My first meal at Batard was excellent. Food good and creative, service excellent, prices fair. Nieporent was working the floor like a champ refilling glasses. I’d definitely go back. Both of the below were off the list at Batard - IIRC, ~$60 for the Raffault and $95 for the Selbach-Oster.
2007 Olga Raffault Chinon Les Picasses - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Chinon (7/23/2014)
Fine, but I’ve had better bottles of this. Touch of brett and a bit shut down, with the fruit faded from past experience which makes the acid poke out a bit on the back end. Vigorous swirling reveals the same leafy, dark-fruited goodness that I remember, so I have confidence this will improve with age, but I wouldn’t open for a couple of years. (88 pts.)
2001 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Schlossberg Riesling Auslese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer (7/23/2014)
Merely good and very disappointing given the vintage - I’ve found S-O to have consistently underperformed in 2001. Surprisingly advanced, with a strong petrolly note and much of the sweetness digested, this is softish and open. Hints of honey, lemon, underripe stonefruit. Muted aromatics. 2002 of this is better. (87 pts.)