A Night of French Wine

Chez Simo Bistro - Chicago, IL
Tasted Friday, May 2, 2014 by tooch with 701 views

Introduction

Got together with 8 others for a casual dinner at Chez Simo. I've enjoyed my outings here. $0 corkage is hard to beat, and I find the food to be very honest and authentic. Looking forward to going back.

Flight 1 (12 Notes)

  • 2009 Domaine Dublère Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

    Bursting with lemons and limes. Lots of cut and precision here, with the classic Preusian waxy lemon and flinty notes. Wouldn't have guessed this was a 2009. Great bottle.

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  • 2010 Jean-François Ganevat Chardonnay Cuvée Florine 92 Points

    France, Jura, Côtes du Jura

    I decanted this for about 2 hours prior to dinner. Showing very well overall. Toasty nose of smokey nuts, melons, pears, and mushroom. Its palate is a thing of beauty; chiseled from stone the freshness and depth of citrus flavor is awesome. One of the more unique and affordable French chardonnays.

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  • 2000 Marcel Deiss Altenberg de Bergheim 91 Points

    France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

    Smooth with some nice sweet vanilla note. A bit wooly, and complex with lots of peach, apple, and pear - I liked this a lot. Drinking in a really good spot.

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  • 1966 Château Palmer 93 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    Pop and pour. To me, older (good) Bordeaux is absolutely timeless. Bordeaux may not be the hippest thing, but it'll never get old to me. Loved the cool red fruit here with lots of cedary and leathery notes. Palate still had a nice grip to it and the tertiary smokey/earthy notes really shone through.

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  • 1986 E. Guigal Hermitage 91 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

    I've had a bunch of these early-to-mid '80s Hermitages from Guigal and they've all been delightful. Very rustic they all have smokey dark fruit on the nose with just tons of briney olive notes. Would be hard to think this was anything other than Northern Rhone syrah.

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  • 1996 Domaine Jean Grivot Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Charmois 89 Points

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

    Dark fruited, with a lot of musty, earthy tones. The palate was very pretty with nicely spiced red and dark fruits, some mushrooms and a bit of that shrill 1996 acidic tinge to it. Liked this very much. Was a great pairing with some mushrooms.

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  • 1995 Château Montrose 91 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Saint-Estèphe

    Still very young, this should keep aging for a long time. Already the nose has lots of earthy, funky tones that I really loved. The palate definitely had a dark, smokey edge to it was deep, earthy notes on the finish. Should be a great wine with another 10-20 years.

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  • 1995 Pierre-Jacques Druet Chinon Clos de Danzay 92 Points

    France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Chinon

    When Druet is on, it's hard to beat. Older Chinon is one of life's great pleasures, and this had tons of character with nice tobacco, red fruits, and subtle olive tones. Really nice structure too. These wines are getting harder and harder to find, so this was a real treat!

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  • 1997 Tardieu-Laurent Hermitage Erêmitès 90 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

    Definitely a powerful wine with lots of dark, deep, cherry and blackberry tones...lots of smokey, olive-driven tones, and a bit of earth. I've never been all that keen on Tardieu-Laurent's style of Hermitage, but this was drinking beautifully well.

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  • 2011 Château de la Bonneliere Touraine Ante Phylloxera Clos de Maulevrier 93 Points

    France, Loire Valley, Touraine

    Another dominating performance from Marc Plouzeau. This has the complexity, and gravitas of Clos Rougeard's Les Poyeaux cuvee at about 30% the price. Stupid value, and one of the finest wines from the Loire.

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  • 2003 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée 90 Points

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

    Was expecting a jammy mess, but got a really nice bottle of Pegau. Lots of meaty, exotic notes on the nose. The palate was deep and powerful. Just insane depth to the dark fruits, meaty tones, and spicy red fruit. There was a touch of heat that stopped this was really setting off fireworks for me...but great nonetheless.

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  • 2012 Dönnhoff Kreuznacher Krötenpfuhl Riesling Kabinett 91 Points

    Germany, Nahe

    Tons of bright peach, lychee and pears. Lots of energy and depth for a Kabinett.

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