Weekenders: 2nd, 3rd, 4th June.

Paul J a i n e s said:
Stuck on meetings until 6pm but got a nice bottle of Droin Chablis 2014 sitting in the fridge. I can hardly wait to sit out in the sun and sip that. They have generally being great wines - purchased with hindsight for very little.

We'll then probably have a go at the Chamonix Troika 2020 from SA that my wife brought back from Jo'Berg this morning.
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Good memories of the cellar door at Chamonix a few years back, we stayed a few hundred yards up the road! Had a mixed case sent back here.

Coincidently I've got a Haute Espoir Cloudfall (also from Franschhoek) chilling in the fridge for this evening.
 
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Invited by some friends in Provence and he wanted to impress (save for the glasses...). We had 2 glorious mature wines
Corton Charlemagne Chevalier 2003: tasted like an old white Burgundy but did not have the 2003 hot weather taste. Quite an excellent wine from a producer I did not know
Barolo Clerico 1999 Ciabot Montin Ginestra : also an unknown quantity but oak integratedand mature, this was an intense yet refined Barolo (for what I know about Barolo, eg very little) thoroughly enjoyed though
 
  • 2016 Domaine du Bel Air (Pierre et Rodolphe Gauthier) Bourgueil Grand Mont - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Bourgueil (02/06/2023)
    PnP. ABV 13%. €32.50 before taxes and shipping charges. My first experience with this producer. Floral with typical Cabernet Franc funk. Fairly clean, no Brett. Dark plums like, lively acidity. Fine-grained tannins but finished a tad dry. Lightly extracted style and elegant, just medium bodied. No distracting oaks at backend, just a touch of pencil shavings. No hint of alcohol at finish, well balanced. An excellent punt at the price point, a producer to follow in the future. If I operate a wine bar or restaurant, I would serve this by the glass. 92++. (92 pts.)
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2010 Blagny La Pièce sous le Bois, Matrot.
I’m about halfway through a dozen bought en primeur, a wine which has shown well from the off, with some maturity it had gained a little weight, but is still lithe, plenty of red fruit with some darker mulberry notes, earthy tones starting to evolve and a pleasant freshness on the finish. It’s a pity that this isn’t the steal that it once was.
 
Edward Bolland said:
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2010 Blagny La Pièce sous le Bois, Matrot.
I’m about halfway through a dozen bought en primeur, a wine which has shown well from the off, with some maturity it had gained a little weight, but is still lithe, plenty of red fruit with some darker mulberry notes, earthy tones starting to evolve and a pleasant freshness on the finish. It’s a pity that this isn’t the steal that it once was.
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That's an old friend-the 1976 is the only wine of which I have drunk 36 magnums. They got fresher and fresher as the years rolled by, which I attribute to the settling of the fine sediment.
 
Thom Blach said:
That's an old friend-the 1976 is the only wine of which I have drunk 36 magnums. They got fresher and fresher as the years rolled by, which I attribute to the settling of the fine sediment.
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I trust the 36 magnums weren’t consumed in a single sitting? ;-)

BTW I just looked on wine-searcher and it is still a reasonably priced wine in the context of modern burgundy.
 
Following the joys of La T in Thursday, we took these to Chez Bruce last night:

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The ABC had a lovely streak of spicy, toasty oak as well as citrus and melon fruit. Unashamedly oaky but wore it very well. The Pichon Lalande took a while to unfurl, but it was beautiful when it did - classic yet almost exotic at the same time, the high % of merlot really noticable in the finished wibe. The De Malle had less botrytis than 3previous night's Coutet, but had considerably more tropical fruit. 3 lovely bottles.

The food wasn't bad either.

Ceviche of halibut with avocado and pine nuts:

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Chateaubriand with a red wine sauce, triple cooked chips and Bearnaise. It really doesn't get much better than this with a wine like the Lalande:

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Le Fromage:

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Bakewell tart, toasted almond ice cream and cherries - I love the retro style icing, it looks exactly like my Gran's Bakewell used to (though tasted substantially better!)::

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No frills, no fuss - just perfect execution with flavour at the forefront of everything. Classic cooking at its finest.
 
Neil Holland said:
Hah! Scrolling up from the bottom I knew where you were before I saw the name - we had the same ceviche on Sunday. First ever trip - won't be the last - it was outstanding.
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It was the perfect starter, especially on a warm day such as yesterday. Ceviche is one of the things I almost always order if it's on a menu though, and CB (and La T) do particularly good ones.
 
  • 2020 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie Fructus Voluptas - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie (03/06/2023)
    PnP. ABV 13.5%. €62.50 before taxes and shipping charges. My first experience with this particular cuvée. A bottling intended for restaurant sales initially for more immediate pleasure. From vines planted in late 90s and early 2000s according to JLL. Highly perfumed from the start with notes of flowers, herbs, stems (apparently 100% destemmed tho), and a whiff of alcohol. Sweet and fine tannins, dark fruits mainly. All primary fruits at the moment and drinking beautifully. Drinking more like a young Gonon with its explosive floral notes, smooth tannins, and good balance. Loved this and will buy regularly in the future. It’s from Domaine Jamet, never going to be cheap but very good quality tho. Looked like I found myself another wine to go with Spaghetti Bolognese besides Gonon. 93-94 pts. (93 pts.)
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Chiu Lin said:
  • 2020 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie Fructus Voluptas - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie (03/06/2023)
    PnP. ABV 13.5%. €62.50 before taxes and shipping charges. My first experience with this particular cuvée. A bottling intended for restaurant sales initially for more immediate pleasure. From vines planted in late 90s and early 2000s according to JLL. Highly perfumed from the start with notes of flowers, herbs, stems (apparently 100% destemmed tho), and a whiff of alcohol. Sweet and fine tannins, dark fruits mainly. All primary fruits at the moment and drinking beautifully. Drinking more like a young Gonon with its explosive floral notes, smooth tannins, and good balance. Loved this and will buy regularly in the future. It’s from Domaine Jamet, never going to be cheap but very good quality tho. Looked like I found myself another wine to go with Spaghetti Bolognese besides Gonon. 93-94 pts. (93 pts.)
Posted from CellarTracker

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Love that wine. Extraordinary moorish!
 
Paul J a i n e s said:
@Richard Ward - that 2002 Comtesse is a beautiful wine.... one of my favourite "hard to read" wines. I stillhave a few left in the cellar - they are only just now starting to open up. Also - you do also love an oaky chard dont you?
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Unfortunately the Lalande was just a single half bottle I've had for years. It really delivered though.

As for oaky chard - yep, I love it! So does the missus as well, so it's our "go to" style for white wine.
 
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