2010 Louis Jadot Nuits-Saint-Georges

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A fun village level Burgundy I picked up from Wegmans recently. UncleGrape mentioned tasting 2011 barrel samples of Jadot and that the 2010 was a much stronger vintage. The picture doesn’t accurately reflect the color, it’s much more translucent and a beautiful garnett, reddish purple color, but still darker than the average pinot noir. It’s not cheap…I found it for $40.00 at Wegmans and I’d consider that a good deal. Wegmans has a partnership with Jadot and often offer the best prices and good selection on Jadot wines.

colonelgrape: 94. Black fruit, earth, and licorice on the nose. The tannis were plentiful but blended in with the fruit and felt finer…like powdered sugar vs. raw sugar…giving it a firm but just right structure with a great finish. I think this bottle is definitely overachieving for it’s price range. We’ve had Burgundy for 2-3x this price and this bottle was just as good. I highly recommend this bottle especially if you get it under $50.

MobyGrape: 90. I didn’t really enjoy my first Burgundy and since then I immediately cringe when I hear we’re having another one. It’s like the time I had a stomach bug when I was little and thought eating a quesadilla would be a good idea. I promptly threw it up, and needless to say it took a few years before I was ready to tackle a quesadilla again. Granted the first Burgundy I tried wasn’t vomit-worthy, but it still left a bad taste in my mouth. I have to hand it to Louis, because my faith is being restored in Burgundy. I think I’m at the point where I’m ready to order a Burgundy quesadilla off the menu again! It had a little tartness to the end but it was a great match for chicken. Not too light, but not overpowering.

April 2013 Recap

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The weather was changing and the wine was flowing here at Grapestorm this April. We rated 7 bottles but enjoyed and discussed a whole lot more. The highlight of the month was a fantastic trip down to NJ to visit Aunt and UncleGrape. With the warm weather we’re getting back to grilling so expect to see more Cabernet and fun summer wines in the coming months.

Grapestorm Highest Rated Wine of April 2013:

1999 Martinetti Barbera d’Asti Montruc – 96

Honorable mention to the 1989 Parusso Bussia Barolo that UncleGrape opened on our trip. It was absolutely outstanding and easily the best Barolo we’ve ever had.

Wines Rated:

2010 Bosquet des Papes Chateauneuf du Pape – 92

2007 Recaredo Brut Cava – 90

2008 Chatom Vineyards Syrah – 86

2008 Cartlidge & Browne Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve – 82

2011 Domaine de la Tonnellerie Sancerre – 77

2008 Marina Cvetic Montepulciano d’Abruzzo – 73 (Moby Only)

Other Wines Enjoyed:

NV Guy Larmandier 1er Cru Champagne

2011 Gilbert Picq Chablis

2004 Paride Iaretti Gattinara

2011 La Scola Gavi Bianco Secco

2011 Fattoria di Magliano Pagliatura

NV Moutard Rose Champagne

2011 Anne Amie Pinot Gris

2008 Trimbach Gewurztraminer

1995 Domaine de Beaurenard Boisrenard CdP

1995 Chateau de Beaucastel CdP

1995 Domaine de la Janasse CdP

2010 Sottimano Langhe Nebbiolo

1989 Parusso Bussia Barolo

NV Cocchi Barolo Chinato

2009 Groth Cabernet Sauvignon

2008 Chatom Vineyards Syrah

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We decided to take a ride to the new Vin Bin last night for their Thursday night tasting and found a few treats. This 2008 Syrah is from the Sierra Foothills AVA which is located directly east of Napa at the base of the Sierra Nevada mountains. It’s young and only cost $25 but it tasted well so we picked up a bottle.

colonelgrape: 85. We had a cork disaster opening this bottle but were able to recover and not need to filter. At first taste it was harsh and overwhelming, unlike at the tasting. It was at room temperature which wasn’t helping and so we threw it in the decanter and in the fridge for 20 minutes. A little air and being at the proper temperature did the trick and the wine opened up nicely. Classic Rhone Syrah nose of dark fruit, spices, black licorice, and earth. On the palate similar flavors came through. Long finish with notes of pepper and black cherry. Plenty of fruit but not too fruity. I may have liked it better with a slightly lower alcohol content…at 15% we noticed it at the end of the night and it can kind of sneak up on you. I think this drinks well now but would be better with 2-3 more years in the bottle but I like old Syrah. Overall a fun wine for a decent price.

MobyGrape: 87. This was a strong showing from a syrah we picked up on a whim after a rando Thursday night tasting. At one point I thought it smelled like caramel and butter, and at one point I decided it tasted buttery too. I’m not sure if either of those statements are entirely accurate, but it was really quite smooth once it opened up. We decanted it for a bit (not sure if you have to) because the cork split when we were opening it, and maybe that helped since the first few sips (with half of the cork expertly rammed into the bottle) were ok, but a little tight. But after it sat for a bit it was much more mellow. I can’t really identify what it tastes like, if it’s fruity I can’t tell what fruit this is, but it’s good. Like I want to try it with chocolate or a dessert for some reason. Or maybe I just want dessert. Either way, use this as an excuse to have syrah and something sweet.

2008 Marina Cvetic Montepulciano

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73: What the hell, 2008! You took a perfectly fine wine and ruined it! I had this one at dinner the other evening and wowed my dinner companion by proudly ordering the 2007 Cvetic from the menu. I then proceeded to horrify my dinner companion by sending the waitress back to the kitchen when they brought out the 2008. When regaling one of my friends with this story they called me “GrapeDick”, which may have to be my pseudonym for when I give bad reviews. Anyways, sadly they were out of 2007 but I figured we’d try the 2008 anyways, and found myself increasingly annoyed as the night went on. It started out all right, it was rustic and kind of leathery, but where the 2007 smoothed out as it sat, this one seemed to get incredibly pissed off that someone was drinking it. It somehow had a sour finish, maybe I was able to taste it more since I ate my meal already, but I did not really enjoy it without food.

2008 Cartlidge & Browne Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve

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We opened our first Cabernet of the grilling season with teriyaki steak, peppers, and onion kabobs and sausage stuffed mini pepper kabobs. The stuffed peppers were sweet and offered a nice contrast to the steak and vegetables. We’re getting back to basics with this wine pairing. I got this bottle from Bottles on Commercial St in Boston last year for $17.

colonelgrape: 78. Not a bad bottle but just not my thing. Classic jammy cab, huge dark fruit flavor, tannis were actually under control but we decanted for 30-45 mins prior to drinking. When I first started getting into wine I started with Cabernet and I would have absolutely loved this wine. If big jammy California Cabernet is your thing this bottle is for you. Over time though my palate has changed and I like wines with more structure, rustic flavors, subtlety, or finesse. If I am in the mood for a big wine I’ll go for a Chateauneuf du Pape, Barolo, Barbaresco, Montepulciano d’Abruzzo or Bordeaux vs a fruit bomb California. Not all California Cabernet is this jammy but many of them are so you’ll need to do your homework when choosing a bottle.

MobyGrape: 86. I don’t know what’s happening to my palate these days. This was
a delicious wine, it was fruity and in an odd way it almost seemed sweet. I don’t actually mean it was a sweet wine by any means, but we’ve been drinking so many decidedly not sweet wines, this tasted like licking a jar of Smucker’s. We decanted it for maybe 30 min before drinking, and there were hardly any tannins to speak of, just a whole lotta fruity goodness. Wasn’t overpowering, and for the price it was a perfectly acceptable weeknight grilling wine.