I tasted a superb Côt made by Jeremy Quastana at the Portes Ouvertes of Christian Venier. You remember Jeremy, he has a small surface
in Sologne and also worked on the side at Les 400 Coups, the natural-wine bistrot in Blois. Now he stopped working there because he found an old house he's renovating with friends.
Jeremy didn't have a formal tasting stand but he had brought the wine to pour it to friends (that's what I love in these unformal tasting events, same-minded vignerons (who are also friends) come along and share a few bottles.
__Côt Lectif Vin de France 2018 (this was from a magnum) is a super light Côt with a gorgeous color (almost Aunis), quite turbid, unfiltered, no sulfites. Makes only 11 % in alcohol, and you just drink it so easily, pure pleasure, sip after sip, such a juicy wine ! Bottled end of march 2019, made from a short maceration (one week) without extraction, that's why this lovely color. Old vines, almost 50 years old. And if I remember the price (in 75 cl) is only 10 €, a great deal, super drinkability, frankly that's the type of wine you can finish the bottle by yourself ! I think the 75 cl are sold out but check out, and anyway don't miss these next year as well.
In the middle of the Open Doors event at Christian Venier, we hopped to Pierre-Olivier Bonhomme's facility a couple kilometers away to taste a few wines, among them a Pineau d'Aunis from a new vineyard of his :
__ Pineau d'Aunis 2018, from a barrel, this is the first time he can make wine from recently purchased parcel because the 2 previous years he suffered from frost and hail. 2018 was a good vintages on every front, and this 45-year-old parcel was
very generous this time, ripeness was good also with alcohol level at around 13,5 %.
Nice chew, with substace to hold the 13,5 %.
__ Pinot Noir 2018, from a larger barrel, a 500-liter demi-muid.Will be labelled as Vin de France because single-variety Pinot Noir is now forbidden in Touraine AOC. Delicious Pinot. from a small, old parcel near Saint Aignan, purchased grapes. He'll bottle by gravity, will be unfiltered (should be made in june 2019). Already well reserved by allotments to importers.
__ Loved his POB Sauvignon 2018 in bottle, an unfiltered wine which breathed harmony and wholeness, a great Sauvignon convincing me again that whites are so much better unfiltered. Fermented quickly and bottled april 17. 2500 bottles.
__ La Tesnière Pineau d'Aunis 2018, in bottle also, very light color, a terrific nose of Aunis. Young vines with high yields, vinified in fiber tank and élevage in wood. 10-12 day maceration but no pigeage. Grower : Courtault-Tardieux, they have 15 hectares and sell part of the grapes, they farm very well their vineyard, Pierre-Olivier buys them Côt & Sauvignon as well, the equivalent of 2 hectares. Bottled may 22. Tastes very well but you feel will be greater in 1 or 2 years. Unfiltered. 1 gram SO2 3 weeks before bottling.
I tasted a few wines from Jeremie Choquet who with his wife Blandine just started making wine last year, he is based in Monthou sur Bièvre right near Pierre-Olivier Bonhomme and he makes only table wine (Vin de France). He's more on the vineyard side and she's more on the cellar side. Didn't speak with her, she was here
at one point but left to take care of her 2-month-old baby, plus she can't taste like us all because she breast-feeds. But kudos to her, she made really a great job here. On the label : Vinif par Blan Blan (her nickname).
__ Pic Noir, Pinot Noir, Vin de France 2018. Unfiltered. Superb juice with a lovely color, lovely wine. 10-day maceration with whole clusters, press then fiber tanks and put into barrels when there was still 1 or 1,5 gram of sugar, stayed 6 months in there. Bottled early april. 12 €, very good deal.
__ Sansonnet, Gamay, Vin de France 2018. More or less the same vinification (carbo, 12 days also). Super color here also with a chalky cloud. 11,5 % alcohol only, this wine will make a killing.
__ Cow, Côt Vin de France 2018. 11 % alcohol ! Nice chew, tannins are more present but here again, very light wine and easy drink, quite fresh, nice enjoyable astringency. Goes down easy and radiates in your system, try that, you'll love it ! Shorter maceration on the Côt (7 days) because due to the frost a few grapes were green (later buds) and didn't want them to mark the wine with bitter or green things, also whole clusters. 10 € tax included, great deal.
Kudos again to the Veniers for this event, it's so genuine, no fuss and friendly. the lunch was terrific (picture on right), and this year Noëlla and philippe were in charge of the menu (they were also filling your plate at the service table), great job, delicious !
__I tasted
here a one-liter bottle by Christian Venier, named "Sur les Papilles de Christian Venier",
Cheverny 2018 (pictured above). 85 % Gamay, 15 % Pinot Noir. Christian told me that the Cave des Papilles (the natural-wine caviste in Paris) had asked him for years to provide for a special cuvée for their one-liter serie (the only place in Paris with so many one-liter cuvées, in line with the old format of table wines), but he hadn't had enough volume of wine to make one in 2015, 2016, 2017, only in 2018 it was possible with the nice volumes. He could make 600 bottles of this wine. Lightly filtered with a plate filter (not earth, it would take too much out). Enjoyable table wine.
__ Christian Venier, Les Hauts de Madon, Cheverny 2018 Pinot Noir 70 % and Gamay 30 %. Beautiful wine, lovely. 14,5 %
__ Christian Venier, Clos des Carteries, Gamay 2018 (with a bit of Pinot). Man, that's good too, what a lovely tasting event, I love this job ! And this is a 2018, this real wine is just at the beginning of its life...
__ Christian Venier, Les Hauts de Madon, Cheverny 2009. Superb color with milky shades, a bit evolved but lovely wine, very present and still something to show off in the mouth, superb.
Then there's this cuvée pictured above, La Pierre aux Chiens, certainly loved it with the rillettes but couldn't find my notes on it. Just i case, grab a bottle if you see one...
Eugène is the real hero of this event, Christian's father is the originator of the philosophy encountered in Christian's wines, long before natural wines even existed as a word, he was already in this mindset by instinct...
I tasted again a cuvée by Cédric Bernard which I loved last year. Cédric has been making his own wine for 4 years now. He made a white and a red this year.
__Touche Noue, Vin de France 2018, Gamay with a little bit of Pinot Noir. Put into a 20-hectoliter fiber-vat fermenter at harvest where it stayed about two weeks with a lot of pigeage with the feet, almost every day. Bottled less than a week earlier. No filtration (he has no filter in his small chai/cellar), bottling done manually on the most simple way possible. For me this detail count in the end wine. Nice wine, he sells it for 8 €.
I was supposed to come back for the white but forgot.
Laurent Saillard had a new cuvée here, :
__ La Valse 2018, a rosé from Pineau d'Aunis. I just loved this wine, and by far I'm not usually someone impredded by rosés, the wine is so delicate, feminine with this enjoyable harmony, you must have this one ! I asked Laurent why this new cuvée and the reason is almost accidental, it's just that he hadn't enough room in the fermenter for the maceration of Scarlette (his red Aunis), so he made a direct press with the extra volume of Aunis. By the way his Scarlette 2018 is sold out since the wine fair of Villebarou near Blois [Aunis is a rare commodity, I tell you, what all the vignerons are waiting to replant massively ?].
I tasted a few cuvées brought by Jeff Coutelou and was again impressed, in particular by one of them which was quite incredible, something really out of the norm, the cuvée PM. Alas can't find my notes but don't pass this one if given the opportunity.
I tasted a few cuvées from fairly new vignerons (they started in 2015), Maëlle & Thibault Stephan, they're near Puy-Notre-Dame in Anjou south of Angers. They work on 4,5 hectares, sells 20 %
of the grapes to a colleague and vinifies the rest. they make 6 cuvées total, brought a couple to the event.
__ Faites Entrer la Cuvée, Vin de France, Cabernet Franc (didn't note the year), maceration 12 days then only élevage in tank.
__ Le Repenti, Saumur Puy Notre Dame 2017, Cabernet Franc with AOC, 3-week maceration with a year of élevage in 400-liter, 600-liter barrels. 18 €.
__ Vin de Garde à Vue, Chenin 2018, vinified in neutral tanks. Unfiltered, he never filters hiw wines, red or white. Good acidity to balance the 14 % alcohol, easy drink. Bottled end of march, he regrets the sediments in the bottle, the days were windy before he bottled, but the wine is fine. Jean-Marie Puzelat tastes with us, no mouse taste (he remarks that many wines nowadays have this fault).
We had this tasting the past month in the Ritz Paris, it was organized by Pain Vin & Company and named Grandes Maisons Grand Crus de Bourgogne, it was hard to resist
and B. and I went gladly.
Here are a few of the wines we liked, first a few ones by this Grande Maison de Bourgogne.
__ J. Moreau & Fils Chablis Grand Cru Valmur 2016, this was the Chablis I prefered in this tasting, harmonious, with a nice energy, like if it was a biodynamic wine. Vinified by Lucie depuidt (she was not present).
__Roux Père & Fils, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru 2016. Exceptional red, has a deliciouly-fruity nose with a chalky character, light colored. Super enjoyable to drink (you just can't spit that), refined with silky tannins. Great wine. The winemaker Gregory Patriat (in blue behind the owners) was there, I should have congratulated him, terrific job !
It'd been a while since last time we met the Pacalets, very happy to taste their wines again at this Ritz even. I asked about 2018, Philippe says the wines are opulent but with freshness, volumes are good also, after years with problems in that regard. He was very up gainst the trend in the wine authorities to push toward genetic selection
through asexual intervention, they're doing tghat to multiply certain characters but
it's against nature and diversity, it didn't work for humans and will not work for the wine. For example we have to accept that a Pinot Noir viner is 96 % Pinot Noir and not 100 %, we're not nazis, he says. It's interesting for us to hear about the last utopia ruminated by the scientific big heads working with the wine authorities and big business to impose us their perfect world, which will turn out a nightmare...
__ Corton Bressandes 2017. Delicate, lacework refineness. Vines are 80 and older. They recently recovered this parcel as well as a few others as the owner had retired, so they should have a long-term rent allowing them to continue the cuvée, and this parcel was what motivated Philippe to rent the whole. Tasted a 2nd time later in the event this Corton, super good indeed, refined, love it !
__ Echezeaux 2016. Superb nose, nice tannin^grip on the side of the mouth, classy wine. Long stay in the mouth and swallowing, excellent.
__ Chambolle Musigny 1er Cru 2016. Blend of 2 terroirs in 2016, Les Sentiers and Les Fuées [because of the frost-related lower volumes I guess]. Tastes different than Pacalet's usual Chambolle, more austere I'd say. Veronica says it has to do with the fact that Les Sentiers is a climat close to Pommard, with lots of structure. Nose is superb. I thing with a few more years like a Pommard it'd be more open.
The Maisons de Négoce are doing a great job as well, as we could witness with the wines of the venerable Maison Champy poured by Siriane (the only one I didn't taste was the Corton Charlemagne 2010, thinking retrospectively I should have):
__ Beaune 1er Cru Aux Cras 2009. Classy wine, love that one, sip after sip it's a pleasure.
__ Mazis-Chambertin 2014. The color has milky shades, a bit turbid. In the mouth it's so good, fresh, this is a beauty in its youth, begins to taste well now I guess.
We were happy to meet again as well Bunpei Someya, this guy is an incredibly talented sommelier with a deep knowledge of Burgundy wines. He built his knowledge with discretion and tenacity, working as sommelier in Paris first, then in Burgundy where he'd spend his free time visiting the domaines and the climats in his old car. We once a few years ago stumbled on him on a deserted side road in Burgundy in the vineyard where he was like us doing reconnaissance and exploration work in the climats, that was an incredible coincidence...
From what he told us he was back in Paris these days, his last job was at Neige d'Eté in the 15th arrondissement and he was quietly (but not hurried) looking for another position. If you see this guy doing his sommelier job in a Paris restaurant, you bet the restaurant & wine list are first-rate and you can follow his advice blind, he knows so much. This same day he had been at a Nebbiolo tasting in Paris somewhere else. And while here at the Ritz he'd just heard that there was also a sake tasting in show room.
At the William Fèvre table manned by Didier Seguier (who guided us years ago in the facility for a visit), what I liked the most was his Chablis 1er Cru Vaulorent 2010, a nice mouth feel with harmony, you can drink it by itself, beautiful freshness and concentration. Old terroirs and old vines, the farming here is biodynamic even though not officially certified.
These Japanese beauties were attending (or working at) the Sake Tasting that was taking place in the Ritz that same day, we spotted them in the courtyard where they went out briefly and they kindly accepted to pose with a glass of Burgundy for this beautiful portrait...
We didn't attend it alas, it was almost finished when we were sipping the Burgundies, but here is what it was about to show you how a taster is lucky in Paris :
It was about the Sake Breweries in Ishikawa [prefecture] and here were the attending breweries listed per town :
__ Noto
Hatsuzakura, Sakurada Brewery
Sogen, Sogen Brewery
Oeyama, Matsunami brewery
Taniizumi, Tsuruno Brewery
Chikuha, Kazuma Brewery
Kuromatsu Wakamidori, nakano brewery
Notohomare, Shimizu brewery
Kinpyo Shirakoma, Hiyoshi Brewery
Okunoto-no Shiragiku, Hakuto Brewery
Noto Suehiro, Nakashima Brewey
Tenpei, Fuse Brewery
Haruyama, harunari Brewery
Ikezuki, Toriya Brewery
Homare, Mioya Brewery
__ Kanazawa
Choseimai, Kuse Brewery
Kagatsuru, Yachiya Brewery
Goshoizumi, Takeuchi Brewery
Kagatobi, Fukumitsuya Brewery
Nichiei, Nakamura Brewery
__ Kaga
Takasago, Kanaya Brewery
Tengumai, Shata Brewery
Tedorigawa, Yoshida Brewery
Kikuhime, Kikuhime Brewery
Manzairaku, Kobori Brewery
Mujou, Miyamoto Brewery
Noguchi, Noguchi Brewery
Sinsen, Higashi brewery
Kaga-no-tsuki, Kaetsu Brewey
Kibutsuru, Tezuka Brewery
Harugokoro, Nishide Brewery
Judaime, Hashimoto Brewery
Jokigen, Kano Brewery
Shishi-no-sato, Matsuura Brewery
B. and I made a short stop at De Moor a while ago to buy a few bottles. Alice was there, a bit tired as this was the day following Chai L'Un Chai L'Autre, the rotating tasting event which had taken place at Nicolas Vauthier this year (I'd have liked to attend but the weather was unusually
cold this year, hard to
venture by motorbike). Here Alice poses along their new vinification vessel, it's just for a trial, she says (but I'm sure this will yield great things...), we'll wait for the results.
Apart from this amphora Alice & Olivier De Moor have a wide choice of barrels and foudres, a few of them from Austria, from both Stockinger and Pauscha. And as we were leaving I couldn't but take another picture of the cellar entry from the street, you can see the slope with the few steps between each cellar rooms, there a long history in these stones....
__ Le Vendangeur Masqué, Caravan 2017, different varieties, grapes bought in different regions, Clairette, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Gris, Aligoté, Pinot Blanc & Riesling. Vivid, delicious wine. Unfiltered. 15 € retail at the winery.
__ Le Vendangeur Masqué, Bourgogne Blanc 2017 (grapes from below Auxerre). Super generous wine, harmony, delicious, love it ! Incredible gras in the mouth
There has been several close calls for fros this year in France, and I saw in the loire and in Burgundy as well the use of smoldering, slow-burning straw bales, which is a cheaper way to raise the temperature on strategic vineyards. I spoke with the guy who was preparing the bales for the following night/morning and he said they protected this slope which was prone to frost and the "candles" system was way more expensive and time consuming, with new regulation asking to use non-oil combustible (they use animal fat if i remember).
This Barbancourt old rum (Vieux Rhum in French) from Haiti made by the family Gardère is so good ! The label says Rhum Barbancourt, Reserve du Domaine, 15 Years, Vieilli en Fûts de Chêne (aged in oak barrels), Distillé et Mis en Bouteille par T. Gardère & Cie, Port-au-Prince, 43 %. it was a discovery for me. The glass bottle is no fancy and looks cheap, like the labelling, but what a terrific rum, i drink that like a whisky with just a few drops of water. It is intense and powerful but so smooth at the same time.
Here is a link to a web page for price (not cheap) and order, but the label seems a bit different.
From time to time I stumble on old wine bottles on a flea market or a vide-grenier, these sidewalk sales (usually on sundays) where people in France sell their stuff. And while many wines aren't worth the risk
or the asked price,
sometimes there's obviously a good deal. That was i saw immediately when the guy selling a few cases of mismatched bottles told me the price was 5 €. Can you believe it, I got this Anjou Coteaux de la Loire Moelleux with no vintage on it but obviously from the 1960s (especially because at that time it was not complulsory to put the year for this Appellation). I bought two bottles of this. Great wine, a treat ! I of course opened the bottle with care but the cork was still in one
piece, no wine was missing and the wine tasted so fresh and concentrated in strength for its age with plenty of exciting aromas, it was certainly very low in alcohol, possibly 10 %.
The only down side is it seems to have given me occurences restless legs syndrome later in the evening, that's a muscular discomfort (you feel the need to contract the muscles of one leg) I never have but remember having had also repeatedly when at student age, and each time it was just after drinking a Gris de Boulaouane, a cheap white made in Morocco (At the time I thought it was because the wine was doctored or something). Here I think it can be just related to the excessive age of the wine which may have chemically changed its nature. Anyway, I'll be careful when I open the 2nd bottle, just a couple of sips...
Then a couple months ago we went to a sake tasting event with a very large choice of sake, it was named Tasting Saké Japonais,
took place at the galerie Joseph, a nice event venue in the 3rd arrondissement,
and was organized by Japanese sommelier Keiichiro Miyagawa who runs with a few associates Kura Master, a tasting competition for sake. Keiichiro Miyagawa (pictured here) has been living in France since 1990 and along the last years he did a lot to promote sake in France.
You could taste at will a huge number of sake bottles in this tasting, 700 of them and if I didn't do the recount I'm willing to believe it because these tables were literally covered with bottles. I tasted just a few of them and felt big differences and styles in spite of my modest knowledge. The only down side is that there was no added notice in English or French on the bottle, it was all in Japanese and most of us were clueless about where the sake came from and the rest. Thanks to B. who also came, I could have a few translations now and then about what was written on the bottles, but I wandered around and she wasn't always at my side. i think all the producers should have types a small text in English with the main relevant information.
Here are a few of the participating sakes with their prize category :
Junmai Platine :
Kamikawataisetsu Tokubetsu Junmai Suisei Kamikawataisetsushuzo CO.,LTD Hokkaido
Mutsu Hassen Red-label Hachinohe shuzo CO.,LTD Aomori
Ichinokura Tokubetsujunmai Tarusake ICHINOKURA Co.,Ltd. Miyagi
Senshomasamue Tokubetsu Junmai Katsuyama Supreme SAKE Co.,Ltd Miyagi
Sotenden Tokubetsu Junmai Otokoyama Honten Co.,Ltd. Miyagi
Niida Shizensyu Jyunmai Ginjo Niida-Honke Co., Inc. Fukushima
Jinyu Junmai Nabedana Inc. Chiba
Setoichi Otomonaku Seto shuzo Corporation Kanagawa
Tengumai Yamahai Jikomi Junmaishu Shata shuzo CO.,LTD Ishikawa
Shichiken Furinbizan Yamanashi Meijo Co., Ltd. Yamanashi
Imanishiki Junmaiginjo Kinmonnishiki YONEZAWA SAKE BREWERY Co.,Ltd. Nagano
MATSUWO Junmai Ginjo MADARAO Matsuwo Sake Corporation Nagano
Hatsumidori Junmai Yamahai Jikomi Okuhida Shuzo Co., Ltd Gifu
Hourai Tezukuri Junmai Hidahomare Watanabe Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. Gifu
Garyubai Junmaiginjo Yamadanishiki Sanwa shuzo CO.,LTD Shizuoka
Suginishiki Yamahai Junmai Tenpo13 Sugii Sake Brewery Shizuoka
Tokusen Kunizakari Junmai Ginjo Handago 1801 Nakano Sake Brewery Co., Ltd Aichi
Ninja NEO junmaiginjo Seko shuzo Co.,LTD Shiga
Tomio Junmai Ginjo Tansyuu Yamadanishiki Kitagawahonke CO.,LTD Kyoto
Fukuju Premium Junmai ‘Dance of stork’ Fukuju Brewery Hyogo
Kiku-Masamune Junmai Tarusake Kiku-Masamune Sake Brewing Co., Ltd. Hyogo
Shirayuki Sake of Edo-Genroku Era “Year 1702” Konishi Brewing Co.,Ltd Hyogo
Junmaiginjo Chokyu bizen-omachi Nakano BC Co.,LTD Wakayama
OMACHI JUNMAIGINJO SAIKA KOKONOE SAIKA Co.,Ltd Wakayama
Oki Homare Junmaishu Muromachi Oki Sake Brewery Co., Ltd Shimane
Sakehitosuji Junmai-ginjo KINREI Toshimori Sake Brewery Co.,Ltd Okayama
Hakuko Yodanshikomi Junmai “Red Label” Morikawa shuzo CO.,LTD Hiroshima
Narutotai Junmai Genshu Mizu to Kome Honke Matsuura Brewing Co., Ltd. Tokushima
BIJOFU Tokubetsu Junmai HAMAKAWA SHOTEN CO., LTD. Kochi
Hinode Momotaro Tokubetsu-jyunmai Fumimoto shuzo Co. Ltd. Kochi
Tokubetsu Junmai Kitaya Premium Kitaya Co., Ltd. Fukuoka
KOIMARISAKI JUNMAIGINJO OYAMANISHIKI Koimarishuzo Co.,LTD Saga
Bishonen Junmai Seiya Bishonen CO.,LTD Kumamoto
Junmai-ginjo Yoku Chiyonosono Sake Brewery INC Kumamoto
Junmai : Gold
Tokubetsu Junmaishu Kunimare Kunimare Shuzo Inc. Hokkaido
Momokawa Ginjo Junmaishu MOMOKAWA BREWING,INC. Aomori
Rokkon Tiger’s Eye Matsumidori Brewery CO.,LTD Aomori
Nanbu Bijin Yuzo Special Miyama-Nishiki NANBU BIJIN CO.,LTD. Iwate
Hakurakusei Junmai Ginjo Niizawa Sake Brewery Co.,Ltd Miyagi
Junmai-shu Urakasumi Saura Co., Ltd. Miyagi
Katsuyama Tokubetu Junmai EN Katsuyama Supreme SAKE Co.,Ltd Miyagi
Junmai Ginjo Fukukomachi Kimura Brewery Inc. Akita
BENTEN Tsuyahime Tokubetsu Junmaishu Goto Shuzoten Limited Partnership Yamagata
Dewazakura Tokubetsu Junmai Yamahai Hiyaoroshi Dewazakura Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. Yamagata
ORBIA GAIA WATARAI SAKE BREWING CO.,LTD Yamagata
Ura-Gasanryu Fuka Shindo Sake Brewery co.,ltd Yamagata
Ninki-ichi Modern Classic Junmai Ginjo5 NINKI INC. Fukushima
Matsunokotobuki Junmai Tochigisake14 Matsui Shuzoten CO.,LTD Tochigi
Organic Junmai Tentaka Tentaka Shuzo CO.,LTD. Tochigi
Sanran Junmai Ginjo Tonoikeshuzouten CO.,LTD Tochigi
Shichisui Junmai Ginjo 55 Omachi Toraya Honten CO.,LTD Tochigi
Gunmaizumi junmai Shimaoka shuzo Co.,Ltd. Gunma
Ryujin Hojun Karakuchi Junmai Ryujin Shuzo Co., Ltd. Gunma
Fudoh Junmai Ginjo Nabedana Inc. Chiba
Kinkon Junmai-Genshu without filtration “Juemon” Toshimaya Syuzou Co. Ltd Tokyo
Sawanoi Tokyo Kurabito Ozawa Shuzo Co., Ltd. Tokyo
NIJI Inoue Brewery Kanagawa
Setoichi Tenonaruhoue Seto shuzo Corporation Kanagawa
Kakurei Junmai Ginjo Aoki Shuzo CO.,LTD Niigata
TAKARAYAMA Komebukuroraberu Kosihikari Takarayama shuzo CO.,LTD Niigata
Haneya Junmaiginjo Prism Fumigiku Sake Brewery Toyama
Haneya Prototype Fumigiku Sake Brewery Toyama
Chikuha Noto Ushi Junmai Kazuma Sake Brewery Co,.Ltd. Ishikawa
Jyokigen Junmai-shu Kano Sake Brewery Co.,Ltd. Ishikawa
Kuroobi Yuyu Fukumitsuya Sake Brewery Ishikawa
Manzairaku Jin Junmai MANZAIRAKU SAKE KURA Co., Ltd. Ishikawa
Hakuryu Junmai Ginjo Yoshida Sake Brewery Inc Fukui
Ippongi KarakuchiJunmaisyu IPPONGI KUBOHONTEN CO.,LTD. Fukui
DAN Yamahai Junmaiginjo Bizen-omachi SasAichi sake brewery CO.,LTD Yamanashi
Monten Junmai made of Water beneath the Japan Alps Usui Shoten, Co., Ltd. Nagano
Shuho Alps Masamune Junmaiginjo Nakagumi Kametaya Sake Brewery Co.,Ltd Nagano
Hamamikura Junmai Ginjo Hana Hakusenshuzou CO.,LTD Gifu
Hyakusyun Junmaiginjo Minonishiki Un-chacoal filterd Kosaka shuzojo Co.,ltd. Gifu
Hyakusyun Junmaiginjo Oyamanishiki un-chacoal filterd Kosaka shuzojo Co.,ltd. Gifu
Tenryou Junmai Ginjo Genshu 55 Tenryou Sake Brewing CO., LTD. Gifu
Junmaiginjo Murasaki no Eikun Eikun Sake Brewing Co.,Ltd. Shizuoka
Kaiun Junmai Hiyadume Doishuzojo CO.,LTD Shizuoka
Suginishiki Yamahai Junmai Koshikishikomi Sugii Sake Brewery Shizuoka
Hayate Junmaiginjo Kaminoho Goto shuzojyo &CO.,LTD Mie
ZAKU HO-NO-TOMO SHIMIZU SEIZABURO SHOTEN LTD. Mie
Junmai Ginjo Takumi Kyohime Shuzo Co.,Ltd. Kyoto
Chikusen Kouirolabel Tajime General Partnership Hyogo
Chotokusen Souhana Nihonsakari Co.,Ltd. Hyogo
Junmai Rai OZEKI CORPORATION Hyogo
Kuromatsu Hakushika Kaori Junmai Ginjo Premium Tatsuuma-Honke Brewing Co. Ltd. Hyogo
Sakuramasamune Kinmare Junmaiginjo Sakuramasamune CO.,LTD Hyogo
Tokubetsujunmaishu Meitoumasamune Meishu~Tomi~ TANAKA JAPANESE SAKE
BREWERY Hyogo
Junmai Taiheiyou Ozaki Shuzo CO.,LTD Wakayama
YAMAHAIJUNMAI SAIKA KOKONOE SAIKA Co.,Ltd Wakayama
Juji asahi kimoto junmaishu Kagamigusa Asahi shuzo CO.,LTD Shimane
Kiseki No Osake Junmaiginjo Omachi Kikuchi Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. Okayama
Fukucho Junmai-Ginjo Hattanso Imada Sake Brewey Co.,Ltd Hiroshima
Hakuko Tokubetsu Junmai “Green Label” Morikawa shuzo CO.,LTD Hiroshima
Honshu-Ichi Muroka Junmai-Ginjo Umeda-Shuzoujou & Co. Hiroshima
Kamokinshu Tokubetsujunmai Kanemitsu shuzo Co.,LTD Hiroshima
Sempuku Mori Junmai Ginjo MIYAKEHONTEN Co.Ltd. Hiroshima
Sennofuku Ajiwaino Junmai Ginjo MIYAKEHONTEN Co.Ltd. Hiroshima
Ishizuchi Muroka Junmai Ishizuchi Shuzo Corporation Ehime
Iyo Kagiya junmai shizukuhime60 toshi’s sake Seiryoshuzo.CO.,LTD Ehime
Bunkajin Junmai Arisawa CO.,LTD. Kochi
Ikekame Junmaginjo Muroka・mukasui Ikekame shuzo Co.,LTD. Fukuoka
Kurokabuto Yumeikkon Junmaiginjo Ikekame shuzo Co.,LTD. Fukuoka
Morinokura Junmaiginjo Suisui MORINOKURA BREWING CO. Fukuoka
Junmai ginjo Madonoume madonoumesyuzoukabusikikaisya Saga
Junmai ginjo reKKi madonoumesyuzoukabusikikaisya Saga
KOIMARI SAKI JUNMAIGINJO Koimarishuzo Co.,LTD Saga
Shichida Junmaiginjo Tenzan sake brewery co.,LTD Saga
Fukuda Junmai Ginjo Yamadanishiki Fukuda Shuzo Sake Brewing Company Nagasaki
Bishonen Junmaiginjo Kikuchi Bishonen CO.,LTD Kumamoto
CHIEBIJIN JUNMAIGINJO YAMADANISHIKI Nakano shuzo Oita
CHIEBIJIN JUNMAISHU Nakano shuzo Oita
YATSUSHIKA TOKUBETSU JUNMAI MIDORI(GREEN) YATSUSHIKA BREWERY CO., LTD Oita
Junmai Daiginjo : Médaille de platine
Junmai Daiginjo Yuinoka Kamihei shuzo CO.,LTD Iwate
Nanbu Bijin Junmai Daiginjo Shinpaku NANBU BIJIN CO.,LTD. Iwate
Washinoo Yuinoka Washinoo Co., Ltd. Iwate
Katsuyama Junmai Daiginjo DEN Katsuyama Supreme SAKE Co.,Ltd Miyagi
Katsuyama Junmai Ginjo KEN Katsuyama Supreme SAKE Co.,Ltd Miyagi
Amanoto Junmai Daiginjo 35 Asamai Shuzo Co.,Ltd. Akita
Hideyoshi Junmaidaiginjo Suzuki Brewery and CO. Akita
Dewazakura Junmai Daiginjo Genshu Dewazakura Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. Yamagata
Yukimegami Junmaidaiginjo Aratama Wada Shuzo Limited Partnership Yamagata
Ninki-ichi Junmai Daiginjo NINKI INC. Fukushima
Organic Junmai Daiginjo Tentaka Funashibori Genshu Tentaka Shuzo CO.,LTD. Tochigi
SAKE100 Byakko Tatenokawa,Inc. Tokyo
Kouwagura (45) Junmai Daiginjo Hakkaisan Brewery Co., LTD Niigata
Seven Junmai Daiginjo Shirataki Sake Brewery Co.,Ltd. Niigata
Takachiyo Junmaidaiginnjyo IPPONJIME Takachiyo shuzo sake-brewer CO.,LTD Niigata
Haneya Junmaidaiginjo Tominokaori Fumigiku Sake Brewery Toyama
Hakugakusen Junmai Daiginjo Tokusen Yasumoto shuzo Fukui
Jozan Jyunmai Daiginjo chokara TOKOYAMA SAKE BREWERY Fukui
Imanishiki Junmai Daiginjo YONEZAWA SAKE BREWERY Co.,Ltd. Nagano
Junmaidaiginjo Toji Hiraokaseiji Funasaka Sake Brewery Gifu
Tamakashiwa Junmai Daiginjo Yamada Shoten & Co.,Ltd Gifu
ZAKU KAIZAN ITTEKISUI SHIMIZU SEIZABURO SHOTEN LTD. Mie
ZAKU MIYABI-NO-TOMO SHIMIZU SEIZABURO SHOTEN LTD. Mie
ZAKU MIYABI-NO-TOMO NAKADORI SHIMIZU SEIZABURO SHOTEN LTD. Mie
Sakuramasamune Kinmare Junmaidaiginjo Yonju Sakuramasamune CO.,LTD Hyogo
Kannihonkai JunmaiDaiginjo Mizusuminosato Nihonkai Shuzou CO.,LTD Shimane
Oki Homare Junmai Dai-ginjo Tobin Kakoi Oki Sake Brewery Co., Ltd Shimane
Junmaidaiginjo Ugonotsuki Hakutsurunishiki Aihara Shuzo CO.,LTD Hiroshima
Iyo Kagiya junmai daiginjo Green Label Seiryoshuzo.CO.,LTD Ehime
BIJOFU Hina HAMAKAWA SHOTEN CO., LTD. Kochi
Keigetsu CEL24 Junmai-Daiginjo 50 Tosa Brewing Company Limited Kochi
AzumAichi Yamadanishiki Junmai Ginjo GOCHODA BREWERY Co.,Ltd Saga
Tedukurijyunmaisyu Mitsutake Mitsutake syuzojo LP Saga
Junmai Daiginjo : Médaille d’or
Momokawa Daiginjo Junmai Oushou MOMOKAWA BREWING,INC. Aomori
Mutsu Hassen Gin-eboshi40 Hachinohe shuzo CO.,LTD Aomori
Mutsu Hassen Reimei40 Hachinohe shuzo CO.,LTD Aomori
Junmai Daiginjo Kokkanokaori Kamihei shuzo CO.,LTD Iwate
Junmai Daiginjo Yuinoka Tsukinowasyuzoten Limited Company Iwate
Biroku Junmai Daiginjo Otokoyama Honten Co.,Ltd. Miyagi
Katsuyama Junmai Daiginjo REN Katsuyama Supreme SAKE Co.,Ltd Miyagi
Sotenden Junmai Daiginjo Otokoyama Honten Co.,Ltd. Miyagi
Yamadanishiki Junmai Daiginjo Urakasumi Saura Co., Ltd. Miyagi
Junmai Daiginjo Fukukomachi Kimura Brewery Inc. Akita
Taiheizan Junmaidaiginjo Tenko KODAMA BREWING Co.,Ltd Akita
Aizu Homare Junmai Daiginjo Homare Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. Fukushima
Ninki-ichi Modern Classic Junmai Daiginjo6 NINKI INC. Fukushima
Raifuku Jyunmaiginjyo Aiyama Raifuku shuzo CO.,LTD Ibaraki
Tsumugibijin Junmai Daiginjo Nomura Brewery CO.,LTD Ibaraki
Bo Junmai Daiginjo Tonoikeshuzouten CO.,LTD Tochigi
Sanran Junmai Daiginjo Tonoikeshuzouten CO.,LTD Tochigi
Sawahime Junmai Ginjo Premium “Yume-Sasara” Inoue Seikichi Co.,Ltd. Tochigi
Ozeno Yukidoke Junmai Daiginjo Yamadanishiki 35 Ryujin Shuzo Co., Ltd. Gunma
Nagatoro Junmai Daiginjo Fujisaki Sobe Shoten CO.,LTD Saitama
Koshu Fujikawa HONBISHI Junmaidaiginjo Musubi.Inc Tokyo
Manotsuru Sado Yamadanishiki Junmaidaiginjo Obata shuzo Co.,Ltd Niigata
Haneya Junmaidainjo50 Tsubasa Fumigiku Sake Brewery Toyama
Kiss of Fire Kano Sake Brewery Co.,Ltd. Ishikawa
Born:Gold Katoukichibee Shouten Fukui
Born:Wing Of Japan Katoukichibee Shouten Fukui
Fukuchitose FUKU Tajima shuzo CO.,LTD Fukui
Shichiken Onakaya Yamanashi Meijo Co., Ltd. Yamanashi
SOU Kikusui shuzo Co.,LTO Nagano
Hanamikura Junmai Daiginjo Kuroraberu Hakusenshuzou CO.,LTD Gifu
Hourai Junmai Daiginjo Gokuiden Watanabe Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. Gifu
Tokusen Junmai Daiginjo Okuhida Okuhida Shuzo Co., Ltd Gifu
Fujinishiki Junmai Daiginjo Fujinishiki Sake Brewery CO.,LTD. Shizuoka
Garyubai Junmaidaiginjo Kaibinjurinikaoru Sanwa shuzo CO.,LTD Shizuoka
Kaiun Junmaiginjo Doishuzojo CO.,LTD Shizuoka
Kamoshibito Kuheiji EAU DU DESIR Banjo Jozo CO.,LTD Aichi
Hokosugi Yuminariho-Shizuku Junmaiginjyoshu Kawabu jyozo CO.,LTD Mie
Miyanoyuki Junmaidaiginjo Shukon Miyazaki Honten CO.,LTD Mie
Seiun Junmaidaiginjo Goto shuzojyo &CO.,LTD Mie
Junmai Daiginjo KAGURA Muroka Genshu Black Bottle Matsui Sake Brewery Co.,Ltd Kyoto
Kyohime Junmai Daiginjo Kyohime Shuzo Co.,Ltd. Kyoto
Shinsei iwai Junmaidaiginjo Yamamotohonke Co.,Ltd Kyoto
Shinsei Yamadanishiki Junmaidaiginjo Yamamotohonke Co.,Ltd Kyoto
Shinsei Yamadanisiki Junmaidaiginjogensyu Platinum Yamamotohonke CO.,LTD Kyoto
Tsukinokatsura YANAGI MASUDA TOKUBEE SHOTEN Co.,Ltd kyoto
Chikusen Junmaidaiginjo Yamadanishiki Tajime General Partnership Hyogo
Chikusen Tokubetusaibaimai Junmaidaiginjo Kounotori Tajime General Partnership Hyogo
Hyaku Moku Junmai Daiginjo Kiku-Masamune Sake Brewing Co., Ltd. Hyogo
Junmaidaiginjo Kame-no-kou Twentytwo TANAKA JAPANESE SAKE BREWERY Hyogo
Junmaidaiginjo Shirasagi-no-shiro TANAKA JAPANESE SAKE BREWERY Hyogo
Jyunmai-daiginjo Seppikosan Tsubosaka Shuzo Co.,LTD Hyogo
Shirayuki Junmai Daiginjo Banzaimonv Konishi Brewing Co.,Ltd Hyogo
KID Muryozan Junmai Daiginjo 35% Heiwa shuzou CO.,LTD Wakayama
Akaiwaomachi Toshimori Sake Brewery Co.,Ltd Okayama
Junmai-Daiginjo Gold omachimai no sato Muromachi shuzo CO.,LTD. Okayama
Sanzen Junmai Daiginjo Omachi Kikuchi Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. Okayama
Taiten Shiragiku Junmaidaiginjo Omachi Shiragiku shuzo CO.,LTD Okayama
Jyunmai Daiginjo Hiroshimanishiki Kamotsuru.sake.CO.,LTD Hiroshima
kyokuhou Junmai Daiginjyou Hattannishiki Kyokuhou Syuzou CO.,LTD Hiroshima
Sempuku Yamadanishiki Junmai Daiginjo MIYAKEHONTEN Co.Ltd. Hiroshima
Suishin Bunanoshizuku Junmai Daiginjo SUISHIN YAMANEHONTEN CO.,LTD. Hiroshima
Bouchotsuru Junmaidaiginjo 35% Yamadanishiki Yamagata Honten Co.,Ltd Yamaguchi
Dassai23 centrifuge ASAHI SHUZO CO.,LTD Yamaguchi
Gangi Junmai Daiginjo Yuunagi Yaoshin Shuzo Co.,LTD Yamaguchi
Narutotai Junmai Daiginjo Honke Matsuura Brewing Co., Ltd. Tokushima
Umenishiki Junmai Daiginjo Umenishiki Yamakawa CO.,LTD Ehime
SUIGEI JUNMAI DAIGINJO DAITO 2018 Suigei Brewing Co.,Ltd Kochi
Amabuki Junmai Daiginjo 50 Amabuki Shuzo CO.,LTD Saga
AzumAichi Shizukushibori Junmai Daiginjo GOCHODA BREWERY Co.,Ltd Saga
Junmai Daiginjo Azumacho Shizukushibori Seto shuzo Co.,Ltd. Saga
Manrei Junmaiginjo Komatsu Sake Brewing Co.,Ltd Saga
okujuyoshu Junmai Ginjo Omachi Imazato shuzo Co.,Ltd. Nagasaki
CHIEBIJIN JUNMAIDAIGINJO Nakano shuzo Oita
Ryubai Fujii shuzo co.,ltd Oita
Fukujukai Genshu Danyang yihe foods CO.,LTD Jiangsu province
Link to the results (a few more not listed by me)
This was a super nice sake, this was the 3rd one I tasted, it had this super Umami feel with total harmony, and this intensity in the mouth as well as when swallowed, there was a light tickling on the tongue. enjoyable viscosity with coating feel in the mouth and palate, superb ! The good thing when you don't have a clue about what's written on the label is that you're tasting like blind, so this is a very honest commenting with no prejudiced influence.
This sake is named from the rice variety, it's a Junmai Ginjo. Super nice sake with what I think is a minerality feel, something saline. Comes from Tohoku, the rice from an area named Rokune. 16 %. Made in the Aomori prefecture in the town of Shirasaki.
This is a top-notch sake, the brand name is Tsukinokatsura, it's a Junmai Ginjo and the cuvée Yanagi. Brewery : Masuda Tokuhei, Fushimi, Kyoto. Nice nose. The mouth is just magnificent, it radiates down the throat and the system, very delicate with peony notes. B. says that the label style is very "Kyoto" style...
At one point I tasted a sparkling sake, this type of sake is a new trend and I don't think it's overall interesting but it was still pleasant to make a digression from the traditionnal still sake.
Catlyn who is from British Columbia was loving the sparkling and I joined the fray. This Chiyomusubi Sorah, Japan"s Premium Sparkling Sake (dixit the back label) is made by the Chiyomusubi brewery, it has exhuberant aromas (maybe too much ?) but is quite easy drinking nonetheless.
__Shishida (the bottle pictured on center), from Kyushu, made by Tenzan Brewery in Saga Prefecture. Rice from Okayama. Super kind of chalky, milky mouth, very exciting and enjoyable sake ! 3 of these cuvées are unfiltered.
__ Shishida, green label, unfiltered sake. Acidulous sake, intense and refined, last mouth length ! Super good, super gliding/coating on the palate sides.
__ Third Tenzan (the one on the left if I'm right), more alcohol feel, less exciting.
Kiyama "Sélection Parcellaire", man, this feels like some kind of revolution in the approach to the selection of rice batches, with obviously the influence of the wine world here.... Sweet and fresh, but some inbalance it seems to me. En Français dans le texte (front label) : Mis en Bouteille par la Maison Kiyama, Producteur de Saké à Saga, Japon, avec un Respect Rigoureux du Terroir du Village de Kiyama. Sélection Louis Robuchon. this speaks by itself...
At this very tasting event, we met the Japanese couple behing the Fromagerie Hisada, a Cheese shop in Paris. They're making the affinage as well as the retail, and we could taste a sample of wasabi goat cheese. Man, I'd have liked to taste more of it with the excuse to see which saka pairs best... Eri Hisada and her Husband Yasu are running the shop, and this is not a recent operation, this company has been dealing cheese in Tokyo for 35 years and the Paris branch was opened 15 years ago. The shop is located 47 rue de Richelieu, right nxt to Izakaya Issé, the best address for sake in Paris... I guess if you want a complete Japanese-Parisian experience, you'll have to go get yopur bread at Aki Boulanger, the Japanese boulangerie rue Sainte Anne...
And for a French-Japanese pâtisserie, go to Yamazaki, and say hello to Satchiko if she's around...
We made a short trip to Provence in june and visited the remarkable Maison des Vins de Bandol where Pascal poured us a few wines to taste. I can't but insist that this tasting room for the Bandol wines is an excellent place to taste the region's wines (for free) and buy the wines at the domaines's prices (no extra fee). The tasting room keeps the wines from around 60 domaines of Bandol, Pascal Perier who runs the Maison des Vins knows all the domaines including their owners and the way
they work, and he has a keen knowledge of the respective terroirs, having visited all the places.
Here are a few wines among the ones we tasted there :
And watch this video of the Maison des Vins explaining a lot of things about the Bandol wines (with lots of picture from the 1940s').
__ Domaine Antiane, Bandol Rosé 2018. 40 % Mourvèdre, Cinsault & Grenache for the rest of the blend. This is a fairly new domaine in Bandol, this is their 3rd or 4th vintage and they work on only 3 hectares, something like that. the parcels are pretty old but before the prevuious owners were selling their grapes to the Coopérative. They're located right next the Domaine de l'Olivette and by the way their first vinifications took place there. They also make olive oil and safran. Pascal had just received these 2018 rosés the previous week.
Young wine, nice for an apéritif. 16 €.
__ Domaine du Paternel, Bandol 2016, 75 % Mourvèdre, the rest with Grenache, Carignan, Syrah.
The Domaine du Paternel is originally from the Cassis region, the other best wine region in Provence and the Santini family has been making wine there for several generations. Here in Bandol they bought the Domaine Sorin after the vigneron passed away. They have 4,5 hectares in Bandol now with this purchase. Sorin had been the first in the early 2000s to do the élevage in new casks instead of olf foudres (that's because Luc Sorin was originally from Burgundy), so Paternel kept working this way. At the begining other Bandol producers were shocked of this new-oak use but Sorin did it smartly and the wood is well integrated. Pascal says he spent hours with Sorin at the time who explained his ways, the different wood origins, the different toast types for the barrels and the microbullage and barrel blending which helped the wine get this harmony, he never made what we'd call oaky wines in the extreme sense. There is indeed some oak feel here but it's gently harmonious, nothing to fear. B. likes the polished and smooth tannins, and Pascal underlines that 2016 is also pretty young for a Bandol red, ideally a couple more years will be even better. 21 €.
__ Gros Noré Bandol red 2015, 85 % Mourvèdre, Cinsault, Grenache, Carignan and a little bit of another variety I didn't hear the name. Extraordinary wine, exceptionnal ! Each time I come across a Gros Noré, I'm stunned, these wines are just so beautiful, powerful but so smooth and silky at the same time with the concentration as well... I ask about the price and it's not even expensive for this
quality,
24 € tax included at the Maison des Vins de Bandol. And the cellaring potential of this wine is very big, like for all the good Bandols.
The domaine is a mid-size estate of 15-20 hectares, it is at the foot of La Cadière d'Azur (one of the villages of the Appellation) on clayish soils. The first vintage at Gros' Noré was 1996 and before that the vigneron was selling the grapes, part to the Coop and part to Pibarnon, and when he began to vinify himself Pibarnon was very frustrated because it lost the grapes... Pascal says when he began to vinify he immediately found his style, the guy is a perfectionist and Pascal remembers going at the winery taste the wines since the 1st vintage, and the vigneron was always eager to learn how people felt about the wines. He says they also make parcellaire cuvées like the Cuvée Antoinette.
__ Domaine de la Vivonne 2004 (which was a very nice year in bandol), 95 % Mourvèdre. Older vintage here, the color is still dense because of the Mourvèdre but you feel it's turning to tile. Very nice also with plum notes. Pascal says it pairs well with Magret de canard, something simple. Pascal says that Vivonne has still a good stock of older vintages, this bottle is not that expensive, it's 42 € here. Speaking of the best years in Bandol, Pascal says they are 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, these consecutive vintages were excellent.
__ Jean-Pierre Gaussen Bandol 2011. Mourvèdre 95 %, Pascal says the extraction is very high here. The color indeed is very dark (you can see by yoursel on the picture) even compared with routinely-dark Bandol reds. Animal nose, that's exciting ! Wow, very good
Pascal says Jean-Pierre Gaussen vinifies with destemmed grapes in rotating fermenters that make pigeage smoothly and automatically without exposure to oxygen, it helps a better extraction. He says he's the only one to do that and you need to use these rotating fermenters expertly if you don't want to get excessive extraction with bitterness. Good job indeed, love this wine ! Superb. Pascal says it's better to carafe the wine sometime earlier, like the morning for the evening. And costs only 27 €. they have also the 2006, 2012 & 2014 at 23 €, and 2011 & 2015 at 27 €. Pascal says Jean-Pierre Gaussen is a nice guy who never went to the wine school and learnt on the job, his wines reflect his personnality. He says was is a great deal from this domaine are Gaussen' wines labelled under the minor Appellation Vin de Pays du Mont Caumes, coming either from slopes not strictly on the Bandol area and/or with varieties not included in the Bandol requirements like Cabernet Sauvignon, or they are young vines that have to wait more to be allowed to be labelled Bandol... You pay much less (9,5 €) but this is the same quality of work and maybe a shorter élevage. Pascal says when you taste the wines you feel like you have Bandol actually. I love to hear about such wines that are under the radar... He says Terrebrunne also makes this Vin de Pays, the cuvée is Terre d'Ombre and it is an excellent deal as well.
Pascal says that every year on the 1st weekend of december there's a Fête du Millésime in Bandol where you can taste all the wines of the Appellation. This year (2019) it will be december 1st, you pay 5 € for the empty glass and then you're poured directly barrel samples from the same-year vintage of all the participating domaines, a trat indeed. This is not a common experience because you're used to taste the Bandols only after minimum 18 months. This is a festive day and you end with black lips and teeth, we'll try to go there if possible. Plus I'd say it's better to taste these wines in december than in august where it'd be too hot in the streets.
__ Ame qui Vive 2017, Grenache, Carignan, Syrah, Mourvèdre (25 % each), 12-month élevage. Unfiltered wine. New cuvée which is kind of the blend of the former cuvées Alibi and Abracadabrantesque, on the market since october 2018. Jean-Christophe wanted to put two cuvées together and make this one. fruity, refined, very nice, gourmand with good length.
Komasa Gin, Sakurajima Komikan
B. brought me back this little gem of a Gin from Japan a few months ago, it's so aromatic and intense, because it's made with a local citrus, namely in English dans le text : "Made with the World's smallest Satsumas, mandarins harvested in southern Japan". This Japanese Craft Gin is 45 % strong with a strong mandarin peel aftertaste, i love it. Bottled in 500 ml bottle with a cork stopper, very nice object by itself beyond the pleasure of the drink. At about 3500 ¥ or 29 € that a good value.
Distilled in Kagoshima, Japan by Komasa Jyoso Co., Ltd
For those of you interested in vintage tractors, here is this John Deere 1020 from 1968 at work somewhere in the Loire. It belongs to the elderly man with crutches, he couldn't drive it for a few weeks and he had asked a neighbor to help him plow his vegetable plot. These old tractors are working for ever it seems, no electronics, no computers, and they're not too difficult to find on the second-hand market, plus, they are cheap.
Here is a tribute to Gecse Balázs, a Hungarian guy who was killed by a passing car on a secondary road in France while walking along his ox-drawn cart with which he was travelling through Europe like in a moving farm. He'd been living this nomadic life for 14 years, off the grid, no Internet, just real life made with encounters in the deep country anywhere he'd go. We need more people like him. Follow your dreams.
Article from 444.hu about this.
Article in English about him.
I learnt in this article that using pottery sherds from four Holy Land sites, an interdisciplinary team isolated and revitalized six strains of ancient yeast to create alcoholic beverages of ancient Israel, thus these Israeli scientists brew this groundbreaking ‘ancient beer’ from 5,000-year-old yeast...
From the linked article : Using yeast that lay dormant for thousands of years, a team of Israeli biologists, archaeologists and beer makers has successfully brewed the beer that Goliath of Gath may have quaffed as he set out to meet a young shepherd named David. And assuming seed funding is secured, soon the brew will hit supermarket shelves, too.
In a multi-layered, interdisciplinary long-term experiment, scientists isolated six yeast strains from 21 sherds of beer or wine vessels excavated from four ancient Holy Land sites. Once populated by Philistines, Canaanites, Egyptians, or Judeans, the sites include biblical Tell es-Safi/Gath (ca. 850 BCE), Bronze Age En-Besor in the Negev and an Egyptian brewery found in Tel Aviv’s Ha-Masger Street (both ca. 3100 BCE), and Jerusalem’s Ramat Rachel (ca. 8th to 4th century BCE).
More pics and info in the article
Other article on the issue.
« Veronica says it has to do with the fact that Les Sentiers is a climat close to Pommard »
Les Sentiers is a climat in the Côte de Nuits, close to Morey. Far from Pommard!
Posted by: Jan | July 16, 2019 at 09:48 PM
Ok, thank you, may have misread my notes, or she implied the terroirs were similar, I'll look into it...
Posted by: Bertrand Celce | July 17, 2019 at 07:44 AM