So last night Betsy made salmon steamed with chard and onions, along
with brown rice. Unlike grilled salmon, I don't think PN works with
this, so decided to go white. Here's an opportunity for a
idiosyncratic wine.

1997 Kalin Cellar Semillon (Livermore Valley)
This is actually the current release I believe, and I wasn't concerned
by the deep gold color. However, the cork was a sponge meets sawdust
mess, and once wine hit air it darkened even further. Nuts meets
sherry oxidative notes, apple pie, citrus rind, lemon pledge.
Interesting but not fun, and I'll assume a substandard cork. C+, but
hopefully not a representative bottle.

2007 Michel Lafarge “Raisins d’Orees” Bourgogne Aligote
As the Kalin was more interesting than good, I decided to go to the
backup. Now this is a lovely bottle of Aligote- sweet pear and apple
fruit with a squirt of lemon, wet stones on the finish, very good
length for its level. I don't drink much Aligote, but this is
generally my favorite, and this vintage is quite good. Nicely
balanced, holds one's interest. B+

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an
excellent*wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I
wouldn't*drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I
offer no*promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of
consistency.**

On 3/12/10 3:51 PM, DaleW wrote:
> So last night Betsy made salmon steamed with chard and onions, along
> with brown rice. Unlike grilled salmon, I don't think PN works with
> this, so decided to go white. Here's an opportunity for a
> idiosyncratic wine.
>
> 1997 Kalin Cellar Semillon (Livermore Valley)
> This is actually the current release I believe, and I wasn't concerned
> by the deep gold color. However, the cork was a sponge meets sawdust
> mess, and once wine hit air it darkened even further. Nuts meets
> sherry oxidative notes, apple pie, citrus rind, lemon pledge.
> Interesting but not fun, and I'll assume a substandard cork. C+, but
> hopefully not a representative bottle.
>
> 2007 Michel Lafarge “Raisins d’Orees” Bourgogne Aligote
> As the Kalin was more interesting than good, I decided to go to the
> backup. Now this is a lovely bottle of Aligote- sweet pear and apple
> fruit with a squirt of lemon, wet stones on the finish, very good
> length for its level. I don't drink much Aligote, but this is
> generally my favorite, and this vintage is quite good. Nicely
> balanced, holds one's interest. B+

Thanks for the interesting notes, Dale. I wonder whether that Kalin
Semillon is atypical or not. The biggest fan of that wine I know of is
Joe Perry, who is also nuts for Sherry and very oxidative Spanish
whites, so draw what conclusions you wish from that. I'll keep in mind
your recommendation of the Lafarge Aligoté, as I have pretty much
written off the grape as not interesting enough to warrant further
attention ("charmless" is what I actually had to say about my last one).

Mark Lipton


--
alt.food.wine FAQ: http://winefaq.cwdjr.net

On Mar 12, 4:02*pm, Mark Lipton > wrote:
> On 3/12/10 3:51 PM, DaleW wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > So last night Betsy made salmon steamed with chard and onions, along
> > with brown rice. Unlike grilled salmon, I don't think PN works with
> > this, so decided to go white. Here's an opportunity for a
> > idiosyncratic wine.
>
> > 1997 Kalin Cellar Semillon (Livermore Valley)
> > This is actually the current release I believe, and I wasn't concerned
> > by the deep gold color. However, the cork was a sponge meets sawdust
> > mess, and once wine hit air it darkened even further. Nuts meets
> > sherry oxidative notes, apple pie, citrus rind, lemon pledge.
> > Interesting but not fun, and I'll assume a substandard cork. C+, but
> > hopefully not a representative bottle.
>
> > 2007 *Michel Lafarge “Raisins d’Orees” Bourgogne Aligote
> > As the Kalin was more interesting than good, I decided to go to the
> > backup. Now this is a lovely bottle of Aligote- sweet pear and apple
> > fruit with a squirt of lemon, wet stones on the finish, very good
> > length for its level. I don't drink much Aligote, but this is
> > generally my favorite, and this vintage is quite good. Nicely
> > balanced, holds one's interest. B+
>
> Thanks for the interesting notes, Dale. *I wonder whether that Kalin
> Semillon is atypical or not. *The biggest fan of that wine I know of is
> Joe Perry, who is also nuts for Sherry and very oxidative Spanish
> whites, so draw what conclusions you wish from that. *I'll keep in mind
> your recommendation of the Lafarge Aligoté, as I have pretty much
> written off the grape as not interesting enough to warrant further
> attention ("charmless" is what I actually had to say about my last one).
>
> Mark Lipton
>
> --
> alt.food.wine FAQ: *http://winefaq.cwdjr.net

I've had Kalin Chard before, blind my guess was skin-contact white a
la Gravner or Radikon.
Most Aligote (even more than most wine) is terrible, best suited for
Kir, but some producers do much better

On Mar 12, 4:36*pm, DaleW > wrote:
> On Mar 12, 4:02*pm, Mark Lipton > wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > On 3/12/10 3:51 PM, DaleW wrote:
>
> > > So last night Betsy made salmon steamed with chard and onions, along
> > > with brown rice. Unlike grilled salmon, I don't think PN works with
> > > this, so decided to go white. Here's an opportunity for a
> > > idiosyncratic wine.
>
> > > 1997 Kalin Cellar Semillon (Livermore Valley)
> > > This is actually the current release I believe, and I wasn't concerned
> > > by the deep gold color. However, the cork was a sponge meets sawdust
> > > mess, and once wine hit air it darkened even further. Nuts meets
> > > sherry oxidative notes, apple pie, citrus rind, lemon pledge.
> > > Interesting but not fun, and I'll assume a substandard cork. C+, but
> > > hopefully not a representative bottle.
>
> > > 2007 *Michel Lafarge “Raisins d’Orees” Bourgogne Aligote
> > > As the Kalin was more interesting than good, I decided to go to the
> > > backup. Now this is a lovely bottle of Aligote- sweet pear and apple
> > > fruit with a squirt of lemon, wet stones on the finish, very good
> > > length for its level. I don't drink much Aligote, but this is
> > > generally my favorite, and this vintage is quite good. Nicely
> > > balanced, holds one's interest. B+
>
> > Thanks for the interesting notes, Dale. *I wonder whether that Kalin
> > Semillon is atypical or not. *The biggest fan of that wine I know of is
> > Joe Perry, who is also nuts for Sherry and very oxidative Spanish
> > whites, so draw what conclusions you wish from that. *I'll keep in mind
> > your recommendation of the Lafarge Aligoté, as I have pretty much
> > written off the grape as not interesting enough to warrant further
> > attention ("charmless" is what I actually had to say about my last one)..
>
> > Mark Lipton
>
> > --
> > alt.food.wine FAQ: *http://winefaq.cwdjr.net
>
> I've had Kalin Chard before, blind my guess was skin-contact white a
> la Gravner or Radikon.
> Most Aligote (even more than most wine) is terrible, best suited for
> Kir, but some producers do much better- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

I prefer my Aligote with a dash of cassis otherwise I find it a bit
acidic and charmless. I don't really see much on the shelves here in
Columbus these days.

Hi Mark (and Bill)

On Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:02:24 -0500, Mark Lipton >
wrote:
I'll keep in mind
>your recommendation of the Lafarge Aligoté, as I have pretty much
>written off the grape as not interesting enough to warrant further
>attention ("charmless" is what I actually had to say about my last one).

While I'd agree with you about 95% of the Aligotés I've drunk, a
really good grower can succeed in making the wine delightful, I feel.
I don't know the Lafarge - it probably all crosses the the pond! My
current favourite is from François Mikulski, but I've had others that
were also very good.

They aren't going to compare with Meursault-Genevrières,. but at €6
instead f €36, it would be naive to expect them to.

In passing - and because you mentioned oxidative wines, we had a
winemaker friend for a meal a couple of days ago, and because it is
always fun to find wines they don't know, I pulled a couple of real
left field Bergerac (I don't think either are AOC, being too way out)
for him. One is a dry white VdP du Périgord from Bruno Bilancini at Ch
Tirecul la Gravière. This is made from almost pure Muscadelle, and is
a dry whilte made from the grapes that didn't get noble rot. It's
almost got the mouthfeel of a dry Oloroso. Hints of walnut and
hazelnit remind me of a Chardonnay from the Jura, but the fruit is
quite different. With over ripe grapes, it's never going to have much
acidity of course, but is mineral and with plenty of fruit. We served
it with a chicken liver pté, (very concentrated flavours) and it
stood up well.

The other wine is even more way out. The wine is "Jour des Tendres" (a
play on words suggested by Jacquie) from Ch Tour des Gendres. It's a
saignée method rosé, taken from the vats which go to make their top
red wine. What sets it apart is 4-5 years in barrel. Yes, it's got a
lot of wood, but no, it's far from being an oak soup. Because the must
is so powerful, even when drawn while still pink, the oak really does
integrate. Served with porks chops baked in foil with a wild mushroom
duxelles and creme fraiche, it stood up to the dish very well indeed.

Finished with little sticky toffee puddings and a Blandy's Bual -
completely flummoxing Stéphane, who thought he knew Madeira wines.

Great fun was had.
All the best
Fatty in Forges
http://www.souvigne.com

Ian Hoare wrote:

> While I'd agree with you about 95% of the Aligotés I've drunk, a
> really good grower can succeed in making the wine delightful, I feel.
> I don't know the Lafarge - it probably all crosses the the pond! My
> current favourite is from François Mikulski, but I've had others that
> were also very good.
>
> They aren't going to compare with Meursault-Genevrières,. but at €6
> instead f €36, it would be naive to expect them to.

I've heard this from a number of defenders of the grape. To date, I've
had the Aligoté from M. de Villaine's Bouzeron and DeMoor. I've also
heard that perhaps young Aligoté needs some oxygenation (carafé, if you
will) to show well. I think, that at this point, I'll let some
interested party try to convince me with an example that they like.

>
> In passing - and because you mentioned oxidative wines, we had a
> winemaker friend for a meal a couple of days ago, and because it is
> always fun to find wines they don't know, I pulled a couple of real
> left field Bergerac (I don't think either are AOC, being too way out)
> for him. One is a dry white VdP du Périgord from Bruno Bilancini at Ch
> Tirecul la Gravière. This is made from almost pure Muscadelle, and is
> a dry whilte made from the grapes that didn't get noble rot. It's
> almost got the mouthfeel of a dry Oloroso. Hints of walnut and
> hazelnit remind me of a Chardonnay from the Jura, but the fruit is
> quite different. With over ripe grapes, it's never going to have much
> acidity of course, but is mineral and with plenty of fruit. We served
> it with a chicken liver pté, (very concentrated flavours) and it
> stood up well.
>
> The other wine is even more way out. The wine is "Jour des Tendres" (a
> play on words suggested by Jacquie) from Ch Tour des Gendres. It's a
> saignée method rosé, taken from the vats which go to make their top
> red wine. What sets it apart is 4-5 years in barrel. Yes, it's got a
> lot of wood, but no, it's far from being an oak soup. Because the must
> is so powerful, even when drawn while still pink, the oak really does
> integrate. Served with porks chops baked in foil with a wild mushroom
> duxelles and creme fraiche, it stood up to the dish very well indeed.
>
> Finished with little sticky toffee puddings and a Blandy's Bual -
> completely flummoxing Stéphane, who thought he knew Madeira wines.
>
> Great fun was had.

Fun, indeed, Ian! That dry Muscadelle would have been a fascinating
wine to try. Recently, on the "interesting and maybe even enjoyable"
front, I shared a '97 Grüner Veltliner Federspiel from Nikolaihof and a
'94 Tyrell's Vat 1 Semillon with a fellow winegeek in Southern
California. Both wines were still alive, with the Semillon showing no
signs of fading over the course of a 3 hour lunch.

Mark Lipton


--
alt.food.wine FAQ: http://winefaq.cwdjr.net