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Cellar Favorite: 2017 Domaine des Miroirs (Kenjiro Kagami) Vin de France Entre Deux Bleus
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, France
Dec 2023
,Earlier this year, I dined at a small but well-respected restaurant whose wine list was so saturated with below-market-price gems that I decided it was not in anyone’s interest to write it up as a Vinous Table. You just need to look at the “wastelands” that are wine lists around Beaune to see what happens. I want people to discover the restaurant like I did.
Cellar Favorite: 1974 Beaulieu Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve Georges de Latour
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites
Dec 2023
,The 1974 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve Georges de Latour was served blind at a restaurant in Beaune, from a vintage where California excelled.
Cellar Favorite: 2016 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Vieilles Vignes
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, France: Burgundy
Dec 2023
,Frédéric Mugnier caused a few ripples when, tired of witnessing his Grand Crus martyred not long after bottling in restaurants around Beaune, he decided to withhold his Musigny Vieilles Vignes until he deemed it had several years’ bottle age. I wish more growers would follow his lead.
Cellar Favorite: 1971 Hospices des Moulin-à-Vent Moulin-à-Vent
France: Rhône & Beaujolais, cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites
Nov 2023
,Held every November, the Hospices de Beaune is Burgundy’s most famous charity auction. It attracts global attention, celebrities and, in recent years, stratospheric hammer prices. Lying in its shadow is the annual Hospices de Nuits auction that unfairly doesn’t attract nearly the same hoopla. Yet I have encountered very fine bottlings. Until the 1971 Moulin-à-Vent was poured, I had no idea that a similar auction was held in Beaujolais. I do not know when the auction ceased and correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems lost in the mists of time.
Cellar Favorite: 2009 Maximin Grünhaus – von Schubert Abtsberg Riesling Auslese #93
Germany, cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites
Nov 2023
,Poured on a hot sunny evening in Beaune between a quick dip in the pool and a delicious supper, the 2009 Abstberg Riesling Auslese #93 from winemaker Carl von Schubert ranks as one of the greatest Rieslings I've encountered in the last five years.
Cellar Favorite: 1971 Henschke Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, Australia
Nov 2023
,There was a time a few years ago when I drank quite a number of mature Australian wines. Sadly, these have become much harder to find, especially since I have not visited Australia for over a decade. Therefore, it was a joy to drink a 52-year-old bottle from Henschke on a recent trip to the Far East.
Cellar Favorite: 1890, 1990, 2005 & 2015 Branaire-Ducru
France: Bordeaux, cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites
Nov 2023
,Proprietor François-Xavier Maroteaux whipped out a quartet of vintages on a recent visit to Branaire-Ducru. Nothing new there. However, this quartet spanned 125 years. I recall Maroteaux mentioning in passing about a handful of ancient bottles from a collector. So, to clarify, the bottle of 1890 had not laid undisturbed in the château’s cellars since birth. Instead, it resided in a private cellar until “coming home”.
Cellar Favorite: 2009 Beau Paysage Tsugane La Montagne
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, Japan
Oct 2023
,Japan’s wine industry might be in its infancy, but it’s expanding. In the past, I’ve had experience with Japanese wines after judging competitions in Tokyo, though I never encountered a bottle that obliged superlatives. I remain unconvinced about the potential of their indigenous Koshu variety. Towards the end of a recent meal, one of our attendees produced a magnum that I had never seen before, never heard of. The 2009 Tsugane La Montagne from Beau Paysage proved what is possible in Japan.
Cellar Favorite: 2010 Beaux Frères Pinot Noir The Beaux Frères Vineyard
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, United States: Oregon
Oct 2023
,The 2010 Pinot Noir The Beaux Frères Vineyard is a perfect example of how maturity can propel a wine of humble beginnings beyond expectations. The 2010s are the product of a cool and classic vintage that made producers question when the wines would peak. Today, the wines are in the sweet spot.
Cellar Favorite: 1970 E. Pira & Figli Barolo
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, Italy: Piedmont
Oct 2023
,The 1970 Pira Barolo is a wine I have never had before, at least that I can recall. Sweet, perfumed and ethereal, the 1970 takes us back to another generation, a time when Piedmont was far more agrarian and artisan than it is today. Crushed rose petals, mint, licorice, dried flowers, sweet dried cherry fruit, pipe tobacco and old chest drawer waft from the glass. Fine, silky, mature Nebbiolo tannins pull it all together beautifully. The 1970 is fully mature and past its prime, but well-stored bottles will drink well for another few years.