By: Ryan Tedder
It has been an amazing week for fine wine drinking at Graileys! From perfectly aged Burgundies and Cali Cabs to excellent examples of younger Cali Syrahs and Red Burgs. There were several excellent bottles consumed without a doubt. 3 wines specifically stood out for their high quality and enchanting aromatics.
The first stunner and maybe the best white I have tasted this month was the 1996 Nicolas Joly Coulee de Serrant. This 100% Chenin Blanc from the finest vineyard in Savennieres is made by the legendary vigneron Nicolas Joly. The wines of this region are mostly bracingly dry with high acidity and even higher minerality. Drinking in its prime at 18 years of age, this 1996 white was loaded with dry stone fruits (peaches, nectarines, apricots), lemon skin and pit, ginger, yellow and white flowers, saffron and a slightly briny, wet mossy river stone. There was a finish that would not quit and it only improved as it stayed open over a few hours. Pineapples, melon, lemongrass, honeysuckle, wax, and chamomile tea all appeared over time. Enchanting wine!
Next we moved to the reds. A bottle of 2005 Domaine de L’Arlot, Nuits-St-George Clos de L’Arlot 1er Cru was the rock star red Burg of the night. On pulling the cork the quality of this wine was immediately evident. Aromas of dried strawberries, cherries, roses, truffles, Asian spices, sandal wood, pine needles and forest floor flooded out of the bottle. This wine just got better and better as it stayed open. The texture was satin, the tannins were soft and sexy and the finish lasted for over a minute. Everything great Burgundy should be!
We finished with the 1998 Castello del Rampolla d’Alceo that was riveting and powerful! It had more fruit, oak and strength than most Napa wines I have had. A sweet entry on the palate was followed by abundant quantities of smoky, complex, black currant fruit intermixed with lead pencil and vanillin flavor. It opened with more air and layers of fruit, extract, fennel, licorice, and blackberry caressed the palate and made a new fan out fo this iconic, tiny production Italian gem. All that and the price was half of the current release price. Bravo!