TN: Fat Alsace, Muscadet saves the day

Feb 24, 2011 5 Replies

Last night Betsy made a cauliflower soup with (added) roasted caulflower, scallops, shrimp, and a tarragon garnish, and an arugula/ apple/Manchego salad. I opened the 2004 Meyer-Fonne "Hinterberg de Katzenthal" Pinot Gris wondering if it would be fully dry or not, but I wasn't prepared for this "auslese bordering on dessert wine" style. Really quite sweet, canned peaches and apricots, approaches cloying, heavy. We'll see how it works with cheese tonight, but I couldn't serve last night. Not what I want in PG, at least without warning. C/C



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The replacement wine was the 2006 Domaine de l`Ecu (Bossard) "Expression de Gneiss" Muscadet. Hey, the gneiss is nice! Fuller riper style of Melon, but still with a good mineral (gneiss!) core. A little softer acidity than I expect, but not sure if that is producer or vintage. Still, quite enjoyable (if not Pepiere Briords). B/B+   Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.


DaleW wrote in news:e3eaa593-0dbb-4a1b-b982-877105b2aad4 @t13g2000prc.googlegroups.com:

Assuming I am about to make a generalisation, 2006 is a fuller vintage of Muscadet and some wines can even taste a bit flabby (for a Muscadet).

Best,

s.

I agree. Last summer, an '06 Granger Gras Mouton was soft and an '06 Luneau-Papin Clos des Allees was only somewhat crisper in structure.

Mark Lipton

yes, I know '06 was riper, but just meant I wasn't sure how much of the softness was due to that, and how much due to producer style- the '06 Briords for instance is a bit fatter than the norm, but still has a nervy base.

DaleW wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@j35g2000prb.googlegroups.com:

From what I read in a.f.w. and many other American wine forums, Domaine de L'Ecu does not get that much recognition in the U.S., where usually Domaine de la Pépière is mentioned much more (Louis/Dressner effect, probably).

However, probably Domaine de L'Ecu is at the same (if not higher) level, and one should not neglect that Guy Bossard has been one of the most important persons to Muscadet in the 20th century, proving that it is possible to follow an organic / biodynamic viticulure in such a difficult area for it. Also, he was one of the growers that started marking the differences in different terroirs, naming his wines after the main component in the soil they come from. Do not forget that Muscadet is a wine that is usually found at French supermarkets for 2 euros /bottle.

I am sorry to say that I cannot offer relevant direct experience with Domaine de L'Ecu (so to explain their style) and, in fact, I have not tasted any of their 2006s but, in my experience, if vibrancy is what you are looking for, the name to look for is Jo Landron at Domaine de la Louvetrie who makes IMHO, the purest expression of Muscadet, and his wines can get to the point where some drinkers find it too acid (no chaptalizacion in some cuvées).

s.

I usually like Louvetrie/Landron. My favorite wine store (Chambers St) typically carries 5 producers: Luneau-Papin, Louvetrie (Landron), Pepiere (Ollivier), Ecu (Bossard), and Bregeon. I haven't tried Bregeon, but have heard good things.

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