Adarmando – Tabarrini - 2010

An unusual white Umbrian wine, made from the almost extinct Trebbiano clone, Trebbiano di Spoletino.

Difficult to know what to make of this at first – bitter almonds? Too young, but improves as it warms up, making an interesting segue from peach to being very Riesling-like. I don’t find it something that I’d want more than a glass of, but I have tasted some similar Umbrian wines that age attractively; I might expect this to develop a Sémillon-esque waxiness.

84/100

Delagrange – Meursault – 1999

A whiff of pineapple, together with mushrooms and cream; more giving and more fruit-driven than the 2005 we had recently. Shellfish come through eventually, not the first time I have spotted them in Meursault. Really lovely texture. Overall, still quite understated, but delicate and delicious. All my doubts about the 2005 cleared away; it just needed more time.

93/100

Château Moulin Pey-Labrie – Canon-Fronsac -1991

Right-banker: Canon-Fronsac is a small appellation encompassed by the larger Fronsac appellation all within the Libournais (i.e. most of what we refer to as right-bank wines). 1991 was a bad vintage in Bordeaux, hit by both nasty frosts and heavy rain.

Very inky, dense fruit and an intense balsamic reduction character on the nose that is actually quite hard to take. The palate is a bit lighter and more manageable. The overall impression is of almost rancidly sweet smoked fruit with coffee-soaked mushrooms; I’m a lover of such interesting notes, but this is too intense in an unattractive way – faulty somehow in a way I can’t put my finger on. Might be very attractive in a better bottle.

Château Mongravey – 1993

Cru Bourgeois from Margaux, typical left bank proportions of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon / 30% Merlot.

Garnet, a little bricking.

Powerful, dusty nose; a little animalistic. Black fruit too, but it’s not the most forward part of the bouquet. Brambles. Tannins mostly resolved, quite juicy. A solid left bank wine with fruit, mineral and animal elements. Probably drinking at or near peak. With time the dustiness blows off (leaving it seeming fresher) and a more balsamic character takes over.

86/100

Gue Yue Long Shan – 8-year old

Another Chinese rice wine, marketed at a variety of ages.

Soy coloured, a little lighter than some of the examples we have seen. When we approach it (hot), it has the fruit character of a ruby port (which somehow seems wrong when we look at the colour); as it cools, it acquires a quite distinct cashew nut character. Not as complex as some of the rice wines we’ve tried, but very attractive.

The label lists the alcohol content as 15% +/-1% - if only Western wine labelling was so touchingly honest. 

Chinese Rice Wine Overview

In Hong Kong, we’ve been seeking out traditional Chinese rice wines. The younger (yellow) wines are used mainly for cooking, but the more aged examples (which tend towards being the colour of soy sauce) can be very distinguished. They can be served hot or cold; hot may be against Western wine mores, but it is more traditional way to serve them, and it can be interesting to watch flavours change from sweet to more savoury as the wine cools. The cheaper (yellow) wines typically come in glass bottles, but the more aged, expensive wines all seem to be in beautiful ceramic flasks; this is potentially irritating in that one can’t see how much wine is left inside, but I think the rationale is that the ceramic conserves heat better, and so if heated, will keep the wine hotter longer. 

The best rice wine we’ve had so far was in the restaurant Tin Heung Lau in Kowloon, which serves an aged wine produced in its own warehouse. It is the colour of soy sauce (other examples we have seen are lighter, like tawny ports) and when we first smelt it, we immediately thought of aged port, a complex, mellow, slightly sweet drink, about 16% - 17% alcohol, with primary fruits largely gone. Interestingly, though, as it cooled, it felt less like port (less sweet) and became much more like a salty amontillado sherry.

Like sherry, rice wine can be either vintage, or produced in a solera system with old liquid being topped up with younger. There have been vocabulary issues about finding out in what kind of container it is made in, but I think it may have been produced in ceramic/ pottery vessels, so there may not be any wood influence.

The better examples of rice wine are superb drinks; the only thing that might make it seem unlike aged sherry or port is a certain soy character. I do hope both for their own sakes and the sake of Western wine prices the Chinese rediscover their native wines; however at the moment they all seem obsessed with discovering La Tache and friends.

Marsannay Blanc – Naddef – 2010

Marsannay AOC is the most recent addition to the Côte de Nuits; hitherto I’ve only known it for red wines.

Mid yellow, green highlights. Rich melon nose, not noticeably oaky (but surely has seen some time in barrel), tight mid-palate; in as much as there is a fruit character it’s sour, like greengages, the bitter suggestion of peel. Too much young character for me, maybe in 5 years? I’d rather rate it then. Let it be said, good texture, and good value at £15.

Delagrange – Meursault – 2005

Dry, almost grapefruit; a crisp-like finish. In as much as there is a bouquet it’s a whiff of burnt new oak. Fine texture, not a fruit- or aroma-driven wine – given it’s not in the first flush of youth I’d hoped to have more showing through. (N1: “it’s not filling me with joy that we have another bottle of this”.) Returned to this the next day, it had gone faintly peanutty.

86/100

Javillier – Les Clousots – Meursault – 2009

Classic, powerful Meursault. Melon, citrus (a whiff of lime, really); oak and acid come together in a lingering finish. Lovely, textbook cuvee. Delicious already, but will be better.

92/100