Tag: Briefs

BRIEFS BLANC

BRIEFS

  • It’s time, actually perhaps a little past the time to still get in on the 2014 White Burgundies. This is the best vintage w have tasted since 2010, and definitely more on point and well delineated than the 2015s that are now hitting the market.  We are still scouring the countryside for late arriving 2014s and suggest you take this opportunity to grab a few more things while you still can.  The new Chateau de Meursault Clos du Chateau 2014 is one of the best we have tasted from a series we have followed for years.  This beautifully situated little insiders’ gem just outside the village definitely plays at a high  2014, with a complex nose of mineral, honey, flowers and salt caramel.  In the mouth it delivers citrus, toast, grilled nuts, peach and pear with a deceptively rich midpalate and finishing lift.  We’re also getting final reloads on 2014s of value favorites Albert Bichot Bourgogne Chardonnay Secret de Famille 2014 ($19.98) and Olivier Leflaive Bourgogne Blanc Les Setilles 2014 ($19.98).  If you’re feeling flush there are a few bits left of the epic 2014s from Domaine Leflaive.
  • We probably don’t spend enough time talking about California Chardonnays. But honestly there is a lot of homogeneity stylistically and it seems to be one category where people are more brand conscious and less willing to listen.  So finding things we think are worth talking about and then choosing our ‘battles’ doesn’t allow for many opportunities.  We got quite excited about the Alma de Cattleya Chardonnay a while back from dynamic young winemaker Bibiana Gonzalez Rave, but hadn’t been significantly moved in a while since.  That being said, a couple of ‘old guard’ names got our attention recently.  The name Truchard has been on other people’s labels as well as their own, but often their own wines might have been a touch too restrained for their own good.   We appreciate the old school, sort of euro, less-fussed with style that we all grew up with, but there is a thin line between ‘sleek’ and ‘boring’.  The Truchard Chardonnay Carneros Napa Valley 2015 had just a bit more stuffing in the mid-palate than other versions we have tasted, and that little went a lot way to kick this wine to a new level.  Classic Carneros apple/citrus, deft oak, and ripe but fresh flavors with a little more carry, this works.  It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what was different about the Chappellet Chardonnay Napa Valley 2014, which is often overlooked in favor of their reds and even their Chenin Blanc.  This one got our attention right away, with what is aptly described in the wine Spectator review, “Pure, rich and graceful, centered on a core of green apple, pear, melon and spice… A classic old-school Napa Chardonnay.”
  •  If you had told us 20 years ago that the Cotes de Jura would be one of the hippest appellations around sporting several sought after whites that sold in the $50 range, we would have thought you were from an alternate universe. Yet that is the case, and some of the things coming out of there these days, like those from the Jean Francois Ganevat, have created quite a stir.  This estate is clearly looking like the ‘next big thing’ from this area.  Thanks to the serious folks behind it (Burgundy legend Marquis d’Angerville started here in 2012) suggests this wine will get media attention and clearly, from the juice, they are aiming high.  The Domaine du Pelican Savagnin Ouille Arbois 2014 is a riveting wine, this indigenous varietal showcasing  driving flavors and deceptive length.   Also, for those of you that think Jura is too oxidative, this one is ‘ouille’, which means ‘topped off’ so they keep the barrels full to control the ‘sherry’ notes.  The descriptors from a 2013 review hit home, “very subtle aromas of peach skin, oyster shell and white flowers. Crisp on the attack, showing a salty tension that animates the quince and herbal flavors on the palate.”  Serious juice, superb with food and well worth the freight.  Their Domaine du Pelican Chardonnay Arbois 2014 is a fine specimen of the more traditional ‘flor‘ style as well.  

 

 

 

BRIEFS (BLANC)

  • While we could write volumes on all of these (and may later on), we’d like to call attention to a few cool, off-the-main-road whites we’ve gathered in over the last few weeks.  A little sunshine can do that.  We’ll start by saying the 2015 whites from Savoie have been wonderful surprises.  A little warmer vintage in these pristine high-valley vineyards add a layer of flesh and fruit as a bonus to the crisp minerality and pure, floral flavors.  If we have to name one, start with the Jean Masson Savoie Vieilles Vignes Traditionnelle Apremont 2015, a fresh, delicate white with plenty of verve that is a star with lighter fish dishes.
  • Got Greek?  We stumbled across Assyrtiko, a crisp, mineral infused white from the Greek island of Santorini during an attempt to put together a Greek wine section with a Greek food importer some years back.  Curiously, not many years later, the brand, Sigalas, turned up on the Wine Spectator Top 100.  Since that time more, and more serious Greek producers have found their way here.  Ktima Vourvoukeli is new to us, and the winery is located in northeastern Greece about 30 miles from the Mediterranean.  The Ktima Vourvoukeli Assyrtiko 2015 is an exciting find, especially considering the Sigalas has become trendy, more expensive and harder to keep in stock.  This one is a touch fleshier with a nice layer of yellow stone fruit, a little less severe minerality, but still plenty of lift and brightness.  We aren’t sure, since this is our first go-round with Ktima, if its the region, the vintage, or both that gives it its particular character, but it is a superb alternative white at a great price.  Oopah!
  • We have been threatening to bring out examples of the new wave in South Africa but have be restrained to a large extent by some of the passionate new importers’ lack of logistical skills.  We know enough to tell you that there is a groundswell of fresh activity around the Cape and some unique and exciting new faces coming down the pike, however slowly. We’ve been doing this long enough to know that you likely aren’t going to go looking for something called Thorne and Daughters Rocking Horse Cape White 2015 unless we give you a good reason.  This is a captivating if previously unimagined white blend of 33% Roussanne, 28% Semillon blanc, 20% Chardonnay, 18% Chenin Blanc and 6% Clairette that comes together to deliver a sleek melange of white stome fruit, citrus, delicate botanicals and a slightly honeyed note. There’s a tactile yet waxy mouthfeel with a good backbone of acidity.  Skillfully done, this one really grabbed us.