A New Years resolution to which I might actually stick

Given up smoking? Dropped ten pounds? Still going to that painting class? I hate New Years resolutions. Why would yo wait until new year? Why start at the gym when it's totally packed? I suppose I'm just a contrarian, but this year I've changed my mind.

Having first got interested in wine during the heady days of Tony Blair's first government, I've had an inbuilt prejudice against chardonnay. The image of Tony's cronies slurping tropical oak bombs is as unpalatable as the contents of said cronies' glasses. Never mind. Time to leave 1997 behind and edumacate myself.

Here's a nice place to start. Paul Pernot and ses Fils Puligny-Montrachet 2011. I blew my point card points on this at a modest neighbourhood wine store here in Kyoto. I was in luck too, apparently. According to Jasper Morris on his brief write up on Berry Bros. and Rudd's Web site, "M. Pernod doesn't bottle enough to meet demand."
Cool. Upon opening, those words fell through the trap door of credibility. Mid-toned for a white Burgundy, I paid the colour no attention as I put my nose into the glass. I thought I'd either been ripped off or else bought a heat damaged bottle. The first whiff of this wine gave nothing away about it's pedigree. Flat, empty and with just a hint of calcium. In the mouth. Oak city, California. Pop. 12.
"Dang" I said, or words to that effect, as I put the bottle back into the wine fridge for some much needed air while we worked on the video for Dard et Ribo's odd-ball St. Joseph.
Somewhere between realising that I'd bought the wrong SD card and the battery on the camera running out, a miracle occurred. What had once been a flat desert of useless chardonnay was now a whole bunch more interesting. Lime, cream and just a hint of vanilla took the place of the chalky abyss that was the nose. Not hugely intense, but then this is a village level wine. The fruit tended toward the pear side of things and was very long. What impressed most though was the extent to which the oak was integrated. Not much new oak here, but what there was was a perfect supporting actor for the fruit. lasting as long as the fruit and leaving just a hint of butter at the end of the palate to blend the dry finish seamlessly. This wine impressed. Super serious white burgundy for your special event. It's drinking well now (after some time to open up, of course) but there is plenty here to suggest a long maturation period. 
This New Year's resolution will be more resilient most

Medals of (dis)honour.

I admit it. I have an unhealthy obsession. Ever since my early days peddling ciggies, strong beer and the occasional bottle of wine at Thresher I've loved wine labels that are black with gold text. What could be classier? What says Ambassador's Reception more emphatically than a bottle of Côte-d'Or pinot? Gevrey-Chambertin? Hang on a minute, I'll just put on my cravat. What could be more classy?

Well plenty actually. I had a Camus Père et Fils Gevrey-Chambertin 2002 on Christmas day and regretted not giving it to the reindeer. I'm willing to forgive pinot noir some of its more common faults. If it's a bit short or lacks concentration I generally persist. These wines still have something to offer. Not here though. Upon opening the nose typical Bourgogne. This is not a good thing. Think of all the one-note, sour berry bottles of wine that have that illustrious word slapped on them. There's nothing elegant or charming( or any of the other commonly employed excuse words used to pardon lack-luster pinot) about this wines nose. It was OK I suppose. Like being waved at by a sour cherry from across the street during rush hour.

This wine was fine on the first attack, bright red fruit, but soon an overpowering sourness took over. It wasn't overly unpleasant, but it rendered this wine unappealing to even the staunchest Burgundy fan. Short, thin and sour, right when it should be at it's best. Style over substance? I don't get that feeling in this case. Just poorly made wine from an excellent year. This wine showed little improvement throughout the evening and I was glad we had some Chateau Malescasse '09 to cheer up the festivities. This wine wasn't a total loss though. The bottle looks stunning in my collection.

Small things in a great way.

"If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way."

Napoleon Hill

Not so much a small thing but a huge iceberg in the forefront of my recent wine consciousness. Small Change Wines White blend is done in a great way. Screw cap, no frills packaging hides something very special within. Verdelho. Heard of that? I had, but only really to that extent. Famed for it's Madeiras, this grape rarely finds it's way into table wine. I'm so glad it did in this case.

On the nose it reflects somewhat of an unoaked chardonnay character. Lime notes and a kind of tropicality dominate. I would have spent more time thinking bout the nose, but the first nose full was so inviting I just couldn't hold myself back from drinking the thing.

The palate and mouth-feel are a revelation. Smooth succulent fruit and a rich floral character. Citrus, pineapple and passion fruit all delivered in a weighty and satisfying body that complemented the Sea Bream and Parmesan dish for dinner. Perfectly judged acidity and and a long fatty finish with ginger. There were definitely things here that reminded me of high quality Chardonnay. Then there were times when it reminded me of a warm vintage in Alsace. 
Rhys Howlett and Andrew Schonfeldt at Small Change Wines deserve a hearty pat on the back for this effort. This bottle was imported to Japan as a sample, I wish I could tell you where to get some more. Perhaps it's not too early to write a letter to Santa.

Blood and steel

Regular readers will know that I have a few predilections in the world of wine. One of them is bit part Bordeaux grapes. I hope to have some top quality Petite Verdot for you in the next few weeks but in the meantime I thought I'd try this.

 

Chinon Beuvez Toujours Vieilles Vignes was on sale in the basement of Isetan in Kyoto station. 100% Cabernet Franc and made from the 2011 vintage, this wine is the base of this producer's offerings. I wasn't expecting much more than an interesting time when getting my nose into this one. First I picked up some bitter tannins so descriptive of under ripe vintages but secondly I found some fruit. Not a cascade of juice by any means but a restrained blueberry and something more readily identified with white wines. Zest. There was definitely a citrus zest component to the nose. It certainly refocused me on this Chinon.

First impressions on the palate were good. Structural for a light wine, there is a definite beginning, middle and end to this. Hard as nails first up, with an astringent iron tannin. Food wine, of course. Mid palate was where the blue fruits were. Not full frontal (and this wine could definitely do with more) by any means, These blueberries were tart and short, soon giving way to to a gentle citrus zest acid/bitter combination. Lemon? No. Lime? No. The closest I could think of was peel from mixed fruit marmalade.

Short finish, but one where the what remained of the tannin made itself known. Surprisingly fine for a wine at this price point, but not really good enough to lift this wine above the level of acceptable competence.

Interesting drop but wine geeks only need apply.

The Wines of Yamaya. Part 3: Antonin Rodet Mercurey 2009

Get in! A great value bottle of burgundy from our friends at Yamaya. I picked this up for around 3000 yen at the Karasuma branch and I was pleasently surprised.

Mercurey is the most famous appellation on the Côte Chalonnaise, beating out Rully on production of red wine by some margin, so I had serious doubts whether a large negociant like Antonin Rodet could produce quality at this price point.

On first pouring this is definitely on the richer side for Bourgogne. A dense red colour. With a very broad, fat nose of red fruit. Both fresh and dried fruit are here. Classic cherry, pommegranite and fruitcake. Without much in the way of savoury notes, this wine manages to avoid jamminess or over simplicity.

On the palate there's a touch of residual sugar, but the fruit stands out in broad brush strokes. First comes the cherry sweetness, lifted by a pleasently degree of acid. The flavour mellows into a kind of stone fruit (not really Victoria plum, but it's the closest thing I could think of) smoothness that persists long after wines of a similar price have given up the ghost.

Highly recommended. Get a French rack of lamb from Meat Shop Meister and treat yourself.

A nice refreshing glass of copyright infringement.

Available at Kintetsu Kusatsu for your tasting pleasure.

The Wines of Yamaya. Part Two: Cosme Palacio Rioja Blanco 2011

Been into the Rioja recently. I had the pleasure of a Viña Tondonia Blanco '99 Reserva a few weeks back and I wanted to see if I could get in the ball park for less money. 
Of course that's insane. The Tondonia was absolutely terrific. Huge length and complexity and so much more interesting to wine geeks than even the most refined Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc. Thursday night wines, though, are made of different stuff.
I picked up this bottle for ¥1800 at my local Yamaya. It's a 100% Viura wine aged in 225 litre new French oak barrels. I liked the fonts on the label, too. Let's see what it has to offer. 

Opened and poured, this has an even colour reminiscent of a ripe English pear without much of a sparkle. A decent glassful has a colour that's becomes denser at the core. The nose has "that Viura thing" going on. Somewhere between "something that died in the forest" and, the altogether more prosaic, banana. As it warmed in the glass hints of sour lime emerged and everything intensified a little. Don't be put off by the hint of death on the nose. It's interestingly macabre rather than horrifyingly off-putting.
The flavours are strange here. Nothing leaps out but there's a very nice balance of citrus, hazelnut and cocktail bitters. The more the oxygen got to it, the more lime juice came out. Nice. Odd combination, but it works well. Once again, I think that in a world of Chardonnay drinkers who might occasionally have a drop of Sauvignon Blanc, this provides comparable quality, but a ton more interest at the price point.
Stick this with some prawns There's something about the flavour profile of this wine that's convinced me it'll suit the earthy seafood stylings of our sea-bug friends. That and hard cheese. I'm getting hungry again...
If you weren't particularly interested in wine, but just turned up at a party in need of a drink, I doubt this would work for you. It's far too geeky and singular to please a crowd of any reasonable size. If, however, you're sick of same old choices and enjoy drinking with your brain switched on, this may well be up your street.