Bollinger Rose,02`Pol Roger Extra Cuvee,15`Magis, white Burgs, Rieslings,NZ Gewurz and more

Balance is a critical component many of us look for in wines. Balance is also a key attribute many of us may strive to achieve in our lives.

On a recent evening, my dinner group was blessed to have 12 wines that were all spectacular and I thought of the numerous times when we’ve had at least one flawed bottle and on some occasions, 3 or 4. So, this night served to balance things out a bit in favor of viable, drinkable wines all the while pairing beautifully with the numerous courses of world class sushi from our local, great place, Arigato.

We got off to a stellar start with a newly released rose from Bollinger:

NV BOLLINGER BRUT ROSE- in the past few years, I’ve found the newly released roses from this house exhibit a huge profile out of the gate and then tend to simmer down and come together, balancing out as it were; that was certainly the case with this one as it was super red fruit forward with blatant toasty oak notes prevailing and accordingly, it was full bodied, highly energetic and kind of discombobulated until much later when it sort of settled in like a pendulum coming to rest; the nose and taste profile consisted of fresh and ripe raspberry, strawberry and red cherry plus that streak of toasty oak that ran all the way through to the back end; it’s comprised of 62% Pinot Noir, 24% Chardonnay and 14% Pinot Meunier, 85% of which is sourced from Grand and Premier Cru vineyards; 5% of the red wine comes from Verzenay and Aÿ and is said to contribute to the color and depth of flavor; the Bollinger NV Brut Rosé was first introduced in 2008.

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After the Bollie Rose, it just all seemed to fall in place as each wine thereafter was up to the task of showing its treasures to the max.

2002 POL ROGER EXTRA CUVEE de RESERVE BRUT- 60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay; the fruit comes from 20 Grand and Premier Cru vineyards in the Montagne de Reims and Côte des Blancs; following its medium yellow color came aromas of stone fruit and honey dew melon which continued on to be joined by honeysuckle, apple, yellow peach, apricot and an interesting note of white pepper that came in late and was the last thing on the palate; this was creamy rich and really drinking well; I’ve had many of the really good 02` BdB and they are extremely different wines with this being a bit more serious and complex and the BdB being super elegant with loads of finesse and charm.

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2018 DOMAINE JEAN-LOUIS CHAVY PULIGNY-MONTRACHET- this beauty is a blend from 5 vineyards, Les Tremblots, Les Levrons, Les Meix, Les Reuchaux and Corvée des Vignes; it checks off all the boxes for pure satisfaction with inviting aromas of blossoming citrus fruit which on the palate translates into mineral and hazelnut laced lemon, grapefruit, kiwi and lime while being delivered in a tactile pleasing creamy texture; everything comes together by mid palate to provide a long, sustained finish.

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2002 JOSEPH DROUHIN CHABLIS-LES CLOS GRAND CRU- a candidate for WOTN here as it followed on the heels of a stupendous Puligny and took it to another level; this smooth and luscious wine had generous amounts of white peach and pear notes enhanced by a streak of spice; it had layers of complexity and held on for a long, welcomed finish; its hallmark was its perfect balance completing the deal.

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2016 WILLI SCHAEFER GRAACHER DOMPROBST SPATLESE RIESLING MOSEL- mellow notes of flint, patrol and minerals waft out of the glass and once tasted, it’s all about the fresh apple, apricot and lime fruit before the flint and mineral accents return to finish it off; the texture is smooth and creamy which makes this such a great wine to “feel’.

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2016 J.J. PRUM WEHLENER SONNENUHR SPATLESE RIESLING- 8% abv; I’ve had many bottles of this in the last few months and the notes remain very consistent as all have had lovely sweet peach, mango, golden delicious apple, orange and lime fruit accented with minerality from the nose through the tail and gracefully delivered in a smooth, creamy medium that completes the wondrous sensory experience for this gem.

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2019 CHATEAU GUIRAUD “G” BORDEAUX BLANC SEC- this dry wine from a renown Sauternnes producer is comprised of 50% Sauvignon blanc and 50% Sémillon with 80% aged for an average of 7 months in oak barrels on the lees; it’s wonderful; honeyed apple, pear and white peach are most prevalent in the taste profile and it is delivered in a thick and creamy substance all the way to the back end; loved it and then heard the price tag= $20.

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2019 DOMAINE ANDRE NEVEU les LONGUES FINS SANCERRE BLANC- the Sauvignon Blanc comes from a single vineyard that is rick in flint and limestone and it comes out in the wine which starts off with mild notes minerals and flint before giving way to crisp and fresh citrus fruit with lemon and lime most evident; this wine is in ideal balance, has good feel and is very refreshing with a suggested decent chill.

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2015 ROTEM & MOUNIR SAOUMA MAGIS CHATEAUNEUF du PAPE BLANC- 75% Grenache Blanc, 10% Clairette, 10% Roussanne and 5% Bourboulenc, aged 18-24 months; 14.0% abv; a buddy in this dinner group brought this wine last year and I had to have it, this being the 4th bottle I’ve opened since buying a 6 pack; as with 2 of the 3 previous bottles, this one was in balance with flint, mineral and wet stone notes dominating the underlying citrus fruit; lemon, lime, pear and green apple; it had evenly distributed acidity, flint and minerals along with a buttery, vanilla like component and an oily texture; the back label suggests this should be decanted and I agree although I’ve failed or forgot to do so on all 4 occasions; OK, I got it; I’ve got 2 to decant. Lesson learned.
BTW, it was my WOTN and perhaps for others who raved about it and one shared it with another wine centric table in the restaurant.
As an aside, I do not recall ever finding a punt as deep as the one on this bottle; it’s 2 1/2 “ deep and very wide.

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2011 HAYTHORNTHWAIT NOBLE GEWURZ MAUREEN MARTINBOROUGH NEW ZEALAND- 100% fully botrytized Gewürztraminer; this intense yellow gold sweetie can definitely hold its own with most of the well known Sauternes; our bottle was served super chilled and the somewhat muted concentrated spicy and honeyed apricot nectar was still enough to satisfy and require small sips. Serious stuff.

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2012 J.J PRUM GRAACHER HIMMELREICH AUSLESE RIESLING- the surprising thing about this yellow gold colored wine was it was light to medium bodied; everything else came in as expected with honeyed golden delicious apple, pear and apricot fruit and a petrol accent always in the background and its 10W-40 motor oil thick texture.

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1995 DOMAINE ZIND HUMBRECHT CLOS JESBAL SELECTION de GRAINS NOBLES- 375 ml; 100% bio dynamically farmed Pinot Gris from the commune Turckheim; this SGN was fantastic; vanilla laced stone fruit dominates the aromatics and then on the palate, it’s all peaches and apricot; the thick syrupy texture almost relegates this to be served in a dropper or by the drip.

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Great night. Righteously balanced.

Cheers,
Blake

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