4/6/2024 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Havent had a young bottle of Jamet that showed well before this one. Had this at a K and L tasting, and this was by far the wott. Acid-driven ripe fruit. Green olives, bacon fat. Concentrated on the palate but still lithe. Very persistent. Likely at an early window as I would expect this to shut down based off my prior experiences. Beauscastel ‘21 was the only other wine I enjoyed at the tasting, but this in another league for me.

1/1/2024 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Really tastes like a white version of their rosé. Medium (-) intensity. Oily, lithe texture. Grapefruit, canteloupe. Very fresh and light. Nice acidity but in no way ripping. Drank it with a good chill (on ice) and that felt like the right way to serve. Would be great as a summer patio wine if serving oenophiles. I think I would prefer this to the rosé.

12/31/2023 - marcus_francois Does not like this wine:

Pass for me. High acid without the fruit or structure to match.

12/31/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

A very interesting wine. Tastes best chilled and with lots of air. Consumed at a restaurant and it drank best after an hour. Describing the body of this wine is a bit challenging. It was a light, fresh wine but it could fill in for a full body wine with its high amount of dry extract, which I associate with Rousanne. Dry yellow peaches and lots of floral notes. White roses, white peonies. A bit of mineral wash at the end. Persistent flavors. Drank at Commander’s Palace, and I was worried that it would be overpowered by the creole level of seasonings but it stood up well to everything. I envision this will be a bottle that remains fresh for a long time.

12/30/2023 - marcus_francois wrote:

From first taste, this is clearly in the natural wine category. The VA might be off-putting for some, but I have a high tolerance for VA so it did not bother me. Also, I drank this bottle at a restaurant that did not store at cellar temp, so grain of salt on this review. A surprisingly savory wine for such a solar year and at this age. Spicy, dry and structured. Medium-full(-) bodied. Sourish blackberries, black pepper, leather. Pure notes here, very little reduction.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois wrote:

Shutdown hard compared to my last tasting.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Tasted this alongside a 2015 Mousse Fils Terre D’illite. This wine definitely had more going on. More in the bdb profile with white fruit profile and a chalky minerality. Very clean style champagne, no oxidative flavors. Good bottle but I’m happier with Mousse at its lower price point.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

I think this is drinking really well now. Drank alongside 2014 which was a very insightful experience. 2015 has great acidity and I think will be the better wine of the pair in time. No amazing levels of concentration and structure across both bottles but they share a great freshness and purity which I have always experienced with Terre D’illite. When I last tasted this bottle, I remarked on its red fruit qualities, and this fruit has mainly fallen out. Much drier now and the better for it.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

I think this is drinking really well now. Drank alongside 2015 which is a very good experience. 2014 is more in a drink now state. Not as bright with acidity as 2015 so I dont see this having a very long life ahead, but this bottle is a bit more open now. No amazing levels of concentration and structure across both bottles but they share a great freshness and purity which I have always experienced with Terre D’illite. Best champagne at the price point afaik.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois Does not like this wine:

Good in the blockbuster Napa cab profile if that suits you. Felt a bit hot and ripe for me. Sometimes Peter Michael can produce amazing old world-style wines, but this bottle was not that for me.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois Does not like this wine:

No doppelganger of Burgundy here. Pretty classic California Pinot noir flavors which is a lot of fruit. Cherry and cola flavors. But not the balance that you get with classic burgundy (acidity especially along with alcohol levels and tannins). Yet excellent in its category with lots of concentration and structure.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Wow big change here from the first bottle which I did not care for at all. Second bottle was quite good. Great acidity here which I tend to associate with Burgundy and Jura. Lots of mineral-laden structure and density that is in line with grand cru or top performing 1er cru. I think this could really turn heads in a blind tasting. 3 years ago I complained a lot about the oak and butteriness but this was no problem now.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

I was expecting this to be a blockbuster napa cab but this veered way more on the bordeaux side of the spectrum. St Julien in profile. Ripe blackberry but in a cool climate profile without cloying density and heat. According to the vintage charts, this was a warm year, which I did not expect. Not that tannic which is also a bit of a surprise. Drank well.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

I’ve had this twice in the past month and I’ve really enjoyed it on both occasions. Dense layers of apricot. Orange flower honey. Long finish. Recently had a 375 and it drank better past day 1 with added balance.

12/27/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Tasted this against ‘01 over 2 days which was a great opportunity to compare differences in age. On day 2 this was quite nice, fruit flavors were way more balanced. Nice acidity, mandarin flavors on top of banana custard notes. Affirms a new personal decanting rule that I will double decant and drink young sauternes (under 15 yrs old) on day 2. Day 1 this didn’t show well.

12/20/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Finally a new burgundy producer that doesnt taste like beaujolais cru. Not one to impress with concentration and pure fruit notes, but rather a bit of a tannic streak here. Back of the palate was reminiscent of black tea. Cool climate cherry notes on the front. Nice uplifting acidity. This is nowhere close to peak window. At least 5 years from early drinking window but I’ll try to wait 10.

8/8/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Great bottle tonight. It’s been fun watching this one age. Didnt feel as ripe as it did in the past. Big red fruit tones were falling out and a nice salty minerality is replacing it. Fresh, strong acidity, no perceptible oak influence. Rich oxidative feel; I’ll ring the qpr bell as below.

8/7/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Amazing freshness on this bottle. Started with classic riesling notes of lime and peaches. With air, more orange fruit notes came to dominate like tangerines. Some minerality present throughout but nothing huge compared to a dry riesling consumed recently. This really excelled on its balance and freshness, which made it so easy to drink. Felt like I was drinking sweetened but not cloying spring water.

8/5/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

I’ve been baby killing this one all year, and it’s been showing very consistently across bottles. Lime-based citrus notes support flavors of white peach and honey suckle. Smooth, oily mouthfeel on the entry, and lip smacking acidity with waves of minerality on the finish. An excellent food wine rn. Should probably wait 10 years to check in on it again but I wont be so patient. Most expressive around 50-55 degrees.

8/3/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

This was real good. More open than my last time with this bottle in ‘21. Fruit more in the foreground. Dark cherries, beets, black pepper. Not one to dazzle with ripeness but more with aromatics, elegance and balance. Medium-full bodied. Natural winemaking in the best way which is true to terroir and without any winemaking signatures. Tannins need a little bit of time to resolve, but fine to drink now with food.

8/3/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

From magnum. Second time with this bottle and this time it showed better than the first. Definitely not cote de beaune. This comes off as a musky chardonnay, almost like a riesling petroleum note. Definitely warmer climate with pineapple, deep yellow fruit flavors. Some minerality in the background but in no way dominating. Very good summer wine.

8/3/2023 - marcus_francois Does not like this wine:

How the palate can change. I used to be big on mt eden but am not so much anymore. This just completely lacked integration. I have had a number of bottles now and the american oak is consistently distracting for me. I double decanted it this time but I think it might do better on pnp.

8/3/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

This is becoming a favorite of my parents. Doesn’t come off as classic meunier with the mushroom and red fruit notes but rather as a champagne that has a lot of oak influence. For the price, I cant think of another bottle that does this oaky style as well, charles heidsieck maybe. Have drunk this vintage and ‘14. ‘12 showed a bit better to me with the higher acidity.

8/3/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

This is becoming a favorite of my parents. Doesn’t come off as classic meunier with the mushroom and red fruit notes but rather as a champagne that has a lot of oak influence. For the price, I cant think of another bottle that does this oaky style as well, charles heidsieck maybe. Have drunk this vintage and ‘12. This vintage seems to have a little more fruit and less acid than ‘12.

8/3/2023 - marcus_francois wrote:

Real shut down. Got next to no fruit here, was not fun for me to drink. Short decant so maybe needs more air like 2+ hrs.

8/3/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Really liked this bottle. Classic bdx flavors, pure fruit, open. No heat, maybe not the concentration and tannin structure of top grand vins but everything else was there for me.

8/3/2023 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Double decanted then drank on day 2 after recorking. Very different expression than when I tasted this past spring. Was much more red fruited and cedary than I recall. Fine tannins but not particularly elegant. I remember this being a bit bigger bodied with inky black and blue fruits; I liked it a bit more then.

6/12/2022 - marcus_francois wrote:

Way way better than the ‘17. Some reduction is still here but I think the vintage shines through. Ripe blackberry fruit, leather, intense black pepper. At first this was quite accessible, but with time (about 3 hrs of slow ox) the tannins started to show prominently. I’d bet this’ll be in the window after 10 yrs.

1/2/2022 - marcus_francois wrote:

I thought this was good! I’m not a huge new world cab person but this was definitely good in the napa style for the price. Good concentration here. Black fruited, definite presence of new oak but not cloying. Reminded me of some 18 bdxs I had recently but this was much more accessible. Drank better on day 2, fruit was a bit more in balance.

1/1/2022 - marcus_francois wrote:

Not consistent with recent experiences so I’m thinking I had an off bottle here. Red fruit wasnt there, tasted distinctively like PM but not the good version. Aka tasted too earthy, mushroomy. In the past this was red fruit driven and not earthy at all.

1/1/2022 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

I think this is my new favorite accessible bdb producer. This tastes not quite big house style and not quite grower. A bit of richness with cream and bread notes but not over the top. Good concentration here as well, a little bit of lemon and apple. Not that acidic so a good crowd pleaser.

1/1/2022 - marcus_francois wrote:

Bad provenance, tasted really short in the finish and a bit advanced.

12/27/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Vin de soif 100%. Drank this on pnp out of the refrigerator. Great great purity. This tasted like a low sulfur, low intervention wine but in a clean style. Light lemon flesh, waxy, little bit of hazelnut. This will not impress on its concentration and finish but on its refreshing qualities.

12/27/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Not as tannic as I expected which is likely due to poor storage at the restaurant. Not a lot of fruit at first, more floral, violet and lavender, then animal notes and dark minerality. Very midpalate. Modest freshness here. With air, the fruit came out, more of like a ripe dark sour cherry. Decanter seems like the way to go.

12/25/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

My family and I dont drink this all that much anymore but this is still good! I think the qpr is not quite there to justify it, but its good in a basic way. If there is one champagne to chug, I think this is it. Some lemon, a little bit of chalky mousse afterwards.

12/25/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

More classic styled bdx in an accessible style. Black cassis/black-purple fruit, dry classic old world ripeness, bit of tobacco and earth, medium plus bodied and fresh but not veering to a natural style. Some tannins and spiciness to finish. Became a little bit softer with air, showing more of new oak in form of vanilla. Drank from magnum which I was concerned about but this was not shut down at all. Good crowd pleaser at a family xmas dinner.

12/25/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

The benchmark for traditional style champagne. This seemed a little bit lighter and fresher than 167, but no complaints. Great acid balance and concentration. Lemon, baked apples, white floral notes. Great blending here as per usual. Has both characteristics of an aged champagne and a young one.

12/22/2021 - marcus_francois Does not like this wine:

I think an off bottle. Did not match up with any of the previous notes here. Not sure what the problem was.

12/22/2021 - marcus_francois Does not like this wine:

Tasted very reduced and shut down. Improved with time in the decanter but this was just not enjoyable.

12/21/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

The nose on this is sooo excellent. Super intense black pepper, fresh cut green pepper, cloaked by dark fruit. The palate unfortunately did not quite match up to the nose, but I think in time it will improve. Dark fruit like a very dry black sour cherry, supported by slightly green vegetal notes, dark minerals, earth, tobacco, red beets. Medium bodied. Good purity and freshness. Last glass showed serious promise. Feels like its easily 5-10 yrs away.

12/20/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Huge change in character here. First hour this was very fresh. Red fruits, great purity and directness undergirding. A few hours later, this tasted firmly like an older champagne. More lemon extract, more minerality to finish. Great acidity here. In a more traditional champagne style so better to drink from a flute.

12/20/2021 - marcus_francois Does not like this wine:

Other tasting notes capture the general fruit quality here. Citrus, gooseberry, some wood spice at the end, light minerality. But I just wasnt that impressed here. This came off as a bit austere to me. Austerity can be fine if theres finesse but I didnt see much finesse/length. Maybe an off bottle. Was expecting more body.

12/19/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Unbridled fruit and new oak here. I usually am anti-new oak but this is an exception. Theres just so much fruit on this wine, the oak is needed to counter all that ripeness. On the nose, this smells like a cedar and vanilla bomb. On the palate, tons of dark red fruit, ripe blackberry, summer black plum underneath vanilla toasty oak notes. This needed about an hour in the decanter to explode from coy and cedary to super ripe and vanilla-ey. Some modest tannins were coaxed out with air.

The balancing factor to me here is foremost the freshness and then the acidity. This did not taste like a 16 yr old wine. Had the fruit of an 18 red burg but in a fuller profile. Probably best to drink/survey soon. Excellent pairing with beef wellington.

12/18/2021 - marcus_francois wrote:

palate wise: pomegranate, warm baking spices, assertive spicy tannins, dried red roses, modest acidity, dried herbs. Nothing wowing here but this was very classic barolo. Opened with a decanter and stayed pretty level after an hour

12/17/2021 - marcus_francois wrote:

Super lemony. High acidity, very clean not a lot of wooly lanolin although some is present. Modest concentration and finish. This is mostly about that first wash of acid. Some chalky limestone minerals at the end. I had a ‘13 of this that was stunning and unfortunately havent had another on that level.

12/17/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

first day was acid and tannin bomb but clearly some pedigree was there. sour black fruits, dark minerals. the next day the acidity died down a tad and then day 3 it was like archetypal syrah. blackberry, pepper, inky, full but fresh. Great balance. This will certainly be good 10 yrs out.

12/17/2021 - marcus_francois wrote:

Second time having this ehh. Better than last year but not super impressed here. Lemon, apple, nuts but not in an oxidative style. Clean grower champagne. Acidity and vinuousness all modest. Drinks way better approaching room temperature.

11/29/2021 - marcus_francois Does not like this wine:

Not for me. Concentration is there but just too much cedary oak for my liking. Very red fruited, cherry, kirsch, leather, old world dryness, graphitey dark minerals; seemed pessac leognan like for comparison. Felt unbalanced to me in a way that i could drink it but am not looking forward to the next bottle i have. Screamed bdx from start to finish. Needed 30 minutes or so in the decanter to open up.

11/29/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

Ripe apple flesh, lemon, slight buttery feel, minerally, cleaner not oxidative or yeasty style. Decent concentration here but acidity is perhaps not quite there for the ‘10 vintage generally. Drank out of a grassl mineralite glass and this didnt quite show as that vinuous but gained character with air. First pour was very disintegrated so this definitely needs some air atm to show well.

11/28/2021 - marcus_francois Likes this wine:

I bought this off a random retailer email along with the 19 aubert blanc, and man both turned out great! The first taste of this was the most expressive. Layers of blackberry and black summer plum, undergirded by black and green olives. Consequently this reverted to a much darker fruit profile. Seemed more consistent w other 18 n rhones which have blacker, ripe fruit and are full bodied. This also showed a bit of black pepper and baking spices, modest finish. Not that finessed, but had great purity and accessibility. Relatively light alc heat for the vintage. Drink this while you wait on gonon is my take. Preferred this to Faury VV.