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Domaine Cousin-Leduc

By now, you know the story. Biodynamic, plowing with horses, hand harvesting, spontaneous fermentation, long maceration and no SO2. A good friend of Patrick Desplats & Sébastien Dervieux at Domaine Griottes, Olivier follows basically the same methods (or lack of).  Domaine Cousin-Leduc is in Martigné-Briand which lies in the Anjou appellation of The Loire Valley (see map). Although The Loire Valley’s white wines reach a broader audience (think Sancerre), the reds are my favorite.

Date tasted: May 23, 2010 decanted at 1800  (I chose to decant this wine because the last time I tasted it about 6 months ago, initial aromas were dominated by oak and they took a few hours to burn off)

Appearance: Dark cherry red. Not much development showing if any at all.  Clear

Nose: Sponty, floral (light rose pedals), dark plums, blueberry juice with hint of raspberry and other red fruits. Not much development (I have not tasted a younger version of this wine, so there may be some development from that point of view)

Palate: Quite salty (& mineral) on the initial impression followed by under ripe cherries.  Very structured wine withdark fruit and hints of red fruit. Very light and fresh. Hints of leather and oak (just hints) and a slight bitterness on the finish.  Slight green notes (but not under ripe). Medium, ripe and juicy acidity and medium tannins.  Not much development on the palate either.

As we consumed the bottle, the salty, mineral notes stayed with the wine which I considered a positive characteristic of the wine and enjoyed it very much.

I last tasted this wine in November of 2009 and remembered the oak being a bit more dominant (although judicial by most standards). Today I found the oak to be quite well integrated and overall I found the wine to be very refreshing and drinkable.

Champagne Fleury S.A.

The Fleury family used to grow grapes to sell to other Champagne houses.  They stopped doing this in 1929 due to the financial crisis and produced their first vintage that year.  In 1989 they converted to Biodynamic viticulture – the first house in Champagne to do so – the first plot to convert being a small 3ha plot.  They were officially certified in 1992 and they had their first certified biodynamic vintage in 1995.  Today, they own about 15ha and purchase another 12ha of biodynamically farmed grapes. They have an annual production of approx 200,000 bottles. Read the rest of this entry »

This project of mine started when I ordered a case of Frank Cornelissen Munjebel Bianco 5 and was lucky enough (rather unlucky) to receive a case with an open bottle.  This was the infamous bottle I had heard about a few months back. I was speaking to importers of this wine and they mentioned they had a customer of the Vinmonopolet (Wine Monopoly) return a case of the wine because they thought there was something wrong with it (we won’t get into this here, you know it’s my favorite wine…).  When I discovered this open bottle in the case, I thought “what the hell?! Why would they send this to me without opening the case and checking?!”

Well, you know the old saying.  Nature gives you lemons, you make lemonade. In this case nature gave me an almost completely full bottle of Munjebel Bianco, so I thought “why not make un-sulfured vinegar?”.   So here it is, about 6 months after I started this project.

I apologize in advance to the wine makers for converting their lovely wines into a lovely vinegar. I am storing the vinegar in a magnum bottle. Only unsulfured wines will be added as needed).

Color: Orange, copper.. Well you see in the picture!

Aromas: Acidic, vinegary with hints of orange citrus and toasted hazel nuts

Taste: First attack is orange peel with  hints of fresh fruit which is immediately followed by a grapefruit and vinegar taste. Medium acid with a slightly nutty finish. Very fresh and persistent finish which lingers without too much burning at the back of the throat.

This being my 100th post here on vinosseur, what better topic than the two things I love: music & wine.  And what better day to publish this post – on my birthday!

This video was recorded on the 23rd of April at Café Herman in Leikanger, Norway. It was recorded with my old Nokia, so forgive me,  primarily for the audio quality.  If English is your language, then skip to 1’25” in the video (the first 1’20” is in Norwegian) for the English intro and dedication.

The artist:  Robert Smith-Hald.  Born in West Chester County, Pennsylvania into a secluded, nearly self-sufficient religious community called Camphill.  Robert’s upbringing, according to him, has definitely shaped his relationship to music quite keenly.  His lyrics and melodies reflect who he is and where he comes from.  Please also visit his MySpace page.

The wine:  2006 Domaine Le Mazel Cuvée Raoul – Gérald & Jocelyne Oustric have been making wine in the Southern Rhône without the use of sulfur since 1998.  The 2006 is a blend of Syrah and Grenache (approx 70/30) spontaneously fermented, macerated for 30 days, stored in cement and then bottled without filtration,   fining or the addition of sulfur.  One of my favorite wines and one of the most stable natural wines I know.  The wine improves for up to 10 days after opening and doesn’t begin to fade until around day 18.  I love it!

A very sponty nose with aromas of dark berries lifted by red fruit, farmyard and just enough volatility to make me want to jump up out of my chair and dance! Fantastic concentration and structure,  gripping tannins and enough freshness to help get the bottle down in minutes.  The 12-12.5% alcohol makes it also quite food friendly.

Enjoy the video!

Robert Smith-Hald & Cuvée Raoul from vinosseur on Vimeo.

Lot’s of new wines this month. La Stoppa’s Ageno brings my “orange wine” count up to 7 titles.  I would like more orange wines because they’re not only food friendly, they’re addicting as crazy!  There are many out there to chose from, but most I am afraid are not good in my opinion, merely fashion statements at most.

I am happy to have exclusivity on the Domaine de La Gramière wines in Norway (at least on this first shipment) – great wines made by some fellow ex-pats living in Southern France. These “sponty” wines have super clear fruit and great freshness!

A truly amazing Grüner by another new comer to Norway, Meinklang.

And, a new Dolcetto to replace Luca Roagna’s Dolcetto, one of my favorites up to now.  Principiano’s wines, including this Dolcetto, are brand new to Norway, and I feel will take no time at all to get discovered.

Over the course of the next month, I hope to add some (more) exciting rosé’s to kick off our Norwegian Spring and Summer! (Although as I write this post, the spring has all but vanished as I look out my window at the hail coming down from the sky!)

Here are my new additions:

• Domaine d’Elise Chablis 2008 – Lutte Raisonée – Burgundy, France
• Meinklang Grüner Veltliner 2009 – Biodynamic & one hell of a Grüner for the money! – Burgenland, Austria
• La Stoppa Ageno 2005 – A natural orange wine – Thanks Tomasz! – Emilia-Romagna, Italy
• Weingut Langmann Schilcher Klassik 2009 – Steiermark, Austria
• Stéphane Tissot Poulsard Vieilles Vignes Sans Soufre 2007 – Nice, delicate fruit.  A hint of oak – Jura, France
• Domaine de La Gramière Côtes du Rhône 2005 – Close to natural, just a pinch of sulfur! – Southern Rhône, France
• Domaine de La Gramière Peter’s Vineyard Syrah 2007 – Close to natural, just a pinch of sulfur, please decant me and give me some air! – Southern Rhône, France
• Domaine Leon Barral  Faugères 2007 –  Languedoc-Roussillon, France
• Ferdinando Principiano Dolcetto d’Alba Sant’ Anna 2008 – Biodynamic with  just a pinch of sulfur. Super clear fruit! – Piemonte, Italy

Click here for new wine list

Event:  Bressan Wine Maker Dinner

Restaurant:  Jacob’s Bar & Kjøkken

Date:  Saturday, March 13th 2010

Host:  Fulvio Bressan, Vinosseur, 213 W Wine Imports

I have done a producer profile on Bressan in past posts, but nothing I have written could have prepared me for such a down to earth warm person such as Fulvio.  Energetic and outgoing, Fulvio entertained everyone at our table and the other tables as we made our rounds to introduce him to our guests.  I thought I was going to have my work cut out for me with the translating from Italian, but it turns out that Fulvio’s grasp of English is very good, making my job a little easier.  The turn out was better than anticipated with a completely full restaurant with even a few tables being turned.. for quaint little Bergen, this is quite a feat! Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s the latest update.  Even though I practically eliminated my entire Champagne selection, this month I have added a new Champagne. Drappier’s Brut Nature is organic and made without the addition of sulfur dioxide.  This isn’t the only sans soufre wine added this month!  4 more un-sulfured wines were added (for a total of 5) and one that has no detectable sulfur!  The most stunning Beaujolais Nouveau I have ever tasted also arrived at Jacob’s yesterday!

• Drappier Brut Nature – Sans Soufre! – Champagne, France
• Murgo Spumante Metodo Classico Non Dosage 2006 – 100% Nerello Mascalese! – Mt. Etna (Sicilia), Italy
• Crêt de Ruyère/Cathy & Jean-Luc Gauthier (with Jean-Marc Brignot) “biojô nuovo ;-)” Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau 2009 – No detectable sulfur! – Burgundy, France – A stunning Beaujolais Nouveau  like only Jean-Marc Brignot can bottle!!
  
• Domaine Le Mazel Cuvée Raoul 2008 – After being sold out of the 2007 for about 6 weeks, the 2008 is finally here! – Southern Rhône, France
• Domaine des 2 Ânes Fontanilles 2006 – Corbieres, Languedoc-Roussillon, France
• La Treille Muscate (Catherine Marin-Pestel) L’Effrontée Magnum 2007 – 100% old vine Carignan – no sulfur added!! – Languedoc-Roussillon, France
• Domaine Robert Sérol Les Vieilles Vignes 2009 – 100% Gamay – Loire Valley, France
• Domaine Robert Sérol (L’)Incorruptible 2009 – 100% Gamay, No added sulfur!! – Loire Valley, France
• Bressan Cru Pignol 1999 – 100% Pignolo grape, No added sulfur!! – Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy

Click on the Treille Muscate Label below to check out the latest wine list!

I thought that publishing my top 9 list would be fun for people to see and also for me to look at in the future to see if my favorites remain my favorites and also to watch my moods change!  Why is it a top 9 list instead of a top 10 list?  Why not?   For now, the wine style I can’t seem to get enough of is that lightish red colored, fresh and slightly CO2’d wine sitting at between 11 and 12% alcohol. Wine number 2 is a good example of what I am talking about (although the last bottle I drank noted an alcohol of 12.5.5% – there’s no mistake in my post, this is exactly the way it was printed on the label)!  (I have left out vintages because I didn’t feel that they were necessary here.. )

1. 1.  Frank Cornelissen Munjabel Bianco
2. 2.  Jean-Marc Brignot Rayure
3. 3.  Camillo Donati Rosso della Bandita
4. 4.  Laureano Serres Montagut Vinyes Arrencades Blanc 2008 *
5. 5.  Maison Pierre Overnoy Arbois Pupillin
6. 6.  Domaine Le Mazel Cuvée Raoul
7. 7.  Camillo Donati Malvasia Secco
8. 8.  Domaine Griottes P’tite Gâterie
9. 9.  Jean-Pierre Robinot Concerto d’Oniss

* (I noted the 2008 vintage here because this is the first and only vintage of this wine I have ever tasted.)

Of course I have many more favorites and could have made this list quite long… but these are my favorite 9 for now!

Located East of Burgundy approaching Switzerland, the Jura is perhaps more “known” for it’s white wines made with the Chardonnay and Savagnin grapes.  For example, the slightly oxidized, “flor-enhanced” Vin Jaune.  However the “reds” made with the Poulsard grape (as found in this bottle), are perhaps more interesting.. At least to me..

After Pierre Overnoy retired, the Houillon family took over the domain. They have continued in the same manner as Overnoy (from what I understand). That is, as close to natural viticulture as possible and the same goes for the wine making.  No added anything here, not even my least favorite friend, Sulfur Dioxide.  I have tasted both the reds and the whites of Overnoy and I have to say they are amongst my favorite wines… of all time, placing comfortably in my top 9 list (coming soon!) of all time favorites.

For many years, the only wines of the Jura I had tasted had been those of Tissot. Although the wines of Tissot are good, they don’t approach the quality of Overnoy’s wines in my opinion. Tissot’s wines can seem a bit “dirty” by comparison (again, my opinion).

Date tasted:  Sunday February 21, 2010 18:45 (6:45pm) – Decanted

WOW!!!!

and…… 1 hour and 15 minutes later @ 20:00 (8pm)

HUH???

When I first opened this wine – it was exactly as I remembered it and expected it to be. A gorgeous, light red color not unlike what fresh squeezed raspberries or cranberries might look like. In fact, the similarities don’t stop here. The nose was of pure, fresh raspberries and cranberries with delicate spices.  Background aromas of cherries, stems and pits.  It had that typical “sponty” (spontaneous) nose and  was slightly volatile , in that way that we natural wine lovers really appreciate, helping those aromas float up to our noses.  Slight animal and mineral tones also noted on the very back. The same was found on the palate.

This wine was very alive and it was making me jump out of my chair with every smell and with every taste.

BUT, within a little over an hour, my friend and I were looking at each other and asking “huh??”. What the hell happened! The wine was almost completely dead.  I don’t normally decant a wine like this. So why the hell did I do it tonight? Was that the problem? First of all, I will never decant this wine again, just in case. Second, I will continue to drink the wines of Overnoy because they are so incredibly seductive. Finally, in the future I won’t take an hour to drink a bottle of Overnoy again!  Oh, I should mention that I had only brought the wine back with me from France two weeks prior – travel sickness??

Cheers!

Here it is! The latest wine list updated for February.  Remember, I’m not just adding titles to an ever-growing wine list. Very often for every title I add, one has disappeared from the list. Since last fall, I have reduced the list by about 20 titles. I try to keep my list dynamic so that my guests (and I) don’t get bored!

As I have mentioned in a past entry, I am reducing the number of Champagne titles on my list and increasing the number of sparkling wines. I feel that there are so many interesting sparkling wines available at competitive prices and from interesting wine areas. I have added one sparkling wine to my list in February and I expect to add 3 or 4 more titles next month depending on availability.

New to the wine list this month:

• André et Mireille Tissot Crémant Indigène Brut – Jura, France
• Domaine Bott-Geyl Riesling Schlossberg Grand Cru 2008 – Alsace, France
• Château de la Gravelle Muscadet Sèvre et Maine L’Ancestrale 2004 – Loire, France
• Ciro Picariello Aglianico Zi Filicella 2007 – Campania, Italy (Single vineyard, planted in 1925 (see photo just below this description).  Spontaneous fermentation.  20-25 days skin maceration.  Only steel and cement for fermentation and storage (24 months in cement). Less than 40mg per liter SO2.  Bottled without filtration.)

Ciro Picariello Aglianico Zi Filicella Vineyard - Planted in 1925

Click here to see the wine list in its entirety!