A brown bag tasting: 13 participants, 23 wines. Very generous group.
NV Bernard Fouquet Vouvray
Tim started us with this impressively inexpensive bubble. Tasted of chenin, bright and zesty, under $25.
2018 Denis Jamain Reuilly Les Pierres Plates Blanc Sauvignon Blanc
Daniel's. This wine has evolved well since the last TN by someone else last summer. There are some light reductive notes (which I like) as well as sage and an intense minerality. Overall on the lighter side, and very refreshing.
2018 Quinta Essentia Chenin Blanc Stellenbosch
Hannah's. Nose and palate of honey, lemon verbena, dried pears, and ocean/saline. Excellent palate weight and finish--a serious CB imported by the South African owners of Betz Winery in Washington state.
2019 Domaine des Forges Savennières Clos du Papillon Chenin Blanc
Reggie's. Slightly botrytisized--this vineyard is picked in several passes, but complex and wicked good. I failed to write any further description other than "fruity start, clean crisp finish" and that I begged one of the retailers present to get some in for me.
2011 Domaine Huet Vouvray Sec Clos du Bourg Chenin Blanc
Erik's and the first of three Huet CdB's to show up tonight. Medium gold, nose of apple sauce, persimmon and light petrol. On the palate, a bit sweet for a Sec but overall a good showing.
2018 Thibaud Boudignon Anjou Blanc Chenin Blanc
Bart's. Bone dry, tight and tart "like an angry Granny Smith apple" said someone. A bit too dry even for me who has a very dry palate. I'll bet if allowed to rest open overnight, good things would have happened. Hard to judge on this tasting, though.
2006 Domaine des Baumard Savennières Clos du Papillon Chenin Blanc
My wine, and the first of three bottles purchased last fall. Pale toasty color. Quoting another reviewer, "Soft lanolin, vanilla, baked apple, honey, muddled mint, wet stone..." This bottle offered all that with decent acidity and a long finish. Only thing that surprised me is that it lacked any of the washed rind cheese notes typical (to me) Savvies.
2021 Domaine Bernard Baudry Chinon Le Domaine Blanc Chenin Blanc
Gabe's. A previous reviewer wrote: "Subtle aromas of pears, white pepper and oyster shell give way to a crisp, off-dry, apricot, yellow apple and mineral driven saline profile that echo effortlessly." On reviewing my notes this morning I instinctively disagreed with off-dry, yet I see that besides "OFS" and "LOVE THIS", I wrote "Sake-ish". Probably what that other reviewer was pointing out, too. Super interesting; all of us are Baudry fans but none of us had ever seen this Blanc before.
This group whips out so many bottles so fast, and the passing of bottles gets pretty sketchy. A muscadet appeared here and it wasn't a Clos de Briords. That's all I can tell you. I missed two others over the course of the night as well.
2017 La Carrodilla Chenin Blanc Valle de Guadalupe
Erik's. This is why I love this group; they find all kinds of things to bring to a Loire Chenin Blanc tasting like this outlier from Mexico. Classic flavors and structure; good!!!
2021 Serge Dagueneau Pouilly-Fumé Les Pentes Sauvignon Blanc
Tim's. On the nose an unusual but harmonious blend of sweet and savory hit at once: lime leaf, white flowers, green fig and fresh bay leaf. The midpalate flavors lasted so long that they masked the acidity on the finish, which was there just hiding. The whole experience was ethereal--and total love at first sight for me. Outstanding; I ordered some.
2020 Domaine Huet Vouvray Demi-Sec Clos du Bourg Chenin Blanc
Connie's. Pale gold with sweet honeysuckle nose and honeydew melon, apple and orange on the palate. We debated whether the RS was more than usual or the acidity not simply enough for balance, but then 'balance' was subjective depending on one's appetite for sweetness.
2000 Domaine Huet Vouvray Sec Clos du Bourg Chenin Blanc
My wine, which I held back to be the last white before the reds started going around. Deep orange-gold. Bear claw pastry w/o the icing, marmalade notes, dry, lightly oxidative but years away from expiration. Interesting!
NV Paul Prieur & Fils Sancerre Rosé Perpétuel Pinot Noir
Bart's. Quoting another source who wrote a better review than I could: "A stunning Pinot Noir from Sancerre. A Multi-vintage blend kept in a Solera, a vanishingly rare system for making Sancerre, but the results of this wine make us think this should be more common. Stunningly elegant, crystal clear, yet profound. The finish lingers on almost indefinitely, leaving behind a field of wild strawberries and dusty white soil on the palate."
2021 Catherine et Pierre Breton Grolleau Val de Loire
Daniel's. Funky-stinky, light bodied like watermelon juice, and strange. Someone said, amusingly, "smells like a fart".
2014 Domaine Bernard Baudry Chinon Le Clos Guillot Cabernet Franc
Erik's. Initial burst of cattle ranch aromas fades somewhat in the glass, med-full bodied dark fruits with black olives, sage brush and all that roadside garrique stuff. Fantastic.
2021 Francisque Lapandéry Côte Roannaise Vieilles Vignes Raisin Egrappe Gamay
My wine; decanted for two hours at home before the tasting. Lighter bodied black raspberry fruit with that odd old vine taste, pomegranate, and bay leaf. Fresh and classy.
2021 COR Cellars Cabernet Franc Alder Ridge Vineyard Horse Heaven Hills, WA
Tim's. Obviously not French. Vitamin B nose, sweet and heavy, "like Dr. Pepper and Cheetos" remarked one taster. Vile.
2018 Acorn Cabernet Franc Alegría Vineyards Russian River Valley, CA
My last contribution. Complex, only medium bodied, with light berry fruit, spice and dry leaves on an autumn day. Didn't stand out as New World let alone Californian even in an all-Loire tasting, especially after the brutal COR it followed. Everybody liked; I was pretty proud of it.
2018 Château Pierre-Bise Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru Chenin Blanc
500 ml bottle. Unfortunately took no note except "sweet and complex", d'oh! It was the end of a long night.
2021 L'Ecole No. 41 Chenin Blanc Old Vines Yakima Valley
A latecomer snuck this one in. Dry and tangy with muted apple and citrus accented with coconut and seaspray. One of the better versions of this I've had, and an excellent example of new world chenin that's not too ripe or overdone.