not sure Muscadet really improves with age but it softens and definitely maintains. But this is a real good bottling—complex nose and a soft saline-mineral palate with fruit in the background. Finishes very long and clean. Where are the oysters?
Not sure why everyone always talks only about Clos des Briords. I’ve enjoyed each and every bottle of Les Gras Moutons that I’ve had, although never did I feel that it should be aged as it seems to be so much fun from the get-go.
Would agree with your general comment, Alan - I’ve yet to see any material improvement in the wines via the aging process. And given that one of the joys of Muscadet is that edgy vibrancy when young, one could argue that the fact that the wines soften is a detriment.
People talk about the Clisson bottling (my favorite), but there’s not much of it to go around.
It is unproven on my end how they (Gras Mouton) would age, although this TN supports the idea that it will do well with close to 10 years of cellar time. The young Le Gras Mouton labels that I’ve had were much softer and lush than the comparable vintage Clos Briords. I always feel that the structure of the Clos Briords, which is more mineral, acidity and slate qualities, seems to provide the better scenario for longer term aging.
I was just thinking about a couple of magnums of this bottling I put away in storage. Thanks for the note