What we are drinking tonight
The quite spectacular “Vigne Rovettaz”, single vineyard origin, 2016 Cornalin from Grosjean.
Author: Neal Rosenthal
Aging Gracefully
A subject quite close to my consciousness obviously … and these three old friends each demonstrate the elegance of age built on the foundation of youthful strength and excellent breed.
A modest wine for New Year’s Eve
A lovely experience tonight and surprising as well. We are drinking Granger’s Beaujolais Villages “Le Fetrau” from the 2013 vintage.
Drinking this wine tonight.
Simply stated one of the greatest wines of our 40+ year history! NIR
Summary of Grower Visits – Part VIII
For those who think these wines are a tad expensive, consider this: that harvest levels are sometimes as low as 20 hectolitres per hectare at these two Mas. Reflect on that when you are considering village level white Burgundy at $600+ per case (rendement frequently 50 to 60 hl/ha). Organic?
Summary of Grower Visits – Part VII
Chateau Simone:
I spent a delightful morning with Florence and Jean-Francois (known as “Jeff” to Florence!) Rougier after departing from the early morning visit with Sylvain MOREY. The deep dive into Simone started with a trio of vintages of Grands Carmes Blanc.
Summary of Grower Visits – Part VI
Provence – A day for 3 Chateaux ….
CHATEAU SIMONE: what a lovely estate! Each time I visit (and, remember my first visit with the Rougier family was in 1981) I remain impressed by the impeccable grounds, the perfectly maintained cellar and ultimately the consistently excellent and idiosyncratic wines.
Summary of Grower Visits – Part V
BOIS DE BOURSAN: 2018 was a difficult vintage for Versino; harvest began 12 Sept ended 28 Sept; due to extensive mildew throughout the season, he harvested 11.5 hectoliters per hectare; this on the heels of 2017 which yielded another small crop size of 22 hl/ha.
Summary of Grower Visits – Part IV
More commentary on the visits Michael and I made to the growers between Oct 16 and Oct 23 …
DOMAINE DU GOUR DE CHAULE: Harvest in 2018 started on 13 Sept for the Rosé and then proceeded in stages of 3 to4 days as the vineyards ripened in an irregular, and different, pace …
Summary of Grower Visits – Part III
The afternoon of our second day on the road was joyous as the wines of Guillaume Gilles and Domaine Lionnet are simply magical.
GILLES: Guillaume started harvest early in 2018, the 4th of September. He reports a bountiful harvest of excellent quality. The ‘17s have brilliant potential.
SUMMARY OF GROWER VISITS – PART II
CUILLERON: Our second day in the Rhône started with a tasting with Yves Cuilleron. The “Cuilleron Empire” continues to expand and requires considerable time to proceed through a tasting. In fact, 32 wines were presented, the result of which was that we were then late for the remaining appointments for that day.
Summary of Grower Visits – Part 1
Michael Kane and I just wrapped up 9 days on the road visiting our growers in the northern and southern Rhône, Provence, Languedoc – Roussillon and Bordeaux. We were the beneficiaries of beautiful Indian summer weather during the entirety of our trip, one of the few blessings from global warming.
Simone Grands Carmes Blanc 2014
Kerry and I revisited this wine over the weekend, opening and drinking most of the bottle yesterday with an udon-based vegetable broth; then, again, tonight to observe the wine’s evolution. It is, actually, spectacularly good, a wine loaded with character, strongly lanolin, petroleum-laced, amidst the background menthol-pine aromatics and flavors.
2016 Domaine Fourrier A Brief For The 2016 Vintage
The 2016 vintage at the Domaine Fourrier presents in a classic manner with precision and grace. However, it is another in the recent spate of scarce harvests that makes this offer a challenge to place in front of those who have patronized the wines of this estate since the first vintage (1994) we imported so […]
The Love Affair with the Jura Continues
Join Us At: Closerie Les Capucines 7 rue de Bourgogne F39600 ARBOIS Tél : 33 (0)3 84 66 17 38 email : contact@closerielescapucines.com Mobile : 33 (0)6 50 83 26 00 fax: 33 (0)3 84 66 21 58 web: closerielescapucines.com We are pleased to announce that, as of 31 May 2018, we have acquired “Closerie […]
Jean Faurois Vosne Chaumes 1981
Drinking this aged beauty tonight. Blake and Michael , I believe, may have had the pleasure of meeting the “Master”. Jean Faurois was the epitome of the classic Burgundian vigneron of this era … a gentleman of the first order … quiet, determined, calm with a deep love of his land and a knowledge so […]
The Dragonfly: A Sign Of A Healthy Environment
A REPORT FROM THE ROVELLOTTI FAMILY IN GHEMME I received a note yesterday from my good friend, Antonello Rovellotti, who was brimming with good cheer because of the healthy state of his vineyards in Baragiola, recognized as the top “cru” in Ghemme. He recounted that back when he was a young boy (and he is […]
LOSING A BRANCH FROM THE TREE
On Monday evening, June 26, 2017, the New York-based RWM team gathered at the Westlight in Brooklyn to honor our long-time colleague, Paul-Pierre Compere. Paul has decided to retire on June 30th after twenty-three years of rendering impeccable service to us and to our clients. The party, as you can see from the accompanying slide […]
Dinner chez Crochet
Some photos at the dining table of Gilles, Laurence and Esther Crochet. Pot au feu, root vegetables, goat cheeses of different ages and lots of Sancerre Rouge 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2012 Prestige, 2009 Prestige, 1997 Prestige. NIR
Guy Larmandier
Today, in Vertus on the Cote des Blancs, we visited with Francois Larmandier of Champagne Guy Larmandier. The current release of his Vertus Brut Rose 1er Cru is from the 2013 harvest with a dosage of 6 grams for the USA, essentially the same cuvée as the Vertus Brut but with the addition of 10% […]
Champagne Roger Coulon
As a preliminary to the field reports on the 2016 Roses which are now in the process of being bottled , we are sending along comments on the duet of Roses produced by our two Champagne growers. Here is the newest cuvée of “Roselie” from Champagne Roger Coulon with the next generation of the family, […]
Rosé Report from the Field:
My colleagues, Jeremy Sells, Clarke Boehling and Neil Rosen, will be on the road in France between February 6th and February 15th for the primary purpose of doing a final tasting of the 2016 Rosés from almost every one of our suppliers immediately prior to shipment to the USA. They will be providing notes from […]
Cornalin Les Bernunes 2014
To all: We drank the Cornalin “Les Bernunes” 2014 from Caloz this evening with total satisfaction. This red gained strength and depth throughout the course of the meal. Beautiful color; racy, alpine aromas that move to smoky, meaty, Syrah-like (northern Rhone locale); long finish, very fresh with spice and licorice components; starts simple, clean but […]
Simone Blanc and Rouge
First, experience shows that the “oiliness” that is so typical of top quality Simone Blanc develops slowly and intensifies as the wine ages; texturally the mineral drive one divines in the youthful stages and which makes for a more linear sensation recedes as the density of the wine increases, a development which, in turn, yields […]
Old Wine Alert!
ATTENTION: just opened a 1986 Vosne Romanée 1er Cru “Les Chaumes” produced by a member of the first group of Burgundians from whom I ever purchased wine: JEAN FAUROIS. I was introduced to Faurois by Claudette Amiot (Bernard’s wife) in late 1981 or early 1982. Jean was born in the Chateau du Clos de Vougeot […]
Harmand-Geoffroy Gevrey Chambertin Vieilles Vignes 2011
Drank the above-captioned wine last night at dinner with immense satisfaction. Anyone should be comfortable recommending this bottling to someone looking for classic, compelling Cote de Nuits at the village level. Still with a touch of youthful edginess but scintillating bouquet, deep robe, dense texture, deeply dark-fruited with excellent length … head and shoulders above […]
a dialogue on Arboreus, Michel and Pradeaux
Clarke, Beautifully said … bravo! I am an ardent admirer of the 2009 Arobreus which, I believe, is Bea’s best effort to date of this particular wine. There is a persistence to its attack and finish that is subtle but remarkable. I, for one, am not at all surprised by its tenacity over a four-day […]
Chauvenet Bourgogne “Noyer du Pendu” 2014
Run do not walk to grab whatever remains of this wine in stock. Call your friends and favored clients to let them know that this is a top flight “entry level” red Burgundy , one amongst several wines in this category that are standouts in our portfolio. NIR
2014 Poulsard Pêcheur
Drinking this exquisite version of Poulsard (2014) from Pêcheur tonight. Elegant, clean, so very ALIVE and a perfect companion to so many different types of cuisines. What a joy! NIR Neal: I, too, have been taken with this wine having had the opportunity to taste it now stateside. Every bit as you describe: star-bright; autumn […]
Ca’ du Leria 2013 Clerico
Married this wine tonight to a grilled magret duck breast. The wine is brilliant, showing a vibrant ruby color, evocative nose of fresh crushed wild berries and a spicy, fresh finish. Surprisingly complex for its price, it bristles with a lovely acidity. I would say that we should give the Ca’ du Leria 2013 a […]
Arbin Mondeuse (Magnin) 2011
Drinking with exquisite pleasure this classic Mondeuse from Louis Magnin. When we first brought this wine into the States last spring, it was tight as a drum with its high acid tension. To my surprise, this wine has turned the corner much more quickly than I had thought it would. It is wonderfully aromatic with […]
Clerico Spanna 2012
Drinking this wine tonight. At a beautiful spot right now. Structured, perfectly balanced , savory with spice, lithe and long on the palate. A near-perfect example of Alto Piedmontese Nebbiolo. Confirms for me, once again, that Clerico is right behind (perhaps equal to) Rovellotti as the best of our producers from that region. Highly recommended! […]
Chassagne Rouge ’85 Prudhon
Drank this wine tonight with pleasure. At 30 years plus a modest village burgundy is still alive and bright with its typical grainy tannins. Color deepened with aeration. Might it have been even better 5 or 10 years ago? Probably but this wine is a “gamer”, a sturdy little fellow. Last bottle in the cellar!
St Aubin Murgers Dents de Chien ’13
Drinking the subject wine tonight with sautéed shrimp and a risotto made with a sample of a carnaroli rice from the Novara region of Piedmont. Classic white Burgundy, Meyer-lemon like acidity, beautifully dense with a long, clean, lively finish. The Prudhons are a class act and are cranking out truly superb wine. We also drank […]
A Week of Wine at Mad Rose Ranch
We thought it might be fun to share with you the wines we drink at home during the course of a week … providing commentary on the wines as well as some insight as to why each wine was selected and the food we served with it. If this exercise proves interesting, we will repeat […]
Bois De Boursan Felix ’11
Drank this beauty tonight with dinner. This vintage, somewhat suspect in the general perception, is showing brilliantly. The ripe and spicy Grenache takes center stage with a touch of tannic kick from Mourvèdre. A wine that is shedding its quietude and finding a classic expression of Chateauneuf – with stems! NIR
Loire Valley Wines
Kerry and I continually assess our wines by putting each to the ultimate test: drinking wine with our meals. Over the most recent weekend, we explored, with much satisfaction, several wines from the Loire Valley that do not appear regularly at our home table. On New Year’s Eve, our quiet celebration was toasted with the […]
Etienne Becheras Saint Joseph Blanc 2011
Drinking the above captioned wine tonight. We have a small allocation of this wine every year which is, by and large, ignored once it arrives. That is a shame. The wine is rich, speaks with a booming voice and is blessed with a joyous perfume full of exotic flora. This wine should fine a home […]
Auney L’Hermitage Cana Rouge ’12
Drinking this wine tonight. Delicious. One of the best values in the portfolio. Perfect balance, dignified, an adult wine of class and breed. Photo will follow. By the way, the proprietors are two of the most intelligent and charming vignerons in our universe. NIR
Lionnet Cornas 2012
Drinking this wine tonight (see photos). Classic Cornas. May be the best Cornas in stock right now. Powerful, dramatic, severe, every element of the appellation is on display … The granite soils, the non-destemmed grapes, the raw ferocity of Syrah in the northern Rhone. So good right now but with a brilliant future of 10 […]
Dolcetto d’Alba ’14 DeForville
Once again our friends, the Anfosso family of Barbaresco, have produced one of the singular great values in our portfolio of wines. We are drinking tonight the 2014 Dolcetto d’Alba which is simply delicious, actually thirst-quenching, vibrant, fresh, so very much alive! One wonders sometimes how it is possible to produce a wine of this […]
NOAH Coste della Sesia Croatina 2011
a brief note about one of our newest wines… To our delight, this wine from young Andrea Mosca’s cellars in Brusnengo in the Alto Piemonte is developing nicely and shows, with a considerably higher degree than I anticipated, a true sense of terroir. In fact, this wine from Croatina is much more fine than it […]
An Old Friend
No one ever made a truer Chambolle Musigny than our old friend (and very first producer in Burgundy), Bernard Amiot. Tonight we are enjoying his 1997 Chambolle Musigny 1er Cru “Les Chatelots”. As we do, we reminisce about how we started working with Bernard, tasting through the cellar and marking the individual barrel or barrels […]
2000 J Dauvissat
Drinking this wine drawn from the cellar tonight. Rather astonishing for its freshness (15 years old, village wine!). Classic Chablis – aromatically and gustatorily true to its Kimmeridgian origins. My only quibble is that it shows just a touch too “warm” on the palate despite its declared 12% alcohol. Lovely density … As we used […]
Barbera d’Asti “Ca’ del Buc” 2013 from DeForville
On a beautiful spring evening in Shekomeko, we are enjoying a favorite wine of ours: the Barbera d’Asti 2013 produced by the Anfosso family from their “Ca’ del Buc” vineyard in Costigliole d’Asti. Although the family is based in Barbaresco, they have owned this special site for many years, using it to produce this formidable […]
Aging Dolcetto – An Example
Having tasted through the series of older Dolcetto Dogliani (an appellation with a certain deserved renown for producing age-worthy Dolcetto) recently, it was a revelation to drink a bottle of Dolcetto d’Alba “Vignavillej” 1998 from Brovia, a wine drawn from our private collection. It is an astonishing wine – deep in color, robust, still fresh […]
A Bordeaux Moment – Pauillac front and center
Just finished drinking a bottle of Chateau Chantecler, Pauillac, 2010 (while listening to the Brad Mehldau Trio) which experience drove our memories to the earliest days of our career in wine when we had the pleasure of indulging in another Pauillac by the name of Château Latour in vintages like ’61, ’62 and ’64, wines of […]
Several Visits to the Cellar
The nicest aspect of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend is that it gives us a bit of “down-time” to explore the cellar and dig up a few wines to drink at our leisure. So, here is a brief report on a few wonders that have been hanging out underground for awhile … We had the pleasure […]
Working the high mountain passes of the Valle d’Aosta
It’s thrilling to work the high passes of the Valle d’Aosta searching for wines in places that are home to the chamois and mountain goat as much as they prove to be fertile ground for a fascinating array of local grape varieties. Our love affair with this area started 35 years ago in January 1980 when we first […]
A Grand Cru Experience
We sat at the dinner table tonight and drank, over a simple dinner (leftover pork tenderloin, roast potatoes, endive and blue cheese salad), a bottle of Mazis-Chambertin produced by our grower Harmand-Geoffroy in the 2006 vintage. This bottle offered vivid testimony of its breed and answers the question: do certain vineyard locations truly provide a […]
Saint Emilion
On November 23, 2013 Neal wrote: “Just wrapped up a lovely morning in Saint Emilion and am now on the train from Libourne to Bordeaux (to catch a connection to Montpellier this afternoon). I was delighted by what I tasted at both Haut Segottes and Belregard Figeac. First of all, I am happy to report […]
A Morning in Vouvray
“Wednesday (20 Nov 2013) morning was dedicated to Vouvray with stops at Peter Hahn’s Clos de la Meslerie and Philippe Foreau’s Clos Naudin. 2013 was not kind to the appellation: a devastating hailstorm in summer and a rainy late season and cold spring reduced yields and made the growers struggle mightily […]
Neal’s Report from the Eastern Loire
“The afternoon of Tuesday, Nov 19 2013 was spent in the Eastern Loire visiting with Marc Deschamps, Gilles Crochet and Philippe Gilbert. In Pouilly-sur-Loire, Marc Deschamps reported favorably on the results of the current harvest, better results than might have been anticipated considering the up-and-down conditions during the growing season. He predicts a wine with […]
Report on Dauvissat and Defaix
Last week Neal traveled from Champagne to Chablis before making his way to the Loire. Here are his notes from domaines Dauvissat and Defaix. “I visited with Sebastien Dauvissat early in the morning of Tuesday November 19 – a hint of snow was in the air. Our stocks of the Dauvissat wines are dwindling rapidly […]
Notes from Champagne
On Sunday, Neal departed for his final grower visits of the season. He continues to chronicle them here on the blog. 11/21/13 “I am on the train departing from Nantes destination Bordeaux – finally a free moment to pen a few words about my current visits with our growers. On Monday of this week, I […]
Visit to the Valais
After a couple of days in the Alto Piemonte and the Canavese, Neal crossed over the mountains via the Gran San Bernardo pass to visit our growers in the Valais in Switzerland … herewith his initial comments: “We arrived in the Valais on Tuesday evening, I introduced our newest colleague, Ross Mattis, to the traditions […]
The Report from Ferrando
A day in Carema, October 2013: “Our visit with Luigi, Roberto and Andrea Ferrando was spent mostly in discussion of the “crisis of quantity” in Carema and whether there is some way to increase access to, and control the production of, grapes within the appellation. There is no easy answer to this conundrum but, at […]
Neal’s Visit to the Alto Piemonte (Oct 2013) continued
Neal’s visits in Alto Piemonte continued with a trip to Castello Conti: “Tuesday morning Oct 22 we visited with Elena and Paola Conti. Four wines were the subjects for the day. The wines had just been bottled 10 days prior. The Nebbiolo Colline Novaresi 2012 was the most affected by the bottling, showing the dryness […]
Updates from Alto Piemonte
We will continue posting Neal’s dispatches from his producer visits. Over the next few days he will be in Italy and Switzerland. Here is the first update from Italy. “A quick “wrap” of yesterday’s activity in the Alto Piemonte, 10/21/13 … Monsecco: Greeted by Giorgio and Fabio, as usual. This duo presents a charming and […]
A Day in the Jura
Sunday, Sept 22, 2013 Neal spent the day visiting our producers in the Jura. Here are his notes: “I spent last Sunday (September 22) visiting each of our four producers. The first issue to discuss is “reduction” in certain wines from our producers in the Jura. Of course, we had this problem raise its ugly […]
Northern Rhone Part I
Late last week, Neal spent time visiting producers in the Northern Rhone. Here is his report on Guillaume Gilles: September 20, 2013 “On Friday Sept 20, I visited with each of our five producers in the northern Rhone. I am pleased to report that the wines from both the 2011 and 2012 vintages are exceptionally […]
Northern Rhone Part II
Neal’s update on our Northern Rhone producers continues with Domaine Lionnett and Etienne Becheras: September 20, 2013 “The Domaine Lionnet is really coming into its own. Ludovic is finding his stride. My notes are replete with praise. There is no doubt that 2012 will be a top vintage here and, interestingly and somewhat in contrast […]
Northern Rhone Part III
This is Neal’s final dispatch from the Northern Rhone: September 20, 2013 “To wrap up the Northern Rhone…I had a pleasant encounter with Yves Cuilleron. Yves continues to expand his holdings. There are now 55+ hectares that he exploits as owner and sharecropper. There is now a nice Crozes Hermitage Rouge being produced. The Levets […]
A quick report from the Savoie
Neal has taken off on the first of his autumn trips to visit our growers in Europe. We will chronicle his travels on the blog by posting his field reports. September 19, 2013 “Flew into Geneva this morning and visited Vens-le-Haut and Magnin today. Was privileged to be here on a gorgeous day, unfortunately one […]
A Tasting Odyssey in Three Parts
Part 1: The Midwest Comes East On September 9 and 10, Rosenthal Wine Merchant hosted a group of its distributors and their top clients from the Midwest states of Wisconsin, Nebraska, Missouri and Colorado at its warehouse in New York City. Just a few years ago it was difficult, or impossible, to find Rosenthal wines in most […]
Chateau Haut Segottes – A History Lesson
As you can see from the attached photo, we drank a bottle of 1980 Chateau Haut Segottes (Saturday Aug 31, 2013), one of the few older vintages that remain in stock from the collection that we purchased from Mme Meunier, the proprietor, several years ago. Of course, this vintage was left behind in our stock while […]
A Mountain Red
The exuberant reds from our growers in the Valais scream out their mountain heritage. Drinking the 2011 Cornalin from Romain Papilloud tonight makes the point brilliantly. A wine of vibrant, deep color, its bouquet brings the Alpine atmosphere directly to the table like a fresh, cool breeze rustling through the low bushes of berry and […]
Old Originals
This week [June 2 – 8 2013] we raided the cellar again. Without planning it, we drank two wines that share an interesting history: the 1983 Cote Rotie from Bernard Levet and the 1982 Brunello di Montalcino from Luigi Anania’s La Torre estate. Two distinct wines with one dramatic similarity: both wines were the first […]
Brunello “La Torre” 1982 + Chet Baker !
People always talk about food and wine matches but not so often of the marriage of wine and music. Tonight [June 6, 2013] we experienced the ideal: listening to Chet Baker (singing + playing trumpet) while drinking Brunello “La Torre” 1982. Both are the ultimate in sophistication, elegance and class.
A BRIEF COMMENTARY ON RECENT VINTAGES IN BURGUNDY
At the request of one of our best clients, I composed a brief and certainly very general summary of our view of recent vintages in Burgundy (from 1999 to 2010). You might find this commentary of some interest … 1999: a heralded vintage for both red and white wines; whether the wines will live up […]
Badebec – Our Newest Addition to the Portfolio
Standing in the kitchen as we prepare dinner and taste the first bottle of “Badebec”, a Rosso from the Vallé d’Aosta, to come to the States. It’s always exciting to test these recent arrivals once they are Stateside. We do all of our selecting overseas in the cellars so that initial bottle opened at home […]
Exploring the cellar (again) – a perspective on Hubert Lignier and wines with a bit of age …
It seems that, more often than not when contemplating a new blog post, I am drawn to comment on the joys of exploring wines that we had tucked away in our private cellar many, many moons ago. I do this, I think, because there appear to be so few opportunities now for those who are […]
Beaujolais: An Essential Part of Burgundy
We have argued for many moons that some of, if not the, best values in red wine can be found in Beaujolais. Certainly, when one cruises the “cru” vineyards of this region, the grapes of which have been cared for and transformed into wine by the serious and quite traditional growers, the notion that Beaujolais […]
Chianti Classico, Sangiovese, Castelnuovo Berardenga
We recently indulged ourselves with a trip into our past as experienced through several older vintages of Chianti Classico Riservas from Castell’in Villa, one of our first sources of superb Italian wine (and no longer part of our portfolio for a complex of reasons). Most specifically, we drank on separate occasions the 1988 and 1985 […]
DeForville Barbaresco
Tonight (August 23 2012) we drank a bottle of Barbaresco “Vigneto Loreto” 1997 from De Forville. This estate, with which we have been working for the past 33 years, has always flown a bit under the radar … in a commercial sense. Perhaps this is because the Anfosso family, the owners of De Forville, are […]
What We Have Been Drinking …
A brief note about some of the wines we have consumed over the past few days … Coteaux Champenois Blanc (Coulon) 2008: the “deposit” or “veil” that was present when we first released this wine seems to have disappeared; the wine is scintillatingly replete with the terroir of Champagne – stony to its core with […]
Villa Sant’Anna Chianti Colli Senesi 2005 and Thoughts on Assembling a Cellar
We stumbled across a bottle of Chianti Colli Senesi 2005 from Villa Sant’Anna the other day while cruising our personal cellar; so, we drank it that evening. A simple but satisfying wine this modest Chianti from the hills just north of Montepulciano with a rustic, earthy bouquet, lots of presence on the palate and tannins […]
EXPANDING OUR ITALIAN PORTFOLIO: ALTO PIEMONTE AND CALABRIA:A QUARTET OF GROWERS
For years we have longed to expand our footprint in Italy, most specifically in Piedmont but also with an eye to southern Italy which heretofore was completely absent from our coverage. With much good fortune, beginning with a casual encounter last December in Rome and continuing through an intense four day exploration we conducted in […]
ABISSI 2009
When Piero “Bisson” Lugano told me about his fantastical plan to submerge his nascent Spumante deep beneath the waters of the bay of Portofino where it would undergo its second fermentation, I thought he was kidding. Then, when he actually did make the arrangements, I tossed it off as nothing more than a brilliant publicity […]
The Meursaults of Bitouzet-Prieur
Tonight, on the spur of the moment, Kerry descended into the cellar and brought up a bottle of Meursault 1er Cru “Charmes” 1990 from Bitouzet-Prieur to enjoy with our dinner (a couple of steamed lobsters). It is a remarkable experience to enjoy a fine white Burgundy at the age of 22 years, one that is […]
La Torre: A rare release of Brunello Riserva
In several weeks, we will be releasing the Brunello di Montalcino RISERVA 2006 from Luigi Anania’s estate “La Torre”. Luigi produces a small amount of Riserva from time-to-time depending on the quality of a particular vintage. Even then, he severely restricts the amount of Riserva that he makes so that he does not affect in […]
Our Foray into Lessona
Yesterday, March 19, we arrived in Milan and headed directly to the northeastern sector of Piemonte to prospect for growers in the appellations of Lessona, Ghemme and Gattinara. In the small town of Lessona, which is the smallest in size of the subject appellations, we met with Massimo Clerico. He is the third “largest” producer […]
Drinking Montbourgeau and Listening to Billy Holliday
We are in the midst of a special moment, a quiet dinner at home on the evening before we leave to prospect in the Piedmont and Calabria. The atmosphere is cool, calm and crystalline – listening to Billy Holliday sing and drinking the L’Etoile Cuvee Speciale 2006 from Nicole Deriaux’s Domaine de Montbourgeau, a brief […]
The 2006 Vintage from Bea
The first shipment of the wines of the 2006 vintage from Paolo Bea arrived last week. Yes, five plus years after the harvest the wines have been released. Contrary to the generally high quality wines produced in 2006 from the neighboring zone of Tuscany, the ’06 vintage in Umbria was problematic with grapes struggling to […]
Birthday Party and Old Wine
On Feb 22 we celebrated Kerry’s birthday with a group of old friends and a series of old wines – the occasion being a wonderful excuse to dig into the cellar. In this era, when everyone is so eager to drink up wines immediately upon release, enjoying wines of a certain age is a reminder […]
thoughts about Gigondas
It was rewarding to discover the favorable comments in Eric Asimov’s reflections on Gigondas in this week’s NY Times “Dining” section. The notes about our Domaine du Gour de Chaulé highlight our taste profile, that is our preference for wines of balance, grace and complexity over the mere show of force that often is the […]
Jaugaret 2007
Tonight (1 Feb 2012) we are drinking a bottle of Domaine du Jaugaret 2007, a wine from a weak vintage (or so it is said). Satisfying – a true wine of Saint Julien, as clear an expression of this particular terroir as exists in today’s world of Bordeaux. Yet, this splendid wine may be the […]
La Torre’s Brunello 2003
I walked into the kitchen tonight after a session working on revisions to our new website to find a just-opened wine in a glass waiting for my attention. The bottle was hidden – a test for my aging palate, I suppose. One taste and an immediate expression of “Wow”! It was an immense wine, thick […]
Saint Aubin Rouge 1er Cru “Sur le Sentier du Clou – Vieilles Vignes” 2007 by Prudhon
Proved to myself once again tonight that this is my favorite red from the Prudhon family. It has the most “grip” and those tannins, rustic for sure, are compelling and in perfect balance. The vintage 2007 lends a lot of grace to this wine and makes the argument for elevating this vintage in ranking amongst […]
Cornu and the 2004 Vintage
The 2004 vintage in Burgundy has revealed, over time, a series of wines that are compelling for rendering the purity and truth of the region. Cornu’s top wines are beautiful examples. Tonight (Dec 25) we drank the Aloxe 1er Cru “Moutottes” from the ’04 vintage. I expected a lovely wine because the Moutottes always has […]
Bourgueil “Les Galluches” 2009 from La Petite Mairie
It has been awhile since we drank a Bourgueil from James Petit so tonight’s experience was delightful for a number of reasons. First, the ’09 “Galluches” is showing brilliantly. Our previous encounters with this wine revealed a wine that was reticent, still youthful and timid. Now, the wine is in bloom. It has a brilliant […]
Barbaresco (DeForville) 2008
Opened our first bottle of the just-released 2008 Barbaresco “Normale” from De Forville. A stark contrast to the ’07 which was generous, open-knit, seductive and almost sweet. The ’08, in my opinion, is a more “important” wine with a discipline to its structure that is only present in the greatest of wines. This Barbaresco is […]
Ferraton Revisited
Unfortunately, in this risk-averse era in which we live, they just don’t make wine like this anymore. The ’89 Crozes Hermitage from Michel Ferraton is outrageously great today, 22 years after it was born from this minor appellation. Losing Ferraton from our portfolio (a sad story) is probably the greatest loss of our career from […]
Drinking Bordeaux
So, over the past several evenings, we have drunk Haut Segottes ’06 and Jaugaret ’04, an experience that stimulates a few thoughts about the two wines specifically and our Bordeaux selection in general. First, it becomes obvious after consuming these two wines that our work in Bordeaux is every bit as profound and important as […]
Thevenet
Pierreclos: Margots @ 60 ans d’age; Chateau @ 20 ans – age moyenne: 40 ans. Macon Milly-La Martine 2010 – 9 mois en fut, mis en blle Sept ’11 (vieux fut de 5 ans) – assez vif, plus elegant que Pierreclos, dernieres vignes de vendanger, assez minerale, tres discret, “la Montagne” 18 ares, 30 hl-ha, […]
a moment at Jaugaret
Passed a lovely moment with Jean-Francois Fillastre at Domaine Jaugaret this morning. He was in good spirits despite the fact that both his ’08 and ’09 have been rejected by the tasting panel that gives the OK to have the appellation Saint Jullien for the wine. The wine was putatively rejected due to an excess […]
Chezeaux
So, we drank a bottle of Vosne 1er Cru “Les Chaumes” 2006 tonight from our modest, but nevertheless brilliant, Jerome Chezeaux. There are others in our Burgundy portfolio that are more famous but none who are producing more consistently outstanding wine in a style that is simple yet strikingly classic. The “Chaumes” ’06 is still […]
Wrap Up
A week spent in the Cote d’Or, the Jura and Alsace …. There is plenty of good news to share about the wine scene in Burgundy. We are about to tackle three very strong vintages in Burgundy: ’08, ’09 and ’10. The first and last are marked by vibrant, fresh, pure wines with clear expression […]
At Gahier’s
The wine of the afternoon! NIR
Dinner with the Ligniers
Here we are at the Lignier’s table with Hubert and Francoise and Laurent and a few other family members having a simple dinner accompanied by: Chambolle Les Baudes 2002, Charmes Chambertin 2000 and Clos de la Roche 1988. Wish you were all here! NIR