Another month and another great tasting with a regular tasting group. Beaujolais is something I was unsure about before the tasting – I’ve had ones bordering on great but never one that has blown me away and I don’t really get the hype – unfortunately the tasting didn’t push me off the fence either way just yet, but it was an excellent chance to try this variety of wines side by side and compare to a couple of Australian efforts.

The last two flights of Gamay were served blind, as well as the three Australian reds immediately following.

  • 2009 François Chidaine Vouvray Pétillant – France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray Pétillant
    Lime and pear drive the nose, there is also an earthy and slightly oxidative edge to it, adding interest. The palate is cleaner and delivers good freshness through acidity. 88/100

  • 2005 Domaine Thomas Sancerre Le Pierrier – France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Sancerre
    Lemon, hay, light honey and floral aromas. The palate shows honeyed development with decent length. Drinking well now and over the next couple of years. 89/100

  • 2010 Domaine du Vissoux / Pierre-Marie Chermette Fleurie Les Garants – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Fleurie
    Nicely perfumed on the nose, with cherries and violets and lots of raspberry influence. The palate is quite lithe, though there are hints of sweet fruit in the background. 88/100

  • 2010 Domaine du Vissoux / Pierre-Marie Chermette Brouilly Pierreux – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Brouilly
    Strong floral impact on the nose with violets and roses, there is some liquorice and iron, with meaty elements as well. Medium bodied palate, with grip through the tannins. The palate is mostly savoury in nature, though there is light sweet fruit lurking. 89/100

  • 2010 Domaine du Vissoux / Pierre-Marie Chermette Moulin-à-Vent Les Trois Roches – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Moulin-à-Vent
    There is good depth to the nose here – lots of earth elements then violets, tobacco and raspberry contributing. The palate is impressively structured, with spice and minerality giving interest and lifting the wine. Seems more serious than the other two 2010s from this producer that I tried alongside, and I enjoyed it a great deal. 90/100

  • 2010 Julien Sunier Régnié – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Régnié
    The nose is pretty and appealing, though there is complexity to it as well – with strawberry, floral notes, stalks, cherry/kirsch and raspberry. The palate is light-medium bodied, the appealing bright fruit characters carry on from the nose. Delicious right now and really enjoyable for its style. 91/100

  • 2010 Coudert Fleurie Clos de la Roilette – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Fleurie
    Charcoal, pepper and blackberry on the nose. The acidity on the palate sticks out ever so slightly, disrupting the line and balance. Still decent, but fell behind in comparison to many of the other wines on the night. I’ve had this before and liked it much more then, so I’m not sure what went wrong here. 86/100

  • 2010 Domaine Chignard Fleurie Les Moriers – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Fleurie
    Another wine with a strong floral element to the nose, the background aromas are of earth, spice and light stems. Bright acidity mingles with light but juicy red fruits on the palate. Another wine that is enjoyable right now, but for me it was behind the Sunier in interest. 89/100

  • 2008 Jean-Claude Lapalu Brouilly Vieilles Vignes – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Brouilly
    Funky nose – with iron, earth, game and cinnamon. The palate is more fruit forward, with good acid supporting. 88/100

  • 2010 Coudert Brouilly – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Brouilly
    Raspberry, black pepper and cherry aromas. The palate is medium bodied but it is neither overly bright nor having great depth or drive. Good but no more. 86/100

  • 2006 Daniel Bouland Côte de Brouilly Cuvée Mélanie – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Côte de Brouilly
    Violets, spice and earth on the nose. The palate tends too far towards being overly extracted for my taste, with the tannins also prominent. 86/100

  • 2010 Jean-Marc Burgaud Morgon Côte du Py Javernières – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon
    Stalks, blackberry, dark floral notes and light oak influence. At first I was impressed with the structure on the palate, but there is very good fruit weight and a core of minerality and the balance is excellent as a result. For me this was one of the wines with better length on the night and I thought it had good potential to improve with time. 91/100

  • 2010 Jean-Marc Burgaud Morgon Côte du Py “Réserve” – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon
    Cherry, light cinnamon, violets and an element of game. The palate is approachable, with plush fruit and well integrated bright acidity. I think there is the potential and structure to age well over the medium term even though it is good now. 89/100

  • 2010 Eldridge Estate Gamay – Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
    Stood out in this blind flight as being the Australian entry. Aromas of coconut, cherry, vanilla and a smidge of pepper. The extra fruit weight on the palate gives it away, though there is less acid and tannin than many of the other wines tonight. Despite its origin being fairly obvious side by side, I still quite enjoyed it. 88/100

  • 2006 Domaine Piron & Lafont / Piron-Lameloise Chénas Quartz – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Chénas
    Rubber, caramel and vegemite – quite awful on the nose. The palate is less offensive, but it is short and lacking in depth. I’m unsure if this was a sound bottle, but I did not like it.

  • 2009 Domaine des Terres Dorées (Jean-Paul Brun) Beaujolais l’Ancien le Buissy – France, Burgundy, Beaujolais
    Smoky, with game and cherry elements. Acid and tannin are at the forefront, though there is some decent fruit weight, as well as good length. I was left somewhat indifferent to it, though there was no specific issue. 88/100

  • 2011 Clos du Tue-Boeuf Cheverny – France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Cheverny
    Extremely stalky, with hay and a wheatgrass note in the background. The palate is lean, but it has a little bit more fruit than the nose. This was too far into the green spectrum for me. 82/100

  • 2011 Sorrenberg Gamay – Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth
    Orange peel, roses, spice and a little bit of mint. The palate is an interesting mix of spice and sweet red fruit – this is very different in style to most of the other wines tonight, but I liked it. 88/100

  • 2002 Yeringberg Pinot Noir – Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley
    Cherry and stalks, with light forest floor character. The palate is nicely balanced, with savoury elements and sweet fruit combining well. Drink over the next 5 years. 89/100

  • 2002 Yabby Lake Vineyard Pinot Noir – Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula
    Floral nose, with mint, soot and cherry notes. The palate is fairly smooth, but there is a lack of depth and it finishes much too short, especially for a wine and producer with this reputation. 87/100

  • 2005 Yarra Yering Barbera – Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley
    Menthol, cinnamon, smoked meats and soft blueberry aromas. The palate shows spice and restrained sweet fruit. There are multiple layers to this wine and it finishes with excellent length. I note that the label says it is 15% alcohol, but it doesn’t show. I really liked this and was strongly impressed. 91/100

  • 1975 Fritz Haag Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese – Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
    Golden coloured. Pear, honey, orange peel and a very light nutty aroma on the nose. The palate is poised, with sweetness but also a lightness and wonderfully well integrated acidity that carries the wine into a medium-long finish. Continued to lift and improve with time in the glass, if I had any more of these I would be looking forward to trying it again in 6-7 years or more as it continues to develop towards its peak. 92/100

  • 2010 Fritz Haag Brauneberger Juffer Riesling Auslese – Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
    Very pretty floral aromas along with slate, tropical fruit and lemon in support. The palate has excellent fruit intensity with abundant sweetness and the acid structure to keep it driven. Rich and delicious in a fruit forward phase. Drink it now or give it significant time for further rewards. 91/100

  • 1983 Schloss Plettenberg Winzenheimer Rosenheck Riesling Auslese – Germany, Nahe
    A nose of spice and honey, with slate and a light ginger note. The palate exhibits great balance, with appealing sweetness and cleansing acidity combining to give the wine that quality where you really look forward to the next sip. I thought this had slightly less depth than the Fritz Haag, but it was delicious in its own right. 91/100

  • NV Henriques & Henriques Madeira Malmsey 10 Years Old – Portugal, Madeira
    Complex nose of vanilla, raisins, caramel, almond and walnut, with just a light spirity lift. With the same complexity on the palate, there is sweetness and a softness to it as well as excellent length. 90/100

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