WTN: Dinner with friends

Spiced nuts and olives
2002 Huet Vouvray Brut Pétillant
I don't know what version/release this was but it was pretty darn tasty. It got better richer and more precise over the course of the meal but it was still pretty darn tasty rich and precise from the beginning. No problems at all. I wish I had more!

Artichoke, leek, and red pepper pizza and roasted asparagus
2007 Château Tour Grise Saumur Blanc Les Fontenelles
It was tough following the Huet but this put up a valiant effort. There is some stern chalky firmness and minerality to the wine that makes me happy but there is also the slightly-brown slightly-oxidative character that does not convince me to get excited. Plus it seems to lack the extra dimension of a top wine. But I've heard good things about this so perhaps it was the wrong setting/expectations.

Gnocchi with chanterelles and black trumpets and carrot-fennel salad
2003 Vincent Gasse Saint Joseph
This is a pretty wine. For 2003 or any year. Nice stuff. Beautiful florals on the nose and of course the palate is solid/ripe, but it also has plenty of lift and velvety elegance. A success for any vintage and a brilliant interpretation of 2003.

Vanilla panna cotta and fruit
The remains of everything...

Nice to hear about a successful '03 from the Rhone, have not had too many of those.

Sounds like a very nice dinner, and I need to find some of the 02 Petillant for myself.

[David M. Bueker]

'02 Huet Petillant coming up! I was going to open one of those for wine focus this weekend, but perhaps I will wait.

Yeah, I haven't had many good wines from 2003 but this shows the value of a trusted merchant. I know the guy very well at the shop where I bought this wine and could trust his recommendation. Even if I was initially skeptical when he showed me the wine. But he was right and I was happy. Which is why I keep going back.

[James Roscoe]

Isn't it generally true that the good winemakers can deal with the odd vintages like '03? Winemakers who know what they are about are generally going to make a decent bottle unless the the vintage is wiped out.

Isn't it generally true that the good winemakers can deal with the odd vintages like '03? Winemakers who know what they are about are generally going to make a decent bottle unless the the vintage is wiped out.

Decent is one thing and something you would want to spend your hard-earned money on is another. I think the problem with 2003 was that the drought conditions were unlike anything most European winemakers (good, bad, or mediocre) had seen in their lifetimes. So it was very challenging for everyone.

I haven't done any comprehensive tasting but I'm willing to wager that the successful and downright delicious wines were partially a function of winemaker but also a function of various geographic/terroir elements. Not all parcels of vines were affected equally by the heatwave/drought.

Isn't it generally true that the good winemakers can deal with the odd vintages like '03? Winemakers who know what they are about are generally going to make a decent bottle unless the the vintage is wiped out.

I think it's generally true that the best winemakers can handle "off" vintages - though I've felt certain vintages just have a character that can dominate the influences of soil, winemaker and grape. '03 has been like that in a lot of Burgundy and Rhone for my tastes - some really good winemakers made very balanced wines, but the superripe/slightly roasted aromatic character a lot of the wines have has been offputting for me (despite whatever lift/elegance there is).

[David M. Bueker]

There's "off vintages" (a term which means less and less as weather warms) and there's freak, Spock with a beard type bizzarro world years. 2003 was one of the latter, and virtually nobody had any experience in dealing with it, so lots of indifferent wine was made.

That said, some folks love the powerhouse, surmaturite style of 2003. I don't. I know Rahsaan and Salil do not. Your mileage may vary.