It's always a good day when the irrepressibly raffish Chris Bonjour makes an appearance. This time he'll bring with him samples of six outstanding French wines.
The Revue du Vin de France ranksAlphonse Mellot as thebest winery in Sancerre, with a quality equal to that of Dagueneau in Pouilly Fume. Mellot has something that Dagueneau does not, a range of more affordable wines from his Moussiere vineyard. We'll taste a white and a rose, both from the excellent 2016 Loire vintage. We'll try the Moussiere white, and also the Pinot Noir-based Rose.
We have already written about the 2014 Decelle-Villa Meursault. It is a finely balanced rich Meursault that shows a nice equilibrium between oak and fruit in the fine 2014 vintage.
Ch. Jean Faure is located in a sweet spot in St. Emilion, close to la Dominique and Cheval Blanc (with which it is often compared) and not far from Petrus. Since his purchase in 2004, owner Olivier Decelle has been restoring it to its previous greatness. The 2009, half Cabernet franc and half Merlot was one of the vintages that led to the Chateau's promotion to Grand Cru Classe. It's perfectly ready to drink and has gotten much praise from critics on both sides of the Atlantic.
Mas Amiel has a 200 year history in Maury, the center for fortified wines in the highlands of southern France's Roussillon. We will taste two of their wines,. The white Altair is an ageworthy white from Grenache Gris and Macabeu grapes. The 2010 Maury Reserve is a traditional vin doux natural made from Grenache Noir, a lightly fortified wine that is great either before or after dinner.
Bonjour, Bonjour
2016 Alphonse Mellot Sancerre La Moussiere; Aroma: heady rather dense mineral, clean acidity ; Mouth: fleshy full, fat ripe fruit ripe lemon grapefruit, rich, a melon note, good drive; Very Good - Excellent 32; Mixed Case, 28.8; Case, 27.2
2014 Decelle-Villa Meursault Nose, pears and baking spice, nice underlying wood. Mouth Pear again with strong wood notes, Creamy texture, a nice combination of richness and verve, balanced and complete Very Good - Excellent $55; Mixed Case, 49.5; Case, 46.75
2012 Mas Amiel Altair Blanc Bettane & Desseauve "A remarkable success which reflects the spice and honey notes of the Maccabeu grape but with power, foundation and length. This is exactly the sort of wine that makes us optimistic about the appellation."
$32; Mixed Case, 28.8; Case, 27.2
2016 Alphonse Mellot Sancerre Moussiere Rose; Color: very pale orange pink; Aroma: light fresh clean , very pretty fine, finely elegant rather rich; Mouth: subdued ripe notes, rather full, pretty & fine, satisfying ripe dark fruit focussed structure; Very Good Plus 27.99; Mixed Case, 25.19; Case, 23.79
2009 Ch. Jean Faure Bettane "Black fruit embellished with floral touches, elegant and fresh in the mouth,very much in the Cheval Blanc style."
Robert Parker "Roasted herbs that remind me of Provence intermixed with sweet kirsch, damp earth, spice box and a hint of background oak jump from the glass of this dense, plum/ruby/purple-colored wine. Ripe, low in acidity, nicely textured and round, this is another wine to drink over the next decade."
$59; Mixed Case, 53.10; Case, 50.15
2010 Mas Amiel " Cassis, forest floor and tobacco evoke an almost Bordeaux-Cabernet nose. The mouth also invokes cigar, very smoky a little drawing founded in beautiful equilibrium of oriental spices. This is excellent Maury."
$39; Mixed Case, 35.10; Case, 33.15
Meursault arrives on Friday; Jean Faure and Mas Amiel wines arrive in two weeks.
