Ryan Caughey came into town so we got together to crack some bottles. We’ve been trying to organize a small vertical of of 94,95,96,98,99. The 94 had to exit out of dinner due to illness, so we were left with 95,96,98,99.
Good timing as there’s been some recent discussion in another thread CLICK HERE
in regards to peak drinking window. Some had the position that 10-15 years were the prime drinking window for Jamet/Allemand (and other N. Rhones). I disagree based on my own experiences with older N. Rhone (89 Allemand young vines is STUNNING) and I think this vertical further reinforces it. They are all in the 19-24 year range and outside of the 95 which maybe bottle condition, they all had quite a ways to go… especially the 99.
2016 Walter Scott Chardonnay X-Novo Vineyard- USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Eola - Amity Hills (6/21/2018)
Another bottle another delicious example of chardonnay. Beautiful bright acid cut on the palate- initially lots of lemon rind to go with the acid, but as it gets air it starts to build a fuller mid palate as stone fruit increases in weight and presence. It’s the mouthfeel and weight that really makes this wine standout as a great chardonnay. It carries the richness of the fruit while that bright acidity keeps it all lively and fresh. Can’t wait to see where this bottle is in 3-4 years as everything fleshes out in maturity.
2016 Weingut Keller Hubacker Riesling Großes Gewächs- Germany, Rheinhessen (6/21/2018)
I was compelled to open this due to a shipping snafu by the retailer to see if the bottle was sound.
It was very sound. lol.
Young wine as you can feel the energy bubbling, tightly coiled power and loads minerality. Vibrant intense tropical fruit of lychee and pineapple. There’s so much zip and weight on the wine and it saturates the palate with all that fruit. You just know as time goes on everything is just going to build. Everything is there but there’s a feeling of restraint waiting to really explode.
1995 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (6/21/2018)
really hard edges and tannin on the palate. Never really shed. A brutish wine that’s parallel to some other 95 cornas I’ve had. Doesn’t seem to have a ton of fruit to go with it, so not 100% sure how this one will evolve. Has fruit but it’s wrapped around all that hard rusticity.
1996 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (6/21/2018)
had a bottle of the 96 last week that was super bright and nutty. This one had a reduced nose and had some spritz. After about a hour that spritz became this super lively bright fruit core. Cool acid and clean seamless fruit. Didn’t have the fullness of last week, but far more precision. Seemed this bottle was showing much more youthful than the last. Both were delicious just in different phases.
1998 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (6/21/2018)
like so many other 98 N. Rhones this wine is drinking awesome. Loads of black berry fruit and roasted meat and a savory funky edge. Full bodied with a broad mouthfeel. Really good point right now and no sign of decline.
1999 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (6/21/2018)
initially really closed up. Hit it in the decanter and 2 hours later this explosive minty black fruit core exploded out of the center of that tannin. Starts to build this smokey savory element that’s still lurking behind the dense fruit. It’s clear this one is going to need a decent more time in the bottle, huge potential lurking and waiting.
Thanks for these notes as it has been several years since I’ve had any of these and I only have a 1-4 bottles of each (but no 1996). Unfortunately, my last bottle of 1995 was corked but I don’t recall it ever seeming in danger of drying out (same as 1995 Verset, IME FWIW). You mention in your pre-amble that it might be bottle condition. Can you elaborate? Trying to gauge where my last bottle might be.
Following this note, Ill try to dream up an occasion to have the 1998 as the last bottle I had was in 2012. Sounds like it is in a great place.
My last time with the 1999 was similar to yours, very tight and that was in 2011. My last record was selling some bottles for $170 because I though tit was crazy that it was that high. Dumb move. Wish I could have that one back. I probably should just shut down the economist in my head that yells at me about opportunity cost and just stop selling shit that gets out of my comfort zone (although why I sold that 1999 is a mystery, I also sold some 1999 Conterno at the same time, talk about stupid).
Did you decant any of the other bottles, or just the 1999?
Did we drink that together? I drank my last bottle last year, it wasn’t at Southern Jeeb was it? Yes, that’s one great wine.
Here is a tasting note from 2006: 1994 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard[/url] - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (10/14/2006)
Phenomenal nose that I’ve grown to associate with Allemand. Describing the nose is as hard as describing Chave, thinks flit around, in and out, interwoven in a tepestry. You get a peak of smoked meat here, but then some fruit, are those flowers? It’s quite hard to put into words, but I’m sure that everyone who has had it knows what I’m talking about. The palate is well resolved and long with enough tannin to provide structure, but not enough to make you think it needs to age any longer. It is not in any danger of going down hill, but should remain at this exalted plateau for years to come. I think this was the first year he split out the Reynards.
I don’t have a note from my last bottle, but it was in late December, so not with you.
No, I think the last time I had that I stilled lived in NYC so it must have been with the crew there at some point. There was no Southern Jeeb last year anyway. We skipped directly from 2016 to 2018.
Care to talk about the ‘shipping snafu’ on the Riesling - what happened and what your expectations were? I know that’s not the theme of the thread, but I think it’s important to talk about this a bit more . . .
Arrived yesterday from New York. So shipped probably last Thursday from New York despite my request to hold. Fortunately it got to me before 10am but it’s been hot across the nation all weekend.
Fu. In the thread on your visit to SF where I mentioned the 95 Rostaing Cote Blonde being over the Hill, at the same dinner I brought a 95 Allemand Reynard and it had a very nice core of dark fruit although there was a bit of alluded vintage rusticity that meant you didn’t get the typical silky touch found in these wines. My guess is unfortunately your bottle was slightly off?
Really like how you describe the 99 and ‘lurking potential’ sounds spot on to me. I think this could turn out to be maybe his best wine of the 90’s?
I thought the 15-year “rule” was unless you are trying the wine young for academic purposes, don’t even start to think about opening the bottle for 15 years. And it says nothing about potential longevity. Nor that every wine will be ready.
In my opinion 1996s and 1999s in particular I’ve had from the usual suspects have been somewhere between drinking and young/grumpy, with plenty of gas in the tank in both camps.
I personally don’t subscribe to Nathan’s drinking windows but I think he knows that.
Cool opportunity to try this group of wines together. I did write “I think most Rhones are not capable of lasting 30+ years, better at the 15-20 year mark where they have a little more stuffing left” in the other recent Rhone thread (hmm, someone never wrote up their notes!). Obviously there are no hard and fast rules, it all depends on the wine, the vintage, storage conditions, the particular cork in that bottle, etc. My point was merely that sometimes I think we worship age too much, and let wines sit so long that they fade away, and show little of what made them so amazing when young. In most cases, I’d rather drink a wine 5 years too early than 5 years too late.
BTW, no 97 in the mix. That wine is certainly OTH by now, along with its even weaker sibling the 2002
Allemand is outside my normal price range, but I did buy some '02 since it was so cheap (for Allemand). Drank my last bottle earlier this year. I did not find it OTH.
Dave, that’s interesting. I bought a few long ago ($35 per if I recall, the good ole days). The first one was pretty decent, lighter body than normal, as you might expect, higher acidity than normal. By the time I opened the last of 3, it was shrill, fruit faded, high acidity, not very enjoyable. I’m surprised that one of these could have held up at all another decade.
Yep, that was about the price. Good times. And obviously, it was not a profound or life-changing wine, this year or earlier. But it was a decent value for the $ and, I thought, still enjoyable for what it was. I would not call it shrill or fruit-faded.
Of course, to quote George (and Bruce), I have the palate of a yak compared to yours, so YMMV.
Charlie, that’s a pretty awesome lineup. Were these decanted? Pop 'n pour? Details would be helpful since I’m thinking of opening a '98 Clape this weekend. Thanks!
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