I had a number of 2008’s at the NYWE a couple years ago (Dom/Krug/Cristal) and they were uniformly incredible. I opened a 2008 Rare about a year ago and it was not in as good of a spot as it was last night.
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Somewhat disappointed in this. It’s a high quality wine; rich and viscous, beautifully textured, saturated with saline and mineral character, and has an attractive lingering finish. The acidity, however, is quite soft. It has enough of a spine to remain balanced, and I couldn’t help but enjoy its Matthew McConaughey playing the bongos nude on the beach zen like character, but I was hoping for Vivaldi Four Seasons nervous energy. Good bottle, just lacking a little excitement.
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I bought a lot of Prudhon St-Aubin earlier on on my wine journey and then forgot about the dude! The 1er Cru sur Gamay was quite the QPR back then but some bottles tended to evolvle a little quicker then expected. How was that Les Perrières?
Not the first association which comes to mind. But the 2019 les Grillonnieres on weekend could’ve used a bit more cut as well.
Faustino Gran Reserva 1994, Rioja, Spain
A good vintage for Rioja but the giant winery’s performance isn’t that nice, or there might be some storage problem. Dirty, faint black and red fruit. Dry mushroom, leather, dust. No concentration or joy in mouth. Tannins and acidity are here, but it still tasted empty.
Quite disappointing compared with their 2001 Gran Reserva I opened last year. So I opened another bottle:
Suduiraut 2005 (Half Bottle), Sauternes, France
Pure and complex fruit-driven in nose. Pineapple, orange juice, honey, a bit caremel. Some mineral or rock? It carries weight in mouth. With a sugar level of 165g/L, acidity failed to perfectly balance the sweetness. Very little bitterness in aftertaste. This full-bodied wine is shining now.
I opened a 2020 Clos Habert last night which was acid deficient as well. I hope this isn’t a trend. On the other hand, the 2022 Les Grillionieres is an excellent wine and had the energy I expect from top notch Chenin.
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I think they are very good wines all around. The QPR is solid and the wines are available which is always nice.
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Night two of this 2020 Clos Habert. This is a bruiser with 14.5% abv, and it shows with heaviness and an alcoholic burn. The acidity is not vigorous, though it is sufficient to keep it in balance. I tried to hate this, I really dislike heavy wines, but it’s just too damn delicious. Already very honeyed with mango, apricot, peaches, and bruised apple flavors. It’s full of spice and herbs - mint in particular stands out - but there are other subtle herbaceous flavors I can’t specifically identify which linger on the finish, along with some tea notes.
This drinks like a dessert wine missing 95% of the sweetness. It would be amazing with fois gras. This will not be a repurchase for me because of the abv, but I am excited for the ‘21 vintage, which ought to be less extreme.
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I’ve only had this producer once and really wanted to love the wine, but had a similar experience. Everything was there “BUT” the acid.
I used to drink Chidaine’s wines regularly but had problems sourcing them for a while and they fell of my radar. It’s been roughly 10 years since I have tasted through the range. I remember the wines as having acidity that was high to bracing. I don’t know if the recent bottles reflect a change in farming or vinification practices or just riper vintages. I am hoping it’s the latter.
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Sounds like the 05! I bought a big selection of their 05s, which in their youth tasted just as you describe, but aged rather badly. I gave up after that. I’d like to try one again for old times sake as I cut my chenin teeth on his wines, but there are so many producers today that I’d rather buy instead.
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Verget Grand Elevage 2020.
Orchard fruits, bread, long finish and well balanced. Not for the long haul, but perfect as a dinner party wine or an “everyday” wine. Way overpriced at the 60.000₩ i paid, but at 22€ it seems rather fine?
I might be jumping the gun on giving my five cents two sips in, but i don’t see it changing much.
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How was the Mondavi ‘74 drinking? Was it the reserve?
Thanks
Seems like 2020 Clos du Breuil had plenty of acidity when I had it in November:
Yummy! Straight as an arrow but so much stuffing behind it! Citrus rind and citrus juice, hay, hints of honeycomb and long mineral finish. This is lovely as is but you can feel it could evolve into something entirely different on honeycomb, herbs and quince. Good vintage for this.
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I think it’s a little of both, in that I noticed a difference between identical cuvées in different years (2018 v 2019 specifically) — but the Habert is also supposed to be one of Chidaine’s most off-dry wines before you go over to full “moelleux “ territory. Have you been able to try his drier offerings (Argiles or even Baudoin, for example?). You might find those have more acidity to your liking.
Now, I have only had Chidaines from 2018/19/20 but in no case would I have called the acidity particularly bracing — even in Argiles — so there may also have been a style shift there as well.
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2010 Westrey Pinot Noir Abbey Ridge - This is in a great place right now. Very similar to the Cameron version from that year. Maybe a little bit less complex and a little bit less concentrated. I have one more bottle of this and will probably drink it in the next year.
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