WTN: Good Fronsac, Hofstätter Pinot, Allegrini, F.Haag, etc

Château Moulin Pey-Labrie – Canon-Fronsac 1999 was well up to its usual dependable standard, which is at least equal to that of most Saint-Émilion grands-crus. (There is a minor mystery about its varietal make-up; my reference books from that period state Merlot 70%, CabSauv 20%, CabFranc 10% but in the last year or so Merlot is shown up to 95% with 5% Malbec; error or drastic replanting?) This bottle took some time to open up but once into its stride showed aromas of rich quite sweet red fruit and red roses with a dab of kirsch and nice mineral touches coupled with quite full body and complex fruit, caressing velvety mouth-feel, resolved structure, good length and enough acidity and grip to ward off Merlot’s besetting sins of jamminess and cloy; 16/20++.

Pinot Nero Barthenau Vigna S. Urbano Alto Adige DOC 1995 – J. Hofstätter is just about the best Pinot Noir which I have had from outside Burgundy. This bottle showed medium body, elegant and pure but complex red and dark fruit with a lot of cherry, still lively acidity, touches of minerals, good length and classical shape on the palate; excellent but possibly a tad faded compared with my memories of a glass at a tasting a couple of years ago; 16.5/20++.

Château Maucamps Cru Bourgeois Haut-Médoc 1994, 55% CabSauv, 40% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot, is a neighbour in Macau of Château Cantemerle, which was a favourite of mine in the 60s. This bottle showed still vigorous dark colour, a fresh and savoury nose with tangy plum and wet leather and a palate which was quite full bodied and robust, fresh, leathery and tangy like the nose with abundant acidity, a marked green herbaceous streak and some still hard tannins; the accompanying chicken risotto did not do any favours to the acids and tannins and I guess that I would have enjoyed this bottle as much as its predecessors with a more suitable pairing; 15.5/20.

Braunerberger Jüffer Riesling Spätlese 2007 – Fritz Haag (sorry no AP number noted) showed deliciously grapey and spicy aromas, round richness with considerable RS balanced by delicious minerality and lip smacking acidity; I wondered if this was not a down-graded Auslese; considerable potential, I guess; 16.5/20+ now.

Irouléguy 2005 - Domaine Brana (white), made from Gros and Petit Manseng, was a complete contrast; it was marked at first by wood, vanilla and soft caramel notes, but these receded as the wine was aired and an zesty, bone dry, quite intense palate opened up with notes of steel, iodine and background touches of honey and caramel; acidity was almost tart and much crisper than in neighbouring Jurançon, which not shy in that department; a fine white for seafood; 16/20+.

“La Grola” IGT Veronese 2005 – Allegrini, a Corvina dominated blend, is not really my thing though I see why it has admirers; the aromas were quite complex with notes of rich sweet fruit, kirsch, herb and toffee and body was quite full with noticeable and slightly bitter tannic structure, shape on the palate was somewhat up-front; 15/20++.

Gevrey-Chambertin 2005- Domaine Groffier comes from the wrong side (East) of the main road but showed medium body, lovely pure pinot fruit with lively acidity and nerve, if no great complexity; 15.5/20++.

[David M. Bueker]

I am sure that the Haag spatlese was auslese must weight. That being said, the legal minimums for all the pradikats are too low, so the only way to get goos spatlese is to have grapes at auslese level in my opinion. Where it gets tricky is when botrytis is involved. I know of a few wineries that will call it spatlese almost no matter how ripe it is, until it gets botrytis. THen it becomes auslese as long as it meets the minimums.

Irrouléguy 2005 - Domaine Brana, made from Gros and Petit Manseng,...

Tim, a small nit here, but since most Irrouleguy is red wine to 99.99% of the folks out there, you just might want to specify that this is a white wine in the description (I know you say it toward the end, but if someone is skimming, they might miss it).

Irouléguy 2005 - Domaine Brana, made from Gros and Petit Manseng,...

Tim, a small nit here, but since most Irouleguy is red wine to 99.99% of the folks out there, you just might want to specify that this is a white wine in the description (I know you say it toward the end, but if someone is skimming, they might miss it).

Thanks for the reminder, Mark. I usually try to do this where there can be doubt.

In fact the proportion of white grapes grown at Irouléguy is far more than a fraction of 1%; between a quarter and a third of the total at three leading estates.

The reds from the area which I have tasted are gutsy but with tannins less forbidding in their youth than those of nearby Madiran.