Recent content by Ben Hunting

I guess you have to wait 20 years for Roilette to come around! I must have been making the mistake of opening mine more between ages 5-10 when the bottles have generally been a crapshoot. Some recent vintages of Roilette are so grandiose that I wonder whether they will age similarly. They...

I bought 4 bottles of the Descombes Vieilles Vignes bottlings recently: 2 bottles of the 2022 Chiroubles VV and 1 each of the 2021 and 2022 Brouilly VV. The results were pretty disappointing. One bottle of the Chiroubles was admittedly great, but the other tasted out of balance; and both the...

I find low-alcohol wines like the Silice (or Argile) tend to be well-priced on restaurant wine lists. In the summer, my wife and I drank the 2023 Agricola Gili Villo (abv 11%) at a smart restaurant in London and were seriously impressed by it, particularly at the wine list’s price of £50, but...

Has anyone opened any of the 2021 or 2022 Vieilles Vignes bottlings from Georges Descombes? Following on from Claude’s post, I’ve had some impressive bottles of Sérol’s 2022 Perdrizière.

Hi BJ, my wife and I really like Anna Tobias’ cooking, and the atmosphere, at Cafe Deco (same ownership as 40 Maltby). I hear Planque is good but haven’t eaten there yet.

I chanced upon some 2011 Desvignes Javernières Impénitents recently. (Stored in bond, from the original merchant/importer here in the UK, release price plus storage costs.) 3 out of 4 bottles opened so far have been fantastic, their youthfulness suggesting how firm they might once have been...

What’s the ABV on the 2023 Tardive?

Like Oliver, we really liked Osteria Antica Marina in Catania but it’s been a while. In Palermo, I highly recommend Corona Trattoria. I imagine you have arranged all your accommodation but if you haven’t there’s a lovely agriturismo one can eat dinner at and sleep afterwards in tasteful rooms...

Over the years, I’ve had far more bretty bottles of Baudry purchased in the UK than I ever encountered when living in New York. UK wine shops often don’t have any temperature control and I expect it is rare for transport to the UK from France to be temperature-controlled either, which might...

+1 for Vini da Gigio and Anice Stellato (albeit we haven’t visited Venice in over 5 years) and the Slow Food guide. Ai Artisti in Venice was also excellent. Don’t miss the Scuola di San Giorgio degli Schiavoni and Santa Maria dei Miracuoli in Venice.

I haven’t, Claude. Being Barthod, I assumed the rule of 3 to 20-25 years should apply!

A 2012 Lafarge Volnay wasn’t much to speak about earlier this week. Maybe I fell foul of the 3 to 15-20 years rule.

That’s interesting about Les Caprices de l’Instant. I bought some bottles of 2010 Barthod Véroilles from them in 2016 for an ok price and was told they came directly from the domaine.

Yule, I last opened a 2010 Cordeloux in November.

Personally, I have quite enjoyed recent vintages of Lafarge-Vial Beaujolais and feel their style has evolved somewhat over the years. I wonder if Eric has drunk their 2019 Fleurie Joie du Palais, for example? I found it a delight, and particularly so in the context of many 2019 Bojo that to me...