sangiovese/limestone bite. Wonderful wine! And so typical of the area, as opposed to the cooler and even higher surroundings of Radda where Montevertine is located. Many a Montalcino wine-maker would surely be proud to present this as their brunello. (92 pts.)
- 2010 Domaine Léon Barral Faugères Jadis - France, Languedoc Roussillon, Languedoc, Faugères
Wide open right off the bat. Masses of lilacs and capgun shots. Densely fruity and tannic, yet so refreshing. Very carignan, and very Barral! Previous note has more detail. (92 pts.)
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