Archive for January 2017
A Pinot Blanc-Auxerrois blend
Alsace 2013, Pinot Blanc, Domaine Pfister ($31.00, private import, 6 bottles/case)
Actually a blend of Pinot Blanc and Auxerrois, probably in near equal proportion, from several small plots of 25-year-old vines on marly Osthoffen hillsides. The estate’s viticultural practices lean organic. The grapes are manually harvested. The juice from the crushed fruit is gravity-fed into stainless steel tanks for fermentation with indigenous yeasts, which can last from three to eight weeks depending on the vintage. Temperature control is limited to avoiding heat spikes. Small doses of sulphur are applied at pressing, post fermentation and at bottling. 12.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Dried white peach, Meyer lemon zest, white flowers. Mouth-filling, even chewy, yet also graceful. Pure-fruited yet also dry and savoury, with mineral underpinnings and crisp but rounded acidity. There’s more depth than one usually associates with this grape and good length too. Delightful if a bit pricey (a while back the wine went for around $23 at the LCBO). The estate appears to be one worth keeping an eye on. (Buy again? Yes.)
MWG November 10, 2016, tasting: flight 6 of 9
A trio from Dehours & Fils
Based in Mareuil-le-Port, Dehours & Fils was founded in 1930 by Ludovic Dehours, who eventually handed the reins to his son Robert. Financial partners took over following Robert’s early death. The estate returned to family control in 1996 and is now run by Robert’s son, Jérôme. Around 14 hectares of vines produce some 80,000 bottles in an average year. Pinot Meunier features prominently in many of the wines.
Champagne, Brut, Grande Réserve, Dehours & Fils ($57.00, private import, 6 bottles/case)
The house’s flagship bottling. 100% Pinot Meunier in this batch though the wine usually has some Chardonnay and Pinot Noir blended in. Made with the addition of reserve wine from a solera dating back to 1998, which constitutes about 10% of the final blend. Residual sugar: 6 g/l. 12% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Fine persistent bead. Complex nose with scents of “green,” “lit match,” “herbes de Provence” and dried apple. Clean, fresh, minerally and not fruit forward. Brilliant, incisive acidity. Considerable depth and length for a wine at this price point. An aperitif champagne par excellence. (Buy again? Gladly.)
Champagne 2009, Rosé, Brut, Cuvée Œil de Perdrix, Dehours & Fils ($74.00, private import, 6 bottles/case)
Mostly Pinot Meunier with a dollop of old-vine Chardonnay that was fermented in barriques. Matured four years. 12% ABV. 1,825 bottles made. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Faint beigey pink with salmon glints. Fine bead but not much foam. Umami-ish nose of Dutch rusk and red berries. Sleek, elegant, savoury, balanced and dry, with a long minerally finish. “The un-rosé rosé” noted one taster. Pretty fabulous. (Buy again? Def.)
Champagne 2007, Extra Brut, Maisoncelle, Dehours & Fils ($91.00, private import, 6 bottles/case)
100% Pinot Noir from the Maisoncelle lieu-dit; the vines were planted in the early 1970s. Fermented and matured in barrels. 12% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Pale gold with darker gold glints. Complex and savoury: pork ramen, apple, peach, gooseberry… Finely balanced between ripe fruit, complex minerality and sleek acidity. Rich, deep and perfectly proportioned. Long and delicious. Du grand as they say around here. (Buy again? Yes.)
MWG November 10, 2016, tasting: flight 5 of 9
A vintage blanc de blancs from Diebolt-Vallois
Champagne 2007, Blanc de Blancs, Diebolt-Vallois ($78.00, private import, 6 bottles/case)
100% Chardonnay from older vines in Cuis (60%), Chouilly and Épernay and young vines in Cramant, where the house is based. The grapes from each parcel were vinified separately and only the first-pressed juice was used. Fermented in temperature-controlled tanks. Underwent malolactic fermentation. Dosage: 6 to 8 g/l. 12.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Straw-coloured with gold glints, a fine bead and not much foam. Intriguing, savoury nose of candied apple, sage-like herbs, brioche and a floral note. So elegant and balanced on the palate, the ripe fruit (pear, apple, lemon and maybe lime) nicely restrained and mineral-laced, the acidity soft yet sustained. The long finish is marked by a faint pithy bitterness, a touch of honey and an elusive quality that another taster likened to “mineral water.” My first encounter this house; I look forward to the next. (Buy again? Yes.)
MWG November 10, 2016, tasting: flight 4 of 9
Two black and white blends from Legouge-Copin
Champagne, Brut, Réserve, Legouge-Copin ($59.00, private import, 6 bottles/case)
Chardonnay (usually from more than one vintage) and Pinot Noir (usually from more than one vintage). 12% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Pale gold with sunshine yellow glints, little foam and a fine bead. Faintly oxidized nose of lanolin, oatmeal, lemon, chalk and bread. In the mouth, it’s rich yet dry, with tiny bubbles, racy acidity and good minerality. Finishes clean and long. In short, a fleet and appetizing wine. The bottle opened on New Year’s eve was even more singular and impressive and made a fine accompaniment to New Brunswick sturgeon caviar and crème fraîche-smeared blinis. (Buy again? Definitely.)
Champagne 2006, Brut, Blancs et Noirs, Legouge-Copin ($61.00, private import, 6 bottles/case)
Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. 12% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Pale straw with light gold glints. Lots of foam. The umami-rich nose brings candied apple, nougat and brioche to mind. Rich, round, smooth, fluid and elegant on the palate, notable for its lifting effervescence, soft-glow acidity and “seaweed” overtone. The long finish brings a faint bitter note. The bottle opened on New Year’s eve seemed classic if a little more conventional than the Brut Réserve. (Buy again? Yes, though the Brut Réserve is more my style.)
MWG November 10, 2016, tasting: flight 3 of 9
Sparkling PN rosés from Alsace and Champagne
Crémant d’Alsace, Brut, Rosé, Domaine Pfister ($39.00, private import, 6 bottles/case)
100% Pinot Noir. No technical information is to be found about this traditional method sparkler, which is absent from the producer’s website and little mentioned on the Web. 12.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Pale coppery pink with a very fine bead. Leesy nose of red berries, faint orange peel and “a hint of sweet prosciutto” (per another taster). In the mouth, it’s very dry and glowingly acidic. The subtle fruit allows the mineral underlay to come clearly through. The bitter-edged finish is nicely sustained. Serious without being severe and standing up to comparison with its more prestigious flightmate. Probably excellent with food. (Buy again? Yes.)
Champagne, Brut, Rosé, Prestige, Pierson-Cuvelier ($53.00, private import, 6 bottles/case)
100% Pinot Noir. The colour for this traditional method sparkler comes from maceration on the skins; no other technical information is to be found. 12% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Two shades darker than the Pfister with bigger bubbles and lots of foam. Outgoing nose of brioche and raspberry. Rounder, fruitier (red berries, pomegranate) and less dry than the crémant with zingy acidity and a pronounced mineral component. Enjoyable enough but a little overshadowed by the other sparkling rosés in the tasting. (Buy again? Maybe.)
MWG November 10, 2016, tasting: flight 2 of 9
Chitry and Chablis
Mon Caviste (aka Mon Caviste, Côté Vignes) is a Montreal-based wine agency with a lower profile than some. A few notable exceptions aside (Le Vieux Donjon, for example), it focuses on the private import channel. What’s more, few of the producers it represents are big names. And yet its wines are invariably interesting and delicious, as evidenced by their inclusion on the lists of many of the city’s top restaurants and the large orders that have followed each of the agency’s visits to the Mo’ Wine Group.
In November, Mon Caviste’s head, Roberto De Lisi, led a MWG tasting of wines – mostly sparklers – from the agency’s portfolio. We began with two still white Burgundies from the new-to-us Domaine de la Tour.
Founded in 1992 and located in Lignorelles, near Chablis, Domaine de la Tour has around 13 hectares of vines in production, including 3.72 hectares in Chablis 1er cru and 5.6 hectares in Chablis. Annual production is 30,000 bottles. While not organic, the estate has not used synthetic herbicides, pesticides or fertilizers since 2003.
Bourgogne Chitry 2015, Domaine de la Tour ($26.00, private import, 12 bottles/case)
100% Chardonnay from vines rooted in marly limestone. Vinified and matured entirely in tanks. Fermented with selected yeasts. Undergoes malolactic fermentation. Cold-stabilized before bottling to precipitate out tartrates. 12.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Lovely nose: lemon, apple, chalk, “a little candied,” “white flowers” and “a hint of truffle” and of ash. More substantial than expected in the mouth. Understated fruit, tons of minerals and very dry. Bracing acidity adds a nice bite to the long finish. Fair complexity and good balance. This near-Chablis is a QPR winner. A second bottle opened in late December was, if anything, even more satisfying. (Buy again? Done!)
Chablis 1er cru 2014, Mont Mains, Domaine de la Tour ($40.00, private import, 12 bottles/case)
100% Chardonnay from vines rooted in the Kimmeridgian marly limestone soil of the Montmains vineyard, of which the estate has 2.51 hectares in production. Vinified in vats and French oak barrels. Fermented with selected yeasts. Undergoes malolactic fermentation. Matured in tanks and barrels. Cold-stabilized before bottling to precipitate out tartrates. 13% ABV. Quebec agent: Mon Caviste.
Classic if somewhat closed nose of apple, lemon, minerals and truffle. Similarly closed on the palate yet clearly complete and elegant. More structured, more layered, tenser and deeper than the Chitry, the fruit ripe, the minerals dancing, the acidity positively electric. A brown butter note overtones the finish. Appetizing, dry, long and clean. Again, the QPR is high. (Buy again? Yes.)
MWG November 10, 2016, tasting: flight 1 of 9
Brett happens 