Yesterday afternoon we attended a tasting of fifteen 2002 Pouilly-Fuissés at El Norteño in Albuquerque. This time we had Persian dishes to eat, one of the owners spent a couple days preparing the Persian dishes. We started with a feta, cucumber, & tomato salad with a tasty, not very acidic dressing. The first six wines were from the village of Vergisson; the first flight was all dark yellow in color - Dom. des Vielles Pierre (J-J Litaud) ‘Les Crays’ vielles vignes - rich white fruits in nose & flavors, with low acidity, and a medium long rich finish; Eric Forest ‘Haut de Crays’ - simple fruit, oaky, and not very interesting; Roger Lasserat ‘Cuvée Prestige’ tres vielles vignes (20% over 100 years old)- rich spicy white fruit in nose & flavors, almost oily in texture, good acidity, and a long rich finish, it was the wine of the flight. The second flight was lighter in color and not as uniform, a Claude Loup ‘en Bulands’ VV, vinified by Jean Rickaert - good white fruit, some acidity. and a medium long finish, not as rich as the Lasserat; Bret Bros. ‘en Carementrant’ - fresh & light, with some acidity; Saumaize-Michelin ‘Cuvée Ampelopsis’ - rich fruit, good acidity, and a long finish, the wine of the flight, but not as rich as the Lasserat. All were pleasant with the chicken, chickpeas, & tomatoes and the beef, preserved lime, and kidney beans, both with rice. Amazingly the lower acidity wines went well with the food.
Then we had three wines from Solutré-Pouilly: a Catherine et Pascal Rollet ‘Clos de la Chapelle’ VV (planted in 1921) - light yellow in color; light simple fruit, medium finish; Dom. de Gerbeaux ‘Vielle Vignes de Solutré’ (a mix of 45 & 90 year old vines) - medium yellow in color, pear & pineapple in nose and flavors, ok acidity, and a medium long fruity finish; Auvigue ‘Cuvée Hors Classe’ (175 cases made, their premium cru; selected grapes 1/3 from Les Crays, 1/3 from Solutré, & 1/3 from others) - medium yellow in color; rich nose & flavors of spicy white fruits; and a long complex fruit finish, the wine of the flight.
The last six were from Fuissé: Cordier Pére et Fils Vielles Vignes (50% new oak foudrés) - dark yellow gold in color; distinctly oaky fruit; with a finish shortened by the harsh oak; Robert-Dénogent ‘Les Reisses VV’ - medium yellow gold in color; light oak and rich fruit; a medium long finish; Robert-Dénogent ‘Les Carrons VV’ - medium yellow gold in color; rich, complex fruit; good acidity, and a long complex fruit finish. The last flight was all from J.J. Vincent Château Fuissé: Les Brûlés - no malolactic, 100% new oak, dark yellow in color, slightly oxidized, slightly sweet fruit in nose & flavors, with a long almost sherry-like finish; Le Clos - dark yellow in color, some oxidation, rich, slightly sweet white fruit, with good acidity, and a long sweet fruit finish; Vielles Vignes - 30% new oak, but showing more oak than the Brûlés, significant oxidation, and a medium long sherry-like finish.
All wines went surprisingly well with the Persian dishes, even the significantly oxidized last flight.