1985. 40 years young. Gave it an hour to open up before dinner (paired orange ginger glazed duck with pistachio apricot farro). Thankfully my partner is a master of the Durand. There’s very little for me to compare this too - most aged whites are preserved by acid; Chave relies on glycerol here. It gives the wine gravitas but also life and freshness. Pleasant wood veneer/wood shop notes, dried apricots at first (become fresher with time), yellow plum, truffled earth. Salty poached apricots and timelessness. In a perfect world, we’d be sharing this with my dad. Strange & sensational. — 6 days ago
Brilliant wine. So fresh, tart berries, bright flowers, stone, some herbs, mouth watering acidity from fruit flavors, apple, berries, cherries, hint of tropical fruit. So good with food. So good on its own. This is how I remember more Beaujolais tasting 10-15 years ago. — a month ago
Very nice choice by the Sommelier at Pastis in Nashville to pair with both grilled Branzino and Boeuf Bourguignon. (I know.). Bright, a bit astringent, fruit forward, with some structure but not too much. — 17 days ago
And then this happened. Oh my days! Opened prior to dinner and enjoyed over the course of a few hours. The 1990 pours a deep garnet color with a translucent core; medium viscosity with moderate staining of the tears and some sediment. On the nose, the wine is vinous with notes of powerful ripe and desiccated brambles, dried purple flowers, beef blood, leather and mushrooms and earth. On the palate, the wine is dry and structure is still going strong with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose, to quote “Squints”, the finish goes on, FOR-EV-ER. A monument. Drink now through 2040. — 8 days ago
Leftovers from our 2nd Annual, “Bierock Bonaza: Let’s have some funza with Runza”.
Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of three hours. The 2015 pours a deep ruby with a slightly purple tinge and a near opaque core; medium+ viscosity with light staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of lightly stewed, spiced strawberry, ripe fig, and cherry lozenges, red flowers, green herbs, with a touch of leather, and a mix of organic and inorganic rocky earth. Just the faintest hint of mouse. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+. The alcohol is also medium+. Delicious. Drink now through 2030.
— a month ago
Jeremy Shanker
Sommelier at RN74
Still fresh as day. Incredible. — 13 days ago