Loved sharing this killer group of Pinot Noirs with close friends for my 36th! This photo shows the best of the bunch imo. I have a separate collage of 9 other bottles which were also lovely in their own right; will post notes on those also, in the next couple days. There were only a few flawed or poorly-aged bottles that I didn’t bother including in my photo collections (let me know if you want deets.) Cursory notes on these gorgeous wines-
David Duband, Gevrey-Chambertin 2022- my WOTN. Aromatic, effortless, heady, saturated, fresh, ripe black cherries, flashes of blueberry. Deeply lurking forest shades and root beer spice, mostly about the fruit. Incredible for young village burg, confident and expressive. Not the most complex of the bunch but truly captivating for me and some others.
Kelley Fox, Star of Bethlehem Flower Block (Maresh Vnyd) 2015- my first bottle of hers from pre-2018. Featherlight, earthy and floral with crisp pine, herbal tones, and small wild strawberries once the gentle stemmy notes integrated. Delicate and complex. I think her style is even more dialed-in now. Maybe some cranberry here too, pleasantly tart red fruit.
Melville, Anna’s Block 2021- a breezy, cool nose of high-toned red fruits, billowing ripe strawberries – tiny saline note, kind of like ocean air. Super aromatic and harmonious, playful but serious. Possibly my 2nd fave but I never settled on one. Similar to the Duband in its confident, expressive, straightforward beauty.
Burn Cottage Vineyard, 2017- a touch closed but quickly blossomed into a beautiful expression of richness and balance- fuller and darker than any previous PN I’ve tried from New Zealand, baking spices framing fresh black cherry and blackberry. Understated way of showing richness, kind of very “classic”, neither notably heavy nor especially light/modernist.
Paul Hobbs RRV 2019- clearly the richest, ripest, fullest of the lineup- made with a careful hand, well balanced, if a little lacking in nuance. Gentle aromas of spiced black plum compote and subtle vanilla bean, pinch of black licorice and violets. Broad and deep, but fine-grained and solid acidity for the style.
Bachelet, Côtes de Nuits-Villages 2018- only had a couple ounces of this, but the beauty was off the charts, highly complex with dank forest floor and A beautiful expression of the thick 2018 burgundy fruit, glazed black cherries that showed surprising precision. Might have surpassed the Duband If I had more time with it.
Claude Riffault, Sancerre Rouge “La Noue” 2022- another total gem I didn’t get enough time with. Deeply mineral-laced black cherry, darker fruit but airy and fresh. I definitely noted a cool petrichor aspect, plus maybe black licorice or some other kind of dark herbal tinge.
Sanford Winery (Sanford & Benedict Vnyd) 2021- beautiful plump cherries, a kiss of vanilla, fresh fruit, ripe without excess, touches of salinity/tidepool on the finish- elegant, just a little less perfumed and precise than the Melville (same AVA and vintage, and the style isn’t too far off, this was just a slightly less engaging version)
Mac Forbes, Yarra Valley 2023- the youngest and least expensive bottle at the table but one of the faves in the crowd, thanks to super perfumed pink fruit and florals, lots of bright strawberry, hibiscus, maybe pomegranate, nice sappy texture and crisp acid. Not super deep, mostly high-toned fruit, but extremely vibrant and engaging.
Aval0nian
Love Denis Bachelet, one of the top producers in Gevrey!
3 Comments
Loved sharing this killer group of Pinot Noirs with close friends for my 36th! This photo shows the best of the bunch imo. I have a separate collage of 9 other bottles which were also lovely in their own right; will post notes on those also, in the next couple days. There were only a few flawed or poorly-aged bottles that I didn’t bother including in my photo collections (let me know if you want deets.) Cursory notes on these gorgeous wines-
David Duband, Gevrey-Chambertin 2022- my WOTN. Aromatic, effortless, heady, saturated, fresh, ripe black cherries, flashes of blueberry. Deeply lurking forest shades and root beer spice, mostly about the fruit. Incredible for young village burg, confident and expressive. Not the most complex of the bunch but truly captivating for me and some others.
Kelley Fox, Star of Bethlehem Flower Block (Maresh Vnyd) 2015- my first bottle of hers from pre-2018. Featherlight, earthy and floral with crisp pine, herbal tones, and small wild strawberries once the gentle stemmy notes integrated. Delicate and complex. I think her style is even more dialed-in now. Maybe some cranberry here too, pleasantly tart red fruit.
Melville, Anna’s Block 2021- a breezy, cool nose of high-toned red fruits, billowing ripe strawberries – tiny saline note, kind of like ocean air. Super aromatic and harmonious, playful but serious. Possibly my 2nd fave but I never settled on one. Similar to the Duband in its confident, expressive, straightforward beauty.
Burn Cottage Vineyard, 2017- a touch closed but quickly blossomed into a beautiful expression of richness and balance- fuller and darker than any previous PN I’ve tried from New Zealand, baking spices framing fresh black cherry and blackberry. Understated way of showing richness, kind of very “classic”, neither notably heavy nor especially light/modernist.
Paul Hobbs RRV 2019- clearly the richest, ripest, fullest of the lineup- made with a careful hand, well balanced, if a little lacking in nuance. Gentle aromas of spiced black plum compote and subtle vanilla bean, pinch of black licorice and violets. Broad and deep, but fine-grained and solid acidity for the style.
Bachelet, Côtes de Nuits-Villages 2018- only had a couple ounces of this, but the beauty was off the charts, highly complex with dank forest floor and A beautiful expression of the thick 2018 burgundy fruit, glazed black cherries that showed surprising precision. Might have surpassed the Duband If I had more time with it.
Claude Riffault, Sancerre Rouge “La Noue” 2022- another total gem I didn’t get enough time with. Deeply mineral-laced black cherry, darker fruit but airy and fresh. I definitely noted a cool petrichor aspect, plus maybe black licorice or some other kind of dark herbal tinge.
Sanford Winery (Sanford & Benedict Vnyd) 2021- beautiful plump cherries, a kiss of vanilla, fresh fruit, ripe without excess, touches of salinity/tidepool on the finish- elegant, just a little less perfumed and precise than the Melville (same AVA and vintage, and the style isn’t too far off, this was just a slightly less engaging version)
Mac Forbes, Yarra Valley 2023- the youngest and least expensive bottle at the table but one of the faves in the crowd, thanks to super perfumed pink fruit and florals, lots of bright strawberry, hibiscus, maybe pomegranate, nice sappy texture and crisp acid. Not super deep, mostly high-toned fruit, but extremely vibrant and engaging.
Love Denis Bachelet, one of the top producers in Gevrey!
Great choice; i love Riffault wines