My son and his family have arrived for the Christmas and New Year festivities so the number of bottles opened has doubled and to some extent their quality as my son asks for specific wines.
As he has fond memories of this cru, I opened Chablis 1er cru Montée de Tonnerre 1988 - Caves Duplessis. There was no trace of pox and the nose showed an intriguing mix of gentle citrus and honey; the medium/light palate added quite strong minerality and some grip but honey dominated the finish; I didn't find that the complex mix quite worked and there was a somewhat disjointed feeling; the wine is probably beginning to break up but it still fascinating, if flawed; 15.5/20+.
My son complained that this was not what he remembered, so I opened Chablis 1er cru Montée de Tonnerre 2007 – William Fèvre – Alc. 13% - and this was just what he wanted; me too. The aromas were complex but bright and focussed with white fruit and flowers, dabs of meat and minerals all in balance; the palate was light/medium, airily round yet beautifully focussed with crisp acidity, gentle flesh and some backbone towards the long finish; probably a bit to soft for high iodine oysters but ideal with simple fresh fish; 16.5/20++.
On first sniff of the newly opened bottle, I feared that Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Marina Cvetic 2003 – Masciarelli – Alc. 14% - would be a jammy and oaky let-down but once poured it was fine. It was full bodied and rich with slightly sweet red and dark fruit and a lot of English fruit cake character, i.e. raisins, sultanas and dabs of malt, ginger and rum, and it managed to avoid jamminess which must have been difficult in torrid 2003; from memory the 2001 and 2004 are more structured but this is very good; 16/20++.
We debated whether the beggar or the gentleman should be opened first to accompany succulent reindeer steak and a majority voted for latter in the shape of Hemitage La Chapelle 1994 – Paul Jaboulet Ainé – Alc.13%. 1994 was written up as a mediocre vintage for Northern Rhône at the outset but I have always found a lot of charm in those I have opened and this was no exception. The nose showed well developed and round red and dark fruit with a lot of cherry, black currant and blackberry laced with some minerals and the palate was full bodied, savoury and round with a velvety mouth-feel, firm structure and great length; on first sip before food the tannins seemed slightly bitter and obtrusive but they softened after the first mouthful of reindeer; there was less straight-backed Hermitage virility but more charm that in a “good” Hermitage vintage; I wager that neither the “great” 95 nor 96 is anything like so attractive at present; 17.5/20.
The beggar was Saint-Joseph Clos de Cuminaille 1999 – Pierre Gaillard – Alc. 12.5%, which seemed somewhat one-dimensional after the Hermitage but was very good in its own right; aromas showed a lot of typically steely cherry with a well integrated oak patina and body was medium/full with good structure, elegance and fair length; 16/20.