This is showing significant improvement from release.
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I’m loving those '16 Picasses right now. I got an additional 6 of them in July of last year (17 euros each!) and I drank through 4 already. Savory yet plenty of fruit and that fun tannin hit on the gums. I’ve paired this with a bunch of stuff too.
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Yeah, it has definitely found some fruit since release, with each bottle better than the one that preceded it — I think I’ve had four now.
Any idea how the 17 compares?
I don’t. Sorry, Alan.
I thought the 16 was backwards on release especially when compared to the 17 which was fresh, open for business and classically styled.
Haven’t had either lately but those were my initial impressions.
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Fun little blind tasting of an impressive entry level bottling. Vintage differences are stark with this one.
2020 Domaine du Bel Air (Pierre et Rodolphe Gauthier) Bourgueil Les Vingt Lieux Dits - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Bourgueil (9/9/2024)
– decanted 30 min. before initial taste on Day 1 –
– tasted blind alongside the 2019 vintage of the same –
– tasted over a couple hours on Day 1; revisited on Days 2 and 3 –
NOSE: Day1: juicy, ripe red fruits; expressive; Spree candies; stony mineral; light to medium-light pyrazine (and it’s more herbal than it is bell pepper); more “classic C.F.” than the ’19, which was tasted alongside. Day 2: a touch more subdued than yesterday. Day 3: {same as previous}
BODY: dark garnet color of medium depth (just a touch lighter-colored than the 2019); medium-light to medium bodied.
TASTE: Day 1: smoky edge, with a light garrigué/leather funk; made in a lighter, approachable, style, but decidedly not a tutti-frutti wine — this reminds me of Baudry’s “Clos Guillot”. Day 2: largely the same: purple-fruited, with a leathery wash; some pyrazine. Day 3: {same as previous}. An insightful side-by-side blind tasting, as this 2020 was markedly different than the 2019: I enjoyed them both, but preferred this 2020 over the 2019. Drink or Hold.
2019 Domaine du Bel Air (Pierre et Rodolphe Gauthier) Bourgueil Les Vingt Lieux Dits - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Bourgueil (9/9/2024)
– decanted 30 min. before initial taste on Day 1 –
– tasted blind alongside the 2020 vintage of the same –
– tasted over a couple hours on Day 1; revisited on Days 2 and 3 –
NOSE: savory; high-toned; red-purple fruit mix; moderately expressive; a touch “darker” and more tight than the 2020, which was tasted blind alongside; background wet cement mineral note. Day 2: more open now. Day 3: dark-fruited with stony mineral.
BODY: dark garnet color of medium depth (perhaps just one click darker than the 2020); medium bodied.
TASTE: Day 1: juicy, medium+ to high acidity; 13% alc. not noticeable; medium-light oak (oakier than the 2020). Day 2: a bit less oaky, but still not as showy as the 2020; no leathery wash or obvious pyrazine here. Day 3: {same} — burlier than the 2020. It’s pretty remarkable how very different these two vintages are; I enjoyed them both, but preferred the 2020. Drink or Hold
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From another thread:
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My wine collection at home is a bit of a mess. I currently have no proper overview. While trying to figure out what I actually have on hand at home, I came across these bottles. I haven’t been drinking much Cabernet Franc lately, as neither my wife or my friends enjoy it.
2014, 2016, 2014
So, this January, I’ve decided to enjoy one bottle of Cabernet Franc per week.
First up is Baudry’s La Croix Boissée from 2014.
This wine, and vintage, was what first got me hooked on Loire Cabernet Franc. Heavily influenced by this community, I bought a lot of Baudry a few years ago.
The first bottle of the 2014 that I opened was in June 2021. This is my third bottle.
Blackberries, black cherries, and a touch of sweet red summer berries. It’s herbaceous, vegetal, earthy, slightly saline, with hints of leather and just a minor hint of tobacco. However, all of these are playing a supporting role to the primary fruit right now. There’s a bit of initial brett (which I enjoy), but it quickly fades. In this vintage, the wine is so incredibly well-balanced. Nothing is too big and nothing is too vague and subtle. The fruit is still very primary, and the wine has a long life ahead of it.
I have three bottles left, and I really need to stop opening them for at least another five years. I believe this wine has the potential to be something truly special with more time.
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Those are three fine wines! I haven’t tried my Baudry LCBs yet - sounds good, thanks for the note. I enjoyed a Roches FDP 14 over Xmas - it’s coming on well. I look forward to reading what you think and how it compares to the Porte Saint Jean. Sorry that nobody likes them - but not that surprised: Loire CF is an acquired taste!
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Yea the pyrazines can be challenging I guess.
But being challenging is probably also what keeps prices at good levels. Hard to complain about that.
I got a good collection of Loire CF right now, so probably won’t buy much for a while and move towards the auction route later.
That‘s what I keep telling myself. And then I order new Chat. Yvonne releases.
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Well the wines from Chateau Yvonne is great!
This weeks CF. Busy week so no in-depth note.
But it is ten years young. Still fruit focused with a beautiful vibrant fruit profile. As always these wines don’t show a lot of vegetal notes. Could be difficult to pick out blind. But it is still an absolutely awesome wine. Good now, better in 5+ years.
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What I’ve noticed is that not many hit the block, aside from Rougeard. Thing about CF is this: not many love it, but those who do buy 'em and drink 'em — I rarely see them getting released back out into the wild.
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Glad you liked it! One of my favourite wines and particularly in this vintage. I agree it’s going to get even better!
Well, you’re lucky or unlucky, depending on the size of your wallet! Over here, they come on the auction market practically every week and it’s how I buy a sizeable proportion of my Loire reds. Prices vary considerably but there’s always something good nobody else wants. The L’Envolée 05 I posted about in another thread cost me 22€ in December - crazy!
Anyway, after all those 05s I needed something like this:
Charles Joguet - Clos du Chêne Vert - Chinon 2008
Red cherry, plums and a hint of vanilla on the nose, then a well-rounded, fresh and crisp mouthful of redcurrant, cranberry and red cherry, some sweet blackcurrant dominating the finish. Great balance, great poise, that inimitable Joguet elegance and nobility, so very refreshing yet with enough intensity to make it immensely satisfying.
The fruit is still lip-smackingly vital and fresh, but although there isn’t a hint of green, this is for those who prefer slightly lighter vintages. My last bottle unfortunately.
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