Garden Tasting of a Plethora of wines.

Notes from a garden blind tasting:

2006 Philipponnat Champagne Le Léon Extra Brut – quite pale colour, excellent acidity, crisp and long. Waxy nose with hints of pear and spice. Good.

2016 Champagne Christophe Baron Champagne Les Alouettes Charly-sur-Marne – prize for longest name of he day. More colour in this bubble, and less acid, so a softer, rounder presentation. Pinot meunier brut nature, with pear notes underlaid by tropical fruit. A very, very good wine. Made by Christopher Baron of Cayuse in Washington State.

2012 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru La Perrière Blanc – runner up for longest name. Medium yellow colour, nose of citrus, hazelnut and some sweeter fruit at the end. Suspect a bit of RS.

2018 Phantom Creek Estates Pinot Gris – first B.C. entry. Ripe and tropical in the nose, with floral notes and a bit of apple crispness at the end. Olivier Humbrecht is consultant on this.

2021 Little Engine Chardonnay – another BC wine with light colour, a sweetness in the nose and some difficulty nailing varietal with any certainty.

2015 Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Großes Gewächs Alte Reben – almost pipped the Baron bubbly for length of name. Up front lime, wet stone and a hint of wax, medium length, clean finish.

2017 Blue Mountain Pinot Noir Wild Terrain Block 09 – one of the top end small single vineyard wines from this producer. Mid colour, some spice in the nose with some nice dark cherry/raspberry notes, smooth and long with some spice coming out with time. Excellent.

2015 Thomas Pinot Noir Dundee Hills – this Oregon Pinot was medium garnet with a steer fruit nose with some pepper. Sweet long finish.

2009 Domaine Michel Gros Morey St. Denis En la Rue de Vergy – this Burg showed medium to dark colour, dark fruit nose with good body and length. Very tasty.

2004 Fairview Cellars The Bear – made by a real ‘soup Nazi’ type of winery owner/vintner (if he didn’t like the look of you, it was “No wine for you!”). Very dark wine with a nose of big fruit with spicy hints and a long finish with soft tannins. In a good place now (the first bottle from my cellar). It is a Bordeaux blend (Cab. Sauv, Merlot, Cab. Franc, Malbec and Petite Verdot).

2010 Gali – an oddball from Gallipoli in Turkey made of merlot and cab franc. Came across as an older wine with an interesting nose of soy sauce and cherries (!?)

1995 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon Backus Vineyard – dark wine with intense nose of dark fruit and wood, soft tannin, plus the characteristic mint/eucalyptus, and good length. Very nice wine.

2009 Le Vieux Pin Syrah Équinoxe – my second bottle, from a BC winery with great aspirations and purist (and expensive) wine growing and vinification. Really excellent syrah nose with raspberry, roasted meat and a long dry finish. You could believe that you were drinking Hermitage if someone told you that. Seemed younger than it is.

I was trying to be first!

After a hike in Capilano gorge, Betsy and I headed over to Bill’s where a fun group was waiting. Lovely garden with a river view. I had only met Jenise and Bob before, but everyone treated us like old friends. People brought a great assortment of food - smoked salmon blinis with caviar (from a salmon Alvin had landed himself), some salumi from Salumi in Seattle (mole, finocchiona, soppresata), fennel and citrus salad, jambon persille terrine, golden beet salad (with pretty purple sage flower garnish), and grilled flank steak salad with (wonderful) marinated mushrooms , chicken liver mousse, cheese and bread. And there was wine

Blind bubbly magnum- citrusy, dry, some thought older, not the most verve but nice flavor profile. Turns out winemaker is the winemaker at Cayuse. 100% Pinot Meunier
2016 Christophe Baron “Alouettes” Champagne Brut Nature B+

Blind bubbly 750 - mine so no guessing for me, Jenise gets Blanc de Noirs right away. Pears, spice, warm bread. Always liked this wine, sad to see my last one go. 2006 Philipponnat “le Leon” Blanc de Noirs Extra Brut B+/A-

Blind white: Oily and floral, first guesses were Rhone varieties, which seemed spot on to me. Big, perfumed, hint of sweetness. Very interesting, though not a style or variety I gravitate towards, I ended up liking. (2018-thanks Bill for noting) Phantom Creek Estates Pinot Gris. B

Another one of mine. Admitting Pinot Blanc/Gouges is a bit of a curveball, so took some time to get around to it. Pear, lemon, and almonds, in a good place. 2012 Gouges La Perriere Nuits St George Blanc B+

Blind white: OK, took a LONG time to get to Chardonnay. Sweet note, red delicious apple with a waxy note, I thought Chenin. 2021 Little Engine Chardonnay B/B-

Blind white- Someone immediately said Riesling, I guessed Nahe, because I thought it could be Emrich-Schonleber Mineral, a trocken I like with similar profile (and 2nd guess was Rheinhessen thinking Keller Limestone). Pink grapefruit, orange blossom, very light petrolly note, nice length and prersistence. 2015 Dr Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr GG B++

First red . Someone immediately got PN, but I was thinking Burg as this had a nice lacy texture. Red fruits, mushroom notes. I would have never gotten BC. 2017 Blue Mountain Wild Terrain Block 9 Pinot Noir. B+/A-

Blind red- another that could be an elegant Burg, but someone got Oregon, and with hints producer. Red cherry, beets, spice and truffle. Very good. 2015 Thomas Pinot Noir (Dundee Hills)A-

Blind Red -OK, so this is Burgundy, albeit from a ripe year. I missed commune with Volnay and Chambolle guesses, but at least got vintage. Red and black cherry, sandalwood, pretty ready to go. 2009 Michel Gros “Rue de Vergy” Morey St Denis. B+/B

Blind red- I was certain this was mature Bordeaux. Cassis, black plum, cigarbox, still a touch of tannin. BC! Really! 2004 Fairview The Bear A-/B+

Blind red- Plummy, kirschy, with a bit of VA. Initial guess was ripe year St Emilion, but not France. I think we went through all of traditional Europe (and I threw in Lebanon) without getting country. 2010 Gali (Turkey) B-

My 1989 Vieux Chateau Certan was corked, a particular indignity after carrying 2500 miles.

My other wine wasn’t. Full, balanced, loaded with mint, someone immediately got old school Cali, Jenise got Phelps, Alvin Backus, Bill 1985. 1985 Phelps Backus Cabernet Sauvignon. A-

Smoky, bacon fat, seemed textbook Northern Rhone, I’m thinking Cornas but it turns out to be BC! My fave BC wine of the day, in very strong competition. 2009 Le Vieux Pin Equinoxe Syrah. A-

There was a late addition of 2003 Il Poggione Brunello di Montaclino, which I was surprised by vintage, as it didn’t seem uberripe. Nice wine

Really fun time, with really nice people. I didn’t bring my notebook and was only taking teeny notes on phone. At one point I grabbed my phone to go and talk to people at other end of table, except it was Bill’s phone! Luckily he realized it was missing and called, otherwise it could have ended up in US (well, at least elsewhere in Vancouver). I need to get a more distinctive case.

Thanks to all for making us welcome!

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C drinkable. 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.
Edited to add vintage to the PG

...Someone immediately got PN, but I was thinking Burg as this had a nice lacy texture. Red fruits, mushroom notes. I would have never gotten BC. 2017 Blue Mountain Wild Terrain Block 9 Pinot Noir. B+/A-.

I'm guessing that is because of limited exposure to BC PN? I don't think I've ever had one, so I certainly would not have been able to identify!

I didn’t take any notes, but Dale’s champagne was one of my favourites of the day. Right in my wheelhouse, fairly rich in style, lovely mousse, drinking really well now. Thanks for bringing that wine, Dale! Jenise’s Thomas Pinot noir was also a favourite. It was my first taste of a Thomas wine, and I loved it. It was very restrained for a 2015, and showed elegance and class - beautiful red berry fruits. Dale’s Napa Cabernet was also outstanding, a classic style that was drinking well now. It was interesting tasting some of the BC wines and there were a couple of impossible to guess varieties and regions!

It was great to meet Dale and many thanks to Bill for hosting us in his lovely garden on such a beautiful day.

[Jenise]

...Someone immediately got PN, but I was thinking Burg as this had a nice lacy texture. Red fruits, mushroom notes. I would have never gotten BC. 2017 Blue Mountain Wild Terrain Block 9 Pinot Noir. B+/A-.

I'm guessing that is because of limited exposure to BC PN? I don't think I've ever had one, so I certainly would not have been able to identify!

Dale can answer, but as a big big fan of Blue Mountain Winery with some experience with BC wines I will add that what they do is not representative of all things BC. They are an exceptional producer, one of the first in the region, but decried as 'austere' by those who dislike high acidity and minerality. I'll add that after decades of making just Reserve and Regular pinots, as of the vintage we're discussing here they now instead make three geological site-specific pinots and a kitchen sink cuvee. Could hardly think of a better wine to pour a visitor like Dale to show what BC is capable of.

[Jenise]

My notes:

The two bubblies were poured side by side. Dale's 2006 Philipponnat Champagne Le Léon Extra Brut: loved this. A very elegant rarity showing true to age and origins and my preference of the two. To me, more pear flavors here than in the bright lemon and green apple of my wine, a cheerful 2016 Champagne Christophe Baron Champagne Les Alouettes Charly-sur-Marne. This bottle was a magnum because Christophe only bottled magnums. It was ridiculously expensive ($275) but one of those capricious YOLO buys a few months ago, and a wine from the most famous winemaker in my state seemed the perfect thing to say "welcome to the PNW with". Only half was consumed at lunch, and we put a champagne stopper in it to carry home where, later, Bob decided to pour a glass. Bad news: a mere six hours after having been opened, it was flat.

2012 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru La Perrière Blanc – Dale's wine which I found lightly oxidative. Seemed ripe anyway, and roussanne and marsanne were the first grapes ruled out followed by chenin. Very hard to identify. I almost brought an older Gouges burgundy--now I wish I had.

2018 Phantom Creek Estates Pinot Gris – I guessed this right off the bat based on a bottle Coop opened in the OK last October. It's a very perfumed, concentrated style, pretty unheard of in North America where PG is nothing but a vapid bar wine, but this style is popular in New Zealand. Good on Alvin for bringing this new and different face of BC white.

2021 Little Engine Chardonnay – Bob A brought this oily and floral wine that bore a strong resemblance to the fat of semillon and the lanolin of chenin blanc but none at all to chardonnay. To be fair, Bob said this bottle was "not indicative of what this wine has been".

2015 Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Großes Gewächs Alte Reben – John popped this out when his fantastic fennel and orange salad was served. Perfect pairing. Intense apricot, tangerine, lime and coconut flavors but dry. Excellent.

2017 Blue Mountain Pinot Noir Wild Terrain Block 09 – you and Dale captured this perfectly. Very excited about how this is showing right now since, thanks to Bill, I have some.

2015 Thomas Pinot Noir Dundee Hills – I have nothing to add to everyone else's descriptions except to say that this bottle had a bad cork and there was significant seepage under the capsule. So while beguiling and not tasting damaged, what we drank was a lesser version of what this wine can be. Btw, the cork problem in this vintage is well known but I had not experienced it yet--natch, first time I take one to show off for friends, I get my first.

2009 Domaine Michel Gros Morey St. Denis En la Rue de Vergy – I was in the kitchen getting my dishes ready to go out and did not get the opportunity to taste this wine.

2004 Fairview Cellars The Bear – really good. First time I've had a Fairview but knew the reputation. A bit on the rustic side but otherwise everything you describe and impressive. I take it this winery no longer exists?

2010 Gali – I agree with you on the soy sauce--a sign of decay, and not a good thing. The last bottle I opened in 2016 was "plummy, earthy and dry", and "by far the most Bordeauxish wine present" and a "crowd favorite" among 15 high end West Coast Bordeaux style wines. I thought then it needed more time. Apparently, I gave it too much.

1995 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon Backus Vineyard – Bill, this was an '85, not a '95. But yes, gorgeous wine. Massive eucalyptus on the nose (something I love and always prized in Phelps wines) and drank like silk. Thank you Dale for bringing this treasure.

2009 Le Vieux Pin Syrah Équinoxe – A little sunburnt on the nose which is not terribly surprising for what was such a hot vintage up here, with raspberry, boysenberry, beef boullion and bacon notes. Another great example for Dale of what's possible up here.

And there was a Brunello. 2003 Il Poggione Brunello di Montaclino Good, perhaps exceptionally so considering the vintage, as Dale points out.

Yes, very limited exposure to BC wines, before last week I had I believe 3. Besides these I had 3 others last week I have to write up, but overall impressed.
Jenise if that was off bottle of Thomas would love to taste "on,"
Thanks again for Reyvaan, will open with geek friends
Lovely time in lovely setting

[Jenise]

Dale, there were no off flavors in that Thomas, it was just a tad less than expected on several levels.

[Jenise]

Dale and company: re the Thomas pinot, I just read recent CT notes from others on the wine. Lots of leaky corks!

Reviews of the non-leaky corks resemble my own review of my last bottle a year ago: [i] When a pinot is so good you can hardly remember the last pinot you had that came anywhere close: this...Cherry fruit, black tea, cherry cough lozenge, pepper, amazing spice, Chambolle-like. Texture is ethereal with terrific acidity and lazy tannins."

As good as the bottle we had last week was, it didn't quite achieve this.

Hello all, I am new to this forum and this is my first post.
I was a participant at the Plethora tasting at Bill's house on the river.
It was nice to meet Dale and Betsy, who were visiting from New York
As always, interesting and sometime great wines were poured.
Starting off with 2 Champagnes was a treat and they were both excellent.
I gave a slight edge to the Phillipponnat over the Christophe Baron. it had lovely aromas of yellow apple and was beautifully balanced. Jennifer called it a goldilocks wine as it was 'just right'.
It was hard to pick it over the Christophe Baron that Jenise brought.
I think most of us were pleasantly surprised by how well the Blue Mountain Pinot showed. I have some of the same vintage and I now know they are entering their drinking window.
The other BC wines showed well too, except for my Little Engine Chardonnay. oh, well.
Overall, an impressive plethora and an excellent lunch

[Jenise]

Bob, glad you finally got in. Appreciate your notes. And now that you're here, don't be a stranger!

Bob, was great to meet you. And Betsy loved having Jennifer et al to talk about things other than wine!