'03 Dom Lavigne "Les Aieules" Saumur-Champigny

Apr 06, 2005 3 Replies
E

I remain a staunch supporter of Loire reds. I find they are very food-friendly, refreshing and the fruit is rarely cloying. And thanks to the fact that RP can't be bothered, there's still first class value around.



Lavigne is a long time QPR favorite, it's widely distributed with a pretty big production. Still I was suprised to find this one, complete with gold medal from Macon, in the supermarket "medalled" section. A little dearer than usual at around 6 EU.



This monster weighs in at 14 degrees! A big brambly nose, it's soft in the mouth with deep and sweet fruit finishing slightly bitter and with a characteristic Cabernet Franc mouthfeel. Not at all hot, it shows good balance for drinking now but will probably not improve. Well made and showing great versatility under difficult conditions. A Loire red Parker might like... shhh. :)



Now, for comic relief, would some non-francophones please give me phonetic spellings for "Aieules?" :)


-E


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M

Thanks for the notes, Emery. My more Loire-centric friends tell me that '03, while a disaster for the whites, has been very, very kind to the reds. I did have some '03 Chinons recently at a BBQ in SF, including one made from ungrafted vines (France-de-Pieds or something like that) that were quite fine, though overshadowed by a '02 Huet Clos de Bourg demi-sec. On the basis of the idea that '03 might not be a bad year for Loire reds, I recently picked up a bottle of Saumur-Champigny 'Lieu-dit Les Poyeaux' from what appears to be the local co-op. Any thoughts?

Ay-ool??

Mark Lipton

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E

] Emery Davis wrote: ] > I remain a staunch supporter of Loire reds. I find they are very ][] ] Thanks for the notes, Emery. My more Loire-centric friends tell me that ] '03, while a disaster for the whites, has been very, very kind to the ] reds. I did have some '03 Chinons recently at a BBQ in SF, including ] one made from ungrafted vines (France-de-Pieds or something like that) ] that were quite fine, though overshadowed by a '02 Huet Clos de Bourg ] demi-sec. On the basis of the idea that '03 might not be a bad year for ] Loire reds, I recently picked up a bottle of Saumur-Champigny 'Lieu-dit ] Les Poyeaux' from what appears to be the local co-op. Any thoughts? ]

Don't know that one. I do know some folks at the syndicate of Saumur, it's a well run organization. Of course coops can vary pretty vastly, but Saumur anyway is pretty good.

I agree with your assesment of 03 reds based on what I've tasted, with the caveat that there is -- as is often the case in challenging years -- some hit or miss involved. Those that didn't adapt to conditions seem to have produced some pretty flabby examples. But as I say by and large my impressions are very favorable.

] > ] > Now, for comic relief, would some non-francophones please give ] > me phonetic spellings for "Aieules?" :) ] ] Ay-ool?? ]

Close! :) Gee, I guess we should launch a new limerick competition to bring up the tone here... :)

-E

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D

Thanks for notes. I agree the buzz is better for '03 Loire reds than whites. But as usual, producer is main thing.

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