2012 Mount Veeder Cabernet Elevation 1550
From auction. PNP drank over the evening. At first very primary, blackberry and some blueberry, some noticeable oak. After about an hour it settled down, showed more balance, adding black cherry and slightly chewy tannins to add a bit of welcome structure. Full bodied, 14.5% ABV, but not hot and good acidity for freshness. Good stuffing, drink now with decant, better in 5+ years when it will shed some more baby fat and add some more complexity.
We drank a 2020 Cameron Clos Electrique Blanc over the last two nights. I think this is the first 2020 where my first thought wasn’t “Is there smoke in this?”. It was excellent in a rich but sappy way.
After a nice day at the spa in Chamonix (FYI: QC Terme Chamonix is a nice spa but wayyyy too crowded), we found a nice butcher shop/wine bar/restaurant and decided to indulge in seared Wagyu, potato gratin with porcini mushrooms, truffled croque-monsieur and grilled vegetables.
We drank this along with the food and finished with a Chartreuse VEP:
2005 Jadot GV villages
Caveau du Val de L’Amour, Sylvain Jacquot Chardo Savagnin 2020.
Two years topped up and one sous voile. Pretty subtle sotolon notes, that otherwise hold some yellow fruit. Acidity is quite restrained too and just a very approachable rendition of a “Jura wine”. It would be one of these kinds that’d be good to initiate your friends to Jura with. The fruit is very present and the alcohol weighs in at 14,1%. Not really built for the long haul.
How was the 14 Gouges Pruliers? I have a couple and have been thinking about opening one fairly soon.
Saalwächter - Weiss Burgunder 2022
Bold but well-composed are the first thoughts. A lot of beeswax and ripe yellow fruits. I’m debating wether to call this waxy or banana. Super supple and bright at first sip with a lot of minerality, which is followed by a somewhat restrained acidity considering how young the wine is. The oak notes are rather dominant and there’s a salty element here too. Blinded I’d have said good Burgundy or Jura.
For 23€ this is good value!
Coco Winery - Pinot Noir 2021
From Hokkaido, Japan.
Notes of red fruits, cinnamon and pomegranate in the nose. Lively acidity and ripe fruits is pushed a bit into place by some sturdy tannins along with some greenness. Really nice wine. Reminds me a bit of the Pinots I had on my trip to New Zealand this winter. Not really sure it can sustain the 60€ price tag. Bar owner paid similarly in Japan.
Hey, if you all cross posts your notes to the Virtual Tasting Threads you can help us raise money for charity. Just sayin.
Delicious but I’d give it a bit more time. Then again I didn’t give it the proper time to open up. Nobody brought a single bottle of pinot noir to this tasting, so I quickly grabbed a bottle from the locker.
A 2017 Cabottes from @Steve_McL was quite impressive in a similar vein and I imagine that the Feusselottes would be a step up.
Agree, 100%.
I also was lucky to try the 19 Tremblay Chambolle feusselottes in October and it was a knockout.
We decided to celebrate my friend.
I have enjoyed my wine journey, from day one, with two of my best friends. As one of them are becoming a parent for the first time soon, we thought now was a good time to enjoy something good. This was extraordinary.
Rayas 2008 was one of my epiphany wines.
How this wine is even possible in a vintage like this i will never understand. Tasting it now is still magical. With a bit of air it still burst with the most concentrated note of red sweet spicy dusty strawberries. It is a unique wine. A Pialade with a multiplied complexity. Everything else was also beautiful. One one of those nights…
And when your friends are extremely talented in the kitchen as well, the stars just align 
I’ve found that quality in an older Clos Electrique Blanc and a more recent Arley’s Leap Pinot. I’m thinking this style is not for me.
I walked into a tiny wine shop in my small town today and was surprised to see a bottle of Chateau des Tours Reserve, then even more surprised to see a Rayas two bottles down the rack. No price tag, and I didn’t ask.
While the wines are still very expensive, atleast they have come back down in price from their insane top some years back
Cellar door prices haven’t budged much in recent years. It‘s the middlemen pumping and dumping.
