Bastille Day Tastings-Mostly French

San Francisco
Tasted Saturday, July 14, 2012 by drwine2001 with 647 views

Flight 1 - Terroir (4 Notes)

Flight 2 - Arlequin Wine Merchants (7 Notes)

  • 2009 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru La Garenne

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

    Rich, spicy, toasty nose. Ripe blood orange fruit but good underlying structure that just prevents it from being too much. That said, hardly recognizable as a Puligny.

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  • 2009 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Hameau de Blagny

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

    More tropical than the Garenne. Very ripe fruit, some citrus, lower acidity and obvious wood. Very lush entry, drier finish. The least appealing and least typical of these 3 '09s.

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  • 2009 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Champs-Gain

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

    Lighter yellow. Finally, some steeliness and leanness on the nose. Lactic with the fruit very much in the background-the opposite of the other 2 wines. Long, mineral finish and the oak is only minimally perceptible here. A completely different animal and a superior one at that.

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  • 2008 Domaine Jean Grivot Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Charmois

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits-Saint-Georges

    Pale. Pungent aromatics with some char. Prickly, high acid fruit atop a wood base. Short. One of those 2008s that will always be overbalanced to acidity, I'm afraid. Not very charming.

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  • 2007 Domaine Jean Grivot Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Charmois

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits-Saint-Georges

    Better color than the '08. Immediately more aromatic (and the remainder of a bottle opened last night smelled quite complex). Pretty mixture of earth, red and black fruit. Appealing texture and length. Lower acidity (but not inadequate) compared to the '08, and subsequently more engaging and carressing than that wine.

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  • 2006 Domaine Jean Grivot Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Charmois

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits-Saint-Georges

    Medium ruby, maturing edge. Pungent and notably gamy compared to the 2 younger examples. Bigger and chewier too. Sappy, earthy, slightly rustic and a puff of smoke adds further complexity. Very good Nuits with strapping combination of black licorice and blackberry fruit. Seems to be quickly approaching full maturity. A satisfying mouthful whose strong suit is not delicacy.

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  • 2010 Coudert Fleurie Clos de la Roilette

    France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Fleurie

    Opened yesterday, but wow, what a gorgeous, open, complex nose with all manner of spiciness and cherries. Terrific dark red fruit with an appropriate twist of tartness. Lovely length. This is a ravishing 2010 Beaujolais.

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Flight 3 - The Wine Club (10 Notes)

  • 2009 Domaine Fichet Mâcon-Villages

    France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Mâcon-Villages

    Full color. Tropical pineapple and citrus without being overly rich. Impression of some residual sugar. Hard to criticize this at a price point of $13.

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  • 2009 Catherine et Pascal Rollet Pouilly-Fuissé Les Grands Climats Domaine de la Chapelle

    France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Pouilly-Fuissé

    Aromatic, much more lemony and classic than the Macon. Medium weight. Well honed balance of richness with excellent ending snap and soil. Well done, surprisingly good.

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  • 2007 Henri Prudhon & Fils Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Chatenière Blanc

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Saint-Aubin 1er Cru

    Toasty nose and dominated by oak on the palate. Short, woody finish. Just not enough here. Very disappointing after the very enjoyable 2008 red from this producer just the other night.

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  • 2009 Buisson-Charles Meursault Vieilles Vignes

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

    Subtly nutty nose. Some oak but enough wine to result in good length and texture. Leesy, adequate concentration and overall, plausible and good.

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  • 2010 Jean-Claude Lapalu Côte de Brouilly

    France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Côte de Brouilly

    Fairly deep. Ripe nose. Big for a 2010, rich black cherry (indeed a liqueur aspect), gentle sweetness, but some back end tartness as well. Tasty, albeit more in a 2009 style and size.

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  • 2009 Domaine Pavelot (Jean-Marc et Hugues) Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru Les Vergelesses

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru

    Deep and primary. Cool menthol aromatics contrast with a fairly rich, chewy, tannic palate, but the mint is reprised in the mouth as well. Medium length finish. This has none of the excessive ripeness or sweetness that marks other '09s. Really good.

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  • 2009 Domaine Robert Jayer-Gilles Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits

    France, Burgundy, Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits

    Quite deep. Oaky base and simple, berry-like fruit. There is a dash of earth late, but on balance, this is a very modern styled, fruit and wood driven wine that I personally would avoid.

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  • 2009 Alain Hudelot-Noëllat Vosne-Romanée

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée

    Medium red with some rust. Quite airy and complex with anise and black fruits, herbs and high acidity. Nicely elegant and well calibrated for a high quality village wine.

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  • 2009 Domaine Drouhin-Laroze Gevrey-Chambertin

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin

    Medium center, lighter edge. Earthy nose and the soil carries the day on the palate too. Savory, dry and suave with a healthy, tannic finish. Very Gevrey, but at virtually the same price, I thought the Hudelot village wine was better quality.

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  • 2009 Domaine Joseph Voillot Volnay Vieilles Vignes

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay

    Medium ruby. Ripe, full, forward aromatics that are all 2009. Sappy but simple, and very little detail provided by acidity. There is some earth and complexity at the end, but not enough to salvage this wine. Ironically, this is the most outsized of the 3 village wines in the line up, and that just ain't right for a Volnay. In fairness, I had a very different impression when I noted this late last year, but that's how it showed today.

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Flight 4 - Dinner at Home (2 Notes)

  • 2001 Tardieu-Laurent Gigondas

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Gigondas

    Undeveloped color. Some brett, a brief whiff of VA, white pepper and complex garrigue. Middle weight, crisp '01 acidity, some red fruit in the mix. Fine and interesting in most respects, but ultimately ruined by a persistently dirty finish. Last bottle of this which has been interesting and different every time but never completely convincing.

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  • 2004 Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    Half bottle. Medium ruby. Classic aromatic blend of cool green herbs and raspberry fruit. Lovely weight and freshness of fruit enlivened by firm acidity. I opened this to replace an imperfect Gigondas and was very pleased with its purity and vigor compared to that wine. Unlike the last time I tasted it, no off chemical smells. The '04s continue to acquit themselves well although the vintage sits in the shadow of bigger, riper years that bracket it.

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