billn
are paywalls the way of the future?
I’ve been following the debate about ‘paywalls’; the knight on a white charger (for the newspaper-centric generation/workers) seems to be Rupert Murdoch who’s British titles the Times and Sunday Times will, in June, be put behind a paywall, joining his business title, the Wall Street Journal, which has operated for a while in such a manner. Rupert is mad that search engines (for instance) can aggregate his content and splurge it out wherever they (or the end reader) may be – and all for free. How is a newspaper to survive? Well I’m not sure a newspaper can remain economically viable in the current environment, so let’s for now say ‘news organisation’. Even then it is tough – good journalists are expensive. Look at the [....]
bruno clair 1998 marsannay fat heads!
For the 6 or 7 years I’ve been drinking this, it’s been super – this half bottle is not quite to the previous standard – on a down-slope? I suppose I will have to re-check – also the Longerois too. 1998 Bruno Clair, Marsannay Les Grasses Têtes Half bottle, plenty of dark sediment adheres to the inside of the bottle. The colour is taking on a slightly browner caste at the rim, relatively young and red it remains at the core. Hmm, the nose let’s us down, slight beefy aromas that hint to brett and a hint of VA too – just this bottle? Wait long enough and a sweet red cherry aroma starts to poke through, but it remains slightly veiled. In the mouth [....]
gevrey clos du chezeaux 2002
2002 Domaine des Chezeaux, Gevrey-Chambertin Clos des Chezeaux Medium, medium-plus colour. The nose has a little depth and intensity, faint herbs and, as the glass drains, lovely piercing red berries – mmmm… It starts a little strident, but 30 minutes from opening there’s a real extra fatness and super acidity that dovetails to a decent villages intensity. Subtly long. A wine that ‘gives’ a lot – yum! Rebuy – Yes
chocolate bunnies, decanter, 02 charlemagne & 88 chambolle charmes
That’s it, enough chocolate for today; 120g of ‘Grand Cru Croquant’ Easter rabbit – a nice 70% ‘Cacao Hispaniola’ – and very nice too, particularly with 5% tiny almond nougat pieces adding a crunch to the texture. The more industrial chocolate of a Lindt bunny awaits – maybe tomorrow! Anyway a few things in this entry. Coming back to my note on Decanter’s ‘April Fool Fun’ perhaps the fool was on them: I looked in the morning to see that there was a not so funny story about North Korea buying all the second wine of Latour from the 2009 vintage, I didn’t have time to read it all so decided to return. At lunchtime – nothing – only an empty entry still in the [....]
(Untitled)
Don’t worry – no April 1st posts here. (oops…!) Okay I’ll tell you about decanter tomorrow…
koch to sue christie’s
Hmm, Winespectator news is ahead of Decanter for a change(?) So, just a rich man who likes lawyers? or a real chance of changing a few attitudes? I’ll let you make your own mind-up on that! Note I suppose ‘Bordeauxs‘ must be the Anglo-Saxon version…
d’angerville 2001 volnay 1er clos des ducs
There was hail in Volnay in 2001 – some producers declassified their best wines – I don’t remember how badly d’Angerville’s Clos des Ducs was affected, if at all, but this is not up to their usual overachieving standard – I respectfully suggest that it was also a candidate for a different label… 2001 d’Angerville, Volnay 1er Clos des Ducs A good medium, medium-plus colour. It’s an ever-changing nose, though not particularly in a good way: it starts a little diffuse and harsh, then there is a period of absolute red-fruited Volnay beauty followed again by diffuse and slightly green notes. You go through this cycle each time you top up your glass! In the mouth the fruit has a very nice perfume, reasonable density [....]
2000 méo-camuzet clos st.philibert + remoissenet 92 chassagne 1er morgeot
Well shiver me timbers – first a HCdN that was actually a far nicer drink than the 01 Jadot Criots of last week – ouch! Then a ’92 Chassagne that was even better! 2000 Méo-Camuzet, Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits Clos St.Philibert Medium straw/gold. The nose is warm and faintly savoury with perhaps a little honey too. Vibrant, ripe, quite enough acidity to balance the ‘fat’. This wine is now ‘just right’. Neither super complex, nor super intense, but very tasty all the same. Rebuy – Yes 1992 Remoissenet, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Morgeot From a jeroboam with dinner! Golden but not oxidised – savoury, biscuity. Much more mineral and muscular than I expected – no ‘ample’ 1992 here – complex, balanced and very satisfying. I ‘needed’ [....]
offer of the day – Bouchard Père et Fils 2008…
DOMAINE BOUCHARD PERE & FILS 2008 VINS BLANCS MEURSAULT Genevrières 75cl 56.00 (69.00 in 2007) Swiss Francs MEURSAULT Les Perrières 75cl 59.00 (75.00) CORTON CHARLEMAGNE 75cl 104.00 (119.00) CHEVALIER-MONTRACHET 75cl 178.00 (229.00) CHEVALIER-MONTRACHET La Cabotte 75cl 309.00 (399.50) MONTRACHET 75cl 355.00 (429.00) VINS ROUGES VOLNAY Caillerets Ancienne Cuvée Carnot 75cl 49.80 BEAUNE Grèves Vigne Enfant Jésus 75cl 75.00 NUITS-SAINT-GEORGES Les Cailles 75cl 63.00 LE CORTON 75cl 69.00 CLOS DE VOUGEOT 75cl 109.00 (139.00) ECHEZEAUX 75cl 109.00 (129.00) CHAMBERTIN 75cl 154.00 (189.50) CHAMBERTIN Clos de Bèze 75cl 149.00 (169.00) BONNES-MARES 75cl 178.00 (228.00) Some reasonable price movement here versus their 2007 offer – I’m sure I bought the Volnay and Meursault Perrières at those same prices in the 2002 vintage! Whilst I still find the ‘baby [....]
a dinner in the château!
Thursday night and it’s dinner in the Château du Clos de Vougeot, but before dinner, 40 grand crus to taste from the 2008 and 2002 vintage. It’s the second time I’ve been invited – I know, I’m a very lucky boy. Perhaps I’m also a bit more humble than one heavily accented voice I heard complaining in English about this that and just about everything – that will have been the person here on somebody else’s dollar no doubt – there are too many of those people in the world I’m afraid! Back to the ‘Château’; It’s hard not to marvel at the magnificence of both the place and it’s setting, even when the security asks ‘do you have one of these’, I say ‘I [....]
two blind dinner wines…
1994 Chandon de Briailles, Corton (Blanc) Rather deeply coloured, but a sniff shows that there is no overt oxidation. The nose has impact and power and reminds me very much of (a previously drunk) 83 Giroud Corton-Charlemagne, there is power and impact and some melting cream and lanolin in the background – I leave my guessing there! On the palate there is considerable power and quite some ripeness though it’s well-enough balanced (I think the 83 was much more mineral – but hey, it might turn out to be from Australia!). Very good complexity as it moves into the finish. Whilst not begging me to take a second (third!) pour – there are others to taste – this is rather good. Rebuy – Maybe 1998 [....]
stunning burgundy desktops…
As of today am travelling in Burgundy for a few days – clearly that will be tough! But I thought I should leave you with this link; I’ve been enjoying the pics on my desktop (you need screen capture software) for weeks now – it’s almost a pleasure to switch on my work desktop. Not all of them have a ‘watermark’ – not yet anyway http://www.panogeo.fr/ – enjoy….
