Monthly Archives: July 2013

2010 Louis Jadot Gevrey-Chambertin

pinot noir

Jadot wines are great bargains at Wegman’s due to their contract together. I often find wines that are only available at Wegman’s or at significantly reduced prices. I picked up this 2010 Gevrey-Chambertin a few months ago for $45. The cru wines will cost more but this village wine is honestly just as good is most cases. Last week we decided to get fancy with some lobster mac and cheese and this was the ideal pairing. The pinot noir blended nicely with the rich yet mild flavors of the meal. Lobster was on sale so I went big:

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colonelgrape: 94. A classic Gevrey-Chambertin. I really enjoy all the wines I’ve sampled to date from this village. A great red berry bouquet on the nose backed by a solid structure with just the right amount of tannis. This bottle could probably do with a few more years in the bottle but it was plenty approachable already. I think balanced pinots go best with mild-medium flavored dishes. They are drinkable with just about anything but I think they can be overpowered with something too spicy or bold. It cut through the rich yet delicate mac and cheese perfectly to make for a really nice meal. This is a very sophisticated French pinot.

MobyGrape: 92.  I don’t know if it was the delicious cheeses we were eating, the fact that I was done working the weekend, or that the heat broke and it no longer felt like you were walking into an armpit when you stepped outside but this wine perfectly hit the spot this evening.  Even though the cheese was mild I have a feeling it made the wine taste a bit different.  That said, I didn’t stop eating it not even for one second to cleanse my palate and try to actually taste the wine properly.  Either way it paired perfectly with what we were having (2 points to the Colonel) and it was awesome, so who cares!  It was clean, just a bit tart, and not annoying like other pinots I’ve had.  Excellent on a summer day when you don’t want a chilled white or a beer instead

2007 Perrin Reserve Cotes du Rhone

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Moby and I grilled up some steak tips the other night and felt like having something special so pulled out this bottle of 2007 Perrin Reserve I’ve been saving for a few years. I can’t stress enough how fantastic a bottle this is for the price…absolutely outstanding. It’s not going to compete with a $100 bottle of Chateau de Beaucastel but for $10 you get a lot of the same qualities of a good bottle at a fraction of the price. This bottle showcased the 2007 vintage showing off the bold and upfront ripe fruit flavors. This is the perfect bottle to bring to a party and wow the guests. There probably aren’t too many bottles of 2007 kicking around but I’d lock up some 2010’s and save them for a rainy day as those are great buys as well.

Sake and Sushi

Moby and I have been on a sushi kick lately but we have been going to the restaurant instead of getting take out. That being said they don’t exactly have a good Champagne selection so we’ve been having Sake. I don’t know much about Sake other than it’s delicious, I’m always up for it, and it should be served chilled. Warm Sake is very “American” and when ordered you’ll almost always get the cheap stuff and cheap sake is awful.

Nigori Genshu Sake

This was Moby’s first and my second experience with unfiltered sake and it was fantastic! I’m not sure the picture does the texture justice but it was thicker than the last time I had it. It had whole milk thickness but grainer consistency even after a good stir. The flavor was excellent though and it was quite an experience. I don’t think it’s for everyone but it’s definitely worth trying at least once.

Osakaya Chobei Sake (2)

This was a more traditional bottle. Obviously everything in Japanese but you can make out the name or region (not sure which) at the bottom in English: Osakaya Chobei. This was truly outstanding, one of the best bottles I’ve had in recent memory. Light, mild fruit taste, smooth finish, just an all around delicious bottle.

2008 Marc Hebrart “Special Club” Brut

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Not much to recap in June as we stuck with some old favorites. However we recently filmed another episode of Champagne Meets Sushi and our guest star was “Special Club” bottle of 2008 Marc Hebrart. We tried a new Japanese restaurant in Sudbury called Fugakyu and were impressed with the sushi quality and prices.

The Club Tresors de Champagne is a group of Champagne growers that orgainzed in 1971 in order to present their best offerings in a unique way. All the producers grow their own grapes and the wines are all put into the same bottle with each wine maker putting their own label on the bottle. These wines are generally fantastic with subtle differences due to the terrior, village location, and grape blends. More information can be found at their website:

http://www.clubtresorsdechampagne.com/

colonelgrape: 95. I thought this was an outstanding bottle of Champagne. It was bursting with flavor and you could really taste the Pinot Noir. On the nose it almost had a little brett smell to it but that didn’t translate to the palate. It had some interesting fruit notes, apple being the most prominent, but also hints of red fruit. These Special Club wines are all about terrior and you could really taste it in this bottle. The minerality was perfect, almost like a nice Loire Valley white.  I really like Champagnes that have a good percentage of Pinot Noir, it gives them better body and longer finishes than 100% Chardonnay examples. The fruit and acidity from the Chardonnay balances out the wine. I prefer wines in the 50-80% Pinot Noir range.

MobyGrape: 93:  I thought this tasted like apple juice.  It wasn’t juicy sweet at all, but it definitely had an apple flavor to it.  And it wasn’t bad, like when people substitute applesauce for oil in brownies and whatnot.  I don’t care what your granola friends say, it does not taste the same, you most definitely can tell the difference, and it sucks.  Stop ruining junk food.  I don’t know if a few grapes were swapped out with Granny Smiths but whatever happened in this champagne was a good thing.  Not what I expected, but a most pleasant surprise

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Happy 4th of July!