NV Girard – Bonnet Au Bout du Chemin Chardonnay premier cru

A birthday bottle of bubbles for the dear ones from a favourite bit of Champagne, the Côtes des Blancs and the village of Vertus. Mostly biodynamic 2021 grapes with some reserve. Some oak fermented, most in stainless steel, the wood has barely left a thumb print. It had the sort of composure and poise that marks brilliant fruit and gifted making and a compulsion to keep sipping. Pristine cleanliness and a good measure of warm yeasty brioche proved a prelude to crystalline citrus and a little tang of white peach or melon. Long and linear with bursts of fruit and measured salinity right to the end of the road, just as the label says. It’s the texture that’s separates this breed of BdB from the humdrum celebration bubbles. Slides as it glides, tingles and just so touches of feathery texture, utter pitch perfect mouth music. Nicely dry but fruit rich, a low dosage of 3g. A real treat. A bottle between four really should have been a magnum. Rarely has a last half glass of fizz been enjoyed as much.

12.5% alcohol. Diam. A very well chosen swap.

94 points.

2018 Blue Poles Allouran

A Margaret River version of a Merlot and Cabernet Franc blend. All very clean and fresh still with maybe the variety characteristics write large in the candid Australian way. Loads of leaf, sweet red capsicum, plum, raspberry and mint both in smell and flavour, seasoned with some spice and biscuit oak. In shape and texture, it’s plush and velvety, with a counter attack of cool gravel. As energising as a dip under a cool wave on a bright Australian beach day. Different but good. Blue Poles and White Horses.

13.8% alcohol. Screw cap. $30.

93 points.

2019 Giant Steps Syrah Carignan Grenache

Sometimes the sum of the parts in a blend can be more than the individual bits, maybe. Despite thinking Pinot Noir is complete in its own wonder, I must admit to really enjoying some of the more recent Pinot and Shiraz blends from the Yarra Valley. This proved to be another delicious bottle of mixing things up. Perhaps made to be drunk in its vigorous youth, lots of what seems to be whole berries, it nonetheless was still fresh and remarkably deep a few years on. Lots of vivid very ripe raspberries, some mint and touch of pepper trimmed by some sappy stem herbs. Lush and for want of a better word, slurpable. Gentle skin tannin and acidity. Hard to stop sipping until the bottles all gone. It’s nice to go travelling but it’s just a good to drink local at home.

13.5% alcohol. Screw cap. $35 ish.

93 points but more delicious than some with more points.

2022 Domaine Bitouzet Prieur Meursault

Didn’t think I’d be lucky enough to type the word Meursault in a post again but when one was included in a swap, the only thing to do was find the corkscrew. Rich in perfume and colour, this needed a long double decant and then another to shed some of the sulphide meatiness and round out a bit. Lots of compact concentration in smell and taste that seemed nicely balanced with a well meshed touch of skin texture and excellent acidity that carried a cracking depth of flavour. Those flavours indeed, perhaps auto suggestion but hazelnut and honey loomed large with a dash of yellow fruit and figgy richness. Maybe a bit too much bitter sulphide for me but nobody else seemed to complain, so don’t mind my foible. As a whole there’s a range of deep flavour beautifully floated on upper class acidity and texture. A treat to venture maybe one last time into a place where the entrance price makes me envy the very rich label drinker, more than I’d like to admit.

13.5% alcohol. Cork. Glad the generous swap avoided mentioning the cost.

94 points. Maybe less for the technically minded. Maybe more for the Chardonnay lovers that see a bit of that old matchbox as essential?

2022 Domaine des Sonnettes Pied de Mouton

One of those natural wines from a small scale French producer that tells you nothing on the label apart from a good taste in graphics. Looking carefully, you can find the words Vin de France. The AOC system isn’t often less than cryptic but there’s a clue sometimes. It does make you wonder how these puzzling labels would have sold before google. Consultation with the oracle revealed this is from the Bugey valley in lovely Savoie and is 85% whole bunch Gamay and 15% destemmed Poulsard. It opened bright and crisp. A healthy lean BMI. Those yeasty smells of a low sulphur natty wine formed a haze over some invitingly fresh and bright red fruits. A bit of reduction too that dissipated after twenty four hours. Good the first day, the pristine fruit soared the second. Amazing perfume and nose filling fragrance emerged with all the red summer fruits backed by some powdered rock. Mountain fresh mouth watering acidity and a cat’s lick of fine skin tannin made it wholesome. Such good grapes and maybe an argument for a tolerance of nattiness in the cause of such scorching fruit expression. It’s such a tightrope. No real wobbling with this one. Long live diversity.

12.5% alcohol. Cork. $? Part of the Wendouree swap and very different to those Clare marvels.

95 points second day, natty stylee.

2022 Herència Altés Garnatxa Negra Terra Alta DO

Vinomofo, for good or bad. I must admit having a trawl now and then since I realised they direct imported the excellent Julien Schaal Rieslings. For most of us price is more than important, the business model less so. When this turned up for about $20 a bottle, my love of Grenache couldn’t resist. All the things that make a near to Priorat version so appealing. Deep but finely tailored cherry and other red fruits, nuts and a rocky cut. Fragrant with dry Mediterranean herbs too. Medium weight, fine skin tannins and refreshing acid bite. The only caveat being a twist of bitter sulphide, sadly so common in Spanish Grenache as it gains a year or so in the bottle. It did subside having been open for a day but..I must admit I always seem to like most Grenache when it’s youthful and booming with just picked succulence anyway. Some of S C Pannell’s McLaren Vale versions have persuaded me otherwise though. With the Rhone it’s more difficult as there’s blending and I can’t afford Rayas these days. The cause of the sulphide bitterness seems to be lack of YAN or yeast available nitrogen according to friendly winemakers. There’s also a much deeper scientific dive into types of sulphur compounds that affect wine and is well beyond my basic chemistry. I still can’t help wondering what makes wine tick though, so excuse me. In short this is probably one to drink at a nice cool temperature, like most young red wine demands, and soon. Nice lightweight bottle too.

14.5% alcohol. Diam. $20.

92 points notwithstanding a marginal fault that probably only bugs my precious taste anyway.

2022 Bien de Altura Vinos Sansofi Gran Canaria DO

Despite a love for things Spanish and there being a bit of fuss about Canary Islands’ wine, I’m pretty sure this is my first island bottle. Sort of another in a theme, as the last long look at a region was Etna and this comes from an island volcano too, albeit a bit less active. Reading about the islands, it seems the indigenous vine Listán Negro doesn’t crop up anywhere else now, it may have originated in Castilla or not depending on the source. There’s some considerable history as the Canaries have avoided phylloxera and vines are planted on original roots. Shakespeare’s Sir Toby Belch suggests someone is in need of a cup of canary in Twelfth Night. I’m a bit late catching up. A Jancis article says these vines are amongst the highest altitude in Europe although the latitude puts the islands closer to Africa. All intriguing really and so to the cup of canary itself. Initially a bit pongy with sulphidic edges and a bit of a natty waft. Just medium to light in extract. Settling down into reductive cherry, woody stem spice, leather and a very ashy, crushed rock landslide. Same in the mouth, the red fruits a bit compacted by stem, reduction and really dry stonewall tannin. Not sure it’s all pleasure. There’s some argument amongst wine lovers suggesting great wine is better without complicated cooking or any food at all. In this case, this ungainly cup took off with a bowl of sweetly tomato laden pasta sauced with pesto Trapanese. Happily a food enhancing structure and a mouthwatering savour took over and cleared the way for some fragrant red fruits and dusty savour. All the doubtful bits dropped away. After a bit of uncertainty about winemaking and enjoyment, three quarters of the bottle disappeared in the time it takes two people to eat dinner. There’s always a new wine adventure without leaving the table.

12.5% alcohol. Diam I think? $? no idea as it was part of a swap for some of the yearly Wendouree delivery. I always seem to do so well and end up with delicious things I wouldn’t normally go for.

94 or 95 points with food, hard to say without. It’s me not you, dear wine.

1997 Domaine des Roches Neuves Marginale Saumur Champigny

Somehow forgot to take a photo before the bottle hit the recycling bin and had to make do with a dodgy internet version that makes the GIN stand out. Odd. Must admit to liking this producer for some time but I’ve never ventured beyond the two or so basic Cabernet Francs in the range. They’ve always been delicious and very clean, perhaps unusually so for a lot of red wine making in the Loire? This bottle was another that appeared at auction and attracted no other bids apart from my less than extravagant $32. The current release is well over $AU100. Nonetheless quite a risk for something so old for someone so old and careful with the budget. Twice the corks gods have smiled in succession. Just about in one piece, good level and no leaks again. It seems the fruit comes from the domaine’s oldest vines on limestone including part from the famous Poyeux vines. The quality shone brightly in a still dark red colour, fresh aromas of squishy over ripe raspberries, dark cherry and an almost Bordeaux gravelly mineral thing. Noticeable char of oak gently sinking into the fruit. All very melded and of a whole with age but not tiring, more plateauing. Lots of darker complications as it opens, pleasure and deeper thoughts. This and the ancient Mitchell Shiraz from the last post will only provoke more bids for old things.

13% alcohol. Cork. $38 at auction, absolute bargain.

94 points.

1984 Mitchell Watervale Vineyard Shiraz

A long established winery making well priced bottles without quite the fuss they deserve. Organic, dry grown and handpicked fruit should make them fashionable but somehow not the case. This appeared at auction and looked good in terms of fill level and label in tact. So old, the label predates the Peppetree Vineyard name that seemed so evocative in the late eighties. There’s always a bit of happy trepidation opening an oldie, just how crumbly is the cork? I struck an unusually in tact version that squeezed out in one piece and no leaks. There was still a lot of life in the drink, nice faded red colour, lovely old claret style red fruit hanging on, Clare red cherry, white pepper seasoning and still some rum and raisin oak, just a whiff of America. The acidity and tannins crisp and well integrated. What a lucky one. Fun lottery.

12.5% alcohol. Cork. $18 at auction.

92 points.

2023 Weingut Leitz Magic Mountain Rüdesheimer Riesling Trocken

I must admit to loving Riesling but have a sad lack of experience with the best of Germany. The basic ones around $30 available in Australia are lovely on a hot summer evening but don’t seem to compete in terms of depth with locals at the price point. Spending more and it always seems to be other grapes. And I’m not a big fan of sugar, albeit, yes, the best 8% or 9% Germans do have a scintillatingly delicious balance where you hardly notice any sweetness. Planning to go through the enormous Frankfurt airport on this year’s Europe trip, the overused Googlemap app showed Rüdesheim was a hour away down the river. I picked three producers easy to reach by train and sent begging emails. Fancy being bothered by an old wine nut for a while? The nicest reply was from Leitz, please come and taste. Well, that’s lovely, yes please. Getting off the local S Bahn, a misty autumnal stroll from the pretty village of Geisenheim to Leitz was under a slope of vines just thinking of a winter doze. A warm welcome and a generous tasting took us on a trip across that slope overlooking the Rhine with peaks in the GGs. The bottles opened started with their cutely named Eins Zwei Dry and climbed up the heights of three GGs. The Schlossberg was really loooong.

For some nutty reason, Leitz seal their GGs with corks. Yes, the best expensive sort but…which is why this particular screw capped bottle seemed a good buy to take back to the hotel room that lacked a corkscrew. At a quality level just below GG, that unofficial measure of dry Riesling quality, the Magic Mountain stood out in the lineup, much closer to the GGs than the standard Rüdesheimer. Tasting at length over a couple of nights, it’s got that extra detail, depth and nuance that Riesling can do so well. Fresh ripe white peach, a touch of mango and citrus and that waxy flowery honey thing that distinguishes the best of Rieslings for me. The finest float of mouthwatering acidity to refresh, delicious. Elegant you could say. Lingers long. It’s named Magic Mountain in English as Thomas Mann had already written something in German by the same title.

12.5% alcohol and trocken. Screw Cap. €18.50.

94 points.