Thread: Baudry and Huet with Santiago

On Oct 29, 6:02�am, Emery Davis <laera...@essera.oc.ku> wrote:
> A week ago I met fellow afwer Santiago in the Loire on his now
> annual pilgrimage. �As well as an opportunity to see what was new
> at Baudry and make a first visit (for me) to Huet, a chance to
> have a nice lunch with Santiago.
>
> I made very sketchy notes throughout, but FWIW here they are.
>
> At Baudry we were received royally by Bernard and son Matthieu,
> with the latter doing most of the hosting but the father
> popping in and out, usually glass in hand, and giving us
> lots of commentary. �I was a little late -- my GPS missing an
> autoroute, fer gossakes -- but all had graciously delayed the
> tasting.
>
> We began in the tasting room:
>
> 07 Granges: �a nice "vin de soif" I would have bought a case if
> we hadn't been so rushed at the end. �Cherry nose, bright fruit,
> unfiltered, classic and typical early drinking Chinon, herbs, grass.
>
> Into the cave and from the barrel, things got quick and I didn't have
> a surface to write on so notes got sketchy:
>
> 07 Domaine: riper, blackberry, body, tannic, finish a little weak.
>
> 07 Clos Guillot: nice fresh, round, good structure, bright cherry,
> tannic, OK, good length, a little wine but nice.
>
> 07 Grezeaux: concentrated nose, kirsch, dry tannic finish
>
> 07 Guillot Franc de Pied ('97 burg barrel): herbacious, more bell
> pepper, very primordial chinon type
>
> 07 Guillot Franc de Pied (01 burg barrel): much more precise nose,
> brighter fruit but less fat in mouth
>
> 07 Croix Boissee (older burg barrel): closed nose, better mouth but
> still very tight
>
> 07 Croix Boissee (03 bordx barrel): incredibly more precise in the
> front palate liquorish and herbs come out
>
> 07 Croix Boissee (04 bordx barrel): more feminine (Santiago disagrees),
> less complete lacks (illegible)
>
> same but with 3 yr burg barrel almost untoasted: �more tannic but
> better, frank fruit, fine finish, really different.
>
> Back to the table,
>
> 06 Domaine: �very ripe, balance? �near term drinking, atypical
>
> 06 Clos Guillot: �nose of tabac, fruit confit, long acid finish
> lemony, rather curious.
>
> 2nd bottle: �very lemon, tight tannic finish
>
> 3rd bottle: much better than the other two (although it took me
> a while to see it, not as acid finish, all agree other is
> fruit scalped.
>
> A discussion of screwcaps followed, both pere et fils are in
> favor, we may see these closures in the not too distant future.
>
> 06 Croix Boissee: mute nose but nice spice and round fruit, acid
> and tannic, good aging potential and structure, very mineral,
> chalk.
>
> 07 croix boisee blanc: �sweet chenin nose, honey and orange peel,
> pain d'epice, lively acidity, finish a little sharp.
>
> 05 croix boissee blanc: �an obviously damaged and funky nose, but
> interestingly terrific in the mouth, a big well balanced chenin
> with miles to go. �The Baudrys said the funk blows off in 24
> hours, I think it would be a hard sell anyway, although I'd
> put a couple of bottle down myself to see what might happen.
> Santiago is going to perform the experiment and hopefully
> report here.
>
> Bernard pulled some strings to get us into the restaurant after
> 2pm, (never easy in France), and so we had a nice lunch
> in Azay, with a bottle of Baudry 2002 (and a relief not to have
> to spit!) �I didn't take notes, just enjoyed.
>
> Then on to Huet, where we were very well received by the nice
> young lady working there. �My notes are even briefer.
>
> sec:
>
> 01 Brut pettilant: cake/yeast mouth grapefruit plus rind, pleasant.
>
> 01 sec (cremant): nose less masked, agrumes, well balanced, long,
> lemon tart
>
> 99 method trad Brut: grapefruit rind, cream, custard
>
> 06 Haut Lieu sec: "peu parlant" citrus, vanilla
>
> 06 le Mont sec: rounder cream and lime, nice nose
>
> 07 Haut Lieu sec: roses, limes, in nose perfume store, exotic
> fruit, pineapple, passion fruit, violets (I bought)
>
> 07 Clos du Bourg sec: great structure, depth and balance, quiet nose
>
> demi-sec:
>
> 06 le Mont DS (20g): quite dry, discreet and a little short
>
> 07 Haut Lieu DS (21.3g): very pretty, orange confit passion fruit,
> citrus rind, medium long
>
> 01 le Mont DS (22g): lemon meringue nose, cream and candied citrus,
> classic, huge acidity and balance. �(I bought)
>
> moelleux:
>
> 07 Clos du Bourg: nuts and sweet cake, candied pear, elegant
>
> 06: clos du Bourg 1ere Trie: nose clove and honey, ginger, big
> rich beautiful balance
>
> 96 le Mont 1ere Trie: lovely opulent liquor nose, candied flowers,
> long and powerful, custard, lemon curd, pear, un regal.
>
> An enjoyable day spent with a friend and wine folks who saw us
> under the best conditions, never hesitating to open another bottle
> if one seemed tired, and of course taking considerable time from
> their busy schedules. �I particularly enjoyed the tasting from
> different barrels at Baudry, hearing the wine makers discuss the
> relative merits of each type, age and toast.
>
> Interestingly at least at these 2 producers the disastrous 07
> is presenting itself better than the only slightly less
> disastrous 06...
>
> The only "bemol" being that on the way home in my spanking new car
> (3 days old) I hit a deer in the forest a km from the house.
> Unbelievable, even if the damage isn't extensive (just the bumper
> and compressor). �Still, Santiago, I did get over 50 miles per gallon,
> and this is supposed to go up as the engine wears in. �So some
> good news, anyway!
>
> Looking forward to next years visit, Santiago!
>
> -E

Thanks for notes, sounds like you had a good time.
The Baudry FdP here doesn't seem to have the Guillot designation - is
that new?
I usually buy the Granges for near term and the Grezeaux for aging.
Never saw the '01 Huet bubbly here, I think we had 98 (good), 00
(good) and then 02 (great).
Thanks for the notes on the '96 le Mont 1er, I think both Dr. Lipton
and I have that.
Really sorry about the car!

DaleW wrote:

> I usually buy the Granges for near term and the Grezeaux for aging.

Me too, and the Croix Boissee for longer-term.

> Thanks for the notes on the '96 le Mont 1er, I think both Dr. Lipton
> and I have that.

Nope, me gots the '96 CdB 1er. Still, good to hear about its sibling.

> Really sorry about the car!

Yes. What a bummer. I hope that the great wines you tasted helped
soften the blow, so to speak, Emery.

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

Mark Lipton wrote:
> DaleW wrote:
>
>> I usually buy the Granges for near term and the Grezeaux for aging.
>
> Me too, and the Croix Boissee for longer-term.
>

I think the 07 Croix will be a good example, a real wine maker's wine.

Interestingly Matthieu said that this was one of the rare wines that
his father -- an unalloyed perfectionist -- is happy with.

>> Thanks for the notes on the '96 le Mont 1er, I think both Dr. Lipton
>> and I have that.
>
> Nope, me gots the '96 CdB 1er. Still, good to hear about its sibling.
>

I'll bet that's a really nice one too.

>> Really sorry about the car!
>
> Yes. What a bummer. I hope that the great wines you tasted helped
> soften the blow, so to speak, Emery.
>

Thanks. A bummer, but no big deal really. I only wish I could have
recuperated the deer, but she made off. Anyway the insurance covers
the car, even the franchise, which is apparently paid for by some sort
of hunter's fund. Bless 'em.

-E

Emery Davis <[email protected]> wrote in news:[email protected]:
>
> We began in the tasting room:
>
> 07 Granges: a nice "vin de soif" I would have bought a case if
> we hadn't been so rushed at the end. Cherry nose, bright fruit,
> unfiltered, classic and typical early drinking Chinon, herbs, grass.



I did not like it as much as you did. I found it a bit green with a short finish.


>
> Into the cave and from the barrel, things got quick and I didn't have
> a surface to write on so notes got sketchy:
>
> 07 Domaine: riper, blackberry, body, tannic, finish a little weak.



However, I liked this much better, very ripe, spicy and lovely.



>
> 07 Clos Guillot: nice fresh, round, good structure, bright cherry,
> tannic, OK, good length, a little wine but nice.



I agree here. I will add that there is a nice concentration.




> 07 Grezeaux: concentrated nose, kirsch, dry tannic finish

Tannins were definitely there, but I enjoyed the fruit. It was not distinctively Grezeaux,
however.



> 07 Guillot Franc de Pied ('97 burg barrel): herbacious, more bell
> pepper, very primordial chinon type




I did find the herbacious at the beginning but with some time in the glass it developed
beautifully.

Dale, I do not think it says Clos Guillot in the label, but it seems to come from that
parcel.



> 07 Guillot Franc de Pied (01 burg barrel): much more precise nose,
> brighter fruit but less fat in mouth
>
> 07 Croix Boissee (older burg barrel): closed nose, better mouth but
> still very tight
>
> 07 Croix Boissee (03 bordx barrel): incredibly more precise in the
> front palate liquorish and herbs come out
>
> 07 Croix Boissee (04 bordx barrel): more feminine (Santiago disagrees),
> less complete lacks (illegible)



To me the third barrel was the most serious. I liked the second barrel as the best.



> Back to the table,
>
> 06 Domaine: very ripe, balance? near term drinking, atypical


So atypical that I scratched my head because it is a bit overripe in nose and at the same
time a bit vegetal.


> 06 Clos Guillot: nose of tabac, fruit confit, long acid finish
> lemony, rather curious.
>
> 2nd bottle: very lemon, tight tannic finish
>
> 3rd bottle: much better than the other two (although it took me
> a while to see it, not as acid finish, all agree other is
> fruit scalped.



The second bottle came from the tasting room facilities and had been opened a few days
before. Interesting to see the Baudrys trying to find a third bottle to see if it was ok.



> A discussion of screwcaps followed, both pere et fils are in
> favor, we may see these closures in the not too distant future.
>
> 06 Croix Boissee: mute nose but nice spice and round fruit, acid
> and tannic, good aging potential and structure, very mineral,
> chalk.



My favorite of the 2006s, for sure. Not as good as the 2005 but will make great drinking.


>
> 07 croix boisee blanc: sweet chenin nose, honey and orange peel,
> pain d'epice, lively acidity, finish a little sharp.



I was positively surprised by the balance of the wine.


>
> 05 croix boissee blanc: an obviously damaged and funky nose, but
> interestingly terrific in the mouth, a big well balanced chenin
> with miles to go. The Baudrys said the funk blows off in 24
> hours, I think it would be a hard sell anyway, although I'd
> put a couple of bottle down myself to see what might happen.
> Santiago is going to perform the experiment and hopefully
> report here.



Did not like but will get a bottle and open it.


At Huet,

>
> sec:
>
> 01 Brut pettilant: cake/yeast mouth grapefruit plus rind, pleasant.

Lively and pleasant.

>
> 01 sec (cremant): nose less masked, agrumes, well balanced, long,
> lemon tart

Short in nose for me.

>
> 99 method trad Brut: grapefruit rind, cream, custard

Aggresive mousse to me.
>
> 06 Haut Lieu sec: "peu parlant" citrus, vanilla


I liked it, thought was very good showing of LHL, but also found a little ardient in the
finish.


>
> 06 le Mont sec: rounder cream and lime, nice nose

Much better than LHL with more precision and more minerality.


>
> 07 Haut Lieu sec: roses, limes, in nose perfume store, exotic
> fruit, pineapple, passion fruit, violets (I bought)



Better than the 2006. Was easy drinking and a bit exotic, as you said.



>
> 07 Clos du Bourg sec: great structure, depth and balance, quiet nose
>

My favorite (bought a case). But I have a preference for CdB. Complex, with plenty of
calcaire character. Lovely.



> demi-sec:
>
> 06 le Mont DS (20g): quite dry, discreet and a little short

I agree RE short. A deception.


>
> 07 Haut Lieu DS (21.3g): very pretty, orange confit passion fruit,
> citrus rind, medium long

This was much better than the LM 06DS.

>
> 01 le Mont DS (22g): lemon meringue nose, cream and candied citrus,
> classic, huge acidity and balance. (I bought)

It was great to see how it was because I have a couple of bottles from a previous visit to
the domaine.


>
> moelleux:
>
> 07 Clos du Bourg: nuts and sweet cake, candied pear, elegant
>
> 06: clos du Bourg 1ere Trie: nose clove and honey, ginger, big
> rich beautiful balance

Very, very lovely with a lot of precision and balance.


>
> 96 le Mont 1ere Trie: lovely opulent liquor nose, candied flowers,
> long and powerful, custard, lemon curd, pear, un regal.

I am happy to have one bottle in the cellar from a previous visite and, since it was only
the first day of my Loire visits, I did not purchase another one. I always over-expend when
travelling wine routes so I tried not to purchase too much. I regret it now. Ok, so...
>
> An enjoyable day spent with a friend and wine folks who saw us
> under the best conditions, never hesitating to open another bottle
> if one seemed tired, and of course taking considerable time from
> their busy schedules. I particularly enjoyed the tasting from
> different barrels at Baudry, hearing the wine makers discuss the
> relative merits of each type, age and toast.

I have the same perception. I love touring wine routes by car, stopping by the road to take
a picture of a vineyard and visit a wine producer. When you find great people at the
wineries my appreciation of their wines increases even more.
>
> The only "bemol" being that on the way home in my spanking new car
> (3 days old) I hit a deer in the forest a km from the house.
> Unbelievable, even if the damage isn't extensive (just the bumper
> and compressor). Still, Santiago, I did get over 50 miles per gallon,
> and this is supposed to go up as the engine wears in. So some
> good news, anyway!

Not bad!!! that's about 4,79 litres / 100 km. I did 2800km in six days and the average I
got from the onboard computer was 5,9 litres / 100km.

I am really shocked about your accident. Happily I read that the Insurance Company is
taking the financial hit.

Best,

s.