I had a recent trip to Copenhagen and Paris for which I chronicled some thoughts on the food/drink scene, but I’d be remiss to not post some tasting notes!
Copenhagen:
What we drank in Copenhagen felt very representative of the wine scene there - lots of natural stuff, with good concentration in France (as well as some heavy hitters from Austria). I considered paring back some notes for the palate of the board but figured it was a good snapshot into the scene as we experienced it in the city.
2022 Bernaudeau VdF Les Coqueries: At Ved Stranden 10 in Copenhagen. This was obviously a baby, but showing so well today - powerful, intensely crystalline chenin blanc at its best. Crisp, with really satisfying balance between brightness and depth - this is less wild than other vintages of Bernaudeau. This will get more interesting with age, I think, but it’s really nice right now. None of the botrytis I sometimes get on these wines depending on the vintage.
2005 Overnoy Arbois Pupillin Chardonnay: Poured blind at Ved Stranden 10, just for fun. The bottle hadn’t been stored perfectly and so was slightly advanced. Upon tasting it it had clear Jura character, with a chalky, salty backdrop, deep yellow fruit, but muted acidity. The wine tasted a bit oxidative, though not in the right way - more bruised apples than roasted nuts. Despite this, you can tell there was a lot of power and structure below the surface. Lots of dry extract. A bit of a shame, but nonetheless cool to try, and probably the most fun blind I’ve ever had!
Cornelissen Munjebel Rosso 8: At Admiralgade 26 in Copenhagen. Not my usual cup of tea, but I was tempted by the age on it (this is from the 2010 vintage!), and the reasonable price. Heavy amounts of coarse sediment in the bottle, which settled relatively easily and didn’t much impact the drinking experience. The wine was still fairly robust and tannic today, with fruit at the forefront, though everything felt more resolved and less wild than these wines can be in youth. A touch of VA here, as to be expected, but for me it added to the character of the wine and wasn’t too distracting. A real testament to these wines’ ability to age when treated right - a surprise to the upside for me. This could’ve kept aging if we didn’t drink it!
2021 Andreas Tscheppe Stag Beetle: At Pompette in Copenhagen. We had managed to track down every Tscheppe bottling in the US except for this one, so we had to try. This is skin contact Chardonnay & Sauvignon blanc, and was very tasty, but this felt like more of a well-made orange wine than it reflected the rest of the Tscheppe stable. Not inherently a dig, but if you’re looking for something bright, wild, and reductive, this isn’t your bottle. Regardless happy to have had a chance to try this!
2022 Les Horees Rose Bonheur: At Kødbyens Fiskebar in Copenhagen. This is just simply delicious wine - a fairly dark, and somewhat serious & concentrated rose, but very nice with a slight chill on it. Plenty of dark red fruit on this, especially raspberries, and a decent amount of structure here. These can for sure age, and will likely improve & lighten up a bit, but this was also really nice right now.
2022 Labet Metis: At Rascal in Copenhagen. This is a really tasty light red. A mix of assorted indigenous varietals, Pinot Noir and Gamay. You definitely taste that this is carbonic, but it really serves to keep the wine fresh and fruit-forward without being too unserious. Some structure here, but the primary character is bright, swirling floral aromatics and some stony minerality in the background - very tasty.
2021 Andreas Tscheppe Green Dragonfly Plus: At Lille Blå Vinbar in Copenhagen. This is textbook Tscheppe - bright Sauvignon character, a bit of greenness, some wild funk, zippy acidity and a whiff of reduction. The plus format really adds to this, and it has the balance of a Kabinett riesling with some additional heft. Love these wines.
2019 Charles Lachaux CdN Aux Montagnes: At Frank in Copenhagen. I was surprised to see the color of this wine as it was poured out - I likely would’ve called it a 2020 or even a 2022 blind. Really dark, concentrated color, very much not what I’m used to from Lachaux. The wine does not show any age at all - cool, dark fruit at the forefront, silky tannins, a nice hit of whole cluster character. Surprisingly impressive concentration and seriousness given the appellation - these will age nicely. Whether or not they’re worth secondary market pricing, however, is another story.
Paris:
The wine scene in Paris is of course great, and of course French leaning. There is good presence of natural wine these days (which I find often goes quite well with the food), and I often found that a lot of the classics are a bit picked over. Despite this, we managed to drink pretty well!
Werlitsch Ex Vero II S: At Mokonuts in Paris. Very similar to his brother’s wines, this is an electric bottling of Sauvignon. Really crisp, refreshing, zippy, and with a bit of greenness to match the golden fruit that makes this really compelling. The perfect thing to drink on a scorching day.
2022 Ganevat Les Chalasses VV Poulsard: At Delicatessen Cave in Paris. This is very much on the more jubilant side of Poulsard - bright, fresh red fruit jumps out from the start, backed by nice acidity. As is typical for the grape, this is lighter even than many roses. Despite this, there is some nice minerality here and a whisper of tannin in the background that keeps this together & feeling a little more serious. Tasty stuff.
2022 Prieuré-Roch Savigny-les-Beaune Blanc Dessus les Gollardes: At La Cagouille in Paris. This was absolutely insane, and delicious with our seafood lunch. The Cote de Beaune’s answer to Chablis. A bright, beaming line of acidity props up some seriously concentrated white fruit. The structure here is noticeable, and a level of savoriness/chalky character is present too. Strikes the right balance of meaningful concentration while being forward enough to enjoy. This obviously can and will go the distance, though admittedly another one where I question the secondary market pricing.
2015 Overnoy Arbois Pupillin Ploussard: At Augustin Marchand du Vin in Paris. Truly a special and unique wine. The color is radiant and almost shocking - a light, pale red with meaningful bricking. This is a wine that whispers instead of shouts - sous bois and some light spice support the delicate red fruit and floral character here. The tannins are completely melted into the body of the wine; this feels very complete. It could keep aging for a bit, but such a joy right now. If only I could find more!
2022 Lamy-Caillat Saint Aubin En L’Ebaupin: At Le Villaret in Paris. This was quite nice, and another great testament to what St Aubin is capable of producing. Super solid structure up front - powerful white fruit, some oak influence, a judicious whiff of reduction upfront. There is tons of dry extract here, and the heft of the wine is noticeable, but this is kept in check by a succulent line of acidity. There is a super long life ahead of this bottle.
2022 Dandelion Hautes-Cotes Nature: At Dandelion (ha!) in Paris. Very much in the new natural wave of Burgundy, this wine is not too serious but it is a delight. Bright cherry and whole cluster floral character are front and center here, with a spicy, slightly earthy finish on the back end. There’s some structure here, but this is incredibly approachable today and really perfect with some food. These are just so tasty, and remind me very much of the Wasenhaus wines.
2020 L’Anglore Tavel: At Clown Bar in Paris. A typically hefty, dark rose from the estate. tons of Grenache character upfront, lots of juicy red fruit and garrigue, underlined by solid minerality. There is a good amount of tannic presence here, and the fruit is still quite primary at this point, but in my experience these wines age rather well.
2022 Domaine Labet Savagnin En Chalasse: At Semilla in Paris. This was showing really well on the open, with deep yellow fruit, intense salinity, tons of chalky dry extract and ripping acidity. Super reductive without overpowering the other elements of the wine, resulting in an aromatically powerful, very intense wine. An amazing match with the food and quite the experience to drink on its own.
2015 Labet Savagnin Elevage Long: Also at Semilla in Paris. Absolutely mind bending wine - Labet’s answer to Ganevat’s Vigne de mon Pere bottling, and in my opinion worthy of the comparison; this is topped up in barrel for 7 years before bottling. Crazy nose on this - savory, chalky, simultaneously oxidative and fresh. Roasted nuts mix with classic Savagnin yellow fruit. Fundamentally there is just an absurd level of concentration here - the wine is expansive, mouth-coating, and kaleidoscopic. Holds the shockingly high alcohol (15.8%) quite well as a result of all the structure present. Really hard to describe. This is built like a tank and I think will last forever - worth seeking out!
