Agrapart was established in 1894 by Arthur Agrapart.  Today, it has 9.75 ha of vineyards planted mostly with chardonnay.  Most of the vineyards was purchased in 1950s and 1960s by the grandson of Arthur Agrapart, Pierre Agrapart.  Almost all the vineyards owned are located in grand cru villages such as Avize, Oiry and Oger.  Average vine age is quite high at about 35 years old.  The oldest is about 60 years old.

Although Agrapart is not a certified organic or biodynamic producer, Pierre Agrapart has no doubt about the benefits that biodynamic farming can bring.  No chemcial herbicide, weedkillers or fertilizer will be used.  Agrapart also placed great emphasis on grape quality and ensure that every grape is fully ripened.  Given the ripeness of the grape, almost no sugar would be added during second fermentation and this is very uncommon in Champagne.  No cultured yeast would be used and all the wine would undergo malolactic fermentation.  Although some wines will be matured in barrel, the emphasis here is purity.  Therefore, wines from Agrapart is always very refreshing with any barrel dominant influence.  To further perserve the quality of the wine, there will be no fining or filtration before bottling.

The style of Agrapart is rich in flavour yet retaining freshness and elegance.

This bottle of N.V. Agrapart Terroirs Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru has all its grapes coming from the grand cru villages of Avize, Cramant, Oger and Oiry.  Immediately upon pouring, the wine released very intensive and rich aromas of ripe fruits.  There are notes of tertiary developed aromas but it is not dominant.  In palate, it is showing stronger minerality and matured champagne characters.  The ripe fruit flavours are balanced by high level of acidity.  This is a highly complex, rich yet elegant champagne.

Purchase: Regis Wine

The champagne I tried this time is a bottle of non-vintage champagne from de Sousa.  To judge if a champagne producer is good or not, I normally start with its non vintage champagne.  First of all, a non-vintage champagne should be representing the producer desired wine style.  In addition, non-vintage champagne is less subject to vintage variation.  Furthermore, given the fact that vintage champagne is normally only produced in good vintage, it is fairly safe to assume that if a bottle of non-vintage champagne is good, the vintage one would be even better!

By classification, Avize is a grand cru village in Champagne and is famous for the planting of Chardonnay.  Unsurprisingly, most producers in the village of Avize mainly produce only Blanc de Blancs champagnes.

De Sousa was established in 1986.  Annual production is about 80,000 bottles.  It now has about 9 ha of vineyards not only in Avize, but in Cramant and Oger as well.  Average vine age is an impressive 35 years.  All the vineyards are managed using biodynamic principles.  Comparing to Selosse,  although de Sousa also practiced deliberate oxidation, the wine has less developed nose than Selosse.  All the wines are barrel fermented of which 15% are new oak.  Even with the use of new oak, the wine is very balanced and will not have any obvious oak induced flavours.  All the wines undergone 100% malolactic fermentation.

This bottle of  NV de Sousa Blanc de Blancs Reserve Brut has an impressive nose which is very open and forward even without any breathing or decanting.  Although the nose is very intense, it still retains the elegance and lightness of a Blanc de Blancs champagne.  Very good intensity and very smooth in palate.  This is undoubtedly a very good non-vintage champagne that worth recommendation.

Langham Hotel Ming Court Restaurant – About HK$800

Ch. Potensac is owned by the family of Delon who also owned Ch. Leoville Lascases.  Financially strong and as a result, Ch. Potensac saw significant investment as well.  Ch. Potensac used to have a high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend but in recent years, the ratio of Merlot has increased significantly.  For example, 2005 Ch. Potensac has 41% Merlot in the blend.  In this 2009 Ch. Potensac, it even has 48% Merlot in the blend.  With more Merlot in the blend, Potensac is now a wine more able for early drinking.

This bottle of 2009 Ch. Potensac has very intense violet.  Although quite strong in oak barrel induced aromas, it is well balanced by its rich fruit flavours.  Good concentration and rich in palate.  Tannins are fine and ripe and the wine has good structure and smooth in palate.  As with many 2009 Bordeaux wines, alcohol is quite high at 14%.  There is a slight heat in aftertaste but not too serious.

As with 2005 Ch. Potensac, I’m happy with this bottle and thinking it offers good value for money.  Potensac is a reliable Bordeaux wine.

If you look at the following table, you will notice that from 1994 to 2008, there were only four vintages that Parker gave Figeac a score of over 90.  Not only that, 1997 Figeac got a super low score of 76.  What’s even more, there are many vintages that Parker even didn’t give a score!  Like this bottle of 2007 Ch. Figeac, there is no score from Parker.

It is no secret that Parker generally prefers modern style bigger wine.   Unfortunately (or fortunately to us) is that the wine style of Ch. Figeac is just opposite of what Parker generally prefer.  Ch. Figeac is famed for its superb elegance and feminine style of wine.  As a matter of fact, the terrior of Ch. Figeac is among the best in the whole of St-Emilion.  With soil mainly of gravel, Ch. Figeac planted quite a substantial amount of Cabernet Sauvignon (35%) and Cabernet Franc (35%).  Merlot only account for 30%.  A wine that is high in cabernet is generally not as pleasing in its youth when comparing to other wines that have a high proportion of Merlot.  Maybe also because of this reason, Ch. Figeac almost never score high in St-Emilion blind tasting.

This bottle of 2007 Ch. Figeac reflects wine style of Ch. Figeac well.  Elegant and very restrained nose. Not very expressive.  Need time and patience to analyse its aromas.  Mixed bags of black and red fruits, chocolate, cigar, earth, spices, vanilla and black tea.  Tannins are abundant but very fine.  Although it didn’t have a long length, this is a wine that has very good character and depth.  I would not say this is a very high scoring St-Emilion but I’m very happy with it.  Maybe Parker do not like the wine style of Ch. Figeac but I like it!

Last month, the Marketing Director of Achaval Ferrer came to Hong Kong and I have great pleasure to be able to meet him personally.  He is also so kind to arrange a small wine tasting For me.

Before the meeting, I have browsed the website of Achaval Ferrer in great details to understand more about this winery.  What surprised me (or I should say unsurprised) is the fact that most of the viticulture and vinification techniques employed by Achaval Ferrer are those aimed for high quality wines.  Many practices will resulted in low-yield and high production cost that not many wineries in Argentina are willing to do.  In addition, the winemaker of Achaval Ferrer Roberto Cipresso is coming from Italy’s Tuscany.  Maybe this also resulted in a wine that carry some Italian influences.

All the vineyards owned by Achaval Ferrer have very poor soil and are located at high altitude.  The large day and night temperature difference allows grapes to ripen slower and retain their acidity.  One of the problem of many wines from the New World is that they are produced from overriped grapes lacking acidity.  To balance the wine, acidification is required.  Acidification, however, usually resulted in acid that cannot be fully integrated into the wine.  I’m personally very sensitive to acidification and really don’t like wines that have been acidified.  Wine of Achaval Ferrer, however, is one of the rare exception in Argentina that don’t employ acidification.

Many of the vines of Achaval Ferrer are also very old, some are approaching 100 years old.  Planting density is also high at 5,000 to 7,000 vines per hectare.  These low-yield vinification practices resulted in wines with greater concentration and complexity.  For example, the yield of Finca Altamira and Finca Mirador vineyards are so low that a bottle of wine will require grapes of three vines!

2010 Mabec, Mendoza, Achaval Ferrer

Produced from three vineyards of Mayor Drummond Vineyard, La Consulta Vineyard and Medrano Vineyard.  Among the three, average vine age of Medrano Vineyard is 86 years old.  Annual production is about 12,000 cases.  Although this is basic Malbec from Achaval Ferrer, I found the wine already has very good character and complexity.  Rich yet elegant and extremely floral.  Ageing for further three to five years will allow the wine to further develop its complexity.

2007 and 2008 Quimera, Achaval Ferrer

A blend of five grape varieties, Malbec (40%)、Merlot (22%)、Cabernet Sauvignon (20%)、Cabernet Franc (14%) and Petit Verdot (4%).  Annual production is just 3,000 cases.  Comparing to the Malbec above, this wine definitely has better complexity, concentration and depth.  Both 2007 and 2008 are too young to me and both wines will benefit from further ageing.

Comparing 2007 and 2008, frankly I cannot tell significant difference (esp. their vintage climate condition).  Of course, 2007 is showing better integration and more developed than 2008 but these differences I think are coming primarily from one more year of bottle ageing instead of vintage difference.

2006, 2007 and 2008 Finca Mirador

Single vineyard Malbec with average vine age approaching 100 years old.  A vine can only produce about one pound of grape which mean a bottle will require grapes from three vines.  The 2008 is very young, very closed and very backward.  Although this is a wine with serious depth and complexity, patience is definitely required.  Similar to Quinera, I cannot feel much vintage climate difference among the three vintages.  I can only detect differences because of additional bottle ageing.  Vintage fluctuation in Argentina, anyway, is much less than regions such as Bordeaux and Burgundy.  It is a shame that I do not have a chance to try Finca Mirador of older vintages (such as those with 10 years or more bottle ageing).  I believe they must be great!

Purchase  Regis Wine

2011 Malbec Achaval Ferrer

2008 Achaval Ferrer Quimera

 2007 Achaval Ferrer Malbec Finca Mirador

 2007 Achaval Ferrer Malbec Finca Altamira la Consulta

Q1. Wines 1 – 4 are from the same vintage, from Burgundy. a) Identify the vintage, giving reasons with reference to each wine.  Then, for each wine: b) Identify the origin as closely as possible. c) Assess the quality of the wine. Comment on the winemaking.

Q2. Wines 5 and 6 are blends of more than one grape variety. They come from different countries. They have one grape variety in common. For both wines together: a) Identify the common grape variety. Also consider the other variety/ies within each wine. b) Identify the origin of each wine as closely as possible. c) Assess the quality and relative maturity of the two wines. d) Assess the place of each wine in the global market place.

Q3. Wines 7 and 8 are blends of more than one grape variety. They come from different countries. They have one grape variety in common. For both wines together: a) Identify the common grape variety. Also consider the other variety/ies within each wine. b) Identify the origin of each wine as closely as possible. c) Assess the quality of the two wines. d) Assess the potential for development of both wines.

Q4. Wines 9-12 are made from different single grape varieties. For each wine: a) Identify the grape variety as closely as possible. b) Identify the origin of the wine. c) Assess the quality and maturity.

1 Bourgogne, Clos du Château, Château de Puligny Montrachet 2004 – Burgundy France
2 Pouilly Vinzelles, Soufrandière, Bret Bros 2004 – Burgundy France
3 Chablis 1er Cru, Mont de Milieu, Droin 2004 – Burgundy France
4 Meursault, Arnaud Ente 2004 – Burgundy France
5 Domaine de Chevalier, Grand Cru Classé 2003 – Pessac-Léognan France
6 Semillon-Chardonnay, Cawarra, Lindemans 2006 – SE Australia Australia
7 Domaine Chaume Arnaud, Vinsobres Blanc 2005 – Rhône Valley France
8 Viognier-Chardonnay, Bien Nacido, Qupe 2005 – Santa Maria, California USA
9 Gewurztraminer, Gesetz, Rieffel 2004 – Alsace France
10 Torrontes, Crios de Susana Balbo 2006 – Cafayate Argentina
11 Vesevo, Greco di Tufo 2005 – Campania Italy
12 Condrieu, Pierre Gaillard 2005 – Rhône Valley France

Wines of Domaine Jean-Jacques Confuron is generally quite deep in colour, rich and dense in fruit and smooth in palate.  The richness in fruit, however, does not give any hint of jammy feeling.  Alain Meunier and Sophie Confuron don’t like to extract the fruits too much to avoid bitterness and tannic wine.

Alain Meunier and Sophie Confuron believes firmly that good wine starts from good raw material.  For this reason, ultra attention is given to vineyard management.  They believe in biodynamic farming practices and thus no chemical herbicide, weedkiller or fertilizer is used.  Some plots of vineyard would even to have horse ploughing to avoid compacting the soil too much.

Normally, all the grapes would be 100% destemmed and would undergo a period of cold pre-fermentation maceration to increase fruitiness.  Wines of Jean-Jacques Confuron used to be quite heavy-handed in the use of new oak.  This has been changed.  Now, 40% new oak would be used for Bourgogne red, 50% for village appellation red and 80% for premier cru and grand cru.  Barrel ageing is usually 15-18 months.  There is no fining or filtration before bottling.

Domaine Jean-Jacques Confuron today has about 8 hectares of vineyards including two Grand Cru vineyards of Clos de Vougeot and Romanee-St-Vivant.  Premier cru vineyards include Les Feusselotles (Chambolle-Musigny), Aux Boudots and Les Chaboeufs (Nuits-St-George) and Les Beaux-Monts (Vosne-Romanee).

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1996 Nuits-St-George 1er Aux Boudots Domaine Jean-Jacques Confuron – Why it is still so youthful?!

Good Burgundy here I mean the wine is produced by a reputable producer, from a good vintage year and from a good Grand Cru vineyard such as Richebourg, Chambertin Clos de Beze or Musigny.  The wine I drank this time, however, is only a premier cru from the Nuits-St-George village.  Jean-Jacques Confuron, a good and reputable producer?  Absolutely.  Vintage 1996 a good vintage?  Yes.  A good Grand Cru vineyard?  Although Aux Boudots is one of the best premier cru in Nuits-St-George, it is still a premier cru vineyard that can’t be compared with the most prestigious Grand Cru vineyard.

I’m actually expecting this wine should be already at its peak and quite matured.  Surprisingly, the wine is so young that I need to decant the wine to let it open.  Checking the official website of Jean-Jacques Confuron, it is also recommending this wine to be cellared further and not ready yet!  I personally guess this wine may still another a few years to let it further evolve and develop.  A premier cru needs twenty years to reach its peak?!

This wine has quite an expressive nose.  It’s dense, muscular and powerful.  Certainly not an elegant style of wine.  Aromas of floral incense, red berry, pungent spices, sandalwood and earth.  Rich, dense and concentrated sweet fruits in palate.  Although the wine is already very integrated, it will still another another few years to further develop to gain further complexity.

Purchase Regis Wine (Original $998 / Special $818)

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Domaine Jean-Jacques Confuron Profile

To most people, I believe what attract them most are the two bottles of Grange.  For me, it was the bottle of 1989 Penfolds Bin 389.  How will an Australian red tasted like after ageing for twenty years?  In addition, the chance to taste 15 bottles of Penfolds is a great opportunity for me to have a more complete view on Penfolds.  My view before may be biased based on my limited tasting experience with Penfolds.  And after the tasting, I have to say I’m very impressed with Penfolds Yattarna Chardonnay and St-Henri.  For Grange, still it is not my bottle of wine.

2012 Penfolds Bin 51 Eden Valley Riesling

Pure and clean minerality, floral and citrus flavours.  Crispy acidity and really refreshing.  Pleasant lemon and mineral aftertaste.  I’m personally not a fan of dry Riesling, esp. those from the New Worlds but this one is really good.  Unfortunately, it is quite expensive at around HK$300 a bottle.

2011 Penfolds Thomas Hyland Chardonnay

Very restrained nose with dominant buttery and oak barrel induced aromas yet still balanced.  Purer and cleaner in palate with strong lemon flavour.  Acceptable complexity.  A good Chardonnay that should please most drinkers.  For the price of around HK$200, this is quite good.

2010 Penfolds Bin 311 Tumbarumba Chardonnay

This is a higher grade Chardonnay than Thomas Hyland Chardonnay.  Unlike most Penfolds wines, this wine comes from a single region.  This wine undoubtedly has higher level of complexity and depth than Hyland Chardonnay.  Style is consistent Penfold’s pure and balanced style.  For a retail price of about $300, this is good.

2008 Penfolds Yattarna Chardonnay

Yattarma Chardonnay is Penfolds’ flagship white wine.  The story of Yattarna began in 1992 when Penfolds aimed to produce the best Aussie Chardonnay.  Penfolds challenged its winemakers with this project allowing them to produce the greatest Aussie Chardonnay without any restriction.  They can choose to use any grape from any Penfolds’ owned vineyard.   Yattarna Chardonnay has always been a blend of wines from different vineyards.  In recent years, grapes are coming mainly from Adelaide Hills，Tumbarumba (New South Wales), Henty (Victoria) and Derwent Valley (Tasmania).

My first smell can already feel its depth and complexity.  Strong citrus peel and minerality.  Undoubtedly, this is an extremely high quality Chardonnay with superb ageing potential.  I’m moved by it.  To me, Chardonnay is doing really great in Australia in recent years.

2010 Penfolds Koonunga Hill Seventy Six Shiraz Cabernet

A blend of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon.  Strong aromas of violet and blue fruits.  Comparing to most Aussie Shiraz, this is relatively more restrained.  The use of American oak is not too heavy-handed.  A balanced wine but lacking complexity.  I’m not impressed with this wine.

2009 Penfolds Kalimna Bin 28 Shiraz

This is quite a typical Aussie style Shiraz.  RIch, dense and smooth black fruits flavours.  Consistent with Penfolds style, the wine is quite balanced even though the flavours induced by American oak is more pronounced in palate.  For the price of around $200, this is acceptable.

2009 Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon

Penfolds Bin 407 is a cheaper version of Bin 707.  Mostly aged in American oak and actually most of the oak barrel are used oak barrel used by Bin 707!  This is an elegant and balanced Cabernet Sauvignon.  RIch in fruit with pure and clean blackcurrant flavour.  What I’m especially impressed about this wine is that it doesn’t suffer from the mid palate hole problem that most 100% Cabernet Sauvignon would have.  Unfortunately, its complexity is just average.  At about HK$400, I think it is a bit too expensive for its quality.

2009 / 1999 / 1989 Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz

Penfolds Bin 389 is usually described a poor man Grange.  And it is actually aged in oak barrel used by Grange before.  I started by drinking vintage 2009 and immediately noticed this is a big step up against Koonunga Hill.  Although flavours induced by American oak is quite obvious, this is a balanced wine.  Fruit-forward yet not lacking complexity.

Then I proceed to drink vintage 1999.  The fleshy fruit flavour changed to smooth and mellow fruits.  Every element in the wine is already well integrated.  I definitely like this aged Bin 389 much more.  How about vintage 1989?  It is even more smoother and more mellow than vintage 1999.  Unfortunately, fruits are slightly lacking and I think this wine has slightly past its peak.

Having tried the two aged Bin 389, will I start cellaring Aussie red?  Not at this moment I think.  I’m not saying they are not worth for cellaring.  If I have lots of space, I certainly would not mind cellaring a few cases for my consumption.  Unfortunately, given space is such a precious thing in Hong Kong, I would rather leave my cellaring space to my other favorite wine regions.

2008 Penfolds St. Henri Shiraz

A blend of 90% Shiraz and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.  Aged in large oak barrel of 1460 litres for 15 months.  Given today wine trend is to age wine in small oak barrel, this is a rather traditional approach.  Traditional, however, doesn’t meant to be low in quality.  In contrast, this bottle of wine is my favorite red wine of the day, esp. considering it costs much more less than Grange!

Actually, maybe out of your expectation, the price of Grange and St. Henri was almost the same initially when they released.  Grange’s winemaker was Max Schubert while St. Henri was Davoren.  It is well known that the two persons competed to produce the best Shiraz in Australia.  Today, most will think Max Schubert won.  However, at the very beginning, it was St. Henri that was more popular.  Yet, the revolutionary approach of Grange quickly made it the most sought after Shiraz wine in Australia.

A bottle of St. Henri from new vintage may not be people favorite.  The wine at its youth is so restrained that its power and complexity are not easy to be noticed.  However, I’m confident that this wine will evolve and improve significantly with age.  It will be beautiful!  Unfortunately, I don’t have a chance to try an aged St. Henri yet.

2008 Penfolds Cellar Reserve Barossa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

100% Cabernet Sauvignon and aged in 100% new French oak barrel for 15 months.  Although the wine is quite young of vintage 2008, it is already very expressive today, a big contrast with St. Henri which is so closed and backward.  Although aged in 100% new French oak, the wine is balanced and oak doesn’t dominate.  This is undoubtedly a wine with high complexity and quality.  However, does it worth about HK$3,000?  I’m not certain.

2009 Penfolds RWT Barossa Valley Shiraz

100% Shiraz aged in 60% new French oak barrel and 40% used French oak barrel for 16 months.  St. Henri is a traditional Shiraz while RWT is a modernist example.  St. Henri is closed and backward today while RWT is already quite expressive with pure and fleshy fruits and a smooth palate.  St. Henri is my choice here.  But if you like rich, pure and forward fruits, RWT is for you.

1997 / 2007 Penfolds Grange

Finally, it’s time for Grange which I believe many people have been waiting for.  Grange is probably the most expensive cross regions blend wine in the world.  Today, most regions are releasing more and more single vineyard wines with the aim to express more of different terrior, Grange has been using grapes from different Australia regions from the start and didn’t change on this since then.  Most of the grapes are coming from Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale.  There is also a tradition to blend in some Cabernet Sauvignon although some vintages such as 1999 and 2000 didn’t.  Grange is aged in American oak barrel.  If we say St. Henri is an introvert, then Grange is an extrovert.  As commented by its original winemaker Max Schubert, “the objective was to produce a big, full-bodied wine containing maximum extraction of all the components in the grape material used.”

Comparing to St. Henri, there is no doubt that 2007 Grange is much more open and expressive.  It has very high level of complexity and depth.   Again, consistent with Penfolds’ style, the wine is balanced even though it has been aged in American oak barrel for 21 months.  Although still a hot climate example of Shiraz, there is still some elegance in the wine.

1997 Penfolds Grange, with its age, is certainly less fruity and less fruit-forward with additional complexity.  The wine is more integrated and more mellow.

I have no doubt that Penfolds Grange is a very good wine.  However, every time I drink it, I’m not really convinced that it should be that expensive.  A bottle of Grange can buy a couple of St. Henri and I believe I will love an aged St. Henri more than an aged Grange.

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