Bouchard Pere et Fils Premier Cru Beaune de Chateau 2005

Kelly and I can’t review many wines on our own - we just don’t drink that much! So we love to get reviews from readers. We’re not experts - we just like wine - and this blog is all about sharing opinions. You can e-mail a review to me here, or, if you want to do it anonymously, post it in  a nbwines / at / gmail / dot com. If you want to provide the review anonymously, post it in the “Make a Suggestion” thread, and I will re-post it.

Here is a review of a Burdundy from Peter. While this wine is no longer available, ANBL does carry a variety of wines from Bouchard Pere et Fils regularly (the white Beaune de Chateau is currently listed), so we may see it again. Let’s hope so - it’s hard to find a good Burgundy at this price.

— Peter’s Review —

Nose:  Delightful, fresh, powerful springtime nose.  Classic Pinot Noir scents with raspberry and cranberry like notes, some earthy and floral notes.  You can just anticipate the nice acidity. Mouth watering, complex, and enticing.

Palate:  Again fresh, easy drinking (watch out!), very well balanced!  Prominent acidity in line with what you want and expect from a pinot. Light-medium body. Nice raspberry fruit is the predominant flavor.  Just faint tannins on medium long finish.  More earthy and floral notes on back end.  Very drinkable on own, and paired very nice with cedar planked BBQ ginger maple salmon.  I always caveat all this for most wine drinkers, particularly new or very casual, this style may not be fruity or approachable enough to impress.  But for those who like Pinot, this is great stuff.  I didn't mind paying the premium for this one.  Would buy again.  I presume I drank around the right time frame, but would love to hear opinions on cellar time for such wines.

I'd score 91-92pt+.
Price approx $45

Lurton Fumées Blanches 2008

This is about what's you'd expect from New Zealand sauvignon blanc for around $20, except that it’s $13.50 and from France.  I have to admit that sauvignon blanc isn’t my favourite grape. I prefer my whites to be fruity and floral, like Gewurz or Muscat, or rich like chardonnay.  But for those of you who like the crispness of sauvignon blanc, this is excellent value at the price.

Pierre Sparr Alsace One 2007

Ho hum.  This wine looked so good.  Three of my favourite white grapes - riesling, muscat and gewurtz.  I like Muscat and Gewurz for the fun nose, and

riesling for the lucious oily texture.  But if I’d had this blind, I would never have guessed any of those grapes.  Mostly just neutral with pronounced acidity.  OK, maybe a bit of riesling character on the nose, and if I really try I could say that I got some lychee or something from the gewurz.  Nothing wrong with it, but nothing particularly right with it either.

Price $17.99
Score 85
Value 3/5
Grapes: riesling, pinot blanc, muscat, pinot gris, gewürztraminer
UPC 3263530020017

Brumont Tannat-Merlot 2006

I tried this as the Blue Door and quite enjoyed it with dinner, so I thought it would be spectacular value without the restaurant markup.  Unfortunately, I was wrong.  When I tried a bottle at home it struck me as typical in style for a wine in that range – jammy and unbalanced.  It is maybe a notch above average, in that it was only a bit jammy and less unbalanced than most.  I finished most of my glass, but the rest of the bottle was for cooking.

It looks like the search for a good wine cheap wine will keep on keepin’ on.

Price: $15.49
Value: 3.5/5
Region: France
UPC 3372220000236

Chateau Giscours 1981

Here is the highlight of Iron Chef’s New Year’s wines – “the finest wine I have ever tasted.” Originally purchased in NB, about 25 years ago.

— Iron Chef’s Review —

Colour: Brick coloured core to a yellow rim with lots of browns in between.
Nose: Dried spices like cloves and bay leaves. Dried leather. Dried Flowers. Dried Tobacco.  Surprising Red Licorice fruit for a older wine. Someone from the tasting said it smelled like Saddle soap- not sure what that smells like.
Taste- Very smooth - tannins still present. More dried favours of Leather, Tobacco, spices and Cherries. Interesting notes of a Truffle Olive oil. Had a creamy butterscotch finish.
Overall- We have tasted a number of late '70s, early '80s Bordeaux and this was the best yet, the wine was still very favourful and had surprising Tannins and fruit - probably the finest wine I have tasted. Decanted 45 minutes.

Bordeaux- Margaux
12.5%
Score: Tough to quantify with a number

Moet et Chardon Cuvee Dom Perignon 1992

It looks like Iron Chef had some interesting wines for New Year's.  He gave me four reviews, and I'll start with a teaser - the traditional champagne, which didn't live up to the star billing.

Anyone else have some good / bad / indifferent New Year's  bottles to tell us about?

— Iron Chef’s Review —

Nose: Warm Bread-like yeasty notes. Salted Cashews and Staley minerals
Taste: Brioche with nuts- mostly cashews. Dry mineral notes and grapefruit. Finish was surprisingly short.
Overall: this was the third time that I had tasted this vintage and I was the most disappointed with this bottle. It just tasted dried out and abrupt in its finish.
Not scored.

Alcohol 12.8%
Purchased at ANBL- 6yrs ago about $225
UPC #3185370362174

E.Guigal Crozes Hermitage 2002

This vintage is no longer available at ANBL, but there is plenty of a subsequent vintage. (The ANBL website says it’s the 2004, but we all know the vintage info on the website is not very reliable.) Since ‘02 was the worst vintage in years, whatever vintage is available stands a good chance of being even better. (Depending on how it has been stored - from what I’ve seen, storage at ANBL isn’t always ideal.) Anyway, has anyone tried the currently available vintage?

— Iron Chef’s Review —

Received this as a Christmas gift and I was a little leery of the vintage (RP gave Northern Rhone 78 for the 2002 vintage). Decanted for 1 hour.
Sight- heavy bricking to brownish tints.
Nose- Cigarette ash, white pepper, Wild Blueberries and raspberries. Other aromas of tar and other petrol scents. Intense nose.
Taste- Dark berries, rasp and blue. Lots of fruit. Good Acidity and tannins. Wet Stone. Mocha espresso and warm oak. Long finish.
Overall- really surprised by the depth of taste in this wine. It had a lot going one. This did not taste old or worn out. Great Wine, but I suspect that this is as good as this is going to get, the sight of the wine suggests that it may start to decline soon. Great Cork.
Drink' em if you got 'em.

Price: $32.29
Value 4/5
Score: 93
Region: France, Northern Rhone
Grape: Syrah
Alcohol: 12.5%
UPC: 3536650801003

Pierre Sparr Reserve Gewurztraminer 2008

We seems to be having a mini-Pierre Sparr tasting, with our review of the Schoenenbourg a couple of weeks ago. Nothing wrong with that - Alsatian whites are some of my favourites.

— Iron Chef’s Review —

Paired this with some Asian Noodles and Scallops with cilantro sauce.
Sight- Golden Yellow.
Nose- Mango and pineapple bomb. Great fruit forward nose. Some honey and flowers also.
Taste- Mango gelato. An interesting cooling sensation on the palate. Lots of mouth watering acidity. Apple pie spices. Good minerals too. Kind of Boozy.
Overall a really great wine. Where did all this acidity come from, wasn't expecting that. Perfect with Asian spicy food.

Price: $26.99
Value: 3.5/5
Score: 92
Region: France, Alsace
Alcohol: 13.5%
UPC: 3263530020819

Pierre Sparr Schoenenbourg Grand Cru Riesling 2001 Redux

Posting another review of a wine we’re already reviewed is cheating a bit - but that’s what we were drinking, and Kelly didn’t know what it was or that we’d already reviewed it.

Here are her notes:

Wet wool, citrus, and something spicy on the nose - white pepper and cloves, maybe? Very smooth and viscous on the palate. Nicely balanced and crisply acidic. Finishes on a slightly sharp note, but it's not an unpleasant sharpness. Initially I didn't detect the petrol note common in Riesling, but I think a subtle one developed over the evening.

Kelly gave it a score of 92 (without any prompting by me), which is the same as WS gave it. Interesting, since I was underwhelmed the first time and gave it an 88. I liked it well enough, but I still didn’t love it. Very well made and some good flavours, but just not the ‘wow’ factor that I want for a 92. Maybe it was just a bit too subtle for me. I let Kelly finish my glass.

Acadie Prestige Chardonnay

If we post reviews of white wine, do you think that will make the sun appear?

--- Michelle's Review ---

Now is the time for white! Typically this summer I have been surrounding myself with Pinot Grigios and Sauvignon Blancs. But rejoice! I have expanded my horizons and hopped on another white bandwagon. Can you believe, a chardonnay! It seems people where chardonnayed out from the boom a few years ago. Where if it wasn't a California chardonnay it wasn't worth your time …kinda like the Aussie Shiraz ship. Its sailed! SO..I am so pleased to say that I found a grand Chardonnay. I had this one at a dinner party last week. We had a few snacks but nothing to over power what we were there to do, drink wine. This one was so pleasantly chilled. Of course it helps when your wine fridge literally tells you the optimum temperature for your vino. Love it. So this was a beautiful golden hue. Smelled of oak, some hay, and I got a whiff of mature peaches. Strange. The taste was crisp without a lot of dryness I sometimes associate with chardonnays. This one my friends is dangerously drinkable.

Price; $20.79
Value: 4/5
Rating: 88
Producer: Cave Cooperative du Haut Poitou
UPC: 3359770000565

Perrin Vacqueyras Les Christins 2005

It turns out that we've reivewed this wine before - in fact, the second wine ever reviewed on this blog. Interesting to compare review - and the comments.

--- Iron Chef's review ---

Always been a personal favourite. One of those go to wines that never fail.
Nose- Cherries, Nutmeg and oak. Some meaty aromas and dries berries like Elderberries. Deep and roundly scented.
Taste- Grenadine, white pepper and a mocha latte with extra whipped cream. Some of the minced meat pie and fig flavours that I remember, but less. A bunch more fruit, highly extracted and … sweet. Thought of that drink, Shirley Temple. It was good, but not what I remember the 2004s as.
Overall- maybe it was the vintage or my mood, but I wasn't feelin it. I will continue to buy this wine, but I hope for better results in the future. BTW $19.95 at LCBO, 26% markup.

Price: $26.99
Score 86 (WS 91)
Value 3/5
Alcohol: 13.5%
Region: France- Southern Rhone
Grape: Grenache and Syrah
UPC: 631470000247

Domaine de Bila-Haut, Occulatum Lipidem 2005

Welcome to Peter, a new reviewer. After finding the site and contributing some comments, he's decided to take the plunge and contribute a review - you can too!

--- Peter's Review ---

Nose: Very rich and complex nose of earth, barnyard funk, red fruit compote, and baking spices.
Taste: Medium bodied, pleasant acidity, nice back bone of red fruit (I could not pick out which specific fruits), nice long finish. Well balanced wine. This wine pairs well with a variety of food, though it certainly can be lovely on it's own.

Some further notes: I have to admit a strong bias toward the wines of southern France. I crave the baking spices, garrigue, and balance they so often bring to the table. This one fit the bill. It may not for everyone, so be warned, if you want gobs of fruit or the creaminess of well-oaked wine, this one may not be for you. Wine Access magazine scored it 90 points. Gary Vaynerchuck of Wine Library TV scored it 88 points. I found it not dissimilar to Chateau Haut Bel Air from the same region, but a notch better. This one is far superior to the regular Domaine de Bila Haut red. I will be buying more. Would love to hear some opinions on this.

Price: $27.99
Score: 89-90points
Value: Fair price 4/5.
Producer: M. Chapoutier
Varietals: Syrah, Grenache, Cinsault
Region: Languedoc-Roussillion, France
UPC: 3391181390736

E. Guigal Saint Joseph 2003

Here is something different - as Iron Chef says, we don't get a lot of North Rhone here (but we did review a Crozes-Hermitage last winter) and because it's a departure from our recent run of value-priced whites.

--- Iron Chef's Review ---

There are so few Northern Rhone wines in NB, I was waiting to try this one, and Father’s day was the excuse. WS rates 2003 as a 94 pt Vintage for Northern Rhone.

Taste: Spicy- aromas of raw pepper steak. Warm toasty wood. Nutmeg and Cinnamon. Blueberry and currant fruit jam. Smokey. Smelled a bit like an Aussie Shiraz, Reynella-like. Full Nose- highly complex.
Taste: Blueberry preserves, Sandalwood, Bold/Chalky Tannins, Menthol. Rounding out with Earth & Tar and a neat Dark Chocolate finish that lingered forever.

Overall a Great wine that reminded me of an Aussie Shiraz that was more muted and nuanced with structure and refinement. No candied wine here- tar and earth.

Price: $38.99
Score: 94 (WS 88, RP 90-92)
Value: For Northern Rhone 4.5/5
Region: France, Northern Rhone
Grape: Syrah
Alcohol 12.5%
UPC #3536650901000

Donatien Bahuaud Les Chatrains Chinon 2006

Here's something different - 100% Cab Franc, which is a first for this blog. And also available in NS rather than NB. Too bad - sounds interesting.

--- Iron Chef's Review ---

I think this is only my second Chinon ever. I was excited.
Nose: Leafy Tobacco, Dried Cloves with menthol and Anise. Smelled really different- Charming.
Taste: Light weight on the palate with high Acidity with lots of Tannins. Sometimes cheap French wine can feel unbalanced- astringent and thin, but this had far too many favours to feel yucky. This was really interesting. Dark Cherries and cigarettes. Very lightly textured, but with pronounced favours. This would be a nice wine with salmon. I am going hunting for Chinon.

Price: $19.84 (Port of Wines NS)
Score 90
Value 4.5/5
Region: France, Loire Valley, Chinon
Grape: Cabernet Franc

Pierre André Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Aux Clous 2005

Here's one that not-so-much value priced. It's hard to give a value rating to the more expensive wines. I loved the Pierre Sparr Gewurz I had a week ago, but when I think about it, I'm not sure it was really a 4/5 for value. I gave it a 92, but isn't that what you'd want (maybe not what you'd expect) from a $50 wine? And value is relative to the style. If you're someone who likes Aus Shiraz you'll be paying less than someone who likes Burgundy. Speaking of which . . .

--- Iron Chef's Review ---


A good friend brought over this Pinot Noir from the Premier Cru vineyard of Aux Clous in the north of Burgundy where as Robert Parker says, "Savigny's finest, richest, most intense and ageworthy wines are produced". My expertise with Burgundy is scarce, but Premier Cru wines are always welcome especially from a near perfect vintage (WS 95pts for Beaune, 98pts for Nuits).
Nose- White Pepper, Deep + robust strawberry, Resiny wood and a hint of Peaches. Just a bunch of stuff going on.
Taste: Tannic and grippy, crisp apple skin acidity. Stewed Strawberries with rhubarb and a remarkable milk chocolate finish that travelled forever. Very deep and complex taste. Sometimes hollow in the middle of your tongue. Lightly textured- not heavy on the palate.
Overall: Wow- this is really different experience- class + structure+ highly refined. This was young, it hasn't developed the earthy mushroom elements that I had expected- but it will. I am always too nervous to buy Burgs as I don't know enough to make educated purchases and everything seems soo expensive. I will be buying more of this and giving it ten yrs in the cellar. Fantastic- I will remember this for a long time.

Price: $49.99
Score- 95
Value- for Burgs ????- Recession, what recession.
Region: France-Burgundy
Alcohol: 13%
UPC: 3193411640037

Marrenon Rosé de Syrah 2007

I was asking for more on rosé, and Michelle has obliged.

--- Michelle's Review --

Summer lovin' it happened so fast. Summer lovin', I was having a glass..or two. Oh the joys of finding a nice summer sipper. I find that this time of year, my usual hardy reads are shelved until the chill of late summer or even early fall set in. For me its beer or crisp white wine season OR what has trilled me with this review, rose season!

I have to say that I have steered clear, for many years, of the rosé's. It could not be helped. Every time I looked at a bottle of rose, chilling in the cooler, I was immediately reminded of the teenage years. You know, getting the cheapest stuff we could find to take to the high school dances, then plugging our noses as we drank the concoction that was labeled "wine". Oh you all did it, you know you did.

But I digress. Now in my mature adult years, I am more flexible and open to trying wines outside my comfort zone. For crying out loud, I tried a Viognier a couple weeks ago, taste untried!

This particular time I was actually looking for something refreshing. A summer sipper if you will. I scanned the whites and nothing appealed to me. I then spotted the rosé's and with great trepidation I picked up this one. Bang for the buck! $12.49 and a decent drink. It was excellent. Not overly fruity, clean and crisp. I shall be picking up another bottle very soon.

Price: $12.49
Value: 4/5
UPC: 3256811113713

Pierre Sparr Gewürztraminer Vendanges Tardives 2002

I had dinner alone tonight (Kelly is out of town) so thank God this bottle is only 500ml. It’s so delicious I counld’t possibly have stopped before it was gone. WS talks about “litchi, rose, spice and grapefruit,” and also says it has “bright structure.” I only partially agree - maybe its because they tasted it almost four years ago. Maybe there is some lychee left - I think I would have guessed it as Gewurtz if I were tasting blind - but the lychee doesn’t jump out the way it often does in a younger Gewutz. But what does jump out is the structure. I wouldn’t call it bright - unctuous is better. Almost fatty - decadent even, but perfectly balanced. I agree with the rose and the finish of grapefruit. I suspect the differences between WS and what I taste arise because because they tasted it almost four years ago. Time has toned down the lychee and softened the brightness, but given it a mature body that is immensely appealing. WS gave it a score of 92, and I’ll agree with that. I’m tempted to go higher, but I was hungry when I opened the bottle and I know that always inflates the score. (Now I just have to hope that Kelly doesn’t check the blog when she gets home, or she’ll kill me for not having saved her some.)

Price: Approx $34 (500ml)
Score: 92
Value: 4/5
Region: Alsace, France
UPC: No longer available

Cote d'Or Sauvion & Fils Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur Lie

Melon de Bourgogne, also known as Muscadet, is a new grape for this blog. Too bad this wasn't a better wine - I always like trying something new.

--- Peanutman's Review ---

I remembered that last year Robert Noel had recommended this wine in his weekly column. Why, I have no clue. It has a nice little nose, nothing aggressive, but nothing to say wow. It is dry, light and fresh and seems to have a little bit of a lemon lime taste. Nothing to offend you, but also nothing to make you want to buy another bottle. We had it with salmon, not a good idea. The salmon overpowered this wine and made it taste as bland as water. On its own, it is ok, but for the price, I wasn't impressed. If anyone knows if the other wines from Sevre et Maine at NBLC have a little more pizzazz, please let me know as I think it could be good.

Price: $16.99
Score: 80
Value: 2 / 5
Region: France, Loire
Grape: Melon de Bourgogne (Muscadet)
UPC: 3279870608532

JF Lurton Fumees Blanches Sauvignon Blanc 2007

Our theme of value-priced summer whites continues - and why not? But it seems that this wine may not be the best way to spend your $13.49.

--- Iron Chef's Review ---

The label stated that it was a smokey version of SB and I thought it might pair nicely with Cedar Planked Brie on the BBQ.

Nose: Lemony and Fragrant. Wet stone and Canned veggies like Peas.
Taste: Nicely restrained, Good acidity and minerals, somewhat metallic on the finish. Didn't find much smoke. But the Canned Peas was too much. Did not enjoy that aspect of the experience.

Overall I liked the subtle nature of the wine, but the veggies… not so much. Compared to the SBs in the Santa Rita line there are plenty of good Sauvignon Blancs out there.

Price: $13.49
Score: 80
Value: 1/5
Region: Vin de Pays du Comte Tolosan
Alcohol: 12%
UPC: 635335961957

Pierre Sparr Schoenenbourg Grand Cru Riesling 2001

A well-made, balanced Riesling with good typicity, but nothing particularly striking or special about it. Maybe the problem is that I’ve developed my palate for Riesling mostly with fuller bodied German Auslese or Spatlese, and this is just a bit lighter in style than I am used to. I’d like a bit more at the price. Wine Spectator rated this 92, but I just don't see it. The WS review was from 2005, and even though they said drink until 2012, perhaps it is fading already. But looking back over my notes, I see that I had this a couple of years ago and rated it 89 back then. I'd be curious to find out what anyone else thinks - is it me or WS that is off? Or is it just a matter of preferences?

Price: $34.10
Score: 88
Value: 2/5
Region: Alsace
UPC: 3263530024442