France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru
Opened a day back, this seems to have benefited from the time and air. The nose was classic Bouchard Grand Cru white, with luxurious notes of butter, cream and stone fruit punctuated by little suggestions of mineral and lemon rind. A very full, inviting bouquet, but it was on the palate where the pedigree of the wine came through. It was not immune from the slight over-warmth and blowsy ripeness of the vintage, but it somehow still held a decent sense of balance in spite of its great power and weight, with rich layers of white fruit shot through with a wonderful seam of mineral and citrus peel, all giving the wine a nice sense of focus and poise. Great finish too - long and generous, with a nutty accent and blush of spice trailing away in the back palate. Very good indeed, if rather missing the pure elegance of great Chevalier Montrachets, and it will probably get better in the next few years as it sheds some of its ripe baby fat.
Just a touch oxidative, when threw me off a little. Otherwise, this was very solid - quite a classic Chablis with barely a nod towards the ripeness of the vintage. The nose had shades of browned apples and honey which reflected the wine's rather prematurely golden hues, but there were more characteristic whiffs of chalk and citrus coming up under that. Likewise, there were shades of browned pears and apples on the palate, but these too were underpinned by a lovely juicy lemony core, all tied together with a flinty, minerally inseam that led into a wonderfully neat, precise finish. Very nice depth for a Chablis 1er Cru here, perhaps the only hint of the warm vintage. With time though, the honeyed tones receded and more and more of the citrus and mineral tones came out. Good stuff, and it should continue getting better over the next few years too - if it can outrun the shadow of premox that is.
A nicely matured Alsace Pinot Gris. Perhaps just a touch too old, but full of charm. The nose was probably the best part of the wine, with subtle honeyed notes alongside bursts of lemons, peaches and sweet orange blossoms, all ringed with just a hint of bittersweet almond scents. The palate was just a touch thinned out, with a rather skinny expression of apples, oranges and lemons riding on a bed of spice, mineral and citrus notes. The acid was starting to dominate the midpalate, and the finish trailed aways rather too quickly with a lift honeyed kiss, but this still came together in a really charming way, and with enough body and freshness to go nicely with a creamy cheese still. Enjoyable.
A delicious Barbaresco, just starting to hit its stride after sitting in an open bottle for a day or so. This showed everything I like about the 1999 vintage - great aromatics, ripe but nicely balanced fruit, nice structure. Yummy. The nose was a wonderful melange of dried roses, smoky herbs, savoury meat and earth, and some enchanting ripe black fruit aromas. The palate had a lighter, higher-toned profile than the nose, with a more flowery, dried herb and lightly spiced feel to it, all these flavours dancing about a core of ripe but still fresh black fruit. Fine boned tannins and nicely bright acidity then carried it I to a satisfying finish marked by a little burst of warm, smoky spices swirling around a little meaty, animale tail. A nicely elegant expression, yet with no lack of depth and interest. Just starting to drink well now, this may not be the longest lived Nebbiolo, but it will be a very nice one indeed over the next 5-10 years.
Still youthful, but starting to drink quite nicely - this was a neat little Auslese. The nose was just starting to develop the tiniest whiff of petrol, and underneath that the bouquet was filled with rich scents of stone fruit, honey and just a hint of something exotic - like jackfruit, or maybe even durian. Plenty going there. The palate was just entering its adolescence, with sweet, primary flavours of dried apricots, tropical pineapples and grape sugars still thick and almost creamy with the richness of youth, but also starting to mellow into a more matured honeyed glow. On the midpalate, a spine of lovely, almost spritzy acidity cut through the rich texture of the wine nicely, keeping it fresh and balanced all the way into a deep, creamy finish. As with many of the wines of the 2006 vintage, this lacked the sheer nervous tension and transperancy of truly great Mosel Auslese, but it was still a very pretty drop. Give it 10-15 years, and it should hit quite a gorgeous peak.
2006 Bouchard Père et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet 94 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru
Opened a day back, this seems to have benefited from the time and air. The nose was classic Bouchard Grand Cru white, with luxurious notes of butter, cream and stone fruit punctuated by little suggestions of mineral and lemon rind. A very full, inviting bouquet, but it was on the palate where the pedigree of the wine came through. It was not immune from the slight over-warmth and blowsy ripeness of the vintage, but it somehow still held a decent sense of balance in spite of its great power and weight, with rich layers of white fruit shot through with a wonderful seam of mineral and citrus peel, all giving the wine a nice sense of focus and poise. Great finish too - long and generous, with a nutty accent and blush of spice trailing away in the back palate. Very good indeed, if rather missing the pure elegance of great Chevalier Montrachets, and it will probably get better in the next few years as it sheds some of its ripe baby fat.
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2009 Patrick Piuze Chablis 1er Cru Les Forêts 91 Points
France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
Just a touch oxidative, when threw me off a little. Otherwise, this was very solid - quite a classic Chablis with barely a nod towards the ripeness of the vintage. The nose had shades of browned apples and honey which reflected the wine's rather prematurely golden hues, but there were more characteristic whiffs of chalk and citrus coming up under that. Likewise, there were shades of browned pears and apples on the palate, but these too were underpinned by a lovely juicy lemony core, all tied together with a flinty, minerally inseam that led into a wonderfully neat, precise finish. Very nice depth for a Chablis 1er Cru here, perhaps the only hint of the warm vintage. With time though, the honeyed tones receded and more and more of the citrus and mineral tones came out. Good stuff, and it should continue getting better over the next few years too - if it can outrun the shadow of premox that is.
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1983 Domaine Albert Seltz Tokay Pinot Gris Reserve 89 Points
France, Alsace
A nicely matured Alsace Pinot Gris. Perhaps just a touch too old, but full of charm. The nose was probably the best part of the wine, with subtle honeyed notes alongside bursts of lemons, peaches and sweet orange blossoms, all ringed with just a hint of bittersweet almond scents. The palate was just a touch thinned out, with a rather skinny expression of apples, oranges and lemons riding on a bed of spice, mineral and citrus notes. The acid was starting to dominate the midpalate, and the finish trailed aways rather too quickly with a lift honeyed kiss, but this still came together in a really charming way, and with enough body and freshness to go nicely with a creamy cheese still. Enjoyable.
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1999 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Falletto di Serralunga d'Alba 92 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
A delicious Barbaresco, just starting to hit its stride after sitting in an open bottle for a day or so. This showed everything I like about the 1999 vintage - great aromatics, ripe but nicely balanced fruit, nice structure. Yummy. The nose was a wonderful melange of dried roses, smoky herbs, savoury meat and earth, and some enchanting ripe black fruit aromas. The palate had a lighter, higher-toned profile than the nose, with a more flowery, dried herb and lightly spiced feel to it, all these flavours dancing about a core of ripe but still fresh black fruit. Fine boned tannins and nicely bright acidity then carried it I to a satisfying finish marked by a little burst of warm, smoky spices swirling around a little meaty, animale tail. A nicely elegant expression, yet with no lack of depth and interest. Just starting to drink well now, this may not be the longest lived Nebbiolo, but it will be a very nice one indeed over the next 5-10 years.
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2006 Dr. Loosen Erdener Prälat Riesling Auslese 92 Points
Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Still youthful, but starting to drink quite nicely - this was a neat little Auslese. The nose was just starting to develop the tiniest whiff of petrol, and underneath that the bouquet was filled with rich scents of stone fruit, honey and just a hint of something exotic - like jackfruit, or maybe even durian. Plenty going there. The palate was just entering its adolescence, with sweet, primary flavours of dried apricots, tropical pineapples and grape sugars still thick and almost creamy with the richness of youth, but also starting to mellow into a more matured honeyed glow. On the midpalate, a spine of lovely, almost spritzy acidity cut through the rich texture of the wine nicely, keeping it fresh and balanced all the way into a deep, creamy finish. As with many of the wines of the 2006 vintage, this lacked the sheer nervous tension and transperancy of truly great Mosel Auslese, but it was still a very pretty drop. Give it 10-15 years, and it should hit quite a gorgeous peak.
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