Kay Bixler
Kay Bixler
Two contemplative whites for the fall weather.
1998 Huet Le Mont Vouvray demi-sec is inching along and tastes much the same as it has for the past decade. Light on the tongue and full of flavor, leaning towards honey and tea. Beautiful, delicate wine with an endless future.
1999 Closel Clos du Papillon Savennieres takes an hour or two to open up and then it is very much flowers and beeswax. After three days the wine is remarkably dense, ponderous and only beginning to show its soul. Wonderful.
While opened several days apart some of the glasses of each wine overlapped and it is hard not to make comparisons. The Vouvray, perhaps due to its sweetness, has not lost its youthful charm while the Savennieres, which has long since shed its fruitiness, is more somber and slow to unwind. It's easy to see how the Closel could be dismissed as oxidised or premoxed, or whatever, but that is not the case. The wine responds well to air and unravels slowly and perfectly into a lovely aged Savennieres. Both wines have lots to offer.
Best,
Kay
1998 Huet Le Mont Vouvray demi-sec is inching along and tastes much the same as it has for the past decade. Light on the tongue and full of flavor, leaning towards honey and tea. Beautiful, delicate wine with an endless future.
1999 Closel Clos du Papillon Savennieres takes an hour or two to open up and then it is very much flowers and beeswax. After three days the wine is remarkably dense, ponderous and only beginning to show its soul. Wonderful.
While opened several days apart some of the glasses of each wine overlapped and it is hard not to make comparisons. The Vouvray, perhaps due to its sweetness, has not lost its youthful charm while the Savennieres, which has long since shed its fruitiness, is more somber and slow to unwind. It's easy to see how the Closel could be dismissed as oxidised or premoxed, or whatever, but that is not the case. The wine responds well to air and unravels slowly and perfectly into a lovely aged Savennieres. Both wines have lots to offer.
Best,
Kay