We recently got back from a wonderful two week trip to France where we spent time in Paris, Lyon, Avignon, Nice, and Saint-Tropez. For the most part, it was six of us doing touristy stuff during the day and having wine-centric dinners. I’m not going to write a detailed trip report, but wanted to share the tasting notes.
We were very lucky being able to visit Domaine Jamet and Jean-Michel Stephan in Ampuis for a tasting, despite our appointments coinciding with the first day of harvest. Both showed very promising 2020 Cote-Roties with the Stephan wines being quite a bit more accessible at this early stage.
Wine highlights of the trip were the 08 Rayas, 12 and 96 Coche-Dury Rougeots, recent disgorgement of Selosse Substance, 89 Chave Hermitage, and 17 DRC Echezeaux.
Dinner highlights include Au 14 Février in Lyon (with some margin the best meal of the trip), Solstice in Paris, Troisgros, and Tour d’Argent (the latter for overall experience, not necessarily the food alone).
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2017 Coche-Dury Meursault - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault (9/2/2023)
Lots of minerals on the nose with just slight reduction and notes of lemon, lime, and green apple. High acidity on the palate with more lemon flavors, crushed rocks, lime, lemon zest, tart white peach, flint, and apple. Long finish. Really lovely wine that tastes great now but it's obviously still quite young and could use at least another 5 years for the acidity to integrate a bit. 94+ (94 points) -
2015 Domaine Guyon Vosne-Romanée - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée (9/2/2023)
Pretty nose with red fruit, savory notes, cherries, violets, and spices. It's ripe but very well balanced. The palate has some noticeable tannins and more red fruit, cherries, and spices. Nice finish. Surprisingly good, especially for a village wine, and very approachable now. (94 points) -
2013 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie (9/2/2023)
Lovely nose with black pepper notes, dark fruit, barnyard, savory, meat, violets, and other flowers. Good acidity with similar flavors on the palate, plus a red cherry and spice note. Long finish. This was a beautiful wine that is drinking quite well already but surely will continue to improve with age. (95 points) -
2015 Coche-Dury Bourgogne-Aligoté - France, Burgundy, Bourgogne-Aligoté (9/3/2023)
Bright and mineral driven nose with notes of lime, rocks, sea shells, a hint of green apple, and flint. Nice acidity with more lime and lemon flavors and crushed rocks on the palate. Good finish. This is a really nice, interesting Aligote that doesn't lack complexity. (92 points) -
2016 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru (9/3/2023)
Fragrant nose with red berries, strawberries, spices, cherries, and bright fruit. Good acidity with quite a bit of tannic structure and primary flavors of red fruit, berries, and underwood. Long finish. This is really promising wine that's only showing a glimpse of what's to come. The nose is already quite expressive, but the palate a bit less so. I'd hold this for another 10 years. 94-95+ (95 points) -
2014 Domaine Didier Fornerol Côte de Nuits Villages Blanc - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Côte de Nuits Villages (9/4/2023)
Very nice nose with ripe fruit, lemon, and minerals. Nice acidity with more lemon notes, apple, a hint of peach, minerals, and flint. Good finish. This was a beautiful wine, perfect with food. Not crazy complex, but very enjoyable. (92 points) -
2017 Domaine de Villaine Aligoté Bouzeron - France, Burgundy, Côte Chalonnaise, Bouzeron (9/6/2023)
Pretty meh wine, all acidity, little fruit or other flavors. Disappointing. (86 points) -
NV Jacques Selosse Champagne Brut Rosé - France, Champagne (9/5/2023)
2019 disgorgement. Very pretty nose with notes of strawberries, grapefruit, herbs, lemon, and minerals. Nice acidity with more lemon, brioche, and grapefruit flavors on the palate. Long finish. This was quite a substantial Champagne with great intensity and balance. Excellent! (95 points) -
2019 Lamy-Caillat Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Champs-Gain - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru (9/5/2023)
Lovely, flinty nose with lemon notes, minerals, white pepper, and nice depth and weight. Nice acidity on the palate with lemon zest, apple, lots of minerals, and citrus notes. Very long finish. Incredibly beautiful and elegant wine. There is plenty of ripeness but it never feels heavy and the fruit is bright. Drinking so good already! (96 points) -
2019 Paul Pillot Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Champs-Gain - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru (9/5/2023)
Tasted next to the 2019 Lamy-Caillat version. This had more intensity on the nose and more weight, along with slightly riper flavors, noticeable oak, lemon, minerals, and smoke. Good acidity (although a little lower than the L-C) and flavors of lemon, ripe fruit, and minerals on the palate. Long finish. This was really good but needed a bit of time in the glass to come together. Not quite as elegant or subtle as the L-C, but more powerful and intense. I'd age this and drink the L-C now. 94+ (94 points) -
2014 Domaine Georges Vernay Condrieu Les Chaillées de l'Enfer - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Condrieu (9/5/2023)
Complex nose with notes of lemon, tangerine, honey, peach, and mandarin peel. Good acidity on the palate with lots of fruit flavors, more mandarin, citrus zest, a bit more honey and stone fruit. Long finish. This was excellent, there is so much going on yet it never felt unbalanced. (95 points) -
2017 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru (9/5/2023)
Fragrant and very beautiful nose with red cherries, spices, wild strawberry, forest notes, a bit of underwood, and quite obvious stem influence. The palate is perfectly balanced with lovely spice notes coming through along with red fruit flavors and berries. It's complex and nuanced and the finish is long. Incredible how such a young wine can be so balanced and enjoyable now. It feels velvety smooth, but with great complexity, interesting flavors, and great elegance. A pleasure to drink. 95++ (95 points) -
2016 Domaine Guiberteau Saumur Blanc Brézé - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur (9/6/2023)
Apple, ripe citrus, lemon, a hint of honey, and flowers on the nose. High acidity with more lemon notes, lime, and minerals on the palate. Nice finish. This wine needed a lot of air is probably much better in 5-10 years. It was quite lovely after an hour or so, but you can tell there's more that's not showing right now. 93++ (93 points) -
2020 Domaine François Mikulski Meursault - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault (9/6/2023)
Nice, pure nose with bright but riper fruit, citrus, apple, and good weight / richness without being too much. Nice acidity on the palate with lemon notes, minerals, a hint of peach, rocks, and tart fruit. Good finish. Very nice wine that's well balanced and drinking well despite obviously being very young. Hold for 5+ years. 93+ (93 points) -
2014 Château des Tours Côtes du Rhône - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône (9/6/2023)
Nice nose with lots of strawberry notes, cherries, plums, spices, and a hint of heat. Medium acidity with more (wild) strawberries, cherries, sweet red fruit and a bit more alcoholic heat (although not too much to be distracting). Good finish. Delicious wine that would have been even better with a bit less alcohol. Very nice with food, though! (92 points) -
2019 Domaine Prieuré Roch Vosne-Romanée Les Clous - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée (9/6/2023)
Fragrant and beautiful nose with bright fruit notes, red berries and cherries, baking spices, pomegranate, and hint of sweeter fruit. The acidity is quite high with tart cherries, strawberries, and medium tannins on the palate. Nice finish. This was really good and already quite enjoyable to drink. I preferred this slightly over the 2015 from about a week ago. 94+ (94 points) -
2017 Pierre Gonon St. Joseph Blanc Les Oliviers - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, St. Joseph (9/7/2023)
Pretty, yet powerful nose with lemon notes, peach, honey, and minerals. Good acidity on the palate with citrus zest flavors, orange, tart stone fruit, a hint more honey and minerals. Long finish. This was lovely to drink and showed quite a bit of complexity and depth. It's drinking well now but will only get better with a bit more age. 93+ (93 points) -
2015 Domaine Labet Chardonnay Les Champs Rouges - France, Jura, Côtes du Jura (9/7/2023)
Nice nose with quite a bit of ripeness and weight, balanced by mineral notes, apple, flint, and herbs. High acidity on the palate with tart fruit, lemon, grapefruit, green apple, and crushed rock flavors. Quite long on the finish. This was really good and significantly more approachable and balanced than the last time I had this wine. (94 points) -
2012 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault (9/7/2023)
Incredible nose with layers of lemon notes, flint, popcorn, apple, smoke, and flowers. Good acidity with a bit richer but perfectly balanced flavors of lemon, citrus, green apple, and more smoke on the palate. Very long finish. Absolutely outstanding Chardonnay. Super complex and deep and extremely enjoyable and drinkable at the same time. Probably close to peak right now. (97 points) -
2005 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru (9/7/2023)
Lovely, fragrant nose with floral notes, cherries, underwood, just a hint of mushrooms, and strawberries. Nice acidity with still very prominent tannins on the palate, red cherry notes, strawberries, and forest flavors. Long and lingering finish. A great wine that's delicious now but still primary and in need of more time to fully show its potential. 94-95+ (95 points) -
2017 Domaine Hauvette Les Baux-de-Provence Petra - France, Provence, Les Baux-de-Provence (9/9/2023)
Quite deep nose with strawberry notes, lemon, melon, orange zest, and a hint of smoke. Nice acidity with more red berry and citrus flavors on the palate. Nice finish. This is a well balance, very pretty and serious rose that has good complexity and interesting flavors. (93 points) -
2015 Domaine Labet Chardonnay Les Varrons - France, Jura, Côtes du Jura (9/9/2023)
Nice nose lots of lemon, apples, slightly oxidative notes, nuts, and grapefruit. High acidity with more lemon, green apple, citrus zest, almonds, and flint on the palate. Quite long on the finish. Really good, complex wine that had a bit more oxidative notes than I expected. (94 points) -
2010 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône (9/9/2023)
Pretty and fragrant nose of violets, lots of strawberries, and a hint of pepper. Nice acidity with good structure, tart red fruit, strawberries, blood orange, and underwood on the palate. Nice finish. Lovely wine with great balance that doesn't show any signs of heat. It's drinking really well now! (94 points) -
2017 Yann Durieux Love and Pif - France, Vin de France (9/10/2023)
The nose needed quite a bit of air to wake up, it was very shy at first. With some air, it became very lemony with mineral notes and flint. High acidity on the palate with a lovely lemon (juice) note, crushed rocks, green apple, and citrus zest. Nice finish. A lovely wine that is very enjoyable now, although it doesn't have the complexity or depth of the Manon. (92 points) -
2018 Thomas Popy Vin de France Ryôkan - France, Vin de France (9/10/2023)
Super reductive on the nose that completely dominates the wine and is hard to get past. With hours of air, it started to blow off (but never completely did) and revealed some lemon, riper fruit, and mineral flavors. The palate was much nicer and showed more fruit with lemon and peach notes, but also there the reduction is evident. The wine underneath is interesting and could be very promising (or even great) in time, but it's hart to tell if it's just too young or the reduction is here to stay... -
2020 Aurelien Lefort Les Épines Á Quoi Servent-Elles? - France, Vin de France (9/10/2023)
Lots of fruit on the nose with a distinct barnyard note, underwood, and cherries. The palate has less of the barnyard flavors and nice acidity with red and dark cherries, blood orange, and tart fruit coming trough. It's a light wine, but the palate feels surprisingly weighty. Good finish. Very interesting wine that may not be for everyone. (92 points) -
2016 Domaine Milan Vin de Table Français La Carree - France, Vin de Table Français (9/11/2023)
Lovely nose with slight reduction notes, lemon, a hint of smoke, citrus, minerals, and some VA. Good acidity with lots of pure fruit on the palate with flavors of apples, lemon, minerals, and salinity. There's a slight waxy quality that adds weight. Quite long finish. This was super delicious, a fresh and well balanced wine! (94 points) -
2019 Olivier Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru (9/11/2023)
Nice, classic white Burgundy nose with citrus fruit, flint, apple, oak, tart white peach, and toast. Nice acidity on the palate with lemon notes, more flint, green apple, rocks, a hint of vanilla and more oak, and lemon oil. Long finish. This is really good and drinking quite well although the oak could use more time to fully integrate. There is quite a bit of complexity and depth, this should be great in 5-7 years. 94-95+ (94 points) -
2008 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape (9/11/2023)
Really beautiful nose with lots of wild strawberries, leather, red cherries, violets and other flowers, blood orange, forest note, and a slight mint note that emerged with air. The palate is equally lovely and has quite a bit of structure with balanced acidity, along with more alpine strawberry notes, citrus, cherries, and roses. Very long finish. This is an outstanding wine. There's is a lot going on, but it's always in balance and nothing ever sticks out. I have no idea if this will get any better with age, but today it's mind-blowingly good. (98 points) -
2015 Domaine Dujac Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Beaux Monts - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru (9/14/2023)
Great nose that combines power and depth with darker fruit tones, cherries, lots of baking spices, cloves, forest notes, and violets. Good acidity with quite a bit of tannic structure on the palate along with notes of tart fruit, cherries, a hint of blood orange, and strawberries. Long finish. Very promising wine with a particularly lovely nose. The palate needs more time to fully come together. I would wait 10+ years. 94-95+ (94 points) -
NV Jacques Selosse Substance - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru (9/15/2023)
May 2022 disgorgement. Very expressive nose with orange notes, grapefruit, apple, minerals, and lemon. Lovely acidity with very interesting and continuously changing flavors of lemon, citrus zest, dried flowers, ginger, and minerals on the palate. Very long finish. Wow, this was outstanding! Beautiful, deep, and complex wine that blossomed with air. (97 points) -
2020 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru (9/15/2023)
Gorgeous nose that needed quite a bit of air to open up. There is clear reduction with a bit of matchstick notes with lots of lemon and mineral notes underneath along with a bit of smokey notes. Good acidity with rich mouthfeel and excellent balance on the palate. Falvors of lemon, green apple, and smoke. Long finish. This is super delicious already. A beautiful wine with great complexity, although with a very clear and distinct producer style. 95+ (95 points) -
2014 Sebastien Riffault Sancerre Auksinis Maceration - France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Sancerre (9/15/2023)
This was super interesting! Intriguing nose with almost sweet fruit and apricot flavors that suggest some botrytis, smoke, and peach. The palate is completely dry and quite different from the nose with orange zest notes, saline, and a bit of brett. Long finish. What a weird, yet extremely delicious, complex, and cerebral wine! (94 points) -
2021 Maison Glandien Beaujolais La Leux - France, Burgundy, Beaujolais (9/15/2023)
From magnum. Quite nice on the nose with floral notes, a bit of reduction, forest notes, cherries, and raspberries. Good acidity with more cherry and wild berry notes on the palate. Good finish. This is a very nice, easy drinking wine that doesn't have much complexity. It's simple yet delicious. The hype and secondary market prices are ridiculous. (91 points) -
1997 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru (9/16/2023)
Quite lovely nose that shows fully mature flavors of lemon, mushrooms, minerals, nice richness, and a hint of stone fruit. Nice acidity on the palate with a little less weight than the nose suggests, flavors of minerals, saline / seashell notes, and lemon. Nice finish. This was a really lovely, perfectly aged bottle that is probably drinking at or slightly past peak. (94 points) -
1996 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault (9/16/2023)
Gorgeous nose with very nuanced and elegant flavors of lemon, fruit, minerals, and just a hint of flint. Nothing is immediately jumping out, but the flavors are deep and complex. High acidity on the palate with lemon and saline notes, green apple, crushed rocks, and tart white peach. Long finish. What a fantastic wine. This is still young and shows very little signs of age. It doesn't quite have the power of the 2012 I tasted recently, but it makes up with finesse. (96 points) -
2010 Domaine Georges Mugneret-Gibourg Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru (9/16/2023)
Really pretty nose with red cherries, floral and forest notes, and wild berries. There is nice depth and it picked up a bit of sweetness with air. Good acidity on the palate with tart red fruit flavors, cherries, and blood orange. Long finish. A beautiful wine that is still quite young but very approachable. It's relatively light on its feet with excellent balance. This should be even more amazing in 5-10 years. 95+ (95 points) -
1989 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage (9/16/2023)
Initially this had quite a bit of barnyard on the nose, which thankfully blew off with time in the decanter. Complex notes of underwood, red fruit, savory, allspice, and pepper emerge. The palate is very well balanced with tart fruit flavors, cherries, violets, more pepper, meat, and a distinct earthy tone. Long finish. Although this started out a little weird, it really picked up weight and complexity with air. An outstanding wine after about an hour or so. (97 points) -
2020 Maison Maenad Côtes du Jura De L'avant - France, Jura, Côtes du Jura (9/17/2023)
Really nice on the nose with lemon, citrus notes, and minerals. Reminds very quite a bit of a young Ganevat in style. Good acidity with quite a bit of weight and richness on the palate, more lemon notes, apple, and a hint of peach. Long finish. This was decanted for about 2 hours and really needed it. Great wine with a promising future. 94++ (94 points) -
2019 Ferme de la Sansonnière (Mark Angeli) La Lune Amphores - France, Loire Valley, Vin de France (9/17/2023)
Very interesting nose with minerals and lemon notes that are contrasted by richer flavors of honey and apricot. The palate is round but has plenty of acidity with more honey notes, peach, lemon, and apple. It's complex and rich, yet completely dry. Long finish. This was quite lovely and paired very well with a roast chicken stuffed with mirabelle plums. (94 points) -
2018 Domaine des Murmures Poulsard - France, Jura, Arbois (9/17/2023)
First experience with this producer. This wine started out extremely reductive with lots of barnyard and almost fecal notes on the nose. Thankfully that (mostly) blew off with heavy aeration. After that, the wine revealed very interesting notes of strawberries, red cherries, and spices. The palate has good acidity and overall feels very light (9.4% ABV!) with wild strawberries, blood orange, and pomegranate notes. Nice finish. What an interesting yet weird wine. It's incredibly light but at the same time packed with flavors and picked up a bit of weight with air. Not sure if the secondary market prices are justified, but once the initial stink blew off, this was very enjoyable and quite cerebral. -
NV Perseval Farge Coteaux Champenois - France, Champagne, Coteaux Champenois (9/17/2023)
Intriguing nose with notes of lemon, minerals, sage, a hint of apricot, and chalk. High acidity on the palate with lemon juice flavors, orange notes, and peach skin. Nice finish. This was really quite good and lovely yet unusual. There is good balance despite the very high acidity and at the end nothing really sticks out. Super enjoyable. Only 400 bottles produced. (94 points)
