A Pebbly White Bordeaux

Some people are acid hounds. Some people are fruit freaks. I'm a minerals guy (better term than "rocker"), which is why I liked the 2007 Château Moulin de Launay Entre-Deux-Mers, a snappy little white Bordeaux that's chock full of 'em.

The Greffier brothers produce at least two wines, this Moulin ("mill") de Launay and a Tertre ("mound") de Launay. They farm a sum total of 75 hectares, 45% of which are planted to semillon, 35% to sauvignon blanc, and 20% to muscadelle. Since I can't find any info on this wine's exact composition, let alone find out the general differences between the two wines and sites, let's just run with these proportions as a guide to what's inside the bottle. After all, no one grape seems to dominate, and this unoaked, completely dry wine shows clean pear fruit, a hint of dry grass and herbs, and good zip on the palate, with subtle notes of cinnamon and ginger. And then there are minerals on the finish, a clear quiet stream running over a bed of rounded pebbles.

I brought this over to a friend's last night and it actually worked well with a nicely herbed bison burger, and certainly it was a good match with the green salad and roasted corn. It also worked well on its own, as I finished a few sips as we watched "Waltz with Bashir," but now I'm afraid I'm leaving this blog post on a somber note...

Two Surprising Bordeaux With Pizza

I typically pair pizza with Italian reds. What could be more appropriate with an herbed, zingy, mushroom-laden pie than a fresh, earthy, acid-driven, modestly-priced rosso of the kind found up and down the boot?

Still, there's a world of reds in the world, and no need to turn a good idea into a foolish consistency.

I recently took a risk on two red Bordeaux. I say "risk" because I rarely find red Bordeaux acceptable, let alone interesting. We too often get soupy spoof at the higher end and hollow, industrial plonk at the low end. So I assure you that my expectations were exceeded by the following two wines, in the latter case dramatically so.

Château Lamarche Bordeaux Supérieur 2006
What could you possibly hope from a $16 red Bordeaux? Well, maybe you could hope for, but not expect, a claret — a good, solid, everyday drinker. And yet, here this is: a claret! The '06 Lamarche Bordeaux Supérieur is ripe but dry, soft yet structured, with refreshing acidity and a decent shot of minerality. No excess oak, no apparent spoof. And while the Fronsac-based Lamarche's ripeness and dark color is modern, it clocks in at a relatively old-school 13% abv. I drank this with an American Flatbread pizza and found the experience satisfying.

Chateau Tourte des Graves 2005
The 2005 Tourte des Graves was fantastic. In fact, it was kind of a shame to pair this wine with our ho-hum delivered pizza. This is a classic Bordeaux in the classic sense of the word classic. Its firm, masculine tannins and lovely acidity buttress a core of deep dark fruit, especially blackcurrant, but it's the gravelly minerality that really stands out (yes, this is a true Graves, so go figure). Completing the package are some nice smoke and spice notes that hold on the long finish.

This 2005 Tourte des Graves — 66% merlot, hand-harvested, and though matured in 50% new oak for 15 months, maquillage-free — drinks more like 13.5% than its purported 12.5%, but that's no vice in this lovely, balanced wine, and I expect it'll become still deeper and more complex in the next several years. At $28 I consider this a great value.

BYOB Excursion 2: Coast

Many moons ago several of us went to Coast to eat sushi, drink wine, and celebrate my friend Kyle's birthday. What is it about women and sushi? We were some of the only men in there, and it's a pretty large restaurant. Maybe I should be asking why the men were so few. The sushi was fresh, the ingredients creatively assembled, the tempura perfectly light and crisp (I usually avoid tempura), and of course you can bring any damn wine you please.

Huët Le Mont Demi-Sec Vouvray 2002
By the time I had arrived the boys had already opened this to sip in the waiting area. I would have placed this third in line, but I sure as hell wasn't going to refuse a glass. Not surprisingly, this was pretty tight and had only begun to open by the time we polished off the bottle, but even so it showed gorgeous purity, with lovely acidity, just a hint of sweetness, and long, gorgeous minerality. This youngster's really gonna be something someday.

Soutiran Grand Cru Champagne Brut n/v
Undoubtedly the wine of the night for me and for my dining companions, who oohed and ahhed as we noshed on light and crunchy vegetarian maki. I have no idea which vintage this was based upon, nor do I know the disgorgement date, but in any case this Ambonnay brut, which is dosed at 10.6 grams, was perfect. The bready / yeasty notes were not overly toasted one whit, and they were perfectly integrated with the chalky red and white fruit. The mousse was full and elegant, while the cut was marvelously precise. The energy here was phenomenal. The grapes (60% pinot noir, 40% chardonnay) for the Soutiran are not subject to chemical fertilizers or pesticides.

Chateau Carbonnieux Pessac-Léognan 2004
This is the wine I would have had us start with. Following up the Soutiran with this trim and reserved wine could have been disappointing, but the Carbonnieux had no problem holding its own. It was green-gold rainwater in the glass, so right away you can see that a light hand was used during the oak regime. The hay and apple aromas were somewhat muted, yet the balance and presence here is impeccable. The citrus and minerals on the palate were nicely sustained, and it paired nicely with the heartier plates we ordered. Still, if I had more of this, I'd wait another three to five years to let this develop further.

Austin Hope Rousanne 2004
We ended the night with this late-ish-harvest rousanne from Paso Robles producer Austin Hope, who sources the grapes from the Santa Lucia Highlands. In retrospect, we should have waited to digest our meal before moving on this this 4th bottle, as it was too big and heavy coming on the heels of the food and wine that had preceeded it. In fact, if I was to do this all over again, I would have paired this with braised pork and not have brought it at all to a sushi joint. Ah, but nothing ventured, and all that.

Overlooking the Obvious: White Bordeaux

In my quest to walk roads less traveled I sometimes overlook obvious paths of pleasure. For too long have I forsaken white Bordeaux, seduced instead by, say, Godello from Valdeorras, or Asirtiko from Santorini. Partly this is because less-known regions can offer amazing value and interest; correspondingly, I figured that I'd have to settle for mediocre Bordeaux Blanc unless I was willing to pay a modest ransom.

I came to realized I was acting, or rather not acting, out of prejudice and ignorance. The more I thought about it, the more I also realized that it would be really interesting to explore how my palate reacted to varying blends of Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc.

What I found should please most any food and wine lover. All three examples I tried delivered significant pleasure for under $20, and all would pair well with a wide variety of food.

Château Graville-Lacoste Graves 2006
The Graville-Lacoste is brought in by Kermit Lynch and cost a tick under $20 so I figured it would be a good place to start my Bordeaux Blanc exploration. It was, in fact, stunning, with a beautiful and complex nose of peach, rose, tangerine, gooseberry, lemon, paint, cinnamon, honey, and a hint of wet gravel. All these aromas coalesce in the mouth to form a singular, creamy, yet delicate experience. It's incredibly clean, with soft but mouth-smacking acidity and a barely-perceptible minerality. This is incredibly well-balanced and I could see pairing this with a delicate, lemon-tinged whitefish or with a buttery vegetable pilaf. Possibly 80% Semillon?

Château Ducasse Bordeaux Blanc 2006
This almost certainly has more SB in the blend than the Château Graville-Lacoste Graves, which is also vinified by Herve Dubourdieu, and it's also a simpler wine, less layered and expressive. But it's still very good. Apple, pineapple, and hay aromas predominate and the follow-through is very clean. This would be particularly good in summer accompanied with a light Mediterranean meal and/or cold summer vegetables.

Château Guiraud Le G Bordeaux Blanc Sec 2006
This esteemed Sauternes producer also makes this dry white from a whopping 70% Sauvignon Blanc and 30% Sémillon. It's larger-framed than either of Dubourdieu's wines, surely thanks to the nine months of barrel aging and occasional lees stirring, but it also features more typically SB characteristics of lemon and a hint of gooseberry — although it's not as piercing as, say, a typical Sancerre. This paired nicely with white risotto. The topsoil in the vineyard is sandy gravel; subsoil varies from sand to gravel to red clay to limestone marls.

In sum, I'm hardly going to give up my beloved Loire Chenin Blanc or hold a crucifix up to Oregon Pinot Gris, but I'm intrigued enough to continue my exploration; and I have even socked away a 2004 Château Carbonnieux from Pessac-Léognan for a special occasion. Of course, with a cool spring night being the perfect time for a fish in cream sauce, I might have to create that special occasion sooner rather than later...