I hope this was a bad bottle, as it seemed a bit weird compared to others I've had. A slight funk here that was more than just a "slight oxidation". Maybe a bit corked? Not rated.
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A broad, toasty, slightly-oxidized style of Champagne. Mature, but still full of zip and acidity. Good length, with nice baked fruit, nuts and toast notes. I can see this as a polarizing wine, but I certainly enjoyed it.
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Bottle 1/2500. Slightly oxidized in style, but good tension and cut and more relaxed and smooth compared to the last bottle I opened. Generous white and green fruits. With Niels and Anne Dorthe at home.
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Not good. Lightly sherried, then a note of paint, slightly musty. Very faint bead. Pass. UPDATE: I let this sit overnight and returned to it (after returning from the Yankees-Red Sox game), and it was much better after a night of air. It was much less musty, with no notes of paint. There was still an element of grey/wheat on the palate, rather than a white, clear or yellow palate, and I have detected this grey/wheat note in this Champagne before, and I suspect that it may be an attribute of Pinot Meunier. Light beat seemed to have emerged on the second night as well. Overall, not a charming wine, but better on the second night.
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This was spectacular. Leesy but not as full-bodied as Bolly or Krug, with some brioche, marzipan and citrus peel notes. 100% pinot meunier, and a very fine example of a varietal champagne. Has a very fine mousse and palate caressing elegance that made this go down really easy. Lovely stuff, but would be ultimately outdone by the '02 Clouet to follow.
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Definately a wine that takes some time in the glass to show its best. The last glass is so different from the first that this is really best shared by 2-3 people tops. It starts out with a very oxidative style. Indeed, this really is a Jura blanc version of champagne to the point that it overwhelms at first and you wonder whether it has gone off and turned to sherry. Still there is bread and nice fruit but it takes the back seat. This fades substantially with time and the wine becomes softer, rounder, and more yeasty and minerally. Some iodine/saline thing going on. A wild ride that is not for the beginner. Glad I have another 1/2 case of this as I am anxious to see how it develops.
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A very masculine Champagne which saw a fair bit of oak. Lots of bread and citrus on the nose. Fruit on the front and a earthy, savory finish. I wish it saw less oak, but it's starting to mellow now and I still definitely enjoyed it.
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TTTG (tasted blind, notes from poor memory): Very nice champagne. Citrus (lemon, grapefruit, orange) and yeastiness on the nose, rich citrus palate with some minerality/earth.
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Splendid Pinot Meunier champs. Responds well to air so, if you’ve the time, open it an hour before serving. 4th time to the well on this one and it continues to be the gift that keeps on giving, esp. @ Zachy's $20 sale price.
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Much clearer than a prior bottle last month, with no oxidized notes that I and others have detected. More towards the clear and white side of the spectrum than tan or golden. Palate is clean, with citrus and white grapefruit and fine bead. Dinner at Basso with the Tobiases and Tracys.
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2001 Yquem Dinner: 100% Pinot Meunier. A fantastic champagne, nose was toasty, nice, complex, with slight oxidation that I enjoyed; palate had lovely mouthfeel and bubbles, great freshness, nice acidity and tartness that made it mouthwatering. Superb and drinking well now but will last and improve for years. 93
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Football and Wines from the 90s @ Mike J (Wilton, CT): Another impressive bottle. Broad shouldered and masculine, with yeasty, leesy, nutty aromas. Biscuity and a slight toastiness on the palate. Above average length and poise.
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An extremely impressive Champagne, especially at the Zachy's sale price of $20. Medium straw in color with a lovely yeasty and citric nose. Very masculine, much like Rene Collard's Champagnes, but without the overt oxidative character. The palate appeared rich and round with buttered nuts, toast and lees, but a precise acidic back end keeps things in check. Secondary hints of earth and minerals really bath the palate. Tiny bubbles and a fine mousse. These appears to have the body and structure to age, and this will be interesting to follow in the cellar.
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Pknut's note is spot on. Very distinctive Champagne in the mold of a white Jura with an expressive nose of apples, nuts and minerals. Quite a full wine, slightly tart, needs food. We drank it with cheese fondue made from Gruyere and Swiss Emmenthaler and it was a great match. This is on the young side still. Bought for $20 at Zachys.
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My first thought was that this smelled like the apple pie that my mother-in-law brought over for Thanksgiving, the apples and the dough together. On the palate, more of a "tan" hue than the clear or white fruited Blancs de Blanc that I've been opening lately, this showing notes of hay, marzipan, mushroom, light yeast and a slight nuttiness, but I wouldn't go so far as to call it an oxidized style. At $20 from the Zachys sale, this is good, and the Krug-like bottle is cool and made a statement when I brought it to the Nairs' cocktail party, but at the ~$100 K&L price, I would have been disappointed. Update: On the second night, this wine showed pretty well. The palate shows some interesting tangerine fruit, still showing more tan than clear or white tones, with wheat and tea notes. The bead is very fine. The finish is long and impactful, with surprising energy and sustain. Pretty good tonight.
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Excellent champagne, and different from your run of the mill large house champagne. Extraordinary change in the wine's character as it warms to room temperature. Previous notes are correct about the yeast and bread aromas. It's like drinking a Margaret Palka roll from Columbia Street West. Drinking this wine is the reason for always tasting new and different wines rather than always relying on the familiar. Comparable: Cecil Fielder.
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This is really interesting stuff, and overall quite well done. Showing a bit of the oxidative style of Bollinger/Krug/C. Heidsieck (which is right in my wheelhouse), with plenty of yeasty/bread dough on the nose. Also notes of citrus, floral/slight perfume/rose petal, marzipan, and a nice sappy, dry, mineral-tinged finish marked with something which I think must be unique to the 100% meunier, and which I will just have to call (for lack of a better word), "rose-cherry biscuits". Good acidity and weight, showing plenty of life, and the precision, verve, and finesse of the vintage. Can probably age for a few more years at least, but really nice now. Just plain silly value at $20.
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We decided to try bottle 2 of 3 a few nights ago. This was completely different from the first, and I believe the first bottle was probably off. This bottle was light, delicate and layered, with a long lemon zest finish. Wonderful, complex and addictive.
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This is a pretty serious bottle of Champagne! Not light at all but big and full of muscle. Definite notes of yeast and toast on the nose. The palate is fine and relatively creamy, not coarse at all. The flavors and texture of the pinot meunier are evident. This is a serious bottle of Champagne that I think will develop very nicely with some age, (10-15 years). In fact, I'm so bullish on this I had to go back to the well and replace the two bottles we consumed.
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Popped and poured. Light yellow-gold hue, fine bead. Aromas of yeast, biscuit, mixed berries, hazelnut, and a touch of wild mushrooms. Light body. On the palate, this Pinot Meunier cuvee shows individualistic charm, with complex notes of earthy red fruits, citrus, toast, minerals, and a touch of oxidation. The fruit greatly expands with air, and the medium-plus level of acidity keeps this focused and precise. Youthful, this should improve over the next 2-4 years. Worth seeking out to experience an all Meunier Champagne. 100% biodynamic as well.
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Opened my first bottle of three tonight. I don't drink a lot of champagne, so take these observations with a grain of salt. Color is yellow/gold with a hint of pink or even brown. The fine bubbles make for pleasing texture, and when the bottle was just opened the nose and first taste showed hints of lemon/lime fizz and apple cider. However, the mid-palate and finish are dominated by yeast and nuts with notes of stewed fruit. At one point I thought if I closed by eyes and imagined a mug in my hand I'd almost believe it was dark beer (a particularly fine dark beer, no doubt). I was drinking from an old-fashioned champagne coup - 'cause I just love those old etched glasses - and the bubbles dissipated from my glass over 20 minutes, leaving a flat but lovely wine with more fruit and a soft finish. An unusual champagne for my taste buds, and not what I expected, but very enjoyable.
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good, solid champagne. nice golden color. 100% meunier. 2nd bottle i've tried...just not that big a fan of all meunier I guess. May get more interesting with age.
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Very interesting indeed. I like this 100% pinot meunier wine better than the examples from Rene Collard but of course this one is decades younger. It's a bit funky, which seems to be the signature of the grape but the freshness, youth and acidity of the new vintage is a nice foil. I doubt it will become more interesting as it ages, but I won't find out at this price ($99).
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4/21/2019 - yipen wrote:
not sure I am a fan of this but all meunior, kind of interesting
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7/2/2017 - mdefreitas wrote:
I hope this was a bad bottle, as it seemed a bit weird compared to others I've had. A slight funk here that was more than just a "slight oxidation". Maybe a bit corked? Not rated.
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4/15/2017 - mdefreitas wrote: 91 Points
A broad, toasty, slightly-oxidized style of Champagne. Mature, but still full of zip and acidity. Good length, with nice baked fruit, nuts and toast notes. I can see this as a polarizing wine, but I certainly enjoyed it.
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12/20/2015 - dresden wrote: 95 Points
Delicious
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1/23/2015 - pbaek wrote:
Bottle 1/2500. Slightly oxidized in style, but good tension and cut and more relaxed and smooth compared to the last bottle I opened. Generous white and green fruits. With Niels and Anne Dorthe at home.
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5/30/2013 - Pknut wrote:
Not good. Lightly sherried, then a note of paint, slightly musty. Very faint bead. Pass.
UPDATE: I let this sit overnight and returned to it (after returning from the Yankees-Red Sox game), and it was much better after a night of air. It was much less musty, with no notes of paint. There was still an element of grey/wheat on the palate, rather than a white, clear or yellow palate, and I have detected this grey/wheat note in this Champagne before, and I suspect that it may be an attribute of Pinot Meunier. Light beat seemed to have emerged on the second night as well. Overall, not a charming wine, but better on the second night.
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1/2/2013 - BklynNeophyte wrote: 93 Points
Tremendous as always. Very yeasty.
5 on the AF scale.
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12/27/2012 - GrapeScott wrote: 92 Points
This was spectacular. Leesy but not as full-bodied as Bolly or Krug, with some brioche, marzipan and citrus peel notes. 100% pinot meunier, and a very fine example of a varietal champagne. Has a very fine mousse and palate caressing elegance that made this go down really easy. Lovely stuff, but would be ultimately outdone by the '02 Clouet to follow.
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11/9/2012 - BklynNeophyte wrote: 92 Points
Deliciously dry.
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7/13/2012 - brooklynJ&O wrote: 90 Points
give it a few minutes after opening. smell/taste a little odd at first but then opens up to be rich, nutty, great.
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4/8/2012 - Neurowine1 wrote: 90 Points
Definately a wine that takes some time in the glass to show its best. The last glass is so different from the first that this is really best shared by 2-3 people tops. It starts out with a very oxidative style. Indeed, this really is a Jura blanc version of champagne to the point that it overwhelms at first and you wonder whether it has gone off and turned to sherry. Still there is bread and nice fruit but it takes the back seat. This fades substantially with time and the wine becomes softer, rounder, and more yeasty and minerally. Some iodine/saline thing going on. A wild ride that is not for the beginner. Glad I have another 1/2 case of this as I am anxious to see how it develops.
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3/26/2012 - dandiephouse wrote: 92 Points
A very masculine Champagne which saw a fair bit of oak. Lots of bread and citrus on the nose. Fruit on the front and a earthy, savory finish. I wish it saw less oak, but it's starting to mellow now and I still definitely enjoyed it.
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3/15/2012 - indiscriminate palate wrote:
TTTG (tasted blind, notes from poor memory): Very nice champagne. Citrus (lemon, grapefruit, orange) and yeastiness on the nose, rich citrus palate with some minerality/earth.
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2/25/2012 - strad wrote: 91 Points
Splendid Pinot Meunier champs. Responds well to air so, if you’ve the time, open it an hour before serving.
4th time to the well on this one and it continues to be the gift that keeps on giving, esp. @ Zachy's $20 sale price.
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1/28/2012 - Pknut wrote:
Much clearer than a prior bottle last month, with no oxidized notes that I and others have detected. More towards the clear and white side of the spectrum than tan or golden. Palate is clean, with citrus and white grapefruit and fine bead. Dinner at Basso with the Tobiases and Tracys.
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1/15/2012 - aagrawal wrote: 93 Points
2001 Yquem Dinner: 100% Pinot Meunier. A fantastic champagne, nose was toasty, nice, complex, with slight oxidation that I enjoyed; palate had lovely mouthfeel and bubbles, great freshness, nice acidity and tartness that made it mouthwatering. Superb and drinking well now but will last and improve for years. 93
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1/14/2012 - mdefreitas wrote: 93 Points
Football and Wines from the 90s @ Mike J (Wilton, CT): Another impressive bottle. Broad shouldered and masculine, with yeasty, leesy, nutty aromas. Biscuity and a slight toastiness on the palate. Above average length and poise.
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1/8/2012 - mdefreitas wrote: 94 Points
An extremely impressive Champagne, especially at the Zachy's sale price of $20. Medium straw in color with a lovely yeasty and citric nose. Very masculine, much like Rene Collard's Champagnes, but without the overt oxidative character. The palate appeared rich and round with buttered nuts, toast and lees, but a precise acidic back end keeps things in check. Secondary hints of earth and minerals really bath the palate. Tiny bubbles and a fine mousse. These appears to have the body and structure to age, and this will be interesting to follow in the cellar.
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1/2/2012 - BklynNeophyte wrote: 95 Points
Maybe even better than the last. Just terrific. Comparable: Joe Morgan.
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12/30/2011 - strad wrote: 91 Points
Perfectly consistent with my previous note on 12/18.
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12/23/2011 - pbaek wrote:
Pknut's note is spot on. Very distinctive Champagne in the mold of a white Jura with an expressive nose of apples, nuts and minerals. Quite a full wine, slightly tart, needs food. We drank it with cheese fondue made from Gruyere and Swiss Emmenthaler and it was a great match. This is on the young side still. Bought for $20 at Zachys.
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12/20/2011 - Pknut wrote:
My first thought was that this smelled like the apple pie that my mother-in-law brought over for Thanksgiving, the apples and the dough together. On the palate, more of a "tan" hue than the clear or white fruited Blancs de Blanc that I've been opening lately, this showing notes of hay, marzipan, mushroom, light yeast and a slight nuttiness, but I wouldn't go so far as to call it an oxidized style. At $20 from the Zachys sale, this is good, and the Krug-like bottle is cool and made a statement when I brought it to the Nairs' cocktail party, but at the ~$100 K&L price, I would have been disappointed.
Update: On the second night, this wine showed pretty well. The palate shows some interesting tangerine fruit, still showing more tan than clear or white tones, with wheat and tea notes. The bead is very fine. The finish is long and impactful, with surprising energy and sustain. Pretty good tonight.
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12/19/2011 - BklynNeophyte wrote: 93 Points
Excellent champagne, and different from your run of the mill large house champagne. Extraordinary change in the wine's character as it warms to room temperature. Previous notes are correct about the yeast and bread aromas. It's like drinking a Margaret Palka roll from Columbia Street West. Drinking this wine is the reason for always tasting new and different wines rather than always relying on the familiar. Comparable: Cecil Fielder.
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12/18/2011 - strad wrote: 91 Points
If Lopez de Heredia could make a Champagne it would probably taste like this.
By the way, this is delicious!
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12/7/2011 - GrapeScott wrote: 92 Points
This is really interesting stuff, and overall quite well done. Showing a bit of the oxidative style of Bollinger/Krug/C. Heidsieck (which is right in my wheelhouse), with plenty of yeasty/bread dough on the nose. Also notes of citrus, floral/slight perfume/rose petal, marzipan, and a nice sappy, dry, mineral-tinged finish marked with something which I think must be unique to the 100% meunier, and which I will just have to call (for lack of a better word), "rose-cherry biscuits". Good acidity and weight, showing plenty of life, and the precision, verve, and finesse of the vintage. Can probably age for a few more years at least, but really nice now. Just plain silly value at $20.
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10/9/2011 - Neurowine1 wrote: 89 Points
Very nice masculine sparkler. Perhaps a bit dense for my tastes but a wine of obvious quality and breed. Definitely impressive.
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8/26/2011 - Wine Moose wrote: 92 Points
Classic young Meunier from a great producer
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7/15/2011 - GGinSF wrote: 91 Points
A great tribute to Mr. Collard. Similar in style to his sherried, rich Meunier wines, although not quite as complex. Very age-able.
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1/9/2011 - feffer wrote: 92 Points
We decided to try bottle 2 of 3 a few nights ago. This was completely different from the first, and I believe the first bottle was probably off. This bottle was light, delicate and layered, with a long lemon zest finish. Wonderful, complex and addictive.
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8/2/2010 - Tubbs wrote: 92 Points
This is a pretty serious bottle of Champagne! Not light at all but big and full of muscle. Definite notes of yeast and toast on the nose. The palate is fine and relatively creamy, not coarse at all. The flavors and texture of the pinot meunier are evident. This is a serious bottle of Champagne that I think will develop very nicely with some age, (10-15 years). In fact, I'm so bullish on this I had to go back to the well and replace the two bottles we consumed.
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5/19/2010 - Tubbs wrote:
Exceptional! Will last many many years and will reward patience.
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5/9/2010 - *Vine* wrote: 90 Points
Popped and poured. Light yellow-gold hue, fine bead. Aromas of yeast, biscuit, mixed berries, hazelnut, and a touch of wild mushrooms. Light body. On the palate, this Pinot Meunier cuvee shows individualistic charm, with complex notes of earthy red fruits, citrus, toast, minerals, and a touch of oxidation. The fruit greatly expands with air, and the medium-plus level of acidity keeps this focused and precise. Youthful, this should improve over the next 2-4 years. Worth seeking out to experience an all Meunier Champagne. 100% biodynamic as well.
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12/31/2009 - feffer wrote: 88 Points
Opened my first bottle of three tonight. I don't drink a lot of champagne, so take these observations with a grain of salt. Color is yellow/gold with a hint of pink or even brown. The fine bubbles make for pleasing texture, and when the bottle was just opened the nose and first taste showed hints of lemon/lime fizz and apple cider. However, the mid-palate and finish are dominated by yeast and nuts with notes of stewed fruit. At one point I thought if I closed by eyes and imagined a mug in my hand I'd almost believe it was dark beer (a particularly fine dark beer, no doubt). I was drinking from an old-fashioned champagne coup - 'cause I just love those old etched glasses - and the bubbles dissipated from my glass over 20 minutes, leaving a flat but lovely wine with more fruit and a soft finish. An unusual champagne for my taste buds, and not what I expected, but very enjoyable.
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12/21/2009 - ericis wrote: 91 Points
good, solid champagne. nice golden color. 100% meunier. 2nd bottle i've tried...just not that big a fan of all meunier I guess.
May get more interesting with age.
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8/22/2009 - ericis wrote: 91 Points
Easy drinker and not overpowering. 100% meunier. Would have liked quite a bit more at $49-59/bottle vs. $99 that I paid.
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3/28/2009 - tonyvelebil wrote:
All Things Pinot - Meunier, Blanc, Gris, Noir (Christianne's Place in SF): This seemed more mature than the Leclerc...yeasty, a little fatter/rounder with honey and a little bit of that sherried quality. I liked it but preferred the crispness of the Leclerc. Pinot Meunier.
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10/30/2008 - sdr wrote: 88 Points
Very interesting indeed. I like this 100% pinot meunier wine better than the examples from Rene Collard but of course this one is decades younger. It's a bit funky, which seems to be the signature of the grape but the freshness, youth and acidity of the new vintage is a nice foil. I doubt it will become more interesting as it ages, but I won't find out at this price ($99).
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10/18/2008 - Paul Lin wrote: 86 Points
100% Pinot Meunier. Notes of earth, red clay, mineral and chalk. A touch of red berries on the palate.
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