4/28/2024 - fitzi wrote:

Same as last note; for me, hits the Chablis spot hard. My last 750, two magnums on the shelf for further research.

4/27/2024 - fitzi wrote:

Liked this bottle much better than the previous one, seemed to have more depth and flavor, not so thin. Not as impressive as the Grand Clos of the same vintage, but very good in its way. Probably shines more brightly with food, as is often so with good Touraine Cab Franc wines.

4/20/2024 - fitzi wrote:

This is darned good now. As in prior notes, a little thin for a 1er on opening, with signature Pernand sandy tannins, very fine-grained - as befits the quality of this vineyard - and tart cherry. Hand-in-hand with the Pernand tannins goes a palpable sense of density, which is moderate here. The whole package is very clean, balanced, and pure, especially the cherry flavors, and the thinness dissipates somewhat after a night in the 'fridge. A very nice adjunct from Ile to the versions produced by Chandon dB and Rollin; a bit like an imagined Jadot with more elegance. A good surprise after previous showings. At $65 for the 2019, not the value it was in 2010, but reasonably priced, relative to Iles from other good vignerons.

3/24/2024 - fitzi wrote:

Opened for a wine dinner group: excellent. A little scratchy on opening, but develops nicely with decanting and aeration: medium- to full-bodied, mouth-filling with depth and complexity. Good with food and to sip on its own. Double magnum formt.

3/24/2024 - fitzi wrote:

I didn't get a taste of this until it had been open about 3.5 hours, but it was terrific at that point. No notes, but a really good impression of balance, fullness, and some cherry fruit.

3/24/2024 - fitzi wrote:

Curiously uninteresting bottle, considering producer, vineyard, and vintage. Hardly any acidity to balance the remaining sugar, making the wine flabby and dull.

1/10/2024 - fitzi wrote:

Very good. Upside, no need to rush this.

1/1/2024 - fitzi wrote:

Good, high-quality MSR, a little sweet for my preferences, but hardly out-of-line for an Auslese. Maybe further improvement if the sugars resolve more but not sure of the acidity is enough to maintain balance over an extended period of further aging. Sipped with salty Parmesan, a classic.

1/1/2024 - fitzi wrote:

Opened a second bottle to reassess and liked this one better than the one opened in November. Why? Not sure. Drank it relatively cool without too much thought and it was quite nice. Better with food, as expected.

12/26/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Wholly dominated by grainy tannins for a long time, but still good to drink very cold, near refrigerator temperature, especially with food. Then the tannins soften and integrate, easing the wine texturally and unlocking some fruit-derived flavors. I liked the wine very well, and the flavors that ultimately emerged were pleasant, but they weren't interesting enough that I could counsel a friend, for example, they were worth cellaring a bottle for 16 years to experience. I still have a half-dozen bottles or so, and it will be interesting to see where the wine goes from here.

12/17/2023 - fitzi wrote:

First day, charming but thin. Third day, filled out nicely, round 1er CdN with character and depth. Very good.

12/8/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Same as previous notes this year. A good bottle.

Second day, after overnight open in the 'fridge, astonishingly good. Great acid-fruit balance, fine, drying tannins just about right. Nice, deceptively understated intensity. Best glass of this wine in six bottles tasted since release. A surprise, making me reassess this wine altogether.

12/8/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Like other recent bottles, this was a lot of fun. Consistent experience - first glass is a bit too sere and tannicky, but additional fruit makes its way downstage with each successive glass, making for a really friendly, pleasant red Burgundy experience without a lot of pomp. Perhaps I'm drinking them a little too soon. A bargain at the purchase price of about $25.

12/8/2023 - fitzi wrote:

This was delicious in the mold of mature MSR Riesling with that unique, knife-edge balance of steely acid and discreet sweetness. Best cold, out of the 'fridge, which brings forward the otherwise slightly understated acidity. Very, very good, if a bit short of my most recent Karthaeserhof bottles from the same vintage. Possibly a titch past its optimal drinking age, not sure.

11/19/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Tried this on a lark: NZ SB from Marlborough? Sparkling format? Sounds like a winner. But it isn't. It tastes like cat piss extract was added to the must as a flavoring agent. Also leaves the mouth dry at the end of a mouthful - to me, a sign of excessive chaptalization. Probably okay for cooking. Interesting closure.

11/19/2023 - fitzi wrote:

The first glass of this bottle tonight was as close to perfect as I think this wine can be: fully integrated, seamless, delicious cedar and tobacco, palate-cleansing acidity. No doubt even better with food. Hard to imagine it getting better from here, who knows. Good time to open one, in any event, if you have a few.

11/11/2023 - fitzi wrote:

My first glass of this wine, after I opened it last night and over the course of the following hour, left me discouraged by its veil of impenetrable, drying tannins. Different story today: the tannins have resolved into the very fine, grainy tannins typical of mature 1er PV, complemented by delightfully pure fruit flavors. Not complex, but terrific sincerity and brings a smile to the face. Yay Pavelot.

11/11/2023 - fitzi wrote:

From half bottle, the first glass, night one, was surprisingly enjoyable (no notes, unfortunately), given how forebodingly this wine has presented in my samplings up till now. Good, round, 1er SlB, albeit with a heavy structure of drying tannins, but performing the essential function of good red Burgundy, which is to make the drinker feel good about the world and being alive in general.

The second glass, night 2, was dominated by the tannins, which smothered whatever traces of fruit might still have lurked. I suspect this wine will continue to evolve favorably for some time yet and is giving an early peak at its potential now.

11/11/2023 - fitzi wrote:

The cork of this bottle had soaked through and shrunk, allowing quite a bit of slow leakage, lowering the level of the wine in the bottle neck by about three inches. On pouring, the color was fine, the classic light straw, darkened with age jut a tiny bit. Out of the bottle, the wine's delicate sweetness as you'd expect from a Prum AL in a good year, but the acidity wasn't there. I was about to pour it out but decided to leave it out and see what effect some exposure to open air might yield. After an hour or so, just enough acidity emerged to balance out the relatively mild sweetness, giving a very nice glass of mature MSR, albeit dialed down couple of notches from what you'd look for in a pristine bottle. Nevertheless, a testament to the quality of Prum's winemaking that it can present this well after such obviously suboptimal conditions. If only the quality of the cork had been on the same plateau.

10/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

This was perfectly good the first night, tho "too polished" is apt - fine details didn't seem to make it through, that is, complexity. The second night, not much fruit cushioning remains in evidence, polished or otherwise, and the 2002 tannic structure is assertive. I'm not a Bordeaux guy, particularly, and, if this bottle is 'at peak,' I will never become one. No doubt, better with food.

10/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Half-way through a case of this wine, so far, I've always found the wine to be too sweet, with acidity too soft to balance. In this bottle, the sweetness had receded just enough so that, by the second day, balance was reached, and the wine was very fine indeed, showing that filagree MSR character in a subtle, low-profile version that was nonetheless refined for its subtlety. Will be interesting to taste through the remaining six bottles over the next decade or so.

10/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

From memory, a little to acidic-acerbic at first, showing little fruit and feeling shallow. Overnight, some voluptuousness emerges on the midpalate, just a bit, with attendant depth and nascent complexity, presaging a wine of stature and character. The wine's rather stern acid-tannic structure is persistent all through, would be nice to see if ease up just a bit, but probably perfect for fatty, red meat dishes.

10/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Tired, fading. After half a case, this wine has never seemed to live up to its billing, despite my last note. Maybe poor storage in shipping or an off bottle.

10/4/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Opened the first of my six-pack based on recent chatter. To me, this doesn't seem ready. It's tight and stern, yielding flavor and aroma only grudgingly. I'm drinking the last glass now, a couple of days in, and a little strawberry-cherry charm is leaking out, but it's struggling to do so. There's nothing to indicate a flawed bottle, and I'm a Guillemot believer, so my conclusion is that it needs more time.

9/30/2023 - fitzi wrote:

First of a six-pack and first opened since my 2015 note. Not sure what to say about this wine. Loved my third glass, but less so the other three. Drink cool I would say, and only drink with food. This is a dictum with Loire CF wines I keep losing track of. Drink only with food, when they shine brightly indeed.

9/25/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Quite nice in the MSR mold the first day, still a tiny overbalanced on the Zucker side, for my preferences. No legs on subsequent day. I may have taken too much for granted with this wine: I have a stash of them I've been holding for 'real' MSR maturity. Not sure this is up to top standard for the region.

9/17/2023 - fitzi wrote:

First of nine bottles, after an early bottle to guage. Prior experience with this wine from Rollin suggests starting them at 10 years in a decent vintage. This bottle is just about there - perfect, light straw coloring, tang on the tongue and a bit of bite on the mid-palate, promising more interesting flavor complexity with more air exposure. A tiny bit of roundness in the texture suggesting some room to unwind further. A lovely expression of Chardonnay, promising more good things over the next few years.

9/17/2023 - fitzi wrote:

So much for slowing down my rate of consumption. Like the July bottle, quite fine with satisfying flavors, aromas, and textures. Drink cool, though - not far off refrigerator temperature. As it approaches room temperature, a ridge of assertive iodine flavor emerges, which somewhat ruins the overall balance and gestalt of the wine. Otherwise, dig in, I'm skeptical that this wine has much more room to run.

9/17/2023 - fitzi wrote:

My last bottle. Typical of my recent notes - very good, in no way showing age.

8/30/2023 - fitzi wrote:

From magnum, this is excellent: plump and plummy, a light fringe of chewy tannins, refreshing acidity on the palate. All you could ask for from a 2011 cru Beaujolais in 2023.

8/23/2023 - fitzi wrote:

This wine has become quite a little charmer, with entirely respectable fruit and roundness. The previously detectable stony note has evolved into a pleasantly tart note that nicely frames the fruit. Not especially deep or complex, though with some nice detailing. At the $24 price on release, a candidate for house red Burgundy among the budget-minded. Better, I imagine, with food, based on its prominent, refreshing acidity.

8/20/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Workmanlike and presentable but definitely doesn't spark joy. Dominated by drying tannins. I got none of the fruit or aromatics Nanda referred to, to me, this was lean to the point of being rebarbative.

I have a half-glass left which I'll try tomorrow again with a bit of parmesan and some sourdough. Since I've stopped eating substantial dinners, it's hard to give good wines a fair spin with food, which is often where they present to best advantage.

Anyway, sorry to say I still have magnums of this in 09-10.

8/12/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Delicious, drinking very nicely now.

8/8/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Excellent, as before, from the first glass to the last, over three days.

8/8/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Charming and delicious. Go! I think I'd cellar this regularly, were I still cellaring.

7/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

My impression of this bottle is a big step up from the last two I opened. It presents as a classy, elegant Burgundy red from a top-notch villages vineyard (and vigneron) or a solid premier cru. Nice drying tannings, a restrained sense of the underlying pinot fruit (hence the 'elegance'). Fine and charming. Two 750s left, and I'll try to slow down my rate of consumption, in order to see how the wine develops over the next two or three years. Noted that only 53% of cellar tracker holdings of this wine have been opened to date.

7/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

This was a very fine bottle of villages Marsannay, well-balanced, mouth-filling, medium-bodied, with slightly rustic, furry tannins and cherry-plum fruit notes. A joy to drink and at the top of the villages quality range/bottom of the 1er quality range. Chalk one up for Peter Weygandt. I opened a bottle of this wine two or three years ago and wasn't impressed, but it has developed beautifully since then.

6/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Interesting experience with this bottle. Like the one I opened in May, it seemed a little deflated on opening. Perked up a bit with air, but seemed like a wine to enjoy for its aged refinement and texture more than its flavor. When I open a 750, I generally decant half into a clean 375 bottle and drink the whole thing over four nights. The last glass of this bottle, out of the 375 on night four, was qualitatively different from the first three, as the wine spread out over the palate with a peacock's tail of burnished, golden flavors. For some reason it made me think of Klimt's "The Kiss." I was so startled I didn't note down individual flavor components, but the overall impression was of a delicious, complex mouthful. I've suspected for a while that well-made Muscadet is a true vin de garde that reveals its potential only with patience, and this bottle would be exhibit a in making that case. Hard to have too much in storage.

6/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

In contrast to my February note on this wine, this bottle was about picture perfect - not tired at all, rather, right in its prime. Satisfying moulin, round with the right degree of tannic-acid structure, good weight, a fine bottle of fine wine. Two mags left to learn from over the next few years.

6/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

My last bottle of this vintage, held for research purposes. This was a tremendous bottle, distinguished entirely by sensation in the mouth and texture, bringing freshening palatte-cleansing acidity together with medium body and satisfying tannins. I decanted this bottle into a 375 on opening and drank a glass a day over four days - no sign of fatigue throughout. I'm not good with flavors and came away with no distinct impressions, just a sense of plumpness on the midpalate that wouldn't quit. Best quite cool, say, starting half an hour out of the refrigerator. An impressive Beaujolais cru wine of real stature from my favorite vigneron of the region.

6/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

This was excellent - one of the very best Chablis I've enjoyed at any classification and plainly better than most of the Louis Michel wines - my other favorite Chablis vigneron . Classic, pure tanginess, nicely articulated, well-proportioned. Last and best bottle of four purchased on release. Not in any way past its prime, but, I think, might be approaching the far side of its plateau. Two mags remain. Picq!

6/29/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Drinking very well now. A slight artifact of the signature NSG stoniness asserts itself on opening but then cedes center stage to pleasantly plump pinot fruit nicely framed by tannic and acid structure. Very good. I think maybe drink up over the next year or two? Pretty great quality for villages; $25, I think, on release.

6/10/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Excellent. Evolving nicely.

6/10/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Excellent.

5/21/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Poured immediately after opening, the wine from this bottle played possum, presenting the lack of flavor of an oxidized, over-the-hill white. With half an hour in the glass, it revives, giving an open-knit, refined version of the Clisson, with ample tang and sea salt, minus the lemony veneer of this wine when it's younger. Personally, I like Muscadet best once it's reached this stage, when it's fully relaxed and transparent. I don't see much future for the 09, however, and will aim to drink the two remaining bottles this year.

5/15/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Very nice, lovely cherry on the midpalate, a little edge in the acidity, a little St. George stoniness, does that pretty, bendy Burgundy thing. No sign of the slightly burnt flavors I've encountered in some 2009s. Balance is quite good, nothing to distinguish this as a warm vintage wine, except a decent volume of ripeness (but in good counterpoint with the acidity). Excellent. I have some Boudots from the same vigneron which, I'm looking forward to now with anticipation.

5/15/2023 - fitzi wrote:

From magnum. Hard to find enough superlatives to characterize this bottle. Beaujolais at 15, sizzling with fresh energy on opening, relaxing into a perfectly smooth but muscular, round wine, plump and cosseting on the mid-palate, sporting cherry and plum fruit flavors, with depth and complexity. I decanted it into four 375s and drank them over the space of about two weeks. This wine would not quit, kicking a** with each and every mouthful, showing only the very faintest sign of tiring near the end of the last half bottle. This is a wine to squirrel away for the serious collector. It astonished me.

5/15/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Following in Mark Lipton's footsteps, the wine is well-along enough to enjoy drinking now, especially if you like assertive tannins or are pairing with a fatty meat dish. Classic flavors of leather and licorice. I decanted half of my 750mm into a 375 and opened it about a week later, drinking the last glass two days after that. I found that the wine developed very well after opening - the tannins faded to black, to all intents and purposes, and the residual tertiary flavors were soothing and pleasant (though not sufficiently impressive to warrant 17 years of storage, methinks). As a pairing for a hefty dinner, in sum, good to go now. For contemplative sipping, I would say, wait a few more years. I'll be waiting.

4/15/2023 - fitzi wrote:

Like the other bottles: good enough, unexciting. Don't know what it sells for now, but not worth the same tariff as the rouge Croix Boisee.

4/15/2023 - fitzi wrote:

So-so. Not a vigneron I'd go out of my way for in the future.