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Hi Chris,

I picked this up recently on a retail shelf for a fair price and did not know much about the producer. They use barriques but I did not detect any modern influence as I imagine 24 years allows a fair amount of integration.

Cheers,
Doug

Hi Warren,

This was my last bottle and it was indeed very lively. I haven’t tried the 2010’s yet so glad to know they are showing well. This is a good house.

Cheers,
Doug

1995 Giovanni Corino Barolo Vigneto Arborina - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (9/7/2019) Decanted for 2 hours and followed through the evening. Garnet with scarlet hints. Three hours after opening the nose became a blast of violets, hyacinth, plum pits, camphor, and earthy tar. Pliant on the palat...

2008 Ceritas Pinot Noir Escarpa Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (9/7/2019) Medium ruby color. Nose of red berry, cherry pits, iodine, earth, cinnamon. Exceedingly pure, delineated layers of lush red raspberry and Bing cherry fruit cut with fine-grained dark spicy notes on th...

Good to hear Jeremy. As I recall these bottles were reasonably priced for a 1er.

Cheers
Doug

Sounds wonderful Frank. I will now be on the lookout for more from this producer.

Cheers,
Doug

Frank

My first experience with this producer. Agree fairly rare to see bottles these days. I wish I had purchased more! Superb showing.

Cheers,
Doug

1997 Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona Brunello di Montalcino Vigna di Pianrosso - Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino (8/31/2019) Darker garnet color. Nose of both dried and ripe fruit, leather, scintillating floral notes, earth. Satin-textured layers of earth, dried red plum, vibrant br...

1983 Moillard Clos Vougeot - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru (8/31/2019) Popped and poured then followed for 3 hours. Medium ruby color with scarlet rust hints. First sniffs revealed camphor and iodine joined by dark raspberry fruit and earth, later transforming to full waft...

2012 F.X. Pichler Riesling Smaragd Dürnsteiner Kellerberg - Austria, Niederösterreich, Wachau (8/25/2019) Light gold color. Nose of biscuit, white flowers, apricot, apple core, white pear, and schist. Bursting with vibrant fruit on the palate with layers of lychee, peach, lime, and grapefruit accom...

Alex

It’s a good vintage to have. Would be interested in your impressions if and when you sample. I’ve really enjoyed the 05 and 07 thus far.

Cheers,
Doug

John,

This vintage has real staying power. I felt this bottle still exhibited some primary elements! Mags should be fine.

Cheers,
Doug

Ruby color. Nose of mountain flowers, iodine, cinnamon, raspberry, earth. Fulsome yet chiseled layers of concentrated, pure red raspberry and black cherry fruit with a touch of iron and tartness. Refreshing acidity and still-firm tannin leading to a long finish of heady red fruit cut with earth, gri...

Asher,

Thanks for the feedback. Good information on the evolution of the vintage. Should be great when ready.

Frederico,

Sounds quite reasonable. I have looked for older vintages of this bottling and have had good experiences thus far (1979, 1993, 1995, 2007, 2009).

Cheers,
Doug

Asher,

Sounds like sage advice. Would be interesting to know if the 2015 was mostly primary at this point versus going into a shell already.

Cheers,
Doug

Stephen,

Interesting. I happened upon a single bottle of 2002 Clos des Mouches Blanc this past year and went for it but have not opened it yet. Per your note there appears to be no rush!

Cheers,
Doug

Bill,

Great cork stories. This wine somehow survived a somewhat dodgy cork situation.

Cheers,
Doug

Bill, In this case the crumbling, wine-soaked cork with fungus on top had me apologizing to the wife about impulse buying, so expectations were set appropriately low. There was ultimately joy in Mudville, however. Dale, Good historical perspective. I have not had an opportunity to sample a Cote de B...

Bill,

I certainly lucked out.

Cheers,
Doug

Andrew,

Ah that is unfortunate. Chances are good that a second try, from virtually any vintage, will be successful.

Cheers,
Doug

Don, That sounds fantastic. What an experience. It really is like opening a time capsule. It puts the aging of wine into a totally different perspective (for me). Frederico, Although this thread nicely discusses how long one can wait, it doesn’t yet address how early! Depends on how you like to foll...

Have to agree Alan. This was definitely kicking.

Cheers,
Doug

Jeremy,

I have not yet had the pleasure of trying the 1990 but will be on the lookout. Bags of life indeed - shades of Clive Coates!

Cheers,
Doug

Dale,

The Bèze must have been a hoot to drink (have one bottle of 2010 which will sleep for a decade yet).

Vincent,

Glad you left the Mouches for me (thanks!)! Hope the Cameron showed well.

Cheers,
Doug

Greg,

Good one. Welcome to the 40’s (twenty five years ago for me).

Please post on the ‘79 you do end up sampling.

Cheers,
Doug

Jayson,

I’ll say. Oldest vintage of wine I have sampled.

Cheers,
Doug

Dennis and Chiu,

Yes I got very lucky on this one! I have to agree, the CdM rouge endures as Joseph Drouhin’s best example of quality available to standard earthlings.

Dennis I can imagine the 1985 would be quite delicious right about now.

Cheers,
Doug

Brian,

Don’t see this bottling very often but sampled the 2013 two years ago and enjoyed it very much. Nice note.

Cheers,
Doug

Came across this bottle in a Cannon Beach wine shop and went for it. Crumbly, wine soaked cork. Surprisingly opaque ruby color. Billowing, piercing floral and iron-inflected nose with wafts of black cherry and rounded plum scents. Delicate yet steely layers of tangy raspberry and black cherry fruit ...

Jonathan,

My experience with the Domaine is limited to this one bottle but it certainly showed very well. I think she works with just 4 hectares so definitely an overacheiver.

Cheers,
Doug

Jay, Thanks for the info. Certainly flew under the radar for me and I haven’t seen many bottles at retail. In my brief foray researching Einaudi on the web, the one thing that stood out was that he was apparently the president of Italy for several years! This bottled showed quite well and I think mo...

Chris,

Indeed quite a delicious bottle. It was open and energetic, still very much on the upward arc so yes another 5-10 years (at least) sounds about right.

Cheers,
Doug

Decanted 2 hours. Garnet color with scarlet hints. Gripping nose of scented plum fruit, camphor, balsam, tar, and violets. Deep-diving layers of dark plum, black cherry, and strawberry fruit on the palate undergirded with tar and earth. Refreshing acidity and firm tannin leading to a long finish of ...

Per some web sites she “joined her family full-time” in 2003.

Cheers,
Doug

2008 Domaine Marc Roy Gevrey-Chambertin Clos Prieur Popped and poured. Ruby color. Nose of beef blood, tilled earth, plum pits, violets, thyme. Layers of red plum, black raspberry, and cinnamon notes on the palate cut with granular earth and iron. Effortless harmony and lively acidity balancing fin...

Josh

I did not see your reply. Yes that seems to be the prevailing wisdom.

Cheers,
Doug

Ryan thanks. Agree with you - the tariff for these wines (can’t speak to most recent vintage) has been quite reasonable.

Ross good to know that the wines have shown well. The 02 certainly did.

Cheers,
Doug

Josh I am afraid I don’t have any experience with Gouges from either vintage. Others will hopefully chime in.

Cheers,
Doug

Thanks Suzanne. Loose associations abound after consuming a bit of wine..

Cheers,
Doug

Shon

Very good now, probably even better later.

Cheers,
Doug

Shon

This wine could go for ages. I have always thought of 2002 as being a bit more open and accessible as a vintage, but on the other hand this is Gouges we are talking about. If you have one bottle, the 5 year window sounds about right. The Chevillon won’t suffer either.

Cheers,
Doug

Thanks Alan. It was an impressive bott.

Matthew I know what you mean (as in “do these things ever actually mature”). I thought what the heck and dove in. It was worth it.

Cheers,
Doug

2002 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Pruliers Opaque ruby color. Fulsome, most excellent nose of earth, raspberry, iodine, plum pits, hyacinth, and ferric notes. Vibrant, iron-laden layers of red raspberry and black cherry fruit fanning out on the palate with a broad platform of ...

Barry,

Excellent producer whom we had the pleasure of visiting last year. Really good entry level blanc and rouge bottlings plus single vineyard cuvées, all very impressive. A reliable choice on a wine list to be sure.

Cheers,
Doug

2017 Domaine Vacheron Sancerre - France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Sancerre (7/14/2019) Chilled and opened to accompany steamed mussels. Pale gold color. Nose of grassy meadow, white stone, and scents of citrus. Steely layers of grapefruit and flint on the palate with a hint of apple core. Ample a...

2007 Joseph Drouhin Griotte-Chambertin - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Griotte-Chambertin Grand Cru (7/13/2019) Pristine cork. Ruby hue. Nose of plum pits, violets, damp cellar, stone, fresh cut berry. Tart, somewhat candied Bing cherry fruit on opening which gradually deepened and evolved to be...

Hi Merrill,

Judging from the 05 Pisoni sampled recently I might give it 2-3 years. IMHO it will be very good now and even better later.

Cheers,
Doug

2002 Arcadian Pinot Noir Francesca's Cuvée - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (6/29/2019) Darker ruby. Nose of sea air, sharp raspberry, earth, briar, and alpine flowers. Ripe yet stemmy dark cherry and raspberry fruit teaming on the palate with verve and deep concentration. Fi...

Frank

I worked with Arista Cellars, a retail shop in Edmonds, WA, who worked with their distributor. Not sure they have any left.

Ilkka,

I will be on the lookout for Les Oiseaux.

Cheers,
Doug

David,

Got the one bottle remaining in the Seattle inventory, so my retailer tells me. Better to be lucky than good.

Cheers,
Doug

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