Having realized from a not universal silence that many of you are planning to spend a cozy morning reviewing that recent delectable list of Ravaut wines over your Saturday morning coffee, and since we cannot think of a better option for a dreary morning than drooling…, er, dreaming of good wine because of the mornings that we have done the same, we thought, Dear Reader, we should place a bit more information at your fingertips.
Ever sleuthful, we have been ferreting out additional information for you on the previously mentioned wine and can add the following tidbits direct from a young member of the Ravaut family. In previous postings we have discussed ad nausaeum the effects on wine of the canicule of summer of 2003. Apparently the heat, with respect to the Aloxe Corton on our list, has created a wine that is superb and ready to drink today while guarding the sauvage – what would could be translated as ‘wild’ but let us say ‘rustic’ – qualities of this wine. In general much of the natural acid of the Pinot Noir was ‘baked’ out of the grapes in the heat. Much of the structure on which the wine ages is based on acid; therefore, without it, the wine matures more quickly.
This same lack of acid is apparent in the 2003 Corton Grand Cru Les Bressandes. Our Source described it as resembling a California Pinot Noir – a warm sensation (almost as if sweet) and the taste of very ripe fruit in the mouth, the tannins are apparent so there is structure but it is not typical of Les Bressandes. Now while we can assume that the producer did describe his wine as a big California fruit bomb to completely destroy its value, we can understand it is not typical of a Burgundian Grand Cru! We would still recommend this wine simply because of its approachability and inherent beauty.
At the same time, not without some pride, the Source did say that the Corton Grand Cru Les Hautes-Mourottes was more typical – a lovely acidity and fraicher or freshness (the quality that French wine makers often find missing in CA wines). We can assume here that the pride is derived their ability to create a wine representative of what they consider to be a Grand Cru despite adverse growing conditions for the grapes.
Briefly, for 1999, the Corton Bressandes was described as mature and ready to drink while the Hautes-Mourottes is lovely but would not be hurt by a bit more time in the cave. These tips were received with not a small amount of surprise as the inverse is more normal. Bressandes is traditionally more acidic and therefore longer to guard. Here we have the chance to open a Bressandes earlier than normal, and experience this nectar!
Consider carefully our choices. This is an unusual event – older wines direct from the domain, aged in their cellars in great conditions, sold when the domain considers them ready to drink. They will deliver them in Paris next weekend also. It is additionally an opportunity to buy in cases of 6 (more typical in Bourgogne than in 12’s). Think of your holidays!
Eat, Drink, Blog!
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Old Bottles from a Fave Domain
Many of you have noticed our lack of communication since summer – not an indication of our dislike of the task, nor even a forgetfulness of our obligation. Indeed our absence was more related to an attempt to define more clearly the Insider Wine Club, focus it and deliver a product that you, Loyal Reader, are pleased to receive regularly in your mail box. The rapid-fire era in which we live leaves most of us with little disposable time to devote to long and lovingly crafted missives even when they are focused on such vital topics as wine. Therefore, we advise you to watch here and in your email inboxes for exciting modifications from the Club.
In the meantime, dining out this weekend with the Chef Cousin (simple things – mousse of champignons, tartare of oysters, and a white beans, cabbage, and meat stew), I was alerted to an opportunity I wished to share with you. One of our favorite Cote de Beaune producers, Domaine Gaston & Pierre Ravaut of Ladoix, is offering a limited amount of its Réserve bottles and its Vins Vieux stock. The difference between the two categories? The Réserve selection are wines from more recent vintages that the domain considered worthwhile to hold back or reserve because of their potential rather than selling them out completely. Vins Vieux represent older bottles which, particularly with several of the Grand Crus offered here, should be at their apogee.
A few highlights from the Réserve selection:
From 2003 – the year of the canicule, or the extreme summer heat wave in France which created a very specific condition for the grapes which in turn produced very distinctive wines that age more rapidly than traditional years – Aloxe-Corton, Corton Grand Cru Hautes-Mourottes, Corton Grand Cru Bressandes
1996 Corton Grand Cru, Hautes Mourottes and Bressandes
From the Vins Vieux selection:
Corton Grand Cru, Hautes Mourottes and Bressandes, 1993 (particularly beautiful) and 1983 (another particularly gorgeous year)
Aloxe Corton – 1983 & 1972 (!)
Ladoix les Hautes Mourottes – 1980 (an interesting name that no longer exists, my guess is that soon after this the vineyard was reclassified and merged into the Corton Grand Cru of the same name.
And for the grands amateurs of old white wines:
Ladoix blanc– 1983
All of these wines, in our humble opinion are ready to drink. Those in the Réserve list, particularly the Corton, could also be cellared for some time. Those from the Vins Vieux selection are really ready to drink. You can see the full list and learn more about these wines by emailing us.
Until then, drink up!
In the meantime, dining out this weekend with the Chef Cousin (simple things – mousse of champignons, tartare of oysters, and a white beans, cabbage, and meat stew), I was alerted to an opportunity I wished to share with you. One of our favorite Cote de Beaune producers, Domaine Gaston & Pierre Ravaut of Ladoix, is offering a limited amount of its Réserve bottles and its Vins Vieux stock. The difference between the two categories? The Réserve selection are wines from more recent vintages that the domain considered worthwhile to hold back or reserve because of their potential rather than selling them out completely. Vins Vieux represent older bottles which, particularly with several of the Grand Crus offered here, should be at their apogee.
A few highlights from the Réserve selection:
From 2003 – the year of the canicule, or the extreme summer heat wave in France which created a very specific condition for the grapes which in turn produced very distinctive wines that age more rapidly than traditional years – Aloxe-Corton, Corton Grand Cru Hautes-Mourottes, Corton Grand Cru Bressandes
1996 Corton Grand Cru, Hautes Mourottes and Bressandes
From the Vins Vieux selection:
Corton Grand Cru, Hautes Mourottes and Bressandes, 1993 (particularly beautiful) and 1983 (another particularly gorgeous year)
Aloxe Corton – 1983 & 1972 (!)
Ladoix les Hautes Mourottes – 1980 (an interesting name that no longer exists, my guess is that soon after this the vineyard was reclassified and merged into the Corton Grand Cru of the same name.
And for the grands amateurs of old white wines:
Ladoix blanc– 1983
All of these wines, in our humble opinion are ready to drink. Those in the Réserve list, particularly the Corton, could also be cellared for some time. Those from the Vins Vieux selection are really ready to drink. You can see the full list and learn more about these wines by emailing us.
Until then, drink up!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Blast from Burgundy
Yep, that's where we are, just coming off Mont Corton, yes, that Mont of Grand Cru fame, where we all accumulated after driving from Paris. It's just northwest of Beaune, and you mount the hillside out of the village of Pernand-Vergeless.
It was hard to get up so early after dinner alfresco on the terrace but a more interesting dinner was two nights before - more serious food and more serious wine. It was a white wine dinner with a focus on Pernand- Vergeless. Yep, the same and what we think of as one of the finest white wines. But more of that later.
We've come of the Mont and we are enroute to le Chateau de Clos Vougeot, again of Grand Cru fame and one of the largest appelations in the region.
This should be great!
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld
It was hard to get up so early after dinner alfresco on the terrace but a more interesting dinner was two nights before - more serious food and more serious wine. It was a white wine dinner with a focus on Pernand- Vergeless. Yep, the same and what we think of as one of the finest white wines. But more of that later.
We've come of the Mont and we are enroute to le Chateau de Clos Vougeot, again of Grand Cru fame and one of the largest appelations in the region.
This should be great!
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld
Friday, April 17, 2009
Haut-Medoc Château de Villegeorge
Now here is a wine that we have been enjoying at home when we can find it and recently we stumbled onto a small stash share with you: 2002 Haut-Medoc Cru Bourgeois, Château de Villegeorge, winner of a gold metal in 2005 at the Concours de Bordeaux et Vins d'Aquitaine. A part of the large holdings of Lucien Lurton, known for his passion for Medoc, until his death, the Château is now owned and managed by his daughter, Marie-Laure Lurton. She is one of a growing number of women-oenologists who own or operate domains producing great wine.
Ms. Lurton inherited Château de Villegeorge in 1992 and has made significant improvements in the wine as well as the property. In recognition of these changes, in 2003 the wine was elevated from Cru Bourgeois to Cru Bourgeois Supérieur. Buyers of earlier vintages than 2003 should note that this reclassification is not made on the merits of one millesime, but following many years production of high quality wine.
Several posts earlier, we wrote briefly about the various Bordeaux classifications. Most of us are familiar with the Medoc Grand Cru Classée - 1st, 2nd, etc. - established in 1855; however, the majority of red wine from the Bordeaux region is sold as "Bordeaux" meaning it is wine made in the region, full stop. It is not necessarily Medoc, Pauillac, Margaux, Saint Emilion or another appellation we know, it is simply fermented juice squeezed from grapes grown in greater Bordeaux. It spends little if any time in barrels and is sent rapidly to the market. We can buy 2008 Bordeaux now in French groceries. It is wine-pedophilia!!
There is a small hierarchy of classifications in Medoc under the level of Grand Cru. Important to remember by those of us who appreciate old wines, until 2003 Medoc only had the Grand Crus and, unofficially, Cru Bourgeois. Everything else was just "Medoc." In 2003, it was decided that, officially, Medoc wines could be further divided. This ruling established Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel with 9 wines awarded this classification; Cru Bourgeois Supérieur with 87 wines; and Cru Bourgeois containing 151 wines - for a total of less than 250 wines.
Receiving classification at one of these levels requires not only years of producing excellent wines but also maintaining production values at a significantly high level - including everything from maintenance of the vines, harvest of the grapes, length of fermentation and barrel size to types of bottles and corks. It is a significant effort and investment.
So what is interesting here, concerning our Haut-Medoc, is this bottle dates from the year prior to the reclassification and we can assume that the quality of this millesime is equal to that of the Supérieur. Additionally, the Concours in France are generally held for wines that have just been released; from this we can assume that our Haut-Medoc has spent more than a year in the barrel and was probably released in 2004.
Upon our last tasting, we noted the following: in the glass, immediately, it is the color that is so striking - a beautiful deep, dark black-purple. The nose is relatively uncomplicated carrying hints of fruit but in the mouth light tannins support a layered flow of the fruit, we imagine primarily from the Merlot, followed by the more typical tastes associated with the Cabernet Sauvignon - ripe cherries, toasted spices and tobacco. The finish is pleasant and lingers slightly. The bottle is really at its apogee.
Depending on the year and how the grapes mature, Villegeorge can include as much as 60% Merlot giving it the beautiful fresh fruit. The remainder of the wine is primarily Cabernet Sauvignon and, again depending upon the year, a small amount of Cabernet Franc, the grape most often found in Loire valley wines like Saumur. 2002 was a difficult year for vintners in Bordeaux. Spring was cold until late May, August was awful with too much rain and all was saved only by a warm September that lasted until an Indian Summer during October. The majority of the Medocs from this year are lacking the tannic structure necessary to support a long maturity and now seems to be the time to drink them to appreciate their full potential.
We said it recently and we'll say it again, "2002 is the new 2000," buy it (and we know from where, right?) and drink it!!
Ms. Lurton inherited Château de Villegeorge in 1992 and has made significant improvements in the wine as well as the property. In recognition of these changes, in 2003 the wine was elevated from Cru Bourgeois to Cru Bourgeois Supérieur. Buyers of earlier vintages than 2003 should note that this reclassification is not made on the merits of one millesime, but following many years production of high quality wine.
Several posts earlier, we wrote briefly about the various Bordeaux classifications. Most of us are familiar with the Medoc Grand Cru Classée - 1st, 2nd, etc. - established in 1855; however, the majority of red wine from the Bordeaux region is sold as "Bordeaux" meaning it is wine made in the region, full stop. It is not necessarily Medoc, Pauillac, Margaux, Saint Emilion or another appellation we know, it is simply fermented juice squeezed from grapes grown in greater Bordeaux. It spends little if any time in barrels and is sent rapidly to the market. We can buy 2008 Bordeaux now in French groceries. It is wine-pedophilia!!
There is a small hierarchy of classifications in Medoc under the level of Grand Cru. Important to remember by those of us who appreciate old wines, until 2003 Medoc only had the Grand Crus and, unofficially, Cru Bourgeois. Everything else was just "Medoc." In 2003, it was decided that, officially, Medoc wines could be further divided. This ruling established Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel with 9 wines awarded this classification; Cru Bourgeois Supérieur with 87 wines; and Cru Bourgeois containing 151 wines - for a total of less than 250 wines.
Receiving classification at one of these levels requires not only years of producing excellent wines but also maintaining production values at a significantly high level - including everything from maintenance of the vines, harvest of the grapes, length of fermentation and barrel size to types of bottles and corks. It is a significant effort and investment.
So what is interesting here, concerning our Haut-Medoc, is this bottle dates from the year prior to the reclassification and we can assume that the quality of this millesime is equal to that of the Supérieur. Additionally, the Concours in France are generally held for wines that have just been released; from this we can assume that our Haut-Medoc has spent more than a year in the barrel and was probably released in 2004.
Upon our last tasting, we noted the following: in the glass, immediately, it is the color that is so striking - a beautiful deep, dark black-purple. The nose is relatively uncomplicated carrying hints of fruit but in the mouth light tannins support a layered flow of the fruit, we imagine primarily from the Merlot, followed by the more typical tastes associated with the Cabernet Sauvignon - ripe cherries, toasted spices and tobacco. The finish is pleasant and lingers slightly. The bottle is really at its apogee.
Depending on the year and how the grapes mature, Villegeorge can include as much as 60% Merlot giving it the beautiful fresh fruit. The remainder of the wine is primarily Cabernet Sauvignon and, again depending upon the year, a small amount of Cabernet Franc, the grape most often found in Loire valley wines like Saumur. 2002 was a difficult year for vintners in Bordeaux. Spring was cold until late May, August was awful with too much rain and all was saved only by a warm September that lasted until an Indian Summer during October. The majority of the Medocs from this year are lacking the tannic structure necessary to support a long maturity and now seems to be the time to drink them to appreciate their full potential.
We said it recently and we'll say it again, "2002 is the new 2000," buy it (and we know from where, right?) and drink it!!
Friday, April 10, 2009
Chablis Dinner
The other evening we invited a few friends over for dinner. One of whom, like us, appreciates old Burgundies, so we decided to subject all of them to a flight of Chablis of various ages. Specifically, Chablis 1er Cru, Fourchaume. Fourchaume is a one of the 1er Cru parcelles in the appellation of Chablis located north of the river Serein, rive droite, but this broad-brush description does not give credit to the significance of terroir, or the ground in which the vines grow. We opened a 2004 from Domaine Châtelain, a 1999 from Boudin, a 1998 from William Fevre, all 1er Cru Fourchaume; and finished with a 1991 Grand Cru Les Preuses from La Chablisienne.
Our first experience with terroir took place in Bordeaux, also on the rive droite but of the Gironde, while standing at the edge of a field at a T-shaped intersection of what can best be described as tractor tracks. When we asked the wine maker why they divided the field as they had, he explained that to the left of the tractor track was Pomerol, to the right Lalande-de-Pomerol and behind us Saint-Emilion. With further examination, we could see differences in the soil of each field – more or less gravel, more clay – that created the distinction that led to the division by appellation.
However it is in Bourgogne that we are much more struck by the importance of terroir. Here, unlike in Bordeaux, the wine is made from the juice extracted from one grape – pinot noir for red and chardonnay for white – rather than the traditional blend of several grapes in Bordeaux. In Chablis, we find four appellations – Petit Chablis, Chablis, Chablis Premiere Cru, and Chablis Grand Cru – all white wines that exhibit obvious similarities but incredible differences.
Chablis is know for the Kimmeridge clay formed during the Cretaceous period and made up of limestone, clay and even fossilized oyster shells that date back to a time when this area of France was covered by sea water. It is the same Kimmeridge clay that forms the White Cliffs of Dover. So this limestone clay and the fact that Chablis is located at the northern extremes of sustainable viticulture give the sharp acidity and minerality that we associate with this wine. Closer examination of the region shows three subtle differences in the soil.
South of the river, rive gauche, the soil is typically Kimmeridgian with it usual mix of limestone gravel and light clay. North of the river, rive doite, the soil is similar but extremely dry, even arid. At the northern end of the Serein Valley in which Chablis lies, on either side of the river, the limestone clay has been enriched over time by a great deal of decomposed plant matter perhaps deposited there by the flow of the river and this is here that the parcelle Fourchaume is located.
We had often heard of these distinctions but had never experienced the difference created by these deposits. Fourchaume is clearly a Chablis. In the glass, the color is a light yellow with pale green reflections when it is young, tending toward golden with age. The nose offers light minerality that lessens with age and the odour of white flowers that seems to melt into honeyed tones with maturity.
Not being completely sure what we would find upon uncorking our bottles, we chose our menu with trepidation, trying to avoid sharp flavors, vinegar and other tastes that could impact the flavor of the wine. We also decided to be traditional in the manner we opened the bottles – youngest to oldest. So we began with the 2004 from Domaine Châtelain. This is a small and relatively young domain, as are most in Chablis. The end of the 19th century heralded a difficult period for the region – mold, phylloxera, two world wars – and despite a 1938 ruling that established the Appellation d’origine controlée, by 1950 less than half the vineyards in Chablis were cultivated.
We opened the 2004 with a composed salad of peas and radish dressed with a lemon cumin dressing, and its relative youth stood up to the spice. The color was pale yellow, and the nose was lightly flowery with hints of minerality. In the mouth, the wine was fresh and fruity. There was light acid that the fruit supported with a slight sweetness. All in all, a pleasant wine to open with friends or a cumin dressing.
Next up was the 1999 from Boudin. More completely known as Boudin Père et Fils Domaine de Chantemerle, this domain is also a family business producing Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume, and 1er Cru Homme Mort. We had decided to serve it with salmon in a dill cream. Pulling the cork on this bottle, the scent was slightly sweet. Not a great sign. In the glass, the color was a deep yellow and the nose while slightly flowery still carried that sweetness. In the mouth, the wine seemed past its prime, unfortunately, and several guests did not finish their glasses. We found it drinkable but not extraordinary.
As a ‘pre-post-script’ (does that make sense?), we had pulled two bottles of this wine from the cave but opened only one. The next afternoon, two other friends stopped by and we opened the second bottle for an aperitif. Wow, what a difference. Never judge a book by its cover, and never judge an older wine by one bottle. Although they were all bought from one owner, the first bottle was ‘off.’ The second was lovely – the color was still a golden yellow, but the nose was full of white flowers melting into honeyed ripeness. In the mouth one could understand why this was a Premier Cru; all the acid and harsh minerality was gone replaced by a structured wash of flavors including fruit, honey, even toast, all supported with a light tannin probably a result of the new oak barrels in which many 1er Cru Chablis spend some time. This was the winner and a great keeper!
To continue the dinner, we decided to tempt tradition by pouring the 1998 from William Fevre with the cheese course. For this exercise, we had chosen cheeses typically from Bourgogne – Epoisses, brillat savarin, and several goat cheeses. Fevre was a respected producer that fell on difficult times in the late 1990’s. Henriot, the family known for the Champagne but no longer the owners, bought the domain in the early 2000’s and have dedicated resources to restoring its reputation.
This bottle stood up to the cheese handily, but brought us little more. Yes, it was obviously a 1er Cru Fourchaume, but we would not rush out for more. Several months prior we had drunk a 2003 Grand Cru from Fevre. Likewise, well made and potentially too young, we did not think that that bottle lived up to its potential either. We’ve decided to give the new owners more time to improve their production before passing final judgment.
For the final, we chose a much older bottle, and a Grand Cru. Knowing that with age, a good bottle will loose more and more acidity and express more sweetness, and a Grand Cru should age longer than a 1er Cru, we chose this one for the dessert course. Unfortunately, the dessert we made was less than stellar which, naturally, reflected badly on the wine. But the wine had beautiful color, a deep golden yellow; the nose was complex and expressed even the beloved mustiness of older Burgundy reds; in the mouth, it was full and round with a lingering flavor of honey and toasted nuts. It was successful but special, not everyone loves old white wines, even if we do! The producer, La Chablisienne, is an old and established cooperative in Chablis, buying grapes from 300 growers, and it has produced excellent wines since 1923.
The real winner here was the 1999 from Boudin. Remembering that Fourchaumes will be rounder and more flowery, buy it, drink it, enjoy!
Our first experience with terroir took place in Bordeaux, also on the rive droite but of the Gironde, while standing at the edge of a field at a T-shaped intersection of what can best be described as tractor tracks. When we asked the wine maker why they divided the field as they had, he explained that to the left of the tractor track was Pomerol, to the right Lalande-de-Pomerol and behind us Saint-Emilion. With further examination, we could see differences in the soil of each field – more or less gravel, more clay – that created the distinction that led to the division by appellation.
However it is in Bourgogne that we are much more struck by the importance of terroir. Here, unlike in Bordeaux, the wine is made from the juice extracted from one grape – pinot noir for red and chardonnay for white – rather than the traditional blend of several grapes in Bordeaux. In Chablis, we find four appellations – Petit Chablis, Chablis, Chablis Premiere Cru, and Chablis Grand Cru – all white wines that exhibit obvious similarities but incredible differences.
Chablis is know for the Kimmeridge clay formed during the Cretaceous period and made up of limestone, clay and even fossilized oyster shells that date back to a time when this area of France was covered by sea water. It is the same Kimmeridge clay that forms the White Cliffs of Dover. So this limestone clay and the fact that Chablis is located at the northern extremes of sustainable viticulture give the sharp acidity and minerality that we associate with this wine. Closer examination of the region shows three subtle differences in the soil.
South of the river, rive gauche, the soil is typically Kimmeridgian with it usual mix of limestone gravel and light clay. North of the river, rive doite, the soil is similar but extremely dry, even arid. At the northern end of the Serein Valley in which Chablis lies, on either side of the river, the limestone clay has been enriched over time by a great deal of decomposed plant matter perhaps deposited there by the flow of the river and this is here that the parcelle Fourchaume is located.
We had often heard of these distinctions but had never experienced the difference created by these deposits. Fourchaume is clearly a Chablis. In the glass, the color is a light yellow with pale green reflections when it is young, tending toward golden with age. The nose offers light minerality that lessens with age and the odour of white flowers that seems to melt into honeyed tones with maturity.
Not being completely sure what we would find upon uncorking our bottles, we chose our menu with trepidation, trying to avoid sharp flavors, vinegar and other tastes that could impact the flavor of the wine. We also decided to be traditional in the manner we opened the bottles – youngest to oldest. So we began with the 2004 from Domaine Châtelain. This is a small and relatively young domain, as are most in Chablis. The end of the 19th century heralded a difficult period for the region – mold, phylloxera, two world wars – and despite a 1938 ruling that established the Appellation d’origine controlée, by 1950 less than half the vineyards in Chablis were cultivated.
We opened the 2004 with a composed salad of peas and radish dressed with a lemon cumin dressing, and its relative youth stood up to the spice. The color was pale yellow, and the nose was lightly flowery with hints of minerality. In the mouth, the wine was fresh and fruity. There was light acid that the fruit supported with a slight sweetness. All in all, a pleasant wine to open with friends or a cumin dressing.
Next up was the 1999 from Boudin. More completely known as Boudin Père et Fils Domaine de Chantemerle, this domain is also a family business producing Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume, and 1er Cru Homme Mort. We had decided to serve it with salmon in a dill cream. Pulling the cork on this bottle, the scent was slightly sweet. Not a great sign. In the glass, the color was a deep yellow and the nose while slightly flowery still carried that sweetness. In the mouth, the wine seemed past its prime, unfortunately, and several guests did not finish their glasses. We found it drinkable but not extraordinary.
As a ‘pre-post-script’ (does that make sense?), we had pulled two bottles of this wine from the cave but opened only one. The next afternoon, two other friends stopped by and we opened the second bottle for an aperitif. Wow, what a difference. Never judge a book by its cover, and never judge an older wine by one bottle. Although they were all bought from one owner, the first bottle was ‘off.’ The second was lovely – the color was still a golden yellow, but the nose was full of white flowers melting into honeyed ripeness. In the mouth one could understand why this was a Premier Cru; all the acid and harsh minerality was gone replaced by a structured wash of flavors including fruit, honey, even toast, all supported with a light tannin probably a result of the new oak barrels in which many 1er Cru Chablis spend some time. This was the winner and a great keeper!
To continue the dinner, we decided to tempt tradition by pouring the 1998 from William Fevre with the cheese course. For this exercise, we had chosen cheeses typically from Bourgogne – Epoisses, brillat savarin, and several goat cheeses. Fevre was a respected producer that fell on difficult times in the late 1990’s. Henriot, the family known for the Champagne but no longer the owners, bought the domain in the early 2000’s and have dedicated resources to restoring its reputation.
This bottle stood up to the cheese handily, but brought us little more. Yes, it was obviously a 1er Cru Fourchaume, but we would not rush out for more. Several months prior we had drunk a 2003 Grand Cru from Fevre. Likewise, well made and potentially too young, we did not think that that bottle lived up to its potential either. We’ve decided to give the new owners more time to improve their production before passing final judgment.
For the final, we chose a much older bottle, and a Grand Cru. Knowing that with age, a good bottle will loose more and more acidity and express more sweetness, and a Grand Cru should age longer than a 1er Cru, we chose this one for the dessert course. Unfortunately, the dessert we made was less than stellar which, naturally, reflected badly on the wine. But the wine had beautiful color, a deep golden yellow; the nose was complex and expressed even the beloved mustiness of older Burgundy reds; in the mouth, it was full and round with a lingering flavor of honey and toasted nuts. It was successful but special, not everyone loves old white wines, even if we do! The producer, La Chablisienne, is an old and established cooperative in Chablis, buying grapes from 300 growers, and it has produced excellent wines since 1923.
The real winner here was the 1999 from Boudin. Remembering that Fourchaumes will be rounder and more flowery, buy it, drink it, enjoy!
Monday, March 23, 2009
Multiple Tastes
There are two seasons in France that make us sit up straight and pay attention - autumn and spring, specifically October and March when the Foires aux Vins occur. The autumn Foire is better but March is not bad, maybe because at this time the vineyards are willing to sell stock at a discount to get recoup some storage space (remember that many Burgundian whites are bottled in the spring after their harvest.
As a result, we are out tasting, degusting and buying where we can. That means that the apartment is filled with boxes and there are many to test at each dinner. Friday evening upon my arrival in Paris was no exception. It was decided we would go to Restaurant La Cordonnerie, where we are 'related' to the young and dynamic chef, Hugo. We have also depended upon him for the initial portion of our early wine education, and now we collaborate on wine purchases (his deep connections and restaurant buying power gives us great 'tag-along' prices).
This evening we had several wines to appraise: a white 2003 Mercurey, Domaine Faively; another white, a 2007 Saint-Aubin, Domaine ________ (I cannot remember this, shockingly, but promise to get back to you with the name); en carafe, a red 1990 Chassagne-Montrachet, domain unknown, that should not have been carafed and was dead as a result so we won't review; a 1997 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru, Henri Rebourseau; a 1982 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru, Henri Rebourseau; and a 1982 Pauillac, Château Colombier-Monpelou.
Sounds like a lot of good wine, but we were four! Ah, the sacrifices made for the sake of blog. By the way, the last three wines were not labeled red or white because these wines are always red. That said, to work. We opened the Mercurey first; it was only lightly chilled (we a big fans of unchilled whites - don't drink them too young and don't drink them too cold!!) and of course 2003 was that special year, summer of the canicule, the massive heat wave, and French wines are different for this. This one was no exception; its color was pale yellow, the nose carried the muskiness of Burgundy overlaid with light white flowers. Mercurey is a particular wine, white or red, carrying a taste that is particular to the appellation. Like Meursault, it can be misunderstood by the uninitiated.
This one did not disappoint; with the first sip there was that distinctive Mercurey flavor carrying an almost musky grassiness - very pleasant and extremely drinkable. For our money, without the canicule, we would think this wine too young but the hot growing season of 2003 produced grapes that gave wine that ages more rapidly. Remember this when buying wines from France. Interestingly, this bottle sat on the table most of the evening and several returned to it for tastes. It held its own with most foods, even cheese, and with time the bouquet became stronger; at the same time, it was definitely agreed that this was a bottle that one opened with friends for a glass of wine alone or with food. Very drinkable. You, Attentive Reader, will find this on your next list and at a very good price. Don't miss it.
Next up, the Saint-Aubin. St.-Aubin is a small village pinched between Puligny and Chassagne; therefore, much overshadowed by its more well-known neighbors. Sadly it is little seen Stateside, but is worth finding if possible. The whites carry more importance than the reds as in Meursault, but both are very drinkable. St.-Aubin is not considered to be a great wine and therefore is rarely aged too long, but we have tried some that when well-cellared are lovely. At this age, a 2007, the wine was full of life and a total expression of terroir, or the soil in which the grapes were grown. For _____________ that means much mineral. In the nose one could even smell wet stone. In the mouth, it was sharp and the minerals supported, only at the end, very fresh fruit. Hugo was pleased with the wine and reminded us that we had degusted at this producer in St.-Aubin, but the wine was freshly bottled and very closed; we remembered it being very early in the morning after a grand dinner the night before and when we wanted coffee more than wine, but....
Hugo appreciates wines for their mineral (whites) and fresh fruit (reds); we prefer more subtlety. This wine was heavily into Hugo's camp and paired well with a starter of verrine d'oeufs brouilles aux lardons avec mousse de cocos, or, loosely translated, eggs lightly scrambled with bits of ham served in a small glass under a mousse prepared from large white flat beans (cocos). It sounds so much more sophisticated in French! Anyway, with this course, the St.-Aubin was excellent, its minerality cutting into the fattiness of the eggs and ham. As the night wore on, the nose developed with more green herbs mixed with the mineral but en bouche, it remained very sharp.
As we mentioned, the Chassagne should not have been left so long in the carafe; Burgundies can be fragile and, if carafed, should be left minutes not hours. In its place, the '97 Charmes. Always a Grand Cru, and this one made by one of our faves - Rebourseau. He's an odd genius, working around the phases of the moon, spouting quotable bits, and following in his father's and grandfather's footsteps. This Charmes was beautiful in the glass - a deep cherry red, with an intense nose that broadcast first the slight mustiness of good red Burgundies followed by red fruits overlaid with slight violets. In the mouth, it was lovely - the grape was still apparent followed by the red fruits of the nose and with a strong support of tannins.
Perhaps too much tannin for me; while it was a good wine, it has the possibility to be great. Buying from certain spreadsheets (hint, hint) one will pay $100-125 per bottle; in reputable stores expect prices over $200. At those prices, we want perfection in the glass. The French say that by counting the seconds the taste lingers in the mouth after swallowing tells one how long the wine will last. With this bottle, I'd say 4-5 years more for its apogée, or prime. In a Charmes, we'd recommend looking for a '90 (great year), '91 or '93 (reasonable year), or a '92 (not considered a great year, but with a know producer, can be worthwhile).
Ignoring our own advice above, we then opened the 1982 Charmes-Chambertin, also from Rebourseau. In this area of the Côte de Nuits, there are several Grand Crus - Bonnes Mares, Clos de la Roche, Clos Saint-Denis, Clos de Vougeot, Mazis-Chambertin, Chambertin, and Charmes-Chambertin - and Charmes is said to mature the most rapidly and should be drunk first. Sadly, as predicted, this one was past. That is not to say it was vinegar or without taste, but instead it had turned, maderized, as the French would say. Unlike in white wines where maderization turns them sugary, here the color breaks down to ruddy brown with almost clear edges where the wine meets the glass. The nose is sweet but in the mouth there is an effect like a watered-down port. We did not finish this one!
Last up was the Bordeaux, the Pauillac. With this year we had great hopes. Remember that France may be small but a bad year in Burgundy does not necessarily dictate the same in Bordeaux and '82 is considered one of the great millesimes in Bordeaux. With the first bottle, the cork had a strange odor. The color was very good - a deep purple - in the glass, but the nose was off. Again, not vinegar but not Bordeaux. On participant described it as iodine, like a big plateau fruit de mer. I could not find that in the mouth but it did not have the richness of fruits and tannins traditionally found in Bordeaux.
We pulled a second cork, and it smelled better. Into the glass, again the beautiful color, but again the odd nose. This time I could smell the iodine, like being on the beach in the early spring with the wind off the ocean. And I noticed tiny crystals on the surface of the cork that meets the wine. Now, we're not a chemist even if our father is, but it seems logical that these crystals would be most likely to form on a moist cork that is not submerged but rather that is in contact with the air. Perhaps at some point the wine was stored upright allowing the cork to dry. Although we believe a purchaser of wine has the responsibility to return 'off' wine to the seller and the seller should replace the wine free of charge, we do not believe this seller has the same philosophy. Time will tell, stay connected!
And here is a bit of information on this Bordeaux in particular and Bordeaux classifications in general. Because the Pauillac was from a significant year, we had decided to purchase from a reseller seven bottles of this 1982, Château Colombier-Monpelou. The château owner, Bernard Jugla, only makes annually about 100,000 bottles of a blend of Carbernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, and Carbernet Franc. The wine, produced with traditional methods, has an excellent reputation and was classified a Cru Bourgeois Supérieur in 2003. Bordeaux has, primarily for Médoc (remembering that Médoc includes Pauillac, Margaux, Haut-Médoc, St.-Estèphe, and St.-Julien), five levels of Grand Cru Classée: Premier (5), Deuxième (14), Troisième (14), Quatrième (10), and Cinquième (18), also called "Growths, First Growth, Second Growth, etc., and primarily established in 1855.
Also included in this classification in 1855 was one Graves, Château Haut-Brion, and at the same Sauternes and Barsacs (sweet white wines from the region) were granted classification as Premier Cru Supérieur (only Château d'Yquem), Premiers Crus (11) and Deuxièmes Crus (15). Following this classification in 1855, some regions created their own classification, but Pomerol determined their wines were prestigious enough not to need further classifying.
In Saint-Emilion, wines were given Grand Cru labels which were to be reclassified each ten years but following the first classification in 1954, it was done erratically, and the 2006 classification has been ruled invalid in 2008 by the courts of Bordeaux because of challenges by châteaux demoted during this classification. Loss of a Cru Classé label can mean loss of income and sales despite having made expenditures required of the now lost classification. Nevertheless, there are three primary classifications in St-Emilion: Premier Grands Crus Classés A (2), Premiers Grands Crus Classés B (13), and Grands Crus Classés (depends upon the year of the classement).
Drink up!
As a result, we are out tasting, degusting and buying where we can. That means that the apartment is filled with boxes and there are many to test at each dinner. Friday evening upon my arrival in Paris was no exception. It was decided we would go to Restaurant La Cordonnerie, where we are 'related' to the young and dynamic chef, Hugo. We have also depended upon him for the initial portion of our early wine education, and now we collaborate on wine purchases (his deep connections and restaurant buying power gives us great 'tag-along' prices).
This evening we had several wines to appraise: a white 2003 Mercurey, Domaine Faively; another white, a 2007 Saint-Aubin, Domaine ________ (I cannot remember this, shockingly, but promise to get back to you with the name); en carafe, a red 1990 Chassagne-Montrachet, domain unknown, that should not have been carafed and was dead as a result so we won't review; a 1997 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru, Henri Rebourseau; a 1982 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru, Henri Rebourseau; and a 1982 Pauillac, Château Colombier-Monpelou.
Sounds like a lot of good wine, but we were four! Ah, the sacrifices made for the sake of blog. By the way, the last three wines were not labeled red or white because these wines are always red. That said, to work. We opened the Mercurey first; it was only lightly chilled (we a big fans of unchilled whites - don't drink them too young and don't drink them too cold!!) and of course 2003 was that special year, summer of the canicule, the massive heat wave, and French wines are different for this. This one was no exception; its color was pale yellow, the nose carried the muskiness of Burgundy overlaid with light white flowers. Mercurey is a particular wine, white or red, carrying a taste that is particular to the appellation. Like Meursault, it can be misunderstood by the uninitiated.
This one did not disappoint; with the first sip there was that distinctive Mercurey flavor carrying an almost musky grassiness - very pleasant and extremely drinkable. For our money, without the canicule, we would think this wine too young but the hot growing season of 2003 produced grapes that gave wine that ages more rapidly. Remember this when buying wines from France. Interestingly, this bottle sat on the table most of the evening and several returned to it for tastes. It held its own with most foods, even cheese, and with time the bouquet became stronger; at the same time, it was definitely agreed that this was a bottle that one opened with friends for a glass of wine alone or with food. Very drinkable. You, Attentive Reader, will find this on your next list and at a very good price. Don't miss it.
Next up, the Saint-Aubin. St.-Aubin is a small village pinched between Puligny and Chassagne; therefore, much overshadowed by its more well-known neighbors. Sadly it is little seen Stateside, but is worth finding if possible. The whites carry more importance than the reds as in Meursault, but both are very drinkable. St.-Aubin is not considered to be a great wine and therefore is rarely aged too long, but we have tried some that when well-cellared are lovely. At this age, a 2007, the wine was full of life and a total expression of terroir, or the soil in which the grapes were grown. For _____________ that means much mineral. In the nose one could even smell wet stone. In the mouth, it was sharp and the minerals supported, only at the end, very fresh fruit. Hugo was pleased with the wine and reminded us that we had degusted at this producer in St.-Aubin, but the wine was freshly bottled and very closed; we remembered it being very early in the morning after a grand dinner the night before and when we wanted coffee more than wine, but....
Hugo appreciates wines for their mineral (whites) and fresh fruit (reds); we prefer more subtlety. This wine was heavily into Hugo's camp and paired well with a starter of verrine d'oeufs brouilles aux lardons avec mousse de cocos, or, loosely translated, eggs lightly scrambled with bits of ham served in a small glass under a mousse prepared from large white flat beans (cocos). It sounds so much more sophisticated in French! Anyway, with this course, the St.-Aubin was excellent, its minerality cutting into the fattiness of the eggs and ham. As the night wore on, the nose developed with more green herbs mixed with the mineral but en bouche, it remained very sharp.
As we mentioned, the Chassagne should not have been left so long in the carafe; Burgundies can be fragile and, if carafed, should be left minutes not hours. In its place, the '97 Charmes. Always a Grand Cru, and this one made by one of our faves - Rebourseau. He's an odd genius, working around the phases of the moon, spouting quotable bits, and following in his father's and grandfather's footsteps. This Charmes was beautiful in the glass - a deep cherry red, with an intense nose that broadcast first the slight mustiness of good red Burgundies followed by red fruits overlaid with slight violets. In the mouth, it was lovely - the grape was still apparent followed by the red fruits of the nose and with a strong support of tannins.
Perhaps too much tannin for me; while it was a good wine, it has the possibility to be great. Buying from certain spreadsheets (hint, hint) one will pay $100-125 per bottle; in reputable stores expect prices over $200. At those prices, we want perfection in the glass. The French say that by counting the seconds the taste lingers in the mouth after swallowing tells one how long the wine will last. With this bottle, I'd say 4-5 years more for its apogée, or prime. In a Charmes, we'd recommend looking for a '90 (great year), '91 or '93 (reasonable year), or a '92 (not considered a great year, but with a know producer, can be worthwhile).
Ignoring our own advice above, we then opened the 1982 Charmes-Chambertin, also from Rebourseau. In this area of the Côte de Nuits, there are several Grand Crus - Bonnes Mares, Clos de la Roche, Clos Saint-Denis, Clos de Vougeot, Mazis-Chambertin, Chambertin, and Charmes-Chambertin - and Charmes is said to mature the most rapidly and should be drunk first. Sadly, as predicted, this one was past. That is not to say it was vinegar or without taste, but instead it had turned, maderized, as the French would say. Unlike in white wines where maderization turns them sugary, here the color breaks down to ruddy brown with almost clear edges where the wine meets the glass. The nose is sweet but in the mouth there is an effect like a watered-down port. We did not finish this one!
Last up was the Bordeaux, the Pauillac. With this year we had great hopes. Remember that France may be small but a bad year in Burgundy does not necessarily dictate the same in Bordeaux and '82 is considered one of the great millesimes in Bordeaux. With the first bottle, the cork had a strange odor. The color was very good - a deep purple - in the glass, but the nose was off. Again, not vinegar but not Bordeaux. On participant described it as iodine, like a big plateau fruit de mer. I could not find that in the mouth but it did not have the richness of fruits and tannins traditionally found in Bordeaux.
We pulled a second cork, and it smelled better. Into the glass, again the beautiful color, but again the odd nose. This time I could smell the iodine, like being on the beach in the early spring with the wind off the ocean. And I noticed tiny crystals on the surface of the cork that meets the wine. Now, we're not a chemist even if our father is, but it seems logical that these crystals would be most likely to form on a moist cork that is not submerged but rather that is in contact with the air. Perhaps at some point the wine was stored upright allowing the cork to dry. Although we believe a purchaser of wine has the responsibility to return 'off' wine to the seller and the seller should replace the wine free of charge, we do not believe this seller has the same philosophy. Time will tell, stay connected!
And here is a bit of information on this Bordeaux in particular and Bordeaux classifications in general. Because the Pauillac was from a significant year, we had decided to purchase from a reseller seven bottles of this 1982, Château Colombier-Monpelou. The château owner, Bernard Jugla, only makes annually about 100,000 bottles of a blend of Carbernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, and Carbernet Franc. The wine, produced with traditional methods, has an excellent reputation and was classified a Cru Bourgeois Supérieur in 2003. Bordeaux has, primarily for Médoc (remembering that Médoc includes Pauillac, Margaux, Haut-Médoc, St.-Estèphe, and St.-Julien), five levels of Grand Cru Classée: Premier (5), Deuxième (14), Troisième (14), Quatrième (10), and Cinquième (18), also called "Growths, First Growth, Second Growth, etc., and primarily established in 1855.
Also included in this classification in 1855 was one Graves, Château Haut-Brion, and at the same Sauternes and Barsacs (sweet white wines from the region) were granted classification as Premier Cru Supérieur (only Château d'Yquem), Premiers Crus (11) and Deuxièmes Crus (15). Following this classification in 1855, some regions created their own classification, but Pomerol determined their wines were prestigious enough not to need further classifying.
In Saint-Emilion, wines were given Grand Cru labels which were to be reclassified each ten years but following the first classification in 1954, it was done erratically, and the 2006 classification has been ruled invalid in 2008 by the courts of Bordeaux because of challenges by châteaux demoted during this classification. Loss of a Cru Classé label can mean loss of income and sales despite having made expenditures required of the now lost classification. Nevertheless, there are three primary classifications in St-Emilion: Premier Grands Crus Classés A (2), Premiers Grands Crus Classés B (13), and Grands Crus Classés (depends upon the year of the classement).
Drink up!
Park Avenue II
Sadly, dear Readers, we are a bit late with our final few notes on the remaining wines from Park Avenue Liquors and officially that sale may be over. However, in these times, we will wager a good bottle that if you went in and bought a couple of bottles (that means six or more), they'd honor the sale. Times ain't what they used to be...
There remain two red Burgundies to discuss: Santenay 1er Cru Grand Clos Rousseau, Domaine Mommessin 2002, $32 and Savigny-les-Beaune 1er Cru Les Narbatons, Louis Jadot 2002, $30. We wish we had raves, but we don't! But we will offer a disclaimer, a ray of light on the review - it is very possible that we were drinking these two wines too young; ugh, wine pedophilia.... Not really, we have been saying that 2002 is the new 2000 (you can quote us on that!!) because as we tasted and degusted we have found some 2002 that upon first 'sniff' a year or two ago did not excite us that now are making us smile with that first sip.
Both of these wines are from the Côtes de Beaune, and Santenay is located southwest of Beaune and Chassagne-Montrachet. Interestingly enough, the parcelle Grand Clos Rousseau lies on the border between the Côte-d'Or and Saône-et-Loire, making it really easing into Mâcon, where temperatures are warmer. Santenay generally falls into the general wine category, "Beaune-type" of which we are so fond; their elegance and finesse often allows this wine to be overlooked. Typically, Santenay is very aromatic with hints of red fruits and also flowers - roses, violets, peonies. In the mouth, the tannins are firm but not too sharp but balance an intense burst of flavor.
With this Santenay from Mommessin, we did not find fault but we did miss the burst of flavor in the mouth and the bouquet was not as full as hoped. The tannins were still apparent and the color was excellent - a deep purple - and for those reasons we believe this wine will mature in the coming years. We believe another year and it will be prime. Buy it and guard it or come back in a year and hope PA Liquors still has it.
On to the Savigny from Jadot. We've all seen their wines everywhere for years but without defending over-production (it's actually illegal in Burgundy, production levels are controlled by volume per hectare of vineyard each year, meaning that some Premier Cru juice ends up in Village appellation wines on some years which can only increase the quality of those wines), if you are buying Jadot wines of a certain level, say Premier Cru or small Village appellations, then you are probably not going to be disappointed. At the same time, you are probably also getting a very middle-of-the-road wine that, on very good years, is missing some of the extraordinary heights other producers' wines will exhibit.
That said, 2002 was not a blockbuster year and this wine was very drinkable. The color was good - a dark cherry red - and the nose carried a decent bouquet of fruit. Now the village of Savigny lies slightly north of the city of Beaune and south-west of Mount Corton which gives most of the parcelles a southern exposure without much elevation. Typically that can mean a flabby wine but here the rocky soil give the wine a fine, thin body. While the southern exposition probably limits the expression of tannins, they are present until maturity but throughout the life the fruit is apparent and up front. In this Jadot, we may be missing a bit of the full fruit and some of the elegance but for $30 we were not unhappy. Buy it to drink now or over the next year.
Lots to tell in the coming days. Until then...
There remain two red Burgundies to discuss: Santenay 1er Cru Grand Clos Rousseau, Domaine Mommessin 2002, $32 and Savigny-les-Beaune 1er Cru Les Narbatons, Louis Jadot 2002, $30. We wish we had raves, but we don't! But we will offer a disclaimer, a ray of light on the review - it is very possible that we were drinking these two wines too young; ugh, wine pedophilia.... Not really, we have been saying that 2002 is the new 2000 (you can quote us on that!!) because as we tasted and degusted we have found some 2002 that upon first 'sniff' a year or two ago did not excite us that now are making us smile with that first sip.
Both of these wines are from the Côtes de Beaune, and Santenay is located southwest of Beaune and Chassagne-Montrachet. Interestingly enough, the parcelle Grand Clos Rousseau lies on the border between the Côte-d'Or and Saône-et-Loire, making it really easing into Mâcon, where temperatures are warmer. Santenay generally falls into the general wine category, "Beaune-type" of which we are so fond; their elegance and finesse often allows this wine to be overlooked. Typically, Santenay is very aromatic with hints of red fruits and also flowers - roses, violets, peonies. In the mouth, the tannins are firm but not too sharp but balance an intense burst of flavor.
With this Santenay from Mommessin, we did not find fault but we did miss the burst of flavor in the mouth and the bouquet was not as full as hoped. The tannins were still apparent and the color was excellent - a deep purple - and for those reasons we believe this wine will mature in the coming years. We believe another year and it will be prime. Buy it and guard it or come back in a year and hope PA Liquors still has it.
On to the Savigny from Jadot. We've all seen their wines everywhere for years but without defending over-production (it's actually illegal in Burgundy, production levels are controlled by volume per hectare of vineyard each year, meaning that some Premier Cru juice ends up in Village appellation wines on some years which can only increase the quality of those wines), if you are buying Jadot wines of a certain level, say Premier Cru or small Village appellations, then you are probably not going to be disappointed. At the same time, you are probably also getting a very middle-of-the-road wine that, on very good years, is missing some of the extraordinary heights other producers' wines will exhibit.
That said, 2002 was not a blockbuster year and this wine was very drinkable. The color was good - a dark cherry red - and the nose carried a decent bouquet of fruit. Now the village of Savigny lies slightly north of the city of Beaune and south-west of Mount Corton which gives most of the parcelles a southern exposure without much elevation. Typically that can mean a flabby wine but here the rocky soil give the wine a fine, thin body. While the southern exposition probably limits the expression of tannins, they are present until maturity but throughout the life the fruit is apparent and up front. In this Jadot, we may be missing a bit of the full fruit and some of the elegance but for $30 we were not unhappy. Buy it to drink now or over the next year.
Lots to tell in the coming days. Until then...
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Park Avenue I
We did promise to give our thoughts and notes on the six bottles we picked up at Park Avenue Liquors recently. Remember, drop by and participate in that juicy sale!
When we went through, we found four interesting Burgundies, one Bordeaux and one New York State. The latter we requested because we are feeling that Californians are over-rated, and a friend introduced us recently to a very nice Chardonnay from Long Island. Park Avenue, as the name suggests is a bit old school, so all they had for us was a white from the Finger Lakes (northern New York State, for you International Readers), Herman J. Wiemer, Chardonnay Reserve 2003, $28.
Now those 'standing salesmen' at Park Avenue said that Wiemer was best known for their Riesling wines, that this was not a sweet, over-oaked California-style Chardonnay, and that it was 100% fermented in steel tanks. In the glass the wine was a pale golden yellow. The nose was fresh with warm fruit and light white flowers but missing the mustiness or the steeliness we associate with a Chardonnay from Burgundy. In the mouth, the full fruit continued but without the mineral structure of a good Chablis and without the warmth and toasted nuts of Chardonnay from further south in Burgundy. Our assessment: drinkable, but not regularly for that price.
Next up, and still not from notre région préférée, Château Les Grands Chênes, Medoc, Cru Bourgeois 1996, $23. 1996 was quite a decent year for red Bordeaux but a Cru Bourgeois could well be over the hill. However, this bottle was a pleasant surprise. In the glass, it was a deep ruby red without any fading to rust or brown on the edge. Immediately out of the bottle, the nose was warm and extremely aromatic, a bouquet heavy with red fruits. In the mouth there was plenty of life although the tannins were completely dispersed. As a result, we don't think there would be much change from time in a carafe. There was fruit and a slight woodiness but missing was the lingering flavor or the layering of flavors we look for in an older wine.
While it is true that we prefer elegant, even thin, wines, we are still looking for a dominant note or an explosion of flavors in the mouth. Medoc of this level seems always to disappoint us – thin without elegance, limpid without depth. However, for the price at that age, this is not a bad bottle. It is rare to find in New York a $23 bottle of 1996 that is this drinkable.
On to our région, Viré Clessé, Domaine des Chazelles 2004, $18. A beautiful white wine from the southern extremities of Burgundy, Mâcon. Here temperatures are slightly warmer, the soil contains less stone and mineral and the hillsides have more southern exposure than other parts of Burgundy. As a result, wines from here tend to be fuller, sweeter, and fruitier, capturing, if you will, some of that temperate weather in the bottle. 2004 was not a great year in Burgundy; we know French who will not drink reds from this year, describing them as missing the musky earthiness but replacing it with what can best be translated as ‘leaf mold’.
In Mâcon, and with white wines from this year, there is less with which to be concerned. This wine was a lovely light golden yellow in the glass, but the nose was only mildly apparent even though it was only lightly chilled. A bad sign we thought, even though some say that at a certain point after bottling Burgundies “go to sleep” and loose their nose and their flavor until a certain point when they become ready to drink. We discount this phenomenon in a Viré Clessé for it is too simple a wine, made to be drunk with less aging and without the expectations of greater Burgundian whites. We were hoping for a whiff of white spring flowers, perhaps a slight peach scent or an almost mentholated nose of citronella or spruce.
Unfortunately, in the mouth, our Viré was equally flat. There was fruit, and a certain roundness with a slight expression of warmth however with little expression of the terroir. With such a reasonable price, however, we’d give this bottle a 6 on a scale of 10.
Continuing with Burgundy whites and headed north from Mâcon, our next bottle was a Meursault Domaine Latour-Giraud, Cuvée Charles Maxime 1998, $25. Recently we had stumbled across a reasonably priced stash of Meursault 1998 and 99’s which were delightful. Sadly, they are all gone and we’ve been hunting for more ever since. Meursault can be a difficult wine, misunderstood for its particular nose and flavor. Often with older bottles, the uninitiated upon uncorking will think the wine is ‘corked’ and reject it. As we are partial to older Burgundies, we’ve learned to appreciate this wine.
This domain is an old family property begun in the 17th century. Latour is a common Burgundian name that appears in several permutations today; Latour-Giraud is unrelated to Louis Latour and is located in Meursault with an ongoing production primarily of white wines in the Côte de Beaune. A ‘sturdy’ wine with good structure, Meursault, even as a Village appellation, can be imagined to remain beautifully drinkable for 10-12 years. However, as we pulled the cork it became apparent this was not the case with this bottle.
The first odor, even off the cork was an overly sweet smell, slightly unpleasant but not sharp and vinegary. In the glass, the color was a deep antique gold and the nose remained overly sweet, almost sickeningly so. Without tasting it was obvious this bottle had turned, maderized as the French would say, as in Madeira or sherry, a ‘cooked’ wine from the days when wine was transported in casks in the holds of ships and would sometimes in summer arrive in England having been overheated in travel or ‘cooked’ in the barrel creating a sweet sugary wine we now call Madeira. The wine was drinkable and our tasting partner was loathe to “waste” it, but we put it aside to return to Park Avenue.
And with that, we’d like to close this posting with a small lesson. When wine is bad, off, corked, past its prime, always let the seller know. Whether it is a wine shop, a restaurant or a Excel spreadsheet sent from France (!!), the seller did not wish for you to have a bad experience, but wine is not a constant, it is a living thing, as a favorite winemaker of our often says, and some bottles will not ‘perform’ as expected. A reputable seller will always replace the bottle and you are obligated to alert them to the problem.
Until next time, bottoms up!
When we went through, we found four interesting Burgundies, one Bordeaux and one New York State. The latter we requested because we are feeling that Californians are over-rated, and a friend introduced us recently to a very nice Chardonnay from Long Island. Park Avenue, as the name suggests is a bit old school, so all they had for us was a white from the Finger Lakes (northern New York State, for you International Readers), Herman J. Wiemer, Chardonnay Reserve 2003, $28.
Now those 'standing salesmen' at Park Avenue said that Wiemer was best known for their Riesling wines, that this was not a sweet, over-oaked California-style Chardonnay, and that it was 100% fermented in steel tanks. In the glass the wine was a pale golden yellow. The nose was fresh with warm fruit and light white flowers but missing the mustiness or the steeliness we associate with a Chardonnay from Burgundy. In the mouth, the full fruit continued but without the mineral structure of a good Chablis and without the warmth and toasted nuts of Chardonnay from further south in Burgundy. Our assessment: drinkable, but not regularly for that price.
Next up, and still not from notre région préférée, Château Les Grands Chênes, Medoc, Cru Bourgeois 1996, $23. 1996 was quite a decent year for red Bordeaux but a Cru Bourgeois could well be over the hill. However, this bottle was a pleasant surprise. In the glass, it was a deep ruby red without any fading to rust or brown on the edge. Immediately out of the bottle, the nose was warm and extremely aromatic, a bouquet heavy with red fruits. In the mouth there was plenty of life although the tannins were completely dispersed. As a result, we don't think there would be much change from time in a carafe. There was fruit and a slight woodiness but missing was the lingering flavor or the layering of flavors we look for in an older wine.
While it is true that we prefer elegant, even thin, wines, we are still looking for a dominant note or an explosion of flavors in the mouth. Medoc of this level seems always to disappoint us – thin without elegance, limpid without depth. However, for the price at that age, this is not a bad bottle. It is rare to find in New York a $23 bottle of 1996 that is this drinkable.
On to our région, Viré Clessé, Domaine des Chazelles 2004, $18. A beautiful white wine from the southern extremities of Burgundy, Mâcon. Here temperatures are slightly warmer, the soil contains less stone and mineral and the hillsides have more southern exposure than other parts of Burgundy. As a result, wines from here tend to be fuller, sweeter, and fruitier, capturing, if you will, some of that temperate weather in the bottle. 2004 was not a great year in Burgundy; we know French who will not drink reds from this year, describing them as missing the musky earthiness but replacing it with what can best be translated as ‘leaf mold’.
In Mâcon, and with white wines from this year, there is less with which to be concerned. This wine was a lovely light golden yellow in the glass, but the nose was only mildly apparent even though it was only lightly chilled. A bad sign we thought, even though some say that at a certain point after bottling Burgundies “go to sleep” and loose their nose and their flavor until a certain point when they become ready to drink. We discount this phenomenon in a Viré Clessé for it is too simple a wine, made to be drunk with less aging and without the expectations of greater Burgundian whites. We were hoping for a whiff of white spring flowers, perhaps a slight peach scent or an almost mentholated nose of citronella or spruce.
Unfortunately, in the mouth, our Viré was equally flat. There was fruit, and a certain roundness with a slight expression of warmth however with little expression of the terroir. With such a reasonable price, however, we’d give this bottle a 6 on a scale of 10.
Continuing with Burgundy whites and headed north from Mâcon, our next bottle was a Meursault Domaine Latour-Giraud, Cuvée Charles Maxime 1998, $25. Recently we had stumbled across a reasonably priced stash of Meursault 1998 and 99’s which were delightful. Sadly, they are all gone and we’ve been hunting for more ever since. Meursault can be a difficult wine, misunderstood for its particular nose and flavor. Often with older bottles, the uninitiated upon uncorking will think the wine is ‘corked’ and reject it. As we are partial to older Burgundies, we’ve learned to appreciate this wine.
This domain is an old family property begun in the 17th century. Latour is a common Burgundian name that appears in several permutations today; Latour-Giraud is unrelated to Louis Latour and is located in Meursault with an ongoing production primarily of white wines in the Côte de Beaune. A ‘sturdy’ wine with good structure, Meursault, even as a Village appellation, can be imagined to remain beautifully drinkable for 10-12 years. However, as we pulled the cork it became apparent this was not the case with this bottle.
The first odor, even off the cork was an overly sweet smell, slightly unpleasant but not sharp and vinegary. In the glass, the color was a deep antique gold and the nose remained overly sweet, almost sickeningly so. Without tasting it was obvious this bottle had turned, maderized as the French would say, as in Madeira or sherry, a ‘cooked’ wine from the days when wine was transported in casks in the holds of ships and would sometimes in summer arrive in England having been overheated in travel or ‘cooked’ in the barrel creating a sweet sugary wine we now call Madeira. The wine was drinkable and our tasting partner was loathe to “waste” it, but we put it aside to return to Park Avenue.
And with that, we’d like to close this posting with a small lesson. When wine is bad, off, corked, past its prime, always let the seller know. Whether it is a wine shop, a restaurant or a Excel spreadsheet sent from France (!!), the seller did not wish for you to have a bad experience, but wine is not a constant, it is a living thing, as a favorite winemaker of our often says, and some bottles will not ‘perform’ as expected. A reputable seller will always replace the bottle and you are obligated to alert them to the problem.
Until next time, bottoms up!
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Test
That's exactly what this post is, a test. A test of mobility, of blogging at distance, from the BBerry no less!
But testing is what we do for you, Readers, test, degust, tipple and try wine of all sorts so tests should not be daunting. Lately, we followed a hunch to visit our favorite wine shoppe, Park Avenue Liquors (on Madison Ave. naturally) and we thanked our lucky stars ('lucky stars' - 'hunch' - get it?) because if you pay with debit card or cash and get 50% off each second bottle of same or lower price. Got to love it, and we love Park Avenue.
The store is the size of a typical Manhattan studio apartment, stacked to the ceilings with bottles, and with more knowledgeable salesmen than could fit around the dining table in that aforementioned studio.
There are two other details that make them worthy of our affection - an unseen temperature-controlled cellar stocked with wines and a philosophy of not continuing to mark-up their stock as the years go by. All that means is that, unlike many establishments, there are good bottles, ready to drink, that have been kept in proper conditions. Now there are no guarantees in life nor in wine and good bottles can good bad without obvious reason, but those standing salesmen will exchange it without fuss; more on that latter.
For now, let's tantalize: we found 6 bottles worth trying; and test: we are going to post this and follow later with another missive discussing those wines.
'Till then!
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld
But testing is what we do for you, Readers, test, degust, tipple and try wine of all sorts so tests should not be daunting. Lately, we followed a hunch to visit our favorite wine shoppe, Park Avenue Liquors (on Madison Ave. naturally) and we thanked our lucky stars ('lucky stars' - 'hunch' - get it?) because if you pay with debit card or cash and get 50% off each second bottle of same or lower price. Got to love it, and we love Park Avenue.
The store is the size of a typical Manhattan studio apartment, stacked to the ceilings with bottles, and with more knowledgeable salesmen than could fit around the dining table in that aforementioned studio.
There are two other details that make them worthy of our affection - an unseen temperature-controlled cellar stocked with wines and a philosophy of not continuing to mark-up their stock as the years go by. All that means is that, unlike many establishments, there are good bottles, ready to drink, that have been kept in proper conditions. Now there are no guarantees in life nor in wine and good bottles can good bad without obvious reason, but those standing salesmen will exchange it without fuss; more on that latter.
For now, let's tantalize: we found 6 bottles worth trying; and test: we are going to post this and follow later with another missive discussing those wines.
'Till then!
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld
Friday, February 6, 2009
California Wines
Times being what they are or miles being what they are, but that’s an inside joke, we found ourselves in San Francisco, the airport to be specific, with some time to burn. Our only hope was that there would be a wine store in there somewhere; we just knew there had to be; it is American Wine Country for goodness sake! So we set out and soon stumbled over some interesting art. Now there is ‘art’ in JFK, but this was real art and, ready for this?, a map of the terminal with all the art sites identified, including a revolving exhibition area. Happily we set off, figuring if a wine boutique was there we’d find it under a good 1960s painting.
Only two and half hallways later, there it was, Wine Wisdom, Terminal 3, Gate 85, and it is ‘behind’ security; i.e., buy wine and carry on the plane with you! A husband and wife team runs Wine Wisdom and there is a small wine bar with a reasonable selection of wines by the glass. Best of all, they are honest and friendly. We can be, maybe, a difficult consumer, perhaps… so we pulled out the current issue of the Wine Spectator which conveniently enough had a rating of the top 100 wines in the world for 2008. The owner looked at us, waited until we asked which ones he had in stock, and said “none of them.”
Now that is honesty! But maybe it is also that he knows he has a captive audience; it’s not like we are going to go somewhere else for wine. With that we threw ourselves on their mercy. “We need several bottles to take back to France to taste with some serious French wine drinkers; connoisseurs who know particularly well wines of Burgundy.” Naturally this began the 40-Questions game: White or red? Oaky or not? Bordeaux-style blend or single cepage, or varietal? What price range? Etc., etc….
Finally our parameters were set: single cepage, traditional California grapes, no Pinot Noir, not too oaky in the Chardonnay, a mix of white and red, small producers, and priced around $40 per bottle. That decided we began the tour of the boutique, mostly with the wife. She seemed to have a palate closer to ours as we had described it. Again she was very honest and we chatted over several hundred bottles. We were amazed at the prices. It would have been quite easy to have spent several hundred dollars on a bottle. Now that is not unusual for a Grand Cru Classé Bordeaux or a Grand Cru Bourgogne with a bit of age and from certain millésimes, but here we were much less convinced.
We were interested in white wines other than Chardonnay and typical American reds such as Zinfandel and Merlot. In the end, we purchased four wines: a Fumé Blanc, a Chardonnay, a Merlot and a Zinfandel from three different producers. Yes, it is true, initially we did not want a Chardonnay but we are always trying to find one that supports the premise that so many hold true – that California Chardonnays are worth the price – so we bought one we’d never tried.
We learned during this quest that an important aspect of California wines is whether they are ‘estate’ bottled. Another words, are the grapes grown by the winemaker on his or her land. An exception may be a known winemaker who buys grapes from producers he or she knows, much like the négociant system in Bourgogne. However, apparently as in Bourgogne, there are reputable négociants and those that are less so. Just as Olivier Laflaive actually tends the grapes he will later buy from the owner, there are some California winemakers with similar relationships with growers.
Additionally, there seems to be less emphasis on the merit of one particular millésime over another. Perhaps because of the size of the Pacific coast wine region (it would be like characterizing all French wine production by the same scale) and/or perhaps because of the vast number of microclimates within even defined areas, California bottle pricing seems to be based much more specifically on the producer. But frankly, the prices of California wines astound us.
An hour later, wines in hand we headed off for points east. The wines rested in NYC for a month and then travelled on to Paris recently. It is important to remember that, as one of our favorite Bourguignon producers always says, “Le vin est vivant,” wine is a living thing, and it must rest after travel before it is drunk. There are different amounts of repose time dictated by different sources, but the older the wine, the longer it should rest after travel.
Remember also, there is a difference between tasting wine and drinking wine, but either way, what you have in, or put in, your mouth with the wine will affect the way it tastes! As a result, we planned a long dinner of a variety of primarily small plates including a mix of vegetable dishes, a fish dish, a meat dish, and a cheese course.
We had purchased:
Grgigh Hills Estate Fumé Blanc 2006
Trefethen Family Vineyards Estate Chardonnay 2006
Trefethen Family Vineyards Estate Merlot 2005
Rockpile Road Vineyards Estate Zinfandel 2005
Additionally, from another trip to California, we had in the cave a Porter Creek Timberline Ranch Viognier Russian River 2004, and as a gift, a Stags’ Leap Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2005.
Now we had tasted the Porter Creek when we purchased it at the vineyard, and we had drunk a bottle in 2006. Both times it had been pleasant, refreshing and lively in the mouth. Viognier, in our opinion, is a wine drunk young traditionally to appreciate the fruit and the terroir. Four years after bottling we did not know what to expect but imagined this bottle would be the lightest so we served it with hors d’œuvres, particularly with a savory tart of apple, onion and Tomme cheese. It had matured but nicely, exhibiting less fruit but a honeyed, smoky flavor that lingered on the palate complemented by the apple and onion. Porter Creek is a vineyard to visit if you go to Sonoma, but, unfortunately, we don't believe their bottles make it to the East Coast.
Next in the line-up was the Fumé Blanc which we estimated would be lighter than the Chardonnay and was paired with a Christmas Lima Bean Salad. Christmas Beans are a striking red and white variety of a lima bean that we’d bought dried for the color. You can see them here in this Washington Post article; however, we chose to use them in a bean salad recipe from Epicurious with cumin and lemon juice. It is important to avoid vinegar and other acids when pairing foods and wines because the acid will destroy the taste of the wine. We decided that the amount of lemon juice in this recipe was limited enough and the Fumé Blanc young enough to withstand it and the cumin.
Luckily, we were correct. The Fumé Blanc was very fresh and lively in the mouth with a nose of fresh mowed fields. In the finish there was a lingering citrus note. We all appreciated this and would purchase it again willingly.
Following this was the Chardonnay. With it we had planned a room temperature fish dish imagining that it may be fuller and oakier than French Chardonnay. We served poached salmon flaked onto a bed of pureed artichoke hearts with a light tarragon cream couche between the layers. Unfortunately, while the fish was lovely, the wine was not. Again we were disappointed by the cloying sweetness and overly oaky finish that we often describe as “wood chips in the stainless steel tank”. This bottle remained unfinished on the table.
Following on the menu was the Merlot paired with pork roasted with purple potatoes and a winter squash. Again, sadly, this wine did not live up to our expectations. Although not bad, it was not good. The French say, “fad,” or flat and flabby, nothing noticeable. It was red wine, it had hints of fruit but more than that there was not. After the Chardonnay and now the Merlot, we’ve become ‘down’ on the Trefethen Vineyards. Perhaps unfairly, but we will make an effort to avoid their wines in the future.
After the pork and with the cheese course, we opened the Zinfandel. From the nose we were excited. It smelled of the green herbs and green peppers that we expect from a Zinfandel; in the mouth there was the spicy fruit and zing but also a depth and gras or greasiness as the French say, that hangs in the mouth at the end. This was really a pleasure; something we will watch for again and advise you to do also.
Saving what we had hoped would be the biggest for last, we opened the Cabernet Sauvignon. We have drunk this producer’s wine before with pleasure and maybe following that excellent Zinfandel it was steamrolled, but we did not find the structure and breadth we had expected to in a Cabernet. With a little time in a large glass, it opened a bit delivering a richer nose of red fruit and in the mouth it was there was more fruit but little terroir and no tannin at the end. Perhaps it was the year, 2005, or perhaps it was the bottle, but we can find more life in a glass of Bourguignon Pinot Noir. We will, however, not shy from this producer in the future.
To finish off, a friend had brought a bottle of red Côtes de Provence. This region in the south of France, very Mediterranean and known for its heat is also known primarily for its rosé wines, chilled and sipped outside in the hot summer. But this, a red wine from the region, was new for us, Chateau La Font du Broc 2006. Very reasonably priced apparently and for that reason we give it high marks in the price/quality ratio. It was fresh, fruity and very drinkable with a good nose and an expression of ‘grapes in hot fields’ in the mouth. Unfortunately, we don’t think we should look for it in our local US wine shoppe; too bad, as it was probably less than $10 a bottle!
Finished and satisfied, but not too drunk (we were seven at table!), we were pleased to have had the chance to taste these California wines but must say the prices make no sense and on a strict price/quality ratio, we are going to pull a French wine from the cave every time. For less than $40 a bottle, you can too! Just follow the blog, watch for the price list to arrive.
Bottoms up!
Only two and half hallways later, there it was, Wine Wisdom, Terminal 3, Gate 85, and it is ‘behind’ security; i.e., buy wine and carry on the plane with you! A husband and wife team runs Wine Wisdom and there is a small wine bar with a reasonable selection of wines by the glass. Best of all, they are honest and friendly. We can be, maybe, a difficult consumer, perhaps… so we pulled out the current issue of the Wine Spectator which conveniently enough had a rating of the top 100 wines in the world for 2008. The owner looked at us, waited until we asked which ones he had in stock, and said “none of them.”
Now that is honesty! But maybe it is also that he knows he has a captive audience; it’s not like we are going to go somewhere else for wine. With that we threw ourselves on their mercy. “We need several bottles to take back to France to taste with some serious French wine drinkers; connoisseurs who know particularly well wines of Burgundy.” Naturally this began the 40-Questions game: White or red? Oaky or not? Bordeaux-style blend or single cepage, or varietal? What price range? Etc., etc….
Finally our parameters were set: single cepage, traditional California grapes, no Pinot Noir, not too oaky in the Chardonnay, a mix of white and red, small producers, and priced around $40 per bottle. That decided we began the tour of the boutique, mostly with the wife. She seemed to have a palate closer to ours as we had described it. Again she was very honest and we chatted over several hundred bottles. We were amazed at the prices. It would have been quite easy to have spent several hundred dollars on a bottle. Now that is not unusual for a Grand Cru Classé Bordeaux or a Grand Cru Bourgogne with a bit of age and from certain millésimes, but here we were much less convinced.
We were interested in white wines other than Chardonnay and typical American reds such as Zinfandel and Merlot. In the end, we purchased four wines: a Fumé Blanc, a Chardonnay, a Merlot and a Zinfandel from three different producers. Yes, it is true, initially we did not want a Chardonnay but we are always trying to find one that supports the premise that so many hold true – that California Chardonnays are worth the price – so we bought one we’d never tried.
We learned during this quest that an important aspect of California wines is whether they are ‘estate’ bottled. Another words, are the grapes grown by the winemaker on his or her land. An exception may be a known winemaker who buys grapes from producers he or she knows, much like the négociant system in Bourgogne. However, apparently as in Bourgogne, there are reputable négociants and those that are less so. Just as Olivier Laflaive actually tends the grapes he will later buy from the owner, there are some California winemakers with similar relationships with growers.
Additionally, there seems to be less emphasis on the merit of one particular millésime over another. Perhaps because of the size of the Pacific coast wine region (it would be like characterizing all French wine production by the same scale) and/or perhaps because of the vast number of microclimates within even defined areas, California bottle pricing seems to be based much more specifically on the producer. But frankly, the prices of California wines astound us.
An hour later, wines in hand we headed off for points east. The wines rested in NYC for a month and then travelled on to Paris recently. It is important to remember that, as one of our favorite Bourguignon producers always says, “Le vin est vivant,” wine is a living thing, and it must rest after travel before it is drunk. There are different amounts of repose time dictated by different sources, but the older the wine, the longer it should rest after travel.
Remember also, there is a difference between tasting wine and drinking wine, but either way, what you have in, or put in, your mouth with the wine will affect the way it tastes! As a result, we planned a long dinner of a variety of primarily small plates including a mix of vegetable dishes, a fish dish, a meat dish, and a cheese course.
We had purchased:
Grgigh Hills Estate Fumé Blanc 2006
Trefethen Family Vineyards Estate Chardonnay 2006
Trefethen Family Vineyards Estate Merlot 2005
Rockpile Road Vineyards Estate Zinfandel 2005
Additionally, from another trip to California, we had in the cave a Porter Creek Timberline Ranch Viognier Russian River 2004, and as a gift, a Stags’ Leap Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2005.
Now we had tasted the Porter Creek when we purchased it at the vineyard, and we had drunk a bottle in 2006. Both times it had been pleasant, refreshing and lively in the mouth. Viognier, in our opinion, is a wine drunk young traditionally to appreciate the fruit and the terroir. Four years after bottling we did not know what to expect but imagined this bottle would be the lightest so we served it with hors d’œuvres, particularly with a savory tart of apple, onion and Tomme cheese. It had matured but nicely, exhibiting less fruit but a honeyed, smoky flavor that lingered on the palate complemented by the apple and onion. Porter Creek is a vineyard to visit if you go to Sonoma, but, unfortunately, we don't believe their bottles make it to the East Coast.
Next in the line-up was the Fumé Blanc which we estimated would be lighter than the Chardonnay and was paired with a Christmas Lima Bean Salad. Christmas Beans are a striking red and white variety of a lima bean that we’d bought dried for the color. You can see them here in this Washington Post article; however, we chose to use them in a bean salad recipe from Epicurious with cumin and lemon juice. It is important to avoid vinegar and other acids when pairing foods and wines because the acid will destroy the taste of the wine. We decided that the amount of lemon juice in this recipe was limited enough and the Fumé Blanc young enough to withstand it and the cumin.
Luckily, we were correct. The Fumé Blanc was very fresh and lively in the mouth with a nose of fresh mowed fields. In the finish there was a lingering citrus note. We all appreciated this and would purchase it again willingly.
Following this was the Chardonnay. With it we had planned a room temperature fish dish imagining that it may be fuller and oakier than French Chardonnay. We served poached salmon flaked onto a bed of pureed artichoke hearts with a light tarragon cream couche between the layers. Unfortunately, while the fish was lovely, the wine was not. Again we were disappointed by the cloying sweetness and overly oaky finish that we often describe as “wood chips in the stainless steel tank”. This bottle remained unfinished on the table.
Following on the menu was the Merlot paired with pork roasted with purple potatoes and a winter squash. Again, sadly, this wine did not live up to our expectations. Although not bad, it was not good. The French say, “fad,” or flat and flabby, nothing noticeable. It was red wine, it had hints of fruit but more than that there was not. After the Chardonnay and now the Merlot, we’ve become ‘down’ on the Trefethen Vineyards. Perhaps unfairly, but we will make an effort to avoid their wines in the future.
After the pork and with the cheese course, we opened the Zinfandel. From the nose we were excited. It smelled of the green herbs and green peppers that we expect from a Zinfandel; in the mouth there was the spicy fruit and zing but also a depth and gras or greasiness as the French say, that hangs in the mouth at the end. This was really a pleasure; something we will watch for again and advise you to do also.
Saving what we had hoped would be the biggest for last, we opened the Cabernet Sauvignon. We have drunk this producer’s wine before with pleasure and maybe following that excellent Zinfandel it was steamrolled, but we did not find the structure and breadth we had expected to in a Cabernet. With a little time in a large glass, it opened a bit delivering a richer nose of red fruit and in the mouth it was there was more fruit but little terroir and no tannin at the end. Perhaps it was the year, 2005, or perhaps it was the bottle, but we can find more life in a glass of Bourguignon Pinot Noir. We will, however, not shy from this producer in the future.
To finish off, a friend had brought a bottle of red Côtes de Provence. This region in the south of France, very Mediterranean and known for its heat is also known primarily for its rosé wines, chilled and sipped outside in the hot summer. But this, a red wine from the region, was new for us, Chateau La Font du Broc 2006. Very reasonably priced apparently and for that reason we give it high marks in the price/quality ratio. It was fresh, fruity and very drinkable with a good nose and an expression of ‘grapes in hot fields’ in the mouth. Unfortunately, we don’t think we should look for it in our local US wine shoppe; too bad, as it was probably less than $10 a bottle!
Finished and satisfied, but not too drunk (we were seven at table!), we were pleased to have had the chance to taste these California wines but must say the prices make no sense and on a strict price/quality ratio, we are going to pull a French wine from the cave every time. For less than $40 a bottle, you can too! Just follow the blog, watch for the price list to arrive.
Bottoms up!
Monday, February 2, 2009
Getting Started
Well, it is a new year, the construction site that existed on the terrace has been displaced elsewhere and we can see the snow that is falling in Paris (we’re not mentioning what has completely blocked up London – please, 15 centimeters of snow?? it’s 6 inches and they’ve closed the country. New Yorkers are snickering in their sleeves; imagine what they are doing in places like Buffalo and St. Paul.), but we digress. The point was that it is time to start a new blog. Those of you who love long and twisted stories will need to continue to keep up with Eating & Drinking While Traveling.
The rest of you are here for the wine. It will be mostly a Burgundy story, but we promise to let other regions, not just in France but throughout the world, shine whenever possible. The writings will be subjective, as all blogs must inherently be but you are welcome to comment on our entries and those of your fellow readers. We hope this brings new and welcome information into your world.
The goal is to gather a club around the blog that allows us to participate in startlingly cheaper wine prices in France. Because the American system of controls on the importation and distribution of alcohol and wines is archaic to the point of idiotic (good wine was probably cheaper during Prohibition times), a vast number of people must ‘touch’ your wine before you can pour a glass and we are not even addressing the restaurant business. Eventually, this club, The Insiders’ Wine Club, will be payant, you’ll have to join like any other decent club, and, like other clubs, will offer certain perks and benefits such as:
Access to a regularly changing list of drinkable wine;
Reduced purchase prices on these wines;
Wine tastings and tasting notes;
Discounts on wine dinners in Paris and New York; and
Wine tourism,
among other things.
An important distinction to understand is ‘drinkable wine.’ Drinkable wine is wine that provides us with the sensations expected and imagined by the producer. The three most important are color, smell and taste. It is the belief of this humble blogger that consuming wine before it is buvable, or drinkable, is a waste of wine. While there is some wine, maybe much wine, that should be wasted, we will not be ‘clubbing’ around that sort. To understand wine and how and when it may arrive at the state of buvable, a fair amount of wine must be degusted, tasted, but do not think of that as waste but as entrainment.
That said, be sure to let us know your thoughts and interests for this club. We’ll be back soon to discuss a dinner tasting of California wines.
Until then….
PS: Despite what the American news channels are saying, all the snow in Paris melted hours ago. It is only in London that they are still flailing about in the slush.
The rest of you are here for the wine. It will be mostly a Burgundy story, but we promise to let other regions, not just in France but throughout the world, shine whenever possible. The writings will be subjective, as all blogs must inherently be but you are welcome to comment on our entries and those of your fellow readers. We hope this brings new and welcome information into your world.
The goal is to gather a club around the blog that allows us to participate in startlingly cheaper wine prices in France. Because the American system of controls on the importation and distribution of alcohol and wines is archaic to the point of idiotic (good wine was probably cheaper during Prohibition times), a vast number of people must ‘touch’ your wine before you can pour a glass and we are not even addressing the restaurant business. Eventually, this club, The Insiders’ Wine Club, will be payant, you’ll have to join like any other decent club, and, like other clubs, will offer certain perks and benefits such as:
Access to a regularly changing list of drinkable wine;
Reduced purchase prices on these wines;
Wine tastings and tasting notes;
Discounts on wine dinners in Paris and New York; and
Wine tourism,
among other things.
An important distinction to understand is ‘drinkable wine.’ Drinkable wine is wine that provides us with the sensations expected and imagined by the producer. The three most important are color, smell and taste. It is the belief of this humble blogger that consuming wine before it is buvable, or drinkable, is a waste of wine. While there is some wine, maybe much wine, that should be wasted, we will not be ‘clubbing’ around that sort. To understand wine and how and when it may arrive at the state of buvable, a fair amount of wine must be degusted, tasted, but do not think of that as waste but as entrainment.
That said, be sure to let us know your thoughts and interests for this club. We’ll be back soon to discuss a dinner tasting of California wines.
Until then….
PS: Despite what the American news channels are saying, all the snow in Paris melted hours ago. It is only in London that they are still flailing about in the slush.
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