*non spoofed version*
At the end of the tasting I saw BJ and Dressner huddled off to one side, whispering and grinning. I should have known they were up to no good.
Lots of vignerons were stranded by the ash, but there was the opportunity to meet and chat with Arianna Occhipinti, Alessandra Bera, Francesco Maule, Therry Puzelat, Pierrot Bonhomme, and Luca Roagna.
The wines were great.
Some whites that stood out to me:
2009 Pepiere regular Muscadet was very exuberant and expressive. The usual descriptors, but +1 intensity, without excess fat. It is actually quite acidic despite the warm year. The 2008 Briords was aromatically closed, but nice texturally in the mouth.
2007 Texier Condrieu Janrode was elegant and understated, no typical Condrieu froot basket and flowers, but some apricot skin, minerals, and great concentration. Really fine.
Pinon Brut NV so delicious, perfect balance of Vouvray fruit, flower and chalk, almost dry but with racy acidity. A must buy for me.
2008 Peillot Altesse Mountain meadows in bloom, rocky, crisp, thirst quencher. Yes.
2006 La Biancara di Angiolino Maule
Both vintages of the I Maseieri (mostly garganega, and a little trebbiano) tasted were very good. They were very expressive, mineral versions similar to a Soave Classico. The I Maseiri wines were fermented and aged in stainless steel tanks, native yeast, minimal sulfur.
The real excitement for me here was the '06 Pico. 100% Garganega, grown in volcanic soil, 2-4 days of skin contact during maceration and unfiltered. Aged 12 months in large oak Foudres. Slightly cloudy, orange tinted wine, but not as tannic as some orange wines with longer skin contact. Complex, slightly spicy nose, pure in the mouth. Really good, eye opening wine. Also a pleasure to meet Francisco Maule, he seems very passionate about his work.
2009 Clos du Tue Boeuf Le P'tit Blanc
2009 was great for all the Puzelat wines I tried, and this Sauvignon Blanc was perfectly ripe, great acidity, and a slight funkiness that added interest. I know there is not much excitement for SB these days, but this was fabulous.
2009 Bera Moscato d' Asti Fresh and clean, understated for Moscato, not too perfumey, utterly delicious.
Memorable reds:
2007 Occhipinti Frappato This seemingly gets better with each vintage.
Pale red, aromatic, complex, lots of acidity but with the fruit and concentration to balance. Cleaner in a way then the 2005 (last version I tried).
2007 Texier Brezeme rouge Wild, earthy, animale version of syrah, reminds me of a Verset Cornas in the best way. Big grippy tannins this year, seems like this could age well.
2006 Texier Cote Rotie I loved this, its very ripe without excess, and the structure and tannins are so suave and elegant.
2008 Terres Dorees Cote de Brouilly made my mouth happy. Very drinkable at the moment.
2007 Georges Descombes Morgon the regular cuvee is open and very nice, but the 07 Vielles Vignes is a grand vin, a little closed at the moment, but in the mouth great old vine concentration and sap, silky texture. Another must buy.
There was a good variety of wines to taste from Thierry Puzelat. They were all very good, and highly drinkable. The red wine that I liked the best was the 2009 Cheverny Rouge a 50:50 mix of Pinot Noir and Gamay. Like the rest of the Puzelat wines it was bright, crisp, energetic, but this had for me the purest expression of fruit, and best texture. Glug glug.
The 2008 KO In Cot We Trust was wonderful also, darker fruits and nicely textured.
The 2008 Tesniere Pineau d'Aunis was a little rustic with very grippy tannins for Pd'A, closer to Eric Belliviere's version than Clos Roche Blanche.
Luca Roagna made an amazing 2003 Barolo Vigna Rionda. The wine suffers none of the excess of the vintage. Certainly a masculine version of Barolo, but the tannins are perfectly ripe, the fruit seems fresh, and the alcohol modest.
He mentioned that in '03 he waited until October 19 to harvest, when a lot of the harvest in Barolo was over by the 2nd week of September and the grapes by then had riper tannins. When asked why he didn't end up with a lot of alcohol, he mentioned that doing the fermentation in open top large barrels helped the alcohol to evaporate off, compared to the winemakers who used a closed roto-fermentor system.
It was a pleasure to taste the 1993 Barolo Rocca e Pira Riserva next to the 2003. This was all rose petal and elegance, and still very young structurally.
There was also a 2005 Roagna Langhe Bianco Solea to try. 75% Chardonnay, 25% Nebbiolo. Clear, pale yellow color. Fresh, light, complex, and spicy. Amazing what a little Nebbiolo can do for Chardonnay.
I'm sure I missed some wines, but these were the ones I liked best.
At the end of the tasting I saw BJ and Dressner huddled off to one side, whispering and grinning. I should have known they were up to no good.
Lots of vignerons were stranded by the ash, but there was the opportunity to meet and chat with Arianna Occhipinti, Alessandra Bera, Francesco Maule, Therry Puzelat, Pierrot Bonhomme, and Luca Roagna.
The wines were great.
Some whites that stood out to me:
2009 Pepiere regular Muscadet was very exuberant and expressive. The usual descriptors, but +1 intensity, without excess fat. It is actually quite acidic despite the warm year. The 2008 Briords was aromatically closed, but nice texturally in the mouth.
2007 Texier Condrieu Janrode was elegant and understated, no typical Condrieu froot basket and flowers, but some apricot skin, minerals, and great concentration. Really fine.
Pinon Brut NV so delicious, perfect balance of Vouvray fruit, flower and chalk, almost dry but with racy acidity. A must buy for me.
2008 Peillot Altesse Mountain meadows in bloom, rocky, crisp, thirst quencher. Yes.
2006 La Biancara di Angiolino Maule
Both vintages of the I Maseieri (mostly garganega, and a little trebbiano) tasted were very good. They were very expressive, mineral versions similar to a Soave Classico. The I Maseiri wines were fermented and aged in stainless steel tanks, native yeast, minimal sulfur.
The real excitement for me here was the '06 Pico. 100% Garganega, grown in volcanic soil, 2-4 days of skin contact during maceration and unfiltered. Aged 12 months in large oak Foudres. Slightly cloudy, orange tinted wine, but not as tannic as some orange wines with longer skin contact. Complex, slightly spicy nose, pure in the mouth. Really good, eye opening wine. Also a pleasure to meet Francisco Maule, he seems very passionate about his work.
2009 Clos du Tue Boeuf Le P'tit Blanc
2009 was great for all the Puzelat wines I tried, and this Sauvignon Blanc was perfectly ripe, great acidity, and a slight funkiness that added interest. I know there is not much excitement for SB these days, but this was fabulous.
2009 Bera Moscato d' Asti Fresh and clean, understated for Moscato, not too perfumey, utterly delicious.
Memorable reds:
2007 Occhipinti Frappato This seemingly gets better with each vintage.
Pale red, aromatic, complex, lots of acidity but with the fruit and concentration to balance. Cleaner in a way then the 2005 (last version I tried).
2007 Texier Brezeme rouge Wild, earthy, animale version of syrah, reminds me of a Verset Cornas in the best way. Big grippy tannins this year, seems like this could age well.
2006 Texier Cote Rotie I loved this, its very ripe without excess, and the structure and tannins are so suave and elegant.
2008 Terres Dorees Cote de Brouilly made my mouth happy. Very drinkable at the moment.
2007 Georges Descombes Morgon the regular cuvee is open and very nice, but the 07 Vielles Vignes is a grand vin, a little closed at the moment, but in the mouth great old vine concentration and sap, silky texture. Another must buy.
There was a good variety of wines to taste from Thierry Puzelat. They were all very good, and highly drinkable. The red wine that I liked the best was the 2009 Cheverny Rouge a 50:50 mix of Pinot Noir and Gamay. Like the rest of the Puzelat wines it was bright, crisp, energetic, but this had for me the purest expression of fruit, and best texture. Glug glug.
The 2008 KO In Cot We Trust was wonderful also, darker fruits and nicely textured.
The 2008 Tesniere Pineau d'Aunis was a little rustic with very grippy tannins for Pd'A, closer to Eric Belliviere's version than Clos Roche Blanche.
Luca Roagna made an amazing 2003 Barolo Vigna Rionda. The wine suffers none of the excess of the vintage. Certainly a masculine version of Barolo, but the tannins are perfectly ripe, the fruit seems fresh, and the alcohol modest.
He mentioned that in '03 he waited until October 19 to harvest, when a lot of the harvest in Barolo was over by the 2nd week of September and the grapes by then had riper tannins. When asked why he didn't end up with a lot of alcohol, he mentioned that doing the fermentation in open top large barrels helped the alcohol to evaporate off, compared to the winemakers who used a closed roto-fermentor system.
It was a pleasure to taste the 1993 Barolo Rocca e Pira Riserva next to the 2003. This was all rose petal and elegance, and still very young structurally.
There was also a 2005 Roagna Langhe Bianco Solea to try. 75% Chardonnay, 25% Nebbiolo. Clear, pale yellow color. Fresh, light, complex, and spicy. Amazing what a little Nebbiolo can do for Chardonnay.
I'm sure I missed some wines, but these were the ones I liked best.