A bottle I contributed during a trip to Napa’s Premiere Napa Valley week. This was opened at Torc, alongside a ‘97 Leflaive Les Pucelles, ‘11 Leroy Blagny, ‘89 La Chappelle and two young Napa cabs from Simon Estate. La Mouline is always my favorite due to the amount of co-ferment with Viognier.
Deserving of a 1-2hr decant, this got about an hour open in bottle by the time we got to it. I opened the ‘04 La Turque just a few weeks prior, so I had a reference point to work with. Heady aromatics, as expected…dark potpurri, spice, mesquite and mocha. On the palate, the youthful bacon-fat of Cote Rotie was gone and had channeled the classical tangy barbecue profile alongside black olive, peppered red and black berry fruit, and smoked meat at the finish. Whereas the LaTurque was almost Burgundian in profile (elegant, light), this was somewhere in-between the “bigger” LaLandonne and LaTurque…big, but balanced, likely due to vintage. Aromatics and finish here were standouts. Open now with a quick decant or hold another few years. — 2 months ago
While my favorite BdN remains Bout du Clos, this was one of the first “ah ha” Selosse wines for me some years ago in understanding the style. The south facing La Cote Faron is particularly “Selossien” and therefore particularly singular, with its oxidative complexity, textural richness and generous sun kissed ripe fruit expression. Like all Selosse wines, it’s multi-layered and super aromatic for Champagne, and the palate shows tremendous volume and intensity with a powerful, full bodied, satiny texture and a long, vibrant, mineral finish 😋 — 4 months ago
Floral and light bodied, really enjoyed this Pinot. Some crushed petals, little bit of earthy tones. — a month ago
Opened as part of a 2-day tasting with Alex Macdonald while he was in town. Day two was a small group of us with killer wines (2010 Chave Hermitage, mag of ‘02 Krug, Selosse Substance, 1996 Latour, 2003 Mouton, 1992 Dominus).
Quick one hour double decant to prep this beauty. While La Mouline is my favorite, La Turque still incorporates the co-ferment with Viognier. 93 Syrah/7 Viognier.
Beautiful translucent ruby in the glass. As I get with certain Cote Rotie wines (especially Guigal), barbecue and bacon fat can be overwhelming when young, but this has channeled a really balanced profile. Aromatic notes of smoked meat, cherry liqueur, and espresso. Beautifully rich yet elegant on the palate. Great nerve of acidity with a finish sporting plenty of tannin to carry this a while. Black peppered raspberries, black fruit on the palate with a little bacon and a hint of sweet/tangy barbecue sauce note (delicious). Enjoy now with a short decant or hold another 5yrs. — 3 months ago
Champ Persin Brut. Marvelous. — 2 days ago
Girls weekend with Gabrielle — 7 days ago
Strong cherry and light spice on the nose. Garnet in color, light body but full in flavor. Brightly cherry with earthy notes for the tongue. Mildly tannic finishing quickly in light oak and tobacco. Feels like a traditional French pinot but on the lighter side. — 4 months ago
Jay Kline
Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of an hour. The wine pours a deep straw, bordering yellow color with medium+ viscosity and a persistent mousse. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of raspberries, lemon, brioche, and minerals. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose though the fruit seem rounder on the palate than on the nose. The finish is medium+. A fairly agreeable Champagne. Disgorged in October 2022. — 2 days ago