Asher's First Month Party

Big group gathering, which was a great chance for proud father AH to whip out a double-magnum of Champagne. Some of us brought bottles along to share amongst select friends, including a really nice Niellon CM.

• NV Devaux Champagne Brut Grande Réserve 89 Points

  France, Champagne

  From a double-magnum that Alex H had been keeping for some time. This was rather less impressive than the last time I had it, showing as a competent NV champagne without really hitting any heights. No complains though - it was pretty enjoyable with the Japanese food. The nose was quite classic fare, with lemony accents wed to some yeasty notes and a touch of stony, earthy aromas. A bit on the simple side, and the same could also be said of the palate. It came across as young, primary even, with bright flavours of citrus lemons and limes at the forefront and just a touch of stony mineral towards the finish. There was quite a bit to like here, from its light, refreshing bead to its bright balance and nice depth. The only issue is how simple and almost uninteresting it was. I did get a pretty nice sense of buried tension and complexity in there somewhere, but that will take sometime to unfurl. At the moment, it ticks all the boxes without really being exciting. A sound wine. Give it 10 years in this format and things may change.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2010 Domaine de l'Ecu Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Orthogneiss 89 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Pays Nantais, Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine

  Second bottle in quick sucession, this was a bit under-served by the dinky glasses we had, but still showed pretty well. The nose seemed rather more flinty and seashelly than on the previous bottle - something that I liked - but there was still an obvious ripeness in its white fruit and sweet flower scents, something that was picked up by the palate too. Here, the wine came across as very ripe, with sweet white fruit almost shading into pineapple territory. However, as always, it was also marked by a lovely crisp balance and a nice amount of flinty, spicy, mineral and seashell tones at the finish. While not quite as compelling as the last two bottles, still very decent.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 1997 Domaine Michel Niellon Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Chaumées Clos de la Truffière 93 Points

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

  This was beautiful - almost at Grand Cru level and quite clearly head and shoulders over the other two wines we had on the day. It had a lovely nose, showing some mushroomy umami inflections and a matured sweetness to its pear and ripe yellow fruit aromas, laced with honey and honeysuckle flowers - very pretty. The palate was really yummy too. It was deep, rich, with a lovely creamy weight to it and glowingly ripe notes of red apple, sweeter apricots and subtle hints of pineapples. Very rich and moreish, but also balanced by a well-integrated stream of acidity and a lovely underlying minerality that kept the wine very clean-cut and brilliantly defined. Lovely finish too, open-knit, round and juicy, with ripe stone fruit flavours, a touch of mature caramel notes and a final kiss of honeysuckle and mineral drifting into the distance. Beautiful stuff at a perfect place for drinking. Bravo.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No