GaMay: 2015 Clos de la Roilette "Fleurie"

This was an interesting one. Threw quite a bit of sediment so I stood it up for a few days. From the nose I would have said Sonoma Coast pinot noir. Palate was lower in acid than I expected, but enough to really blend with the fine tannins and cran-cherry fruit. Long finish. Just a very, very complete and delicious wine. Extremely versatile with food, everything from grilled marinated chicken to goat curry.

This clos is of course formerly part of Moulin-au-Vent, which may explain the pinot noir-like character.

https://louisdressner.com/producers/clos+de+la+roilette

[David M. Bueker]

Good coincidence. I have the 2019 pulled for tonight.

I had a 2015 Cuvee Tardive last night and it was much as you described but amped up a bit. I found it a little too heavy and ripe for a Beaujolais, full of soft, dark fruit but missing that tangy spark that so many Bojos have. I guess the warm year was the problem as I have had a few other vintages of the Tardive and regular cuvee and they have been more to my liking. So it goes.

I had 2010, 2012 and 2014 Tardive last week and they were all showing great, with 2012 a bit less interesting than the other two. But everything was far from amped up, heavy or dark. It is true that vintage matters!

I admit to not paying much attention to Beaujolais vintages, but the 2015 I had was certainly unusual compared to the maybe half dozen other vintages of the Fleurie. Now I want to open a different year, let me see if I have one rattling around. But yes, I think of Roilette as the classic iron fist in a velvet glove wine, not heavy at all, but structured and finely tuned.

I admit to not paying much attention to Beaujolais vintages, but the 2015 I had was certainly unusual ...

Well it's pretty similar to the surrounding Burgundy/Rhone regions: hot.

[Jenise]

I had a 2015 Cuvee Tardive last night and it was much as you described but amped up a bit. I found it a little too heavy and ripe for a Beaujolais, full of soft, dark fruit but missing that tangy spark that so many Bojos have. I guess the warm year was the problem as I have had a few other vintages of the Tardive and regular cuvee and they have been more to my liking. So it goes.

Hope you don't have any 18's laying around. You'll like them even less than the '15s.

I had a 2015 Cuvee Tardive last night and it was much as you described but amped up a bit. I found it a little too heavy and ripe for a Beaujolais, full of soft, dark fruit but missing that tangy spark that so many Bojos have. I guess the warm year was the problem as I have had a few other vintages of the Tardive and regular cuvee and they have been more to my liking. So it goes.

Hope you don't have any 18's laying around. You'll like them even less than the '15s.

Despite having been a wine drinker for over 50 years, I discovered Beaujolais relatively recently so my first Roilette was the 2019 Fleurie. Enjoyed it very much.