What bottle of wine did you open today? (Part 2)

Terry, I did not, this was a PnP. It was tightly wound initially but unfurled in the glass over the course of 3 hours. I think next time I would give it an hour in the decanter. Cheers.

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Above expectations

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Rainy Saturday in SF calls for Napa Cab and steaks


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Good wines overall. I really love the Ester Canale wines.

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Omg. Was the Bini nice and mousy? :up_arrow:

It was actually good. On the edge where I constantly expected mouse, but it didn’t get there.

Nice. Recent vintage?

I cannot remember :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

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In good form, as expected.

PnP and this 2008 Valdicava was open for business. What a brilliant wine.

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2018 Haliotide Blanc de Blancs Stolo Vineyard

Really nice CA sparkler from one of my favorite American producers. Lots of citrus, green apple, and saline on the nose. The palate is lemon, wet rocks, and margarita salt, with a singing racy acidity and a lingering mineral finish.

I’m late to the Haliotide fan club, but so far every bottle I’ve tried has been a delight.

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Moved into our new home today and had to empty the wine fridge for the move. Figured why not? My birth year:
1987 Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard Pinot Noir Matteson Vineyard




This was purchased directly from @JeffEmery’s cellar and I can’t say I know anything about the vineyard. Perfect cork, only broken because I couldn’t find my normal wine key. Leather, allspice, dried currants, black cherry, with a hint of menthol. The body is still holding up really well but I’m not sure how much longer the fruit will last.

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Matteson Vineyard was our secondary source of Pinot Noir (besides our Estate Vineyard) from 1985 through 2001. Though it changed names at least 5 times now! It’s my example of why a vineyard owner should never name the vineyard after themself as if/when it changes hands it looses its legacy and historical context. This vineyard is currently called Ferrari Ranch and is in the Corralitos area of the Santa Cruz Mountains, in the south western end of the AVA which is predominately planted to Pinot Noir. This one was planted long enough ago it has no Dijon clones (unless later owners did some grafting, which I don’t know). It certainly has a lot of Martini Clone and some Mount Eden, likely some Pommard, but I can’t remember the rest of them. The vineyard was planted 1979/1980 with the first crop being 1984. Our Matteson bottlings always were a little more approachable at an earlier date than our Estate Vineyard though it still has aged remarkably well.

I’m surprised @J_Patrick_Lynch that you didn’t wait until your obviously even decade birthday next year! But then I’m a great supporter of drinking a great bottle of wine whenever the occasion arrives as I’ve see too many cellars not get enjoyed because of holding on to that “special” bottle. So good for you!

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Jean-Marc Vincent Santenay 1er Cru Le Beaurepaire Blanc 2021

Dense white fruit, tropical fruit. Lemon meringue, creamy oak, delicate acidity, nice weight. A slight oiliness. Chalky long finish. Delicious. I think I like this more than a recent 22.

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2021 PYCM Au Bout du Monde
Exactly what you want from the Hautes-CĂŽtes in a classic year. Heavy matchstick reduction on the nose, but the palate is all chiseled acidity and flint. Very linear.

​Gaspard Brochet 333.c RosĂ©
A serious, vinous bottle. Bone-dry and structural, more of a still wine with bubbles. Lots of chalky grip and zero dosage fluff.

​2021 Les HorĂ©es Mon Poulain
Picked this up at the domaine two weeks ago while grabbing my ‘23s. It’s my favorite cuvĂ©e from Catharina. Even in a cooler year like '21, it keeps that signature fraise tagada and peony lift, but the vintage tension adds a layer of precision to the Gamay/Pinot blend. The 80-year-old vines really anchor the mid-palate.

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Had very nice evening at Joel’s for a Rioja vs Burgundy tasting. There were eight of us with Joel - Eric, James, Ben, Kyle, Bruce, Jose and myself. We watched the UFC fight over sushi and Peruvian chicken.

P22 Agrapart Atoma - 100% Chardonnay 2022 Base Beautiful bread nose followed by more brioche on the palate with green apple 94

2007 Jacquesson Dizy Corne Bautray Extra-Brut - Disgorged Jan 2016 Very big and ripe wine. Nose took some time to open up. Showing very well. Nice body and acidity to go with it. I got stone fruit. While most preferred this wine, the style was a bit much for me. I preferred the other wine but still give it a 94

2019 Laherte Frùres Champagne Extra Brut Les Vignes d’Autrefois - Disgorged Nov 2022. Very different from the other champagnes. Big brioche nose. Lots of acid. Very dry green apple. I’m not a fan of Meunier, others liked it, so I will reserve judgement.

2004 López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Viña Gravonia - Cheesy nose with some notes of an apple orchard during bloom (you need to experience that). After some time I got toffee on the nose and bruised apple on the palate. A little hollow on the mid-palate at PnP but after an hour it blossomed. 95

2021 Alegre Valgañón Rioja Blanco Embotellano 3rd ano - Interesting wine. More expensive than the Gravonia. Light oxidative nose. Full body. Nice mouth feel but a lot of oak. Long finish. Very different after time - more reductive and fuller body 94

2011 López de Heredia Rioja Rosado Gran Reserva Viña Tondonia - What a wine! Took a while to open up but bloomed with flavor. Lots of red berries and big mouth feel. Just coats your mouth! And got much, much better with time. This was my third and last bottle and it showed the best. 96

2017 Ballot-Millot Meursault PerriĂšres - A bit of a skunky nose when first opened but that blew off. Reductive and flinty. Nice lemon palate with a hint of sweetness on first taste but finished dry. Also got much better with air. Beautiful wine. 96

2017 Pierre Bourée Fils Meursault Les PerriÚres - Light nose with a hint of sweetness on the palate. A bit thin compared to the Ballot and minimal pear fruit. 91

2018 Chateau Potelle Chardonnay Jean Noel Fourmeaux Bacigalupi Vineyards - Interesting light ripe fruit. Drinks more like an Oregon Chardonnay. It was quite nice. Nice floral nose with peachy palate. 92

2021 Clair Naudin CĂŽte de Nuits Villages Viola Odorata - Served blind. Very fruit forward. We thought it was California because it was so big. So surprised on the reveal. A bit much for me. But others liked it 93

1997 Louis Jadot Beaune Clos des Ursules - Very young tasting. I thought it was a 2017! Beautiful spicy bouquet. Lots of red cherry fruit. I really enjoyed this wine. 95

2015 Fourrier Vosne-Romanée Aux Réas VV - A nice wine. Tons of soft cherry fruit and plenty of acid to match. Got better over the evening. 94

2020 Bodegas Lanzaga Rioja Las Beatas - Wow! A special treat and very generous too. Way too young but it showed well. Beautiful nose with all sorts of aromas coming through. Definitely sour cherry on the palate. Such power in this wine. My WOTN! 97

1980 Georges Vasseur Chambertin- Cloudy and bit over the hill. We call this an “Eric” wine. It did get better with some air, but not that much better. 87

1996 López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña Tondonia - A bit of a bretty nose but lots of spices. Definitely got sour strawberries on the palate. A mature wine, maybe a bit past prime. 93

1987 López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña Tondonia - This older wine showed much better than the 96. Smoky barbecue nose. Red fruit with plenty of structure. Very nice. 94

While I still prefer the Burgundy to Rioja, I did find a lot of Rioja I’d like to explore more.

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Gorgeous Rosé.

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2009 Dm Bachelet GC Villages VV.

Dark red colour, nose of iron and dark plummy fruits. This is dark, deep, intense, powerful, tannic and needs at least another 10 years. Potentially great.

I have had really good luck with 2009s being.open and delicious - but not this bottle.

I wonder whether the 1er Crus and the Charmes Chambertin will be ready in my lifetime?

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That was a very difficult period for Bachelet. Some barrel issues that resulted in wine that tasted like cigarettes.

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Thnx Sarah, which vintages were affected.

Brodie