Well, we had a great end to a very challenging year. Normally, we host or attend multiple events and are surrounded by friends and family. Obviously, not so this year. I did open what for me was one very emotional bottle of wine, a 1990 Lafite from my father's cellar. It was one of the more remarkable wines I had this year and a reminder that it was my father who brought me into all this wine stuff. I have great memories of shuttling around to wine shops with him, getting little tastes in the back room and distracting my mom while he brought cases into the house to slip downstairs. Most important of all, sharing an interest with my father that, for me, grew into a passion and avocation (and sometimes vocation). Many of my closest friends and best experiences in life have something to do with wine, which is a curious thing when you stop to think about it. At the end of this most testing year, I feel almost overwhelmed with gratitude for all the privileges myself and my family enjoy.
NV Mouzon-Leroux & Fils Champagne Extra Brut Cuvée L'Atavique - France, Champagne (12/21/2020)
This is from a 2016 disgorgement and those extra years really did wonders. It still has bright shape and some citrus mineral notes driving the finish but the mouthfeel and mousse are so silky and the nose so complex. All of the autolytic notes you'd want in harmony with fruit and flowers. Unfortunately, my last bottle but a real testament to at least a few years of aging even NV wines. (93 points)
2010 Flavio Roddolo Barbera d'Alba Superiore Bricco Appiani - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba Superiore (12/22/2020)
In order to put the Burlotto in context I wanted to benchmark it against our current favorite Barbera. Not may wines can really outshine this wine from Roddolo. OK, so maybe not everyone will love these the way I do, but there is magic here. Another beautiful bottle consistent with previous notes. One of the wines that makes me happiest when I drink it. (93 points)
2019 Comm. G.B. Burlotto Barbera d'Alba - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba (12/22/2020)
Burlotto is back in my market so I got a few to try. This is just straightforward seemingly stainless steel Barbera. Snappy dark red berry fruits with a bit of herb and other notes. Easy to drink and nice at the table. I'm happy to drink it but wouldn't work that hard to find it. (88 points)
2012 Geantet-Pansiot Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Poissenot - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru (12/23/2020)
OK, this was from the same lot and evidently the same OCB as the last bottle but here the cork was perfect. [shrug] Delicious and maybe a wee bit fresher but that could just be my mind after seeing the cork. So happy these wines are pretty well ignored. (92 points)
2016 Domaine Gramenon Vinsobres La Papesse - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Vinsobres (12/23/2020)
This has always been a bit difficult to get a bead on as it can be a bit grumpy. The rusticity and savory qualities showed well with sheppard's pie for an outdoor, social distanced lunch with my sister-in-law. I wonder if this will be one of those wines that will emerge from a shell one day and we'll wonder what all the sulking was about. (90 points)
2015 Roses de Jeanne / Cédric Bouchard Champagne Millésimé Blanc de Noirs Les Ursules - France, Champagne (12/23/2020)
I see what people mean about these wines being vinous. They have a real still wine depth and concentration that eludes many Champagnes. Distinctly on the darker side of pitted fruits, like plums, especially that part directly around the pit. Not super complex but really good at the table. A bit too pricey for me but I liked it. There are other wines at this price point I like a lot more. (92 points)
2015 Marguet Champagne Grand Cru Extra Brut Les Crayères - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru (12/23/2020)
In my continuing research to reacquaint myself with some grower Champagne I wanted to have this alongside the Bouchard. This was a more lean and mineral expression of Pinot Noir than the Ursules. It was an interesting comparison. While I also thought this was really good, neither of these wines excite me in quite the same way as Filaine or Collin. Unlike the Bouchard, I have a couple more of these to follow. Will try again in a couple of years. (92 points)
2017 Birichino Cabernet Sauvignon Peter Martin Ray Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (12/23/2020)
This was interesting. Really bright and red fruited, even for an SCM Cabernet. Lighter and redder than the Ceritas version and not quite as leathery. Really compact and barely budged for days on the counter. Sinewy and taught. I need to grab a few to see what happens with a few years age. A really different take on Cabernet. (92 points)
2006 Vilmart & Cie Champagne Premier Cru Coeur de Cuvée - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru (12/24/2020)
While this bottle was very good, it performed at the minimum level I would expect from this wine. I guess I was expecting the 2007 except with some more mature notes and it was a different wine entirely. Less exuberant in it's fruit expression and more finely drawn. Very well balanced and with that lovely balanced mouthfeel this cuvée always seems to have. I get the feeling I may have enjoyed this more had I been served it blind. Let it be a lesson, don't let expectations get in the way of experience. (92 points)
2007 Fratelli Brovia Barolo Ca'mia - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (12/24/2020)
A warm, inviting version fo this with lots of baking spices on the nose to go with the macerated cherry compote. As others have noted there is a woodsy, slight pine note mixed in with some earth and leather. Very enjoyable and easy to drink. For me, this is firmly in the drinking category but you can hold if you prefer more tertiary notes. (92 points)
2011 Eric Texier Côte-Rôtie Vieilles Vignes - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie (12/24/2020)
Continuing a streak of excellence with Eric's 2011 reds this was a beautiful showing. Mid-weight, savory red fruits with a really penetrating note of olive brine. There was an almost umami sense to the leather note underneath. The fruit wasn't crunchy but it was clear and piercing, think red currants. Really perfumed with lilacs and herbs intermingled with the fruit. Superb. (93 points)
2019 Domaine Bernard Baudry Chinon Blanc La Croix Boissée - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Chinon (12/25/2020)
A little bit young and pinched. Not lean, but not expressive. All the things I like about what Matthieu is doing with Chenin from this site. That particular chalkiness that I haven't found in other Loire Chenins that gives it a palate presence reminiscent of Chablis. I'll try to give it a couple of years to come together before having another bottle. (91 points)
1990 Ch“teau Lafite Rothschild - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac (12/25/2020)
Maybe the best wine I had this year and a reminder that there are actual reasons that Bordeaux was a benchmark for so long. Deep currant fruit with a vegetal, animal, graphite edge that screams Pauillac. I had an emotional reaction to this perfect bottle from my father's cellar since I haven't seen my parents in 15 months and I miss them terribly. I first learned about wine at my father's side accompanying him on his Saturday trips to the local wine shop and tasting in the back room with other loyal customers. I remember when he bought these 1990 first growths, the first ones he ever bought, for $70-80 per bottle on futures. It's hard to imagine now that all wine was available as a splurge for regular people. This was a truly magnificent bottle, worthy of storing all these years and with decades of life left in it. I wouldn't even say that it is at peak since the tannins are still a little bit backwards. I can't wait to share a special bottle with my parents the next time I see them. As an aside, this was the hardest to dislodge cork I can remember with wine only on the end. I see so many people showing corks on wines younger than this soaked half way up calling it a "perfect cork". A perfect cork has no staining except at the end. That's what bottles look like that come from my cellar that I've had since release. (97 points)
2015 Domaine du Collier Saumur La Ripaille - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur (12/25/2020)
Much more reserved than a recent 2016 and while full seemed to lack that extra bit of penetrating fruit. Still, this was a polished and accomplished wine that will grow even better with some time in the cellar. (91 points)
2018 Azienda Agricola Platinetti Guido Nebbiolo Colline Novaresi - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Colline Novaresi (12/26/2020)
Wow, this is a joy to drink. Mid-weight, fragrant with red fruits, flowers and the feel of a meadow on a late spring afternoon. Juicy, with lovely shape and just enough structure to frame it all. So versatile at the table. (91 points)
2018 Azienda Agricola Platinetti Guido Nebbiolo Colline Novaresi - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Colline Novaresi (12/26/2020)
Because one bottle was not enough. This needs to come in liter bottles like Radikon because 750ml isn't enough for two people. (91 points)
2019 Hofgut Falkenstein Niedermenniger Herrenberg Riesling Spätlese feinherb "Meyer Nepal" #11 - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer (12/27/2020)
Consistent with past vintages of this wine. Maybe a bit more "gras" and a density to the mid-palate. Has all the things I love about Falkenstein, the powdered lime, shimmering minerality and brisk, mouth-watering acidity. (92 points)
2006 Domaine de Peyre Rose Coteaux du Languedoc Clos des Cistes - France, Languedoc Roussillon, Languedoc, Coteaux du Languedoc (12/28/2020)
OK, now this is much more in line with what I was expecting from Peyre Rose. Dusty and slightly rustic tannins and a hint of roastedness to the dark red fruit. Leather and smoky garrigue notes trail the fruit where the tannins show a slightly grainy feel. Noble rusticity is a term invented for this wine. Great with a Midland Meat American Wagyu tri-tip grilled over an oak fire. I'm not sure I'll chase these wines but it was a relief to have a good showing after two really harsh disappointments. (91 points)
2018 Domaine Guillemot-Michel Viré-Clessé Retour à la Terre - France, Burgundy, M“connais, Viré-Clessé (12/29/2020)
This is the first time I've ever had this wine. It was somewhat shy, which was a surprise given the vintage and my previous experience with Guillemot-Michel which tend to be ripe, expressive wines in a style not dissimilar to Thévenet. Doesn't have any exotic fruit notes, more stone pit tree fruits with a kind of aloe-vegetal stoniness underneath. I enjoyed the wine but am not really sure what to make of it but I do have a sneaking suspicion that putting a few in the cellar for 4-5 years would be well rewarded. (90 points)
2013 Forey Père et Fils Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Gaudichots - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru (12/29/2020)
Continuing the theme with wines that are in a really shy stage. Tart red fruit surrounded by spices and scents of rosewater. Really firm but fine tannin keep the flavors encased. I was hoping to catch this in an early expressive stage that sometimes happens after 6-8 years but I did not. It's not that it was terrible now, it worked at the table, but so many things that it can be were being held back. I wouldn't open this again for at least 5 years. (91 points)
2018 Bedrock Wine Co. Bedrock Vineyard Heritage - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Valley (12/30/2020)
Continuing with the theme of wines that are showing a lot leaner and more reserved than expected this was quite a surprise. I wouldn't have been surprised if it had shown backwards but with a lot of fruit. It wasn't that it lacked fruit, it was the sharpness of it and all of the other complex notes of things like bay leaf, earth and mineral that I didn't expect. This could turn out to be a really fascinating wine in a few years. I bought a few as an experiment and because I'm generally interested in the preservation of these historic old vineyards but I may make a habit of grabbing a few every year. (91 points)
NV Savart Champagne Premier Cru Bulle de Rosé Extra Brut - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru (12/31/2020)
This was fun and quite good with some charcuterie. Lots of tart red berries on the nose with hints of white flowers. Tart and slightly vinous on the palate with a nice mousse. A bit of age may settle it a bit and bring more harmony, but with food this was really enjoyable now. (92 points)
2015 Alexandre Filaine Champagne Cuvée DMY - France, Champagne (12/31/2020)
Filigreed is really the word that best describes these Champagnes. They are never the most exuberant in their bubbles but wistful. This bottle was even better the next day when the spiced, poached pear note and touches of ginger emerged. For whatever reason, these are just the bees knees for me. (93 points)
2012 Azienda Agricola Caparsa Chianti Classico Riserva Doccio a Matteo - Italy, Tuscany, Chianti, Chianti Classico DOCG (12/31/2020)
Consistent with the last two bottles but perhaps shading to the fruit expression of the first. This wine isn't about being fruit forward though, to be sure. It's about the feral, earthy, leathery notes and the sense of rocky minerals. (92 points)
NV Mouzon-Leroux & Fils Champagne Extra Brut Cuvée L'Atavique - France, Champagne (12/21/2020)
This is from a 2016 disgorgement and those extra years really did wonders. It still has bright shape and some citrus mineral notes driving the finish but the mouthfeel and mousse are so silky and the nose so complex. All of the autolytic notes you'd want in harmony with fruit and flowers. Unfortunately, my last bottle but a real testament to at least a few years of aging even NV wines. (93 points)
2010 Flavio Roddolo Barbera d'Alba Superiore Bricco Appiani - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba Superiore (12/22/2020)
In order to put the Burlotto in context I wanted to benchmark it against our current favorite Barbera. Not may wines can really outshine this wine from Roddolo. OK, so maybe not everyone will love these the way I do, but there is magic here. Another beautiful bottle consistent with previous notes. One of the wines that makes me happiest when I drink it. (93 points)
2019 Comm. G.B. Burlotto Barbera d'Alba - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba (12/22/2020)
Burlotto is back in my market so I got a few to try. This is just straightforward seemingly stainless steel Barbera. Snappy dark red berry fruits with a bit of herb and other notes. Easy to drink and nice at the table. I'm happy to drink it but wouldn't work that hard to find it. (88 points)
2012 Geantet-Pansiot Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Poissenot - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru (12/23/2020)
OK, this was from the same lot and evidently the same OCB as the last bottle but here the cork was perfect. [shrug] Delicious and maybe a wee bit fresher but that could just be my mind after seeing the cork. So happy these wines are pretty well ignored. (92 points)
2016 Domaine Gramenon Vinsobres La Papesse - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Vinsobres (12/23/2020)
This has always been a bit difficult to get a bead on as it can be a bit grumpy. The rusticity and savory qualities showed well with sheppard's pie for an outdoor, social distanced lunch with my sister-in-law. I wonder if this will be one of those wines that will emerge from a shell one day and we'll wonder what all the sulking was about. (90 points)
2015 Roses de Jeanne / Cédric Bouchard Champagne Millésimé Blanc de Noirs Les Ursules - France, Champagne (12/23/2020)
I see what people mean about these wines being vinous. They have a real still wine depth and concentration that eludes many Champagnes. Distinctly on the darker side of pitted fruits, like plums, especially that part directly around the pit. Not super complex but really good at the table. A bit too pricey for me but I liked it. There are other wines at this price point I like a lot more. (92 points)
2015 Marguet Champagne Grand Cru Extra Brut Les Crayères - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru (12/23/2020)
In my continuing research to reacquaint myself with some grower Champagne I wanted to have this alongside the Bouchard. This was a more lean and mineral expression of Pinot Noir than the Ursules. It was an interesting comparison. While I also thought this was really good, neither of these wines excite me in quite the same way as Filaine or Collin. Unlike the Bouchard, I have a couple more of these to follow. Will try again in a couple of years. (92 points)
2017 Birichino Cabernet Sauvignon Peter Martin Ray Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (12/23/2020)
This was interesting. Really bright and red fruited, even for an SCM Cabernet. Lighter and redder than the Ceritas version and not quite as leathery. Really compact and barely budged for days on the counter. Sinewy and taught. I need to grab a few to see what happens with a few years age. A really different take on Cabernet. (92 points)
2006 Vilmart & Cie Champagne Premier Cru Coeur de Cuvée - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru (12/24/2020)
While this bottle was very good, it performed at the minimum level I would expect from this wine. I guess I was expecting the 2007 except with some more mature notes and it was a different wine entirely. Less exuberant in it's fruit expression and more finely drawn. Very well balanced and with that lovely balanced mouthfeel this cuvée always seems to have. I get the feeling I may have enjoyed this more had I been served it blind. Let it be a lesson, don't let expectations get in the way of experience. (92 points)
2007 Fratelli Brovia Barolo Ca'mia - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (12/24/2020)
A warm, inviting version fo this with lots of baking spices on the nose to go with the macerated cherry compote. As others have noted there is a woodsy, slight pine note mixed in with some earth and leather. Very enjoyable and easy to drink. For me, this is firmly in the drinking category but you can hold if you prefer more tertiary notes. (92 points)
2011 Eric Texier Côte-Rôtie Vieilles Vignes - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie (12/24/2020)
Continuing a streak of excellence with Eric's 2011 reds this was a beautiful showing. Mid-weight, savory red fruits with a really penetrating note of olive brine. There was an almost umami sense to the leather note underneath. The fruit wasn't crunchy but it was clear and piercing, think red currants. Really perfumed with lilacs and herbs intermingled with the fruit. Superb. (93 points)
2019 Domaine Bernard Baudry Chinon Blanc La Croix Boissée - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Chinon (12/25/2020)
A little bit young and pinched. Not lean, but not expressive. All the things I like about what Matthieu is doing with Chenin from this site. That particular chalkiness that I haven't found in other Loire Chenins that gives it a palate presence reminiscent of Chablis. I'll try to give it a couple of years to come together before having another bottle. (91 points)
1990 Ch“teau Lafite Rothschild - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac (12/25/2020)
Maybe the best wine I had this year and a reminder that there are actual reasons that Bordeaux was a benchmark for so long. Deep currant fruit with a vegetal, animal, graphite edge that screams Pauillac. I had an emotional reaction to this perfect bottle from my father's cellar since I haven't seen my parents in 15 months and I miss them terribly. I first learned about wine at my father's side accompanying him on his Saturday trips to the local wine shop and tasting in the back room with other loyal customers. I remember when he bought these 1990 first growths, the first ones he ever bought, for $70-80 per bottle on futures. It's hard to imagine now that all wine was available as a splurge for regular people. This was a truly magnificent bottle, worthy of storing all these years and with decades of life left in it. I wouldn't even say that it is at peak since the tannins are still a little bit backwards. I can't wait to share a special bottle with my parents the next time I see them. As an aside, this was the hardest to dislodge cork I can remember with wine only on the end. I see so many people showing corks on wines younger than this soaked half way up calling it a "perfect cork". A perfect cork has no staining except at the end. That's what bottles look like that come from my cellar that I've had since release. (97 points)
2015 Domaine du Collier Saumur La Ripaille - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur (12/25/2020)
Much more reserved than a recent 2016 and while full seemed to lack that extra bit of penetrating fruit. Still, this was a polished and accomplished wine that will grow even better with some time in the cellar. (91 points)
2018 Azienda Agricola Platinetti Guido Nebbiolo Colline Novaresi - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Colline Novaresi (12/26/2020)
Wow, this is a joy to drink. Mid-weight, fragrant with red fruits, flowers and the feel of a meadow on a late spring afternoon. Juicy, with lovely shape and just enough structure to frame it all. So versatile at the table. (91 points)
2018 Azienda Agricola Platinetti Guido Nebbiolo Colline Novaresi - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Colline Novaresi (12/26/2020)
Because one bottle was not enough. This needs to come in liter bottles like Radikon because 750ml isn't enough for two people. (91 points)
2019 Hofgut Falkenstein Niedermenniger Herrenberg Riesling Spätlese feinherb "Meyer Nepal" #11 - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer (12/27/2020)
Consistent with past vintages of this wine. Maybe a bit more "gras" and a density to the mid-palate. Has all the things I love about Falkenstein, the powdered lime, shimmering minerality and brisk, mouth-watering acidity. (92 points)
2006 Domaine de Peyre Rose Coteaux du Languedoc Clos des Cistes - France, Languedoc Roussillon, Languedoc, Coteaux du Languedoc (12/28/2020)
OK, now this is much more in line with what I was expecting from Peyre Rose. Dusty and slightly rustic tannins and a hint of roastedness to the dark red fruit. Leather and smoky garrigue notes trail the fruit where the tannins show a slightly grainy feel. Noble rusticity is a term invented for this wine. Great with a Midland Meat American Wagyu tri-tip grilled over an oak fire. I'm not sure I'll chase these wines but it was a relief to have a good showing after two really harsh disappointments. (91 points)
2018 Domaine Guillemot-Michel Viré-Clessé Retour à la Terre - France, Burgundy, M“connais, Viré-Clessé (12/29/2020)
This is the first time I've ever had this wine. It was somewhat shy, which was a surprise given the vintage and my previous experience with Guillemot-Michel which tend to be ripe, expressive wines in a style not dissimilar to Thévenet. Doesn't have any exotic fruit notes, more stone pit tree fruits with a kind of aloe-vegetal stoniness underneath. I enjoyed the wine but am not really sure what to make of it but I do have a sneaking suspicion that putting a few in the cellar for 4-5 years would be well rewarded. (90 points)
2013 Forey Père et Fils Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Gaudichots - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru (12/29/2020)
Continuing the theme with wines that are in a really shy stage. Tart red fruit surrounded by spices and scents of rosewater. Really firm but fine tannin keep the flavors encased. I was hoping to catch this in an early expressive stage that sometimes happens after 6-8 years but I did not. It's not that it was terrible now, it worked at the table, but so many things that it can be were being held back. I wouldn't open this again for at least 5 years. (91 points)
2018 Bedrock Wine Co. Bedrock Vineyard Heritage - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Valley (12/30/2020)
Continuing with the theme of wines that are showing a lot leaner and more reserved than expected this was quite a surprise. I wouldn't have been surprised if it had shown backwards but with a lot of fruit. It wasn't that it lacked fruit, it was the sharpness of it and all of the other complex notes of things like bay leaf, earth and mineral that I didn't expect. This could turn out to be a really fascinating wine in a few years. I bought a few as an experiment and because I'm generally interested in the preservation of these historic old vineyards but I may make a habit of grabbing a few every year. (91 points)
NV Savart Champagne Premier Cru Bulle de Rosé Extra Brut - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru (12/31/2020)
This was fun and quite good with some charcuterie. Lots of tart red berries on the nose with hints of white flowers. Tart and slightly vinous on the palate with a nice mousse. A bit of age may settle it a bit and bring more harmony, but with food this was really enjoyable now. (92 points)
2015 Alexandre Filaine Champagne Cuvée DMY - France, Champagne (12/31/2020)
Filigreed is really the word that best describes these Champagnes. They are never the most exuberant in their bubbles but wistful. This bottle was even better the next day when the spiced, poached pear note and touches of ginger emerged. For whatever reason, these are just the bees knees for me. (93 points)
2012 Azienda Agricola Caparsa Chianti Classico Riserva Doccio a Matteo - Italy, Tuscany, Chianti, Chianti Classico DOCG (12/31/2020)
Consistent with the last two bottles but perhaps shading to the fruit expression of the first. This wine isn't about being fruit forward though, to be sure. It's about the feral, earthy, leathery notes and the sense of rocky minerals. (92 points)
