Well that’s gonna be a tough one! Certainly one of the most idiosyncratic wines out there. Maybe Josh Raynolds will chime in? One thought that occurs to me is if you can track down some older vintages of Renaissance Vineyards Roussanne.
Following on my prior comment, if one’s purse doesn’t keep up to their taste in Pomerol - a pair of Spanish wines (!) offer some sliver of the same texture I think - Hacienda Monasterio in the RdD and Magana’s ‘Dignus’ in Navarre. However those only really have a decade of positive aging potential, compare to the ‘real thing’ in my view.
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I’d love to hear if anyone has found anything that tastes like Ch. Musar, which I find to be amazingly distinctive.
I had a 2015 Le Chiuse Brunello a few weeks ago, it was way too young, but I knew I wanted more. Curious about what other Brunellos at that price point ($100) and lower I should be looking at. Bought a couple bottles of Poggione and Fuligni just based on reviews.
rancia i have never thought of as over concentrated, but I think of both it and MV as classic Sangiovese-driven chianti without a bunch of frills or oak influence that are built to age. i guess I would say my suggestions for both the MV and the occhipinti have as much to do with the spirits of the wines as the wines themselves. custodi is kind of nice because almost every time I see it offered its got a bit of age on it. not sure if thats just because most people dont know it or because they just get released later.
this producer doesnt come up around the board a lot, but I am a really big fan of Donatella Cinelli Colombini. most of the time you can even get her top wine (prime Donne) for less than the Le Chiuse.
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For the Occhipinti try the Gulfi Nerojbleo Nero d’Avola. Obviously not the same grape but it’s a very fresh take on Nero and a great value. The ‘17 is fresher and brigter than the ‘18 IMO. I also like the Calabretta recommendation.
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Laurent Tribut’s Cote de Lechet at half the price!!
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If someone had asked me, Tribut would be my answer too. But I don’t find quite the delicacy and oyster shell that comes to mind with Dauvissat Sechet. Someday I may blend some Tribut Lechet and Louis Michel Sechet.
Thinking it would be out of my financial reach, I manged to have a red Burgundy epiphany. It was a 2010 Amiot-Servelle Derriere la Grange, around a year and a half ago. I almost cried. If there’s more stuff out there like that for under 150€, I’m all ears.
Would like some recs based off my liking of:
Piedrasassi PS SBC Syrah
Bedrock OVZ
PYCM BB
Mousse Fils Terre d’Illite BdN 2012 Champagne
I found some of the Biale Zinfandel single vineyard wines to be in the same vein as the Bedrock OVZ (unfortunately they are a step up in price).
If the goal is to find less expensive alternatives with similar flavors or “spirit”, what immediately springs to mind are the big names. Wines that I am most curious about, that I just can’t afford are Haut Brion, Rayas, and Soldera. The tasting notes on these wines make me insanely curious, and would love to know what “poor-man’s” versions might be.
Any recommendations for Bernard Levet Cote Rotie?
Domaine Charvin is the answer for Rayas, IMO. I’d also try Chapelle St Theodoric although they tend to have more tension than Rayas wines. One thing to note is that Rayas wines (the whole range) tend to release with quite a few years of bottle age on them, so I’d look for back vintages of these if I were you
For Bedrock OVZ, these are all in the same ballpark:
Preston of Dry Creek Zinfandel - probably the closest
Green & Red Chiles Canyon - a tad bit riper
Unti DCV Zinfandel - a bit more rustic
Quivira DCV Zinfandel - a bit more acidic
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How about Alcesti Frappato for the Occhipinti. Frappato | Alcesti Not at the level of the Occhipinti, but a very nice wine for an everyday price.
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Herve Sigaut wines should be pretty inexpensive in Europe; try to find ones with similar bottle age, especially fuees and sentiers vv.
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2010 is a great vintage. There has not been a vintage since in the same style that is as good IMHO. But, for somewhat similar styled vintages, try wines from 2014 and 2017. They will likely be less expensive than the 2010s and probably (esp. the 2017s) more available.
Have not ever tasted any wines from Amiot-Servelle so really cannot comment on producer but generally if I really like wines by a producer in Burgundy but want to spend less, I look for less expensive wines from the same producer. Find wines from the same village as the wine you like and then find out whether the producer has any really old vines that go into a less expensive wine. For example, I love the wines from Volnay from Lafarge. The premier crus were pretty expensive for 2017s so I bought the old vines cuvee of his villages Volnay.
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I think it is in a class by itself, BUT there are Janasse wines that are 100% Grenache that are at least in the same ballpark, although they are in the mezzanine or upper deck while Rayas is next to the dugout.
What Chianti Classico should I look for if I really enjoyed the 2016 Monsanto CCR? Mouthfeel and flavor profile are exactly what I’m looking for, so willing to go up or down in price on this one.
I recently really enjoyed a Domaine Romaneaux-Destezet (Hervé Souhaut) Syrah. Any recommendations on similar producers?