Alsace: The Alsatian Gourmet

Lay & Wheeler, Colchester
Tasted Friday, October 18, 2002 by andrewstevenson.com with 1,201 views

Introduction

Notes from a tasting and dinner in the tasting "cellar" at Lay & Wheeler, Colchester on 18th October 2002. The first 6 were a tutored tasting, the remaining 8 were served with a rather good dinner (dishes noted below, the chef was Alan Ford of Hintlesham Hall)

Flight 1 - Tutored Tasting (6 Notes)

  • 2000 Meyer-Fonné Muscat Katzenthal 90 Points

    France, Alsace

    Mid gold. Good muscat nose. Some fragrance, but not too grapey. Fullish attack. Very rich and quite buttery, but bone dry with a nice understated streak of acidity. V. rounded and well-balanced. Avoids being over-fragrant. Clean, rich and quite elegant. VG after, with nice length. I like this.

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  • 2000 Meyer-Fonné Pinot Blanc Vieilles Vignes 88 Points

    France, Alsace

    Lightish lemony colour. Light nose, almost a hint of poached salmon to it. Clean, rich attack, with some sweetness. At first seems a bit simple and unchallenging (nothing wrong with that!), but after a couple of minutes comes across as quite concentrated, with a touch of complexity. Good finish and VG length, but a little oversweet.

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  • 1999 Albert Mann Gewurztraminer 86 Points

    France, Alsace

    Rather deep gold. Big Gewurz nose, though not too heavily extracted: rose petals rather than rosewater. Full with a nice richness, but not too assertive. Some nice acid to keep it in check. V clean on finish with a good length. Perhaps a little simple. Doesn't have the class of the Meyer-Fonné muscat.

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  • 1999 Albert Mann Pinot Gris Furstentum 93 Points

    France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

    Medium pinkish gold. V elegant nose - quite light. Lovely attack. Layers of flavour. Enormously complex. Extremely good.

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  • 1999 Meyer-Fonné Gewurztraminer Wineck-Schlossberg 93 Points

    France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

    Exquisite nose - very fresh and very elegant for gewurz. Good attack, quite fresh with some fruit. Fills beautifully. Big, big deep gewurz on palate. V full, but not aggressive. Exceptionally well balanced. Very good indeed.

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  • 2000 Meyer-Fonné Pinot Noir elevé en pièces 78 Points

    France, Alsace

    Pale, not overly attractive, rather insipid colour. Passable nose with fair fruit. Light. Reasonably fresh. Fair fruit on palate. Thin. Fair. (Why do they bother ....?)

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Flight 2 - Onto the dinner wines ... Aperitif was (1 Note)

  • NV Meyer-Fonné Crémant d'Alsace 88 Points

    France, Alsace, Crémant d'Alsace

    A blend of pinot blanc & chardonnay
    Biscuity nose. Clean. Light. Good depth of flavour. Nice finish. Good. But the Dopff au Moulin Cuvée Julien that the Wine Society used to list was better.

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Flight 3 - Terrine of pressed duck, leek and parma ham (2 Notes)

  • 2000 Albert Mann Gewurztraminer 89 Points

    France, Alsace

    Deepish gold. Lightish gewurz nose - very, very obvious lychees and rose petals. Not over-extracted. Good attack. Very pleasant, full gewurz. Quite complex. Nice balance.

    I found the gewurz worked best with the terrine, followed by the crémant. Somehow the PG didn't quite seem to work with the terrine for me.

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  • 2000 Meyer-Fonné Pinot Gris Réserve Particulière 83 Points

    France, Alsace

    Medium to deep gold. Nice light Pinot Gris nose - good fragrance. Nice attack. Slightly harsh notes on middle. Possibly a bit over-extracted.

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Flight 4 - Baked fillet of haddock, basil crust, riesling reduction (2 Notes)

  • 2000 Meyer-Fonné Riesling Katzenthal 79 Points

    France, Alsace

    I'm convinced this was a bad bottle, but as nobody else on my table seemed to be particularly bothered, I'll give the full note. Dullish nose - smells like a fairly generic new world Riesling. V full on attack which barely carries through. Dull. Boring finish. Fair length, but dull. Verging on the poor. I'm sure it was off and was going to try to get a taste from another bottle, but got distracted by the excellence of the wines that followed.

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  • 1998 Albert Mann Riesling Schlossberg 96 Points

    France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

    Wow! What a nose! Fantastic. Full & fresh nose - with a big touch of smoked haddock. Lovely attack. Oily, rich, quite fat. Very satisfying. Complex, full and generally excellent.

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Flight 5 - Munster cheese with cumin seeds (2 Notes)

  • 1999 Albert Mann Pinot Gris Hengst 89 Points

    France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

    Very attractive, if very light PG nose - slightly nutmeggy and a bit oily. Reminiscent of baked egg custard. Lovely rich attack. Full and very definitely off-dry. V. v. full on palate. Might even think of gewurz if tasted blind. Touch of acid on finish keeps it in check and balance. Good length. Very good.

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  • 1999 Meyer-Fonné Riesling Wineck-Schlossberg 90 Points

    France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

    Pale to medium gold. Very delicate stylish nose - beautiful elegance. I find the nose slightly waxy with just a hint of malic and noticeable minerality. Very attractive attack. Rich & full but bone dry. Elegant and stylish. Very good. Exceptional length.

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Flight 6 - Individual peach tart with vanilla syrup (2 Notes)

  • 1995 Albert Mann Riesling Rosenberg Vendanges Tardives 94 Points

    France, Alsace

    Lovely gold. Really fabulous nose. Some honey and beeswax, though also oddly a touch spirity. Magnificent nose. Magnificent attack... fresh with good acid. Fills quickly. Very concentrated, though still with the acid. But in the mouth, it's curiously un-satisfying and even seems a touch simple - could it really be just past its peak and going over the hill??? Finishes very dry. Don't drink it, just sniff it!

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  • 1997 Albert Mann Gewurztraminer Altenbourg Vendanges Tardives 98 Points

    France, Alsace

    Delicate, restrained, mightily elegant gewurz nose with smoky notes. Full attack. Nice sweetness, though very well balanced. Full and verging on the ethereal. Massive finish. Quite magnificent.

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