Reviews

Domaine Christian Moreau Père et Fils Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos Clos des Hospices dans Les Clos

Not unlike its 2018 Grand Cru siblings, this Clos des Hospices is fairly torqued-up and linear on entry, with stricter white fruit, lemon pith and seed, chalk, and white melon rind notes leading the…

Domaine Pinson Frères Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos

Lemony lemonade and puckery lemon drop notes, with a side order of freshly picked lemons and lemon scented candles, all culminate into, you guessed it, a lemon sherbet flavor-tang of poppin' but…

Jerome Blin Champagne Cuvée Octave Extra Brut

A nicely developed expansion of lemony yellow citrus notes are given frame with chalk and white lemon seed elements. The Chardonnay "still wine" fruitiness is balanced well with the bubbles and…

Domaine Pinson Frères Chablis 1er Cru Mont de Milieu

Strong quince and chalk notes with this bottle. A big pop of acidity and a blast of yellow citrus and stone fruit follows, finishing a bit gruff and abrupt. A fairly blocky showing, lacking some…

Paul Dethune Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Millésimé

A lemony, lemony, lemony Chardonnay Champagne with medium perlage. There's no question this is a BdB. In fact, this was quite a wine-y Chardonnay-y flavor delivery, like a readymade village Meursault…

Henri Germain et Fils Bourgogne Côte d'Or Blanc

Continuing to perform very well for its class. Lime and lemon juice flavors are fresh and zesty, with a measured degree of approachable weight and frame to keep the body properly formed and the…

Domaine des Malandes Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos

A top performer that keeps getting better, the 2016 Malandes Les Clos is juicy and succulent while still maintaining all the Chablis typicity you'd expect from this top Grand Cru site. The color is…

Domaine François Mikulski Meursault 1er Cru Charmes

A much more animated and complex bottle when compared to the listless dud of a delivery that slugged from the 2018 Charmes earlier this summer, the 2017 has all of the liveliness one would desire,…

Hubert Lamy Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Les Frionnes Blanc

Fresh squeezed lemon juice flavors perform a high wire act with lemon seed, substitute teacher's chalk eraser, crunchy yellow pear, green apple flesh, and white melon rind notes. Though the delivery…

Patrick Piuze Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses

A young Grand Cru that still has some growing up to do, the Preuses shares qualitative similarities with its sibling Cote de Bouqueyreaux (dear lord, that's a mouthful) Bougros. Clean and pristine,…

Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis 1er Cru Montmains

Ironically, this bottle showed much more of an intense and muscular posture on the immediate pull of the cork. This tasted like a phat pull of a barrel sample, with what seemed like decent dollops of…

Patrick Piuze Chablis 1er Cru Les Séchets

A nice hybrid between the 2017 and 2018 vintages, this 2019 Sechets weds the viscous weight and expansive lemony succulence of 2018 with the push of energy of the 2017. There is notable persistence…

Domaine Servin Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre

Yellow citrus, lemon curd, lime rind, cream, honey, and marshmallow make for a more wood-influenced production at this stage. Though quite tasty and decently powered, the display of the purity of…

Domaine Servin Chablis Grand Cru Bougros

Well this was a nice surprise. Full of life and popping with energetic and succulent lemon everything, this Servin is quite the over-performing little monkey. The Bougros site is brilliantly…

Morlet Family Vineyards Chardonnay Coup de Coeur

This was best on PnP and served relatively cold. Juicy, luscious, plush, succulent, and all the words that make you want to take a dip in the ocean at midnight in Bora Bora when it's still 100…

Paul Pernot et ses Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles

At first a bit reticent and horizontal, the Pucelles takes some time and air to get out of first gear and increasingly, gradually, rev up to more expressive flavors of yellow and green citrus juice…

Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis Grand Cru Valmur

Another exceptionally powerful showing, with a flex of yellow citrus that commands the palate and delivers a serious dollop of viscous fruit flavor. Still blocky in cadence and texture, this is the…

Domaine des Malandes Chablis Grand Cru Vaudésir

I keep testing this wine against my better judgment to see if I want to invest in a few more. It's quite delicious and has a nice tang of lemon and subtle lime flavors that offer pleasurable drinking…

Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos

The Droin Grand Crus in the 2019 vintage are simply crushing it with unreal purity, freshness, and succulent intensity. This is the best vintage of Droin I've likely ever had, with the Les Clos,…

Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis Grand Cru Grenouilles

The Droin Grand Crus in the 2019 vintage are simply crushing it with unreal purity, freshness, and succulent intensity. This is the best vintage of Droin I've likely ever had, with the Les Clos,…

Maxem Chardonnay UV Vineyard

Definitely on the curve of its optimum drinking window; in a good place now and will likely be a wine to consume over the next year or so. A solid performance with an agreeable yellow citrus core and…

Aubert Chardonnay Eastside Vineyard

Still holding up after over three years since having my last bottle. No creamy baby fat distracting from the purity of fruit. The yellow citrus flavors are predictable and slightly simple, but…

Domaine des Malandes Chablis 1er Cru Vau de Vey

Round and inviting, with a small push of added volume when compared to the bottle of this I had last year. A little less spunk and intensity, this will be a wine for nearer term consumption.…

Jean et Sébastien Dauvissat Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons

Starting out muted and simple upon first opening, this Vaillons takes a bit of air and swirling to coax out what depth it's willing to show. Once it budges, deeper honeyed yellow citrus, almond skin,…

Nicolas Maillart Champagne Premier Cru Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut Les Chaillots Gillis

Though I do get how a more purist palate might find the wood treatment here to make for a more lush and sumptuous mouthfeel, I do find this to be a superbly executed BdB with enough requisite acidity…