Tasted Wednesday, May 17, 2023 by Joshvoulters with 141 views
Not a tasting that would usually grab my attention - made up of regions in which I'm not hugely interested, but for that same reason it offered a good chance to educate myself. While it's great to see such a spread of producers these L&W events quickly turn into a scrum and it can be hard to enjoy with all the jostling, table blocking and heavily perfumed attendees. Not that it will stop me going to the SA and Italy events later this year...
75 Points
Always a concern when my notes are so far off the CT consensus but given these were opened by a rep (who would presumably know if the bottles were faulty) and I had lots of direct comparison at an organised tasting, I'm going to stick with my conviction here.
Christ no, this is horrible. Overwhelming aroma of bin juice - sweet rotten mulch with an acrid bitter edge. On the palate it's extremely sharp - acidity juts right out, green and unripe on palate. As bad a wine as I can remember tasting.
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77 Points
I'm copying some of the note from the base cuvee here - Always a concern when my notes are so far off the CT consensus but given these were opened by a rep (who would presumably know if the bottles were faulty) and I had lots of direct comparison at an organised tasting, I'm going to stick with my conviction here.
The house speciality bin juice aroma is present and correct - sweet rotten mulch with an acrid bitter edge. Only saving grace here is that there's some oak character to mask it slightly. On the palate it's extremely sharp - acidity juts right out, green and unripe, although there's a touch more body than the base cuvee. This would be the worst wine I've tasted in recent memory if I hadn't also tried the classic cuvee that day.
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What a lovely summer wine: floral, rich nose with a hint of elderflower. Clean and with some breadth on the palate, a touch of sweetness (albeit only 5g/l dosage), quite full and ripe but retaining freshness. I like the fact that Rathfinny only bottles by vintage.
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Vinous, mineral and saline - although I find it a bit flat and lifeless on the palate.
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Very clean and balanced, and clearly extremely well made. Delicate, lovely, but frankly not that exciting. A bit buttoned up for my liking!
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Strawberries and cream, blossom. A pleasant nose but rather more austere on the palate. A candidate for a bit of age I think.
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8g/l dosage here, but the overall impression is too sweet, almost cloying texturally. Rich, honeyed and broad with florals and blossom notes. Lemon meringue pie say my notes. It's just too rich for me - I want refreshing and this ain't it.
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Fine, persistent mousse. On the sweet and broad side of Champagne: ripe apples and candied lemons, bready notes.
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Deep, bassy nose. Strawberry, raspberry and white blossom top notes. Sweet - almost off-dry on the palate and I found it rather cloying. You'd need to match this to food carefully to play off its rather distinct character.
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Lovely bready apple pie profile. Clean on the palate with just a touch of residual sugar. Very nicely balanced, tasty and versatile.
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Well-judged BdN. Clean and fresh with good acidity, prominent notes of tomato and strawberry, dosage is just right for a versatile and tasty drop.
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Deep, rich, balanced and clean. Yellow apple and pear, touch of residual sugar, great length and clarity on the finish. Very good indeed.
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It's clearly good but I didn't enjoy it that much. It's quite highly-strung, vertical. When you go looking for it there is an inner ripeness: lemon pie, creme pat, but on the palate right now it's dry and austere. Nobody's opening this now anyway so it's academic - and I'm sure it'll be great in future.
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This really hit the spot for me - a proper 'aha' moment. First and foremost it's a superb wine: hints of a fine white Burgundy with the mineral and fruit perfectly in balance, chiselled and wonderfully delineated. Lemon and blossom, just a hint of orange peel. Then the gentle autolytic character and fine, pinpoint bubbles add another dimension. It's drinking beautifully right now.
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Unctuous, waxy, glycerol-fuelled palate with masses of dry-extract. Notes of lychee - tropical but bone dry. Acid is there but not prominent. It's interesting but doesn't make me want to go out and buy a bottle.
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An amazing nose and delivers something I'd never have expected from Muscat. The varietal character is there but it's so spicy, complex and earthy. Bone dry and strangely flat on the palate. Not much in the way of acidity and a sense of bitterness dominates so it's heavy and blocky. Super interesting but I didn't really get it
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Part 2 in the Zind-Humbrecht 'here's a grape you know presented in a totally different way' experience. Some reduction and a persistent volcanic, sulphrous note. Deep and persistent, spicy and rich on the palate. Very dry and pretty prominent acidity as well. Quite a challenging experience overall, leaves you a bit beaten up. Unlike any PG I've tried.
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Clean and vertical. A touch of reduction and peppery spice. Quite deep and heady while remaining light on its feet. Nice enough, but not at this price. I'm sure there's something that happens to these with age to justify the reputation and critical acclaim, but I'm not seeing it in the glass today.
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Super volcanic: deep, earthy, aromatic, flinty and spicy. Lemon and mandarin on the nose with a beautifully weightless texture on the palate: spring water says my note from the night.
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And here we have a Gewurztraminer I could actually drink. Hats off to the boffins at Zind-Humbrecht. The house style lends itself so well to the aromatic profile of the grape - the hint of reduction and earthy, spicy notes tame the soapy and exuberant excesses that usually turn me off. There is rose and lychee, ginger and white pepper. Really dry and chewy on the palate, finishing very fresh.
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Lovely balance of acidity, sweetness and depth. Although this has nearly 20 years it's still a baby. Lemon, honey, hay, slightly chalky texture and grip on the palate. Great stuff.
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Now we're talking. Still drinks so young, retaining that lovely acidity and gaining depth. Autumnal leaves, mushroom starting to come through, honeyed sweetness and hay. This has decades left to go. Wonderful!
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Very 'Savennieres' - wool, iron, white and yellow fruit, some hay with a touch of ameliorating sweetness. Enjoyable.
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Slightly oxidative and generally rich in style. The nose is gentle - wool, stone fruit - but it's not much fun on the palate. There's a honey note but otherwise it's a bit extracted and drying with a lingering bitterness.
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Not sure about this: more interesting than enjoyable. Late harvest and pretty oaky with a really powerful spicy and sweaty nose. Wet wool, honey, lemon and vanilla. Very extracted on the palate, grippy, slightly hot and spicy. Can't really see where this is going.
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Heady, complex - maybe a bit of a sweaty note but it's ripe and clean. Acidic on the palate, a honeyed chew on the finish and good weight to the body. I enjoyed this.
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Clean, floral and smoky. On the palate it's saline and mineral, vertical and chalky. Nice stuff.
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Round, ripe and quite rich. A touch spicy and honeyed - there's a hint of sweat. Thick and great balance on the palate: it has weight but it's offset by great acidity. Impressive and powerful but I didn't find it much fun and I certainly wouldn't want a whole bottle.
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Hyper acidic and vertical, dry but ripe fruit on the palate. Focused and compact, deep lemony concentration and real texture. Feels like there's a great deal of potential here.
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Gentle and uncomplicated, floral and a little earthy. Unremarkable on palate.
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Earthy with a deep nose of gooseberry, pear. Sharp and grippy on the palate, clean and powerful. Bracing and fresh, very enjoyable.
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I like this producer's style: fresh and light. A lovely subtle balance here: clean and hydrating with blossom notes providing aromatic lift. Just a little body and grip on the palate. Super refreshing.
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Raised in concrete, which seems to have filled out the body compared with the stainless cuvee. Still clean and precise but brings an element of presence. On the nose it jumps up a couple of notches, getting quite aromatic and actually the blossom notes are a bit much for my taste. I prefer the simpler rendition.
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Raised in oak, which adds real interest to the nose. The fruit is also riper here than in the other bottlings, so everything is pretty full-throttle. Fresh yes but also exotic- green mango, ripe lemon, some honey. Bracing acidity. Quite compelling, very good
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Crunchy, deep and saturated. Blackberry, cherry, coffee. Great concentration with a pulpy character on the palate and some gentle grip.
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The varietal character starts coming through in this cuvee more prominently than in the Pied de la Butte. Some capsicum, graphite along with rich cherry, raspberry, blackberry. Chewy and concentrated on the palate. Maybe a touch less vibrancy and lift than I'd really like, but a great effort.
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A big nose- something of Bordeaux about it - lots of saturation, a bit vegetal. An incense note, scorched earth, crunchy cranberry and dark cherry. An interesting bunch of aromas even if they don't scream Bourgueil. A touch disappointing on the palate: less of the richness and silkiness you may expect, just a bit middling.
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Lovely nose: graphite, peony, violet, red cherry and liquorice. Maybe a touch of confected bubblegum. On the palate it's light with low tannins, not particularly expressive but clean and persistent.
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The most interesting thing about this is the varietal. Clean and gentle with a crystalline lightness. A touch of white pepper, neutral green apple fruit profile.
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Sweet morello cherry fruit, violet, liquorice and animal funk. Rich, heady and saturated. The tannins are rough and it's blocky on the palate: age will do this a lot of good.
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2017 Bouvet-Ladubay Saumur Saphir Zéro Dosage Brut 85 Points
France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur
Oak ageing is apparent. Toasty and vanilla notes are just restrained enough, a slight bitter chew on the palate but generally quite clean. 2 years sur lie, there's body, texture and secondary notes but maybe the fruit is just not concentrated enough to carry all that winemaking. It feels slightly incomplete.
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2016 Bouvet-Ladubay Instinct 88 Points
France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur
7-9g/l dosage and some new oak help this towards a rich and full profile. Clean nose, if a little oaky, yellow apple, vanilla and honey. Ample acidity to keep things tight.
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NV Domaine de la Taille aux Loups Triple Zero 90 Points
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