Fred turned 50, and Julie invited a couple of dozen friends to celebrate. F red is French, and the crowd was about equal parts French, other European, and plain ole American. Fred did the cooking himself- a huge assortment of nibbles (gougeres, smoked salmon and salmon roe, pate canapes, goat cheese on endive, and many more) and then boeuf bourguignon. And Fred put out some of his favorite wines
2010 Cazin Cour-Cheverny Very good vintage of this. Citrus, flowers, chalk, nice balance. B++2010 Savary Chablis Tasty and easy, but not especially Chablisesque to me. A bit round. B
2009 Regis Minet Pouilly Fume VV Midweight, good crispness, but didn’t float my boat as much as others. B/ B-2012 Pepiere Briords Muscadet Dynamite! Full and electrically alive, great length, can age but so tasty n ow. A-
NV Jean Bourdy Cremant de Jura Creamy/yeasty/fuller style, apple and lemon curd. B/B+
NV Breton “ La dilettante” Vouvray I think I liked this, but no notes and no clear impressions,
2009 Baudry Chinon Blanc Crisp, a bit of wax and wool, lemony fruit, good. B+/B2007 Binner Riesling Very popular, but I didn’t like as much. Somewhat exotic, with pit fruits and date aromas. B-
Fred decided to do a blind tasting. He had 3 bottles of 3 reds. He passed o ut a sheet, with some info filled and some leftout (so we know Wine #1 was a 2007 Loire, #2 was a 2011 Grenache/Syrad blend, #3 is a Bordeaux CS/Merlo t blend). Multiple choice on rest. Good format, as even total neophytes had a shot.
Wine # 1 - at first the piney/herbal notes made me think Loire Gamay, but t hat settled down and it was straightforward CF. I got the CF but missed wit h a Saumur guess at appellation. Fresh ready to go Loire red. 2007 La Nobla ie “Chiens-Chiens”Chinon B+/B
Wine # 2 - I was torn Rhone vs Languedoc, and choose incorrectly. Didn’t love this, too much jammy fruit, not real long, although there was a pleasa nt herbalness. 2011 Domaine de la Roche Buissiere “Petit Jo” B-
Wine # 3 - well, at least here I was pretty confident, correctly getting ye ar, appellation, and even the exact wine. Straightforward classic claret, n ot a powerhouse, but drinking well with no hurry. Mild tannins, some acid, cassis and plum fruit with pencil shaving and forest floor.
1996 Ch. Lanessan. A-/B+2001 Lesec Echezeaux - Not a negoce I really know, this showed quite well. Midbodied, elegant, red fruit and sandalwood. If I had to criticize it migh t not have GC weight, but it’s drinking well and was one of my faves. B+/ A-
We did a toast with a few bottles of the NV Bernard Bremont Brut Rose Champ agne. Full, red fruit with toast, yeast, and cedar notes, drinking well, fu ll and long (this has been cellared 3-4 years) A-/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 pa rty where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivi ty, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.