A Night of Romorantin

1st flight was a blind tasting with Keith Levenberg, Michel Abood, and Alice Feiring. 2nd flight was with dinner.

Dry wines - Huards and Montcy were the group favorites, although Huards edged out because of the cellar potential. Montcy is awfully good right now though.

• 2007 François Cazin (Le Petit Chambord) Cour-Cheverny Vendanges Manuelles 87 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Cour-Cheverny

  This bottle of his wine simply wasn't as good as the above wines on this particular night. I found it to be reticent, almost mute on the nose, and not in a tight, drinking too young way. Just mute. Others said that it was short on the finish and without the aromatic pungency of the others. I thought it tasted good, but that it was a simple wine. It wasn't any better on days 2 or 3, by the way.

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• 2007 Domaine de Montcy Cour-Cheverny 90 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Cour-Cheverny

  Very clean, lovely and pure apple fruit, a floral depth to it, very well balanced and very drinkable, impossible not to like.

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• 2007 Domaine des Huards (Michel Gendrier) Cour-Cheverny 91 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Cour-Cheverny

  pure with fresh fruit and powerful minerality, with flint and gunpowder notes.more tightly wound than the other wines. I will tell you that the next day (host kept the leftovers, thank you) this wine was really stunning, working way above it's paygrade. It had real complexity, layers of fruit and minerals, and was very well balanced. This is fantastic bottle and a pretty crazy value at $17.

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• 2006 Domaine Philippe Tessier Cour-Cheverny La Porte Dorée 87 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Cour-Cheverny

  overtly oxidative in style with an almost oily texture. chamomile notes on the nose with a long finish. I liked the freshness and the mineral depth of the wine, but it didn't hold up well at all. by day 3 it was completely shot.

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• 2007 Domaine du Moulin (Hervé Villemade) Cour-Cheverny Les Petits Acacias 85 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Cour-Cheverny

  not bad wine, but in this company it was definitely not distinguished. People said it felt dull, unfocused. I thought it was too smokey and that the fruit was oddly tropical, something that Michel picked up on also. In any case, this one would be difficult to recommend.

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• 2004 François Cazin (Le Petit Chambord) Cour-Cheverny Vendanges Manuelles Cuvée Renaissance 90 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Cour-Cheverny

  A great bottle, so much better than those I drank a few years ago. The wine shows better balance now, the ripe orchard fruit clear as a bell and countered by ringing acidity. was very good with raw cows milk cheeses. has a long life ahead of it too.

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• 2002 François Cazin (Le Petit Chambord) Cour-Cheverny Vendanges Manuelles Flawed

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Cour-Cheverny

  Corked, but it took a few minutes to know for sure, and although it was mildly corked, the purity and grace of the fruit shone through, I thought.

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• 2000 Domaine de la Charmoise Romorantin Val de Loire "Provignage" vigne pré-phylloxérique

  France, Loire Valley, Val de Loire

  didn't entirely outclass the group, and that's probably because it was past its prime drinking window. still, i thought that the layers of mineral and fruit were clean and impressive, and there ws a nutty depth that i enjoyed.

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