CWD: what did you drink while traveling?

[BJ]

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:
reporting live from the fatschloss after night one of raiding the fatcave with his corpulence himself

no surprise to anyone taking the time to browse these pages for the past year that an old chateauneuf made an appearance - '93 domaine de villeneuve vv served with beautifully executed duck breast w/ green beans and rice in star anise, cardamom, garlic et al that made their way into fatboy's famous reduction.
i am kind of at a loss describing the wine in that i think it's strictly a dinner wine but an excellent one at that
texturally just perfect with the duck, and at 13.5 abv so civilized, as if a more ample version of claret-like verticality

much fizz, shockingly

y'all familar with Lena Sekt (ingelheim) that occasionally graces the shelves at chambers among other places? impeccably made 21 blanc de blancs (2g/l, 80/20 chardonnay/PB) and blanc de noirs (3g/l, 95/5 PN/PM), that you may want to discover for yourselves if you haven't already. tough to think of better non-champagne fizz, anywhere, including my faves such as tripoz and dangin.

very grateful for fatboy's modified binary search algorithm that replaces one's typical cellar inventory, one that resulted in his misplacing a couple of bottles of 2005 philipponnat non-dose royale reserve that he bought in absurd quantities with the intent to drink on a nightly basis during covid lockdown. for sure a grand marque for grower champagne geeks, that is only tertiary in texture and otherwise fresh, rich, complex, dynamic, very long and obviously quite dry, with a couple of extra prongs for citrus lovers.

it seems the whole town is putting on weight, when you walk into a fashion store only to discover a secondary business dealing in Sekt with a cooler in the back.
somehow the proprietor makes it back with us to the fatschloss and unleashes a blind dark-pink and prodigiously earthy fizz on us requesting that we identify the varieties, an exercise we miserably fail at given the blend of chardonnay, welschriesling, and neuburger. very fine mousse.
tech sheet: markus alternburger 2017 "blank. volume iv" dosage:0 disg:11/23 11.5% abv

local drinking here must include sabine koch who is just a few km out of town. i've always liked her wines, but 2022 spatburguner R from tubinger sonnenhalden may be another level. this is from french clones; black-fruited and sufficiently crunchy but also deep, nicely concentrated, long, stony, with hints of forestal earthiness and reduction from stems and barrique.

in case our readers from williamsburg are getting bored at this point, claus preisinger's "bonsai" blaufränkisch at 11.5% and very low sulfur is delicious and definitely for you

last and by no means least, we should all be drinking simone adams (ingelheim). i've tried weissburgunder & pinot previously; '22 lohpfad chardonnay did not disappoint, taking 20-30 minutes to shed most of its reductive notions and to reveal a rather complete wine along the lines of what we deduced was a lost art in meaursault/puligny that was less overtly sweet and woody while more green-fruited, floral/leafy, and perceptibly phenolic. tech sheets confirmed fatboy's suspicion of whole-bunch pressing. 12.5 abv.

Impressive FB ruboff, but where's teh "teh"?

 

[Rahsaan]

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:

nope
but you of all people should have local access :-)

Ha! Just checked some usual suspect locations and did not find her wines. But will keep her in mind.

 

[Pavel Tchichikov]

originally posted by Rahsaan:

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:

nope
but you of all people should have local access :-)

Ha! Just checked some usual suspect locations and did not find her wines. But will keep her in mind.

we might try to see her tomorrow, for a deeper report. TBD.

 

[georg lauer]

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:

originally posted by Rahsaan:

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:

nope
but you of all people should have local access :-)

Ha! Just checked some usual suspect locations and did not find her wines. But will keep her in mind.

we might try to see her tomorrow, for a deeper report. TBD.

Curious to hear more, I have never tried their wines, anything from Unterjesingen used to be undrinkable in my youth. Obviously the same was true for Neuffen and Linsenhofen until Helmut came along.

 

[Oswaldo Costa]

In Vienna this evening we cracked open a 2022 Knoll Blauer Burgunder Federspiel Rosé 11.5% and found it pleasant enough to down the whole bottle, though not quite at the level of this winery’s storied rep, or the competitive Carnaval costume worn by St. subUrban on the label.

 

[Oswaldo Costa]

For our second night in Vienna we unscrewed a 2021 Winzerhof Stahl Scheurebe Trocken 12.5% (from Franken, but bought at an Austrian hotel) to explore the dry side of a variety often rewarding when sweet. The florals were happening, but the strongest note was, well, grapefruit. Some CO2 fizz made it more lively than lovely but, though on the simple side, there was enough there there to make it worthwhile with cheese & bread from Vienna’s impressive Naschmarkt (which today also had the weekly flea market, where I bought nothing).

 

[Rahsaan]

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:
...sabine koch who is just a few km out of town. i've always liked her wines, but 2022 spatburguner R from tubinger sonnenhalden may be another level.

More than a few km from Berlin, and with none available, I nursed my palate with 2018 Holger Koch Pinot Noir Reserve. Lovely silky layered texture, feels pretty resolved on the structure, although far from falling apart. But, I don't love the flavors right now, which are a touch too dark 2018 for me to get too excited. Maybe it continues to evolve in a good direction, but doesn't ring my bells at the moment.

 

[Jeff Grossman]

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
(which today also had the weekly flea market, where I bought nothing).

Are congratulations in order?

 

[Oswaldo Costa]

originally posted by Jeff Grossman:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
(which today also had the weekly flea market, where I bought nothing).

Are congratulations in order?

Only if disenchantment is a quality.

 

[Oswaldo Costa]

Third wine in Wein was a 2023 Christian Tschida Himmel auf Erden Maischevergoren II 11%. Orange blend of Muskateller and Chenin. Domineering maceration aromas, apricot blotting out anything else. Pleasantly substantial mouthfeel, with a nice bit of bitterness to compensate for the lower acidity from bathing in lees. Light hint of va, welcome in this context. Quite pleasant, in that monochordic way of some oranges at the stage where process overwhelms substance.

 

[Claude Kolm]

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:

originally posted by Jeff Grossman:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
(which today also had the weekly flea market, where I bought nothing).

Are congratulations in order?

Only if disenchantment is a quality.

I agree, even though I bought a beautiful Jugendstil pitcher the last time I was there, on the whole the Naschmarkt is not up to its reputation.

 

[Oswaldo Costa]

originally posted by Claude Kolm:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:

originally posted by Jeff Grossman:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
(which today also had the weekly flea market, where I bought nothing).

Are congratulations in order?

Only if disenchantment is a quality.

I agree, even though I bought a beautiful Jugendstil pitcher the last time I was there, on the whole the Naschmarkt is not up to its reputation.

Flea markets everywhere seem to be getting worse and worse as the number of early-bird cherry-pickers increases. Or maybe I have grown less and less easily impressed.

 

[Claude Kolm]

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:

originally posted by Claude Kolm:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:

originally posted by Jeff Grossman:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
(which today also had the weekly flea market, where I bought nothing).

Are congratulations in order?

Only if disenchantment is a quality.

I agree, even though I bought a beautiful Jugendstil pitcher the last time I was there, on the whole the Naschmarkt is not up to its reputation.

Flea markets everywhere seem to be getting worse and worse as the number of early-bird cherry-pickers increases. Or maybe I have grown less and less easily impressed.

Porte de Vanves is still great -- the best I know.

 

[Jeff Grossman]

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
Flea markets everywhere seem to be getting worse and worse as the number of early-bird cherry-pickers increases.

When we setup for a stoop sale, the cherry-pickers don't wait for start time. They pedal by on their bikes and shout what they want. One of them tried to buy my chair!

 

[Oswaldo Costa]

originally posted by Claude Kolm:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:

originally posted by Claude Kolm:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:

originally posted by Jeff Grossman:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
(which today also had the weekly flea market, where I bought nothing).

Are congratulations in order?

Only if disenchantment is a quality.

I agree, even though I bought a beautiful Jugendstil pitcher the last time I was there, on the whole the Naschmarkt is not up to its reputation.

Flea markets everywhere seem to be getting worse and worse as the number of early-bird cherry-pickers increases. Or maybe I have grown less and less easily impressed.

Porte de Vanves is still great -- the best I know.

Thanks, will check it out next month.

 

[Claude Kolm]

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:

originally posted by Claude Kolm:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:

originally posted by Claude Kolm:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:

originally posted by Jeff Grossman:

originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
(which today also had the weekly flea market, where I bought nothing).

Are congratulations in order?

Only if disenchantment is a quality.

I agree, even though I bought a beautiful Jugendstil pitcher the last time I was there, on the whole the Naschmarkt is not up to its reputation.

Flea markets everywhere seem to be getting worse and worse as the number of early-bird cherry-pickers increases. Or maybe I have grown less and less easily impressed.

Porte de Vanves is still great -- the best I know.

Thanks, will check it out next month.

Well, next month is August, France's national vacation month, so who knows what will show up.

 

[Pavel Tchichikov]

originally posted by georg lauer:

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:

originally posted by Rahsaan:

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:

nope
but you of all people should have local access :-)

Ha! Just checked some usual suspect locations and did not find her wines. But will keep her in mind.

we might try to see her tomorrow, for a deeper report. TBD.

Curious to hear more, I have never tried their wines, anything from Unterjesingen used to be undrinkable in my youth. Obviously the same was true for Neuffen and Linsenhofen until Helmut came along.

wanted to see helmut as well but he was unavailable

fun visit to sabine koch.
all wines have an unmistakably wholesome organic presence to them, very fresh w/lovely acidity, ripe tannins, civilized abv.
everything is from the south-facing tubinger sonnenhalden hill, predominantly argillic with keuper variants, transitioning to sandstone at elevation.
the two rieslings, '24 and '23 'N' (N stands for spontaneous fermentation) are entirely swabian if you've ever tasted the variety from beurer or knauss, containing vectors that tell you they want to age like a chablis except that you'd probably want to drink these young.
fb was particularly fond of weissburgunder 'orange' '23 (18 months in barrique), and while i like i had a preference for WB '23 'N' that was once again transparently regional, light on its feet, and irresistible (500L tonneau).
[one comment about these WBs is that i quite enjoy them in absolute rather than relative terms, meaning that there are known upgrades from both baden and rheinhessen that don't compromise on the sheer fun aspect]
in the resistant clone department, '23 cabernet blanc (not a typo) is quite worthy as a foodie wine, with flavors of sauvignon and more of a semillon texture
really really like the PN/SB wines here - they are complete.
'23 spatburgunder from earlier picked fruit is spicy w/red&black flavors and a hint of herbaceous bitterness that is in lovely balance with fruit on palate.
'22 spatburgunder R will displace pointy wines in the cave, especially if one considers its counterparts from the french clones that it comes from; one should inquire about magnums. equally fresh/spicy but also properly sappy.
then there was a 'pinot cuvee' '22 that is 80/20 PN/PM with the latter adding a touch of softness but also a beeswaxy florality, being a type of wine that i've used to torture y'all on social media, pictured alongside salmon and yellowtail sushi.
finally, clone experiments extend to the reds with regent '23 and regent reserve '22, which apparently has made the cut as the new pizza wines at the fatschloss

drink local my friends
(an advice i have followed in the past year with some more-than-decent cf rose from this side of the hudson valley)

 

[mark e]

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:

originally posted by georg lauer:

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:

originally posted by Rahsaan:

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:

nope
but you of all people should have local access :-)

Ha! Just checked some usual suspect locations and did not find her wines. But will keep her in mind.

we might try to see her tomorrow, for a deeper report. TBD.

Curious to hear more, I have never tried their wines, anything from Unterjesingen used to be undrinkable in my youth. Obviously the same was true for Neuffen and Linsenhofen until Helmut came along.

in the resistant clone department, '23 cabernet blanc (not a typo) is quite worthy as a foodie wine, with flavors of sauvignon and more of a semillon texture

finally, clone experiments extend to the reds with regent '23 and regent reserve '22, which apparently has made the cut as the new pizza wines at the fatschloss

Interesting. Small correction, those PiWi (fungal resistant grapes) grapes are varieties, not clones. Valentin Blattner is the Swiss breeder of Cabernet blanc. Regent is a cross of Diana (Silvaner x Müller-Thurgau) x Chambourcin.

 

[Pavel Tchichikov]

of course! pilzwiderstandsfähige was on the tip of my tongue :)

 

[MLipton]

originally posted by Pavel Tchichikov:
of course! pilzwiderstandsfähige was on the tip of my tongue :)

Gesundheit!

Mark Lipton
(Whose Gamay could benefit from some pilzwiderstandsfähige)