Wine and logistics

Florida Jim

Florida Jim

Florida Jim
As you may know, Diane and I spend 6+ months in FL and 5+ months in CA.
We drive back and forth with essentials in our pick-up and, along the way, spend time with friends.
This past November when we left CA, we had no idea what was coming and, as usual, packed about 25 cases of wine to bring south. A couple from our cellar and the rest our Cowan Cellars library wines. That amount usually lasts for our time in FL with some for friends, parties and ourselves.
But because we have extended our stay due to virus concerns, we ran out. So I have been ordering in old favorites from various internet purveyors.

Here are some thoughts about those:

2017 Vissoux, Fleurie Poncie - soft, fresh nose of red fruit, lightweight and juicy in the mouth and a finish which prompts another sip. Youthful, lively and clearly, Fleurie.

2015 Vissoux, Brouilly Pierreux - darker and more muscular on the nose and palate with some richness of texture and good length. A riper and more serious wine but not without charm.

2017 Louis Michel, Chablis Montee de Tonnerre - intense, flinty, complex and somewhat closed. Should be exceptional with a few years although quite nice now. Chardonnay, my way.

2017 Louis Michel, Chablis Sechet - glorious now! Should you be fortunate to find a bottle in your cave, don’t hesitate. Everything Chablis should be.

2014 Louis Michel, Chablis Vaudesir - still tight but becomes more generous with decanter time and delivers a Grand Cru experience. More earthy than floral, at the moment.

2016 Louis Michel, Chablis Vaillons - a touch lactic (which I don’t care for) but solid Chablis in a fleshier vein.

2018 Luneau-Papin, Muscadet Clos de Allees - the green label is gone and the bottle must be half again as heavy but the wine is still a singular version of Melon and takes me back to picnics in the mountains. Submerge it in a fast flowing stream for 30 minutes and your drinking the essence of cool.

2018 Vincent, Pinot Blanc Tardive - finds that balance between concentration and freshness that keeps me thinking about quaffing but sipping rather than gulping. A grape I don’t pay much attention to but this is worth a taste. D loves it.

2018 Vincent, Chardonnay Tardive - needs to warm to almost room temp before it opens and, when it does, it’s as close to Chablis as Oregon can make. Lovely wine with a lot of potential.

‘No idea when or even if, we’ll head west this year but for now, the wine rack is happy and so are we.
Stay safe, jim
 
I haven't seen a bottle of des Allées in ever so long ... fond memories.

In the past year I've disinterred and consumed 2008 Louis Michel bottles of Montée de Tonnerre and Butteaux VV. Both were extremely delicious and beautifully-evolved. The Butteaux was light, almost filagreed, with haunting intimations of marsh and swamp - I really had no expectations for this bottle and was delightfully surprised. The Montée de Tonnerre had developed into a kind of sour mash flavor, which I've encountered only once before (in a well-aged bottle of premier-cru Malandes), which sounds unappealing but is delicious and engaging.

Nothing wrong with drinking them earlier, just sayin', for purposes of comparison.

Do you feel like the step-up in quality between the 1ers and the Vaudesir is in proportion to the bump in tariff (about 75%, in these parts)?

Nice to hear from you.
 
Ian,
Personally, I don’t think 75% more is worth the difference. Montee and Sechet (and occasionally Vaillons and Foret) are all I need. Not to mention the village wine.
But I’ve paid 50% more, and gladly, just to have Vaudesir and Grenouilles in my cellar.
If it says Louis Michel on it, I usually buy it.
Lots of good Chablis out there - not trying to compare - but these work for me.

I’ve had a few with some age but not many - they go quickly ‘round here.
Best, Jim
 
Pinot Blanc may be the unsung hero of Oregon wines. I've had some terrific examples.

Regarding Grand Cru vs. 1re Cru Chablis, I think most of my favorite Chablis bottles have actually been 1re crus. Grand Cru may be as good or better Chardonnay, but 1re Cru is often better Chablis, IMHO.
 
Vincent’s Tardive is suis generis among the PB/weissburgunders I've had. In texture and mouthfeel it most closely resembles Marc Olliviers Clisson to me, though with a distinct flavor profile.

Regarding 1er vs GC Chablis, I too generally prefer the 1ers, as they tend to be more chiseled and taut (and less marked by their elevage). Nowadays, I steer clear of the GCs also out of concern about premox as price. This despite my most memorable Chablis experience being the ‘85 Les Preuses from René Dauvissat.

Mark Lipton
 
Mark,
Premox is a concern of mine also but Louis Michel, so far, has proven immune. May it continue else several of my dollars will head down the drain.
Best, Jim
 
i've been a big fan of louis michel for 30 years or so. famously, the only oak on the property is the dining room table.

because of the all-stainless regime, the wines unfold more slowing in bottle. but have loads of really top-shelf chablis typicite once they've matured.

and the full retail price on premier crus starts at forty bucks. probably the best value in traditional chablis.

my single best chablis experience was a louis michel 1997 montee de tonnerre at about 10 years old. like swimming in oyster liquour.
 
originally posted by robert ames:
i've been a big fan of louis michel for 30 years or so. famously, the only oak on the property is the dining room table.
...my single best chablis experience was a louis michel 1997 montee de tonnerre at about 10 years old. like swimming in oyster liquour.
Click to expand...

Oh! You made me think of Alice, and Through The Looking Glass:

"O Oysters, come and walk with us!"
The Walrus did beseech.
"A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk,
Along the briny beach:
We cannot do with more than four,
To give a hand to each."
...
"A loaf of bread," the Walrus said,
"Is what we chiefly need:
Pepper and vinegar besides
Are very good indeed--
Now if you're ready, Oysters dear,
We can begin to feed."
 
the man looked in to his oven and saw a wabbit, and the man asked the wabbit what he was doing in there.

the wabbit said, "this is a westinghouse, isn't it?

and the man said "yes'.

and the wabbit said, "well i'm westing".
 
originally posted by robert ames:
the man looked in to his oven and saw a wabbit, and the man asked the wabbit what he was doing in there.

the wabbit said, "this is a westinghouse, isn't it?

and the man said "yes'.

and the wabbit said, "well i'm westing".
Click to expand...

I suppose the oven was in the west wing.
 
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