Oddbins French Wine Masterclass - Bordeaux, Loire, Rhone & Alsace

Oddbins Farringdon, London
Tasted Wednesday, June 3, 2009 by chatters with 479 views

Introduction

Overview of French Wine Regions - part one - with accompanying wines

Flight 1 (8 Notes)

  • 2007 Famille Bougrier Chenin Blanc 83 Points

    France, Loire Valley, Val de Loire

    Nose: Honey, lime (?), apricot, something acrid and bitter
    Mouth: Green apple, some viscosity, nice acidity but a short finish
    11%, £6.49, Nice enough but instantly forgettable

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  • 2008 Domaine La Gemière Sancerre 85 Points

    France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Sancerre

    Nose: gooseberry, asparagus, freshly cut grass, mineral - slate?, some lees driven richness
    Mouth: lemon and tart, acidity, a little oiliness reinforcing the idea that this may have sat on lees for a while
    12.5%, £12.99, Quite nice, but at this price I'd probably go new world.

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  • 2008 Château des Chapelains Blanc 83 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Entre-Deux-Mers, Sainte Foy Bordeaux

    Nose: Yeast - marmite, meatiness, tar/rubber and, somewhere underneath this, lime
    Mouth: oil and acidity then green vegetal - pea in fact. Big mid palate and a nice long finish
    13.5%, £7.99. White Bordeaux must be the most unfashionable wine in the world hence the price. This isn't for me but everyone else at the tasting enjoyed it a lot.

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  • 2007 Wunsch & Mann Gewurztraminer 89 Points

    France, Alsace

    Nose: Rose petal, lychee, honey, touch of citrus
    Mouth: rich, creamy, not very acidic, lovely honey and fruit, some residual sugar (presumably from grape rather than chaptelisation).
    13.5%, £10.99. Can't remember the last time I had Gewürztraminer. Very, very nice example. Sometimes I find some harshness underlying the fruit or a touch of bitterness on the finish, none of that here. Having said that it's fairly simple so doesn't score that massively.

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  • 2001 Château Moulin à Vent Moulis en Médoc 80 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Moulis en Médoc

    Nose: Smooth, velvety (can something smell of velvet? perhaps it's just an impression), coffee, beef, cherry and, bizarrely enough, the seaside
    Mouth: stewed fruit, some viscosity and a short finish.
    12.5%, £19.99. 65% Merlot, 33% Cab Sav, 2% Cab Franc. I was surprised to see so much merlot in a left bank wine. Smelled marvellous tasted dull as ditch water. Nothing fundamentally wrong with the wine but why bother when there are so many other better wines at better prices out there.

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  • 2004 Château Milon 87 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

    Nose: cherry, some meatiness, sugary floss/cotton candy oddly enough
    Mouth: tannin, long dry finish, some acidity and tartness and I got red currants.
    13.5%, £19.99. Nice but, for my palate, needs a bit more time. Not really my cup of tea but I acknowledge that this is a nice wine, perhaps a little pricey but shopping around would probably be advisable.

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  • 2006 Domaine de Chantegut Vacqueyras 89 Points

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Vacqueyras

    Nose: Bonfires, spice and some dark fruits (think 'fruits of the forest')
    Mouth: Tannin, black pepper and spice (cinnamon, clove) overlying dark fruit with hints of chocolate
    13.5%, £12.99. Bit young, bit closed, but glorious. Obvious potential here for a poor mans CndP. Very nice.

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  • 2007 M. Chapoutier Crozes-Hermitage Les Meysonniers 92 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Crozes-Hermitage

    Nose: Perfumed, blackberries, coffee, chocolate, tobacco, smoky
    Mouth: Tannin (unsurprisingly given it's age), blackberry, some black pepper and leather. Good mid and long finish.
    13%, £15.99. Jolly nice. Probably one of the best wines I've had at a tasting though that could have been in contrast to the other wines of the evening.

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