After the many themed/tutored tastings over the Autumn and Winter months, the Nottingham Wine Circle is now firmly into its Spring/Summer series of "bottle blind" tastings. Basically, these are free-for-alls, in which we bring anything we like - so long as it is (hopefully) drinkable! And this week was one of those weeks when more than a few wines exceeded those expectations. These days, I can't be doing with writing too many on-the-spot tasting notes, but here are my notes from a quartet of the best or most interesting wines from this tasting, all written a couple of days later, from what remained of my samples. And they had all held up remarkably well......
Jean Francois Ganevat Les Grands Teppes Chardonnay Vieilles Vignes 2010 Cotes du Jura
Pale yellow/gold, with mealy/nutty, apple and lime/lemon aromas, with a hint of under-ripe peach. The oak, which was fairly prominent at first, has fully integrated. And although the wine doesn't quite have the power, intensity and grip that it had 2 days before, it is still a lovely drop, with gorgeous apple and citrus flavours, deep minerality and completely mouth-watering acidity. A really cracking wine, which would give many a 1er Cru from Burgundy a run for its money.
Domaine du Clos Naudin Vouvray Sec 2000
I ask you - what's not to like in a wine like this? Intense, almost floral and perfumed, with aromas of minerals, wet wool, lime oil, quince, subtle spicy notes and a heady richness redolent of molasses. Not that it is anything but bone dry, with an almost steely intensity and searing lemon acidity. The flavours are quite subtle, yet very complex - at the same time rich, yet delicate, full of citrus and tree fruits, with a delightful earthiness and great length. Utterly mouth-watering and lovely.
Domaine Florentin Clos de l'Arbalestrier Blanc 1989 Saint-Joseph
Crikey, this is good wine - possibly even great wine. A blend of Marsanne and Roussane, I believe. Even at 24 years of age, it is chock full of life, fruit, complexity and hedonistic enjoyment. It shows all manner of aromas and flavours, notably flowers, honey, clarified butter, peach and apricot, petrol and minerals, with just the merest hint of toffee to betray its maturity. It is rich and focused in the mouth, yet pretty dry and zesty, with more in the way of citrus/orange/lemon flavours than the nose would suggest, with a gentle earthiness and hints of old wood. And the finish just goes on and on. A glorious, ethereal wine!
Pale yellow/gold, with mealy/nutty, apple and lime/lemon aromas, with a hint of under-ripe peach. The oak, which was fairly prominent at first, has fully integrated. And although the wine doesn't quite have the power, intensity and grip that it had 2 days before, it is still a lovely drop, with gorgeous apple and citrus flavours, deep minerality and completely mouth-watering acidity. A really cracking wine, which would give many a 1er Cru from Burgundy a run for its money.
Domaine du Clos Naudin Vouvray Sec 2000
I ask you - what's not to like in a wine like this? Intense, almost floral and perfumed, with aromas of minerals, wet wool, lime oil, quince, subtle spicy notes and a heady richness redolent of molasses. Not that it is anything but bone dry, with an almost steely intensity and searing lemon acidity. The flavours are quite subtle, yet very complex - at the same time rich, yet delicate, full of citrus and tree fruits, with a delightful earthiness and great length. Utterly mouth-watering and lovely.
Domaine Florentin Clos de l'Arbalestrier Blanc 1989 Saint-Joseph
Crikey, this is good wine - possibly even great wine. A blend of Marsanne and Roussane, I believe. Even at 24 years of age, it is chock full of life, fruit, complexity and hedonistic enjoyment. It shows all manner of aromas and flavours, notably flowers, honey, clarified butter, peach and apricot, petrol and minerals, with just the merest hint of toffee to betray its maturity. It is rich and focused in the mouth, yet pretty dry and zesty, with more in the way of citrus/orange/lemon flavours than the nose would suggest, with a gentle earthiness and hints of old wood. And the finish just goes on and on. A glorious, ethereal wine!
Domaine Michel Gros Hautes Cotes de Nuits 2005
I brought this one, and it went down a storm - and for such a "lowly" denomination (at least in Burgundy terms) it really does punch above its weight. Unlike many Burgundy vintages, which tend to go through a closed phase at this sort of age, I have tasted very few 2005's that are not pretty much open for business. And this one is still singing, with delectable red cherry, wild strawberry and forest floor aromas, and even a hint of something darker and richer, like damsons/plums. The palate is delightfully subtle, deceptively light and airy, with bags of ripe, tangy red and dark fruit flavours, countered by a hint of apple tartness, yet with a certain creaminess, countered by ultra-ripe tannins and abundant acidity, making for a grippy yet really elegant wine. If you have some, then I would suggest you can drink it now, or age for another 5 years or more. Either way, it is a cracking little wine.
More soon....................
2 comments:
I really envy you your wine group, it seems to produce consistently excellent tastings.
Jura is definitely becoming the in place, it's a good 15 years since I was there and enjoyed the forgotten wines. Glad to see its renaissance.
An evening of great delights indeed. :-)
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