In Annecy tonight. 1 Michelin star at the hotel. I might be completely off but i feel like this Michelin star is in jeopardy…
I talked to the Somm and their allocations are being pulled. The food is either really good or, to my taste, off the mark. The bar was not happening either… only Champagne was Veuve btg. They couldn’t make a Moscow mule or old fashioned…
But enough 1st world bitching. I had the 2016 Belluard sparkling for a song! What distinctive nose and palate for this Gringet! I love it. My wife, not so much. There is an oxidative/bitter aspect that i feel plays really well with the mountain flowers that you get from it. My better half found it off-putting and i can see why it’s polarizing.
She had a glass of Eddy Morey Beaune (white) that was all makeup and fireworks. Wood and wood. Not a hit.
Edit: Went online to see how they were treated and apparently it’s 20% barriques neuves. It feels like more.
As for the menu, 6 services, some amazing hits and some less than amazing. But there is a story to be told: the chef plays on his youth in Arcachon and his current life in Annecy. All fish and seafood, no meat.
Opened a 2020 Our Wines Pinot Noir from Berserker Day. No smoke are ashtray detected–not even a little (I didn’t want to revive that thread). I do get some whole cluster stemminess that seems to presents as a bit of oregano oil or bay leaves? Strawberries and red fruit–but a bit riper than many in Oregon. A bit hotter and leggy than the 13.5% on the bottle would suggest. Unmistakeable as Oregon pinot. Happy customer here.
Opened my 2nd bottle of @TBerkley Ophelia Cab Franc (from BerserkerDay 14) and really enjoying it. I will be suggesting Cab-Franc-Monster @Robert.A.Jr buy some next BerserkerDay. The cork ‘pops’ out each time (well, each of the two times I’ve opened it) so there’s some gas built up in there, but no fizzy aspect at all on the palate, even when immediately consumed. Dark fruited, bright yet chewy, loads of black cherry and minerals on this wine. Great buy.
As expected from this wine, it is all about various shades of lemon along with a very salty mineral note. It also has a nutty marzipan note. The fruit is a mix of apples and more tropical fruit. The fruit is more noticeable than in the 2016 I had multiple times, but it is well balanced with the dominating lemon notes. It currently has a slightly bitter note. The 14.5% ABV is well integrated and only becomes really noticeable as the wine reaches higher temperatures and it has more than enough acidity to keep it fresh.
It is a great wine now! It drinks better on day two currently and will drink better in a few years’ time. I will let my remaining bottles sleep for a while.
55% Chardonnay, 38.5% Pinot Noir, 6.5% Mareuil Rouge
Disgorged March 16th 2021
I’ll have to rebuy to taste it again as I only had a few sips of this. There seemed to be plenty of fruit in this and the acidity was not overwhelming. I’ll revisit soon.
Black fruits on the nose, along with some evolved notes of forest floor and earth. Medium body, good acidity, tanins are mostly integrated on this bottle though and don’t stand out. The savory profile stands out more on the palate. Drinks nicely and went very well with grilled pork chops and flageollets à la moutarde.
Very good. This seems in a very good place to drink. Ripe red berries and oak spices on the nose. The palate is nice and full, same ripe berries than on the nose, nice underlying acidity, fine tanins that are mostly integrated now. The mineral aspect comes through on the finish along with a hint of dark cacao.
A youngster, had an intensity of fruit on the palate that I found quite appealing. Good balance, decent aromatics. Would be interesting to try again in a few years.
Light intensity garnet, looks like slightly developed PN. Nose is earthy with soil, mushrooms, cranberries, spicy licorice root, some menthol lift and tar. Palate has a crunchy texture with somewhat resolved but still grippy tannins but feels a little thin. Cranberries, leather, black pepper and allspice, touch of cigarette ash. Finishes medium+. I believe this is at peak right now - age has done its thing, and there is some fruit left. Pleasant to drink but nothing profound.
2014 Antoine Sanzay Saumur-Champigny
Timid nose but time coaxes out fresh red berries, some pencil lead and a tiny bit of sauvage/green. The palate is all freshness: crunchy red berries and lively acidity. The sauvage undertones also appear on the palate adding some savory aspect to it. Tannins are fine and mostly integrated. The finish is clipped and the overall feel is a little thin. This wine is missing a little bit of texture or mâche. Easy to drink, plenty of fruit and better when lightly chilled. I don’t see this improving over time but god knows I’ve been wrong before.
I think that this is our first Priorat. We started on it yesterday and we finished the bottle today. I aerated for close to three hours yesterday and the wine enjoyment was ‘good’. Today it was ‘fine’,with noticeable improvement in balance and complexity. I’ll hold off a while before opening our second and last bottle of this. Very recommended, but open it for a long while before drinking.
Correct!
I have only had a few Viognier but I found the color of the wine unexpected. By your guessing it, maybe it is not that unusual for Viognier to show this color.
Well done!
My CT review:
4 hr decant, not that it makes much of a difference. You could leave this monster out to play with the kids all day in the sun and it would still rip your head off at dinner time.
My first da capo. First of all, disregard everything you think you know about Chateauneuf du Pape, this is very different from them and indeed different from other Pegau wines. Sure, you can guess it is southern Rhône with ease, that’snot what I mean. I mean this is on a whole different plane, one beyond my petty mortal concerns about wine. My experience with Pegau is that they are quite rich, assertive and bold. And the CdC is like that - squared. Massive olive-oil like viscosity, searing cassis, my-head-aplode garrique and gaminess. No excess bacon scents as in other Pegau wines I have had. I had it with lamb but really, I wouldn’t bother trying to pair it with food. This needs to be tried by itself, with seatbelts.
Intense without indulgence. Powerful without simplicity. Almost brutally penetrating. For all the signs of the hot vintage, these are all kept in check - barely. Nowhere near blowing up, years ahead of it.
One of a kind.
Score: 93+?, mostly because I still am not sure what just hit me.
Relative to expectations: +++ and I am giving it max “exceeds expectations” despite the relatively conservative score because regardless of my reactions, this is from the Twilight Zone.
