Recent reds report - Cote de Beaune

Things have been looking up here - am just back from a few days in Norfolk with my family, during which the news broke that the US travel ban is being lifted in November. It feels like a cloud has lifted and soon I'll be on my way back to Pennsylvania.

Meanwhile, a report on some reds from the Cote de Beaune, descending from north to south. 

Here we have a Ladoix 1er cru Les Basses Mourottes 2014 from Gaston & Pierre Ravaut. It was quite dark in colour with a pale rim. We enjoyed the nose, which was full of dark things from underneath a hedgerow - truffle, mushrooms, blackcurrant and what G described as "elderly sheep dropping" although I'm unsure whether he was speaking from experience. It was all very interesting. On the palate, it was a little light on fruit and a bit rustic, but nevertheless I recorded that I seemed to have drunk it without noticing, so it was clearly quite enjoyable. We felt it was fully mature and needed no more time, and gave it an 8.

This Pommard 1er cru Fremiers 2012 from Nicolas Rossignol was the first of two recent Pommards. It was a nice garnet colour and had a lovely nose of summer fruit tart. There were some chunky tannins on the palate, or "matiere" as G described it - reminiscent of plum skins and cocoa. Somehow we doubted it was 13% as claimed. We felt it was a posh wine, exuding quality and I described it as a good wine to take to a dinner party, as it would be bound to impress. We thought it needed another 5 years to reach its full potential, and gave it a low 9 but with the potential to go higher. I note that the domaine is based in Volnay, and indeed it did have a certain similarity to Perrin's wines. It was quite pricey at £83. 

Then we have this Pommard 1er cru Clos les Arvelets 2014 from Mark Haisma. This had an engaging fruity, sweet nose with some nice raspberries going on. It was silky with lots of fruit on the midpalate and some chocolatey tannins on the finish. I sometimes find Pommard a bit heavy and brooding but occasionally I find one which really ticks my boxes (Maison Romane's Argilliere being the prime example) and this was almost in that category, with more finesse than some. "A lighter way to enjoy Pommard" as G put it. The 2014s seem to be giving us a lot of pleasure at the moment, and we felt this was drinking perfectly now. It was a solid 9, but then again it did cost £85.

Moving on down the map, we come to Santenay. This was a 1er cru le Beaurepaire 2017 from Jean-Marc Vincent. It was an attractive ruby colour but had a slightly dumb nose. On the palate, it was juicy and fresh, and a little bit croquant. We thought it was designed to be drunk young, and wasn't a particularly serious wine, unlike say the Santenays from Choupette which need more time to come round. On the other hand it was only £36. We thought it was a quintessential 8.

A quick detour to the west takes us to Maranges, which always brings back happy memories of the somewhat dilapidated maison de maitre we found on a property website a few years ago, with a lovely view over the vineyards. This was a Maranges 1er cru Le Croix Moines 2016 from Camille Giroud. Got to love that font, which is even on the cork! It looked glossy and inviting, with massive legs, and a really fabulous heady nose which reminded me of black cherry clafoutis. On the palate it was congruent and for me it still had black cherries while G got bramble. It went really well with our crispy duck and pancakes, and positively evaporated. We felt it was completely ready to drink and gave it a 9. At £33, it was fantastic value. 

Finally, we venture down to Mercurey where we had three examples of the genre recently. This Mercurey 1er cru Clos L'Eveque 2014 came from Romain Chapuis, whose low sulphur wines are a particular favourite of mine. This was glossy and looked young, and had a wonderful nose of wild strawberries which G described as feral. I loved it. It was relatively lightweight with immediate charm and good acidity, but didn't really feel like a premier cru, more a vin de plaisir. We gave it a high 7.

The other two Mercureys both came from P&M Jacqueson, with their immediately-recognisable squiggly font. First we have the 1er cru "Les Champs Martin" 2015. This had a fruity nose and was juicy and croquant, delicious lightweight pinot, with a slight hint of wine gums. It was crying out for a baguette and a bit of cheese and pate. I found it very enjoyable and we thought it was the sort of wine that would do well in hot vintages. We gave it a solid 8.

Finally, here we have the 1er cru Les Velley 2016. This had orchard fruit on the nose, but was richer and heavier on the palate, with quite a lot of oomph, and was fresh medium-weight pinot. It was slightly tart on the finish in an enjoyably mouthwatering way. I might have thought it was a Santenay if I'd been tasting it blind. We also gave it a solid 8 and my opinion of this domaine continues to be very favourable. I think we've been finding that Mercurey and perhaps also Rully deliver considerable pleasure at a not exorbitant price, and are perhaps coming into their own with the hotter weather in recent years. 

As always many thanks to G for supplying these and keeping the Premier Cru Project on the road! I'm happy to report that a modicum of social life is on the agenda in the near future, with D visiting from the Finger Lakes next week and several exciting tastings lined up. Bring it on!

Lunch at the Baron's, 6th September

On Sunday I took the tube for the first time in months over to Baron McGuffog's neck of the woods where we were joined by ACC and G at the "pub table" in the garden. What follows will mostly be a pictorial account.

My contribution was this bottle of pink champagne from Jean Comyn which we calculated must have been at least 10 years old. The colour was compared to Lucozade and it had certainly mellowed in the intervening period but was possibly now on the elderly side! I attempted to incite ACC to tell his Comyn joke which involves at least 15 minutes of build up, but the moment passed... 

With our starter we had this white Marsannay 2017 from Romain Chapuis which was lovely, rich white Burgundy drinking very nicely now.

It went extremely well with this amazing onion tart which the Baron made from an Elizabeth David recipe. The bar just got raised!

It took an enormous amount of self-control for us not to eat all of it and save some room for the rest of the meal.

Next up, a magnum of Lombois Volnary 2014 from Domaine Perrin which was made by Vincent's son Guillaume. This was earthy, almost like a Pommard, and starting to drink. It went very nicely with the pigeon and peas. 

ACC had brought along some of his famous magnum of Prunelle which was a delight. I failed to ask the bottle detectives how old they thought it might be, but maybe 1970s? It had that almond or apricot kernel thing going on but we were assured it wasn't cyanide...

A finally, a bottle of young vintage port - 2016 Smith Woodhouse, to go with the chocolate cake, which was another triumph. 

Thanks very much to the Baron for hosting - a very enjoyable way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

Recent drinking round-up!

Time for another catch-up on what's been drunk lately... one has to get through this interminable lockdown somehow! Here we have three blasts from the past and something new.

The other night, G cracked open a couple of wines from Domaine Parent, and it was fascinating to try them side by side.

The 2015 Bourgogne Rouge came in at a mere 12.5% and had a nose of raspberries and a certain earthiness reminiscent of Pommard. It was lighter than I expected, and very drinkable, the kind of wine I think of as being good with lunch. Not what I was necessarily expecting based on the old days when we used to drink a lot of it.

The 2013 Monthelie came in at 13% and had an attractive, slightly musky nose. It was juicy with a high level of acidity and also seemed light, fruity and young. It opened up after a few minutes and with hindsight would have benefited from an hour in decanter. Apparently it was even better the next day!

Yesterday the weather was good enough for ACC and I to have a socially-distanced picnic in the nearby square. ACC had told me he was going to bring along the new gewurztraminer from Romain Chapuis, which was exciting. I wasn't really sure what food would go well with it, but it turned out that my duck and prune terrine was a very good match. It was a beautiful golden colour and had an aromatic gewurz nose but more subtle than some (no granny's handbag here). Apparently it's made from grapes grown in Alsace but Romain declassifies it so it's a Vin de France. I really liked the weight and richness of it, then discovered it clocks in at a whopping 14.5% so not like some of his other unsulphured wines. Definitely a bottle to share with others, and something a little bit different. The wine bars really ought to snap this up, once they're allowed to reopen...

My contribution was this Moulin-a-Vent Cuvee L'Exception 2011 from the Trichards, which we used to enjoy very much back in the day. A case was still lingering in storage and I had it delivered recently. It has matured very nicely and is still a wonderful bottle of Beaujolais, more on the serious side, and best served slightly chilled. As usual, my glass seemed to evaporate. A very pleasant way to spend a sunny afternoon!

Burgundy Portfolio tasting at Baker's Hall, 21st Nov

On Wednesday evening, I made my way over to Baker's Hall for a very exclusive wine tasting held by ACC of the Burgundy Portfolio. This was a relaxed, sit-down affair of the sort I enjoy the most.

We started with this sparkling wine made by Quentin Beaufort which was dry and complex with some good age on it and was definitely up there with champagne, despite being made from grapes grown just outside the border.

This Chablis 2017 from Domaine Gueguen has apparently mostly been bought up already as quantities were low last year, but was very appealing, with minerality and richness. ACC said it had a certain fleshiness reminiscent of a pink grapefruit. G thought it was drinking already, and I found myself thinking it would be great with fish fingers.

Domaine Les Champs de Themis is a new find and this Bouzeron is made from aligote doree. I found it very interesting - dry, floral and almost grapey. ACC described it as "gastronomic". Cassis not required!

I'd had a heads up that this wine was going to be shown, although as this was the only bottle in the country we had to be self-restrained and not guzzle it all. It's a grenache from Romain Chapuis, made from Rhone grapes, unfined, unfiltered, low sulphur. At £18.50 a bottle paid-up I couldn't resist grabbing a couple of cases, as past experience has shown that these wines have a habit of evaporating from the AduV cellar.

This Mercurey from Domaine Les Champs de Themis had an amazing fruity nose which reminded me of Ribena, and was charming easy drinking, not rustic like some Mercureys.

The Vacherin went down very well too

We then had the excitement of a blind tasting. On the left was a wine that was relatively light in colour and very fruity and pretty, with notes of tinned strawberries, while on the right was a dark, intense number which needed more time. I jumped to conclusions and foolishly guessed that the one on the left was a Cote de Beaune and the one on the right was a Cote de Nuits. Wrong!

The one on the left was actually 2016 Vosne-Romanee Chalandins from Henri Audiffred. This was quite a revelation for me as I always think of Vosne as being big and rich, whereas this wine was relatively light and fruity. ACC said it was likely to close down soon.

G had the advantage of having been to Burgundy recently and guessed that the wine on the right came from Domaine de la Roseraie, which as soon as he said it was incredibly obvious. It was definitely in that very serious style, made for the long haul. It appears I bought a case en primeur, so I shall make a note to look into it in 2023!

Finally, we tried this wine from Ventoux in Provence which was another low-sulphur number made from 40% marsanne, 40% clairette and 20% grenache blanc. I enjoyed its minerality and it was suggested that it would go well with chicken with morels, or with cheese. Sadly we had eaten all the cheese by this stage so were unable to put this theory to the test.

A very enjoyable evening all round and can't wait to get some of that Grenat in my cellar. Thanks ACC!

Battle of the reds...

I mentioned in my last post that I recently took delivery of a couple of reds, which have been going down a storm at AduV Towers, First is this Coteaux Bourguignon 2016 from Chapuis & Chapuis. We had some of the 2017 at the recent dinner with Romain Chapuis.

G and I drank some of the 2016 the other night with a rack of lamb. G commented that on the nose you immediately think "natural Gamay" as it has a slightly feral quality. For me it was pure and pretty with lovely ripe fruit. It had a sweetness to it but also good acidity, and reminded us of tinned fruit salad, currants and red cherries. We thought I should tuck a bottle away for a year, although I'm not sure I'll manage to do that!

The other red is more my thing than G's - this Gorge Rouge 2014 from Domaine des Josephins. Possibly the name of the domaine may have encouraged a favourable disposition on my part.

This is pinot noir, and again made in a pretty natural way. For me, it is light and succulent with red fruits. At first I thought it was raspberry but then I landed on cranberry due to a certain mouthwatering quality. Definitely a wine with good acidity.

At 12.5%, both these wines are very easy to drink and are giving immediate pleasure. Thanks to ACC for finding them! And in other news, I have finally joined Instagram (here) We'll see how it goes...

Dinner with Romain Chapuis, 1st March

On Thursday night, I braved the Beast from the East and made it through the slush to the ICA on the Mall, where Rochelle have taken over the restaurant. I've been a couple of times and it has established itself as a firm favourite, not least because of the pies!

We were there for a wine-tasting dinner with Romain Chapuis, hosted by ACC of the Burgundy Portfolio. I'm a big fan of Romain's wines and attended a dinner he did previously, two or three years ago (strangely I don't appear to have blogged about it) so was very excited to get one more chance to try them again.

I arrived expecting the tasting to be upstairs in the restaurant, but then I heard familiar voices coming from the left and discovered what one might call an inner sanctum, a little alcove, where a number of people were already gathered and were drinking 2016 Orange Blossom aligote en magnum. After a couple of minutes opening up in the glass this turned out to be a very enjoyable, refreshing aperitif and I was lucky enough to get a couple of refills.

Then we moved upstairs for dinner where I sat with G and the Baron, so our end of the table could certainly not be accused of being boring. We tasted a number of bottles which had been shown to the restaurant earlier in the day. Of the whites, we tried the 2016 Bourgogne Blanc which had a lively acidity and notes of lime, while the Rully 2016 was well-balanced with good grip, and very drinkable. I'd already tasted this back in January and placed an order so was glad to confirm my own opinion.

I managed not to get a photo of my favourite red, the 2017 Coteaux Bourguignons "sans soufre" which is a Gamay, and reminds me of those lovely Beaujolais which I love - Foillard etc. It had a beautiful nose and was light and fruity and very glou-glou. At least nine out of ten. I bought some of the 2016 last year and am really looking forward to drinking it soon if spring ever appears.

I also very much enjoyed this 2016 Cotes de Nuits Villages "Les Chaillots" which was richer, with black fruits.

Two other highlights were this 2015 Maranges which I see I bought last year - this is turning into a very self-congratulatory blog post I'm afraid - and the 2013 Pernand-Vergelesses "Les Belles Filles". I appear to have given up making notes when we got to the Maranges but for me it has an enjoyably rustic quality. Call me old fashioned but I think it would go well with sausages, and is good value for a village red, while the Pernand was more elegant and fruity.

As always, the food at Rochelle was excellent and I particularly enjoyed the rillettes and the chicken, leek and tarragon pie which I remembered to take a photo of before I guzzled it all. Happiness ensued.

Some readers may have noticed a few song references clumsily inserted into this blog post.* The Baron became agitated half way through dinner and clearly wished to communicate something but wasn't being sufficient vocal for me to hear, so he had to scribble it down on his menu. It turned out that Neil Tennant had just sat down at the table next to us. As we're huge Pet Shop Boys fans this was very exciting and I had to resist the temptation not to keep staring at Neil as he was reading his book. Two glasses of champagne had been poured and I was on tenterhooks wondering who was going to join him for dinner; it turned out to be none other than Janet Street Porter! I was delighted to see that they both had pies too.

All in all, a super evening. Thanks ACC and Romain!

*Eight altogether.

Lunch at mine, Sunday 6th August

Last Sunday, the boys came round for lunch at my place. Supplies had been procured the previous day, as witnessed by my brother and sister-in-law who bumped into me carrying about 50 kg of food back along Goodge Street, and the pork was in the oven by 7.30 a.m. Fortunately we seem to be into autumn in London now so it wasn't unbearably hot. I'm sure the neighbours enjoyed the smells emanating into the corridor!

We started with a fizz brought by ACC, which was this Vin Petillant Naturel made by Romain Chapuis.

We loved the label, and the wine too. It was very refreshing and we wondered if the grape was muscat, because it was quite grapey. It turned out it was gewurztraminer! I would never have guessed.

Not what we were expecting

I got up to sort out the smoked salmon and left G to decant the next wine, a white Corton 2008 from Domaine Parent. As G began to pour it into the decanter, we all got a shock. It was red! And yet clearly in a bottle with the white label - the gold trim rather than the red. Not sure what happened there. G and I drank it the next day and we'll never know what it actually was, but felt that it wasn't a Corton as it was lacking that wild quality, so probably a Pommard with some age on. It had big shoulders and was fully mature. No hardship.

Fortunately, past experience has shown it's always a good idea to have a backup white, and I was very glad I'd taken the precaution of putting this Chablis 1er cru Montmains 2010 from La Maison Romane in the fridge. It was stunning as usual, rich and bigger than your average Chablis.

I'd remembered that I had this magnum of Moulin a Vent 2009 from Trichard tucked away and given that Beaujolais has a great affinity with pork, decided this would be a good opportunity to drink it. The four years or so it had spent in the wardrobe had done it no harm at all. I chilled it slightly, and it positively whizzed round the table. It was magical, with a heavenly perfume, very smooth and drinking perfectly now.

Rare sighting of a green vegetable!

With the cheese course, we had another wine from La Maison Romane (in fact the Oroncio sub-brand) - a Chateauneuf du Pape La Primaute 2007. G picked this up from a shop in Beaune on our recent visit. We'd never come across it before and I have a feeling it was the last bottle in the shop. It was splendid, the Platonic ideal of Chateauneuf with ripe Grenache fruit, juicy and sweet. For once, the bottle admitted to 14.5% as opposed to Oronce's usual 12.5%.

The Baron goes in for some cheese

We finished off with coffee, some lovely artisinal chocolates brought by the Baron, and a couple of digestifs - this Calvados which I picked up in Beaune, and a Marc de Bourgogne "hors d'age" from Pierre Fenals which recently landed and is available from the Burgundy Portfolio. The Baron gave us a wonderful reading of Arabella Fotherington-Tomas's school song from the Compleet Molesworth, and our Sunday afternoon was complete. Thanks to all!