Notes from a lazy, blissfully unproductive Saturday. Wine tasting at K&L in the afternoon, and then Chinese food and Jura wines with a friend in the evening.
2009 Jacques Puffeney Savagnin Arbois: Intense, expressive oxidative nose. On opening, there is weight, body, and intensity, the palate awash with almond, seashell, salinity, and just a slight jab of fruit on the finish. However, with air, the wine becomes more finely detailed and filigreed, with this crystalline purity and wonderfully balanced acidity. There’s a weightless intensity that hovers over the palate, and the oxidative notes become more integrated and less of a smack in the mouth with time in the glass. Slightly reminiscent of a supremely elegant, finely-etched fino sherry. Incredible. Would be interesting to try this again in 10 years (unfortunately, my last bottle).
2009 Overnoy/Houillon Chardonnay Arbois Pupillin Macération: An ouille, skin-contact wine. The color is orange-brown and cloudy. Intensely coiled and weighty on the palate, with this kaleidoscope of flavors: sour oranges and lemon, tropical notes, spices, minerals, and a mild funkiness. However, the wine continues to transmute with air over the course of dinner, becoming more delicate and elegant, cleaner and more precise, then gaining weight and intensity again, shifting from an almost orange marmalade bitterness to a sweeter pear cider before cruising into a fresher, savory, delicate, finely etched wine. The wine was so dynamic and ever-changing in its flavor profile that it was like drinking five different wines over the course of the evening. Absolutely fascinating, very hard to describe, and a true privilege to drink.
NV Krug Grand Cuvee 172eme Edition Brut Champagne: I’m getting baked apples, lemon, and little touch of yeast on the nose. The palate is rich and dense, but there is piercing, mouth-watering acidity. Dense white fruit and mineral flavors abound, cresting into a long, long finish. Night and day difference between the 171eme, which I thought was incredibly uninteresting and tight, while this feels very open, dynamic in flavors, and oh-so crushable right now. Base 2016 vintage (58%) with the remaining 42% from reserve wine going back to 1998 (a blend of 11 different vintages). 146 separate wines in this blend. Aged on the lees for about 7 years.
2007 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Brut Rose: Initially a little closed, some red berry and forestry, earthy Pinot notes develop on the nose. The flavors feel understated, with some red fruit interlaced with citrus and salinity, tied together with a tangy acidic spine. Perhaps still a little coiled today, this may benefit from some more cellar time. All in all, though, this is comparatively delicate and elegant, in contrast to the more forward, bruising Krug. 70% Pinot Noir (15% still wine from Bouzy) and 30% Chardonnay.
2021 Dagueneau Cuvee XXI Pouilly Fume: A very expressive nose, with prominent gunpowder and flint with hints of florality and pyrazine. This has a broader palate presence than when I first had this a couple of months ago. The acidity is not as searing, though arguably the palate is more complex and textured now, with more pronounced spice (perhaps oak?) and a honeyed richness on the finish.
2021 Mouton Rothschild Aile d’Argent Bordeaux Blanc: The nose is very tropical, with some smoke and perhaps a hint of cat pee. It somewhat reminds me of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. There’s ripe yellow and tropical fruit on the palate with decent, tangy acidity, but the oak tannins are intense and coat the mouth. Quite frankly, it tastes over-ripe and texturally feels overworked. Even if this style of wine is in your wheelhouse, it needs a lot of time to integrate the oak tannins.
2001 Leoville-Las-Cases: An expressive nose of cassis, tobacco, and quite a bit of new oak. The palate is very powerful, the dark fruit, which is still very primary, coated with a veneer of vanilla. The tannins are pronounced, coating the mouth with a drying, dusty sensation, though there is a hint of sweetness in the finish. While this tastes ripe, there is a sharp, tart acidity that provides some balance, so it is not syrupy or unpleasantly cloying. As noted earlier, this is very primary and raw at this point, so perhaps with more time in the cellar, this will integrate further and the pronounced oakiness will recede.
2009 Dominus Napa Valley Bordeaux Blend: There’s a bright, blackberry character on the nose with some cured tobacco notes. However, this tastes quite simple, dominated by easygoing, sunny dark fruit with a hint of smokiness to add a scintilla of complexity. While it is texturally silky with soft tannins, and enlivened with some acidity, there’s far too much oak, which overwhelms the monolithic fruitiness of the palate. Someone said this reminded him of a Napa Merlot (even though the blend is 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, and 4% Petit Verdot). Remove the new oak, and I would say this would be an exemplary $20 bistro wine.
2008 Dom Perignon Brut Champagne: A very bready, yeasty nose with notes of baked apple and citrus. The palate is very tightly coiled at this point, dominated by a cutting (though not angular) acidity and a steely, mineral-forward character with a hint of spice on the finish. Right now, this is more about potential than pleasure, but it seems to have a bright future.
2009 Jacques Puffeney Savagnin Arbois: Intense, expressive oxidative nose. On opening, there is weight, body, and intensity, the palate awash with almond, seashell, salinity, and just a slight jab of fruit on the finish. However, with air, the wine becomes more finely detailed and filigreed, with this crystalline purity and wonderfully balanced acidity. There’s a weightless intensity that hovers over the palate, and the oxidative notes become more integrated and less of a smack in the mouth with time in the glass. Slightly reminiscent of a supremely elegant, finely-etched fino sherry. Incredible. Would be interesting to try this again in 10 years (unfortunately, my last bottle).
2009 Overnoy/Houillon Chardonnay Arbois Pupillin Macération: An ouille, skin-contact wine. The color is orange-brown and cloudy. Intensely coiled and weighty on the palate, with this kaleidoscope of flavors: sour oranges and lemon, tropical notes, spices, minerals, and a mild funkiness. However, the wine continues to transmute with air over the course of dinner, becoming more delicate and elegant, cleaner and more precise, then gaining weight and intensity again, shifting from an almost orange marmalade bitterness to a sweeter pear cider before cruising into a fresher, savory, delicate, finely etched wine. The wine was so dynamic and ever-changing in its flavor profile that it was like drinking five different wines over the course of the evening. Absolutely fascinating, very hard to describe, and a true privilege to drink.
NV Krug Grand Cuvee 172eme Edition Brut Champagne: I’m getting baked apples, lemon, and little touch of yeast on the nose. The palate is rich and dense, but there is piercing, mouth-watering acidity. Dense white fruit and mineral flavors abound, cresting into a long, long finish. Night and day difference between the 171eme, which I thought was incredibly uninteresting and tight, while this feels very open, dynamic in flavors, and oh-so crushable right now. Base 2016 vintage (58%) with the remaining 42% from reserve wine going back to 1998 (a blend of 11 different vintages). 146 separate wines in this blend. Aged on the lees for about 7 years.
2007 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Brut Rose: Initially a little closed, some red berry and forestry, earthy Pinot notes develop on the nose. The flavors feel understated, with some red fruit interlaced with citrus and salinity, tied together with a tangy acidic spine. Perhaps still a little coiled today, this may benefit from some more cellar time. All in all, though, this is comparatively delicate and elegant, in contrast to the more forward, bruising Krug. 70% Pinot Noir (15% still wine from Bouzy) and 30% Chardonnay.
2021 Dagueneau Cuvee XXI Pouilly Fume: A very expressive nose, with prominent gunpowder and flint with hints of florality and pyrazine. This has a broader palate presence than when I first had this a couple of months ago. The acidity is not as searing, though arguably the palate is more complex and textured now, with more pronounced spice (perhaps oak?) and a honeyed richness on the finish.
2021 Mouton Rothschild Aile d’Argent Bordeaux Blanc: The nose is very tropical, with some smoke and perhaps a hint of cat pee. It somewhat reminds me of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. There’s ripe yellow and tropical fruit on the palate with decent, tangy acidity, but the oak tannins are intense and coat the mouth. Quite frankly, it tastes over-ripe and texturally feels overworked. Even if this style of wine is in your wheelhouse, it needs a lot of time to integrate the oak tannins.
2001 Leoville-Las-Cases: An expressive nose of cassis, tobacco, and quite a bit of new oak. The palate is very powerful, the dark fruit, which is still very primary, coated with a veneer of vanilla. The tannins are pronounced, coating the mouth with a drying, dusty sensation, though there is a hint of sweetness in the finish. While this tastes ripe, there is a sharp, tart acidity that provides some balance, so it is not syrupy or unpleasantly cloying. As noted earlier, this is very primary and raw at this point, so perhaps with more time in the cellar, this will integrate further and the pronounced oakiness will recede.
2009 Dominus Napa Valley Bordeaux Blend: There’s a bright, blackberry character on the nose with some cured tobacco notes. However, this tastes quite simple, dominated by easygoing, sunny dark fruit with a hint of smokiness to add a scintilla of complexity. While it is texturally silky with soft tannins, and enlivened with some acidity, there’s far too much oak, which overwhelms the monolithic fruitiness of the palate. Someone said this reminded him of a Napa Merlot (even though the blend is 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, and 4% Petit Verdot). Remove the new oak, and I would say this would be an exemplary $20 bistro wine.
2008 Dom Perignon Brut Champagne: A very bready, yeasty nose with notes of baked apple and citrus. The palate is very tightly coiled at this point, dominated by a cutting (though not angular) acidity and a steely, mineral-forward character with a hint of spice on the finish. Right now, this is more about potential than pleasure, but it seems to have a bright future.
