This week while doing some searching in my "off premises" storage
(because of a labeling mistake I moved a LOT of boxes) I noticed a few
boxes that had several things that should be ready (or past ready).
Nothing expensive, but some fun things to try.

Thursday we went to dinner at a local French place, treated by some
old friends. Besides dinner, they were giving me a check for my
organization, as Judy was the executor for the estate of a mutual
friend. For once, I decided to be non-geeky, so refrained from
questioning producer, vintage, etc on either wine I tried btg. A
decent Loire SB, a flabby/short Ardeche Chardonnay.

So Friday I looked forward to something a bit better. I was home
alone, thought I was going to grill sausages, and so opened a
Riesling, the 2002 JJ Christoffel (Erben) Urziger Wurzgarten Kabinett.
This was one of the PC blowout bottles, and had a regular cork.
Peaches, cherries, and strawberries, with a little edge of spice. Nice
flavors, but a little softer and a little shorter than I would have
hoped for. Good rather than great, but at $7-8 who's complaining? B

I heated grill, and got ready to cook dinner. The problem was the
sausages weren't there. Ah, the appetites of the 21 year old. I
pondered defrosting, but ended up turning off grill. And cooking one
of the frozen pizzas I had gotten for Dave for nights when we weren't
home. OK, not as good as takeout (or near as good as homemade), but
by this time I just wanted food. With the pizza I switched, and opened
the 2002 Baudry "Les Granges" Chinon. This is Baudry's early drinker,
but I must have thought it needed time to stick it in a box for
storage. This has handled 5-6 years storage well, ripe and graceful
Cab Franc with clean cherry and raspberry fruit, light notes of turned
soil, no real tannins remaining. Good acidity, nice length, a pointe
for my tastes. No brett this year that I can find (someone had posted
on a bretty bottle of a recent vintage). A-/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 05/01/2010 11:30 PM, DaleW wrote:
> I heated grill, and got ready to cook dinner. The problem was the
> sausages weren't there. Ah, the appetites of the 21 year old. I
> pondered defrosting, but ended up turning off grill. And cooking one
> of the frozen pizzas I had gotten for Dave for nights when we weren't
> home. OK, not as good as takeout (or near as good as homemade), but
> by this time I just wanted food. With the pizza I switched, and opened
> the 2002 Baudry "Les Granges" Chinon. This is Baudry's early drinker,
> but I must have thought it needed time to stick it in a box for
> storage. This has handled 5-6 years storage well, ripe and graceful
> Cab Franc with clean cherry and raspberry fruit, light notes of turned
> soil, no real tannins remaining. Good acidity, nice length, a pointe
> for my tastes. No brett this year that I can find (someone had posted
> on a bretty bottle of a recent vintage). A-/B+
>

Hi Dale,

2 nights ago we had the 2005 Les Granges, it was quite tannic but opened
into a solid fruit core, perhaps a little heavier than your 2002 and
certainly no hurry.

No sign at all of brett, nor have I noticed this in any of his recent
wines which are typically very clean and precise.

-E

Emery Davis > wrote in news:844tjjFhhpU1
@mid.individual.net:
>
> Hi Dale,
>
> 2 nights ago we had the 2005 Les Granges, it was quite tannic but opened
> into a solid fruit core, perhaps a little heavier than your 2002 and
> certainly no hurry.

2002s from Baudry are much lighter (Burgundian, we might say) than the
2005s. Croix-Boisée 2002 being my favorite. I really want to taste the
2009s to see how the style is. I'll see in november.

>
> No sign at all of brett, nor have I noticed this in any of his recent
> wines which are typically very clean and precise.

I have never found too much brett in their wines and that is specifically
what I like about them. I will never forget a bottle of 1996 Chinon Les
Picases by Olga Raffault that we had at Restaurant Le Relais in Angers.
When pointed the fact of the too much brett to the sommelier, he refused to
take action and just approved the wine. We left the bottle almost intact.
And did not come back to the restaurant since then. Too bad for them since
we've been going there for 10 years now. That's 10 meals in Le Petit
Comptoir, for example, where they know how to make people happy!

s.