A week late, but this is the second entry in my monthly tasting note journal documenting my first year taking wine seriously. A very random hodgepodge of tasting notes below:
Jean Foillard “Beaujolais Villages”, 2021 ($25)
My favorite vintage of this house favorite. Highly aromatic, crunchy, and balanced. Just a great example of Beaujolais that works with any and all food and stands up on its own. It’s interesting and delicious but doesn’t demand your attention and analysis.
Patricia Green, “Reserve” Pinot Noir 2021 ($28)
Ripe fruit, bitter orange peel, and a hint of petrichor. Silky tannins, vibrant acidity, and very modest oak influence. Bordering on crunchy. Impeccably made wine, but doesn’t excite me much to be honest. I’d be thrilled to be served this at a friends house or even btg in a restaurant, but I think cru Beaujolais offers more personality at a similar price point and with similar drinking characteristics. Have another bottle, I will revisit it in 5-10 years and see if that petrichor note develops into something bolder.
Les Matheny, Arbois “300” Trousseau, Jura, 2018 ($50)
Big in pretty much every way - aggressive aroma, huge tannins, tons of acidity, and oodles of fruit. It’s pretty rustic, but very very good. Lots of woodsy spice and dark red fruit. Charming despite its bruising nature - another natural banger from Jura.
Binner, “Savuers Maceres” Alsatian field blend, 2022 ($24)
An Alsatian blend from Christian Binner of mostly riesling & pinot gris seasoned with some gerwurztraminer, muscat, and auxerrois. Fermentation occurs in foudre. Labeled as white, but I’d say it straddles the line between white and orange personally. Decent amount of sediment, but not crazy. I stood it up for a few days before drinking, as is my want, and it poured clear. Its got a thick, oily feel but ample acidity keeps it zippy. Lots of tropical fruit on the nose but more apricot on the palate. Decent amount of floral spice as well. A hint of petrol and salinity as well. Great fun and something that easily holds its own in the company of pungent spicy food. Enjoyable to drink on it’s own too. At $24, massive value here.
Domaine Philippe Auchère, Sancerre, Sauvignon Blanc
Chalky, citrusy, and floral. Primary redeeming quality was cutting through the absurd amount of butter in the food I ordered alongside it. A fine, well made wine that was just what I needed it to be when ordering by the glass at lunch.
Domaine Marius Delarche, Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru “En Caradeux” Reserve, 2011 ($45)
Lychee, lemon curd, vanilla inflected pastry, silky with plenty of acidity, hint of flint on the end. Darn it I see what all the hype around Burgundy can be about * shakes fist at expensive Burgundies *
Domaine Drouhin, Oregon, “Arthur” Chardonnay, 2012 ($30)
Bought specifically to try a classically styled chardonnay that was likely feeling its age or over the hill to start building our some reference for what that progression is. Certainly not as fresh and vibrant as it probably once was, but far from being bad. Interesting to see the nuttier, more rounded flavors on display here vs something new. A worthy experiment.
Franck Pascale, “Tolérance Rosé” Champagne
Delicious stuff and my first time with this producer. Great balance of luscious leesy character with precise and fresh fruit. I’ll be buying more wines from them.
Daniel Twardowski, Pinot Noix “3rd”, Mosel
Fresh, linear and aromatic, this did not disappoint at all. A wine of uncommon tension that I really enjoyed. Ethereal, yet structured. Spicy and earthy, but also ripe and well fruited. I’ll go out of my way to encounter this wine again.
Jonas Dostert, Chardonnay, Mosel, 2022
Very linear and clean, but with some raw underpinnings (I understand this is contradictory… it was very “natural” in style for me, whatever that means, without any VA, Brett, oxidization, etc) . Complemented the food perfectly and left us salivating for more. Very enjoyable lighter styled Chard that I’d happily buy again.
Cantine Guiseppe Apicella, Tramonti Costa d’Amalfi Bianco
yellow orchard fruits, a very faint hint of VA, some honey like sweetness (not sure if there is actually any RS or if thats just an impression). Good body and acidity. Delightful with the pizza it was served with but not overly memorable on its own.
Catherine Riss, “Pied de Nez” Alsatian Orange
Something that shouldn’t work but absolutely did! Fresh, fruited, thirst quenching, delicious. Not serious, but extra fun.
Pierre Frick, Pinot Blanc, Alsace 2018
On the nose this one was pretty wild, not in a VA or funky sense, but in a wet spring forest way. Floral, earthy, mineral, yet fresh and full of energy. Good amount of apple like fruit on the palate. Nice balanced acidity. Vanilla and cream on the medium short finish. Good, interesting wine but not really great.
Adega Vinho, Port, Texas
I didn’t ask for this. Nobody asked for this. But hey, it got served to me. It’s port. It’s from Texas. It tastes weirdly of Dr Pepper. I… don’t love it. But I guess I don’t hate it either.
Rado Suman “Modri Pinot” [aka - gross pinot kombucha]
Something that seemed innocuous and was terrible! I hope this is my worst wine of the year, truly terrible.
Chateau La Tour Blanche Sauternes
I’ve yet to have a bad sauternes, even on the lower end of the spectrum like this one. Tropical fruits, baking spice (especially nutmeg), and some citrus curd acidity. No great complexity or length of finish here, but nice to sip on after a large meal in lieu of dessert.
Wines this month: 16
Wines to date: 36
Chapter One
