Community Tasting Note

forceberry wrote:

Wednesday, June 8, 2022 - A blend of biodynamically farmed Pinot Noir (90%) from Champforeys, planted in 1934, and Charme Aux Prêtres, planted in 1949 and Pinot Beurot (aka. Pinot Gris; 10%) from En Blangey, planted in 1932. Half of the grapes are directly pressed to yield colorless juice, the other half is macerated with the skins for 36-48 hours. The resulting wines are fermented spontaneously and aged for two years in oak barrels. 13% alcohol. Tasted blind.

Pale reddish-orange color. Fragrant, somewhat lifted and a bit wild with aromas of crunchy lingonberries, some aldehydic notes of green almonds and green apple slices, a little bit of creamy oak, light savory nuances of woody oak spice, a hint of sweet, ethery VA and a touch of brambly raspberry. The overall feel is quite fresh, but also slightly natty - and the aldehydic nuances lend a tiny bit of oxidative character to the wine. The wine is ripe and even somewhat oily yet at the same time quite fresh and lively on the palate with a medium body and slightly concentrated flavors of bruised apple, hay, some red-toned notes of juicy red berries, a little bit of Granny Smith apple, light aldehydic nuances of green almonds and sorrel ,a hint of creamy oak and a touch of toasty oak spice. Despite its ripeness, the wine isn't sweetly-fruited and the overall feel is surprisingly high in acidity for the ripeness. The finish is juicy, long and slightly natty with dry flavors of tangy green apple, some nutty tones, a little bit of creamy oak, light tart notes of crunchy cranberries, a hint of toasty oak spice and an aldehydic touch of green almond.

This was quite a fascinating wine. The wine was obviously quite ripe, based on the overall sense of weight, concentration and slightly oily mouthfeel, yet the wine was dry, fresh and crunchy at the same time. However, I'm quite certain the wine was a bit off and not how it should be, when it comes to the green aldehydic nuances - although the wine was somewhat natty, I'm quite sure it wasn't made in a style that would result in aldehydic qualities (namely, aging sous voile), which is why this wine didn't seem to perform as well as it could have. Although I found the aldehydic notes a bit distracting, many others didn't seem to be bothered that much by them, and for some this was even one of the best rosés we had in our rosé blind tasting. So all in all, this was a good wine made in a lovely, distinctive and wonderfully fresh style, but I'm positive that a bottle from a cooler vintage and/or without any aldehydic qualities would be even noticeably better.

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