WTN: 2005 Phillipe Alliet "Vielles Vignes" Chinon

Outstanding Cab Franc sampled last night at WineStyles:

Color: Dark ruby/red black.

Nose: Quite a bit of funkyness when first popped and poured into the decanter. Not sure if it's brett per se, but definitely some interesting things growing in the cellar here! Still...it blew off, leaving a very nice, quite rich nose of blackberry and pepper.

Palate: A lot of interesting things going on here, but this is a wine that requires patience to show its best. A quite rich mouth feel, this is not a thin and weedy cab franc at all. Definitely blackberry and currant fruit at the forefront. Quite interesting mouth feel, too...some grittyness to the tannins that I like. A bit drying, perhaps. A good deal of savoryness, too...and...while not obtrusive or offensive or bothersome in any way, the Cab Franc herbal/green pepper character comes through in a whisper on the finish. A very nice wine that is sub $20, if I recall correctly. I love French wines!

I would rate this a solid 90 points and would definitely like to try more wines from this producer. The Wine Doctor has good things to say about this estate as well.

http://www.thewinedoctor.com/loire/alliet.shtml

2005 is still quite a baby for an Alliet VV. I drank a 1998 VV a few days ago which was still very vigorous, a good performance in a generally meiocre vintage. Alliet goes in for a more robust style than most Chinon producers.

Alliet goes in for a more robust style than most Chinon producers.

That was always my impression, so I stopped buying them. But I don't know how recent vintages have been showing.

I know it was pretty young, but you know what...it was delicious, so I don't feel too much trepidation.

Alliet goes in for a more robust style than most Chinon producers.

Maybe...but if you are used to Cali wines....my friend commented how "light" the wine was.