Posts Tagged ‘Off the beaten path’
New year, new sparklers
In reaction to the excesses of the holiday season, the Mo’ Wine Group’s January tasting traditionally focuses on affordable wines and 2016 was no exception. All the bottles were purchased at the SAQ and most if not all are still available, though not always in large quantities.
Cava, Brut, La Vida al Camp ($19.50, 12693895)
A blend of purchased Macabeo (45%), Xarel·lo (45%) and Parellada (10%) grapes from organically farmed vines grown by a select group of farmers. Made using the traditional method. Second fermentation, which produces the bubbles, takes place in the bottles, which are aged at least 15 months before disgorging. Reducing sugar: 4.8 g/l. 11.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Le Marchand des Vins.
Subdued but appealing nose of sandstone, white lemon and, as one taster perceptively noted, “almond.” Fine effervescence but little foam. On the palate, it’s clean, fresh and quite dry. The light citrus and mineral flavours are joined by faint saline and grapefruit pith notes on the medium-long finish. Elegant and, unlike many inexpensive bubblies, not devoid of character. If there’s a better cava at the SAQ at this price point, I’ve yet to encounter it. (Buy again? Yes.)
Crémant de Bordeaux, Brut, Paulian, Lateyron ($21.95, 12723003)
Sémillon (60%) and Cabernet Franc (40%) from vineyards in the northern and eastern Entre-Deux-Mers region. Made using the traditional method. The bottles are aged at least 24 months before disgorement. Reducing sugar: 12 g/l. 12% ABV. Quebec agent: Marchand des Amériques.
Somewhat more fragrant than its Spanish flightmate; the faintly floral aromas have an intriguing sour edge. Softly effervescent with fine bubbles that lighten the slightly waxy texture. Richer and rounder than the cava – probably due to the grape varieties involved, the extract levels and higher residual sugar – but still dry and fresh. The fruit tends to quince and maybe peach and lingers through the slow-fade finish. Not everyone around the table was convinced by this (“tastes like cream soda,” harrumphed one taster) but I and several others liked it. (Buy again? Sure.)
MWG January 14th tasting: flight 1 of 7
Black is back
Achaïa 2014, Kalavryta, Tetramythos ($16.85, 11885457)
The estate is located in Achaea, on the Gulf of Corinth in the northern Peloponnese. This wine is made using the free-run juice from organically farmed Black of Kalavryta (Μαύρο Καλαβρυτινό) grapes, an indigenous variety once widely grown in the area but now nearly extinct (Tetramythos is reportedly the only remaining producer). Alcoholic fermentation (with indigenous yeasts) and nine months’ maturation are in stainless steel vats. Unusually for a red wine, malolactic fermentation is prevented. Use of sulphur dioxide is kept to a bare minimum. The wine is unfined but coarsely filtered before bottling. 13% ABV. Quebec agent: oenopole.
Popped and poured. Subdued nose of sour cherry, black olives, dark spice and an old leather jacket splotched with dried earth. In the mouth, it’s light- to medium-bodied and bone dry. Here the clean fruit tends more to red plum and is infused with slate and iron. Acidity is present but not biting. A fine tannic astringency dries and textures the finish with its black pepper and red meat (iron again) notes. Half the bottle was transferred into an actual half-bottle, recorked and stuck in the fridge. Drunk two days later, the wine showed a tad sweeter, rounder and, if anything, tastier. In other words, a few hours’ carafing might not be a bad idea. A decent match for chicken braised with white wine, rosemary and garlic; the winery’s suggested pairing of fish baked in tomato sauce intrigues. (Buy again? For sure.)
Two sweet meads
Hydromel, Cuvée de la Diable, Ferme Apicole Desrochers ($19.95/375 ml, 10291008)
An off-dry mead made near Mont-Laurier in the Upper Laurentians from a selection of organic honey (spring, fall and buckwheat) and aged in oak casks for three years. The raw honey is mixed with water. The resulting honey water is decanted to eliminate impurities and transferred into stainless steel tanks for fermentation at ambient temperature for three to six weeks. Fermentation is stopped naturally by the alcohol and winter cold. The mead is then matured on the lees for six to 12 months before being transferred to oak casks for two and a half to five years’ aging. Selected casks are blended and bottled. Residual sugar: 80 g /l. 14% ABV. Quebec agent: La QV. The product is named after the nearby Diable River, la [rivière du] Diable in French (if it were named after the devil, it would be Cuvée du diable).
Complex nose of flowers, caramelized white fruit, honey, dusty beeswax, a touch of vanilla and more than a hint of cheese. Smooth, even buttery texture. Not particularly sweet. Possessed of a certain heft but far from heavy, thanks in no small part to the sustained acidity. Long finish with citrus and nougat notes. (Buy again? Sure.)
Hydromel, Or d’âge, Ferme Apicole Desrochers ($76.75, 12644145)
To make this sweet honey wine, the best barrels of the Cuvée de la Diable are given extended aging (between eight and 18 years) under a flor-like veil in oak casks that are not topped up. Unfiltered and unfined. Reducing sugar: > 60 g/l. 14% ABV. Quebec agent: La QV.
Astoundingly complex nose of dried honey, spice (especially cinnamon), dried flowers, aged pine, faint nuts and more. In the mouth, it’s semi-sweet, spicy and ultra-refined, infinitely more layered than the Cuvée de la Diable, with great balance between extract and acidity. The complex flavours are dominated by caramel and dried pear. An intriguing bitter thread emerges on the mid-palate and wends its way through the long, dry finish. Unique, disorienting, fascinating and ultimately convincing. Excellent with blue cheese. (Buy again? Definitely.)
As usual at MWG tastings, the wines were served double-blind and it was interesting to see people’s reactions to this flight unlike any other. Within seconds of taking their first sniff of the Cuvée de la Diable, two of the more critical tasters declared it to be a mead and did so with a frown on their faces. Their initial reaction on tasting the wine was hardly more positive. Other tasters were less vocal, uncertain what to make of it. The grumbling died down as more time was spent with the mead and turned positive, even enthusiastic, as people moved on to the Or d’âge and tasted both meads with cheese. In the end, the consensus was that, while both were impressive, the Or d’âge was exceptional, a world-class if unusual product and the solution to the sticky problem of what made-in-Quebec gift to take when visiting out-of-province wine lovers.
MWG November 12th tasting: flight 6 of 6
Three lighter reds
Württemburg 2014, Trollinger, Without All, Weingut Knauss ($28.00, private import, NLA)
100% Trollinger from organically farmed though uncertified vines. Fermented with indigenous yeasts. No added anything, whence the “without all.” Unfiltered and unfined. 9.5% ABV. Screwcapped. Quebec agent: Ward & associés.
A bit spritzy and reduced at first, then sour berries, slate and developing clay and animale notes. Light and fluid on the palate. Airframe tannins and bright acidity provide some structure and faint minerals some depth but this is mainly about the pure fruit. Lip-smacking, sweet and sour finish. Light-bodied almost to the point of lacking substance and yet refreshing and ultra-drinkable, this ethereal wine was a hit with several around the table, despite its high price. (Buy again? Gladly.)
Côtes du Forez 2014, La Volcanique, Cave Verdier-Logel ($21.80, private import, 12 bottles/case)
Based in Marcilly-le-Châtel, the certified organic 17-hectare estate grows Gamay and a little Pinot Gris and Viognier. This cuvée is 100% Gamay from old vines rooted in basalt soil. Manually harvested. Macerated 21 days at around 20°C. Fermented with indigenous yeasts. Lightly filtered (earth filters) before bottling. 12% ABV. Quebec agent: La QV/Insolite.
Sappy in the way of a good Beaujolais, though the red berries are a little candied and shot through with some greenness. Supple and tasty. Juicy fruit and sustained acidity play against a schisty backdrop while the tannins turn a little bitey on the sustained finish. Finely balanced yet appealingly rustic. To my surprise, this didn’t create the same sensation that the 2013 did (different contexts?). (Buy again? Yes.)
Quebec 2012, Pinot Noir Réserve, Domaine les Brome ($26.00, 12685879)
100% Pinot Noir according to the winery’s website (SAQ.com says the wine contains 7% Maréchal Foch). Macerated and fermented in stainless steel tanks. Matured 12 months in oak barrels. Reducing sugar: 1.9%. 12% ABV. Quebec agent: Univins.
A nose that tasters described as “electrical fire,” “cordite” and simply “weird.” Reactions to the taste were similar, “copper penny” being the one I noted. The not very pinot-ish fruit is brightened by good acidity but deflated by saggy tannins and muddied by extraneous flavours. Odd-tasting finish. I’m hoping ours was an off bottle. (Buy again? Unlikely.)
This flight was built around the Trollinger and the other two wines were chosen in the hope that they might be close to its light body. Neither was. In fact, I’ve encountered only one wine recently that is: Domaine de la Pinte’s 2012 Arbois “Poulsard de l’ami Karl,” which we tasted back in October.
MWG November 12th tasting: flight 4 of 6
Two weighty whites
Soave Classico 2012, La Froscà, Gini ($26.80, 12132107)
Organically farmed Garganega from 57-year-old vines. The manually harvested grapes are soft-pressed and the must is cold-macerated on the skins. Temperature-controlled alcoholic fermentation is in a mix of stainless steel and neutral French oak casks. Does not undergo malolactic fermentation. Matured on the lees for at least eight months, partly in stainless steel tanks, partly in 228-litre “seasoned” oak barrels. Sulphur is added only at bottling. Reducing sugar: 3.4 g/l. 13% ABV. Quebec agent: Bambara Selection.
Peach, lemon, quince, honey and fresh-cut hay make for a fairly appealing nose. In the mouth, however, it’s a different story. Viscous, extracted, dry, alcoholic and bitter on the finish. The relatively low acidity and lack of prominent minerals mean the wine tastes flat. Very different from the wine sampled a couple of months earlier. Even a Bambara employee who was present didn’t recognize it. Probably an off bottle, then. (Buy again? Based on this bottle, no. Based on the earlier bottle, absolutely. You pays your money and you takes your chances…)
Robola de Céphalonie 2014, Vino di Sasso, Domaine Sclavos ($25.20, 12485877)
First time at the SAQ. 100% Robola from organically farmed, ungrafted old vines grown on the Ionian island of Cephalonia. Vino di sasso means “wine of stone,” a reference to the island’s rocky cliffs and outcrops. The manually harvested grapes are directly pressed. The must is fermented at low temperatures with indigenous yeasts and matured eight months on the lees. Sees only stainless steel until bottling. Bottled unfiltered, unfined and with only a tiny squirt of sulphur dioxide. Reducing sugar: 3.9 g/l. 12.5% ABV. Quebec agent: oenopole.
Wafting nose of quartz, seashells, lemon and fresh sweat with faint background herbs. Medium-bodied yet possessed of a certain fruity heft, though by no means an exuberantly fruity wine. A rich vein of minerals runs throughout and lends a salty tang to the long, bitter-edged finish. Tasty enough, especially at table alongside a sea bass, but maybe lacking the last bit of éclat found in the 2013. (Buy again? Sure.)
MWG November 12th tasting: flight 2 of 6
L’autour d’Anne Paillet
Anne Paillet is married to Greg Leclerc. In 2010, she decided to abandon her corporate career and become a natural winemaker. Wanting to make wines different from Leclerc’s, she has leased 2.5 hectares of biodynamically farmed vines from Languedoc winemaker Christophe Beau (Domaine Beauthorey in the Pic Saint-Loup region). Harvesting is manual and the grapes are vinified naturally, in concrete tanks with no added anything, in the Languedoc. Wanting to make wines different from your everyday Languedocs, she transports the just-fermented juice to Leclerc’s cellars in the Loire for malolactic fermentation, maturation, blending and bottling with no fining, filtering or added sulphur.
Depending on the date on which the wine leaves the Languedoc, it is labelled Coteaux du Languedoc or Vin de France. To avoid red tape and confusion, Paillet is reportedly planning to opt exclusively for the Vin de France designation in future vintages.
Coteaux du Languedoc 2013, C.S.G., Autour de l’Anne ($27.71, private import, 12 bottles/case)
Syrah and Grenache with a little Cinsault thrown in. The 40- to 60-yar-old vines are rooted in limestone and red clay. The grapes are vinified separately in tanks, with alcoholic fermentation typically lasting 12 to 14 days. Maturation in concrete tanks lasts 12 months. 13% ABV. Quebec agent: Deux Caves.
Engaging nose of red and black fruit with hints of spice and faint burnt rubber. Medium-bodied, dry and savoury, with clean fruit and bright acidity. Fundamentally fluid and supple though not lacking tannic grit. The finish is long and minerally. As Loire-ish and it is Languedoc-ish, this is a wonderfully drinkable wine. What’s more, a few bottles remain available. (Buy again? Done!)
Coteaux du Languedoc 2013, Pot d’Anne, Autour de l’Anne ($55.47/1500 ml, private import, 6 bottles/case, NLA)
The cuvée’s name, which translates as “Anne’s pot,” is a homonym of peau d’âne (donkey skin). 100% Cinsault from 20-year-old vines grown on limestone and red clay. Half the grapes are destemmed, the other half left as whole clusters. Semi-carbonic maceration in concrete tanks lasts 12 days. Maturation in concrete tanks lasts 12 months. 12.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Deux Caves.
Pretty, perfumy nose of red and black fruit, including berries, overtoned with flowers, sawed wood and spice. Barely medium-bodied. The lightly juicy fruit is fresh and fluid, structured by supple tannins. Finishes long and clean. So, so drinkable. (Buy again? Moot but yes.)
At the second tasting, someone asked why the wines were so Loire-like. Could the fact that they were fermented with native yeasts explain it? Probably not, as the wines didn’t leave the Languedoc until alcoholic fermentation was completed. On the other hand, malolactic fermentation took place in the Loire, so indigenous bacteria could be a factor (though wouldn’t the wines also bring some Languedoc microflora with them?). To my mind, Max Campbell’s theory that the difference is due to the cooler temperatures of the Loire cellars seems more realistic.
♦
As mentioned earlier, both tastings were followed by a light meal of salads, charcuterie and cheese. As the tail ends of the Deux Caves bottles were insufficient to slake the collective thirst, a few other wines were uncorked (gratitude to all who supplied them). I stopped taking notes at that point but wanted to mention four in passing.
Damien Coquelet’s Beaujolais-Villages “Fou du Beaujo” has long been a Mo’ Wine Group favourite. At the second tasting, the 2012 ($22.43, private import, La QV/Insolite, NLA) and 2014 ($19.20, 12604080) were served side by side. The 2012 was a thing of beauty: vibrant, fruity, sappy, fluid, lip-smacking. The 2014 seemed a little harder and less smiling, though whether that’s a function of the vintage, the age, this particular bottle or the filtering and/or sulphuring possibly required by the SAQ is anybody’s guess.
The Valle del Maule 2014, Pipeño, Collection Rézin, Louis-Antoine Luyt ($18.15, 12511887) is a lovable, natural Chilean wine made entirely using purchased País grapes from organcially farmed vines about a century and a half old. (Luyt buys the grapes – at fair trade prices – from his pickers, one of whose photograph appears on the label.) Fragrant and fruity, ripe and juicy, light and fresh, with frisky acidity, very soft tannins, a disarming rusticity and a quaffability quotient that’s off the charts. I’ve drunk more of this wine than any other this year and it was interesting to hear others who were just discovering it planning to buy cases the next time it rolls around.
The 2001 Château Coutet is a classic Barsac that’s showing beautifully. Rich but not heavy (good acidity), sweet but not saccharine. The complex flavours and aromatics are dominated by stone fruit and botrytis. The finish lasts for minutes. A deluxe end to a most enjoyable evening.
MWG September 27th tastings: flight 3 of 3
♦
Lastly, here’s a link to another, much less tardy report on the tasting – one from which some of the earlier-cited technical information about Xavier Marchais comes – that was posted on the Quebec-based wine discussion board Fou du vin by a new and welcome addition to the Mo’ Wine Group. Du beau travail, Raisin Breton !
White and red Macedonians
Tikveš Winery is said to be the largest wine producer in not only the Republic of Macedonia but the entire Balkans. The Tikveš plain gives the wine region its name; Bela Voda is a small area within it notable for its Mediterranean climate and clay soils. Both wines are from the winery’s flagship “Terroir” line. Due to heavy rains, no Terroir wines will be made in the 2014 vintage.
For a winery whose website makes a big deal about wine education, the lack of technical information on these wines is surprising. What’s more, the Quebec agent’s website has been AWOL for more than a year. Could we be talking about unorganic wines made with selected yeasts and subjected to manipulation in the winery, including fining and filtering? No telling but I’d guess yes.
Tikveš 2013, Bela Voda, Tikveš Winery ($27.10, 12510657)
A 50-50 blend of Chardonnay and Belan (which may be Plavai or Grenache Blanc, which the winery bottles as a varietal, or something else entirely). Matured in French oak barrels. Reducing sugar: 2 g/l. 13.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Les vins Horizon.
Ash, lemon, chalk, a hint of vanilla butter and an intriguing if faintly acrid floral note that put me in mind of narcissus and daffodils. A mouthful of ripe but fundamentally savoury and dry fruit. The bright acidity, vein of minerals and layered flavours are as unexpected as they are welcome. A long saline finish completes the picture. (Buy again? Maybe.)
Tikveš 2012, Bela Voda, Tikveš Winery ($27.10, 12510121)
A 50-50 blend of Plavec (aka Plavac Mali) and Vranec. Matured in French oak barrels. Reducing sugar: 4.1 g/l. 14.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Les vins Horizon.
Blackberry, cassis and fig, all a bit stewed, along with some ink and wood. Meaty and chewy in the mouth, ultra-ripe and heading into fruit bomb territory. The soft tannins and acidity do little to counter an impression of heaviness that is only augmented by the unsubtle oak. Smooth, yes, and of undoubted quality but also one-dimensional and unrefreshing. (Buy again? Doubtful.)
A bottle of the red drunk a couple of weeks earlier prompted a more favourable reaction. In fact, along with the arrival of the Ardoisières wines, it was what inspired the idea for a white/red tasting. That bottle, consumed over an evening and with food, came across as New Worldish but not to a fault: “Like a Merlot and Zinfandel cross. Flavours but not texture a bit jammy. Sweet but not cloying fruit. Velvety tannins. Soft but sufficient acidity. Mineral underlay. Mostly integrated oak. Good finish, dusted with cocoa and edged with a faint bitterness. Reminds me of the two Majorcan reds.” In any case, at the tasting, the white – far less fruit-driven and oak-dominated – was the more interesting of the two.
MWG July 16th tasting: flight 5 of 6.
Math problem
The problem: A wine – a delicious and rare wine at that – lists on SAQ.com for $51.25. In the store, however, it has been marked down significantly. What’s more, when purchased during yesterday’s 10%-off sale (which discount applied to the marked-down price), the figure on the sales receipt was $35.87. What, then, is the marked-down price before application of the 10% discount, which, alas, is no longer in effect?
The wine in question is Abbatucci’s 2011 BR, which awed the group at a tasting in February 2014. My note at the time:
Vin de table (2011), BR, Domaine Comte Abbatucci ($51.00, 11930123)
100% biodynamically and organically farmed Barbarossa, a red-skinned grape variety here given the blanc de noirs treatment. The first vines were planted in the 1960s. The grapes are manually harvested and pressed immediately after picking. Fermented (with indigenous yeasts) and matured in stainless steel tanks. Bottled unfiltered and unfined. 2,000 bottles made. 13% ABV. [Quebec agent: Vini-Vins.]
Initially reticent but eventually deep. Minerally and floral with hint of lemoncello and a faint herby overtone, like maquis or hops. Round yet very fresh in the mouth, the fruit structured by a crystalline minerality and enlightened by acidity. A faint, pleasing bitterness threads through the long finish. Breathtakingly pure and pristine, not to mention unique. (Buy again? Gladly.)
After opening it yesterday evening to accompany shrimp marinated in white wine, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, olive oil and puréed basil, wrapped in a basil leaf and a thin slice of prosciutto and grilled (recipe here) – an excellent pairing, by the way – I sat down to pen a new note but quickly realized I had little to add to the one above. The wine is drinking beautifully. It’s as fresh and engaging as it was 18 months ago, perhaps a tad rounder and more integrated, with the final bitterness a shade more pronounced. While yesterday’s double discount made it a rare bargain, it’s still a deal at today’s marked-down price, which by my calculation is $39.85.
Edit (2015-09-06 18:49): The MWG’s network of spies reports that the actual marked-down price at the Montreal Signature store is $41.00. The discount was therefore calculated not on the marked-down price but on the list price, which is not how it usually works: 10% of $51.25 = $5.13. $41.00 – $5.13 = $35.87.
Going live
Vin de France 2014, Y’a bon the canon, Anne et Jean-François Ganevat ($28.35, 12624152)
Organically farmed Gamay (reportedly from Château de Grand Pré in the Beaujolais) blended with smaller amounts of old indigenous varieties from Ganevat’s vineyards in the Jura (Petit Béclan, Gros Béclan, Geusche, Argant, Peurion, Portugais Bleu, Isabelle, Enfariné and maybe others). Manually harvested. Nautral vinification. Unfiltered. Unfined. No added sulphur. Reducing sugar: 2.8 g/l. 13% ABV. Quebec agent: Rézin.
Rich, glowing red, deeper than expected. Fragrant nose of red berries – especially cranberry – and pine forest floor, eventually developing pepper, slate and beef larb aromatics. In the piehole, it’s supple, light- to medium-bodied and a little spritzy, a tart and juicy mouthful with great fruit-acid balance. Relegated to the background, the slim tannins are most obvious as a lingering, faintly bitter astringency. The long, lip-smacking finish leaves a cedary aftertaste. So fresh, so alive, so food-friendly (grilled pork with fresh herbs or roast chicken with same would be killer). Drink lightly chilled. In an ideal world, this would be $5 cheaper but, then again, it’s a compulsively drinkable natural wine from a cult producer and the exchange rate is punishing these days. (Buy again? Imperatively.)
SAQ.com shows this as unavailable but I bought mine at one of the larger Sélection stores yesterday afternoon (the clerk went to the back room and pulled the bottle out of a case still on the delivery pallet). Note that there’s not a lot around and it’s certain to disappear fast.
Two other noteworthy wines are also going live this week. First, one of the MWG’s favourite private imports is premiering at the SAQ: Côtes du Roussillon 2013, C’est pas la mer à boire, Domaine du Possible ($32.25, 12623088), which, like the Ganevat, is showing as unavailable on SAQ.com but which I purchased yesterday (see here for some background on the winemaker and my tasting note from last November). Second, a restocking of the irresistible Alsace 2011, Trilogie, Domaine Barmès Buecher ($19.95, 12254420).
Brett happens 