From a small capped bottle as part of a zoom tasting. Wow. Amazing on the nose. Tons of florals - petals; pollen, nectar. Golden. Minerlas and saline and pear and pear eau de vie. (Quince, acacia honey, underripe guava, pound cake). Vanilla. Extract. The palate is jsut as good - big. Powerful, crisp and tart and spicy. Endless reseves / quince and pear and minerlas. Hard to spit. Finish is saline and crisp. Long and wide. Mouth filling and exciting - spectacular. I’ve never been particularly impressed by this Cuvee before even though many of my wine friends adore it. Now I see. Nose - 5.5/6, Palate - 5.5/6, Finish - 6/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1.5/2 = 18.5/20.
Day 36: Just a little left in a small capped bottle. Still Amazing. Quince and nuts and pollen and grapefruit. A bit of honey. Still screaming out of the glass. Salty and saline and tart. Explosive with nutty and quince and some dry mandarin. Coats the mouth and so energetic. Just amazing and confirms my first note.
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This is my first tasting of this particular producer(s) so without the back story and with a little more age than most of the reviews, my turn to update all:
Quince and wet grass on the nose with a soft rounded feeling on the palate that has notes of savory, quinine, and some minerality at the end. Very nice. (I know that that description may not have sounded exactly "very nice", but there is enough vague fruit lingering in the corners to support those more "striking" characteristics without getting in the way)
Not at all clear to me that this needs more age but as so many of you still have a sizable amount in your cellars, I bow to the opinion of numbers.....
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This wine taste more like Chenin Blanc than most Chenin Blancs, I don't care what anyone else says! I've had the wine about a dozen times, from a few different sources, and I come to the same conclusion every time, as have a couple of my friends.
This was my last bottle, and although the fruit is fading, there is still vibrancy, and the wine is defined by its crisp, elegant structure, with strong mineral notes. I have not had an oxidized bottle, but I know that these are hit or miss at this point, and it's time to drink up!
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Clos Roche Blast!: A beautiful Sauvignon Blanc, with melon accented by a twist of lime, a dash of fresh herbs, and a mineral core, it has nice weight that masks its acidity somewhat. Great for sipping on its own, but it really takes off when paired with food, I don't know that it will age as gracefully as the 2000 Sauvignon Blanc, but it should drink well for at least a decade more.
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A bit of a cardboard smell on opening, which quickly blew off to reveal a beautiful light bodied savory caraway nose, perfumed floral midpalate, and crisp crabapple finish. Complex and delicious; great showing.
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Everything you'd want out of this wine: citric acidity giving it a definite tang, a hint of tropical fruit and enough minerality to round out the package. Catherine and Didier go out with a bang, not a whimper.
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Interesting wine, showing lots of white grapefruit, citrus, white musk, tarragon and white peach/nectarine notes, but there is a meaty, feral element here too that is just slightly off-putting. It is not a grassy Sauvignon Blanc, and the flavors are more on the surface than high notes. Rounded mouthfeel. Acidity underlies the palate and carries through on the finish, but is well integrated with the round body. On the second night, the meaty/feral note is completely gone, there is no degradation, and this comes into cleaner, better focus.
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Not a typical SB. Petrol on the nose. Rich and slightly hot on the palate with a finishing grassy note. Long on the finish. Didn't live up to the hype for me and not in my wheelhouse.
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Two bottles in as many weeks, both bottles terrific. This is clean and clear, balanced, round in the mouth rather than chiseled or cut, with good weight. This is not a herbal Sauvignon Blanc, it is more clear and white fruited, with grapefruit notes but not grapefruit tartness or much citrus acidity; it's like grapefruit flavor, quince and other white and clear fruits, but not brisk, more round and smooth and "cool", with an interesting tarragon note. The acidity is underlying. Hint of honey on the finish. This goes down way, way too easy.
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A lot of people I respect really like these wines ... me, not so much. The nose is yeasty and wild - fermented with a note of cat pee, minerals, not fruit. Clean and tight. Citrus and minerals on the palate. Great cut. Nose - 4?/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 - 15/20.
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Crushed apple and brioche. As Jeff notes its a savory style of Sauvignon Blanc. Power packed on the palate too. I would never have guessed Sauvignon Blanc.
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9/21/2023 - Seth Rosenberg Likes this wine: 97 Points
From a small capped bottle as part of a zoom tasting. Wow. Amazing on the nose. Tons of florals - petals; pollen, nectar. Golden. Minerlas and saline and pear and pear eau de vie. (Quince, acacia honey, underripe guava, pound cake). Vanilla. Extract. The palate is jsut as good - big. Powerful, crisp and tart and spicy. Endless reseves / quince and pear and minerlas. Hard to spit. Finish is saline and crisp. Long and wide. Mouth filling and exciting - spectacular. I’ve never been particularly impressed by this Cuvee before even though many of my wine friends adore it. Now I see. Nose - 5.5/6, Palate - 5.5/6, Finish - 6/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1.5/2 = 18.5/20.
Day 36: Just a little left in a small capped bottle. Still Amazing. Quince and nuts and pollen and grapefruit. A bit of honey. Still screaming out of the glass. Salty and saline and tart. Explosive with nutty and quince and some dry mandarin. Coats the mouth and so energetic. Just amazing and confirms my first note.
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7/29/2021 - Vas19 wrote: 91 Points
A nice bottle of wine. Well balanced, has some of those green, herbal sauvignon blanc characteristics to make it interesting.
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10/18/2020 - MikeATL Likes this wine: 91 Points
Lovely
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8/15/2019 - JJKinch wrote: 91 Points
Apple, lime, slight herbal, floral, good acidity, nice texture, lingering finish. Really enjoyable.
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5/25/2019 - UpfromtheCellar wrote: 89 Points
This is my first tasting of this particular producer(s) so without the back story and with a little more age than most of the reviews, my turn to update all:
Quince and wet grass on the nose with a soft rounded feeling on the palate that has notes of savory, quinine, and some minerality at the end. Very nice. (I know that that description may not have sounded exactly "very nice", but there is enough vague fruit lingering in the corners to support those more "striking" characteristics without getting in the way)
Not at all clear to me that this needs more age but as so many of you still have a sizable amount in your cellars, I bow to the opinion of numbers.....
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3/15/2019 - kherrick Likes this wine: 92 Points
This wine taste more like Chenin Blanc than most Chenin Blancs, I don't care what anyone else says! I've had the wine about a dozen times, from a few different sources, and I come to the same conclusion every time, as have a couple of my friends.
This was my last bottle, and although the fruit is fading, there is still vibrancy, and the wine is defined by its crisp, elegant structure, with strong mineral notes. I have not had an oxidized bottle, but I know that these are hit or miss at this point, and it's time to drink up!
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7/20/2018 - MikeATL Likes this wine: 92 Points
Clos Roche Blast!: A beautiful Sauvignon Blanc, with melon accented by a twist of lime, a dash of fresh herbs, and a mineral core, it has nice weight that masks its acidity somewhat. Great for sipping on its own, but it really takes off when paired with food, I don't know that it will age as gracefully as the 2000 Sauvignon Blanc, but it should drink well for at least a decade more.
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7/31/2016 - jmw17 wrote:
A bit of a cardboard smell on opening, which quickly blew off to reveal a beautiful light bodied savory caraway nose, perfumed floral midpalate, and crisp crabapple finish. Complex and delicious; great showing.
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3/26/2016 - MLipton wrote:
Everything you'd want out of this wine: citric acidity giving it a definite tang, a hint of tropical fruit and enough minerality to round out the package. Catherine and Didier go out with a bang, not a whimper.
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2/17/2016 - CUTig1 wrote: 88 Points
- Light gold color and aromas of pineapple and melon and has flavours of pineapple and melon - Tropical on nose and pallet
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11/6/2015 - bramwessel wrote:
Grapefruit, flint, & grass, but with unexpected complexity. Really, really good.
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10/3/2015 - JOsgood wrote: 89 Points
Liked this more than the first bottle. A powerful expression of Sauvignon Blanc. Rich and textured. Too bad this is the end for them.
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9/20/2015 - Pknut wrote:
Interesting wine, showing lots of white grapefruit, citrus, white musk, tarragon and white peach/nectarine notes, but there is a meaty, feral element here too that is just slightly off-putting. It is not a grassy Sauvignon Blanc, and the flavors are more on the surface than high notes. Rounded mouthfeel. Acidity underlies the palate and carries through on the finish, but is well integrated with the round body. On the second night, the meaty/feral note is completely gone, there is no degradation, and this comes into cleaner, better focus.
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9/18/2015 - JOsgood wrote: 88 Points
Not a typical SB. Petrol on the nose. Rich and slightly hot on the palate with a finishing grassy note. Long on the finish. Didn't live up to the hype for me and not in my wheelhouse.
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8/8/2015 - Pknut wrote:
Two bottles in as many weeks, both bottles terrific. This is clean and clear, balanced, round in the mouth rather than chiseled or cut, with good weight. This is not a herbal Sauvignon Blanc, it is more clear and white fruited, with grapefruit notes but not grapefruit tartness or much citrus acidity; it's like grapefruit flavor, quince and other white and clear fruits, but not brisk, more round and smooth and "cool", with an interesting tarragon note. The acidity is underlying. Hint of honey on the finish. This goes down way, way too easy.
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7/20/2015 - Seth Rosenberg wrote: 90 Points
A lot of people I respect really like these wines ... me, not so much. The nose is yeasty and wild - fermented with a note of cat pee, minerals, not fruit. Clean and tight. Citrus and minerals on the palate. Great cut. Nose - 4?/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 - 15/20.
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7/7/2015 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Crushed apple and brioche. As Jeff notes its a savory style of Sauvignon Blanc. Power packed on the palate too. I would never have guessed Sauvignon Blanc.
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