2012 Louis Jadot La Dominode, Savigny-les-Beaune Premier Cru, France, 13.5%
This is still a bit of a bruiser for those that got the 2010 in the Mystery Case deal.
Great nose, wild red and black berries, some undergrowth, sage and other nice herbs, touch of grilled meat. Really like it.
The palate is dense and compact. Grippy, textured tannins. Nothing too silky or elegant here. Actually my type of PN so pretty pleased. But think this could go on for quite a while still.
A rather unprepossesing place. Tucked away on the edge of a village. You could miss it and mistake it for a small industrial unit. But the cave is deep, practical and full of quality in the making.
I’m buying more! This is lovely. Some juicy cherry and raspberry! It’s a really good way of introducing members to Xinomavro and also a nice every day wine for those that love Thymiopoulos’s wines! I would probably say it’s a step up on the Jeunes Vignes in a normal year but I think the Jeunes Vignes 2021 is exceptional, so buy both!
Plenty of Easter action here, but I’ve put my (wine) notes on the other thread. So far caught up on Holy Tuesday and Maundy Thursday. Let’s see where we do Holy Friday tomorrow.
As it’s the Easter school holidays we took our six year old camping at a site near Paris for the week with his first ever trip to Eurodisney included as a special treat. After a gruelling experience navigating crowds, queues and screaming children for 48 hours we felt mum and dad deserved a special treat so we abandoned the still giddy child to the babysitter for the evening, wonderful parents that we are, and and snuck off to enjoy a rather indulgent tasting menu at Le Clarence for the night. Perhaps the longest meal I’ve ever sat through- a full five and a half hours from being sat at our table to paying the bill but an incredible experience neither of us will forget in a hurry. The sommelier presented us with two heavy wine menus on arrival, one based around the Terroirs of France the second presenting wines exclusively from Domaine Clarence Dillon. Whilst these were a fascinating read the vast majority of wines seemed unobtainable and as we had no clue what we would be eating (the don’t give you any kind of food menu at all, just a fixed price) we decided to trust the sommelieur with his suggested wine pairings. It was a smart choice. We tried a wonderful selection of wines I would never have thought to pick myself. I particularly enjoyed the Clement Perseval blanc de noir which we ate with a sea snail amuse bouche, my first blanc de noir that I can recall but certainly not my last. The Clos Venturi from Corsica was a lovely wine too which we enjoyed with pigeon breast and new peas. It reminded me a little of the last time I tried a Duoro, lots of black fruit but quite silky and elegant.
We’re heading to another campsite in Normandy for the rest of the Easter weekend to recover and explore some of the beaches with the boy. Perhaps a little less drinking from here on. My poor head.
Ch Musar Blanc 2010; been drinking this over a couple of evenings, and now as an aperitif. Has a suble mix of honey, strawberry, some oak, floral, a bit of glue solvent(?!). Big salinity that goes with a subtle acidity, a touch yeasty that seems to come from wood. After some time there’s some honey and herbs- that solvent has mostly blown off - it’s quite light bodied and has a lovely acidic streak and a lot of salinity - needs food. Enjoyable, but perhaps a little closed?
Just seen that Bodegas Contador, a bodega that I always thought was too pricey for me, sells glasses of Cueva del Contador for 8 euros. Considering UK retail price of ~80 pounds, I might give it a go.
Celebrating my mothers’s birthday with a rather long lunch at my house.
Couldn’t be bothered to cook (end of financial year is a lot of work), so we used the grill to have a mini barbecue: chicken, lamb, pork, sea bass, prawns, mushrooms, corn on the cob, and halloumi, served with the Society’s Exhibition Naoussa Xinomavro
On the nose med+ notes of cherry, strawberry, some raspberry, and a hint of tomato stalk hiding in the background - nothing unpleasant.
Some acidity on the palate, predominant cherry and strawberry notes, with a short finish.
90% of the Alta Naoussa at currently 3/4 of the cost
More interesting than many I’ve tried and with a very welcome sharpening of acidity. My style of rose. I hope it appears again (presumably without the Bin label).
OOS on-line but there were plenty on the shelves at the local Fakenham branch yesterday.
This is not a cheap supermarket wine. It’s very impressive and serious and just how I like an Aglianico to be and, as to be expected, at a give-away price. Very dense, rich and savoury, and a welcome lack of crowd-pleasing easy fruity sweetness. Maybe even a bit young; it’s not often you’d think that a low-end discount supermarket wine would benefit from a bit more bottle age.
This 100% Zweigelt from last summer’s haul is just a ticket after a day trip. Weather is unseasonably cold here in Hungary, but the wine is delicious. At 11.5%, light as a feather, in a good way, with plenty of crunchy red fruit (strawberry and a touch cranberry maybe). Should have bought a lot more, a return visit to the Sebestyen cellars beckons next summer.
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