Sharing wine
Licole, I can’t believe it’s already been 12 months since I last shared wines with you! I’m excited to send along the next twelve bottles to add to your ongoing wine journey.
I’m more than happy for you, Andrew, and any friends to enjoy these together. Some of these bottles are starting to reach the end of their peak, so I’d love for them to be enjoyed soon. They should still offer lovely, mature flavors, though you might notice a slight loss of fruit in a few of them.
I hope they bring some wonderful moments to your table!
Use this resource for tasting notes: WSET Systematic Approach to Tasting Wine
Whites or Orange: From the left
2019 Chona's Marani Mtsvane & Rkatsiteli
Location: Kakheti, Georgia
Comments: Rkatsiteli grape. This is one of the bottles we tasted at the Georgian wine tasting. It has mild but distinctive oxidized aromas from being fermented in Qvevri.
Question: What did you pair this wine with? What food do you think can go well with this wine?
2018 Domaine Laroche Chablis Saint Martin
Location: Chablis, Burgundy, France
Comments: 100% Chardonnay. “The terroir of Chablis has both excellent acidity and remarkable finesse. Thanks to a long aging on fine lees, Chablis Saint Martin offers the typical minerality of the best terroirs of this wine region. Perfect as an aperitif or to pair with seafood, prawns or fish.”
Question: Please try to define “minerality” in your own words.
2018 Pascal Jolivet Sancerre
Location: Sancerre, Upper Loire, Loire Valley, France
Comments: 100% Sauvignon Blanc. “Unique & typical style of the house. Feminine wine, all elegance with perfect balance. Dry, natural fruit and mineral. Aperitif wine, shellfish, raw and cooked fish. Serve at 10°C.”
Question: What do you think “Feminine wine” means?
2018 S.A. Prüm Riesling Essence
Location: Mosel, Germany
Comments: 100% Riesling. I think it is a Kabinett style wine, which has a little bit of residual sugar. Great for aperitif. Or it can go well with spicy Asian food.
Question: What other food options be would be good with wine? Do you like this kind of off-dry wine? If not, why not?
2016 Château Greysac Le Blanc
Location: Bordeaux, France
Comments: Mostly Sauvignon Blanc with some Semillon. Did you know that Bordeaux makes good white wines based on Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon? They are fuller body with higher alcohol than Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc wines.
Question: How is it different from other Sauvignon Blanc?
2017 Domaine Weinbach Sylvaner
Location: Alsace, France
Comments: 100% Sylvaner. Sylvaner is known to be a neutral wine, which means it doesn’t have much aromatics. To me, Sylvaner is typical German wine that reminds me of everyday wine while I was living in Germany. It is refreshing, easy to drink and like. Weinbach is one of the best producers of Alsace.
Question: How is Sylvaner different from Riesling?
Reds: From the left
2018 Domaine de la Voute des Crozes Côte de Brouilly
Location: Cote de Brouilly, Beaujolais, France
Comments: 100% Gamay. I think we should drink more Gamay in general. Sometimes, I am put off by its bubble gum or candy smell. But, when it’s good, it tastes light, pleasant and complex at the same time. “Nicole Chanrion makes one serious Cru Beaujolais. Her vineyard is now more than 50 years old and is planted on blue schist and volcanic debris. After a traditional carbonic maceration in large, old barrels, the wine is returned to the foudres to rest for nine months. This turns the wine from a young and fruity Gamay into a terroir-driven red with deep, earthy flavor.”
Question: How is it different from Pinot Noir? What would you like better and why?
2017 A. Christmann Spätburgunder
Location: Pfalz, Germany
Comments: 100% Pinot Noir. You said you and your friend liked this wine before. To be honest, it was little too light for me. Christmann is a great producer. I’m glad I got to see him personally last time I visited Pfalz.
Question: How is it different from your tasking last year?
2016 Fontodi Chianti Classico
Location: Chianti Classico, Tuscany, Italy
Comments: 100% Sangiovese. It is a powerful Sangiovese. I drank it last month. It seems still young. I’m interested in your impression on this. Fontodi has one of the best vineyards in Tuscany with much recognition.
Question: Do you think it is too young or old to drink now? Why?
2014 Fiorenzo Nada Barbaresco Montaribaldi
Location: Barbaresco, Piedmont, Italy
Comments: 100% Nebbiolo. I had a great expecations on this. When I tried it recently, it was fine but I thought something was off. I couldn’t tell what it is. Is it getting to old? I hope you enjoy this wine with pasta, hard cheeses, mature cheeses, or roasts.
Question: How did you like it? Do you also think it is off? If so, what’s going on?
2017 Perrin Family / Perrin & Sons Côtes du Rhône Villages
Location: Cote du Rhone Villages, Southern Rhone, France
Comments: Grenache, Syrah. I hope you enjoy this little aged Cote du Rhone Villages. It is not an expensive wine. But it usually provides satisfaction. I am drinking Grenache based wines lately. I can taste ripe cherry and strawberry. I think I can sense the sun.
Question: How is it different from other Cote du Rhone you tried?
2018 Illuminati Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Riparosso
Location: Abruzzo, Italy
Comments: 100% Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is a consistent, good quality, pleasant and easy to drink wine to me. It is lighter and little bit less savory, therefore little sweeter, wine. Enjoy.
Question: What are your thoughts on “easy to drink”? What makes a wine easy to drink?
The wines I shared in October 2023
OLGA Raffault Chinon Les Picasses 2009 and 2015
How would wine evolve over time in a bottle? These are wines from Chinon AOC in Loire valley, France. Loire valley is known to have different wines. Their main red grapes are Cabernet Franc, which is a blending partner (mainly as a minor blending partner) in Bordeaux or CA. Typically wine turns to rounder, softer, more integrated (tannin is not coarse anymore, acidity is not piercing anymore), and showing tertiary aromas and flavors (dried fruit, cooked fruit, leather, earth, mushroom, tobacco, forest floor… see below link). Do you sense them more in 2009 wines? Also younger wines tend to have more fruit aroma and flavor than older versions. If you want, you can buy the latest vintage of this wine and compare three of them.
LP’s notes: I tasted such a big difference between these two. The younger wine had much more intensity and tasted a lot like beets - it was surprisingly specific. I found it more interesting than the older wine, which was more rounded. Still delicious, but I thought the younger one was more fun!
*Chinon (From Pocket Wine Book) Loire valley Top AOP, light to full-bodied CAB FR from sand, gravel, limestone. Best age 30 yrs+. A little dry CHENIN BL. Best: ALLIET, B BAUDRY, BAUDRY-DUTOUR, Couly-Dutheil, Grosbois, JM Raffault, Jourdan-Pichard, Landry, L’R, Noblaie, P&B Couly, Pain, Pallus, Petit Thouars, Pierre Sourdais, Saut au Loup.
Compare three different pinot noir grape wines.
2017 Cooper Mountain Pinot Noir
2018 Domaine Anne Gros Bourgogne
2017 A. Christmann Spatburgunder (Spatburgunder is Pinot Noir in German)
One from Oregon Willamette Valley, 2nd from Burgundy, France, 3rd from Pfalz, Germany. I visited the winery “A. Christmann” in Pfalz in 2022 with my friend Regine. They are similar in age. I believe they have different styles though.
LP’s Notes: I tasted these three with Andrew and another friend. My friend and I immediately loved the spatburgunder - I wish I’d written down why! That’s why I’m writing down what I remember now. It was immediately no question to either of us that the spatburgunder was our favorite, though Andrew liked the Cooper Mountain best.
Compare three different Chardonnay grape wines.
2017 Domaine Leflaive Mâcon-Verzé
Maconnais is a sub region in Burgundy. South of Cote d’Or. If Leflave Macon-Verze gives you a too much barnyard smell in the beginning, give some time. It will go away with time.
BTW, Domaine Leflaive is a very famous, one of the most sought after producers in Burgundy and in the world. Their grand crus or premier crus, which I haven’t been able to taste yet, are known to change people’s perception about burgundy. Price matches the fame. See this the most important grand cru price
*Leflaive, Dom Burg (From Pocket Wine Book) ★★★★ Reference PULIGNY-MONTRACHET DOM, back on form since 2017, with prices to match. Outstanding GC, incl MONTRACHET, CHEVALIER and fabulous PCs: Pucelles, Combettes, Folatières, etc. Also try S Burg range, eg. Mâcon Verzé.
2017 Domaine Laroche Bourgogne (This producer is located in Chablis) I struggled to decide if Iike this or the macon verze better. I really enjoyed both, but I think this is my favorite. Both are much more complex than the older, richer in texture and flavor. I don't know which I like better!! I think this one is more rounded, macon verze is maybe more acidic? They're both very different on sip 3 co.pared to sip 1. Macon verze has a lot more vibrancy coming through, green apple and lemon oil
2012 Kumeu River Estate Chardonnay, an aged Chardonnay from New Zealand. Try to smell and taste older Chardonnay. Give some air time if it doesn’t show much after opening the cork. This one is distinctly different from the other two. Light, acidic, with a bit of mustiness on the end. Definitely my last favorite of the three
Random five wines
2016 Domaine Brusset Ventoux Les Boudalles: I think you would see similarities in this wine to the wines of Cote du Rhone
*Ventoux (From Pocket Wine Book) Sprawling AOP circles around much of Mont Ventoux between Rh and Prov, mixed soils, some altitude. A few leading-edge DOMs: v.gd-value reds, agreeable choice. Tangy red (GRENACHE / SYRAH, café-style to fuller, peppery, quality rising), rosé, gd white (more oak).Best: CH Unang (organic, gd w), Ch Valcombe, Chêne Bleu (oak), CLOS des Patris (organic), Gonnet, La Ferme St Pierre (w/rosé, organic), La Vieille Ferme (r, also VDF), St-Marc, Terra Ventoux, VIGNERONS Mont Ventoux; Doms Allois (organic), Anges, Berane, Brusset, Cascavel, Champ-Long, Croix de Pins (gd w), du Tix, Fondrèche (organic), Grand Jacquet, Martinelle (organic), Murmurium, Olivier B (organic), PAUL JABOULET, Pesquié, Piéblanc, Pigeade, St-Jean du Barroux (organic), Terres de Solence, Verrière, VIDAL-FLEURY, Vieux Lazaret, Vignobles Brunier, co-op Bédoin.
2012 Weingut Diefenhardt Riesling Martinsthal J.D. trocken Alte Reben: Aged riesling. Give some time when it is open if the aroma and flavor is not showing up.
2019 Palazzone Orvieto Classico Vignarco: Simple Italian Umbria wine. People say it is better to drink it young.
*Orvieto (From Pocket Wine Book) Umbria DOC Drink young. One of few areas of Italy where noble rot occurs spontaneously and often. Characterized by four soil types (sandy clay, volcanic, alluvial sands, and a mix of yellow compacted sands and conglomerates). Sweet late-harvest can be memorable though cheap-and-cheerful dry white v. popular too. Off-dry Amabile less in favour today but delicious. Top: Barberani (Luigi e Giovanna), but sweet Calcaia just as gd. Bigi, Cardeto, Castello della Sala, Decugnano dei Barbi, Palazzone; Sergio Mottura (Lat) also gd.
2020 Le Fraghe Bardolino Chiaretto Rodòn
2017 Horst Sauer Escherndorfer Lump Silvaner.: Bocksbeutel bottle from Franken region in Germany. I visited Bamberg in 1993 and had a Franken wine that looked like this for the first time. The grape is Silvaner, a neutral grape that is refreshing and typically simple. This one is from a good vineyard and a good producer. It is quite old (2017). I hope it still has some fruit flavors.
LP’s Notes: We opened this one without trying it next to others - our plans changed and we didn’t have enough people to tackle more than one! This one was very straightforward, very pleasant, maybe some green apple and lemon peel. I liked it better after it was open for a bit, but I’m not sure I could pinpoint why.