r/wine

JL Chave Clos Florentin. St. Joseph. 2022.

The moment this hit the glass you know it’s over.  In baseball, it’s like when the ball is hit so goddamn hard, the outfielder doesn’t even move.  Gorgeous black fruit, with violet, iron, cold granite after rain, extinguished woodsmoke.  Game stew.  It’s winter and you’re nowhere near a city.  Was that kalamata olive really there or did I hallucinate it?   The bouquet is a whole sensory story and it has your attention immediately.

St. Joseph doesn't get the flowers it deserves. Hermitage is the north Rhone's headliner, Cote-Rotie gets the cult status, Cornas gets the rugged reputation. St. Joseph is somehow still fighting to realize its potential despite being capable of genuinely transcendent Syrah.  

Part of it is scale. Big appellation, wide quality range.  You have to find the good ones. 

Clos Florentin is a monopole -  JL Chave's parcel entirely. Granite subsoil, steep exposure, farmed with the kind of attention you only bring to a site you actually believe in.  They bought it in 2009 and for the first six vintages blended it into their Estate St. Joseph before separating it out into its own bottling.

The 2022 was warm and generous across the northern Rhone, but the wines are better balanced than the heat suggests. Already open, already expressive - crushed black pepper, smoked meat fat, dark plum, a fine linear tannin structure running through the wine like a seam, holding everything in place while it moves.  This is Chave-level wine, and really couldn’t be more distinct from Gonon.  Objectively this is probably a better wine than Gonon, with the understanding that it doesn’t hit those wild, brambly Syrah notes that are becoming harder and harder to find.

I’m drinking this and thinking, why did they even make this wine?  It largely undercuts the need to have Hermitage, ever.  Hermitage becomes an edge-case.  This has the depth, the absurd micro-detailing.  It’s just less….thick?

Yes, Chave Hermitage with 20+ years of age on it is immaculate, Savile Row stuff. But at 5, 10, 15 years?  I’d rather have this every time.  

Hopefully useful information:

US Importer:  Grand Cru Selections, Shiverick, Bourquet and others

Price at time of posting:

US: $149-$195

UK: No current listings

EU: 246 Euros

AUS:  No current listings

Always wanted to try this based on both critics and from the Wine Enthusiasts top 10 list

I just cancelled my 2021 pre-arrival order from a wine shop for almost double the price

Wine list at the bottom of the pic.

For those that don’t know, the winner of the Masters in the previous year puts on a dinner for all past champions of the Masters in advance of the tournament. Context here.

Hello, I'm hosting a rehearsal dinner at a Contemporary Southern/American restaurant and was having trouble choosing a white and red to serve to guests.

I know prices are not the best, but what would you recommend in this case? Also corkage is $50/bottle for reference. Thanks in advance!

I was so lucky to drink lots of this wine when I staged with Cathrine and Pierre Breton. Finally revisited this after being back in Canada. Beautiful wine from a well known producer, now run by his children, if I’m not wrong. Notes of cherry cola, wild raspberries and a hint of thyme? Light-medium body with medium acid. Super refined tannins, basically none. This is pure glouglou — a complex wine that I believe will age beautifully but is drinking super fresh and energetic right now!! I still need to try rest of the ‘gang of four’.

I have the possibility of buying an Echezeaux 2022 from Emmanuel Rouget for 525 CAD$ (about 375 USD). it's a pretty good deal but also a whole lot of money for me. is it worth it? What experience do you have with that producer?

Not very good notes on this one, but from memory I got dark cherry, blackberry, black currant, tobacco, coffee, chocolate, and desiccated leaves. Structure is good with classic high acid and fine tannins, though I'd say this is a slightly riper CdE with a fairly plush core.

Found this in the attic previously belonging to a deceased relative.

I assume it’s all vinegar now so I don’t plan on opening it but I’m wonder if someone knows about this elephant shaped bottle and around how old it is.

Thank you!

I couldn’t find anything about this wine, any info is appreciated.

Really great Syrah from Keenan that complimented the dinner very well.

Dark garnet with a dusty looking rim, nice legs.

On the nose, beautiful red fruit fragrance of raspberries and dark cherry with a hint of earth

On the palate, black raspberry, almost marion berry like, blackberry, cherry, black pepper, a touch of mineral and earthiness but nothing too prevalent, very much in the background to the fruit.

I can see why James Suckling rated 95 pts and name to his top 100 US wines.

The decant was about an hour and then enjoyed over the next 2…. it just got better. Definitely age worthy and appropriate to buy a few bottles to try now, later in 4-5 and again in 8-10.

abv: 14.3%

Dinner: Grilled lamb chops with Italian gremolata, pea and mint puree, peach preserves roasted carrots, grilled asparagus and Yukon gold mash. Snow crab and butter. Wife did an amazing job!

Oh, and brownies warmed with mint chocolate chip ice cream, yum!!

Domaine Charles Audoin bourgone aligote vieilles vignes 2022

Pale straw in glass

Nose brings lemon limes zest, green apple, pear, white peach , thyme ,honeysuckle

Palate, first time trying aligote its delicious but definitely different from chardonnay to me its more lighter riper playful, but because its from 1923 vines there is some tension on the palate, lemon curd, saline, pear , peach, zippy acidity 12.5abv 90 points

By the half bottle at Pluckemin Inn in NJ.

This is still very young, but the air really helped. Gave this a half hour decant before drinking.

Still pretty grippy tannins, but didn't overwhelm the wine.

On the palate, dark plum, blackberry, graphite, pencil shavings, slight eucalyptus.

Complex wine with lots of upside.

92+ points.