2011 Tissot Arbois Poulsard - This is great. It has a bit of reduction upon first being opened. It has a beautiful violet floral perfume with some hints of wood. The bright and electric flavors mirror the aromas. This is just so graceful and pretty with a soft yet vibrant nature. When these Jura Poulsards are “on” they just totally wow me with their ballerina-like beauty.
Poulsard can seem to exist in a completely alternate universe of red wine. They seem so blatantly uncommercial. The reduction you mention seems to happen with every bottling, so instead of a pop and pour you have a wine that requires considerable coaxing and patience to even begin performing. I dan only imagine how many times a Poulsard was roundly dismissed in a large tasting format. In fact, I cannot think of a red wine grape less interested in “performing” in the way most critics would want.
With their pale color, secondary flavors, delicate fruit and high- toned lightness and complexity, what’s not to love?
Agree with all of this.
Im so in love with this wine.
Even though this “red” wine is just barely more than a rose, it packs a sneaky punch of intensity.
I love that sneakiness and the punch. I buy Poulsard whenever I come across it. Poulsard is an introvert’s grape, and when it works it reminds me of the imtimacy of connecting with an introvert.
My lone experience with Tissot was pretty awesome.
To be fair, sometimes the reduction wins. I’ve had delicious Poulsards (or Ploussards, or whatever that winemaker calls it), but I’ve also had a fair share of ones that even pennies wont fix. You can also get Poulsards with that perfect light bodied, aromatic, red fruit profile, and then there are Poulsards that are shrill and thin. Also, nearly all Poulsards promise a lot more with the nose than the give in the mouth; though the nose can be so intoxicating that it’s still worth it.
Which is a longwinded way to say that Poulsard is nice and there are times when it hits just right, but it’s not a magic grape or anything. And there’s plenty of crap in the market to wade through.
In fairness that’s been my experience with almost any wine region.
No arguments there, Berry, I just find that the rhetoric surrounding Poulsard gets a little bit breathless at times.
Come on, David! I was feeling the wordiness last night!
I’ve been mostly lucky with the reduction issue, at least lately. I did have a Berthet-Bondet blend that required so much coaxing that it was actually frustrating. That said, Poulsard delivers something pretty unique, and I am okay with the occasional clunker.
how does poulsard age? i love them young and have never been able to keep them very long but recently read somewhere that they are great agers - huge gains in complexity over decades. are they worth cellaring?
Ive read about people saying yes, but I don’t have any first hand experience
Good question, for which I have no answer. I’m sprinkling a few recent releases into cases with more obvious cellar wines, so check with me in a decade! ![[snort.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/b/bdc3944606213c4dca6c1169cf0a166c8bc4f8c9.gif "snort.gif"){kind=small}