Very fresh, pleasurable, juicy, but simple. Lots of Granny Smith apple start-to-finish. Very youthful, with a bit too much exuberant acidity. 55% Chardonnay Grand Cru, 35% Pinot Noir Grand Cru, 10% Pinot Meunier. 2009 vintage base.

More ripe apple aromas with lemon and lemon peel. Good precision and linear character but with very balanced acidity. Good density. 2008 vintage as base for this release, I liked this a lot more than several bottles tried from an earlier release a few years back.

Lots of green and yellow apple aromas and flavors with hint of ginger and lemon peel. Very round, great mouth feel and balance. Moderate length.

Apple and pear aromas with some toasted walnut. Same flavors with hints of peach, lemon and lemon curd. Rich and seemingly ripe, but then intense minerality on finish. A surprising pop-rock like effervescence that was really enjoyable, but not quite like I recalled from prior bottles.

And finally, the reason I drove up to Northbrook this evening. Lots of lemon, lemon peel and ripe apple. Very fruit driven, very forward, shockingly, surprisingly forward for Salon. Some hints of ginger and toasted nuts add nuance and complexity, with sneaky acidity and structure coming through from middle to very long finish. I really look forward to drinking this alongside the 1996 vintage around 2020.