Now with points for more fun!
2006 Clos Rougeard (Foucault) Saumur Blanc Brézé - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur (9/29/2018)
Started off with flinty reduction/sulfur, but the texture was supple and long. As it opened the flint blew off and it was more yellow pitted fruits and lemon along with rocky minerality. Has a different profile than Vouvray Sec or Saviennières and not really much to compare it to exactly. I get the Burgundy comparisons, but it is bigger and denser and differently proportioned. Opened this to see if I still love these wines given the surge in pricing that is tempting me to sell. The verdict is keep. This is in a good spot right now but should improve and last for a long time. Next time, I might decant it. (94 points)
1999 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod / Barthod-Noëllat Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Charmes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru (9/28/2018)
Still saturated dark ruby color. Nose has red fruits, but on the darker end, flowers a bit of herbs and a mineral tinge around the edges. As it opens it gets richer and fuller, but still within the context of a Barthod wine. Eventually, it circles back around and starts shutting down without ever fully opening. I was surprised at how young this showed especially when compared to the 1999 Mugnier Fuées from a few weeks ago which was spicier and gentler. This is muscular, especially for Charmes, and denser in fruit than the Fuées from Mugnier (or my memory of my last Barthod Fuées) for example. I'm thinking this needs maybe 5 more years for the tannin to subside and if it resolves the way I hope it will, it should become excellent. (92 points)
2016 Ferme de la Sansonnière (Mark Angeli) La Lune - France, Vin de France (9/25/2018)
We love this wine. Honeysuckle and deep chenin yellow stone fruits and flowers. It feels so gentle on the palate, so digestible in the way that the most charming natural wines can be. We ended up drinking a second bottle this went down so easily. If this were a bit cheaper, I'd drink cases every year. (91 points)
2006 Antoniolo Gattinara Castelle - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Gattinara (9/24/2018)
Bottle showed really well. Fresh on the palate with good acidity to prop up the fruit. Lots of pure cherry in a slightly modern style. Medium tannic clout, enough to frame the wine well and serve as a great accompaniment to food. The acid and tannin gives a one-two punch to the pan seared pork ribeye. It does have a slightly modern style, not all of the way, but if you look hard enough, there are some barrel scents, but it doesn't overwhelm. Seems to be in an early drinking window. (93 points)
2007 Le Piane Boca - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Boca (9/16/2018)
Opened and double decanted several hours ahead of consumption. Similar to my last bottle of this, which is no surprise as it was only a few months ago. In a nice spot with some spice floating around the brandied cherries and plums. I like the leathery whack at the base of these wines that I assume is the contribution of the vespolina but I don't really know for sure. I'm glad this is still floating around in the marketplace as I think I'll grab a refill. (92 points)
2002 Domaine de Montille Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru (9/14/2018)
Translucent ruby. High toned red fruits, sour cherries and red currants form the core of fruit, but this is about other things more than fruit. There are savory woodsy notes, spice, earth leather, all of those things. They're woven together in a lacy fabric, like something from your grandmother's house over some antique furniture (which is the fruit in your analogy). I think this could end up lasting a long, long time in the same sort of zone. Uncompromising, old school Burgundy that is powerful and weightless. (93 points)
2011 Ghostwriter Pinot Noir Woodruff Family Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (9/12/2018)
At peak and fantastic. During the storm, Steph wanted a “Kenny wine” to accompany dinner so I opened my last bottle of this. The whole cluster is apparent in the herbal notes that wrap around cooler red fruits. Low in alcohol and with acidity that lifts a spiciness as what’s left of the tannin melt away. The bottle goes down very quickly. Immediately I regret buying other CA pinots because this is cheaper and so directly in my wheelhouse. There isn’t better value in CA than the Hobo/Ghostwriter wines and maybe not from anywhere. (93 points)
2015 Gilbert Picq & ses Fils Chablis 1er Cru Vosgros - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru (9/10/2018)
Hasn't really moved from my last bottle in April. There is that cool almost sweetish seashell cream thing and yellow fruits to go with green apple. Like many 2015 Chablis, this is marked by the vintage, but delicious in its idiom. (92 points)
2015 Gilbert Picq & ses Fils Chablis Dessus La Carriere - France, Burgundy, Chablis (9/10/2018)
The Dessus La Carriere is even more marked by the vintage than the Vosgro as this wine tends to be the richest in the cellar in most vintages. Both are still delicious even if they aren’t classic examples. (90 points)
2014 Jean-Philippe Fichet Meursault Les Gruyaches - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault (9/3/2018)
I have a fair amount of Fichet (for me) and really love the driving mineral style of the wines. The Gruyaches is the earthiest of the Mersault wines, more on the shell (or oyster liquor) and chalk side and the mineral is more savory rather than lemony the way that the Chevalières is. Excellent now with some time to go barring pre-mox. (93 points)
2009 Azienda Agricola Montevertine Le Pergole Torte Toscana IGT - Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT (9/3/2018)
Really disappointing. I was super excited to drink this wine, though I have misgivings about the producer and don’t really buy it anymore. The best sangiovese I’ve ever had have been Montevertine wines, this isn’t one of them. It was really just not expressive on the nose or the palate. It will probably better in a few years (duh), but usually wines like this show at least something even when opened too young. (91 points)
2002 Clos Rougeard (Foucault) Saumur-Champigny Le Bourg - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur-Champigny (9/3/2018)
This still has some wood to absorb and is more structured than surrounding vintages. The acidity of the year keeps the fruit lifted and there are still tannin to resolve. That being said, I don’t have an issue with the structure as it stands now, things just need to meld together into a cohesive whole. Things are still a bit disjoint at the moment, but the fruit is a deep almost endless pool. This bottling can often be the easiest of the Rougeards due to the sheer density of the fruit. If this showing is correct, the 2002s will live a long time and grow into legends. (95 points)
2004 Thierry Allemand Cornas Chaillot - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (9/3/2018)
Lighter and more delicate than the 2005, which I guess isn’t a surprise. The fruit is redder and the structure less dense. Further along than linear extrapolation would suggest. There is still plenty of time and some growth to be had, but this is good to go, IMO. (93 points)
1999 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Fuées - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru (9/2/2018)
I was of half a mind to sell my bottles of this given the current market. Maybe not. Spherical and velvet with red currants and cherries wrapped in spice and propped up by mineral lift with arch delicacy. To use a Coad-ism, gossamer. Really good and has made that decision for me. (94 points)
2005 Thierry Allemand Cornas Chaillot - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (9/2/2018)
This was awesome bordering on thrilling. Everything you want in Allemand, driving, deep fruit, suave texture with maturing notes and a strong spine of dark minerals. Tannins are supple but provide shape to the wine., This can go on aging but shows awesome now. (94 points)
2015 Domaine Rollin Père et Fils Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru Sous Frétille - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru (9/2/2018)
The house style manages to keep the ripeness of the year in check. I’m becoming quite enamored with this wine. I think a couple more years in the cellar and then bombs away for me, what with premox and all. (91 points)
2014 Domaine de la Pépière (Marc Ollivier) Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Clisson - France, Loire Valley, Pays Nantais, Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine (9/2/2018)
What more needs to be said about the wines of Pépière? Showing Grand Cru weight and depth as well as cut. The site is Grand Cru for mélon and in the hands of the young master, Rémi Branger, following in the footsteps of Marc Ollivier. (92 points)
1996 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Villero di Castiglione Falletto - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (9/2/2018)
This was in a stunningly good place. It was decanted and then consumed less than an hour later so maybe all the fussing I do about Barolo preparations has been much ado. Frankly, I've never had a bottle of this that showed poorly, even when it was young. Fruit that is lifted by acidity. That freshness that you only get from nebbiolo of cherries and floral notes pushed along the palate over fine tannins. It has developed spice and leather since my last bottle. I'm really looking forward to the next couple bottles of this and wish I had more than that. I may drink them over the next few years to catch this stage, which is perfect for me. (95 points)
2002 Louis Jadot Clos Vougeot - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru (9/2/2018)
I've had other bottles show better, much more open and aromatic. This has all of the dense fruit that other bottles have shown, but more closed. I think this is an underrated wine in the Jadot portfolio and can often be had for a song. I look forward to future bottles, I'll check back in 3-5 years. (92 points)
2006 Clos Rougeard (Foucault) Saumur Blanc Brézé - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur (9/29/2018)
Started off with flinty reduction/sulfur, but the texture was supple and long. As it opened the flint blew off and it was more yellow pitted fruits and lemon along with rocky minerality. Has a different profile than Vouvray Sec or Saviennières and not really much to compare it to exactly. I get the Burgundy comparisons, but it is bigger and denser and differently proportioned. Opened this to see if I still love these wines given the surge in pricing that is tempting me to sell. The verdict is keep. This is in a good spot right now but should improve and last for a long time. Next time, I might decant it. (94 points)
1999 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod / Barthod-Noëllat Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Charmes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru (9/28/2018)
Still saturated dark ruby color. Nose has red fruits, but on the darker end, flowers a bit of herbs and a mineral tinge around the edges. As it opens it gets richer and fuller, but still within the context of a Barthod wine. Eventually, it circles back around and starts shutting down without ever fully opening. I was surprised at how young this showed especially when compared to the 1999 Mugnier Fuées from a few weeks ago which was spicier and gentler. This is muscular, especially for Charmes, and denser in fruit than the Fuées from Mugnier (or my memory of my last Barthod Fuées) for example. I'm thinking this needs maybe 5 more years for the tannin to subside and if it resolves the way I hope it will, it should become excellent. (92 points)
2016 Ferme de la Sansonnière (Mark Angeli) La Lune - France, Vin de France (9/25/2018)
We love this wine. Honeysuckle and deep chenin yellow stone fruits and flowers. It feels so gentle on the palate, so digestible in the way that the most charming natural wines can be. We ended up drinking a second bottle this went down so easily. If this were a bit cheaper, I'd drink cases every year. (91 points)
2006 Antoniolo Gattinara Castelle - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Gattinara (9/24/2018)
Bottle showed really well. Fresh on the palate with good acidity to prop up the fruit. Lots of pure cherry in a slightly modern style. Medium tannic clout, enough to frame the wine well and serve as a great accompaniment to food. The acid and tannin gives a one-two punch to the pan seared pork ribeye. It does have a slightly modern style, not all of the way, but if you look hard enough, there are some barrel scents, but it doesn't overwhelm. Seems to be in an early drinking window. (93 points)
2007 Le Piane Boca - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Boca (9/16/2018)
Opened and double decanted several hours ahead of consumption. Similar to my last bottle of this, which is no surprise as it was only a few months ago. In a nice spot with some spice floating around the brandied cherries and plums. I like the leathery whack at the base of these wines that I assume is the contribution of the vespolina but I don't really know for sure. I'm glad this is still floating around in the marketplace as I think I'll grab a refill. (92 points)
2002 Domaine de Montille Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru (9/14/2018)
Translucent ruby. High toned red fruits, sour cherries and red currants form the core of fruit, but this is about other things more than fruit. There are savory woodsy notes, spice, earth leather, all of those things. They're woven together in a lacy fabric, like something from your grandmother's house over some antique furniture (which is the fruit in your analogy). I think this could end up lasting a long, long time in the same sort of zone. Uncompromising, old school Burgundy that is powerful and weightless. (93 points)
2011 Ghostwriter Pinot Noir Woodruff Family Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (9/12/2018)
At peak and fantastic. During the storm, Steph wanted a “Kenny wine” to accompany dinner so I opened my last bottle of this. The whole cluster is apparent in the herbal notes that wrap around cooler red fruits. Low in alcohol and with acidity that lifts a spiciness as what’s left of the tannin melt away. The bottle goes down very quickly. Immediately I regret buying other CA pinots because this is cheaper and so directly in my wheelhouse. There isn’t better value in CA than the Hobo/Ghostwriter wines and maybe not from anywhere. (93 points)
2015 Gilbert Picq & ses Fils Chablis 1er Cru Vosgros - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru (9/10/2018)
Hasn't really moved from my last bottle in April. There is that cool almost sweetish seashell cream thing and yellow fruits to go with green apple. Like many 2015 Chablis, this is marked by the vintage, but delicious in its idiom. (92 points)
2015 Gilbert Picq & ses Fils Chablis Dessus La Carriere - France, Burgundy, Chablis (9/10/2018)
The Dessus La Carriere is even more marked by the vintage than the Vosgro as this wine tends to be the richest in the cellar in most vintages. Both are still delicious even if they aren’t classic examples. (90 points)
2014 Jean-Philippe Fichet Meursault Les Gruyaches - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault (9/3/2018)
I have a fair amount of Fichet (for me) and really love the driving mineral style of the wines. The Gruyaches is the earthiest of the Mersault wines, more on the shell (or oyster liquor) and chalk side and the mineral is more savory rather than lemony the way that the Chevalières is. Excellent now with some time to go barring pre-mox. (93 points)
2009 Azienda Agricola Montevertine Le Pergole Torte Toscana IGT - Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT (9/3/2018)
Really disappointing. I was super excited to drink this wine, though I have misgivings about the producer and don’t really buy it anymore. The best sangiovese I’ve ever had have been Montevertine wines, this isn’t one of them. It was really just not expressive on the nose or the palate. It will probably better in a few years (duh), but usually wines like this show at least something even when opened too young. (91 points)
2002 Clos Rougeard (Foucault) Saumur-Champigny Le Bourg - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur-Champigny (9/3/2018)
This still has some wood to absorb and is more structured than surrounding vintages. The acidity of the year keeps the fruit lifted and there are still tannin to resolve. That being said, I don’t have an issue with the structure as it stands now, things just need to meld together into a cohesive whole. Things are still a bit disjoint at the moment, but the fruit is a deep almost endless pool. This bottling can often be the easiest of the Rougeards due to the sheer density of the fruit. If this showing is correct, the 2002s will live a long time and grow into legends. (95 points)
2004 Thierry Allemand Cornas Chaillot - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (9/3/2018)
Lighter and more delicate than the 2005, which I guess isn’t a surprise. The fruit is redder and the structure less dense. Further along than linear extrapolation would suggest. There is still plenty of time and some growth to be had, but this is good to go, IMO. (93 points)
1999 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Fuées - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru (9/2/2018)
I was of half a mind to sell my bottles of this given the current market. Maybe not. Spherical and velvet with red currants and cherries wrapped in spice and propped up by mineral lift with arch delicacy. To use a Coad-ism, gossamer. Really good and has made that decision for me. (94 points)
2005 Thierry Allemand Cornas Chaillot - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (9/2/2018)
This was awesome bordering on thrilling. Everything you want in Allemand, driving, deep fruit, suave texture with maturing notes and a strong spine of dark minerals. Tannins are supple but provide shape to the wine., This can go on aging but shows awesome now. (94 points)
2015 Domaine Rollin Père et Fils Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru Sous Frétille - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru (9/2/2018)
The house style manages to keep the ripeness of the year in check. I’m becoming quite enamored with this wine. I think a couple more years in the cellar and then bombs away for me, what with premox and all. (91 points)
2014 Domaine de la Pépière (Marc Ollivier) Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Clisson - France, Loire Valley, Pays Nantais, Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine (9/2/2018)
What more needs to be said about the wines of Pépière? Showing Grand Cru weight and depth as well as cut. The site is Grand Cru for mélon and in the hands of the young master, Rémi Branger, following in the footsteps of Marc Ollivier. (92 points)
1996 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Villero di Castiglione Falletto - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (9/2/2018)
This was in a stunningly good place. It was decanted and then consumed less than an hour later so maybe all the fussing I do about Barolo preparations has been much ado. Frankly, I've never had a bottle of this that showed poorly, even when it was young. Fruit that is lifted by acidity. That freshness that you only get from nebbiolo of cherries and floral notes pushed along the palate over fine tannins. It has developed spice and leather since my last bottle. I'm really looking forward to the next couple bottles of this and wish I had more than that. I may drink them over the next few years to catch this stage, which is perfect for me. (95 points)
2002 Louis Jadot Clos Vougeot - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru (9/2/2018)
I've had other bottles show better, much more open and aromatic. This has all of the dense fruit that other bottles have shown, but more closed. I think this is an underrated wine in the Jadot portfolio and can often be had for a song. I look forward to future bottles, I'll check back in 3-5 years. (92 points)
