On a cool rainy Saturday I made a riff on bouillabaise, with lobster, clams , cod, and swordfish, Wine was the 2012 Gourgonner Les Baux rose- red fruit s, citrus zest, herbs. Nice length, very good value. B+/B Cooking wine was the 2011 La Vieille Ferme blanc, dry, floral, good crispne ss for Rhone varieties, good value. Screwcapped, drinks well over couple da ys. B-/B
Sunday night it was very cool; Betsy had left for Maine concert so I though t a good time to have some cassoulet from freezer. Wine was the 2011 Franck Balthazar Cotes du Rhone- dark berries, leather, meat. A touch of pepper, though not as much as previous bottles. Nice pretty clean Syrah with a lot of complexity for the price. B++
A month or two back Betsy had said “sorry we can’t have our Memorial Da y party, I’ll be in Maine.” But Sunday AM (a) 2 people asked me “are you having a party?” and (b) weather forecast for Monday was awesome. Bef ore she left we had brunch locally with friends and family, and when I shee pishly asked re throwing a party without her she said sure. So Sunday after noon I sent out invite to locals, and a smaller but decent sized (18 or so) crowd responded. So Monday after watching little local parade I made guaca mole, grilled porterhouses, lobster,quail, corn and squash, and others brou ght an assortment (shrimp, sausage, quinoa, deviled eggs,etc). Utterly perf ect weather, and we had fun. And wine:
White
2011 La Chablisienne “ Fourchaume” Chablis 1er Lemony citrus flavors, tart, crisp and a good food wine, but wouldn’t hav e picked for a 1er cru. Of course, priced less than many Chablis AC, so dec ent value. B2004 Blain-Gagnard “ Boudriotte” Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Fresh, no premox here, citrus and pear, hint of vanillin oak. Good length. B+
2008 Clemens Busch Marienburg Grosses Gewaches Lovely, big but balanced, white peach, spice, apple blossoms. Plenty of aci ds but nicely balanced. A-/B+2011 Donnhoff Oberhauser Leistenberg Kabinett Not shut down, Granny smith and grapefruit, fairly sweet but with good acid s. B+/A-
Rose
2012 Arnot Roberts “Luchsinger Vineyard” Rose Made from Touriga Nacional, this is dry, lively, fresh, and bright. Red fru its, mineral, floral.B+2012 Baudry Chinon Rose Apparently quite popular, almost emptied before I got a small pour! Seems a bit rounder than previous couple vintages, sweet cherrry and raspberry fru it, some earth, very good if a tad less vibrant than last years. B+
2012 Les Hauts Plateaux rose Light, sweet strawberry, short and a bit insipid. C+Red
1995 Pernot “Clos du Dessus des Marconnets” Beaune Mature but with enough fruit even of those who generally go for young ripe wines, dark cherry and roasted meats, a hint of barnyard funk, surprisingly popular. B+2007 Masi “Costasera” Amarone (375) Ripe and raisiny, a bit of fruitcake, well received. B
2011 Lapalu Cote de Brouilly Rather dark fruited for Gamay, lots of black cherry,. good acids, quite lon g. B+Last night I had vegetable leftovers, with the Clemens Busch and Baudry sho wing as well or better than Monday, and the Amarone showing very pruney.
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.