Tag Archives: france

F E Trimbach Riesling 2017, Alsace, France

09 Sunday Aug 2020

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The second wine of our #7 virtual wine tasting was very disappointing.  I ordered this Trimbach having really enjoyed it before, the reviews were great and the brand is solid.  No one in the tasting group enjoyed either the room temp version nor the chilled.

Paint thinner, petrol, pine, grass and pineapple were descriptors that we heard.  Personally I found the wine disjointed, the nose muted and the flavors were just off.  I am going to re-taste tonight but don’t have much hope.  Interestingly, I tasted the 2013 Riesling twice in 2017 and had very different tasting notes, but they were both consistent 90 point wines.  This one is 86, and at $17 it’s a 2 point wine.  Salut….

Domaine Jean Fery & Fils Les Vergelesses 2010, Savigny-les-Beaune Premier Cru, France

10 Friday Jul 2020

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This Pinot Noir from Burgundy has been sitting in my cellar for a while now.  I opened it for friends who I am introducing to other regions and varietals.  The wine has a nice shade of red and is see through. The nose offers up cherry, red cola and an earthy spiciness.  The palate is very smooth- floral with red fruits, nice fine grained acidity, pomegranate and rhubarb.  The long finish was zesty with some acidic juiciness and a trace of tannic backbone.  While young at 10 years of cellaring, this one is a candidate for extended time in the dark, it will reward the patient and develop some nice tertiary flavors.  It has the fruit and structure to go another 10-15 years.  I paired it with seared Trout, Rostì, some salad and steamed green veggies.  It worked a treat.  For $80 it is pricy, but then again good Burgundy is never cheap.  91 points and 5 stars from me.  Drink till 2035.  Salut….

Cameron Hughes Lot 719 Rosé 2018, Mediteranée

14 Sunday Jun 2020

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This Rosé started our third virtual wine tasting with friends.  I had everyone reserve half the bottle in another container at room temperature and the remainder in the fridge to be served chilled.  It was a gorgeous evening and all parties were on their respective patios with cheese and crackers at the ready.  We started off with the chilled version which I found to have a nice pinkish hue, good nose of strawberry, rhubarb and a touch of citrus.  The palate was very refreshing, lithe with some nice acidity exhibiting strawberry and red berry notes.  The room temperature version had a much fuller nose but was very flabby on the palate.  I enjoyed the chilled one more and would forgo some of the nose in return for that crisper body and more succinct flavor profile.  It’s an interesting experiment to try with whites and Rosès.  Overall I thought it was a nice drop which gets 87 points from me.  For $13 it’s a nice summer wine to have on hand, 3 stars.  Drink now.  Salut….

Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou ‘La Croix de Beaucaillou’ 2010, Saint-Julien, France

05 Friday Jun 2020

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It’s inky, brooding, opaque and shows fine legs in the glass.  On the nose I get graphite, plums, oaky vanilla and cedar.  On the palate there are black currants, green plums, black tea and dry tannins.  The mid palate is very astringent with more tea, strange tannins, some black fruit and not much acidity.  I’m not enjoying this wine very much, too off-balance and way too dry without fruit to back it up.  The finish is very dark and austere- over-steeped tea, some plums and a woodsy note.  The grip of the tannins hold on for a while but the fruit fades quickly.  Overall a disappointing wine from a great Bordeaux vintage.  86 points from me, the pros went much higher but I don’t see it.  It may mellow out in the near future.  Drink till 2025.  For $75 it gets  1 star and a pass from yours truly.  Salut….

Louis Latour Corton Grand Cru 2007, Cote de Beaune, France

29 Friday May 2020

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It’s a really nice reddish shade and totally see-through.  The nose is gorgeous- strawberry, cherry, earth and game.  On the initial palate I get rich red cherry reduction, leather, mushroom, forest floor- all flavors I was hoping for in an aged Pinot from Burgundy.  The mid palate shows me red currants, more cherry, crisp acidity and a very fine grained tannic structure.  There is a green streak on the finish that gives it a bit of zing but is dominated by tart cherry and pomegranate.  This wine is very complex and layered.  The finish is long and mouth watering.  I am really enjoying it and think it is at peak, drinking well for at least another decade.  Filet Mignon is on tap for the pairing.  92 points from me but I have no pricing info.  New vintages are going for over $85.  I would give it 5 stars, the cellaring has rewarded me well.  Salut….

Chateau Greysac 2015, Medoc, France

20 Wednesday May 2020

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The nose on the third wine of our virtual tasting was wild.  Gamy AF, with loads of mushroom, forest floor, bacon fat and some semblance of black fruits.  On the palate it was much more manageable and in line with expectations.  Bramble, blackberry reduction, leather and some really nice tannins all came together on the palate.  The wine smoothed out some on the mid palate and it showed some nice balance between the fruit, the tertiary flavors, tannins and acidity.  The funk wore off but there were trace elements of morel mushrooms, leather and blackberry.  The finish was where this wine finally came on pointe.  Good fruit presentation, some nice touches of those secondary flavors and a decent amount of astringency from the lithe tannins.  Overall I really enjoyed this wine, but the nose was offputting for many on the tasting.  91 points for me.  Drink till 2026, but let it breathe for at least an hour to help dispel the funk.  For $20, it gets 5 stars.  Salut….

E. Guigal Cotes du Rhone 2016, France

20 Wednesday May 2020

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The second wine of our tasting lineup showed bright purple in the glass with nice legs giving caution to the 14.5% alcohol.  I listened to all the inputs from our group and concurred that this wine had loads of pepper, game, plum and garrigue.  The longer the wine sat out, the smoother it got and the terroir really shone.  Mass produced yet very good at 91 points from me.  Drink this blend of Grenache, Syrah, Mouvedre till 2027 with stews, leg of lamb or a hearty pasta.  5 stars for this sub $15 ringer.  Salut….

Cameron Hughes Lot 721 ‘Plan de Dieu’ 2018, Cotes Du Rhone, France

14 Thursday May 2020

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A touch murky in the glass with medium dark purple.  Semi opaque.  On the nose I get plum, bramble, white pepper.  The initial palate is very pleasing, if not a touch sweet.  Lush, ripe plums alongside blackberry and violets.  The mid palate has a nice tangy acidic bite alongside very ingrained, lithe tannins.  More purple fruit flavors and a spiciness comprise the profile I get on the back end with a nice, dry finish that is quite long.  This is a very drinkable pop-n-pour wine that gets 89 points from me.  I like it a lot for short term enjoyment.  Drink till 2024.  It’s a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mouvedre.  For $15 it gets 4 stars.  Salut….

Chateau Lafaurie-Peyraguey ‘La Chapelle de Lafaurie’ 2016, Sauternes, France

14 Thursday May 2020

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Light gold in the glass.  The nose is lemony with honeyed apricot and some orange marmalade.  The palate is very orange dominated.  Marmalade and green almond are the primary flavors.  Honey and some nuttiness also feature.  There is that bitterness that’s evident in orange marmalade- it appears on the midpalate.  The finish is very seductive, light and sweet.  It’s a candied melon meets honey and citrus reduction.  Did I mention it’s long and makes my mouth pucker?  Albeit young, this wine is delicious and will evolve.  Drink till 2034.  91 points and 5 stars, $35.  Salut….

Domaine des Monts Luisants ‘Les Monts Luisants’ 2009, Morey-Saint-Denis Premier Cru, France

26 Sunday Apr 2020

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A bright shade of red and see through.  The nose rings of pomegranate, sweet cherry and clove.  The palate is very smooth and soft- the fruit is vibrant and the acidity is very gentle. It’s all primary flavors for now, loads of red fruit and some backend tannins.  The midpalate is tart, with more pomegranate and some rhubarb.  The finish is very sleek and easy going- more lingering flavors from the midpalate and a nice spike in the very fine-grained tannins.  This wine is young and has many years to go.  I’m thinking it will be very nice as a mature Burgundy.  91 points for this very lithe Pinot Noir.  Drink till 2033, but cellar if you like some secondary flavors.  At over $100 it’s a pricy addition to the cellar, but then again- Burgundy is never cheap.  3 stars.  Salut….