TN: A Night of French Wines (Druet, Ganevat, Plouzeau, Montrose)

WINE TALK
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A NIGHT OF FRENCH WINE - Chez Simo Bistro - Chicago, IL (5/2/2014)

Got together with 8 others for a casual dinner at Chez Simo. I’ve enjoyed my outings here. $0 corkage is hard to beat, and I find the food to be very honest and authentic. Looking forward to going back.

  • 2009 Domaine Dublère Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
    Bursting with lemons and limes. Lots of cut and precision here, with the classic Preusian waxy lemon and flinty notes. Wouldn’t have guessed this was a 2009. Great bottle. (91 pts.)
  • 2010 Domaine Ganevat Côtes du Jura Cuvée Florine - France, Jura, Côtes du Jura
    I decanted this for about 2 hours prior to dinner. Showing very well overall. Toasty nose of smokey nuts, melons, pears, and mushroom. Its palate is a thing of beauty; chiseled from stone the freshness and depth of citrus flavor is awesome. One of the more unique and affordable French chardonnays. (92 pts.)
  • 2000 Marcel Deiss Altenberg de Bergheim - France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru AOC
    Smooth with some nice sweet vanilla note. A bit wooly, and complex with lots of peach, apple, and pear - I liked this a lot. Drinking in a really good spot. (91 pts.)
  • 1966 Château Palmer - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
    Pop and pour. To me, older (good) Bordeaux is absolutely timeless. Bordeaux may not be the hippest thing, but it’ll never get old to me. Loved the cool red fruit here with lots of cedary and leathery notes. Palate still had a nice grip to it and the tertiary smokey/earthy notes really shone through. (93 pts.)
  • 1986 E. Guigal Hermitage - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage
    I’ve had a bunch of these early-to-mid '80s Hermitages from Guigal and they’ve all been delightful. Very rustic they all have smokey dark fruit on the nose with just tons of briney olive notes. Would be hard to think this was anything other than Northern Rhone syrah. (91 pts.)
  • 1996 Domaine Jean Grivot Nuits St. Georges Les Charmois - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits St. Georges
    Dark fruited, with a lot of musty, earthy tones. The palate was very pretty with nicely spiced red and dark fruits, some mushrooms and a bit of that shrill 1996 acidic tinge to it. Liked this very much. Was a great pairing with some mushrooms. (89 pts.)
  • 1995 Château Montrose - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
    Still very young, this should keep aging for a long time. Already the nose has lots of earthy, funky tones that I really loved. The palate definitely had a dark, smokey edge to it was deep, earthy notes on the finish. Should be a great wine with another 10-20 years. (91 pts.)
  • 1995 Pierre-Jacques Druet Chinon Clos de Danzay - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Chinon
    When Druet is on, it’s hard to beat. Older Chinon is one of life’s great pleasures, and this had tons of character with nice tobacco, red fruits, and subtle olive tones. Really nice structure too. These wines are getting harder and harder to find, so this was a real treat! (92 pts.)
  • 1997 Tardieu-Laurent Hermitage Erêmitès - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage
    Definitely a powerful wine with lots of dark, deep, cherry and blackberry tones…lots of smokey, olive-driven tones, and a bit of earth. I’ve never been all that keen on Tardieu-Laurent’s style of Hermitage, but this was drinking beautifully well. (90 pts.)
  • 2011 Marc Plouzeau Touraine Ante Phylloxera Clos de Maulevrier - France, Loire Valley, Touraine
    Another dominating performance from Marc Plouzeau. This has the complexity, and gravitas of Clos Rougeard’s Les Poyeaux cuvee at about 30% the price. Stupid value, and one of the finest wines from the Loire. (93 pts.)
  • 2003 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
    Was expecting a jammy mess, but got a really nice bottle of Pegau. Lots of meaty, exotic notes on the nose. The palate was deep and powerful. Just insane depth to the dark fruits, meaty tones, and spicy red fruit. There was a touch of heat that stopped this was really setting off fireworks for me…but great nonetheless. (90 pts.)
  • 2012 Dönnhoff Kreuznacher Krötenpfuhl Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Nahe
    Tons of bright peach, lychee and pears. Lots of energy and depth for a Kabinett. (91 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

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slacking off dude, this dinner was 7 days ago. I expect 5 hour turnarounds on notes! :smiley:

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haven’t even begun typing up the after party notes…i’ll do better next week.

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Looks like some great wines! Do they provide decanters for older wines?

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No decanters that I know of. We always bring our own glassware too.

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The Ganevat and Plouzeau were real eye-openers. So much good stuff to be had for so little money…

Matt, you forgot the note on the self-oaked Tempranillo… that was a weird one.

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not completely sold on Plouzeau yet…for me it is no Clos Rougeard

but I loved this quote from Tooch

Bordeaux may not be the hippest thing, but it’ll never get old to me.

Amen brother…try to make it down here to Orlando again sometime…Rocky is waiting!! lol

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I’ll be there in June - talk to Mssr. Alfert, I think he has something in the works. I hope Rocky is doing the same…

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Drats, Tooch! I was trying to keep MarcF out of the loop. However, if he can lure back that cute redhead, he’s in.

Thoughts on a theme?

Thanks for the notes. Seeking the 2011 Plouzeau now . . . . Love the '10, and have quite a bit of it. The '11s slipped under the radar.

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That redhead is long gone…probably due to our shenanigans…but Rocky is waiting…impatiently

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Thanks for the note on the Deiss. Sounds like it’s about time I started on mine although your “wooly” comment worried me a little.

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Just finished off the remains of a bottle opened a couple of days ago, and “energy” describes it perfectly. Man, I love the '12 Kabinetts.

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Amen.

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I am so glad I’m simply too big and too old to be hip.

Making apologies for Bordeaux is a sign of weakness.

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Bordeaux is the king. It doesn’t need to be hip.

I love that the 1995 Montrose, already 19 years old, needs another 10-20 years to peak!