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Our friend Christina Donley was in Toledo this past week in her capacity as Midwest Regional Sales Representative for Ridge Vineyards, and she gave us a shout to see if we’d like to get together with her on her last night in town. Christina is tons of fun, and since she’d come all the way from the Left Coast, it was only right for us to take an hour’s drive south to hang out with her for a while. We met up at Mancy’s Italian Grill, which coincidentally was where our Toledo group had its first ever gathering, 10 years ago. The pizza was good, as was the ‘04 Rocca delle Macie Chianti Classico Riserva (sorry, I didn’t take notes), and we had a delightful time renewing acquaintances with Ms. Donley.

When it was time for us to leave, Christina gave us the Ridge samples she’d been tasting around Toledo that day, since she’d visited all of her accounts and knew that we’d appreciate the opportunity try them. We bid our fond adieu’s (not to be confused with fondues), drove home and duly tasted through all 6 wines, and of course, I recorded my impressions, which are as follows.

2006 Ridge Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay Monte Bello, 14.4% alc.: Clean medium straw color; toasty oak dominates the aromatics completely, gaining a solid core of spicy apple, pear and a note of butterscotch in the mouth. Full bodied, with excellent balance and cut, but needs time for the oak to integrate, unless you like a good dose of wood in your Chardonnay. No problem there, as these have about as good a track record for aging as Ridge’s reds, so 3-5 years in the cellar won’t hurt it at all, and it’ll probably go even longer. The oak does tone down some with air, as the wine opens and improves, but my money is on laying it down for a while, as it has all the goods to develop into a very fine Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay. Find this wine

2006 Ridge Santa Cruz Mountains Monte Bello, 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 13.5% alc.: Showing clean dark color and offering toasty oak over black currant/cassis shaded with lavender and blueberry on the nose; flavors generally echo, but this is a young wine in serious need of time in the cellar. Full bodied, very smooth in texture and well structured for decades of development, if the ‘77 tasted recently is any indication. Very primary, with somewhat astringent tannins at this point, especially moving towards the finish. Be patient with this one, as it promises great things down the road; my notes read “try again in 10years.” Find this wine

2007 Ridge Dry Creek Valley Lytton Springs, 71% Zinfandel, 22% Petite Sirah, 7% Carignane, 14.4% alc.: Clean dark color; some tar dominates the black raspberry and blackberry nose, with any Draper perfume hidden at first. More fruit comes out on the palate, but this never quite loses its tarry aspect. Full bodied, with a smooth velvety texture and excellent structure for several years of development. Opens nicely in the glass, with the tar morphing into earthy undertones, and the fruit is not too ripe at all, being in more a dry, claret style. I’d guess that it will take on a Bordeaux-like character with 10 years and more of age, and it has the goods to get there and go beyond. With the last few sips of my glass, a little of the signature perfume does emerge and it does get a little riper, but only a little. Some very good Lytton Springs here, and no need to be in a hurry to open it right away, but if you do, give it an hour or so in a decanter. Find this wine

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2007 Ridge Napa Valley Zinfandel York Creek, 78% Zinfandel, 22% Petite Sirah, 14.6% alc.: Clean dark color, with a pretty nose of Draper perfume, black raspberry, black cherry and blueberry, all graced with a perfect kiss of sweet oak; there’s lots more of the same in the mouth, anchored on a discreetly earthy base. Full bodied, well structured and sleek, with good length on the finish where the earthiness shows the most. A nice, ripe quality sets the tone here without going over the top, taking me back to the Ridge Zins from 1993, which had the same kind of pretty character right from the get-go. Very nice now, and very nice in 5-10 years or more. Find this wine

2007 Ridge Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Pagani Ranch, 92% Zinfandel, 5% Alicante Bouschet, 3% Petite Sirah, 14.3% alc.: Clean dark color, with classic Draper perfume on the nose, all raspberry, black raspberry, blueberry and again, that perfect kiss of sweet oak; flavors echo nicely, being ripe, but not too ripe. This is not quite as big as these once were; it’s sleek, smooth in texture and almost full bodied, with good structure, but without the depth for the kind of extended aging that the Lytton Springs and York Creek show. Like the York Creek, this reminds me of those pretty ’93s, and it’s much better than the last few efforts with this bottling. If I’d like a little more heft to it, that’s only a minor complaint. Find this wine

2005 Ridge Dry Creek Valley Syrah Lytton West, 94% Syrah, 6% Viognier, 14.5% alc.: Deep and dark in color, and not at all over-ripe in flavor and aroma; big, rich and yet somewhat restrained at the same time, with earthy plum and blackberry character that seems to reflect the use of older, rather than newer barrels. Full bodied, with excellent structure and good length, and while it’s quite drinkable now (and the extended air undoubtedly helped it throughout the day), it has a nice future ahead of it, at least 10 years, and probably considerably longer. Find this wine

These wines come in a rather interesting range of prices, as the winesearcher.com links demonstrate.  Many thanks to Christina for giving us the chance to taste through them, all of which we highly recommend.

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geo t.

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After the Saturday nightmare in Toronto in which the Detroit Red Wings played one of their worst games in recent memory, losing to the Maple Leafs 5-1, the boys turned things around nicely last night with a good old-fashioned whooping of the Columbus Blue Jackets, winning 9-1. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the game, and quite liked the red Rhône I was sipping on throughout.

2007 La Vieille Ferme Côtes du Ventoux Rouge, 50% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 15% Carignan, 15% Cinsault, 1.5 L, 13.5% alc., $10.99: I can’t say for sure whether a little time has enhanced the character of this dark colored blend since we had it last April or if it tastes even better because of the larger format. Maybe it’s nothing more than the fact that it’s an even better value at this, the Detroit area Costco price, than it usually is at around $8-9 in 750 ml. Full bodied without being heavy and with enough structure to cellar for at least a few years, this offers the usual earthy black and red plum and berry flavors and aromas shaded with a little spice and leather. It’s gutsy enough to stand up to most any kind of food you’d serve a dry red wine with, and I’m thinking of hearty beef or lamb stews in particular; it’s also smooth enough to sip all by its lonesome, so that’s a bonus. Always a solid, if unspectacular performer, and a real QPR All Star at this price, so get ‘em while they’re still available. We’ve already gone through more than a case ourselves. Made by the Perrin family of Chateau Beaucastel fame and imported by Vineyard Brands, Inc., Birmingham, AL. Find this wine

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A few weeks ago, our friend Todd Abrams posted a blog entry, “A Splendid Pint: Hand-pulled Two Hearted Ale,” at Swigs, a site that he operates jointly with another friend, Evan Hansen. (Swigs is devoted to “Observations on nature, drinks in all forms and the nature of drinks in all forms,” sentiments that we can surely get behind. Abrams is also a contributing writer with the Metro Times in its Food and Drink section.) In it, he explains how “hand pulled” beers and ales are manually pumped, less carbonated and less chilled than your average draft. In Great Britain (and now, at least to some extent, in the craft beer community in this country as well), these are referred to as “real ales,” another concept that we can get behind, given our penchant for “real wine.”

Todd waxed rapturously about the Bell’s Two Hearted Ale (brewed in Kalamazoo, Michigan, for the uninitiated) being served in this manner at the Berkley Front brew pub in Berkley, Michigan, and I meant to get over there right away to give it a try, but sometimes I’m a little slow on the uptake. Ironically, his commentary served as inspiration to order up the standard Two Hearted Ale on draft at Amici’s a week or so later; perhaps just as ironic is the fact that Amici’s is right down the street from “the Front.”

Fast forward to late last week, when I got a message from Mr. Abrams that the hand pulled Two Hearted was back at the Front, and this time, I wasn’t going to miss out. It had been quite a while since I’d last been to this establishment, maybe as long as 10 years. Walk in the place and at first, you’d think you were in any other old school neighborhood bar that serves burgers and Pabst Blue Ribbon (actually, they DO serve burgers and Pabst Blue Ribbon), and then, you take a gander behind the bar and get a load of the 42 tappers, which pour a variety of drafts ranging from craft selections produced by Michigan breweries to beers from around the country to imports.

I ordered up a pint of Two Hearted Ale for $5.50 and asked the hipster tending bar to tell me a little about hand pulled ales. He told me essentially the same things I had already read in Todd’s blog, so I sat and sipped mine for about 25 minutes, watching the Pistons get hammered by the Magic with the sound off and the juke box playing jazz and The Pretenders. I only stayed for one, because I had no one to swap tall tales with, and while the place wasn’t terribly smoky, any smoke is too much for me these days if there isn’t enough entertainment to compensate for even that mild annoyance. (The live music in the Dean Martini Lounge upstairs hadn’t started yet.)

Did I enjoy the hand pulled Two Hearted Ale? Absolutely, it does everything for me that I want from a good (in this case, very good) IPA. Did I like it better than the regular draft version? I can’t say that I did. Perhaps it’s my conditioning, but I like a little more carbonation that the standard version has to offer, but if I had a steady diet of the hand pulled, who knows, maybe I’d change my tune.

Case in point; I’m sitting there sipping away with pleasure, when a couple of Brits walk in and stand next to me whilst ordering. One bloke calls out for a Guinness and the other arsks what IPAs are available. The bar tender first poured him a short taste of Founders Centennial IPA (brewed in Grand Rapids), not a bad selection by any means. He then followed that up with a sample of the Two Hearted, and I mentioned to the gent that it was what I had in my glass and that I quite enjoyed it. He took a sip, expressed his satisfaction and uttered, “Oh yeah, I’ll have one of these.” And so it goes.

For another take on hand pulled “real ales,” check out this blog entry by “Jonathon” at We Are Never Full.

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It was sheer madness, with more wines being uncorked on both Friday and Saturday evenings than I could possibly taste through. My game plan was to soldier my way through as many of them as I could to record my snapshot impressions, and then, hit the Graeter’s Ice Cream, and it worked out quite well. Here’s what I tasted, starting with Friday’s lineup:

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NV Riondo Prosecco Spago Nero Veneto, 10.5% alc.: One taster described this as “like drinking apple juice with bubbles,” and wasn’t all that far off with that characterization. Pale in color, bright, refreshing and racy in the mouth, with ripe red apple flavors supported with nice minerality underneath. Find this wine

2007 Domaine de Roally Macon Vire-Clesse, 13.5% alc.: Always a favorite at our house! Pale to medium straw color; earthy mineral sets the tone here, with subtle bees wax and a nice core of dry, under-ripe apple and pear fruit. If this was the only Chardonnay I could ever drink, I wouldn’t feel at all deprived. Find this wine

2005 Edmond Vatan Sancerre Chavignol Clos la Neore, 12.5% alc.: Pale in color, with gooseberry and grapefruit aromatics that gain a good dose of mineral and a subtle note of boxwood on the palate; not a big Sauvignon, but neither is it a wallflower. Middleweight, with exquisite balance. Find this wine

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1999 Nigl Riesling Senftenberger Piri Privat: Caramel gold color, with a mineral and petrol nose that gains a rich core of red and green apple in the mouth; medium bodied, with good acids and just a little oily. As fresh as if it were made yesterday, and I love the minerality. Find this wine

2000 Domaine des Baumard Savennières, 13% alc.: Pale gold color, with mineral and bees wax on the nose, neither effusive nor shy; shows nice maturity without being in any way tired. Earthy minerality dominates the wine’s personality, with nice secondary nuances. Find this wine

2006 Stéphane Tissot Arbois Traminer, 13% alc.: Medium straw to pale gold in color, with restrained mineral on the nose that gains a nice core of rich fruit on the palate; not nearly as much litchi as can be found in many an Alsatian Gewurztraminer, but otherwise, somewhat similar. Definitely “a horse of a different color,” or as taster Jeff King put it, “a hard left turn for me.” Find this wine

1996 Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle Musigny Les Cras, 13% alc.: Good dark color; rich smoky plum and black cherry vie for dominance with earthy underbrush and decaying vegetation: it’s a draw on the nose, but the vegetation wins in the mouth. Good weight and depth. Find this wine

1996 Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle Musigny Les Beaux Bruns, 13% alc.: Good dark color, with a little less decaying vegetation than the Les Cras and a little more sleek in depth, body and texture; otherwise, very similar and the better of the two for this taster. Find this wine

1996 Clos Rougeard Saumur Champigny, 12.5% alc.: Somewhat murky garnet color, with a slight hint of rust; very pretty strawberry and cherry flavors and aromas, with earthy undertones; remarkably fresh and in a very nice place right now. Find this wine

1999 Carlisle Russian River Valley Mondeuse, 14.3% alc.: This darkly colored wine’s father, Mike Officer, recommended letting it sit for 10 years when he released it, and while it may not be 10 years from that date, I figured a decade in the bottle would be a good point at which to see what it has to offer. It gives off pretty, if indistinct black fruit on the nose, accented with some subtle spice and oak; very attractive on the palate, with black plum, black cherry and again, some subtle spice and oak. Full bodied, well structured and probably not at its peak; still very primary, with no secondary action as of yet. A deliciously different kind of red, with many years of great drinking ahead of it. Find this wine

1997 Sean Thackrey Orion Old Vines Rossi Vineyard, 13.9% alc.: Good dark color here, with no bricking as of yet; gives a nice note of well integrated oak over pretty black plum and black berry in both flavor and aroma, and it’s still very well structured , with many years of pleasurable drinking ahead of it. Shows more oak and some eucalyptus as it opens in the glass. Coming along very nicely since we last had it. Find this wine

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2007 Le Clos du Tue-Boeuf Touraine Gamay, 11.5% alc.: Clean ruby color; very fresh and vibrant, with black cherry shaded with subtle herbaceous underbrush. Middle weight, moderately structured and all about drinking in the near term. Find this wine

1988 Domaine Tempier Bandol Cuvee Speciale “Le Cabassou”: Slightly murky dark color, with big, earthy black fruit character; quintessential Tempier and still on the way up. Find this wine

1999 Ridge Geyserville Sonoma County, 68% Zinfandel, 16% Carignane, 16% Petite Sirah: Showing nice Draper perfume, with the American oak integrating well over a big, rich core of blackberry and black raspberry; still very well structured and on the way up. I’d give this one a few more years, because it’s going to be a beauty. Find this wine

1998 Domaine Le Mas des Collines Regis de Taxis Gigondas, 13.5% alc.: Still very well structured and not close to its peak, with everything that makes these wines so great – earth, iron, black fruit and some very subtle cola. Needs another 5 years. Find this wine

1999 Rochioli Russian River Valley Pinot Noir East Block: Larry decided to reprise this from our August reunion with Allan Bree, and it’s still a big wine that needs time, perhaps as much as 10 years. Big, deep, rich Rochioli in all its radiant glory, with earthy black cherry and plum and tons of structure. Find this wine

Saturday

2003 Francois Chidaine Montlouis Sur Loire Moelleux: Amber gold color and medium sweet, with some secondary action going on. Find this wine

1992 Wegler-Deinhard Bernkasteler Doctor Auslese, 8% alc.: Lime, petrol and moderately sweet ripe apple; somewhat oily, with just enough acidity to keep things moving along and a slightly musty secondary quality. Find this wine

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2001 Dr. Loosen Erdener Pralat Auslese, 7.5% alc.: Medium straw to pale gold in color, somewhat oily, with rich ripe apple and mineral flavors and aromas that are sweet, but not as sweet as I expected. Find this wine

2001 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spätlese, 7.5% alc.: Toned down petrol, moderately sweet ripe apple and somewhat oily. Find this wine

2006 Clos Roche Blanche Touraine Cabernet, 12.5% alc.: Slightly funky, very earthy black currant, black cherry and underbrush; full bodied and well structured for many years in the cellar. Find this wine

1977 Ridge Santa Cruz Mountains Cabernet Sauvignon Monte Bello, 97% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Merlot, 11.7% alc.: Still good dark color, with just a hint o’ rust; the pretty nose of restrained Draper perfume, leather and mahogany follows through on the palate with a solid core of black currant/cassis, and Tom Warren made mention of “good mushrooms.” Still in great shape and in no danger of fading any time soon. The alcohol content was not lost on most tasters. Find this wine

Jeff Faunce pulled this next wine, undoubtedly the surprise of the weekend, out of his cellar along with the Monte Bello noted directly above to see how they were holding up.

1980 Sebastiani Sonoma Zinfandel, 14.3% alc.: Still good dark color here, with a nice big earthy nose; still quite alive and enjoyable, with smoky black raspberry and blackberry character shaded with a certain leathery quality. Full bodied and still well-structured. Mark Horvatich speculates that this may have been made with fruit sourced from Pagani Ranch. Find this wine

1995 Ridge York Creek Petite Sirah, 12.8% alc.: Showing good dark color, with pretty Draper perfume and black fruit on the nose, and plenty more of the same in the mouth; really in a nice drinking window and like the ‘77 Monte Bello, a surprisingly low alcohol level. Find this wine

1993 Domaine Drouhin Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Laurene, 13% alc.: A pretty Pinot Noir, with smoky black cherry and plum flavors and aromas, all graced with a nice sweet spice; not too heavy, and not too light, which is typical from this producer. A fine specimen of Willamette Pinot. Find this wine

Mark Horvatich thought these three 20-year old clarets would make a nice little trio, and so they did.

1989 Chateau Sociando Mallet Haut Medoc , 12.5% alc.: Gorgeous and still on the way up; very user-friendly and with at least 20 more years of good drinking left in it. Find this wine

1989 Château Beychevelle Saint Julien, 13% alc.: Old wood, black currant and some subtle coffee; smooth, well mannered and very nice. Find this wine

1989 Chateau Meyney Saint Estephe, 12.5% alc.: Old wood and rich black currant/cassis in fine proportion; well structured for further aging and yet drinking quite well now. Not quite as impressive as the previous two, but very nice in its own right. Find this wine

1999 E. Guigal Cote-Rotie Brune et Blonde, 13% alc.: Lovely nose , almost perfumed; pretty plum and subtle leather, rich round and ripe without being excessive in any way. Really nice right now. Find this wine

1996 J.L. Chave Hermitage, 13% alc.: Dusty underbrush, black plum and beet root nose carries through on the palate beautifully. Classic Chave Hermitage with a long life ahead of it. Find this wine

1998 Gilles Barge Cote-Rotie, 12.5% alc.: Smoky plum and beet root, full bodied, well structured, expressive and still on the way up. Find this wine

More photos from Fall Fest in the Cleve may be found here.

Reporting from Day-twah,

geo t.

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As has been reported, I consider myself to be something of a “bubble head,” in that I would have no problem whatsoever with drinking sparkling wine on a daily basis. I love the stuff, I really do, but financial considerations, even at the best of times, are such that I can’t afford to enjoy Champagne nearly as much as I would like. No hey problemo, as there is a lot of good bubbly out there for very reasonable prices. Normally, I might be inclined to go with a good Spanish Cava rather than an Italian Prosecco, as they tend to have a little more heft and a little more minerality than their counterparts from Veneto. However, we tried a little number that we picked up at Costco a few weeks back and I like it so well (especially for so few dollars), that I’ve been bringing it home again and again.

NV Mionetto Valdobbiadene Prosecco Brut, 11% alc., $9.99: This is a step up from the Mionetto II Prosecco with the bottle cap that I tried with the gang from Slows Bar-B-Q this past summer. I liked that one fine, and I like this one even better. Clean and harmonious, yes, it’s Brut, but it’s not completely bone dry, offering pretty peach and apple flavors and aromas with some subtle mineral underneath it all. More than middleweight, with good cut , mousse and enough intensity to hold my interest, it’s a fine choice for everyday drinking. Find this wine

Imported by Mionetto USA, Inc., Brooklyn, NY

Reporting from Day-twah,

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This is certainly a departure from the more lean, mineral crusted European whites I tend to favor, but this well priced bottle is plenty of fun, and all sorts of wine drinkers seem to enjoy it when I pour it in their glass. I’ve gone through half a dozen bottles in recent months — consistently enjoyable. Find this wine

Cheers,
CZ

Pizza and beer; it’s a natural combination, right?  Like love and marriage, law and order and Laurel and Hardy.  But truth be told, it’s been years since we’ve indulged in those particular American secular sacraments at the same time.  On the occasions that we do eat pizza, we’re more inclined to open a bottle of Sangiovese or Zinfandel, but last week, we broke away from our norm with a visit to Amici’s Pizza and Living Room in Berkeley, Michigan. (Click image to enlarge)

Amici’s has been earning accolades for some time now, including “Best Gourmet Pizza” from the Detroit Free Press in 2002, “Best Martini Bar” from the same publication in 2004 and “City’s Best Pizza” from the AOL City Guide in 2005-2007.  Our friends Martha and Gary Shea have been raving about the place for ages, so last week, the four of us took a drive over to 12 Mile and checked it out.

Divided into two rooms that were quite likely separate store fronts at one time, the kitchen side looks pretty much like most pizza joints across North America, a little shabby, but clean and functional.  The “living room” side is a not-so-snazzy little lounge that nevertheless has a certain charm about it, where a variety of pizzas (“Traditional” and “Gourmet”), salads and sandwiches are served up, along with a long list of martinis, a rather pedestrian wine selection and beers that range from the mundane to the hop-head’s delight.  The space doubles as an “art gallery,” with the work of different artists hung on the walls on a monthly rotating basis.  There is also a nice little patio for outdoor seating behind the lounge, but unfortunately, it was a bit too rainy to be open on this occasion.

We opted for a 14-inch pizza on a traditional crust, topped with fresh, homemade herb tomato sauce, Mozzarella cheese, anchovies, Italian sausage and roasted garlic.  The anchovies REALLY dominated the flavor profile of the pie, and brilliantly so for my tastes; the sausage seemed somewhat tame by comparison, and the garlic added solid, pungent support.  There’s a very good reason that these folks are getting such high praise, if this one is any example.  Further investigation is certainly in order.

Because the wine list consisted of a rather boring bunch of the usual suspects from industrial grade wineries, we ordered beer instead, with three of us choosing Bell’s Two Hearted Ale on draft and Gary going with a bottle of Bell’s Amber Ale. (To be fair, the menu did make mention of a “Reserve wine list,” but we didn’t inquire after it). Now, I’m very familiar with the Two Hearted Ale in particular, and with Bell’s in general.  I’ve sold them at retail and enjoyed them at home.  As lovers of India Pale Ales, Two Hearted is always a welcome friend at Adams-Heritier and Associates, but in the past, only as a 6 pack of 12 oz. bottles.  This was the first time we’ve had the pleasure of trying one on draft, and we were very impressed indeed.  Much fresher and with more of everything than you get in the bottle, it’s one of those “hop head’s delights” I referred to above.  One could safely characterize it as aggressively hopped, so if you don’t like bitter in your beer, you probably won’t like this.  The hops are so effusive, they bears some aromatic resemblance to their cannabis cousins, and there’s a dash of something like lavender in there as well.  It takes an ale like this to stand up to those anchovies, and it performed admirably in that regard.

It bears mentioning that Kim and I did in fact have one previous encounter with Amici’s in the form of a take-out order, and it wasn’t entirely pleasant.  A few months back, we ordered an Artichoke Gourmet Pizza with fresh plum tomatoes, fresh spinach, walnuts, Fontina and Ricotta cheeses.  I drove over to pick it up, brought it home and the pie was under-cooked, which is never a good thing.  A call of complaint was placed and they graciously drove another one over at no charge, but artichokes and pizza do not mix well for either of us.  Happily, we were willing to give them another chance, and this recent experience was much more to our liking, so we’ll be happy to go back for more pizza and beer.  Maybe we’ll even ask to see that reserve wine list…

Footnote: A few days later, Kim and I stopped by the Western Market in Ferndale to pick up a few items and as we were waiting in the checkout line, I happened to look immediately to my right and there was a display of 1.3 gallon kegs of Bell’s Two Hearted  Ale.  I looked at Kim, she looked at me and gave me a nod and we added one to our cart.  We brought it home, chilled it down and poured ourselves glasses later that evening, and if it’s not quite as tasty as what comes in the big kegs, it’s not very far off at all. Frankly, I may never go back to bottled beer.

Reporting from Day-twah,

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Champagne Warrior Brad Baker had been looking for the opportunity to stage a comprehensive tasting of Jean Laurent Champagne for some time now, and he and wife Michelle finally bit the bullet and set a date to do so on October 3rd . The tasting was held at their home and by my count, no less than 24 bottles from that producer, spanning four decades, were uncorked, either by the more usual method of pulling, or with a the blunt edge of a blade. Oh yeah, there was a whole lot of sabering going on and we’ve got the videos to prove it!

We’ve waxed enthusiastically many times on the Gang pages about Champagne Jean Laurent. The consummate “grower” Champagne house, Laurent’s family has been growing wine grapes in the village of Celles-sur-Ource for more than 1,000 years, according to his importer, Hand Picked Selections. Only estate grown fruit is used in making this Champagne in small batches, using traditional methods, and it translates into the kind of superior bubbly that you rarely get from the big name houses, even when paying significantly more money.

Figure that all of these are very nice unless otherwise noted; actually, there was only one truly bad bottle opened on this marvelous occasion. They were enjoyed with a generous spread of a variety of food stuffs. Being the fool for sushi that I am, I went heavily in that direction, and it worked quite well with the bubblies.

Brad started us off with a couple of magnums that took him 42 seconds to saber both with one swipe each. (I followed up trying my blade-hand with one of the Rosés, and it took me a few more swipes than Brad. He IS the Champagne Warrior, after all!) Here are my snapshot impressions:

NV Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs from Magnum, disgorged in late 2006: Medium straw color; yeasty, smoky under-ripe apple flavors and aromas, intense and racy, with a certain creamy quality to it. Find this wine

NV Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs from Magnum, disgorged in late 2006: Medium straw color and then some; more expressive on the nose then the BdB,with smoky, yeasty yellow apple. Quite yeasty and smoky on the palate, and nicely so, with a good dose of minerality as well. Takes things up a step in intensity from the Bdb, with excellent acidity. Find this wine

Both of the following Rosés were made using the saignee method, and spent 5 years on the lees; more recent versions spent 3 years on the lees.

NV Champagne Jean Laurent Brut Rosé, disgorged Dec. 2004: Salmon pink, with cherry, strawberry and watermelon flavors and aromas, well mannered, but not at all wimpy; zippy acids, with nice presence and intensity. Find this wine

NV Champagne Jean Laurent Brut Rosé, disgorged Dec. 2004: Slightly darker salmon pink than the previous selection and more pungent on the nose; aromas of smoke and flint pick up strawberry, cherry and some subtle cream on the palate. Not quite as racy as the 2004 disgorgement, but very nice indeed. Find this wine

1998 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs: Medium straw color, and very yeasty on the nose, with some smoke in support; gains a rich core of under-ripe apple and mineral on the palate. Excellent acids and intensity. Find this wine

2000 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs: Medium straw color, and not quite as exuberant on the nose as the ‘98, but very expressive in the mouth with smoky, yeasty mineral over a solid core of under-ripe yellow apple. Find this wine

2000 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs: Medium straw color, with less smoke and yeast on the nose than the 2000 BdN and obviously made from Chardonnay; flavors of smoke and mineral more than yeast, with a solid core of green and yellow under-ripe apple. Racy acidity, with very good depth and intensity. Find this wine

1997 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs from Magnum: Medium straw color and neither overly effusive nor stingy on the nose, offering some pretty yellow apple, smoke and yeast; plenty more of the same on the palate, with nice undertones of mineral and good presence and zip. In a really nice place right now, with plenty of life left ahead of it. Find this wine

1997 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs from Magnum: Medium straw in color, this one really shows its Pinot Noir character, with smoky yeasty under-ripe red apple; earthy, racy and intense. Find this wine

1996 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs, disgorged 2005: Pale to medium straw color; the pretty yeast, bread dough and apple nose follows through nicely on the palate, with undertones of minerality; rich and tasty, with very good intensity. Brad Baker and Jim Brennan both mention impressions of orange peel on both this and the following selection, disgorged a year earlier. Find this wine

1996 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs, disgorged 2004: Medium straw color, with intense mineral, smoke and yeast in support of a solid core of under-ripe red and green apple; big, rich and intense, with racy acidity. I’m in love! Find this wine

1996 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs: Medium straw to pale gold in color, with just a hint of nuttiness on the nose, along with smoke and yeast; fleshes out on the palate with smoke, mineral, praline and under-ripe apple. Very good acids and intensity. Find this wine

1995 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs: Medium straw to pale gold in color, with a moderate nose of mineral and smoke; flavors pick things up nicely with pretty apple and pear at the core. Not as intense as many of these, but very nice in its own regard; a “pretty” Champagne. Find this wine

The following selection priced at around $150 was included as a reference point for comparison with the Laurents, and for the most part, it didn’t quite measure up. Apples and oranges? Different strokes for different styles? Maybe so, but I’ll take Jean Laurent any day.

1990 Veuve Clicquot Le Grande Dame: Pale gold color, with a pretty, if not overly effusive nose of yellow apple and praline that echoes and expands on the palate with more praline nuttiness; good intensity, but not up to that of the Laurents, A very nice, well mannered Champagne. Find this wine

1992 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs: Medium straw to pale gold, with more creamy apple and less yeast and smoke on the nose; gains nice notes of mineral, yeast and smoke on the palate, but, again, the creamy apple rules here. Rather different than the preceding selections, with excellent intensity and cut. Find this wine

1992 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs: Medium straw to pale gold in color, with a modest nose of praline and apple; follows through in the mouth with nice minerality, subtle earthy undertones and good cut. In a nice place right now, striking a pleasing balance between mellow comfort and intensity. Find this wine

1989 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs: Medium straw to pale gold color; the sweet praline nose carries through on the palate with a solid earthy and mineral base, and Jim Brennan mentions a note of caramel. Very nice intensity and cut and rather different than the selections tasted before it. Good stuff! Find this wine

1989 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs: Pale gold color, with a nutty apple nose that follows through in the flavors with subtle mineral and yeast; more than middleweight in intensity and no wallflower by any means. What it may lack in intensity when compared to the younger models is more than compensated for with charm. Find this wine

1986 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs: Medium straw to pale gold in color, with a rather stingy nose; crisp and intense in the mouth, with creamy apple and pear shaded with subtle mineral and yeast. A lovely Champagne with beautiful presence and very good cut. Strangely enough, it almost reminds me of a really nice, hoppy micro-brew, and that’s a very good thing! Find this wine

1985 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs: Pale gold color, with nice secondary character that retains all its freshness, offering elements of praline, golden apple, some subtle mineral and a hint of butterscotch; still zippy in the mouth, and very harmonious and enjoyable. Find this wine

1975 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs: Pale gold color; dusty praline and golden apple aromatics in modest proportions pick it up nicely in the mouth with good depth and cut. Disgorged in the last two years, this shows impeccable balance, and while the intensity and racy acidity is toned down some when compared to the younger selections, it’s still more than ample for the overall appeal. Find this wine

Brad Cook brought the following wine as another reference point and Leeann Starr sabered it.

1990 Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millenaires Brut: The dusty yellow apple aromas don’t exactly jump out of the glass, but they do make an appearance and flesh out and expand on the palate with some subtle flint, very good presence and acidity. Nice stuff! Find this wine

1973 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs: Maderized, over the hill and dumped; described by all as disgusting. I guess there had to be one… Find this wine

1975 Champagne Laurent Blanc de Blancs: This was bottled by Jean’s father with a different label and a slightly different dossage than the 75 JL. It shows a pretty gold color, with dusty praline, yellow apple and mineral flavors and aromas shaded with some very subtle butterscotch. A lovely Champagne that strikes all the right notes, with no negatives at this point. Find this wine

1975 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs: Pale gold color, with a dusty, nutty, sweet yellow apple nose that echoes and expands in the big flavors; still zippy and intense, though toned down when compared to the younger vintages. Find this wine

1978 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs: Pale gold in color and a surprisingly primary nose of apple and pear shaded with some dusty mineral; remarkably fresh and vibrant, with very few secondary characteristics. Under-ripe and rich at the same time; just delightful! Find this wine

Another “data point:”

1990 Deutz Cuvee William Deutz: Pale gold, with dusty, yeasty yellow apple in modest proportion on the nose; dry and dusty apple and mineral flavors strike a nice balance between rich and bone dry. Find this wine

There were also 1976 Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs and Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Blancs listed on Brad’s invitation, but if they were opened, I didn’t see or taste them, and at that point, “tasting” anything might have been a bit iffy. With discretion getting the better of irresponsibility, we took our leave at the appropriate time. I offered to sleep with the dogs if we could stay, but Kim was having none of that.

This was quite simply an amazing tasting, one of the most memorable for this reporter in a long list that we’ve attended or thrown over the years. Many, many thanks to Brad and Michelle for their generosity in not only opening their home to host this event, but also for opening so many bottles of truly great Champagne Jean Laurent. Thanks also to all the participants for their contributions of Champagne, food and good friendship. It was truly a night to remember, not for the least of reasons being that Kim drank and enjoyed Champagne throughout. I believe that the Champagne Warrior is correct when he says that we’ll make a bubble head out of her yet!

Reporting from Day-twah,

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