"Running" Club «La France contre le reste du monde»

Brilliant fun evening. I was hosting and did not manage to give the wines as much focus and energy as I would have liked. In particular I think the Riverby and possibly both Chardonnays suffered from this.

Winner - RoW

• NV Michel Arnould & Fils Champagne Grand Cru Brut Rosé

  France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

  Here we go again, another magnum of this. A bit like with the Roederer Collection 243, I've tasted this so many times the first sip feels a bit...bla...then I come back to, there's a reason i drink this so often, and it's because, at its price point, it's just really good. Lovely strawberry fruit energy, a hint of lingering sweetness. Sparked a lot of conversation at the table about the contrast with the much leaner ESW, which the table preferred.

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• 2017 Gusbourne Brut Rosé

  United Kingdom, England, Kent

  From magnum. Paler, more yellow colour than its champagne flightmate. This is fun and engaging, by comparison to the Champagne it's a bit more work, the acid gets its claws in. Voted more highly, although interestingly there was more of this left in the bottle at the end of the evening. Pleased to have a couple more of these, but will be saving them to exhibit patriotic pride more than for pure vinous enjoyment.

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Winner - France

• 2015 Trimbach Riesling Frédéric Emile

  France, Alsace

  14.5% abv. From magnum. And my gosh what a tall magnum it is. As a slight aside, part of the reason for hosting this dinner was to get the space back that a Riesling magnum occupies. This was full on, clearly Riesling but there's tropical fruit going on in here. Many fellow diners commented on the sweetness - I think Riesling aficionados would regard this as bone dry, thank you very much, but there certainly was far more richness than in its flightmate.
  
  By far the table winner for WOTN, 19 points with number two having just ten. Interestingly, with a single exception, anyone who voted for it at all put it as their number one. Lovely stuff, and I was thrilled it went down so well.
  
  My #3 WotN.

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• 2020 Peter Lauer Riesling trocken N°16

  Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

  12% abv. Much paler than its flightmate, also lower in alcohol and more austere. A germanophile fellow diner declared this as much more his type of Riesling. I thoroughly enjoyed this, pleased to have a couple more mags in the cellar, although unsure when i will get to drink them...

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Winner - RoW

• 2020 J.A. Ferret Pouilly-Fuissé

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Pouilly-Fuissé

  13% abv. Gold colour. Lovely energy here, some tropical fruit. Think this is the first time I've drunk the normale from this house - the two "hors classe" wines are excellent, this is...well just a decent, well put together Chardonnay. Doesn't fill the heart, but does exactly what it says on the tin. If someone says to you "I don't know if I like Chardonnay or not" - a glass of this will tell them.

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• 2019 Rudolf Fürst Astheimer Chardonnay

  Germany, Franken

  From magnum. 12.5% abv. Lovely balance and energy here. There's a crunchy unapologetic character to the oak somehow. A beer aficionado at the table said he detected Brettanomyaces...well you know what, I think he was right. Only a whiff, but I'm not sure i've had a bretty white before. Definitely on the fun side though. My #2 and the table's #3 WotN.

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Winner - France

• 2019 Louis Jadot Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Narbantons

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru

  14% abv. From magnum. I have to say the abv made me worried that this would be unbalanced. No fear. Lovely fruit, but also a great savoury character - this didn't take itself too seriously at all, but nonetheless, a serious wine.
  
  My #1 and the table's #2 WotN.

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• 2021 Riverby Estate Pinot Noir Reserve

  New Zealand, South Island, Marlborough

  12.5% abv. From magnum. Screwtop magnum! Who doesn't love a screwtop magnum? Light, floral, somewhat savoury. No jamminess here at all - this is absolutely at the right end of the spectrum for me of "non-Burgundy Pinot Noir". This divided opinion, some people finding it lean and joyless - I can kind of get that, there was a sort of green character in the middle there. I did enjoy it, but suspect it will be better with a bit of time and likely a bit more air too.

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Great fun evening, the wines performed well for us I think. In general the idea was to somewhat match the level of the wines in each flight, but that was not always possible with wines I already had available.

France and RoW both won two rounds, but on points France was the clear winner, with 42 vs 24.

Each participant voted for their top three wines, with the winner being awarded three points, second place two and third place one.

The results were as follows:

1st 2015 Trimbach Riesling Frédéric Emile - 19pts
2nd 2019 Louis Jadot Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Narbantons - 10pts
3rd 2019 Rudolf Fürst Astheimer Chardonnay - 9pts
=4th 2017 Gusbourne Brut Rosé - 8pts
=4th 2020 J.A. Ferret Pouilly-Fuissé - 8pts
= 6th 2021 Riverby Estate Pinot Noir Reserve - 5pts
= 6th NV Michel Arnould & Fils Champagne Grand Cru Brut Rosé - 5pts
8th 2020 Peter Lauer Riesling Trocken N°16 - 2pts

Always nice when everything scores - the wine gods smiled on us I think