Reviews

Château Valandraud Bordeaux Virginie de Valandraud Blanc

The 2019 Virginie de Valandraud Blanc wakes you up with a truly heroic nose of apricot and peach, with the palate very similar but bone dry; pineapple rind and stone fruit add interest. A balloon and…

Château d'Yquem Y de Yquem

An enticing floral note kicks off the lemon and white rock flavors that makes for a zippy but also solidly weighted profile. There is some grass here, but it is more mineral and yellow fruit driven…

Beaux Frères Chardonnay Ribbon Ridge

With healthy dollops of roasted/grilled lemon and brassy olive oil flavors, and more advanced than I would've thought, this 2010 also exhibited butterscotch and lamp oil notes that further led to a…

François Chidaine Montlouis-sur-Loire Franc de Pied Les Bournais

Really impressive fruit and flavor intensity here. Lemon and lime zest, wet limestone, yuzu, crushed white flowers, and the slightest hint of petrol, this FdP version of Bournais is exceptional. The…

Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis Grand Cru Valmur

This is holding its cards a bit, especially when compared to the more exuberant and intense 2019. Lemons all the way around with this 2020: Lemon confit, juice, curd, zest, pith... ya, so, pretty…

Domaine Marc Morey & Fils Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru En Virondot

Limey and zingy, this is an electric C-M that impresses with green prickly pear margarita (not sweet), Squirt, limestone, lemon and lime juice and zest, and a striking minerality that complements the…

Domaine de Montille Corton-Charlemagne

At Grand'Vigne restaurant, Les Sources de Caudalie (Smith Haute Lafitte).

Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Blanc

Notes of apricot, lemon, white peach, honey, limestone, and olive oil touch off an oily but properly dry delivery of controlled (and fairly restrained) flavors that roll along the palate in a…

Impensata Sauvignon Blanc Ciminelli Vineyard

Clean, crisp, and just what the doctor ordered on a hot summer day whilst kicking up dust and walking the vineyard rows in the middle of the afternoon. Lemon, grass, and pumice notes are flanked by…

Domaine Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet

Lemon confit, lemon juice, wet travertine, unripe yellow pear, and hints of cardamom kick off the medium-bodied delivery of super pure fruit. The clarity is most notable here, with just enough…

Eisele Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc

Whoa, what a strong nose! Yellow citrus and zest, stone fruit, lychee, lemongrass, and an overall tropical vibe, this is a Sauv Blanc with quite a bit of punch and panache. Certainly richer than most…

Patrick Piuze Chablis Grand Cru Valmur

Lacks some vibrancy and focus, but still delivers enough flavor to make for a food friendly wine, this Valmur is night and day compared to the 2019 Droin Clos served next to it. The finish fell apart…

Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos

Consistent as the day is long, these later model Droins (especially the awesome 2019s) continue to steal the show for me. These are full bodied Chardonnays that have a sense of finesse and utter…

Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault Clos de la Barre

Oxidative and past its prime, but not completely over the hill, this Lafon offers deep lemon, butterscotch, and nutty flavors. A fun wine to analyze and geek out on. Best search the corners of your…

Paul Pernot et ses Fils Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet

A stubborn monkey here, with a strict and linear delivery. The bead of lemon juice and pith is not astringent nor off-putting, but it is certainly sitting square in its own lane with little interest…

Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet

For an appellation wine, this is punching near 1er Cru level given its notable intensity. This is super fresh and lively. Perhaps the DIAM closure has kept the evolution here at a minimum, which…

Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Abbaye de Morgeot

Top notch showing. Great lift and energy here, with minerality I would've pegged for a Puligny over a C-M, this PYCM is a well crafted and spritely array of citrus juice and white stone flavors. This…

Domaine Henri Boillot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère

Notable breadth and power, this is a broad shouldered ripe lemon and vanilla (thankfully not sweet) animal. For as beefy as this is, there is poise and focus. It is super yummy and hard to spit…

Louis Jadot Corton-Charlemagne Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot

Juvenile and linear, begrudgingly opening up with strict lemon juice and yellow stone fruit notes. This has power, but stays in second gear for most of its stubborn evolution in the glass. All this…

Louis Jadot Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot

In a good spot now, and perhaps for my palate, slightly on the other side of the slope in terms of freshness and spunk. However, this has a presence and sense of complex depth that holds interest.…

Domaine Henri Boillot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère

I've written a decent amount on this wine, so as a matter of a check-in here, I'll reaffirm that this is still a fairly brawny wine and will likely always be a less finessed example of P-M, instead…

Domaine Thomas Morey Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Embrazées

At Le Tertre in St. Emilion. Lemon and lime, with mineral elements weaving through the profile, this possesses nice verve, but a little less spunk than I would have imagined. Typical C-M shoulders on…

La Pelle Sauvignon Blanc

Even fresher than previous samples, the 2016 continues to be a superb example of what domestic SB can achieve. rather, a superb example of what Maayan can achieve. Previous notes apply otherwise.

Saxum White James Berry Vineyard

Double decanted 3 hours. Heat. Angular. Fruit muted. Some interesting honey and marzipan notes poke out, but not much depth to be had; a completely clipped finish. The 15.8% ABV is distracting at…

Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis Grand Cru Grenouilles

This immediately presents with more classical elegance than previous vintages. Of young Droin in general, the wood can oftentimes be center stage at first and take a decent tick of time to shed. So…