scottreiner
scott reiner
Below you will find the wines that struck me the most at the tasting, in basically the order in which I tasted them. Some will be harder to find than others, but all are enthusiastically worth finding and drinking, in mass quantities!
Veuve Fourny et Fils
After having heard wonderful things about these wines for years, this is the first time I got to try them. The samples I had only make me want to buy a full bottles and spend time with the wines; everything they make is amazing. Crisp, great acid, beautiful depth and balance. They really fill the palate, satisfying you, while the acid simply begs you to drink more. And, only around 5grams per liter of dosage! Without simply leaving you with the wide recommendation to try them all, start with the least expensive, the Blanc de Blancs Premier Cru Brut NV. At $50 a bottle or less, this will not break the bank, but it will show you what distinctive and delicious wines these guys are making!
Domaine Ostertag
Modern day Alsatian wines are not things I look for often. Global warming and changing growing and production method are producing wines that are for me to fat and round and uninteresting. There are exceptions, however, and Ostertag is one of them. In the vineyard biodynamic practices are followed, creating wines of ample acidity and great excitement. The 2008 Sylvaner 'Vieilles Vignes' is a great way to start. Sylvaner is a grape often forgotten by consumers, but when it is made right, as it is here, it should not be. The vines are up to 75 years old, producing a mineral, slightly oily wonder. And, at around $20, a deal! The noble grape Pinot Gris is widely represented in the Ostertag line, and, in a change from tradition, the wine is made with some oak. I preferred the basic cuve, with the least amount of new oak, the 2005 Pinot Gris 'Barriques'. The oak adds a little richness and funk to the classic minerality to create a compelling wine.
Chateau Graville-Lacoste
I love Bordeaux Blanc. It is somewhat out of fashion today, but I find some of the more compelling examples of Sauvignon Blanc (almost always blended with Semillon) made presently to be found in Bordeaux. The problem is that they can get very expensive very quickly. True, Haut Brion Blanc is one of the great white wines made anywhere, regardless of grape, but at $200 a bottle and up, it is hardly for everyday drinking! Chateau Graville-Lacoste Graves Blanc has been a favorite of mine for some years now. At $18 or less it is an amazing value. Crisp, great minerality, with some lovely fruit to round out the experience. The 2008 is currently in the market and is drinking very well indeed, and the 2009, following in its footsteps, will provide as much pleasure.
The 'Gang of Four'
Kermit Lynch has four producers in the village of Morgon in Beaujolais, collectively called the Gang of Four, that make some of the most compelling Gamay made anywhere. They are all delicious in there own ways and perfectly distinctive. At the prices, they are AMAZING deals.
You have read of my love for Lapierre before, so I will not retread too much. The 2008 Marcel Lapierre Morgon is absolutely amazing, but it is almost every year. The exciting thing now is that the Lapierres are making a vin de soif called Raisins Gaulois 2009, made from the youngest grapes they own, that is simple, fruity, crazily drinkable and delicious, and only around $13!!! Whatever you have to do, find this wine. It is downright cheap and will be your favorite light red this summer!
Up next was Guy Breton. While Lapierre is mostly about luxuriating in fruit, Breton for me is a bit more masculine. There is still some great fruit, but you get a little earth and tannin accompanying it down the aisle. The 2007 Guy Breton Morgon 'Vieilles Vignes' is just about the perfect Beaujolais. It just makes you happy.
Getting a little more 'serious' we have the 2008 Jean-Paul Thevenet Morgon 'Vieilles Vignes'. By serious I mean that it is a little earthier and more tannic, and really wants some food. Maybe a little roast chicken, or flank steak. It just sings. True, it is pretty young, and could use some time in the bottle, but damn, it's really tasty right now!
Now, back to some lovely fruit, we get to taste the always friendly 2008 Jean Foillard Morgon 'Cote du Py'. The Cote du Py is a growing area in Morgon that produces some of the best examples of Morgon year in and year out, and Foillard is always at the top of the pack. It is simply always amazing, especially in magnum. The easiest way I find to explain it is that it is simply comfortable. It matches your mood and your food and makes them both better. But, do not let the word comfortable trick you into thinking this is simple wine, it is truly amazing stuff! And, rumor has it that the Pi is on its way to the US of A...
Domaine Robert Chevillon
My experiences with this grower are minimal, and have been tarnished by a bad experience with a 1996. Nevertheless, two wines I tried today will make me more curious in future. The 2007 Domaine Robert Chevillon Passetoutgrain is exactly what Passetoutgrain wants to be. Slightly tannic and confidently on the earthy side, it is great early drinking Burgundy. Yes, it is a little hard to pay in the mid $20s for a Passetoutgrain, given the traditional cost of such items, but that is what it is today for the good stuff. C'est la vie! However, if you really want to get into Chevillon, you have the 2007 Domaine Robert Chevillon Nuits-Saint-Georges 'Vieilles Vignes'! This wine is dark (not in color, but in aura) with tree bark, earth, musk, leaves, etc... Great acidity. Wait a few years, or not, and have at it!
Domaine Lucien Boillot & Fils
Always good, really always great. This is classic, pretty, serious, complex, Burgundy. As the Arabs say, laziza! To get a taste of what is possible here try the 2007 Domaine Lucien Boillot Bourgogne Rouge. The fruit, the earth, the BALANCE! It is simply weightless, and while not profound, it is perfect Bourgogne Rouge. However, if you want profound, jump right in with the 2007 Domaine Lucien Boillot Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru 'Les Cherbaudes'. This wine is so complex, in its youth, the flavors go on and on and change and toy with you in the most beautiful way. It does not get much better than this. Expensive, yes, but if you want to try something that will immediately show you why some wines are more costly than others yet worth every penny, here you have it.
Domaine Tempier
Always classic Bandol. The 2009 Domaine Tempier Bandol Ros is, as always, reference point. Keep in mind, thought, that this is serious ros. It will taste better next summer, but will supply some wonderful drinking this summer, just wait until June... The 2008 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rouge is absolutely amazing. The tannins and the fruit perform such a nice dance, every part of your mouth rejoices. I can't imagine how perfect it will be with food! If you want a serious summer red, look no further. This is Mourvedre! As a side note, we also tasted the 2004 Bandol Rouge. Word fail me, just drink it!
Domaine Arretxea
We now enter the world of the Languedoc in Southwest France. The 2007 Domaine Arretxea Irouleguy Rouge is a Tannat based wine, so you know that it plays hard to get. Tannin, tar, violet, plums, dark cherries, they are all here in this unfiltered beauty. Don't let the fact hat no one can really pronounce these words deter you from this unique, special wine.
Cantine Valpane
Lately, when discovering new Italian wines, I am more than likely to find that what I am drinking is thanks to Kevin Mckenna. But, lo and behold, I find from Uncle Lynch a great Barbera del Monferrato. The 2006 Cantine Valpane Barbera del Monferrato is just delicious. I must warn you, this is not your everyday modern Barbera. While there are many reasons to recommend it, the reason why I love it is its tactile yet luxurious tannins. It's almost as if the tannins are like young kids sitting up straight and giving their best smile for a formal picture. You can't help but love 'em!
Veuve Fourny et Fils
After having heard wonderful things about these wines for years, this is the first time I got to try them. The samples I had only make me want to buy a full bottles and spend time with the wines; everything they make is amazing. Crisp, great acid, beautiful depth and balance. They really fill the palate, satisfying you, while the acid simply begs you to drink more. And, only around 5grams per liter of dosage! Without simply leaving you with the wide recommendation to try them all, start with the least expensive, the Blanc de Blancs Premier Cru Brut NV. At $50 a bottle or less, this will not break the bank, but it will show you what distinctive and delicious wines these guys are making!
Domaine Ostertag
Modern day Alsatian wines are not things I look for often. Global warming and changing growing and production method are producing wines that are for me to fat and round and uninteresting. There are exceptions, however, and Ostertag is one of them. In the vineyard biodynamic practices are followed, creating wines of ample acidity and great excitement. The 2008 Sylvaner 'Vieilles Vignes' is a great way to start. Sylvaner is a grape often forgotten by consumers, but when it is made right, as it is here, it should not be. The vines are up to 75 years old, producing a mineral, slightly oily wonder. And, at around $20, a deal! The noble grape Pinot Gris is widely represented in the Ostertag line, and, in a change from tradition, the wine is made with some oak. I preferred the basic cuve, with the least amount of new oak, the 2005 Pinot Gris 'Barriques'. The oak adds a little richness and funk to the classic minerality to create a compelling wine.
Chateau Graville-Lacoste
I love Bordeaux Blanc. It is somewhat out of fashion today, but I find some of the more compelling examples of Sauvignon Blanc (almost always blended with Semillon) made presently to be found in Bordeaux. The problem is that they can get very expensive very quickly. True, Haut Brion Blanc is one of the great white wines made anywhere, regardless of grape, but at $200 a bottle and up, it is hardly for everyday drinking! Chateau Graville-Lacoste Graves Blanc has been a favorite of mine for some years now. At $18 or less it is an amazing value. Crisp, great minerality, with some lovely fruit to round out the experience. The 2008 is currently in the market and is drinking very well indeed, and the 2009, following in its footsteps, will provide as much pleasure.
The 'Gang of Four'
Kermit Lynch has four producers in the village of Morgon in Beaujolais, collectively called the Gang of Four, that make some of the most compelling Gamay made anywhere. They are all delicious in there own ways and perfectly distinctive. At the prices, they are AMAZING deals.
You have read of my love for Lapierre before, so I will not retread too much. The 2008 Marcel Lapierre Morgon is absolutely amazing, but it is almost every year. The exciting thing now is that the Lapierres are making a vin de soif called Raisins Gaulois 2009, made from the youngest grapes they own, that is simple, fruity, crazily drinkable and delicious, and only around $13!!! Whatever you have to do, find this wine. It is downright cheap and will be your favorite light red this summer!
Up next was Guy Breton. While Lapierre is mostly about luxuriating in fruit, Breton for me is a bit more masculine. There is still some great fruit, but you get a little earth and tannin accompanying it down the aisle. The 2007 Guy Breton Morgon 'Vieilles Vignes' is just about the perfect Beaujolais. It just makes you happy.
Getting a little more 'serious' we have the 2008 Jean-Paul Thevenet Morgon 'Vieilles Vignes'. By serious I mean that it is a little earthier and more tannic, and really wants some food. Maybe a little roast chicken, or flank steak. It just sings. True, it is pretty young, and could use some time in the bottle, but damn, it's really tasty right now!
Now, back to some lovely fruit, we get to taste the always friendly 2008 Jean Foillard Morgon 'Cote du Py'. The Cote du Py is a growing area in Morgon that produces some of the best examples of Morgon year in and year out, and Foillard is always at the top of the pack. It is simply always amazing, especially in magnum. The easiest way I find to explain it is that it is simply comfortable. It matches your mood and your food and makes them both better. But, do not let the word comfortable trick you into thinking this is simple wine, it is truly amazing stuff! And, rumor has it that the Pi is on its way to the US of A...
Domaine Robert Chevillon
My experiences with this grower are minimal, and have been tarnished by a bad experience with a 1996. Nevertheless, two wines I tried today will make me more curious in future. The 2007 Domaine Robert Chevillon Passetoutgrain is exactly what Passetoutgrain wants to be. Slightly tannic and confidently on the earthy side, it is great early drinking Burgundy. Yes, it is a little hard to pay in the mid $20s for a Passetoutgrain, given the traditional cost of such items, but that is what it is today for the good stuff. C'est la vie! However, if you really want to get into Chevillon, you have the 2007 Domaine Robert Chevillon Nuits-Saint-Georges 'Vieilles Vignes'! This wine is dark (not in color, but in aura) with tree bark, earth, musk, leaves, etc... Great acidity. Wait a few years, or not, and have at it!
Domaine Lucien Boillot & Fils
Always good, really always great. This is classic, pretty, serious, complex, Burgundy. As the Arabs say, laziza! To get a taste of what is possible here try the 2007 Domaine Lucien Boillot Bourgogne Rouge. The fruit, the earth, the BALANCE! It is simply weightless, and while not profound, it is perfect Bourgogne Rouge. However, if you want profound, jump right in with the 2007 Domaine Lucien Boillot Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru 'Les Cherbaudes'. This wine is so complex, in its youth, the flavors go on and on and change and toy with you in the most beautiful way. It does not get much better than this. Expensive, yes, but if you want to try something that will immediately show you why some wines are more costly than others yet worth every penny, here you have it.
Domaine Tempier
Always classic Bandol. The 2009 Domaine Tempier Bandol Ros is, as always, reference point. Keep in mind, thought, that this is serious ros. It will taste better next summer, but will supply some wonderful drinking this summer, just wait until June... The 2008 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rouge is absolutely amazing. The tannins and the fruit perform such a nice dance, every part of your mouth rejoices. I can't imagine how perfect it will be with food! If you want a serious summer red, look no further. This is Mourvedre! As a side note, we also tasted the 2004 Bandol Rouge. Word fail me, just drink it!
Domaine Arretxea
We now enter the world of the Languedoc in Southwest France. The 2007 Domaine Arretxea Irouleguy Rouge is a Tannat based wine, so you know that it plays hard to get. Tannin, tar, violet, plums, dark cherries, they are all here in this unfiltered beauty. Don't let the fact hat no one can really pronounce these words deter you from this unique, special wine.
Cantine Valpane
Lately, when discovering new Italian wines, I am more than likely to find that what I am drinking is thanks to Kevin Mckenna. But, lo and behold, I find from Uncle Lynch a great Barbera del Monferrato. The 2006 Cantine Valpane Barbera del Monferrato is just delicious. I must warn you, this is not your everyday modern Barbera. While there are many reasons to recommend it, the reason why I love it is its tactile yet luxurious tannins. It's almost as if the tannins are like young kids sitting up straight and giving their best smile for a formal picture. You can't help but love 'em!