Wine & Culinary forum: the Primum Familiae Vini tasting

spain

Wine & Culinary forum: the Primum Familiae Vini tasting

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

The Primum Familiae Vini are an association of top European wine domaines, and we were treated to a tasting of some of their wines, presented by Christophe Brunet, wine ambassador of the PVF and Fiona Beckett, food and wine journalist. They were providing the chat, with Fiona’s brief being suggesting suitable pairings for the wines. She did really well: it’s not a task I’d envy. Fiona’s suggested matches are here.
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Champagne Pol Roger Vintage 2004
60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay. Lively, complex nose with white peach, citrus and subtle cream notes, as well as some ripe apple and a bit of toast. The palate is lively, powerful, fresh and complex, combining delicacy and finesse. So pure with fabulous focus. 94/100

Drouhin Chassagne Montrachet Morgeot ‘Marquis de Laguiche’ 2011 Burgundy, France
From a 2.5 hectare plot, this is ripe but restrained with nice textured pear fruit and some brighter citrus notes as well as some stony, mineral character in the background. Creamy and with some delicacy. 92/100

Egon-Muller Scharzhofberger Riesling Kabinett 2013 Mosel, Germany
From a tricky year with the lowest yields since the 1940s, this is wonderfully lively with a mineral, citrus and melon nose. The palate is beautifully detailed with crystalline fruits and some spicy notes, as well as lemon and grapefruit freshness. Fresh and intense, a proper kabinett. 94/100

Tenuta San Guido Guidalberto 2012 Tuscany, Italy
60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, aged in small oak of which half is new. Tight, fresh, vivid and spicy with firm tannins and dense blackberry and blackcurrant fruit, as well as some cedar notes. Completely closed for business. High quality but a bit international? 91/100

Marchesi Antinori Tignanello 2011 Tuscany, Italy
Youthful, sleek and quite polishhed with sweet black fruits and some grippy structure. Hints of tar and herbs. Still quite youthful and tight, this is already nicely complex with a slightly wild side. Great potential for development. 93/100
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Château de Beaucastel 2008 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Rhône, France
Ripe, sweet, but really well defined black fruits nose with complex notes of meat, liquorice and floral black cherries. So expressive with lovely balance between the sweet ripe fruit and the more savoury olive and meat characters. From a cooler vintage, this has a touch of the northern Rhône about it, and it is fabulous. 95/100

Vega Sicilia Valbuena 5 Ano 2010 Ribera del Duero, Spain
Dense, youthful and rich with bold primary fruit and notes of spice and vanilla from the oak. Taut, ripe blackberry and cherry fruit dominate with lovely coffee and chocolate complexity. Still primary, pure and incredibly dense this needs time to come together, but it could be a 30 year wine, and it’s fabulously good. 95/100

Château Mouton Rothschild Petit Mouton 2005 Bordeaux, France
Hmm, old fashioned Bordeaux, and quite bretty, which is a real suprise. But it sort of works. There’s a wild animal edge to the dense blackberry and blackcurrant fruit, with some grippy structure and a bit of spice. It has appeal, but not for everyone. 92/100

Torres Reserva Real 2010 Penedes, Spain
In 1995 the King of Spain visited Torres. He was in love with Bordeaux wines, so Torres promised to make a small-production Bordeaux-style wine for him from a small 1.5 hectare vineyard with dark grey, clay-like slate soils. Just 200 cases are made in a typical vintage. Fresh, vivid blackberry and raspberry fruit here. A dense wine with good structure and well integrated oak. Quite primary, and not at all over-ripe, with hints of coffee and spice. Real potential. 94/100

Hugel Gewurztraminer Vendange Tardive 2007 Alsace, France
Really exotic nose with sweet grape, lychee, honey and melon notes. Powerful, concentrated oalate with lovely lychee and spice characters. Richly textured and almost jellyish with sweet fruit. 93/100

Dow’s Vintage Port 2000 Douro, Portugal
Ripe, sweet and dense with nice leather and herb complexity. Beginning to develop interesting complexity. Still tannic with direct fruit beginning to turn mellow at the edges. Grippy, fresh and detailed with lots of potential. Warm, spicy and intense. 94/100

Leave a Comment on Wine & Culinary forum: the Primum Familiae Vini tastingTagged , , , , , , , , , , ,
wine journalist and flavour obsessive

Leave a Reply

Back To Top