Verve
Vincent Dauvissat
Les Clos Chablis Grand Cru Chardonnay 2007
Château La Conseillante
Pomerol Red Bordeaux Blend 2010
The 2010 La Conseillante has been spellbinding since I first tasted it from barrel. It has an intense nose with black plum, cedar and graphite. It is vibrant and compelling with scents of camphor intertwined. Wonderful delineation; there are layers of aromatic complexity. The palate is beautifully knit with a touch of black pepper and thyme filtering through the black fruit. It retains so much energy on the finish as it fans out with class and verve. Magnificent. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the Icons of Bordeaux dinner at Legacy Records in New York. (Neal Martin, Vinous, May 2024)
— a year ago
Paradise Springs of Clifton
Virginia Cabernet Franc 2016
Loved the maturation on this bottle at nine years old: Sturdy and structured. Concentration of ripe red fruit plus plenty of phenolic verve. A fantastic representation of a masculine Virginia CF — 12 days ago
Domaine Roulot
Bourgogne Blanc Chardonnay 2022
There’s nothing basic about this Bourgogne Blanc!
It’s absolutely lovely. With elegant notes of fresh white peach, nectarine, yellow apple, apricot, lemon peel, citrus blossom, chalk, wet slate, salinity, and sapidity; also, delicate cream, flintiness, and cheese rind notes and perhaps a touch of reduction, presenting as struck match. The palate is dry, with medium alcohol (13%), medium (+) acidity.
It fermented with wild yeasts and aged 11 months in a combination of barrels and stainless steel, followed by an addition 7 months in stainless steel tanks.
This wine has verve and vibrancy and is positively delicious.
Cheers to beautiful Bourgogne Blanc wines to write home about!! — 10 months ago
Louis Roederer
Cristal Brut Champagne Chardonnay Pinot Noir Blend 2009
Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of an hour or so. No formal notes due to the setting. The 2009 seems to break from the reputation of the vintage with a freshness and verve that surprises. The typical quality of Cristal is there with its persistent mousse and attractive texture. Good acid too. Pretty tasty stuff and I’m not sure I would ever turn down a glass of this. Drink now through 2039. — 3 months ago
Pierre Gonon
Saint-Joseph Syrah 2016
94-95
My first Gonon StJo…unfortunately, I loved it. Wish these were easier to find at good prices!
At 8yrs, this was so perfumed out of the glass. At 90% whole cluster, it shows typical green/stemmy aromatics but it’s not the dominant note, trending toward green peppercorns, violets/potpurri, olive, and black cherries. Mineral notes, pepper, mix of red and black fruits, mocha, and so much verve on the palate, absolutely buzzing both days. This wine is floral and herbal but with so much power and balanced fruit…kind of a wild-ness to it that I loved. What a beautiful expression of Syrah. Killer.
Day two showed the whole cluster aromatics fade a bit, but it also showed the palate bulk up. So good. — a year ago
Hartford Court
Seascape Vineyard Chardonnay 2019
The 2019 Chardonnay Seascape Vineyard is another incredibly distinctive wine in this range. Candied ginger, passionfruit, lemon confit, white flowers and tangerine oil give this mid-weight Chardonnay tons of character. Bright acids lend freshness and verve to a Chardonnay that is very much on the exotic side of things. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, January 2023) — 3 years ago
Lee Pitofsky
Decant your white burgs! This improved so much with air. There’s such power and verve with incredible depth and seamlessness of its layered Chablisen minerality, with buttercream, roasted hazelnuts and an ocean spray-like salinity. It’s texturally captivating, wrapping around the palate with killer density without weight. Racy acids balance its richness and secondary nuttiness and it finishes forever. Excellent. — 9 days ago