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| Burgundy Deep inside my heart, I know I can't escape |
Domaine Pierre Duroche, Gevrey-Chambertin Premier Cru, Les Champeaux, 2014
Now's a good time to drink this, with its smooth surface texture counterpointed by slightly rasping tannins that underpin the deep, pure fruit and intense floral aromas and flavors. And beneath all that, the sweet scent of clean sweat and mammal body. Refined and beautiful, deep and nuanced with understated power, it builds slowly to unfold a rusty, flavorsome finish. Three hours and the nose is pure magic, as it adds iron, rotting leaves and spices, even while the palate grows even more savory and nuanced. (Sept. 2, 2021)
Niepoort, Bairrada, Lagar de Baixo, 2018
If I read the Niepoort site correctly, Lagar de Baixo is an old, lighter style of Baga, which the Niepoort team revived after hunting up small, select parcels of old Baga vines in the Cantanhede region and buying the local Quinta de Baixo and setting up shop there. The Niepoort version is damn wonderful, closer to the silky texture of Pinot Noir than Jaen/Mencia, an Iberian grape more often compared to Burgundian reds. Lithe and moreish, it shows a plentiful, and at the same time measured, recipe of red berries, wet soil, and black pepper. (Sept. 3, 2021)
A consistent, unclassified growth from the Mouton stable, showing typical Pauillac aromas of currants, hints of pencil shavings and iron. The tannins are scratchy, but overall, this is well balanced and ready to drink with long airing time - the last third of the bottle left overnight was much better as the oak had integrated. Having said that, despite the relative friendliness of the 2008 vintage, I will hang on to my bottles of 2008, the last Bordeaux vintage I went deep into (and, at my age, the last). (Aug. 28, 2021)
Selbach-Oster, Mosel, Zeltinger Sonnenuhr, Riesling Spätlese, feinherb Ur Alte Reben, 2015
I would guess this isn't dry enough to qualify as a Grosses Gewachs, even if Selbach actually belonged to the VDP. And yet, it's my favorite dry (off-dry? whatever) Riesling from the Mosel. Being a feinherb, there's a soft kiss of sweetness to temper the racy acidity. It isn't bone dry, but the clear fruit conveys a sense of old bones and fossils, by way of the crisp, salty finish and the hints of smoke and Atlantic salt on the nose. (Sept. 5, 2021)
Tzora, Misty Hills, 2016
Misty Hills requires at least 7-8 years of aging, so it's hardly a surprise that that 2016 is at a somewhat awkward stage, fruity, even relatively primary and stern and rough at the same time. Captivating, if not an easy wine to consume, with the usual pine needles and dry earth. Even a hint of gun powder. (Sept. 6, 2021)
Niepoort, Vinho Verde, Nat Cool Branco, 2020
This seems to be made of every Vinho Verde grape except the more renowned Alvarinho. It’s the most vivid, vital green wine I’ve ever drunk, due to the light secondary fermentation in bottle. It doesn’t even look green, but bright, cloudy yellow. Extremely moreish, with fresh powerful grapefruit flavors and minerals. Sold only in 1 liter bottles. (Sept. 6, 2021)
R. López de Heredia, Rioja, Reserva, Viña Bosconia, 2009
This is the elegant, more Bourgogne-like of Heredia's two Reservas (the other is the Tondonia). Ideally, this should be cellared for another decade; it's virtually a Gran Reserva in its own right. Even now, it's complex and nuanced, with sour cherries, smoky earth, some iron fillings. The texture is still a little rough, and Heredia reds do take a good many years to mature. (Sept. 7, 2021)
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